#Yo is this a bad apple reference?

[k4zp3rluvr]

"Will there ever be a way? Will my heart return to white?"

Not one of my best drawings but its something at least!

Ref:

0_o

[toto-the-cactus]

Primarchs + Daughters

My perception of how each Primarch would behave when nosediving into parenthood if they had daughters. Enjoy!

I wanna personally thank @moodymisty because a great deal of their works inspired this piece.

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3

Lion El’jonson

The embodiment of 'tough love' made man. Having a daughter doesn’t do much to soften this guy… or at least that’s what others believe. The Dark Angels Legion are probably the only ones aware of the small gestures the Primarch often gives to his little girl in the safety that privacy offers. Where Lion lacks words of compassionate and parental love, he appropriately makes up for it with actions. He isn’t one to go over the top and prefers to give modest gifts to his daughter as the last thing the man wants is to raise a spoiled brat. Father-daughter bonding time can be summarized with strenuous training using the sword. This man will not let his precious Princess go through life without learning how to protect herself, even if he has made an oath to forever shield her too.

Fulgrim

The complete antithesis of Lion. Where this man views the Emperor as the perfection anyone should strive to reach, his beautiful daughter comes close to the second place in fulfilling that ideal. There’s a big fat chance that he teared up a little when his little gem called him Papa for the first time, but managed to wear his ever unshakable mask because he absolutely refuses to break character even in private. Has the mistaken notion that his baby is a blank canvas ready to be painted to its fullest potential; aka, molding her to what HE wants and expects of her. Fulgrim probably spoils her rotten but only through conditions that she must follow, as the Primarch understands the importance of fighting and earning for what you wish to obtain. He makes sure that any of his gene-sons are in her company as he refuses to let even a single scratch happen to his little girl. Honestly, a grown-up version of Fulgrim’s child has the chances to go both opposites of the spectrum with no in betweens: A shy aristocratic lady who is unable to speak her own mind or a completely haughty, sharp and manipulative noble woman. Too much to unpack there, yo.

Perturabo

(Slaps this bastard's head loudly) This bad boy can fit so much family trauma in it! Okay no but seriously, there’s a good reason why so many people agree that this bitch has a thing for gilded cages and all the fucked up poetry that comes with it. The good ol’ classic Greek tragedy of Medea. Perturabo may have big and insane expectations for his gene-sons but when it comes to having a daughter? The apple of his eyes. The sunshine of his life. For this Primarch, his little princess is the only living thing in the entire universe that loves him genuinely and unconditionally, making his love the equivalent of a child crushing a bird between his hands. While still easy to anger and with a resting-bitch face, he is incredibly tame and careful with his girl; always making sure that she is well versed in all kinds of science and engineering that could easily label her as a genius (but we all know how stressful can be to try and live up to big expectations). Most of his Legion finds the child either an annoyance or don’t even care enough beyond the factual point of her being the child of their mighty Primarch, beyond that? This poor girl is probably the loneliest child to ever grace the world. Remember that I referred to this like the Tragedy of Medea? Yeah…

Jaghatai Khan

Probably one of the few best papa-tier out there. This man will see his little daughter and think the only thing a good parent should do: To love and guide. He’ll be not afraid to say “I love you” to his baby girl no matter where they are, but he’ll know when to be stern and wise so she grows to be a fine and humble woman. Honestly, this guy would learn how to make a sling just for the single purpose of having his precious princess close while also being excited to teach her how to ride on a horse like he did in his childhood. The thing that makes this dude the best in this list is that if his daughter ever expresses to follow a different path in life like becoming a remembrancer or anything that doesn’t involve the Imperium, this Chad of a man will look deep into her eyes and tell her that he’ll support her no matter what. The only thing he asks is that she stays in contact as he’ll miss her terribly. Kudos to him, fr.

Leman Russ

Another one for the ‘tough love’ guys list, yo! On his defense! Hear me out… in his defense, this guy was literally raised first by Fenrisian wolves before even knowing what a proper bath entailed, so of course he’ll sometimes be a bit too much on his poor little baby girl. Roughhousing was his best first approach to teach her how to fight, trying to make his little pup have some proper backbone worthy of being called the child of a Primarch. Sometimes he’ll get carried away (either with words or actions) and is in those moments when Leman would learn what genuine and heavy guilt feels like; a very alien emotion for someone as brutal and fierce as he is. There’s no worse feeling than knowing that you are the reason behind your daughter’s tears. No one would ever say it out loud, but the way this giant of a man apologizes is by slowly and silently hugging his little girl while pouting until she hugs him back. He may suck at expressing verbally his love towards his baby, but actions are his best way to communicate and this is something his daughter eventually learns and accepts from him. Forgot to add that the entire Space Wolves Legion are not only suffocatingly protective of their Primarch’s child, but everyone takes turns when she asks them for piggy-rides or let her braid their hair.

Rogal Dorn

I don’t wanna be too mean to this poor man but lord have some mercy, trying to squeeze any emotion that doesn’t range to watching paint dry from this damn guy is already a miracle on its own. He’s probably the kind of dude that’ll leave his poor daughter in the care of his astartes and serfs while he works. Workaholic in bold, yo. It literally will take watching his poor little princess cry her eyes out for him to attempt some bonding time but man he just sucks at trying not to have a stick up his ass (Again, I’m not trying to be mean but god this is painful). This is the kind of man, besides Guilliman, that will search high and low for some paternity books to help him. At the end this father-daughter relationship can be salvageable by having a heart to heart between them both and even then, is the poor girl the one that gives more than she receives. Honestly, any daughter from Dorn has the patience of a saint. Besides this Primarch's ineptitude to properly communicate his feelings, everything else doesn’t change the fact that he loves his little princess and will do anything to make her as happy as possible so he gets some brownie points for the try.

I'll later write the second and third part of this, I swear <333

[thepiedcurrawong]

WELCOME TO THE MINDFUCK

Here's a new intro post!

last updated 17/04/2025

IMPORTANT POST

BASIC INFORMATION

I live in AEDT/AEST, so click here to see my time.

Am 17! Minor! I've had so many "MDNI" blogs follow me its acually weird. Like fellas i have IT WRITTEN I AM A MINOR!!! dude it actually pisses me off if you're gonna have a dni make sure YOU YOURSELF can follow it!?!!??! like cmon??? you cant expect other people to enforce your restrictions that you have placed on yourself. If i have to go tell someone who is following me that i am indeed a minor then like. dude. cmon.

I am bisexual(1) and panromantic. I am also a trans girl. My pronouns are she/her.

I love DMs! I love social interaction! Please, if you think I'm cool, DM me! I love talking to people!!

Dividers used made by @enchanthings-a and can be found here

Further elaboration below the cut.

COMPLEX INFORMATION

I live in Australia. My favourite drink is coffee, followed shortly by Schweppes Agrum Blood Orange, caramel milkshakes, apple juice, and the blood of my enemies.

You may call me A.V., as those are my initials. If we're mooties I'll probably tell you my name.

I’M ON ESTROGEN, BITCHES! >:3

My singing range is around E2-A5.

I won't reblog reblog bait. Just know that yes, this blog is a safe place for everyone unless you don't tolerate other people, in which case you violate the social contract of tolerance and are as such not included in said contract.

I have many plushies. DM me if you want to know their lore.

I will probably use all slurs that apply to me (faggot, tranny, dyke).

I will probably flirt with you.

I love media piracy.

I FUCKING LOVE BIRDS. My favourite ones are the Australian Magpie, Aussie Raven, and of course, Pied Currawongs.

I have no DNI because they don't really work anyway.

I would totally fuck the xenomorph.

I have multiple sideblogs, DM me if you want to know them :3

I love yo-yos. I'm not good at it but I'm tryning ok just gimmie a minute here

My tags

A number of these I haven't used in a while, and most I just forget.

#av-og for when i write things.

#av-media for posts relating to media I like

#av-dark for DarK related stuff

#av-dune for Dune related posts

#av-silly for silly stuff

#av-rb for reblogs

#av-trans for stuff relating to being trans

#av-hrt for matter specifically regarding me having estrogen

#av-space for SPACE SPACE SPACE SPACE

#av-lore for mostly plushie lore but maybe some amy lore too if i decide to do jazz

MEDIA I'M A FAN OF (BIG LIST SORRY)

BOOKS

Holes

No Country For Old Men

Dune

The Hunger Games series

The Three-Body Problem trilogy

The Martian

House of Leaves

FILMS

Dune

The Princess Bride

Pirates of the Caribbean

The Black Phone

Jaws

Klaus

The Batman

Hunt for the Wilderpeople

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar

TELEVISION

Test Patterns

Dark (2017)

A Series of Unfortunate Events

Stranger Things (only season 1 though) (3)

The Owl House

The Sandman

Alice in Borderland

Good Omens

Breaking Bad

Squid Game (4)

MUSIC

The Crane Wives

Will Wood & The Tapeworms

Sarah and the Safe Word

Vundabar

Lena Raine

The Heavy

The Black Keys

JCS

VIDEO GAMES

Fields of Mistria

Stardew Valley

Project Zomboid

Minecraft

Minecraft: Story Mode

Subnautica

Terraria

Celeste

Team Fortress 2

Bopl Battle

Pressure

OTHER

The Magnus Archives/The Magnus Protocol

Technoblade

Chainmail Chasers

Colinlock16 continuity

This Man

Jesus Christ: Superstar

Ending notes

Don't kill yourself, please.

The title is a reference to Mind Brand.

have this as a gift for reading the whole thing

[starmocha]

Caleb things I am anticipating/wanting/brainrotting

Putting him in the kitty suit so I can complete my harem of catboys and not look at his weird apple pfp anymore

Panda suit when I'm feeling a little silly

Finding out the length of his towel, I will be purchasing it, yes 💁‍♀️

Caleb's secret times, particularly cooking with him *side-eye devs for withholding Sylus'*

Reminder that there will most likely be a secret time of him taking care of you while you're on your period when you're at a higher affinity (maybe possible references to the past growing up together?)

Working out with Caleb. Caleb in workout clothes. Sweating. Grunting. Panting. (Any guesses on the activity or equipment he would use? 🤔)

Study/work time with Caleb 🥺

Study/work time with Caleb in the fucking panda suit 🐼

Claw machine dates and him cheating with his Evol (plsIfeellikeheshouldhave100%accuracywiththis)

Getting angry at him when he beats me in kitty cards lol

Touching his 🍆 and slapping his 🍑

Fight wanderers, I guess ���� /j (any guesses on our weapon of choice? Would it be possible if the devs introduce a new weapon?)

Maybe childhood memories of him and MC?

I need him and Zayne to make references to one another PLEASE

I...also need them commenting on one another’s Moments posts....

I also need childhood memories of him and Zayne, especially since he did say they need to invite Zayne to have dinner with them....

CHILDHOOD FRIENDS-TO-LOVER THREESOME POTENTIAL, THE MORE THE MERRIER, GET THOSE DICCS GIRLIE AND WATCH ZAYNE AND CALEB FUCK EACH OTH—

❄️🍎 🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹

Finding out who the sexy supporting side character is

His birthday message and gift to us

Caleb's birthday celebration.....it's gonna be an apple cake, isn't it 😭😭😭

Actually I need the lores for Caleb's apple...fascination? (Just like I need the lore for Zayne's aversion to carrots)

Hearing him use the nickname "cutie", "honey", "darling", or "girlfriend" in the café.

Audio messages

.........his text messages when you're absent from the game for months......

The tête-à-tête feature, but particularly the one where he would comfort you when you tell him you had a bad day

finding out he's just another loser (affectionate) like the other four freaks (affectionate) with some sort of insane habits or quirks (judging)

I feel it in my soul that his plushies is the apple one, so just imagine his chibi form wearing an apple onesie 😭😭😭

Now also imagine regular Caleb dressed like an apple. I would bite him (sexually)

Begging the devs to bring back the kitties, so 1) I can have my kitties back 2) find out what breed of cat Caleb would be 3) make him wear the ears and tail in the café

Drunk Caleb pls 💁‍♀️

He's gonna have a horny memory just like the other four. It's coming (just like he will in yo—)

[pien-art]

-FAQ-

Hello! I've gained a whole bunch of followers lately and I've been getting a lot of questions about commissions, what my setup is, what brushes I use, etc, so I thought I'd make a post about it to answer everyone's questions at once !

Putting them under the cut <3

Commissions:

Commission prices are listed in my pinned post. You can send me a private message about your commission idea and we can get to talking :) It is helpful to have enough references handy (character, outfit, descriptions etc)

I am generally a fast drawer but I also have a job and a physical disability so there might be moments I can't work on your commission. But that is never longer than a few days at most.

Payment is upfront, the full amount and via paypal only. I know this might seem a bit scary but unfortunately there are a lot of people who end up not paying for commissions and I want to avoid that.

During the process I will send you frequent updates and will ask for input, to see if it is going in the direction you want. You can ask for changes during the sketching progress but once I've started on line-art and coloring, no big changes will happen. (You can for example ask for a different color for a shirt etc, but not for a different prop or pose or expression)

When it is completed, I will send the drawing to you via email. The drawing will remain mine and it is not to be sold or profited of by the person who commissioned me. If the commission is for something commercial/for selling, that needs to be discussed. I prefer to do drawings only for personal use!

For more questions, my dms/asks are open :)

How long have I been doing digital art:

I've been drawing digitally for about 5 years now i think? But before that I've been drawing and painting traditionally literally since the moment I could pick up a pencil.

Set-up:

It's just me and my ipad and apple pencil laying on my bed. I wouldn't even know where to begin for those whole multi-monitor/screen setups ;-; I draw only with Procreate

Brushes:

I tend to play with different brushes from time to time to get different textures, but generally i use the same few for most of my drawings/styles. My favorite one is the Peppermint Brush, for sketching. I use it in every drawing i make! I always sketch with it, and often do the line-art with it as well! And it makes for a nice textured brush for rendering as well! (i used it for a lot of rendering of the armor in this drawing)

The (procreate) brushes i use a lot are

for medieval style: inking - Ink Bleed (for line-art) artistic - Quoll (for coloring)

for general style: calligraphy - Chalk (coloring/rendering) sketching - Peppermint (line-art/sketching)

for realism: calligraphy - Shale Brush (full rendering) Also using the shale brush for smudging and erasing when drawing realistic

for lineart: smooth pencil from this pack by Heygiudi

How/why do you choose a base color:

I tend to look at a few different things when deciding on a base color/color palette.

the overall color of the reference pic

the color i associate with who or what i am drawing

the feeling/vibe i want to give off with that drawing

color has a BIG impact on the vibe of a drawing, so it is something i keep in mind when im drawing.

Using a color as a base to start, helps a lot with my drawing process. It helps me pick out other colors so they match better. It helps me get light/dark values right. And the chalk brush i use, has gaps between the strokes, so the base color will always come through a little. Having the same color come through in the entire drawing, helps pull all the colors together if that makes sense? I always start with a solid base color when i am painting traditionally as well!

Advice:

PRACTICE!!! just keep drawing and practice. I know this is such generic advice but truly practice is The Way. Learn from other artists but don't compare yourself to them. Everyone's artistic journey is different and there's no "good" or "bad". And most importantly make sure that you have fun when you're making stuff :3

I also learn a lot by studying art I admire and love. Figuring out what it is I like about it. (for example, the line thickness or the shapes or texture etc), and try to incorporate that in my own style in a way that is not directly copying or stealing.

[dsknsk]

Canto 8 and the Chinese language (and how to pronounce the character names + other words)

Long before this Canto started, I've felt the need to make a post about how the Chinese language works, at least on the basics that I've been taught. I feel like understanding at least part of the language also makes you peer into the hows and the whys of things...and you at least get an idea of how to pronounce them.

First off, the term "Chinese language" is fairly cloudy to begin with, and the reasons as to why are beyond the scope of this article. If you want to know more, here's a pretty good explanation. It's also the reason why, outside of this article, I only ever address the language with the word "汉语".

Note: I am a HSK3 graduate. My Chinese won't be perfect, and I won't be good as a native, and this post only describes the approximations to give a general idea of things. Please don't go "well ackshually assumptions based on translations are bad" or "you're inaccurate because xyz" on me, I don't intend to be entirely accurate, just to give a general idea of things. See my post as malarky if that suits you better and move on. Please.

Basics

When I first learnt the Chinese language, my first lesson didn't actually contain any new words. My first lesson was all about pronunciation.

It was also the furthest my mother and the other participants got before dropping out, so I will try and make this as concise as possible.

Chinese is a tonal language. Many people hear it and will say that it sounds as if they're singing all the time. The Chinese language has four ways in which a given syllable (I'm using the "a" as an example) can be pronounced, and then one loose toneless way.

The "flat" tone. This is shown in pinyin like "ā".

The "rising" tone. This is shown in pinyin like "á".

The "falling-rising" tone. This is shown in pinyin like "ǎ".

The "falling" tone. This is shown in pinyin like "à".

The "toneless" tone. Which is only ever used in words that end a sentence like question particles to indicate that the sentence is a question, like 呢 or 吗, or as the last syllable of a word in some cases. This one is also shorter than the others and you know it's this one if there's nothing above the letter in pinyin.

