#there is one 1 scripted line in the entire thing

[lace4forest]

Okay, I know this is an Application video, but like-

We decided to like.... Not. Do it the normal way- You will understand at 40 seconds.

[cressidagrey]

The Queen of Romantasy and the Race Car Prince - Bonus Chapter: A Win in Monaco

Pairing: Lando Norris x Elizabeth "Lizzie" Treshton (Original Character)

Summary:

Elizabeth Treshton—bestselling romantasy author, queen of fae heartbreak, and sworn devotee of a carefully structured routine—never expected her service dog to abandon protocol and diagnose a Formula 1 driver with something. But that’s exactly what happens when Mara the wonder-dog ditches Lizzie’s side to aggressively alert to none other than Lando Norris in the middle of a coffee shop.

Warnings and Notes: 

I do keep my promises. Thank god, I was not that person on Twitter that promises to bake a life-size Oscar Pizza lol

As always big thanks to @llirawolf , who listens to me ramble

It had been a long, chaotic, champagne-drenched day.

Lando had won Monaco. From pole.

His first win in Monaco. 

 The kind of fairy-tale ending kids dreamed about, and that somehow, impossibly, had come true in the heat and drama of Monte Carlo’s twisting streets.

A perfect weekend: fastest in qualifying, composed through chaos, crossing the finish line with his name echoing through Monte Carlo’s narrow, sun-drenched streets.

It was the kind of Hollywood ending people wrote movies about.

And it was real.

Lizzie had spent the last hour brushing glitter out of Mara’s fur and peeling herself out of her dress with the dull ache of adrenaline still running through her chest. Her hair still smelled like champagne, and her cheeks hurt from smiling.

Her voice was nearly gone from shouting during those final few laps. The city still buzzed below, all neon and noise, the heartbeat of celebration pulsing beyond the glass doors of their apartment balcony.

She could still hear people chanting Lando’s name outside. She wasn’t sure they’d stop anytime soon.

The team had begged him to keep partying. One more club, mate, just one more. And he deserved it. All of it.

So Lizzie came home. She let him have his night.

And honestly, she hadn’t expected him back until sunrise.

So when the door slammed open at 2:43 a.m. and he half-shouted, “BABE,” she nearly dropped the mug of chamomile tea she was holding.

Lando stumbled into the apartment like the human embodiment of champagne and adrenaline, cheeks pink, curls a mess. There was glitter in his hair. His smile could’ve powered the entire Côte d’Azur.

“HELLOOOOO,” he shouted, arms raised like a victorious cartoon character who didn’t quite know where his limbs ended.

Mara barked once. Lizzie blinked. “You’re drunk.”

“I’m Monaco Grand Prix winner drunk,” he corrected proudly, kicking his shoes in two entirely different directions and dropping his McLaren jacket on the floor like it had personally betrayed him.

“I can tell.” She stood up, brushing pastry crumbs off her shorts. “You smell like celebration and regret.”

Lando pointed at her with the kind of uncoordinated gravity only a tipsy F1 driver could pull off. “You. Sit. I have a speech.”

“Oh, God,” she muttered—but sat anyway.

He wobbled, turned too fast, then dramatically dropped to one knee beside the coffee table, hand landing on the floor with a thud. “Elizabeth Louise Treshton.”

Her eyes widened. “Lando—”

“Wait, no, let me finish,” he slurred, blinking up at her like she was a constellation and he was just lucky to have found her. “Liz, you are… you are the best thing that’s ever happened to me. You’re smarter than me, cooler than me, and frankly, too hot for me, and somehow you still love me—don’t laugh, this is serious—”

She was biting her lip, heart thudding like the Monaco start lights. “I’m not laughing.”

“Good,” he said, nodding with exaggerated sincerity. “Because this is a proposal.”

Her breath caught in her throat.

“A real one?” she whispered, startled. “Right now?”

He nodded solemnly. “Very real. And very now.”

There was no ring. No script. No camera. Just him—still glitter-dusted and flushed from glory—kneeling in a wrinkled polo and grinning at her like she was the prize.

And in that moment, she understood something simple and shattering.

He meant it.

This wasn’t a champagne-fueled joke or a post-race high. This was Lando, in all his wide-eyed, golden-hearted chaos, laying his entire self in her lap and asking her to say yes.

“Yes,” she said, quietly.

He blinked. “Really?”