To get the best example of how these sound like (which is better than me trying to describe them vaguely) is to just listen to this guy pronounce the syllable "ma" in the first four tones in order here.

I will try to put an approximate English word/tone to kind of show you how it sort of is pronounced, though it isn't entirely accurate as...well, Chinese has certain things that English just doesn't have, like how they pronounce their "r" or their "ie" sound, which cases are a bit more difficult to transcribe. If you want to know exactly how the syllables and letters I use are pronounced, this page will be a large help since I also took a lot of it from there (in combination with my own experience of course). But below, the letter that I mean in the word is bolded.

A big part of Chinese wordplay consists out of "the same/similar pronunciation, a different word", i.e (near-)homophones. Think of how we have the word "bat" which can refer to a piece of sports equipment as well as to an animal. A large example of this is actually present - there are the families Jiǎ (賈/贾) and Zhēn (甄), where the aforementioned "Jiǎ" is a homophone with the word 假, which means "false" or "fictitious". Meanwhile - predictably - "Zhēn" can be written as 真, which means "real". And yes, the book has a Zhēn Bǎoyù.

This can even carry into social customs. It is considered to be rude and unlucky to give a clock or a pear on a wedding, since both of these relate to the pronunciations of the words "seperate" and "to leave". The likely reason why it's customary to give apples at the year's end in District 8 is probably because the word for "apple" sounds similar to the word for "safety".

One more thing - and this is purely about the written version of the language. You may have seen that sometimes, I use two iterations of the same word. In that case, the first one is the traditional, and the second one is the simplified version of the word. Somewhere in the long history of China which I won't get into now, they decided that, in order to stay with the times and to maintain ease in relationships with other countries, that they had to squish down all words that could not be written within 10 strokes. The country I hail from, Taiwan, however, still uses traditional (as well as Wade-Giles instead of pinyin - they basically just stuck to the old ways). This is why some words look wildly different, yet some are unchanged.

Funfact - there are currently two locations where pinyin can be found in the actual game with their tone tags. One is, of course, the name of the season, but it can be found way back in Kurokumo Hong Lu's passive name:

Names

For the sake of keeping this post to a respectible length, I will only include the names of the most important characters in the Canto.

Hong Lu/Jia Baoyu

鴻路/鸿路 hóng lù "h" as in Scottish "loch"; "o" as in "hold"; "u" as in "looking" meaning is in article text

贾寶玉/贾宝玉 jiǎ bǎoyù "j" is sort of like the English "ch" but a bit different (for the experts, it's called alveolo-palatal pronunciation) that's a bit difficult to describe, I personally stick with the "j" in "jade"; "b" is a hard "b" (sorta sounding like the English "p" in "spy"), see for more notes on the "u" in Xichun's name but here it is kind of like the "u" in "tune" literal meaning: surname Jia; "precious jade"

To start with the centerpiece, Hong Lu. Many people mistakenly pointed out that his name was directly taken from his source book's title. This is, however, not true. The translation note in his introductory video (in the English subtitles - note that said video also has subtitles for both traditional and simplified Chinese) states that it means "great jade". 鸿's secondary, older meaning (the first is "swan") is "great" or "grand", 路 refers to a "path" or "road" and in this context refers to a "path jade", a hollowed jade bead that's worn around the neck in a necklace. It is called that way because when the wearer walks, the jade will also "roll along" due to the friction; thus, wearing a path jade makes one's path as smooth as the jade.

It should be noted that this is the only name that does not have a "source" - all other Sinners minus one have names that are directly mentioned in their respective books, with the only other one, Yi Sang, being a writer. Hong Lu meanwhile, his name is not taken from a character, with his name just being the words "great (path) jade". This gives off a facetious vibe even before we get to know it is indeed a chosen alias - fitting with the book's theme of reality vs fantasy.

For your complete clarity: the name of the book is written as 紅樓夢/红楼梦/, and spoken as "hóng lóu mèng" (same h and o again; "ou" as in "loud" but more of an emphasis on the o, and "e" as in "understatement"). They are very much different words with different pronunciations, though I wouldn't entirely rule out that it could've simply been a pun - as the Chinese often do.

Jia Xichun 賈惜春/贾惜春 jiǎ xīchūn "j" as the hard j of "jade"; the "i" in "ia" is typically semi-silent and "ia" is uttered as "ya"; "xi" is spoken as "see"; "ch" as "chowing down" and "un" as in "under" literal meaning: surname Jia; "treasuring spring (as in the season)"

Many people think that the "u" in Japanese and Chinese must always be as in "you", similar how they use it in the place of "you". However, in some cases in Chinese, it can be just the "u". An example of the "u" just being "u" is the second word in Xichun's given name, "chūn". Another example of the "u" sound changing would be "Lin Yüxia", where the u is also in diaeresis (this is not always the case, but is more common where the u happens to end the syllable, like in this example where the syllable is "yü" (meaning "rain")). Funnily enough, her third skill's name "Crimson Spring" references her name. In the book, she and her sisters all have the word "spring" in their name, with the theming being that their names describe the spring as it passes. It's kinda like how several of the Kardashians have their names starting with the letter K, only a tad more poetical. Xichun, "treasuring spring", being the youngest, thus denotes the last days of spring as it goes to become summer.

Jia Huan 賈環/贾环 jiǎ huán "j" as the hard j of "jade"; the "i" in "ia" is typically semi-silent and "ia" is uttered as "ya"; "huan" is similar to "one" but with an "h" in front of it that is the same "h" as I described with Hong Lu literal meaning: surname Jia; "ring"

Funfact. 環 is pronounced "tamaki" in Japanese.

Jia Qiu 賈丘/贾丘 jǐa qiū "j" as the hard j of "jade"; the "i" in "ia" is typically semi-silent and "ia" is uttered as "ya"; "q" is like the aforementioned "j", just with aspiration; the "iu" is somewhat like "you", but as if one would add a "w" sound to the end of it literal meaning: surname Jia; "hill/grave" (short for Confucius in this context)

丘 derives from 孔丘, Confucius. Even though this character was never a character in the book, it is possible that he represents Confucian values that are also a theme in the book.

Zilu 子路 zǐlù "z" as in "cats" but without aspiration; the "i" in this case is nearly silent but kinda sounds like "uh"; "u" as in "looking" literal meaning: "child's path", courtesy name of Zhong You

Zigong 子贡 zǐgòng "z" as in "cats" but without aspiration; the "i" in this case is nearly silent but kinda sounds like "uh"; "g" is like "k" but unaspirated, like "scar", "o" somewhat like English "awe" literal meaning: "child's tribute", courtesy name of Dianmu Ci

Wei 卫 wèi you know the memes. "way". It's really as simple as that. literal meaning: "guard"

This guy's just really simple.

Jia Mu/Shi Miyin 賈母/贾母 jǐa mǔ "j" as the hard j of "jade"; the "i" in "ia" is typically semi-silent and "ia" is uttered as "ya" literal meaning: surname Jia; "mother" (arch-mother in this interpretation); "shi" is similar to "sure" (yeah, "i" following "sh" or "s" is pronounced differently)

It's a title. Even before she says that she took on the position of Jia Mu, you can figure that out if you know that 母 is the word used. I unfortunately do not posess the hanzi and pinyin over her original name.

Jia Zheng 賈政/贾政 jǐa zhèng "j" as the hard j of "jade"; the "i" in "ia" is typically semi-silent and "ia" is uttered as "ya"; "zh" is a bit similar to "chat", the "e" is actually a dull "uh" sound (which is often the case), "ng" as in "sing" literal meaning: surname Jia, "rule"

Jia Yuanchun 賈元春/贾元春 jiǎ yuánchūn "j" as the hard j of "jade"; the "i" in "ia" is typically semi-silent and "ia" is uttered as "ya"; "yuan" is similar to the aforementioned "huan" but with a soft "y" sound; same "chun" as in Xichun's name literal meaning: surname Jia, "first spring"

Yuanchun is the oldest of the spring group, and such her name denotes the start of spring. She starts the group that Jia Yingchun ("welcoming spring"), Jia Tanchun ("seeking spring") and Jia Xichun ("treasuring spring") follow.

Xue Baochai 薛寶釵/薛宝钗 xuē bǎochāi "x" is similar to "sh" but with an alveolo-palatal pronunciation; the "ue" is...uh, like the "wa" in "away" I guess, the "bao" is the same as in Baoyu's name (which is kinda relevant), the "ch" is the same as in "chun" used before literal meaning: surname Xue; "precious hairpin"

As you can see, Baochai shares one part of her name with Baoyu. Daiyu shares the other part of the name. This is on purpose.

Xue Pan 薛蟠 xūe pán "x" is similar to "sh" but with an alveolo-palatal pronunciation; the "ue" is...uh, like the "wa" in "away" I guess, and the "a" is an open one, like in "ah" literal meaning: surname Xue, "to coil like a dragon"

Lin Daiyu 林黛玉 lín dàiyù The "yu" is the same as in Baoyu's name. literal meaning: surname Lin; "blue-black jade"

Daiyu shares the other part of Baoyu's name. This is still on purpose.

Hua Xiren ���袭人 huā xírén The r is kind of weird in that it's similar to z in zoo in English, but with a retroflex articulation. I personally learnt it first in the word 热 (warm) and I still kind of have a bone to pick with it, "en" as "un" literal meaning: surname Hua; "assailing people", literally "flower assails people" facturing in her family name

She's not mentioned with her family name in the Canto, but in the story she has an original family name. In most translations of the story she is, like the other servants, given a non-human name like "Aroma" or "Pervading Fragrance"; the translation I had gave her (translated back) the name of "Charm". It's chosen by Baoyu himself due to her last name reminding him of a line of poetry.

Lei Heng 雷横 léi héng "lei" is similar to "lay"; the "e" and the "ng" are the same as in Zheng's name literal meaning: "lightning", "across"

So the funny thing about him is that his name's actually from one of the other three Chinese Literature Classics, Water Margin.

Concepts

The Chinese subtitle of Canto 8 不思觀望/不思观望 bù sī guānwàng "b" is a hard "b" (sorta sounding like the English "p" in "spy"), "u" as in "looking"; "s" is like an English "s" butwith the tongue on the lower teeth; "g" is like "k" but unaspirated, like "scar", "uan" sorta like in "one", "a" as in "palm" literal meaning: either "don't wait and see" or "witnessing without consideration" depending whether you factor in 思 or consider the phrase a 成语 and you don't. I'd say both of them can be intentional, knowing the Canto.

Daguanyuan 大觀園/大观园 dàguānyuán the "uan" sounds are like before but differ a bit due to the preceeding g and y literal meaning "grand view garden"

H Corp's full name 鴻園生命工程集團/鸿园生命工程集团 hóng yuán shēngmìng gōngchéng jítuán The "hong" is the exact same as Hong Lu uses ("h" as in Scottish "loch"; "o" as in "hold"); "y" is like an English "j" but it's semi-silent; "uan" sorta like in "one"; "sh" is like the "sh" in English but with a retroflex articulation; "i" is like the English "ee", "e" is a bit like "uh" literal meaning: The great garden's life sciences (biology) group

Keep this one for last, people.

But hey. You've made it to the end of the post. Which I think, in my opinion, deserves a treat. I made this some time ago and this pretty much describes the hardship of learning the language when you're starting out. (Includes subtitles translated by me)

[destinygoldenstar]

🌟This Challenge (And Episode) Is SUPER🌟 - Total Drama Viewer Reacts to Disventure Camp Season 3 Episode 13 “Dis-Vengers”

TRIGGER WARNING: BLOOD & GORE

Okay, this italicized part is an EDIT after the reaction. I need to put up a trigger warning for this episode as a reason why I might not show as many images as usual.

I don't think it's as bad as it could've been, otherwise I think OddNation would get demonetized. But to be on the safe side, THIS EPISODE/THIS POST IS NOT FOR THE HEMOPHOBIC.

I WILL put a TW in the tags as well so they don't see the post. But in case your account doesn't have the filter for this sort of thing, HERE'S YOUR WARNING.

Told you all I was gonna make a Hamilton reference.

Anyway, last time, the non-villains were petty. They lost. Then they rose. And then they still lost.

So the moral of the story is that if you're being bullied, TOO BAD. YOU CAN'T GET RID OF THEM.

(That was a joke ^)

Anyway, let us begin with THE EPISODE WITH THE UNLUCKY NUMBER. Geez, that's a bad omen.

"Aiden and Jake almost died to a wolf."

WHICH YOU DIDN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT BY THE WAY.

What if they DIED? Or got so hurt they needed to go to the hospital? JUST SAYING.

I love how Yul is outcasted from the rest of these guys.

FUCK YUL. WHY THE FUCK IS HE STILL HERE?!?!?!

How much longer do I have to put up with him? Seriously? I'm scared he might actually have a shot at being a finalist.

Oh Oliver got shoved out of a plane. What's new?

*Gets Grammarly Ad*

OH THAT'S NEW.

Fuck you Grammarly. Go get shoved off a plane.

Oh, we're right back to Trevor crying... okay?

Do we need a continuation of this?

"I'm such an idiot!"

"We can agree on that."

DAMN NINA!

I forgot she was here. I keep forgetting she and her puppet master are in this season.

"What are you doing here?"

"Marcus saw you in the cameras."

STALKING?!

"Why does Marcus care about me?"

Hey there's a solution for you! GO DATE MARCUS!!

Trevor x Marcus all the way.

"He cares about everyone!"

I... I mean sure, there's nothing to DENY that, but also... I feel like I'm being told not shown.

"Now, why're you crying like a little bitch?"

DAMN. POP OFF PUPPET QUEEN.

Demon puppet queen.

Cause like, dude, you are currently engaging in conversation with and being downplayed by a SENTIENT PUPPET.

That's how you know you've lost it.

"What's with you two? Krystal's not even all that."

You spent a whole season with her, what?

"Oh wow, didn't saw that coming."

First off, grammar error. Fuck Grammary, but like, come on.

Second, I hope that was sarcasm.

Because if you're stalking Trevor crying on camera, then I have firm reason to believe you were also stalking their conservations where Trevor has confessed to having a crush on Derek.

Nina's sentient. She should know this already.

"And now here I am venting my problems to a puppet- I'M SO STUPID!"

At least he's aware. XD

But that aspect also makes this, like, the most engaging scene with the intern characters this whole season.

Which sadly is a low bar. Because concerning his problems, once again, the amount of "I don't give a fucks" I can give.

"Well this 'puppet' is done with this crybaby. I'm going to bed."

YO NINA IS SLAYING HERE?!

10/10

10/10 Nina moment.

She may be a demon who killed everyone that one time, but I can acknowledge a slay moment when I see one.

Oh damn. They're WASTED.

YOU DIDN'T EVEN EAT THE FOOD!!! HELLO?!?!?! I SEE THAT FOOD STILL ON THE TABLE IN THE CORNER!!!!

THAT LOOKS SO GOOD!!! EAT THE FOOD DAMMIT!!!

"Lasagna? So out of date for an actress like me. Champagne IS the new lasagna!"

Why'd you smash that? That was a perfectly good bottle.

Someone's gonna come by later and step on that glass.

"Maybe that's my intention, Golden."

NO RIYA!

Oh they look like they're having fun though.

THAT BOTTLE WASN'T THERE BEFORE.

Oh look at that.

Allyson has an apple. Of course she does.

"I love my apples so much. They reminds me of the electronics I've been on withdraw of. Anyone wanna have an apple?"

"Nah I'm good."

"WELL FUCK YOU JAKE YOU UNGRATEFUL PIECE OF SHIT-!!"

"CHILDREN! PLEASE! I'M TRYING TO READ A BEDTIME STORY HERE AND YOU'RE RUINING IT!!"

Also where did Connor get a book from?

"So Aiden's a shy pee-er, huh?"

Connor, respectfully, shut up.

"Shut up!"

XD

Yeah what he said.

Do you NOT go to a private area when you're-

I don't even want to think about it or talk about it.

"And that's-hic-how I lost the audition."

First off, her hiccups are cute sounding.

What audition? She's lost plenty, right? The whole reason she joined the show was because she was failing.

"How come we always talk about me?"

Oh?

"I mean I know I'm awesome, but come on."

"You Alec. I wanna hear about you."

Oh! Okay!

Riya actually wants to get to know him and be his friend!

I mean, hey, they're drunk, can't really use any acting techniques.

"How's your family?"

"SHUT OUT OF MY LIFE."

Come on, that's a bad one.

"Do you not trust me?"

UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH...

I mean, he has some proof why he shouldn't.

"I should have never come on this show."

Oh, Alec...

"I still think about them every night. I can barely sleep anymore."

Yeah...

That's why he's even doing all of this, because he's so lost and only sees himself as bad.

"Who?"

"Cheryl, my wife..."

Oh we got a name!

"My son, Daniel..."

We got two names!

"They were gone by the time I came back."

OH THAT'S INTERESTING.

He said in Season 1 he was going to divorce his wife himself.

But it sounds like they beat him to it and abandoned him. He didn't even get to state his case.

That's worse.

"After Season 1, I only communicated with Cheryl through her lawyer. She had been preparing to divorce me while I was competing... THAT BITCH!"