“Yes.”

And the look on his face—pure joy, pure disbelief—hit her like the wave of the crowd when he stepped onto the podium.

Lando looked briefly stunned, then delighted, and then promptly collapsed sideways into her lap with a triumphant groan. “Smashed it.”

She laughed, brushing her fingers through the mess of curls that still smelled faintly like podium champagne. “We’re doing this backwards, you know.”

He hummed into her hip. “Mmm. We can redo it tomorrow. With the ring.”

Her heart fluttered.

“What ring?”

“It’s in the bottom drawer of my bedside table. Behind my socks. Been there since... I dunno. February?”

She blinked. “You’ve had a ring for three months?”

“Mmhmm,” he mumbled. “But you kept being cute and I panicked.”

Her fingers stilled in his hair. “You panicked?”

“I kept waiting for a big romantic moment, but then you’d do something like... refill Mara’s water bowl before your own tea and I’d get all overwhelmed.”

She blinked rapidly, heart cracking open in ways she hadn’t expected tonight.

“I love you,” he mumbled, already slipping toward sleep, voice thick with exhaustion and affection. “Even when you steal all the duvet and yell at me about my sleep schedule.”

“I only yell because I care,” she whispered, smiling so hard her face hurt.

“I know,” he sighed. “That’s why I’m marrying you.”

And then, in the quietest moment of the wildest day of his life, he passed out in her lap—soft snores muffled by her t-shirt, his hand still curled loosely around her knee.

Lizzie sat there for a long time, hand resting protectively on the side of his head, the night finally still around her.

***

Lando woke up face-first on the living room couch. 

The first thing Lando noticed—before even the pain—was how incredibly dry his mouth felt. Like someone had poured an entire sandbox down his throat and sealed it shut. The second thing was the pounding in his skull, like a jackhammer was going off behind his eyes in sync with the early Monaco sunlight bleeding through the balcony doors.

The third thing was the glitter sticker stuck to his cheek.

It crinkled as he peeled it off slowly, groaning. It was in the shape of a lightning bolt. That’s new, he thought dimly.

He didn’t remember falling asleep on the couch. Didn’t remember coming home. Didn’t even remember how many night clubs they'd hit after the race. Bits and pieces floated back to him like puzzle pieces from a box someone had shaken violently before throwing it across the floor.

Confetti. More drinks. One of the McLaren Engineers giving a karaoke performance of I Will Survive so impassioned it may have summoned Cher. Someone—not him, he hoped—moonwalking through La Rascasse. Sunglasses at night. And Lizzie.

Oh God. Lizzie.

He sat up with a groan, blinking through the pain as his eyes adjusted. His entire spine cracked in protest. Mara was sprawled luxuriously on the couch like she was the rightful heir to the Monaco throne. And—

And there was Lizzie.

Sitting at the kitchen counter in one of his hoodies, legs folded under her, sipping coffee and scrolling through her phone like it was just another Monday morning.

Except it wasn’t.

Because when she looked up, she didn’t just raise an eyebrow.

She raised her left hand.

There, glinting in the warm, golden light, was his ring.

Lando’s brain stalled like an engine without fuel.

He pointed, eyes narrowing like it might disappear if he squinted hard enough. “Did I…?”

Lizzie took a long sip of coffee, then set the mug down with infuriating casualness. “Oh good. He lives.”

“Lizzie.”

“Morning, fiancé,” she said, voice syrup-sweet, holding up her left hand so the little gold band with the oval shaped opal that glowed orange and red if it caught the sun just right. “This look familiar?”

He squinted harder. His memory did a slow, lumbering reboot. “Wait. Wait. Did I—did I actually—last night?”

“Oh yeah,” she said cheerfully. “Big speech. Very heartfelt. Slightly slurred.”

He buried his face in his hands. “No.”

“There was kneeling,” she added helpfully. “Zero ring. You told me to fetch it from your sock drawer while you face-planted into my lap.”

“Please stop talking.”

“Then you told me you’d planned to propose since February but kept chickening out because I was too cute.”

He groaned and let his forehead drop onto the coffee table with a dull thunk. “I was going to do something special.”

“You did,” she said. “You did Monaco. Then you did me. With tequila breath. And honestly?” She grinned. “Kinda iconic.”

He peeked up through his fingers, mortified and completely in love. “You’re not mad?”

“Are you kidding?” Liz walked over and kissed the top of his head, soft and sure. “I said yes.”

His heart stuttered.

“You said yes?”

“I put on the ring, didn’t I?”

Lando sat up straighter, blinking at her like he was seeing her properly for the first time. The fog in his brain lifted just enough to let the full weight of it sink in. He’d proposed. She’d said yes. They were—officially, horribly, perfectly—engaged.

And she was still here. Still teasing him. Still barefoot in his hoodie. Still smiling.

Still his.

“Okay,” he said slowly, smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, dizzy with disbelief and stupid joy. “Okay, but just so you know—tonight, I’m doing it properly. I’m taking you out and asking again. With less tequila and more brain cells.”

Lizzie crossed her arms. “You better. I deserve at least one sunset.”

“You’ll get two. And a string quartet. Maybe a yacht.”

“You hate yachts.”

“I’ll suffer for you.”

She grinned. “Good. Because I’m already planning our registry. And if I don’t get a milk frother, I will riot.”

He groaned, rubbing his eyes. “God help us.”

From the couch, Mara let out a loud huff, as if to say she was trapped in a sitcom and so over it.

Lando let his head drop back against the counter again and just lay there, grinning into the wood like a man who’d finally hit the jackpot.

Hangover and all, he couldn’t stop smiling.

He’d won Monaco. He was getting married. To her.

And no champagne-soaked, rug-crashed, sock-drawer-ring-fetching version of that would ever make it feel less perfect.

[felassan]

Sylvia Feketekuty: "To celebrate DA day, I've made a bluesky account that I'll keep active for a few days to talk about my work on Inqusition or Veilguard! After a few days I'll lock the account, because I'm not a social media person. Happy to talk until then though. I want to say straight off: the reception to Emmrich, Manfred, the Mourn Watch, and the Grand Necropolis has been heartwarming for all of us who worked on those people and places. Thank you all very much!" [source, two]

Rest of post under cut due to length and spoilers. [Post Two, Post Three]

Sylvia Feketekuty: "In the meantime, I do want to talk about a couple of things I saw floating around regarding Emmrich: 1. Emmrich being 52 or 50. I think people got 50 from data mining a character file, but we can't do a ranges in those files. As in, I couldn't input 50-60, it had to be a whole number. I put down 50 as an early ballpark, then went more accurate in later audition scripts. 2. Fifty-two is a old number I threw into an early document before his art or character was totally final. (And which caused another developer a headache because they thought it was accurate, I never updated it. Sorry about that.) 3. "Wait, how old is Emmrich then?" Once I saw his final character art, I felt more mid to late 50s. MAYBE early 60s. But unless we specifically state a character's age in the game, it's all malleable. I honestly would just adjust it to your impressions unless stated otherwise. 4. I've also seen comments on how weird it is for Emmrich to act like there's an age-gap in the romance if your Rook is around his age. And you're right. 5. The reason is because Rook WAS younger when those scenes were written and worked on. I felt it'd be odd if I never addressed the May-December aspect, especially as it hooks into some of Emmrich's worries. 6. By the time that shifted, it was really too late to change without catastrophic repercussions to the excellent cinematics and music and other things that depend on line delivery and timing. 7. To be clear: you can feel how you want about the age gap coming up at all! But that's how the discrepancy came about. 8. "Is there a way to reconcile Emmrich acting like my Rook is way younger than him if they're not?" Great question! I have several suggestions: -Accept it's an error. (True, but unexciting) -Emmrich considers a gap of 3-5 years scandalous. (Funny, albeit a bit cartoonish.) -The Mourn Watch has perfected swapping out organs, and Emmrich is nervously hiding that he's way older than he looks out of vanity. (Untrue, but funny.)" [source thread]

User in reply to point 6. above: "I'm personally glad it was too late to change because their argument about it is genuinely my favorite scene in the entire game! 😭💕 It's such an important moment to me" / Sylvia: "Thanks! That one was one where I was all sweatily trying to balance things out, with tone, with pacing, etc. Really glad it came together for you. (Cine and the actors did heroic things there to get it feeling just so!)" [source]

More snippets:

Emmrich's favorite ice cream flavor? Rum raisin [source]

Lots of people on the dev team shared the vision of having a bunch of gothic weirdness in that pocket of Thedas [source] (Necropolis/Nevarra)