OH GOSH. IT IS WORSE.

Also, sorry Alec, no offense, you're doing great, but I can't stop looking at Riya's face being GENUINELY CONCERNED AND SORRY for him.

I wonder if Alec has some apathy disorder? Like a personality disorder? Cause there is a lot of evidence to that.

Like, he is unable to feel care and love towards others, and it sabotages the relationships he wants to have.

Is that a thing?

*looking it up*

Yeah, Schizoid Personality Disorder. That sounds about right. (Look it up if you don't know what I'm talking about)

This is my headcanon, anyway.

"I think you're had enough."

OH WOW RIYA BEING THE BIGGER PERSON HERE AND TRYING TO HELP.

She's not the worst friend? Hello?

"The divorce took everything! I lost my son, my job, and my passion for reading! I never even brought those damned books!"

Let it out man.

It's... it's not okay. But you know.

"I could have been a better father..."

You have a chance with Fiore I guess.

"A better husband..."

AIDEN GET OUT OF THE SHOT!!!

I DO NOT WANT TO WATCH AIDEN TAKE A PISS!!! THANK YOU VERY MUCH!!

YOU'RE RUINING THE SCENE!!!!

"I would give anything-ANYTHING-just to hold her hand one last time. You know what I'm talking about. Right, Riya?"

"...Uh... no."

But she might end up like that at the end of this season, we'll see.

"I still feel awful about Connor."

Awwwww

I knew it! I knew she felt guilty!!

"I remember the early days, when he was always there for me. He loved me even when I was nobody."

Awwwww

"Looks like we both can learn from our exes."

Exes? Riya and Connor weren't dating.

Maybe Connor had feelings? But Riya didn't feel the same about him.

They're more friends to me. A kindship type.

"Maybe one day, I'll find the one."

Oh I love that for her.

At the very end of all of it, all she wants is companionship in her sad little lonely life.

WHAT THE-!?

*chokes on breath*

OKAY. OKAY. I DIDN'T THINK HE WAS GONNA DO THAT.

UH... ALEC, WHAT THE FUCK?!??!

I know I said I shipped them, BUT I SAID THAT AS A JOKE THINKING IT WOULDN'T BE A THING!!

HOLY SHIT.

You miss your wife but you're hitting on Riya? Okay, sure.

Consent? Is there consent? I don't know.

OH MY GOD THERE IS!

WAIT SHE ACTUALLY DOES WANT HIM! OKAY!!

"Alec!"

"Did I... do something wrong?"

"No, it's just... we can't. I'm sorry."

Oh I get it. The game.

She doesn't want this to ruin the game for her.

Also Riya again being the reasonable one in this scene.

"No one can know about this!"

Why not?

You're on TV anyway. What's the stake of the campers knowing? You two still have all the power.

"Goodbye, Riya..."

Aww. I guess my previous thoughts on their dynamic weren't for nothing.

OH AND AIDEN SAW IT. OF COURSE HE DID.

So much for keeping it a secret.

"The kiss was... fine. But I can't do romance in this game. I'm here to win!"

Yeah. I get it.

*Gets Grammarly Ad*

AGAIN?!?!

FUCK YOU GRAMMARLY! GET OFF MY SCREEN!!!

"Should I tell Connor? This could destroy him!"

He's already over her, so...

Maybe he's upset Alec is into her and... "You told me to leave Riya behind because you were planning to take her yourself?" That sort of thing?

I can see him getting upset about that.

"Uh, what the hell are you wearing?"

"My swimsuit."

"And the finger."

"A-and there's nothing you can do about it!"

YES! FINALLY! TELL HIM!!

AWWWW GABBY HELPING?!?!?

Oh I love this already.

"And if you don't like it, maybe we should... break up."

THANK GOD!!!

THANK GOD I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS SINCE EPISODE ONE!

"Yeah sure, okay."

"I said okay. You win."

???

I thought you needed her to be convinced you are a thing so you had an advantage in the game...?

Fuck Yul.

"Look I'm happy for you and that lesbian behind the tree."

Oh he sees.

"THAT'S MISS LESBIAN TO YOU!!!"

"I can finally find a woman who can treat me well."

I hope you never do.

She did everything for you! AND YOU DESERVED NONE OF IT!

"And you? Well... this isn't exactly good for your image."

I, who exists, will say the opposite.

"Wait, no! I didn't mean we should break up-"

GRETT NO! YOU WERE DOING WELL!!

"Please! I'll do anything!"

DO YOU NOT SEE HE IS NOT WORTH A SHIT?!?!

IT'S COMICAL AND EXAGGERATED HOW ABUSIVE HE IS!!

Me too Gabby. Me too.

"So you'll stop bitching?"

"Yes, I'm yours forever and ever."

FUCKING HELL.

I hate this ship with a passion. I want it off my screen. Oh my god.

Grett has been flanderized to literally just be the abuse victim who can't get a clue.

"Now go get some fruit and get out of that disgusting outfit!"

The blood in my veins that are BOILING RIGHT NOW 😡

I FUCKING HATE THIS MAN!!! WHY IS HE STILL HERE?!?!?!?!!

I'M GONNA GET YOU A POISONED APPLE!!!

I'M ROOTING FOR THE POISONED APPLE!!!

"This woman..."

ME TOO GABBY.

"Fucking hell lady. I'LL DO IT MYSELF THEN! I'LL BREAK HIS LEGS!!!"

"I can't let Grett hang out with that vegan carpet muncher anymore."

I THOUGHT YOU WERE FINE WITH DUMPING HER-

Inconsistency in the character as well? Why am I not surprised?

He's not even interesting, he's just a douche for the sake of being a douche.

"I know what you did."

I-I don't think this is a good idea, Aiden.

"Depends on what you mean by that. I have done multiple showing in my time. You could be talking about my very existence for all I know.

"Huh. Whatever."

Oh wow. She didn't lash out.

"So you won't mind if I go tell everyone?"

No. Makes no difference if you think about it.

All it will do is hurt Connor's feelings. And if you think about it, that puts you in a better position because the opposing alliance's moral compass is gone.

And you throw Alec under the bus.

Sure that's shitty, but hey, she's a villain.

"Go ahead."

OH WOW SHE ACTUALLY HAS MY MINDSET.

"This could be the leverage we need to finally get the heroes back on top."

How? I feel like this will just destroy one of your members.

"That... little... BRAT!!!"

XD

Riya's version of SCREAMING IN A PILLOW.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

Shoot? You want to kill her?

"Do you feel like you like him?"

"I just want to enjoy the moment."

"Growing up, I never went on dates. I was just so focused on school, trying to impress my dad. I... I never had time for boys."

And this is why Krystal is the best of these host characters.

"You better treat her well!"

Oh damn. This man is her adopted dad right now.

Ah whatever, you know? Happy for Krystal. I support this ship.

IT'S VR!!!!

OH MY GOD IT'S VR!!!!!

YES!!!!!!

THEY BROUGHT THIS BACK! I'M SO HAPPY!!

And they're fully aware they're in VR this time. They're not being psychologically tortured into thinking they've been surviving a month in a zombie apocalypse.

"And one of the questions were in regards to what type of super power you would want."

OH!

OH I CAN ALREADY TELL THIS CHALLENGE IS GONNA BE GOOD.

Oh we get to see.

"I've always wanted to be a shapeshifter!"

YES QUEEN! THAT'S A GOOD ONE!

"Lord, give me strength!"

LAME.

Come on, strength is like, the most boring one you can come up with. At least flying can defy gravity and it's cooler to look at.

"Electricity, so I could charge up my phone and I can tase some annoying kids!"

Jay, Master of Lightning, is ashamed to share his power with you non-consentually.

"Super speed!"

Basic, but okay.

"Telekinesis."

OKAY THAT'S JUST BROKEN.

And would be a nightmare to control in real life. Everything you think about just moves?? Ow.

"Fire control, so I can literally burn my enemies to the ground."

HEY QUEEN 👑

She also has fiery colors on.

"Water bending."

Oh wow, opposites.

"Imagine all of the third world countries I could help out of a drought."

Aw, Grett is a hero?

"-and then post it on my Instagram!"

XD

No.

That is something Grett would do.

"Elasticity."

No. That's a nightmare educing one.

"My original Twitch tag was Elastagirl."

Of course it was.

"That's a dumb question. Next."

Oh-

Wait what?

"Wait, so what's my quirk? Do I not get one?"

"Uh, they're called powers, and you decided to me a smart aleck, so no powers for you!"

OH!

😂

OH YOU ARE FUCKED, MAN!!

That's hilarious.

Watch Alec win this. Despite having no powers.

Okay, I get these challenge rules.

"You can also take each other out as you so desire."

Can I watch Yul die then?

I MEAN THEY HAVE PERMISSION NOW!

"Any questions?"

"What's VR?"

BRUH.

Alright, Connor's disqualified.

LET'S GO!!!

*Gets Hankook Tire Ad*

DAMMIT! IT TOOK ME INTO AN AD! NOOO!!!

What is that color palette?

I don't like that on her, I'm gonna be honest.

OH MY GOD THAT'S HORRIFYING!!!

Am I the only one who thinks elasticity as a power feels like something out of a horror movie?

That design's even more ugly.

Why would you make grey his primary?

OH DAMMIT WHY DOES YUL GET ONE THAT ACTUALY LOOKS GOOD?!

OOH OKAY GRETT!!!👑

Bit generic, but well done Aiden.

OH MY GOOOOOODDDD!!!!

❤️👑

I'm in love.

I'M IN LOVE WITH THIS OUTFIT. OH MY GOSH!!

The fire shoulders with the dark reds on the limbs? I LOVE IT.

OH MY GOSH GABBY ALSO LOOKS GOOD!

Purple looks good on her. Who would've thought?

"Wish we could trade powers. Must be nice flying everywhere."

You can fly with fire.

"I WANT TO STAY HERE FOREVER!!!!"

YAAAAAYYYY!!!!

I love Gabby so much. She's just so delightful.

"Find the villains. We need to remove all heroes from the challenge, so they can't win immunity."

Yep. Sounds like a plan.

"Wait, you mean we-"

"Burn them? Maul them? I don't give a fuck, as long as they're dead."

XD

Riya already gets the game.

AND IT'S VR. COME ON. YOU'RE NOT ACTUALLY KILLING THEM.

And Gabby wanted to kill them before she even knew about the VR, so...

YEAH SHE NODDED XD

"SAY NO MORE! I'LL DO IT!!"

I was worried for a minute there she'd be out of character and go "bUt i DoN't WaNt To KiLl AnYoNe!"

But no. She's on board. She's not above aggression.

Oh hi Alec.

Alec has NOTHING XD

He's so fucked. Oh my god. He's a sitting duck. XD

"I haven't seen anyone in hours!"

You showed up like a couple minutes ago, what?

"Listen, Riya, about that kiss-"

"Let's not talk about it. We were drunk, and we did something stupid. That's all."

Fair enough.

"Just to be clear, I don't have feelings for you."

"Oh. Alright. Same here..."

Why does Alec sound disapointed?

Why did Riya return the kiss then? Unless she's just desolate or something.

"Aiden was spying on us."

"Oh no, please don't tell me Connor knows about this!"

He probably does at this point.

WHAT IS THAT DESIGN?!

Okay, it's fine, but like... why does he have that chin piece? That's ugly. That's ruining the whole look.

Wow. Jake is terrible at this. When he probably has THE MOST OVERPOWERED ABILITY HERE.

You give the character who thinks with his head THE LEAST, the power to control things with his mind.

I see what you writers did here.

"You're welcome."

Oh hi Aiden.

BANANA 🍌

Allyson comes around the corner screaming, "BANANAS?!?! HOW DARE YOU! WHAT ABOUT MY APPLES YOU BASTARDS?!?!?! MYYYYYYY APPLLLEEEEEESSSSS!!!!!"

How are you gonna kill with speed anyway? Gabby can turn into a predator NO NOT THAT KIND OF PREDATOR. Riya can burn shit. Jake can slam things and crush you. What is speed gonna do as an offense? Run on you???

"Wanna see me run to that big rock?"

"And ditch me?"

"Wanna see me do it again?"

What?

*Rewinds*

Okay. A point where lazy animation is explained by the story why that looks the way it does. Props.

"The villains are probably gonna try to kill us before any of us reach the volcano."

LITERALLY.

NOW IT'S ACTUALLY LITERAL.

"I'm not Quicksilver, but I'll give it a shot!"

Crashes into something immediately.

Yep.

XD

Freaking called that.

"Well, guess you gotta train more."

Bitch, you can't even ACTIVATE your powers! You have no room to talk!

"I missed the lifting people class."

"Guess you gotta train more."

XD

Okay that's good.

OH MY GOD THAT LOOKS HORRIFIC STILL.

OH MY GOD I HATE HER POWERS.

"This doesn't hurt, does it?"

"No. It's like I'm made of bubble gum."

Yeah cause she's basically rubber.

"I dreamed of owning this VR tech ever since I saw the Season 1 cast playing it!"

REALLY.

YOU ENJOYED WATCHING THEM SUFFER IN A ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE THINKING IT WAS REAL?!?!

People on TV are getting traumatized and brutally murdered, watching their loved ones die one by one, with no idea it's even fake. They think it's real. They think they're gonna die at any minute. Even today, most of them still have PTSD and are seeing therapy-

"I WANNA JOIN ON THE FUN!!!"

"Maybe we can rest here for a bit."

Rest? You're in VR. You have superpowers. Bro.

*Gets Old Spice Ad*

Okay that's just insulting Connor.

"I need to rest so I can put on my OLD SPICE!!!"

"So how have you been getting with your abilities?"

He can lift shit.

That's it.

It's lame.

"How do you think the guys at your company feel watching this?"

Is that supposed to be a peer pressure statement?

That's not your business.

"You think they'd want their boss to be scared of a little video game?"

Ever heard of his employee named Nunya?

OH WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT. COMING IN THIS CAVE WAS A MISTAKE. I TOLD YOU!

He didn't lift that. He punched that.

"Aiden, is everything okay?"

"Why?"

Yeah, Jake genuinely showing concern for him.

"I... saw something last night."

Oh he's gonna tell him.

"What am I doing telling you?! You're terrible with secrets!"

Uh...

I was gonna argue, but yeah.

"I saw Riya and Alec kiss."

"They're both evil and attractive. Of course they're gonna kiss."

XD

He's not surprised XD

Alec's not really that attractive though... or maybe it's my lesbian brain talking there.

"Connor might freak if he finds out."

"Isn't he over Riya?"

Yes and no.

Think of it like this. Someone you thought was your friend give you sage advice to leave your partner because they're abusive to you, but then behind your back, that someone goes and hits on them behind your back? That's the betrayal there. Regardless if he's over her or not.

OH.

OH SPEAKING OF THE QUEEN.

YOU GUYS ARE DEAD.

OH THAT'S A GOOD SHOT!!!!

"She burns things, right?"

JAKE.

JAKE.

COME ON MAN.

CLIP SAID SHE HAS FIRE POWERS. BLASTS YOU WITH FIRE. IS SURROUNDED BY FIRE. HER DESIGN IS FIRE.

"DO YOU THINK SHE'S FIRE POWERED? I CAN'T TELL!"

I love you. BUT YOU ARE A DUMBASS.

AND HE'S THE ONE WITH THE MIND POWERS TOO!!

"EVERY THOUGHT IN YOUR MIND IS DUMB."

YOU BOYS ARE FUCKING DEAD.

Oh Aiden's gone XD

"Better him than me! BYE JAKE!"

"Wait what-?" *Dies*

OWW!!! YEAH THAT HURTS!

Okay I'm loving this fight.

"For my next showing, I will be hosting a super hero grill out with the finest meats to share with all my villains! AND THE MEAT WILL BE YOU!!"

NO RIYA AT LEAST SEASON IT!!

OH MY GOD XD

"THE FUCK?! I'VE BEEN DEFEATED BY BANANAS?!?!? YOU CAN'T EVEN COOK THAT!!!"

Also why is one banana not filled? *Look closer in the screenshot if you don't see it*

You can't hide from me. I saw that.

"Take my potassium bombs of fury!"

Bro. You could've done alliteration. 🍌BANANA BOMBS.🍌 COME ON!

OH AND HERE'S ALEC.

DAMN THAT WAS A ROCK TO THE HEAD. HE'S DEAD.

"Prepare to die."

He said that so monotoned XD

😲

BITCH WHAT THE FUCK-?!?!

OKAY THAT CAUGHT ME OFF GUARD!!! WHAT THE FUCK!?!??!?!?!

"Uh.. Aiden... did you just-?!"

HE JUST KILLED A MAN!!!

WHAT I SAY BEFORE? "HOW IS SPEED OFFENSIVE?!" AND AIDEN GETS THE FIRST KILL?!

Boy is traumatized.

Sounds like a Boys reference.

Oh. Fire removes blood. Sure.

XD

SHE'S ON A MOUNTAIN OF BANANAS!! XD

"MY NEXT SHOWING IS ME AND MY ARMY OF BANANAS!!! SHIELD ME POTTASSIUM!!!"

THEY'RE DEAD. SHE HAS THEM SURROUNDED.

"Jake, try to lift her into the fire!"

"I told you, I can't lift people!"

YOU HAVE THE MOST OP ABILITY AND YOU DON'T KNOW HOW TO USE IT!

COOL HEAD MAN. COOL HEAD.

I know you're surrounded by fire. But you know what I mean.

OH.

OH NO QUEEN!!!

THE QUEEN IS DOWN!!!

HOLY SHIT THEY BEAT HER.

"I couldn't lift her, but I made her a tomb."

Smart AND sweet of you.

"Rest in pieces, asshole."

"Amen."

"Aw, thank you for the blessings. I shall rest in bananas." 🍌

She died a banana queen. 🍌👑

Where did Yul and Grett come from?

Kill Yul. Please.

I had to watch Riya die. Watching Yul die too is only fair.

Okay. Strangle him. I like that.

GRETT FUCK OFF! LET HIM HAVE THE KILL!!!

OH MY GOD!!!

THAT'S HORRIBLE!!!!!

YUL FUCK YOU!!!

Though shouldn't Allyson be immune to this cause she's elastic???

Aaaaaaaannnnddd I told you Connor's powers sucked.

OKAY THAT EYE TRANSITION WAS REALLY COOL!

Is Allyson dead?

AGAIN, SHOULDN'T ALLYSON BE IMMUNE TO THE ELECTRICITY BECAUSE THEY ESTABLISHED SHE'S ELASTIC AND THEREFORE SHOULD BE A LIVING EMBODIMENT OF AN INSULATOR????

JUST SAYING.

If they, say, shocked Connor and snake bit Allyson, switched the two kill methods, that'd make more sense.

Oh so five of them made it.

"Hold off on killing each other while I explain."

MIND CONTROLS YUL OFF THE CLIFF.

"Now we're even!"

"I thought every superhero needs a CGI monster to fight."

Oh really?

...actually that's kinda accurate.

"So meet Ned!"

Oh he has a name?

Is that just Riya as a monster? He rose from the lava.

"SEE EVEN IN DEATH, IT WON'T STOP ME! FOR MY NEXT SHOWING, I BECOME REINCARNTED AS A LAVA MONSTER!! TO SMITE YOU ALL AS REVENGE!!!!!"

Every villain gets a monster transformation. So proud of her.

"NOW YOU SHALL DEAL WITH ME OL PRINCE! AND ALL THE POWERS OF HELL!!!!"

"Disvengers... assemble!"

Nice reference, but it's wildly inappropriate for these guys.

"I propose a temporary truce."

They're gonna throw you off the cliff.

"I'll get him easy!"

I hope you fail and die.

XD

IT DOES NOTHING.

Predicting Yul's Torture Counter: 6

Ned Not Riya is like "Really bitch?"

WHAT WAS THAT ROAR?!?!? THAT SOUNDED LIKE A DYING CAT!!

"The water is working!"

Idk how.

"HAVE A DRINK MOTHERFUCKER!!"

"With Grett distracted on the monster, I can finally draw boundaries with Gabby."

Why would you want to do that? Gabby is on your team.

The hell are you trying to do?

"How is a monster this size managing to stand on this volcano?"

It's VR logic.

OH WAIT NO IT BREAKING IT.

"Yo butch lover!"

"Grett is distracted so she won't see me deal with Gabby." SCREAMS BUTCH LOVER.

"I'm gonna say this once. Stay away from Grett."

"...no."

Your motives are all over the place. You hate her, you want her gone and are fine with it when she threatens to leave, but now you're possessive? What?

"If you spread any kind of agenda to Grett about me, I'll make you regret the day you were born, so back off!"

Grett a few feet away from them. "I CAN HEAR YOU!!"

"Make me."

KILL HIM GABBY.

Uh, move. MOVE. MOVE.

How the hell did you not get hit?

Oh that was pathetic Gabby. Come on.

"Yul! What are you doing?!"

YEAH SHE CAN SEE ALL OF THIS SHIT.

"Just focus on the monster bitch!"

BITCH, she has another hand.

NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

NO NOT THIS AGAIN!!!!

STOP IT!!!!! LEAVE HER ALONE!!!!!!

YUL I FUCKING HATE YOU!!! STOP IT!!!!

GRETT DO SOMETHING!!!

AIDEN AND JAKE GOT THE MONSTER, JUST DO SOMETHING!!!

"HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLPPPPPP!!!!!!"

*Gets Grammarly Ad*

HELP ME!!!!! HEEEELLLP!!!

OH FUCK YOU GRAMMARLY! YOU RUINED THE SCENE!!

*I rewinded ten seconds*

"LEAVE HER ALONE!!"

YESS!!! GRETT!!!!! GET HIM!!!!

OH MY GOD IS THE MONSTER COMING?!?!?!

MURDER HIS ASS. MURDER HIS ASS. MURDER HIS ASS. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE!!!!!

"Oh crap!"

I would say "Why are you just standing there?"

But also, "Nah. Let the monster have him."

"What the hell was that?!"

"My resignation letter."

😭👏

THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU GOD!!!!

THANK YOU FOR HAVING GRETT FINALLY GET OVER IT!!!

"We agreed you would listen to me!"

"There's no 'we' anymore."

YESS!!!!

"Is this your pathetic attempt at defeating me?"

Gets murdered by the monster.

PLEASE.

"Nope. But this is."

KILL HIM. KILL HIM!!

KILL HIM!!!!

YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!

YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSS!!!!!

🤣👏

YESS!!!!! YEESSSSSS!!!!!

I GET TO WATCH YUL DIE!!!!!

THANK YOU!!!!!! 😭🙏

Yes, hitman? I have a target for you. I want this fire crop top man DEAD.🔫

There's no gun emoji. Only a water gun.

Sure, kill him with a water gun. I don't care how you do it. MAKE IT HAPPEN!!!

IT ACTUALLY CAME TRUE!! NED WAS MY HITMAN!!! (Now the hot colors he has make a lot more sense)

AND WATER WAS INVOLVED!!!

Also:

Predicting Yul's Torture Counter: 7

Thank god.

What could be better than this? Eliminating him.

"Oh Grett... you saved me."

I know right? You'd never think she would from their previous relationship.

"The volcano! It's collapsing!!"

OH YEAH.

Yeah maybe you shouldn't have buried Riya. Now she has the fire control over the lava. She's gonna get her revenge.

"IIIIIIIIIII SHALL HAVE MY REVEEEEEENNNGEEEE!!!! IIIIIII WILL BURN YOU ALL ALIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIVVVVEEEEEEE!!!!!"

NO RIYA!!!!!

OH NO THEY'RE ALL DEAD!!!

GABBY?!?!?

JAKE?!??!

ANYONE?!??!!

OH GOD!!!!!

JAKE!!!! LIFT THEM!! BUILD UP TO THIS?!?!?!

JAKE?!??!

YES!!! JAKE!!!!!

👏

OH THE BUILD UP TO THIS?!??!?!

ACTUAL PEAK?!??!?!?

Even though the peak is on the ground at the moment. LITERALLY.

"I... guess I did it!!"

I'm so proud of you my boy.

"And with that, Aiden and Jake are the ones to beat the monster and win this challenge!"

OH SHIT GABBY AND GRETT ARE DEAD.

I get they're villains. Still. Kind of shitty of you Jake.

"I never though I'd say this, but... we make a great team."

I know, right?! You finally get along and work together!

Oh dammit, Yul's alive....

Ah well. I had my fun.

"Look, I thought about it, and... I'm willing to give you one last chance, but you have to apologize and stop hanging around Gabby."

HELL NO.

I HOPE THEY ELIMINATE YOU.

"I regret everything, Yul! I regret every meeting you, I regret ever joining this show again, hoping it would be different! I hoped I would have someone who finally saw the good side of me, but clearly I was asking for too much! You're a narcissistic, misogynistic pig!"

YES! YES TO ALL OF THAT!!!

Oh my god I feel so bad for you Grett... ❤️

You deserved SO MUCH BETTER in this season.

Also shoutout to her VA. That line delivery hit me right in the heart.

"And I can't wait for this to air because everyone will know what a prick you've been all season and your career will be over!"

AND I LOVE THAT!

Yeah you didn't think that through, did you bitch?!

"Okay! Okay! I'm sorry! Is that what you want to hear?"

NOPE. TOO LATE.

IT'S TOO LATE FOR AN APOLOGY.

"Yeah, and take your mild abs with you!"

XD

I love Gabby.

Live laugh love Gabby.

"These losers think they can get rid of me?!"

I HOPE THEY DO.

THAT WOULD MAKE THIS EPISODE PEAK IF THEY ELIMINATE YUL.

"I worked so hard to keep this villains alliance together, and it all blew up today."

Yeah. The non-villains didn't have to do anything.

The threat was Yul all along.

*Gets Pie Adblock ad*

Why the fuck am I getting so many ads?

Is this to mock me cause I've gotten the Grammarly Ad how many times?

Please. PLEASE LET IT BE YUL!!!

IT'S BEEN THIRTEEN EPISODES!! I WANT HIM GONE!!!!!

PLEASE!!!! 🙏

'YUL'

*audible gasp*

OH MY GOD.

'CONNOR'

CONNOR HASN'T BEEN BACK LONG ENOUGH.

THIS IS IT!!!

'CONNOR'

OH MY GOD!!!

'YUL'

OH MY GOD OH MY GOD OH MY GOD!!!

'CONNOR'

IT'S HAPPENING!!!!

'YUL'

OH MY GOD IT'S HAPPENNG!!!

'YUL'

😭🙏

YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!

😭🙏

*tears and laughs of utter JOY*

YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!

😂👏

YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!

HE'S GONE!!!!

HE'S FINALLY GONE!!!!!!

OH MY GOD YES!!! YEESS!!!!

ABOUT FUCKING TIME! GOD I HATED HIS CHARACTER SO MUCH!!

(As though that was any secret)

Happy endings. Happy endings to everyone here.

I HAVE NEVER BEEN SO HAPPY AND SATISFIED WITH AN ELIMINATION SINCE HEATHER FROM TDI.

🎵"NO ONE MOURNS THE WICKED!"🎵

Okay I gotta calm down, I gotta calm down.

Thank god. THANK GOD.

"Ugh, I fucking knew it!"

FUCK YEAH! GO FUCK YOURSELF YOU FUCKING PIECE OF FUCKING SHIT!!

"You did this to yourself Yul."

Absolutely.

"Any last words, loser?"

GABBY FLIPPED TOO. SHE FLIPPED.

SHE CAUSED ALL OF THIS!

"Alec, you're an insufferable nerd."

Oh great, here we go...

"Riya, I've seen adult videos with better acting."

FUCK YOU.

"Connor, you're old."

FUCK YOU TIMES TWO.

"Aiden, you're a twink."

FUCK YOU TIMES THREE.

"Jake, you're a twink part two!"

😂

...okay that one was good.

"Ally, I left some of those hate comments."

GEE THAT WOULD'VE BEEN NICE TO KNOW!!

"Gabby, fuck you bitch!"

FUCK YOU TOO BITCH.

"And finally, Grett... I'm going to personally make sure that you do not win these three million dollars! You'll be hearing from my lawyers!"

Wow. Such an empty threat. So sad. /s

The bus is over there.

"At least you made the merge this time."

😂

GOT HIM!!! RIGHT WHERE IT HURTS!!!

😂

The fucking finger.

"Aww, right back at you darling!"

😂😂👏

THAT'S AWESOME!!!!

*Finger*

You know what? Me too. *Finger*

Everyone give Yul the finger. Line up. Single file.

"After all this time, I never knew that I needed someone like Gabby. I treated her like absolute shit and yet... she was there for me. I think I finally found a real friend."

❤️

BLESS.

BOTH OF YOU DESERVE HAPPINESS IN YOUR LIVES!!!

"Maybe I can tell everyone about the kiss between Riya and Alec. That might be what completely sets off that villains alliance and destroys it once and for all!"

I highly doubt that. I think the opposite is what's gonna happen. But sure.

OH MY GOD...

I feel... GOOD.

I felt so good after watching this.

This might actually be, no joke, one of my favorite episodes of this entire show.

If not my favorite, definately in the top three.

Everyone was utilized. Everyone had some sort of moment.

We saw human sides to the villain characters that was actually interesting.

It was paced really well.

The animation was the prettiest it's ever been.

The intern sublot that I don't care about overall had its best scenes.

Allyson was actually tolerable in this episode.

Jake and Aiden getting payoff to their dynamic thus far.

The build up to that moment where Jake saves both of them was so well handled.

The challenge was so unique and so much fun from start to end.

Grett finally stands up for herself and has her best moment in this season thus far.

AND I get to watch Yul die in VR?

AND we get Yul eliminated??

That elimination alone is going in the Top 10 most satisfying eliminations.

YEAH. I LOVED THIS. THIS WAS A REALLY GOOD EPISODE.

Even if none of those other stuff were true, I'd still love it cause Yul is gone after thirteen episodes. Was it worth it? Honestly, yeah.

I mean I've made it zero secret that Yul is, by far, my least favorite character of this entire show.

You can see this post where I do explain why (Go to the end)

He was just a mouth of slurs and not much else. Doesn't help that his 'arc' is him saying that's all there is to him. And he was responsible for my girl Grett's derailment. And there's no backstory to explain it either.

It's just a sore thumb when you have all these other complicated interesting characters in the season, and then you have this one guy who is just so comically hateable.

Yeah I'm so happy he's gone and I don't have to deal with him anymore.

AND YUL GETS NO MONEY!!! YAY!!!! THERE'S NO WAY FOR HIM TO GET ANYTHING ANYMORE!!!!

Also, I will say, despite all of this and my extreme hatred towards the CHARACTER, ZERO OF IT IS TARGETED TOWARDS THE VA.

He did so much better in this season than in Season 2, probably because of better direction. He absolutely nailed this role as the whiny non-aware abuser. There was so much more range and energy in his voice than in Season 2 that honestly did make me tolerate him a BIT more than I would've otherwise. Massive props.

I hate your character, but you did a really good job making me hate him in intentional ways.

I don't know where Grett goes from here though. Her story is kinda... over? Maybe it's not, but I feel like they did what her arc was, standing up to her boyfriend. Gabby is my winner pick and a major player in this game. Even if Grett goes, she's still gonna have stuff to do.

Yeah. This was peak. I don't know what else to say. Things are looking up.

[theadventurerslog]

Quest For Glory 1: So You Want to Be a Hero | Part 1

The Adventurer's Log

Release Date: 1989

Quest for Glory caught my attention when I watched a retrospective for the first game. I bought the set and King's Quest IV, V and VI at the time, not knowing if I wanted to played 1-4 yet. I was fully intending to play Quest for Glory first, but then King's Quest took over instead and the whole series got played here. Well, I'm finally giving Quest for Glory the attention it was meant to have now. QFG is more of an adventure game RPG hybrid with a class to pick, skills to improve and fights to fight.

As always a couple notes:

There are a couple versions of the game: the original with a text parser and a remade VGA with point and click controls. I wanted to start with the original and get a natural progression through the series.

I have watched this game played, however there are some differences in things you can do and puzzle solutions based on your class, so this is going to be a mix of things I know and things I don't as they went with a different class than I'm doing. That'll be a nice mix I think.

Now...

It's time to be a hero! The town of Spielburg needs adventurers, no experience required. There are monsters to fight, brigands to defeat and a few other tasks to earn the title of Hero of Spielburg.

There are three classes to pick from: fighter, magic user and thief. I went with magic user.

Meet Cinder Win. I was going to give myself a bit of Throwing skill and forgot! Off to a good start, but at least some good Intelligence and Magic.

I have four reasons for this name:

I'm bad at coming with names and it can be a long struggle, so I thought maybe a reference would be fun. I tried anagrams of Rincewind from Discworld because I'm a dork, and Cinder Win stood out to me

One of the spells is Fire Dart which I imagine will get lots of use once I get it. Cinder (fire) will (hopefully) Win.

There are some times you need to type out your name and this will be easy to remember

It's silly for a game that is most certainly not totally serious

The game opens up with our first arrival to Spielburg.

I chatted with the Sheriff first who introduced himself as Sheriff Schultz Meistersson and his assistant Otto Von Goon, who would not chat with me but I hope he has fun with his yo-yo.

The sheriff informed me of the monsters and brigands around the area so a hero was certainly welcome. Otherwise he mostly just told me to go find out stuff for myself, so fine, I do like a good exploration.

This street also had the inn and a barbershop but the barbershop was closed. I avoided the inn for the moment and moved onward to market street.

It's a fruit stand run by a centaur! I bought some apples. I also discovered one of the barrels has potatoes and had a laugh because Rincewind, the root of Cinder Win here, wound up with a great desire for potatoes in the books for reasons. Anyway, naturally I had to buy some of the those too, though sadly they just display as vegetables in my inventory.

I also went into the Dry Goods store and got some empty flasks and another dagger. I thought... maybe I can cast zap on one of those daggers and throw it! You know, if I had put anything into my Throw skill. Which I did not. I have no idea how effective that would be but it sounded good in the moment!

Anyway, I sure did go shopping. You start out with food rations, 1 dagger, and leather armour.

Spoiler alert: mistakes were made. More on that later.