Sylvia "especially liked writing the Mourn Watch origin, it was fun to write a fellow nerd for Emmrich to chat with" [source]

Sylvia poured some personal worries and fears into writing Emmrich [source]

On Vorgoth and their nature: "I'm a little leery of saying anything, partly because I'm cowardly avoiding publicly defining anything more until/if I ever need to. And partly because I did want them to be a fresh unknown. Sorry!" [source] "I'm glad you like Vorgoth, but I'm afraid I don't have much for you that isn't in the game. I deliberately wrote them so as to leave room, if we ever revisited them, or for Vorgoth to remain mysterious, if we did not. I'm sorry if that's not a very satisfying answer!" [source] "I will say, it was fun to throw in a few lines about Vorgoth's art collection. Their passion for it is sincere and deep. (I wanted all the Watchers to have a little non-death related hobby or interest, because they can be so singularly focused.)" [source]

Dwarven Mourn Watcher is a rare origin combo for Rook so Sylvia wanted to call it out [source]

On the outcomes of Emmrich's quest: "I tried really hard to make the options equally viable, and more up to the player's interpretation or preferences of what it would mean for Emmrich in their view. It's been interesting seeing reactions to it, which hinge sometimes on various single lines pushing people one way or another!" [source]

"The Grand Necropolis is always eager and ready for a new member of the Mourn Watch to grace its ranks." [source]

User: "I loved Emmrich's view on death and what his personal quest ultimately went on to say about the nature of death itself, and how the beauty of mortality lies in its impermanence and unpredictability." / Sylvia: "I really wanted to dig into those themes, and everyone in cine and art and level design and editing and the whole team honed in exactly on the vibe. The floral stuff especially, I was so thrilled when I played through the Memorial Gardens' with the art and lighting in." [source]

User: "I experience thanatophobia and that first conversation w/ Emmrich was so affirming and helped me describe my own anxiety to others" / Sylvia: "Thanks, the thanatophobia was, as you may've guessed, a personal experience for me too. I'm glad it was something that helped a little." [source] "I suspect that phobia is way more common than people think, and part of the reason Emmrich talks about it was to express that sentiment out loud. I find it helps sometimes just to acknowledge it." [source]

What languages does Emmrich speak other than Trade? "I think he'd be familiar with Tevene, since there's surely many, many old texts about magic written in that language. Kind of like a doctor that knows latin through their work. I also named that MW alphabet "tomb-script", though I'm not sure if it has a spoken component or not since it never came up in-game. If it does, he'd be able to speak that for sure." [source, two]

User: "Playing as a Mourn Watch Rook has been an absolute delight!!!" / Sylvia: "Thank you so much, I really liked writing those branches of the dialogue. Since Emmrich's so focused on necromancy, it was fun having a Rook who could be both casual and knowledgeable about it." [source]

User: "In your opinion, what outcome do you prefer for a romanced Emmrich (lich/non lich)?" / Sylvia: "Interesting question! To be honest, I'm afraid to answer it properly in case anyone takes my answer to be a canonical one. I really wanted either path to feel equally interesting/correct for whatever you decide fits your Rook's relationship with Emmrich. (We're also in the strange waters of meta-reasoning. I GAVE Emmrich his fear of death-Sorry Emmrich!-which makes me feel a little culpable for that, even though he's entirely fictional. And that might prey on my mind when trying to decide. A very odd experience!)" [source, two]

What music genres would Emmrich be into? "Classical music is very much playing to type for Emmrich, but I feel it's also correct. He'd enjoy a nice concerto or an organ recital. Or, if he's feeling daring, a bold new Orlesian opera! But I don't think his tastes are too outré in that area. That said, I saw someone post something like "Leave Emmrich alone, let him attend the Depeche Mode concert" while listening to Depeche Mode's "Violator", for the first time, which made me laugh. (Great album. If he could get over the shock of synths, Emmrich might enjoy "Waiting for the Night".)" [source, two]

When writing Emmrich the devs wanted to try and hit the gothic romance vibe [source]

Does Emmrich mix his own fragrance/cologne? Does he ever vary it by the season? "I think Emmrich goes to some of the many perfumers that have set up shop in Nevarra City around the Necropolis, just because he trusts their judgement and expertise. I hadn't considered him varying it by season, but that's very fun! I certainly think he has more than one bottle of scent." [source]