But outside I was having fun clicking around.

I moved on to another street and landed in the bar, where more clicking yielded more snark.

This only encourages me to click all the pointless places for all the responses.

I didn't end up doing much in the bar. I found the barber, anyway drunk as a skunk. I bought a beer--more money down the drain! If I had more money, I could have also bought Dragon's Breath to lose more money and also my life because it does kill you, though you are in complete fairness, warned not to drink the stuff. For the sake of death finding I'll have to try to remember trying it when I can actually afford it. There is more to this place at this point, but only for thieves, and Cinder Win is no thief, so I left.

Outside, I obviously examined more nothing and got a shameless plug for the second game.

I popped into the alley where there was a beggar.

The way I was spending my money I feel like I could ended up joining him... I did give him a silver though for some attempted information. I did learn you can get some temp work at the castle.

I popped by the inn but decided to deal with it more fully when it was nighttime.

then it was finally time for the magic shop, a very important place for me being a magic user and all. A place I should have hit up first.

I learned the shopkeeper's name was Zara. I was informed of a powerful hag, Baba Yaga who is best avoided. She cursed Baron von Spielburg. And I learned of what spells she had for sale. She also informed me that there is a powerful spell to be learned if you learn the secret of Erana's Peace. Erana was a powerful spellcaster long ago. She brought peace to the valley and there's still a spell that protects the town from violence or foul magic. And indeed if you try to attack anything you can't.

As for the spells I could purchase:

Flame Dart: 60 silver Fetch: 40 silver Open: 30 silver

The game starts you with 4 gold and 10 silver which is the equivalent of 50 silver. If I hadn't gone shopping previously, I could have afforded the open or fetch spell and I wouldn't have been far off the Flame Dart. Not being able to didn't come back to bite me at all, nosiree. In the meantime I carried on like no big deal.

Sidenote: I did bad note-keeping and someone told me about the wizard Erasmus which was quite possibly Zara but now I can't remember. He exists though and has a tower to go visit at some point!

For the final stop in town, the Adventurer's Guild. Time to see some quests!

There were five quests pinned to the board:

Reward of 50 gold for the safe return of Elsa von Spielburg - an dusty faded poster with a picture of a small child.

Wanted: Brigand Leader. Unknown appearance. Wears a cloak. Must provide proof of identity. Reward of 60 gold and the title Hero of the Realm. Main quest ho!

Another older poster with a picture of handsome arrogant young man. Reward of 50 gold for information leading to the return of Baronet Barnard von Spielburg.

Notice: Spell components need. Cash or trade for potions. Inquire at the Healer's.

Reward for return of lost ring. Inquire at the Healer's.

Goals!

There's also a registration book you can sign for a point!

I chatted with the guild master and got some more details on the Baron, Barnard and Elsa.

The baron was great until he pissed of Baba Yaga and now things are bad. He reckons she's the centre of the problem. The baron tried to make her leave and she cursed him.

Ten years ago Elsa was carried off by something that flew over the wall. The searched for her for several years until everyone gave up. Except the baron's jester, Yorick.

Barnard was a hero. He went one hunting five years and his horse returned with deep claw marks. No sign of the Baronet's body was found.

Clearly this place needs a hero, indeed!

This game has a day night cycle and I still had some daylight left, so it was time to leave town and dip my toes into exploring a bit before returning to sleep.

Close to the town gate was the healer's which is good because she had two notices up: ingredients and her missing ring. She also sells potions which would be great if I had much money.

Healing - HP Magic - MP Vigor - Stamina Undead Unguent - Undead protection

She will also pay for ingredients: cheetaur claws, troll beard, magic mushrooms and flowers from Erana's Peace.

She has two little pterosaurs, Pterry and Pteresa. Pterry likes to keep her company while Pteresa has a nest outside.

And she's missing her ring, but it must be around her place somewhere...

Now, because this isn't a blind play I already knew the ring was in Pteresa's nest, but I was lacking a way to get it. I'm a wimpy wizard with no climbing skill to climb the tree and my only spell was zap. Fetch would be great! I carried on; I'd get more money. It's fine.

I carried on.

When you're running around you may get attacked by monsters and then you have to fight or run. Or die. There have been some deaths to monsters.

(this is a later screenshot because I kept forgetting to get one while fighting. I was too busy panicking and fleeing. It's the Rincewind way. And dying.)

Anyhoo, despite my above drama, at this point I didn't actually run into much. I didn't go far from town since I was worried about night falling and I didn't want to get locked out of town. But the threats were there!

I briefly stopped by the castle and got grumped at by a guard in the castle grounds.

I did talk to the gatekeeper but he didn't have much to tell me that I hadn't already learned from town. There is work to be done at the stable but I didn't accept the job because I was watching the time.

I also met a centaur while wandering the region!

I met Hilde! I bought potatoes! And apples. But potatoes!

He had some interesting info: he got attacked by the brigands a few months ago and there were too many for him to completely fend off. Strangely their leader intervened, and forced them to stop, ordering them not to hurt people from the town. Then the leader gave him a healing potion and had him carried to the healer's. The leader's face was hidden by a helm, but there was a compassion there unlike brigands.

Hmmm.

Evening was falling and ended my little wander so I went back to the Inn. The owners are Katta from the land of Shapeir. There was now a man there who only shows up at night, Abdullah Doo.

Abdullah was going to be the first merchant making it into the valley this year which would have made him wealthy, but he was ambushed by brigands as they crossed the pass.

His trade goods were taken, but the leader spared his life. Now he's a beggar living off the generosity of his friends.

So the bandits have magic and weirdly merciful leader...

I had some dinner--you do have to eat something once a day. And then it was off to bed!

One day done and good night to Cinder Win.

I kind of love this little sleep screen. It's cute.

Next time Day 2 and some chaos as my mistakes come down to bite me!

[liodennewsreporter]

2/3-middle

"It’s kinda worse than word of mouth- it’s “see this person told me they were told this” there’s no direct communication to the 12 year old they’re talking about"-anon

And tiny a RL trader and if your confused tiny is tiny mom are the same person who go down with the same behaviors with their own drama on them mostly because their apple's 'goon' as their referred to as many the one who accused someone of being a bad person with no evidence, if this is ever changed I will address as such.

including tiny harassed a person for 'leaking' dms when they do the exact same. and worst such as harassment

and her response to even all of this? something that doesn't even address any of the serious parts and acting like people are only mad at her for the RLC drama(which just starting this was SUPPOSED to be about )

"hey what the fuck is going on in the rl community fr"-anon

next page

[sp00ky-scary]

The Storybook of Legends Thoughts P2:

Woah smth actually acknowledging the fact that the wonderlandians were forced out of their home and miss it ???? Didn't know eah could do that outside of WTW (actually I did know that because I've read the books already)

MUSCULAR CERISE !!! Also she wears jeans, that's a vibe

I like Cerise being such an outcast

The running joke of Hopper being around anytime someone insults someone else by calling them a toad is dumb /pos

Basketball at EAH is fucking insane

Also Cupid flying ????

The Hunter ripping his shirt and striking a pose whilst trumpets play bit is soooo dumb /pos

Can Cupid not fawn over Hunter like that… (I mean could be worse, could be the Lisi Harrison MH books)

Oh hey the crying witch is the daughter of the witch from Hansel and Gretel… even though Ginger appears in the next book so ?????

Love how the books commit more to the fairytale thing e.g. Humphrey being an egg, the child of Puss in Boots being a cat, the child of the Ugly Duckling being a "duck" etc. the show only does that for some background characters (I say whilst mentioning two not even background characters)

The Bella Sisters plot is so fucking good

Oh hey they acknowledge that the Evil Queen made like 4 different attempts on Snow's life

Whilst they give Apple a traumatic reason as to why she's so set on her destiny I also like to hc that she's autistic

The Taylor Swift references ueghhhh…

Apple questioning an EAH pun ??? Also despite Ravens response lost and FOUND actually makes sense because the item was lost but it was found just not by the owner, if an item was truly lost it wouldn't be in the lost and FOUND

Anyway ghosts exist

Are there 3rd year students or just 1st and 2nd year ? If so that's an awfully short time spent in school

I like how magic is more common in the books

Anyway yay pet time

CUPID NO somebody bring back Baba Yaga with the spray bottle and have her spray Cupid please

Sorry a DIRE WOLF ?! That's an insane pet for a teenager

Funny how Grimm scowls at Cerise getting a pet wolf but doesn't give a fuck about Blondie getting a bear even though those seem pretty equivalent like meaning wise

"Dexter was a nice kid but nowhere near the quality of his older brother" APPLE

Why are they always wearing sandals

Bad news for everyone who says that the familial connection in Snow White doesn't exist in EAH… (in book canon because the show doesn't touch on this, saw someone say that the episode Blondie Branches Out does, it does not) they explicitly state that in their parents stories the Evil Queen was Snow White's step mother and Apple and Raven don't actually know if it'll apply to them, not saying you can't ship them they don't consider eachother family and aren't related but the idea of "the book debunks them being related in anyway" is not a true statement despite what tiktok comments would have you think

Yay glasses wearing Apple !!!

Body positive Apple is a surprise

Apple when Raven won't be evil: 😡

Apple when Raven acts evil (even when pretending): 😡

Love that they just straight up find a skeleton, it's funny how the books are both more fairytale like and darker at the same time (I mean accurate fairytales were dark originally)

Huh the description of Ravens Legacy Day outfit is accurate to the doll, I wonder if the explanation for it is canon to the show too (because let's be honest her Legacy Day look is a little like odd, not bad just odd)

All the descriptions are accurate, I mean Legacy Day did come out before this book I was just anticipating creative liberties

Was Myspace still popular in 2013 ?

Oh okay 3rd and 4th years do exist they've just been entirely irrelevant

Yo Ravens vision of her destiny included all the other shit the Evil Queen did and didn't involve a weirdly modern looking police officer arresting her, why is book legacy day better than show legacy day

Royal Lizzie moment ??? Interesting they chose to include her, the show was always so vague on her stance besides her wanting to follow her destiny

Mermaids pull their boats ???? They're boats they can just sail them ???

CORAL !!!!! Oh I love her

Wow the singing moment is cringe

And with that I've finished the first book (well for the millionth time I reread these so many times as a kid) the plot is honestly better than what the show did also Apple is way more fucked up and I love it. It's really 2013 though in a way that now makes me cringe. Also it handles the royals vs rebels thing better tbh, like it's a lot clearer who's on what side and the division is much stronger. Maddie is adorable as always, the Bella Sisters plot is like rly good I mean Apple and Raven spend a bit too long going to the cave but I think it's a way more effective plot for showing how little is known about destinies and also how manipulative Grimm is and did a way better job than the show at convincing me that Raven and Apple could be friends. Also the diversity is cool and the book does a better job at acknowledging the original fairytales than the show. Obviously I love the show and the book and there are reasons why each do certain things however I think the book is way more effective and (possibly obviously considering the focus of fairytales) honestly a better medium for this kind of story (plus the book isn't as held back by the need to be doll advertisements and quite so kid friendly).

Remembered I brought the eah books with me to uni (idk why I did that) and now I'm rereading them and shall be giving commentary on them (to avoid spam I'll compile notes so I'm not reblogging this with every individual thought but instead groups)

[toxicanonymity]

raider masterlist

dark!Joel Miller x f!reader

NOTES: moodboard by @milla-frenchy 🖤 a rb will not stay up-to-date. hit the link limit on this post. Idk what to do but I'll update latest fic link below.

new drabble May 6, 2025: Quiet Time

SUMMARY: He's a bad guy, and you're his good girl. Joel saves you from bad men, but claims you for himself. His persona starts to crack, but he gets even more possessive. You're his world, and he'll do anything to keep you. Emotional slow burn but smut the whole time. WARNINGS: 18+ canon-typical violence, noncon via implicit threat, evolving to enthusiastic dubious consent (stockholm syndrome), depraved use of praise and pet names (sweet pea, baby), unsafe P in V, exhibitionism, extreme possessiveness, dark fluff (🖤), angst, and more. NO USE of Y/N, No physical description of reader. Darkness rating by poll.

Spotify: raider, sweet pea (smut) Optional reference: trailer floor plan Carter masterlist

main story

Note, secondary links in each bullet were written out of order and may contain spoilers or references to future events. their placement in this list is based on timeline.

Raider: (Mar 24, 2023) - He "saves" you, then has his way with you but is kinda sweet about it. Joel POV (Oct 3, 1k)

Rescue (Apr 8 - 1.9k) Your bf tries to save you. Joel makes him watch then keeps you.

Stash House (Apr 11 - 850)- Joel takes you to the stash house and shows everyone you're his. Wash Bin 🖤 (Aug 27, 1k) Shooting Practice Drabble(Jul 28, 1.6k)

Roulette (Apr 23, 4k) - You try your luck and run. Joel is mad but takes care of you.

J. Miller (May 19, 2k) - Joel labels you with his switchblade and claims all your holes. dark. Can be skipped.

Home (May 29, 1.3k) - Joel makes dinner at home, cleans your chest, and tucks you in. 🖤

Company (Jun 9, 2.2k) - Joel brings home a girl to distract his men. dark. Extra Scene - angst.

Close (Jul 3, 2.7k) - close call with other raiders. You-almost-died sex, and later, more intimate 🖤

Gun Hug (Jul 31, 3.7k) - Joel traps 2 bad guys and kills them while you. . .🖤 If you want him (1.5k) - he holds out to see🖤

Night Air (Aug 30, 3.5k) - Joel is brutal with a bad guy, and his POV reveals some feelings. 🖤 Bonus blurb, wakeup pwp drabble

Hunger (Sep 29, 7k) - Joel takes you on a trek, comforts you, kills a guy, and gives you head. 🖤

Bodies (Dec 3, 7.8k) - After a violent night, Joel does something he's never done before. 🖤 Raider POV

✨️Feast (Apr 17, 2025, 1.9k) - Joel's hunger can't be contained. You stay in bed. 🖤

No cliffhagers ... Bulletin from Tox

more (drabbles, etc)

🔥 smut

Trying to use him (800) (riding) 🔥

House meeting drabble 🖤

You get sick at night drabble 🖤

He goes down on you (oral f) 🔥

If you touched his scar

if men had hurt you in the past

if you got your period 🖤

magazine and makeup 🖤

yoga pwp drabble piv 1k 🔥

boots drabble (oral f receiving) 🔥

graveyard blurb (spice)

if you bit his arm drabble (p in v) 🔥

If you snapped (emotional spice) 🖤

face sitting on sofa 🔥

being bad, looking good (2.8k, smut) 🔥

Van ride drabble (800) 🖤

sleeping beast (<1k), PWP 🔥

If Joel was sick 🖤

If you were annoying

cutting his hair 🖤

waking up on top 🔥

tired 🖤

waking up on top again 🔥

Sweet pea overhears Joel 🔥

Choking on his dick (600) 🔥

his birthday 🥺

quickie (daddy kink scenario) 🔥

✨Roly poly - comfort 🖤

Note: not all content is linked. Asks can lead to lore, snippets, and previews or hints of future plot points, etc. which are not added here.

Headcanons (not written like fic)

If another man has his way (Q&A)

dacryphilia - evolved update (Q&A)

if you had scars or tattoos (Q&A)

sweet pea by herself

If you sketched Joel and Jack

Apple picking 🖤

Responding to a Nightmare 🖤

accidentally hurting her 🖤

Analysis (#raider!analysis)

why does he keep her

why did he snap (in Company extra scene)

his eye contact

his affection / feelings, trajectory 🖤

falling for sweet pea

his self hate and her feelings

the dog and joel's concern for you

awareness of growth / why keep her

Raider Tommy

Birds of prey (2.6k)

Art, etc.

Mattress by esquire magazine

Stitches by @not-a-unique-snowflake-blog

collage by @milla-frenchy

lose control edit by @survivingandenduring

🌸 sweet pea mood boards by various

6 month collage by milla-frenchy

6 month cake by not-a-unique-snowflake-blog

🌸 sweet pea cosplay from night air

👱‍♂️carter mood board by @romana-after-dark

pts. 1-3 rb mood boards by @iamasaddie

night air gif by not-a-unique-snowflake-blog

raider/sweet pea collage by milla

sweet pea's pup by @dark-scape

want it that bad gif by dark-scape

Bodies gif by not-a-unique-snowflake-blog

👱‍♂️carter mood board by milla

Then and now drawing by romana-after-dark

Raider/sweet pea drawings by @lumoverheaven

our stars moodboard by milla

raiding edits by gasolinerainbowpuddles

under the anger by iamasaddie

🎥 Trailer (video) by @carminepoison

birthday sketch by lumoverheaven

In love w raider by milla

✨ checks that you're ok 🐺 by milla

If I've left yours off please lmk I prob tagged improperly

Back to Joel Masterlist

🖤 If mine or another writer's work has inspired yours, it's always better late than never to share / shout-out 🖤

[linalilia]

[meet the prisoners!] prisoner 008: maruyama yurika

(edit: .. i forgot about her height. i'm sorry yurika i have to edit your profile AGAIN)

idk if anyone noticed, but i DID post her profile but then i quickly deleted it because i realized.. that i actually don't like her crime that much. idk, i really thought that the crime i originally planned for her was too weird and i thought that it would be "too much" compared to the other characters' murders.

thankfully, i already had other crime ideas for her (and all the other prisoners) so i didn't have to think too much about it and i actually like her new crime more, so i don't regret changing some stuff about her. but what i do regret is that i had to rewrite her mv because the original one had too many hints to her "old crime". i had to rewrite her whole profile actually.

General info:

Name: Maruyama Yurika (丸山優梨香) (her last name means "circle" and "mountain" and her first name means "kindness, gentleness", "pear" and "fragrance")

Age: 21 y/o

Gender: Female

Status: Prisoner 008

Birthday: October 10 (Libra)

Blood type: A

Height: 165 cm

Image color: #FF8484

Occupation: University student and a maid cafe worker

Personality: Yurika is a kind and polite young woman who loves helping others and who is always there to support them or cheer them up when they're feeling down. She tries really hard to hide the fact that she's actually a huge otaku, but she's not that good at it because she still keeps making references to her favorite manga/anime/games. Even though a lot of people tend to take advantage of her naivety and innocence, she's actually much scarier than she appears. When it comes to her crime, she tries to avoid the topic and she claims that she did it out of self-defense and that she's not lying. You can see the anger in her eyes when she talks about her crime though, so.. it's hard to say if she really regrets committing her crime. What she did after her crime is also a big mystery and the fact that she starts shaking whenever someone raises that topic and she keeps saying "I had to do it, I had to do it, I had to do it".. makes others worry about her a lot.

MV Info:

Which canon Milgram song she would cover: Umbilical. It fits her vibe and her personality a lot!

Which DECO*27 song she would cover: Poison Apple.

If she could cover a song by a different Vocaloid producer, which one would it be: Kyu-kurarin by Iyowa.

Her MV description:

The first half of her MV would have bright colors like pink, orange and yellow, but they wouldn't be as bright as Kei or Eiko's MV colors. Later those colors would change to darker shades of green and blue.

The first half of her MV would actually have that 90's anime art style and it would be very cute and colorful. We can see Yurika getting ready for work, she's smiling and singing something and we can also see that her room is full of anime/game merch and we can see post-it notes everywhere that say things like "You can do it!" or "Let's hope today will be better than yesterday!". She finally leaves the house and the MV takes place in a maid cafe now. We can see her talking to the customers, smiling, serving food and being the cute maid that she has to be. She's also friends with her coworkers too and she seems to be the most popular maid here. Everything is fine.. but also it feels like everything is too peaceful.

Some time passes and Yurika can go home now, but right as she leaves, the colors suddenly change and become much darker and the art style changes to the usual Milgram MV art style too. However, now the MV has this weird effect, like we're watching an old tape right now. Yurika has a bad feeling and she keeps looking around as she walks home. But then, suddenly, the POV changes and we can see Yurika running away.. from us. She trips and falls and everything goes black for a second, but then we can see her lying on the ground, her clothes is torn and her hair is a mess now. It looks like we're pointing at her and laughing, but if you look closer, you can notice two right hands pointing at her, it's almost like she was attacked by two people.

Then, we can see Yurika slowly getting up and looking right at us. She stands like that for a moment and then the MV gets more surreal: it doesn't look like we're watching a video, it's like we're just watching completely different scenes that are not connected in any way. The POV is also different depending on the scene: we can see her cutting someone's hair in one scene and we can see her beating someone with a pipe, but most of the time we see everything right through her victim(s)'s eyes. We keep watching her torture someone, but you can also notice that now she is actually wearing gloves in some scenes. The colors become even darker and it's almost impossible to see what's going on, but we still can see Yurika talking to someone standing next to her and then looking at us and the very last scene shows her fully covered in blood, talking to someone again and then smiling and doing a peace sign.

It turns out that we really were watching her do all of that and right when the TV turns off and we get up, Yurika walks closer to us, smiles and gives us a hug. The MV ends.

Trailer 1 Voicelines:

"Hello! My name is Maruyama Yurika! Hm? Y-you want to know what I do for a living? Uh.. Well, I'm still a university student, but also I work at a maid cafe! Yes, as a waitress. So don't be shy, you can always ask me for help, master~.. Ugh, I'm so tired of saying stuff like that."

"I HATE IT! I HATE EVERYTHING! I'M SO TIRED OF EVERYTHING, IT'S ALL SO TIRING AND OVERWHELMING AND STRESSFUL AND- W-wait, what are you two doing here?.."

Trivia:

She had two victims and murder wasn't her only crime. She also seems more worried about what she did after her crime and not the actual murder.

(Edited after posting her VD) She doesn't want to be voted guilty because of her huge fear of death and because she's tired of bad things happening to her all the time.

She's close with all the female prisoners (at least she thinks so), especially with Eiko and Prisoner 010. Her relationship with the male prisoners is.. not as good and she prefers to avoid them most of the time. If you ask her which male prisoner she likes the most, she will try to change the topic.

Yes, Kei tried to flirt with her, he already thought she was attractive and after he found out about her job, he became even more interested, but for some reason he got very scared and after that he completely stopped talking to Yurika. Whenever he has to talk to her, he tries to run away or he asks someone else to do it for him.

If Naomi is the "mother figure" for other prisoners, Yurika is like their "big sister figure", even though she's not the oldest prisoner and she's still younger than Kei, Shun and Eiko. Younger prisoners just trust her more than those three, even if some of them (like Akio or Asahi) try to deny it.

It's hard to describe Asahi and Yurika's theme with one word, but if I had to, it would most likely be "hunger" or "not feeling satisfied", to be more exact. I actually tried to assign deadly sins to all of my prisoner OCs and both Asahi and Yurika got a mix of Gluttony and Greed, but what makes this theme really interesting is that both of them are actually on the opposite ends of the spectrum: Asahi comes from a rich family and he was very spoiled, but he still wanted more even though he didn't even know what he wants, meanwhile Yurika struggled financially before arriving here and she regretted getting a job at a maid cafe, because she wasn't paid that well and she thought that the customers were annoying and that's why she obviously wasn't satisfied with her life. Her original MV also showed her killing someone while eating/drinking with them and Asahi's murder happened while he was eating dinner with someone (at least according to his MV). Also, interestingly, her new crime actually sounds more like "Greed" meanwhile Asahi's crime still sounds like a mix of Greed and Gluttony.

Yurika and Asahi's backstories are actually "reverse" versions of each other, and it's not just about Asahi being a rich kid and Yurika having problems with money. But they're also much more similar than you would think.

[clairecrive]

hello!! can you maybe write a nikolai x reader (she’s a heartrender) and they’ve been best friends since childhood and finally got together during the war, and he proposes to her once he becomes king? And she’s scared to say yes because the country might not want a Grisha queen but she eventually says yes?

Love Story

a/n: I missed my boy and so here's a fluffy piece for him. Thanks for requesting anon, hope you like this! x

Warning: none, pure fluff

Word count: 2.1K

Tags: @jupiterandbutterflies, @randomoutsiders, @agentsofsheilds, @for-bebbanburg, @pansysgirlfriend, @hannaxmaria, @vintagebitc

(if you want to, you can add yourself to my taglist by filling this form)

SHADOW AND BONE MASTERLIST

It was late when Nikolai walked into his room. It always was. He was the first one to get up and the last one to go to bed, assuring that everything was going as it was supposed to.

Such was the life of a king.

Well, Nikolai wasn't king yet. But with his father's illness, it won't be long 'till he was.

He had been dreaming about this all his life. Hell, this was everything he had trained to be. Ignored every rumours and gossip and slander, focused only on one thing: becoming the man that Ravka needed.

And now the moment had finally come.

Nikolai could barely believe it. Yes, he was ambitious and skilled. He knew that he was the right person for this job. Either way, he was nervous.

Whenever he pictured this moment as a young boy, he had always thought that it'd be the end. The coronation being the cusp of his personal fulfilment.

But things had changed.

Now his coronation didn't hold any finality to it. It felt like the beginning of something new if anything. Something that Nikolai had been extensively planning for and was extremely excited for. But since it was something new, something that had never been done before, the uncertainty of how it could go made him a bit nervous.

Because now he wasn't alone.

A fierce heartrender had become his partner, his confidante, his better half.

Trying to be as silent as possible, Nikolai quickly undressed before joining you to bed. It was routine for you. Nikolai would come home late, you'd be deep in slumber by then, but he would always hold you close to him and kiss your neck to warn you of his presence. That would usually wake you but you'd never get angry. Actually, you were the one that told him to let you know when he got back. If only to make sure that he was okay.

"All good love, go to sleep." He'd whisper then in your ear. You wouldn't move, only wiggle close to him and pull his arm over your body so that you could hold his hand.

To be fair, you had always been a constant in Nikolai's life. You had met when you were both children. He was known for being restless, always escaping his nanny's hold to go on "adventures" as he'd call them. They'd usually entail climbing over trees or exploring paths in the forest that he had never seen.

One day, during one of his quest, he had put into his head that he needed to climb the biggest tree he could find. It was easy enough to spot his challenge but doing it was another thing.

He had been able to climb a few feet, his short stature and slender limbs aiding him in his endeavour. Looking down to assess his progress, he was confident he could really make it. Overconfident really. Because too busy loading over his abilities, he didn't notice that his foot was not hovering over a branch.

So when he went to confidently put all of his weight on it and it was met with nothing, he lost his balance. He tried to grip with all his might to the branches he was holding in his hands but he wasn't strong enough. And so, he fell.

Thankfully, he hadn't climbed high enough for the fall to be fatal. But it was enough to severely injure him.

At first, the impact of the ground left him out of breath. His head hurt too. It was only when he tried to stand that he noticed that his leg was bent at an unnatural angle.

There wasn't any blood but the sight was enough to send baby Nikolai in a panic. His breath turned hollow and frantic and now that he was aware of the injury, pain shot through his leg making him sob.

It was for the noise he made that you had been able to find him.

You were also wandering around the forest but for less nefarious intent though. You had a book under your arm and you were looking for a quiet spot to read. Needless to say, as soon as you heard his wails of agony, the book fell discarded on the ground as you run toward the noise.

When you reached him you tried your best to get him to calm down. He was hyperventilating by then. You weren't that far in your training to be able to slow his heartbeat or put him to sleep. But you were skilled enough to soothe him with your touch.

That and Nikolai was too caught up in looking at you, this stranger who was trying to help him.

While you couldn't actually heal him, you kept him company until someone eventually found you.

That was how your friendship had begun until it had bloomed into something more as you grew up.

Unbeknown to you, your relationship was about to reach another mark. Holding you close to him, Nikolai willed himself to put his plan in action tomorrow.

As his coronation grew closer, he grew more and more restless. He needed to do this as soon as possible.

The next day went by as usual. When you woke up Nikolai wasn't next to you but you found a trial with your breakfast and a handwritten note on it.

It read:

"An hour before the sun sets, meet me when it all started."

While it was unusual for Nikolai to leave you little notes in his stead, the mysteriousness of it made you antsy. What could he possibly be up to?

Your day went by, as usual, a skip in you feet as you were excited about the date.

Like he had asked you, you made sure to reach that tree in the forest exactly when he asked you to.

Nikolai was already there, pacing at the foot of the tree until he noticed you standing there.

"What is going on?" Before seeing him, you hadn't thought that this meeting could be about bad news. But Nikolai looked nervous, almost scared and that didn't happen often.

"Hello, love." He greeted you walking towards you. Holding your hands in his, he raised one to his lips to leave a small kiss.

"Such a gentleman," you cooed at his gesture, his lips curling in a small smirk as a result, "what did you do?" Raising one of your eyebrows, you asked knowing that when Nikolai was so sweet it was only for two reasons: he wanted to make it up to you or he wanted to have sex. Since doing it in public places had never been appealing to him, you thought it more likely that it was the first.

"Can't a man do something nice for his better half?" He scoffed in fake hurt. You pointedly stared at him but you were smiling.

"I wanted to something nice for you," he said shyly? while shrugging your shoulders not meeting your eyes. Without waiting for a reply, he pulled you closer to the tree where you now noticed there was a white sheet laid with rose petals and candles all over it.

"Things are about to change," he said referring to his impending coronation as you reached the sheet, "and you know what I realized?"

You shook your head in reply, too enchanted by the man in front of you and the scenery around you to speak. Nikolai smiled at you, gently reaching to your face to remove a piece of hair by tucking in behind your ear. His hand gently cupped your cheek, his smile widening even more when you leaned into his touch.

"I've realized that no matter what happened in my life, where I am in the world or what name people call me, you're always the constant."

"And I don't want that to change. Ever." His eyes flicker between yours, shining with anticipation. But why? Surely he must know that you never intend to leave him.

"That it's never going to change, sasha. I'm here to stay." You assured him, your hand reaching to grab his.

His eyes flashed again, regaining their usual confident glow. He looked reassured.

"Well, you know me, my dear. Always worrying so, I hope you don't mind, but I'd like to make it official." He joked, his hands leaving your face as he kneeled.

Kneeled? He couldn't possibly...

Your breath hitched at his position. He got a little box out of his pocket before reaching for your hand again.

"Y/n, my heart, my love, the apple of my eye, you beautiful woman," he started cheekily knowing very well how calling these things would make you blush, "We were both young when I first saw you. Me making a fool out of myself by doing something stupid as per usual and you coming to save my ass. Little did I know though that that stupid adventure would give me more than a broken leg." Both of you smiled at the memory.

"if I knew that breaking a leg would be what made me meet you, I would have done sooner. And don't give me that look," he said once you glared at him, "what's a broken leg in the face of true love?" He added making you roll your eyes. Always smooth with his words. Damn him.

"Because that's what we have, a love story. And it may not be conventional with me dragging you all over the world doing reckless things, assuming different identities and everything but it's our love story. And it's beautiful, I wouldn't change it for the world. So baby, please, just say yes and make me the luckiest bastard in the world."

His words, his hopeful smile and shining eyes were too much for you to contain your tears. They were happy tears, you both knew that. There was no way you could say no to him. But at the same time, you were a bit hesitant. Nikolai painted a wonderful picture but you knew that the reality was a bit harsher.

Kneeling as well, you also gripped his hands.

"You're my whole heart, sasha, I hope you know it." You started, your voice wavering a bit. Nikolai's face fell for a moment sensing that there was a "but" coming. But it only lasted so long before his face morphed into that stubborn expression he'd always have whenever he'd set on getting something.

"I'd be a fool to say no to you, Nikolai," you added hastily hoping to rectify your mistake. "But I can't help but worry."

"You're going to be king soon and I'm not sure how much having a Grisha consort will help you."

Where his lips were pursed in confusion now they were set in a line. Knowing what was troubling you relieved him. That was easily fixed.

"So what, my love? I'll be a king and you'll be the queen. You've fought for this country just as much as I have. Besides, you're a fool if you think that I'm going to leave you just because I'll be addressed by a different title."

The hold on your hands felt reassuring, the sheer determination and honesty in his eyes even more. You knew Nikolai and you knew that he was ambitious as well as stubborn. And loyal. Your heart warmed at his words that you knew were true. He was not going to let you go.

Suddenly, the realisation of your feelings for him and his feelings for you overwhelmed you. A sob broke through your lips making worry return in Nikolai's eyes.

"Saints Nikolai, you have no fucking idea how grateful I am you fell down that tree that day." You confessed, eyes welling with tears.

"So am I, my love. My leg a bit less but..." you both chuckled.

Returning serious, Nikolai went to open the velvet box he was holding. The Lantsov's emerald. Your eyes widened when they fell on it. You had known about it but you had never seen it before.

"Nikolai-" you whispered in astonishment.

"I know it's not exactly your style but this was fit for a queen. My mother gave it to me and I want you to have it." He said sensing your hesitancy.

"Can I also have a kiss?" You asked cheekily batting your eyelids. Nikolai laughed at your antics. He quickly slipped the ring around your finger before cradling your face and pulling you close.

"You don't have to ask twice." And with that, his lips crashed on yours. He kissed you slowly at first, just your lips touching. But as soon as the realisation of what had happened dawned on him, the kiss grew frantic. His hands were in your hairs as yours were wrapped around the collar of his coat, pulling him impossibly close to you.

Life with Nikolai wasn't easy but his love was the most real thing you had ever felt. Nothing in the world meant more to you than he did. Ring or not.

[shivada-jade]

songs of a siren

characters: venti, beidou, kazuha, albedo ➡ mention(s): xiangling, ningguang, sucrose, timaeus, peepaw warning(s): yo ho ho me hearties

note: whenever i write venti, i always have 27 tabs of rhymezone opened up. my rhyming vocabulary will be unstoppable in a few weeks time. no one can stop me, it will be sublime

Venti:

Venti has seen many things in his free-spirited life. He's seen many different lives and creatures, but something he has never seen before are the fabled sirens of the sea.

"Beware of the sirens!" The old captains of Teyvat warned, "Their music is captivating and will drown you into sea."

"Music?" The bard asks with sparkling eyes.

The old sea captain squints her eyes. "Bard, do you have selective hearing? The sirens will drown you in sea."

Venti laughs, "But I've never heard of singing sirens! Just sirens. I wish to see one."