User: "How does Lich Emmrich have sex?" / Sylvia: "I don't mind the question! But my answer's a bit boring: I generally stay at arm's length on the more explicit romance stuff, just because if it's not stated or shown in-game, I don't want to bring in a canonical answer that might affect what people imagined. My general preference for romantic scenes that get physical is to leave blank space somewhere, so players can imagine what happens next. It's not the ONLY way to do it, I think there's legitimate artistic reasons to go more explicit. But that's how I approached Emmrich (and before him Josephine.)" [source, two]

User: "The scene with the fade glow where he touches your hand haunts me in the best way" / Sylvia: "Aw thank you. Our animators and audio people made that scene way better than I could've hoped! They took such care with everything there. I want to say that little eye-peep from Rook was added in by one of them, which was the perfect touch." [source]

User on Emmrich: "i’m curious whether you think he’d prefer dogs or cats (or both, or neither)" / Sylvia: "I think he'd consider cats and dogs a little too noisy and messy for his tastes. Not like a nice, quiet plant or skeleton! (Weirdly, I actually had a scrap of banter going over this exact subject at one point. It got tightened down to the exchange with Harding about the pig he used to hug when he was a kid.)" [source, two]

Sylvia was trying to tease Nevarra with the Tevinter Nights story Down Among the Dead Men [source]. "It was really fun to tease the Necropolis, so to speak, in TN, and I'm grateful we got to actually let players through its gates at last." [source]

User: "if Rook chooses to save Manfred and keep Emmrich mortal, what would Emmrich wish to become of his body once he did pass on?" / Sylvia: "Good question. I think he'd want to remain active and useful in death. A guide for other Mourn Watchers, or posted as a mystic guide somewhere dangerous, or perhaps an oracle in the library." [source]

User: "when and how was it decided that Emmrich would be romanceable? I remember reading that he would not be a romance option." / Sylvia: "I'm not sure where that came from, because I pitched him and then shortly after that we decided the entire cast was romanceable. That was fairly early on in the development of Veilguard, as I recall it. (Could've been a crossed wire?)" [source]

Trick Weekes: "Sylvia wrote the fantastic Emmrich "the Vol-carnage" Volkarin and everything that happens in Nevarra while dealing with a lead writer whose attitudes about corpses and undead are... not dissimilar from Taash's." [source] / Sylvia: "I still remember when you gave the very accurate feedback "I think we need to give players whose Rooks aren't into corpses some roleplaying choices to express this" and I was all "Ohhh yeaaaaaah." (Thank u Trick, you were right)" [source] / Trick: "Specifically, being able to express this without locking themselves out of the content! (For non-Sylvia folks) Given my issues with corpses, Emmrich as a whole was SUPER Not For Me, so I gave one caveat and then said, "For the rest of my critique, I will be impersonating his target audience." [source]

Sylvia on the secret origins of Manfred: "After I pitched Emmrich, I started jotting down notes and thoughts on his plots, his quirks, all that kind of stuff. It was very early on Veilguard, anything was still possible. We were chatting in the writer's room about it one day, and I think we'd just seen some early concept art for Emmrich. And our lead writer Trick Weekes joked that Emmrich looked like a man who'd have a skeleton named Manfred. And I laughed and went "Yeah he does!" And then I thought about it. It's wild in retrospect, but that one comment spurred a train of thought that led to the core of Emmrich's arc. He may've ended up a very different character without it! tl;dr: I stole it from Trick." [source, two, three, four]

"I got to play with a pretty free palette when defining the way Emmrich and the necromancers view death and spirits. But I tried to keep it within the confines of existing lore. That's one reason why that scene where Emmrich talks about Manfred to Harding goes into "the eternal question" of whether a soul actually returns with the dead or not. Nevarra has distinct beliefs, but I thought it'd be interesting if its people argue over their interpretations of those beliefs." [source, two]

"the other writers also suggested a bit later on that the big choice dig more into Emmrich's philosophies. Initially, it was more personally focused on his fears, which made it 'relatable' but pettier. Without that correction, I think it would've been weaker, I totally needed the team push." [source]

"I have a few guides to graveyard symbology, and it's so packed with references and meaning." [source]