"Younglings these days," the captain shakes her head, tipping her chair back just enough so she wouldn't fall.

"I'm actually older than I look, you can see me in many books," he chuckles, hopping off the table right outside of Angel's Share.

"Thank you for your sea tips captain!" He says, tipping his hat in a bow with a hand behind his back. "I'll put it to jolly good use. With your knowledge, I'll make sure nothing bad will happen!"

Venti sneakily snatches an apple from a sleeping person's hand and saunters on his way, whistling a few notes.

"Sirens of the Sea will be my next tune!"

Everyday, Venti comes out playing his lyre to the sea, hoping he would be able to hear someone sing back. He made his winds carry his song to the deepest part of the waters, trying to catch the attention of sirens.

And everyday, he would return to the tavern, fruitless as the patrons pat his back singing a drunken song.

The young adults nearby would shake their heads, kindly telling Venti that sirens are not real. The grandparents' eyes would twinkle when they heard Venti playing the song for the sirens while kids would sit next to Venti who played his lyre at the docks.

His green cape flew back as he played a different style of music, one that's more mellow and calm compared to the upbeat kind he plays so often. There, he swears he sees the flip of a tail far beyond the ocean.

He bid farewell to the children and apologize for not being to able to play more music for them. "I'll be back if you bring apples!"

Venti waves goodbye and walks out the exits of Mondstadt.

His legs brush the long grass, reaching to touch his hand as he hikes up Starsnatch Cliff, until he remembers he can fly. Oops.

Swirls of teal lift his feet, representing the winds carrying him to the top. The blue of the sky reflected on the waters, and he decides today is the perfect day to sing for his siren again.

Letting his lashes rest on his cheeks, he plays the same mellow tune at the docks, sometimes peeking with one eye to see if the siren is there.

That's when he hears it. The sound of a loud splash ringing in his ear. His lyre playing turns quick and exited, when looking down to see a bobbing head, and a colourful siren tail behind it.

Venti waves his hand wildly, stopping his lyre playing momentarily.

"A real siren!"

The siren freezes, and sinks a bit deeper in the water. The green bard slowly floats down with a friendly smile.

"Did you enjoy my music?" He asks in glee, waiting for an answer. Venti hovers right above the water so his clothes won't get wet. He sees the siren's eyes look at the instrument in his hand and pushes it to their face, making them lean back a bit from shock. "Do you wanna try the lyre?"

"The lyre?" The siren repeats, gliding a finger on the wood of the instrument.

"Just don't sing okay? I can't drown yet, my pride is still high, and the kids there would be in dismay."

The siren laughs, now gripping on the lyre, "Do you always speak like this?"

"Yep!" He says, relieved you feel comfortable with him and seem friendly too. He scratches the back of his head. "Although... you're taking this lightly. Is it true your singing drowns people?" He asks politely.

The tip of the siren's finger touches their lip, thinking. "Well, in some cases, it does."

Venti's eyes widen.

"But not in the way your folktale mention it!" The siren continues, now clasping on the lyre that Venti let go of, playing a few strings. "Sometimes when our folk sing, the sailors are curious where the singing comes from. But the sailor that spread the story of the deadly, singing sirens is The Sailor That Can't Swim."

"The Sailor That Can't Swim? Now that's a tale I need to hear! Though, I must say, I do pity for him."

The siren splashes Venti, making him dripping in cold water. The berette on his head now droops to his eyes. He grins mischievously as he wrings the water out, showing the hair he hides. A strong gust of wind dries the siren's face, making them go back in the water to splash Venti.

"Right, so," the siren pops out their head again. "It was my great great grandfather that actually sang the song. The sailor was curious and fell off his ship, but he didn't know how to swim and drowned. His first mate blamed my great great grandfather's singing for making his captain drown. We're not bad actually. We stopped singing music so close to the surface."

"Wouldn't that be a sight," the bard hums, listening to the song you play on his lyre while looking at the sky above. "Say, Siren. What do you want me to call you? Let me know before the day turns night"

"You ask me my name before telling me yours?" The siren teases, giving his lyre back.

"Ah! My apologies, I'm Venti the bard!... Uh, I can't seem to get a word that rhymes with 'apologies' that go great with my sentence, so I hope you accept my repentance."

"It's alright." The siren says. "I'm [Name]. It's not everyday I can make friends with someone from the surface."

[Name] draws a figure in the air. "My first surface friends told me to be wary of others, but I think I can trust you," [Name] glances at the green glass, strapped on Venti's hip. "One of them even has the same looking glass orb as you. A vision he called it."

Venti shrugs with a smile, feeling like he knows the person the siren was referring to, "I would like to make a song for you, [Name]. Let's have others know what a wonderful siren you are."

Kazuha:

He sits at the side of the ship, playing his leaf like a flute beautifully. The crewmates on The Crux hum the same notes on repeat. They are broken records.

"Even the sturgeon and the ray, they get the urge and start to play!" A kid sings out loud, skipping behind Kazuha.

"Hmm hmm mmm" the kid hums, replacing the words he doesn't know with just the tune itself. "Under the sea!"

Kazuha sighs, letting go of his leaf for the ocean winds to take. His finger traces the lines of the ship, bored and somewhat annoyed. Beidou's crew had been singing the same song for hours after leaving Liyue, showing no signs of ever stopping. It was like a curse.

He looks over the horizon, the crescent moon shining on the ocean, making the ripples turn to satin sheets covering the water. The world is asleep, but not The Crux Crew.

He lets his hair free from the tie; snow hair moves with the breeze, waiting for his friend to appear.

A tall woman settles her hand on the boy's shoulders, sighing. "It's time to get rest. Your siren friend won't come, especially if sirens don't exist," she says saying the last part to herself.

"Beidou," Kazuha greets without turning his head.

"Come on, kid," Beidou insists. "It's late."

Kazuha stays seated, looking over the waters to find his siren friend. "I think I'll stay here a bit more. The ocean calls me as much as the wind."

He feels Beidou's hand leaving is shoulder. He silently thanks him for respecting his wishes.

"Good night, Captain. See you tomorrow," he says waving her off.

The sea captain lifts a hand while turning away, even when she knows Kazuha isn't looking.

Kazuha waits.

He waits some more.

Maybe Beidou is right. His siren friend won't be back today. He'll just wait again tomorrow.

He begins to stand until he sees a familiar figure in the ocean.

"[Name]," he breathes out gently.

A shimmering siren tail waves at him instead of a hand. Kazuha laughs and waves eagerly. He walks along the side, reaching one of the 'emergency boats' strapped on the ship and untangles its ropes, letting it fall to the ocean with a splash.

He gently falls down, the winds he summons cushioning his landing onto the small boat. His ruby eyes spot something in your hand and he asks about it.

"This? A weird green boy gave me this thing called a lyre. Said he had tons more so he gave me this one after making a song with me." [Name] presents it to Kazuha with both hands, grinning. "The boy even taught me a song."

"Oh?" He tilts his head, "Go ahead, play the song. Perhaps some day we may duet."

The siren sends him a thumbs up and start pulling the strings of a lyre.

Kazuha feels his eye twitch. "This song... what's the name?"

"Do you not like it?"

"No it's just... the crew was singing this song all day. I was wondering what song it is."

"Oh the green boy and I made it. I didn't know it would go that famous!"

"Hmm, keep playing."

Kazuha didn't mind the song the siren plays. After all, when [Name] plays the song, it sounds enchanting. He understands why people tend to fall overboard when hearing a siren play music. In fact, he almost drowned himself when hearing his siren friend sing for the first time.

...

He was preparing a boat to escape Inazuma by a secluded beach covered with sakura trees and many plants of nature.

Placing the planks in one spot, he hears a song in the sea.

Strange.

Enchanted by the singing, he walks out to sea. The water reaching his ankles, his knee then soon his chest to look for what was making the music. The sounds of nature call him back, desperately trying to make him safe, but he was too curious. The singing stops and Kazuha sinks under the sea to hear clearer, but instead his eyes widen and a few bubbles escape his mouth.

Glowing eyes stare at him.

A few scales pattern adorning their face. He looks behind the face and sees a tail, a fish tale. He knows it's a siren.

He sinks deeper, noting the details on the siren. How human ears aren't there, it's replaced by these webbed-like frills looking like a crown. He is amazed, and it seems the siren is too by seeing land legs for the first time so close.

Kazuha kicks his feet up, remembering he needs air to breathe, but a pesky seaweed wrapped around his leg, not letting go. The salt water stings his eyes, hurting more from every second. The lungs that need air start to fail him.

The siren in front of him flicks it's tail, quickly weaving their hands to untangle the boy from the seaweed.

The last of the bubbles escape Kazuha's lips. He shuts his eyes as he feels the drag of a current and the arms of the siren taking him to who knows where.

"So many... regrets," he thinks, letting himself be carried by a creature from only fairytales.

His head breaks the water tension and he immediately gasps for air. He coughs out water, chest heaving against the sandy beach, trying to calm himself. He stills, watching the siren lay on their stomach next to him, drawing flowers and fishes on the sand with the tip of their finger.

Sand sticks on Kazuha's wet skin and clothes.

"Thank you," he says weakly.

The siren perks their head up, hearing Kazuha's voice. "You're welcome!" They return to drawing on the sand and speak up without diverting attention from the drawing, "You're... the first human I've met."

Kazuha props himself up, his elbows acting as support. "Oh really? You're the first siren I met."

"No, duh. You had this dumb look on your face when you saw me," the siren teases, now looking at Kazuha. "All the other sirens say that humans are looking to hurt us. Why is it you don't want to hurt me?"

"Well- I was on the verge of dying."

The sound of feet stomping on the ground startles Kazuha and his new friend. Both of them sit up straight, feeling the ground shake.

"The Raiden Shogun..."

Kazuha flips his head to his unfinished boat and stands, quickly trying to complete it.

"Human," the siren calls, now back in the ocean. Kazuha looks at the siren. "Your broken boat will not take you anywhere. Just hold on to my back."

Kazuha chuckles and runs to the siren, knowing what they said is true. The guards will take him the second they reach him.

He trudges through the water, and clasps his arms around the siren's neck. "I know of a ship that can hide me for the time being." He says.

"So... what's your name?"

...

The song [Name] plays ceases, and Kazuha claps his hands lightly, careful not to wake the crew. He gives a small, "Heh" and leans on his small boat to be closer to the siren's face.

Their faces draw closer and [Name's] cheeks feel warm. Kazuha looks like a prince under the moon and stars shining on him.

Delicate hands make their way to cradle [Name's] jaw, making their foreheads touch. His thumb swipes [Name's] bottom lip all while gazing into their dilated eyes.

"I think your siren family are calling you," Kazuha says cheekily and quickly moving back away from [Name] after hearing the sound of other sirens calling for them.

"Oh, I- Well-" [Name] takes a deep breath before speaking, "Will you be here again?"

"Just as the moon awaits for the sun to rise once more, I will stay as well. I'll wait for your arrival once more at the same spot."

Beidou:

The well known Captain of the Crux Fleet does not believe in sirens. Dragons and the water form called Osial is one thing. Sirens, or better yet- merpeople are a kids' tale in her mind. Not even after Kazuha telling her he befriended a siren.

It's a child's tale; a myth not to believe in, which is ridiculous in Kazuha's opinion because they live in a world of myths.

She stands, sitting on a box of crates, peeking at her anemo wielding friend untangle the ropes of the emergency boat to get down closer to the waters.

Despite her crew telling her to rest at nights, she doesn't. As captain, it's her duty to keep watch after all her crew members, ensuring full safety on the fleet. She watches Kazuha always docking down from her ship to he his siren, but she never follows, only seeing his white hair descend from her sight.

Kazuha harnesses the wind to lift himself up back on the ship after hours being with the so-called siren. His hands move, controlling the wind once again to lift the boat, strapping it back on the ship. His ruby eyes glint to Beidou, who waves at him.

"Enjoy time with the siren?"

Kazuha sighs, knowing Beidou's doing this for the sake of it. "Beidou, they're real. My friend and every other siren in the waters." He says, trying to cover his flushed face by turning away from her.

"Right, right. Well, you only have one hour to sleep at most until the sun rises again."

"What about you?" Asks Kazuha, his back still facing Beidou. "Not even the bravest of warriors could stand their posts if they lack the energy to do so."

Beidou places her hands on her hips and laughs, "Come on, kid. I'll even tuck you in."

"Thank you... but I'm quite sure I can tuck myself in."

"Nonsense. You'll be tucked in."

She takes Kazuha to his own chambers in the ship, amused how he did not struggle against her.

After tucking him in, the tall captain stands at the figure of her ship and overlooks the sea. It is coincidental how when the topic of sirens came up the conversations, there was a song accompanied by it. The song will be the death of her.

Her chestnut hair weaves in the wind as she inhales deeply, enjoying the crisp air. She spots the seen peeking out from it's blanket of blue waves. She is blessed with another day.

One by one, her crew starts to file out. She greets them a good morning and with a surprise, "Crew! We're heading to Liyue. Chef Xiangling sent her kind invitation to eat for free!"

Woops and hoorays echo. Food made by Xiangling is the best.

The Captain lifts a hand and everyone quiets, "Set sail to Liyue!"

Upon reaching Liyue, Beidou swears something was following them, but every time she looks back, there would be nothing. She shrugs it off, thinking it was the lack of sleep getting to her and continues to lower the sails, preparing to land.

"I'll meet you there," she tells her crew. They accept their orders, already knowing were to go. They chatter their way to Wanmin Restaurant. She turns to Kazuha, seeing as he won't leave without her. "Kazuha, has something been following us?" She asks, knowing his sensitivity to things around him.

"Yes, but you won't believe me if I said what, or who, was following us."

Beidou groans, "Kazuha, sirens are just a folklore. I've spent years in my reckless teenage life looking for sirens. There just aren't any." She slaps Kazuha's back, "Let's go eat. You still look weary."

Kazuha purses his lips, looking at his Captain dead in the eyes. "[Name] is waiting below this ship. [Name] wouldn't follow us to Liyue unless something needs to be said." He waits for Beidou's reply.

"Alright, it's about time I met this siren friend of yours."

Surprised, Kazuha parts his mouth. "Wait, really?"

Beidou gives no answer, but instead unties the boat Kazuha uses to go 'meet his siren friend.' She waits on the tiny boat for Kazuha to join. When he takes a step in, Beidou releases the ropes she was once holding and falls to the ocean. This part of the ship is hidden from the people of Liyue, and Kazuha thanks his luck because who knows what people will do when they see a siren?

The small boat rocks side to side, balancing itself. Beidou lazily reaches for the water and splashes Kazuha's face who only tightens his lip in response. "Relax," the woman teases. "Your friend will be here if they're real, right?"

Kazuha summons a leaf, twiddling it with his fingers, waiting until he jumps in the water.

Beidou sharply turns to Kazuha, leaning over the boat to reach for him. "Kazuha!"

She jumps in after him with a smooth dive.

And that's when she sees that sirens are true.

The salt water stings her eyes as she looks at Kazuha making hang motions, pointing to her and up to the surface. The siren nods, understanding, swimming to Beidou. They wave, chuckling with the jaw-slacked face the sea captain makes.

Bubbles escape her lungs, so she treads up quickly, breathing in the air and then coming back down. Kazuha swims beside the siren and shows a smug face, as if saying "What did you say about sirens?"

Divine is the only word to describe Kazuha's siren friend. From the shimmering tale to the beauty of their smile, Beidou can only describe the siren as simply divine (a word Ningguang taught her).

The siren's webbed-like ear perks up to the surface. They tap Kazuha's shouder and cup their ears and point up.

Breathtaking.

Beidou notes how Kazuha and his friend communicate with each other so effectively with only a look in the eye and a few hand movements.

Kazuha nods, smiling then swims up to the surface, but Beidou stays, amazed by the tail of the siren.

"Up," the siren mouths. Beidou remembers the pain in her lungs for not having to get air in a while. She swims up, giving the siren one last look and breaking free from the water.

Strands of brown hair stick to her skin, looking at Kazuha with so much child-like wonder.

"Kazuha, is your siren friend single by any chance?"

Albedo:

Rumours of the singing siren spread through Mondstadt. Greeting Timaeus and Sucrose, he ignores the new song that spread around Teyvat called "A Siren's Tale," but he can't help but wonder if the tales are true.

On rare days Albedo isn't on Dragonspine or his office, he's sketching alongside the water and the marine life inside. It's a new interest he's taken in after learning everything above land. The ocean is so huge, there's an endless amount of questions under the sea.

He finishes the last stroke of a drawing. The Snapdragon and the crab next to it look realistic in his canvas. He sits on an isolated rock, a good distance away from the beach, enjoying the calming tunes of the ocean.

Wait- tunes?

He almost drops his canvas and charcoal, making eye contact with a bobbing head. Curious eyes flit from Albedo to his sketch in hand.

His immediate reaction is to create a flower to lift and up to glide back to shore, but he can't.

The stranger drifts closer to the rock Albedo sits on, revealing a tail that flickers behind it.

A siren.

"You aren't Venti, but I'll take it. I love someone of arts and crafts

Albedo tilts his head quizzically, charmed, "I am indeed not Venti, but thank you for the compliment." He takes a while, studying the details on the siren. "You're not what the song describes you as."

Lifting themselves onto the rock beside Albedo, the siren brings up their tail to wrap around what they sit on. "The song? Oh the one Venti made. I'm so sure we described myself perfectly, partly because I helped make it."

Albedo takes another canvas from his bag and draws circles to get the base of a face, "Well, physically yes. It captures your looks, but never did it once mention how enchanting you are."

The siren sputters, obviously not expecting a stranger to flirt. "What- huh?"

Albedo laughs, looking at the siren that sits next to him, analyzing their features before returning to his sketch. "I apologize. Socializing is not my thing."

"Yeah, I could tell. People usually tell me their names before saying things like that. Granted, I only met three other people before you."

"One being Venti?"

"Yeah. I visit him around this time everyday, but he said he's struggling to pay back a bartender so he's hiding with an old friend in Liyue. His friend's name is Peepaw. Should've been back by now, but he's gone."

"..Oh."

Two fingers push down the drawing and he looks at the siren, confused.

"Are you drawing me?" They grin. "It's fantastic, but why?"

Albedo explains, "I tend to sketch what fascinates me. Your beauty was surprising, I couldn't help but draw you." His charcoal grazes the canvas so swiftly, it's dancing on ice. The black tool turns to a stub, until it turns to nothing but ashes on his finger. His sketch is only half finished.

"Excuse this lousy drawing. I appear to be out of charcoal."

The siren jumps into the water and comes back up with rusted metal from a sword. "Will this work?"

"Ah, that's a sword. I can't use that for sketching."

"Oh..."

Albedo lifts a finger, a thought is said out loud, "I realize I have yet to ask your name. I'm Albedo, Chief Alchemist of The Knights of Favonius."

"Wow that's a long name." The siren takes a deep breath and speaks in one go, "Hello, Albedochiefalchemistofthenightsoffavonius. Pleasure to meet you, I'm [Name]."

"How charming." He says, putting his canvas in his bag. "I mean to ask another question, would it be alright to visit you again soon? You live under the sea, surely you know about the mysteries we have there."

[Name] looks at him like he was an alien. "Are you for real?"

"I'm pretty sure I am."

"You can just tell me you want to hang out. I know I'm fun," they say puffing their chest, proud of themselves.

"You certainly have high views of yourself," Albedo laughs, covering the bottom half of his face with his charcoal stained hand. "I'll be here tomorrow, if you would take your time to see me again."

[i-dor-u]

ken ryuguji x reader; when you’re awake.

NOTE: Hello! It’s been a while since my writing has seen this platform. Life has been quite complicated, it still is, and I hate that I can’t guarantee frequency when it comes to my writing activity. This fanfic is a bit personal, I had started to write it during an unpleasant time of my life when I was trying to be there for myself through the tough moments, so I’m putting it out here now with the hope that it will put a smile on someone else’s face. Writing is my way of confronting tragedy, but sometimes it does not surrender easily. Take care of your souls and your bodies, beautiful people.

pairing: ken “draken” ryuguji x gn!reader;

content warnings: fluff, a bit of angst, hurt and comfort (?), mentions and hints of sensitive topics (malnourishment, depression), a completely intentional Dune reference, possible spelling errors;

content synopsis: as you try to rage against your poor mental health, draken tries to be your source of support. you come to realize that there’s more things than you can count that are worth fighting for.

word count: 1,126.

currently playing: hans zimmer — foreword.

more of my works...

The freshly washed bed cover that won't properly fold in your dexterous hands felt almost unnerving. Upon tending to a particularly messy corner, you sighed in slight fury, praying that the accursed piece of cloth won't toy with you now. Your eyebrows furrow whilst you held back whispers of profanity, finally capturing the thin sheet between your thumb and index finger and eventually folding it with success before tossing it almost carelessly in a lone corner of your freshly made bed. "Now, what do I do with those?" The silent question leaves your skinned lips that you didn't have necessary energy to tend to, whilst your sight analyzes the now battered apples that rested in a bedside bowl for days that you lost count of. Half eaten or slightly bitten, the apples still gathered fruit flies that befriended you in your recent days of imminent bed rest. You sigh once more as the grim thought of having wasted so much food in just one week crossed your mind. "We'll just throw 'em away. I don't think they're of much use anymore, no?" Your ears nearly tingled when your question received an abrupt answer. However, the voice was familiar, unmistakable even, and you had no trouble identifying it. "It's nine in the morning, Draken," you address to the source of the voice; none other than Ken Ryuguji, Toman's number two first, good friend of yours second. "My bad, let me start this over," Draken scoffs in a light-hearted manner, helping to alleviate the overall gloomy atmosphere of your bedroom, "Yo, [Name]! Gotcha some food." The tall figure of the teenager leaned over your door frame, his patterned jacket flowing alongside the winds that invaded your bedroom by the widely open windows. Draken's smile was warm and well-wishing as it would always be around you, and you'd shortly figured that he was at it again. Getting involved with things that shouldn’t concern him. Your eyes flash with a tint of surprise or shame, you couldn't tell between the two anymore. You realized that his courteous gesture would be welcomed by nothingness, just like the previous days when he'd leave you packed goods on your nightstand with words of encouragement to get you through the day, only for them to be left almost untouched as you kept your eyes shut tight in order to evade reality with unsettling slumber. The late days of October have been weighting you down, and Draken wouldn't understand.

"Draken, why..." You build up words breathily, if not inaudibly, "You know my appetite isn't doing well." Your only wish would be that Draken has the ability of hearing through your muttering. "Yeah. But today you're doing better than yesterday. And tomorrow you'll be doing better than today. It's one day at a time, [Name]," placing the paper bag that displayed the logo of a local diner you used to frequent on a nearby piece of furniture, Draken responds to your affirmation filled with doubt, "You're kickin' ass. Look at you, you're weighed down yet you still fight like hell. That's totally brave. Room tidy, dishes clean, laundry done, all that." You frowned upon hearing his words. Of course all of it was done. You couldn’t let the misfortune and sadness tower over you. You fought like hell up until now. And you’ll keep fighting like hell from now on, too, your inner monologue interfered. “Of course they are,” You mutter, a tad smile finally surfacing on your cool exterior, “It’s not like I can let this outweigh me. There’s… so much I have yet to do.” Too much, you thought. Places to be, things to experience, beauty to be captured by in this endless expanse of space which is the world. And you would’ve liked to do it all beside him, but it’s probably too wishful of you to think like that. But is it, really? “You know, I wish this maze had an ending. But it just goes round and round,” you added out of the blue as your gaze meets the freshly swept floor, brinking tears that have rested in the corners of your tired eyes for days, “I can only evade it through sleep. And sometimes I dream. I feel like it’s the only right thing to do.” You feel as though you’ve already sprouted too much nonsense and information, and you laugh; not at your words, but at yourself. At your attempt to feel understood that may or may not go unnoticed by Draken. He picks at your pace with a slight laughter of his own; that must be it, his misunderstanding of your words. Or so you thought. “Dreams sure make interesting stories,” Draken begins to speak, capturing your attention effortlessly, much like he always would. With your eyes widening, you lift your gaze after aimlessly analyzing the floor tiles. Your eyes met Draken’s way up there, and the way his dark orbs contorted with his words had you touched by wonder. “But everything important happens when you’re awake.”

A silence established between the two of you. However, it wasn’t awkward or uncomfortable. It was vulnerable, gentle and welcoming. With Draken, nothing was missed. Not even a silent chase of thoughts that somehow you two seemed to share, and you always liked to think that great minds think alike. “…Well, I’m awake right now.” You chuckle, a tear running slowly down your right cheek and you’re confused as to why it’s there when you’re finally truly awake for the first time in what would seem like weeks. “Good. I’m glad you’re awake,” Draken added, his contagious smile draping over his usually frowning expression, “Morning, [Name].” His arms embrace you unexpectedly, draping over your frame in a protective manner. He felt so warm and safe, and the fact that you hadn’t felt comfort of human nature in so long had grasped more of your tears; but the fleeting sadness couldn’t be compared to the delight of being touched so tenderly. To the delight of being wanted, searched for and cared for with no bounds. However, when Draken greeted you, it occurred to you how many things have been left unsaid between the two of you. Days worth of events to catch up on, mostly on Draken’s side, as you didn’t have any valuable memories besides unnerving or laughable dreams that he’d probably be better off not hearing about, or so you told yourself. But you were both here and now, it’s exactly how things should be. And it will never be any different. Because he cares, you made it through today, too. You smile widely like you thought you never will again, remembering the feeling of wrinkled eyes and a scrunched nose as if resulted by a good laughter, “Morning, Draken!”

[sxrrandomfanfics]

Consider this, a Wizard of Oz AU featuring Lili as the protagonist.

Okay, so Lili is the protagonist and we're following the idea of "The Wizard of Oz."

So the stand in for Toto is going to be Lili's dog, Mephisto (as referred to on the Campster website). If not Mephisto, it would most likely be Harold the rat and someone who's just deeply offended a girl has a rat for a pet since it's a "filthy creature."

I may create another list of characters on the journey filled with the Campers, but my current idea is this:

At the Motherlobe, people are being a tad more vocal about how... Lili can act just a bit nasty towards them. Lili feels justified because she feels they're treating her poorly so she's just treating them the same. And like, any apologies she gives are similar to: "I'm sorry you feel that way."

The Senior Agents (Hollis, Sasha, Camilla, and Morceau) are even turning on her. Someone just not wanting Harold around in the Noodle Bowl area is essentially the last straw before Lili runs off, taking a page out of Razputin's book. (Raz is probably away on a mission or with his family, somewhere.)

Course, she doesn't get too far before something goes wrong. A really bad storm hits the nearby city as she's trying to get to it while also keeping Harold safe. Harold runs into a pretty run down building, and Lili chases after. Lili and Harold end up getting knocked out and the two wake up hours later.

Now in the world of Ot, Lili finds the building in the Munchkin city, and a giant orange bubble comes down. Out from it comes Raz, with slicked back hair. He introduces himself as "Razinda" and introduces Lili to the rest of the "Munchkins" which are made up of much smaller versions of the campers from Camp Whispering Rock.

They thank her for killing the "Wicked Fallen Crown of the East," and point out that there are legs sticking out from under the building. The munchkins all cheer and suddenly, Lili is left with something that the Wicked of the East carried on him.

Just in time for the Wicked Dentist of the West to arrive and try to take it. Razinda explains it's not his to take, as it now belongs to Lili, and the Wicked Dentist instead kidnaps Raz.

The munchkins can't do anything do anything to help him, but they can tell Lili where she can go to get help. From the "Wizard of Ot."

So she follows the brick road and comes across a scarecrow woman with a big heart and motherly instinct who can't really scare the crows away because "The poor darlings are just hungry! And the farmer has so much corn!" A bit ditzy and air-headed due to the literal lack of a brain. Though, she can't remember why she doesn't have a brain. They don't have a long time before trouble brews from the corn field in the shape of a shadowy columbine that tries to chase the two until they get into the thick woods. Impacting the woods, the shadow simply disappears.

The next one they come across is the Cold and Heartless Tin Man, who tells a story of how he knew a woman he loved, but was terrified of his own feelings. Which drew upon something wicked that cursed his axe and chopped him up. The more the axe chopped up, the less he wanted the woman to see him. He was rebuilt, but nothing could mend the broken heart. So he doesn't really care about the other's being in a place they're not supposed to, nor seeing the Scarecrow, who is inexplicably compelled towards him. But once again, shadows plague them in the form of evil trees trying to throw things like apples and beehives until they're chased into a deeper part of the forest and the shadows disappear.

The trio is running ahead, and suddenly, Lili realizes that Harold is missing! They hear a roar that she begins running towards, followed by the motherly scarecrow, and the tin man follows. The third and final member is a Tiny Lion who is trying to pick on Harold, only to be hit by Lili and she scolds him. The Tiny Lion tries to justify it, saying he's a wild animal that has to eat and Lili says "pick on someone your own size!" The Tiny Lion reveals that there's no one sized like him. They're all bigger, apart from Lili and Harold. And he's not courageous enough to stand up to those creatures. Which one of them is revealed in the form of a beast covered in shadows that can breath black fire, which the Scarecrow is very scared about. The trio once again have to run. And again, the shadow chases them until it fades again.

The trio are left with the city where the Wizard of Ot lives, with only what's left of the brick road going through what appears to be a poppy field. The other three remark that they don't recall a poppy field around the city, but Lili's too determined to get answers and kick that Dentist's butt to care. She begins to run through the field, trying to get there faster and the others chase after her. But... the flowers have a much stronger scent than what Lili remembers. Smelling familiar... of a warm voice long forgotten. She wants to remember that voice. If she pressed her ear to the ground, could she hear it? The girl and her rat fall asleep in the poppy field, shortly followed by the Lion. The scarecrow and tin man are without a solution, and soon it's revealed that the Wicked Dentist and Razinda is watching this unfold.

Razinda begs the Wicked Dentist to allow him to help the group, and the Wicked Dentist agrees, only if he approves of the spell. Razinda says "a little flurry" and the Wicked Dentist agrees, proclaiming that the snow will melt soon anyways.

But it's enough that the girl, rat, and Lion wake up, and that the Tinman gets rusted and the four others help him.

They head to the City, and the guard at first refuses to let them in, until the others start bemoaning how they'll never be able to help the ones they love without seeing the Wizard. Swayed by this, the Gaurdswoman with glasses lets them in and begins to show them around. She remarks her own love is one she doesn't get to see a lot, that being the "Good Witch of the South."

The group get all gussied up and presentable to see the Wizard, who is powerful and all knowing. He tells them that the only way to get what they want is to find the "True Evil that Plagues Ot."

The five set out against the Wicked Dentist anyways, Lili thinking that he's the only one that could be the "True Evil."

As they try to approach, the Wicked Dentist now sends his own creature to try to take the girl and get the little trinket he's been after. Now, a lumbering creature he calls "Linda" with several other mutated fish goes out and fights the group, Linda ultimately grabbing Harold and Lili grabs onto it, trying to get her to let go as Lili desperately tries to make sure Harold is fine. Meanwhile the other three are left worse for wear after the fish retreat.

The Wicked Dentist holds Lili hostage, trying to get her to give up the trinket so "the shadows stop bothering him." Until then, she's kept in a dungeon, far from Harold.

The others have to break in and they think Lili needs to be saved, but the Wicked Dentist comes into her dungeon screaming as the shadow beast tries to harm him.

Lili runs up to it, and the shadow beast cowers in fear. Lili fights it and it spits out a golden compass, which the Wicked Dentist gathers up. He suddenly has a change of heart, releasing the control of all of the creatures and Lili takes the chains off of Razinda before the Wicked Dentist declares that "there will be no more cruel experiments, because this place will be BLOWN TO SMITHEREENS!"

As the trio is trying to head in, Harold, Lili, and Razinda bump into them and push them away from the building that is about to EXPLODE.

Once it does, Razinda remarks about the shadow that forms. The most evil thing in all of Ot. It takes away people's hardships to continuously torment them with it. And there's no way for them to heal without those things.

The shadow reforms out of the rubble, and tries to attack, but Lili is ready.

She individually attacks the different traumas that they all had, gaining pieces of their old selves, like the Scarecrow's brain, the rest of the Tin Man's heart (and that allows the Scarecrow and Tin Man to finally realize they remember each other), the Tiny Lion's bravery, but during the time she's about to fight Razinda's fear, the trinket she has is torn off. Razinda tries to give it back to Lili, only for Lili to have to face something that she found traumatic.

She's left staring into a box that she knows holds someone dear to her, as she holds the hand of another version of herself crying. There are also others who care about her also crying. The shadow tries to take this from her, but Lili defies it. Right after, the trinket is thrown back and Lili instead throws it to the creature that tore it off of her. The creature cannot handle it, and fades away. Leaving Lili as the hero.

But she needs to get back home. She realizes this now. She tries to go back to the Wizard to explain she defeated the two wickeds and the evil that plagued the land, but the Wizard refuses to help her. As the four argue about it, Harold goes over to a curtain to pull back, which then everyone turns to stare at, seeing Otto.

Otto explains that he came during a storm and people were so impressed that they thought he was a wizard, from there, he cultivated the city and land where he was now in charge. But he still has the way to get home.

Lili has tearful goodbyes and tries to head off with Otto, but Harold is no where to be seen. Someone tries to help her find him, only for them to realize that Otto is now leaving without her. He can't head back down, only up.

Lili fears that she may never go home, never see her father or friends again and Razinda returns with the worn out trinket. He explains the magic in it was repelling the shadows because it had the warmth and safety of a home imbued into it. The magic in it would take her to the place where she felt like she was home.

She has one more goodbye and then she and Harold leave, waking up in the Motherlobe. Some people are surprised she's there because she's clearly been out in the storm, with her soaked to the bone. Later, Truman and the rest of the "Dream Team" (Milla, Sasha, Morry, and Raz) arrives, having been trying to find the two and they're relieved.

Bonus after this adventure, Lili now has the capability of teleportation, as she teleported from that wrecked building, back to the Motherlobe.