User: "Did any of your own fears & experiences, make it into the writing of Emmrich? If yes, is it information you’re comfortable sharing with us? If it’s too personal to give any details, that’s fine as well. Also, across the other games, who do you think Emmrich will get along with best?" / Sylvia: "some of his fears are absolutely personal. The reflexive-compulsive panic over death is something I'm very familiar with, and I wanted to explore that through him. Because I suspected it was not uncommon, and worth examining. The question of who he'd get along with from the other games is surprisingly tough! Because without asking the other writers about their characters, I wouldn't know for sure. So I can only really speak to Josephine with surety. That said: -I think Josephine would be polite, and grow to like him, but would never entirely be over the ostentatious necromancy. -I think Emmrich meeting Sera would be the funniest match." [source, two, three]

"Peter Cushing was also one of my go-tos as an example of what I wanted Emmrich to be." [source]

"(Huge shout out to all the animators and level designers making Manfred run, quite literally. Like 95% of his personality lives in his movement, I think they nailed it.)" [source]

On Emmrich: "I tried to put a lot of passion and sincerity in his love for the dead, and I admit the Necropolis was THE big place I wanted to see in Thedas myself ever since reading about it in a codex." [source]

User: "Thank you for letting him have that cemetery dream date!" / Sylvia: "Having the date in the cemetery was one of the first things I wanted when thinking about the romance." [source]

"Josephine was the first time I was entrusted with a new character and a new romance at once, and that'll always be special to me." [source]

User: "How much input did you have in Emmrich's appearance in the podcast?" / Sylvia: "In the podcast, none myself. I believe it was handled by a third party but reviewed by a few people at BW, I don't know too much past that. (We did provide a descriptor and character rules. Stuff like "Emmrich never swears" and "always says amongst" and broader, more thematically useful things.)" [source]

User on Emmrich: "Are you planning any other external-media stories for him?" / Sylvia: "Thanks very much, The Flame Eternal has a special place in my heart for being the first time Emmrich got to be center stage in a story. (And very flattering to hear about the cross stitch. That's so cool!) I can't speak to any external-media plans, I'm afraid. That's not an implied hint about anything existing or not, it's just literally outside what I'm allowed to chat about. It'd be fun to do something like that again though!" [source, two]

"I must give full credit to Nick Borraine, Emmrich's voice actor. He got the compassion and tenderness the character needed right away." [source]

"And glad him being closer to your age resonated, I really wanted someone older out on an adventure. No reason that has to stop at any age IMO." [source]

User: "do the mourn watcher/nevarra in general raise their pets after they die to keep them around? like a dog skeleton with a whisp in it?" / Sylvia: "To be honest I hadn't thought out this one, but it's a very good question. I'm not sure how common that would be, or even if it's permitted to have pets running around the family crypt. (I definitely thing people would WANT to do it.) You know, I think I'm going to have to leave this one in the vague quantum foam of the future. I think I'd want to not only double check existing lore, but answer that in-game (or in a book or etc.) if we ever need to. (Hope that's not too much of a cop out. Sometimes I like to leave questions I'm not sure about alone, because until it's in an official game or story, it doesn't quite count.)" [source, two, three]

User: "as someone who shares emmrich's anxiety about mortality, getting to spend time with him, and in the grand necropolis and with the mourn watch, was genuinely soothing" / Sylvia: "Thank you, I'm glad he was a comfort. It's a familiar fear for me too, and I'd hoped he would connect that way with people very much." [source]

On the giant ribcage 'ceiling' in the Necropolis: "sadly, even I don't know all the mysteries of the Necropolis. (Which is to say it's a very cool bit of art but has no stated origin yet. Could be a large dragon, a giant...or something weirder!)" [source]

On TN story Luck in the Gardens: "It was nice change up, writing in first person and with someone so rascally. I've got an enduring affection for the Lords after writing Hollix, the scamp." [source]

User: "I just love his genuine enthusiasm for everything he does. If the other party members had fan clubs Emmrich would be the president of each and I love that for him" / Sylvia: "Thank you! I really wanted him to embody a kind of expansiveness and generosity of spirit, to stand in contrast to the eeriness of his abilities." [source]

User: "What was your inspiration for Josie?" / Sylvia: "My girl! When I came on to Inquisition, there'd already been work done on setting up the spine of the main plot, and figuring out the overall cast. But one of the advisors was a little murkier. It just said "Diplomat" on the white board. We knew we wanted someone in that position, but not who. So in a game where you were out exploring, killing demons, etc., but also had a big organization to run? I immediately wanted to make a Diplomat firmly there for you. Somebody you could hand the keys to the entire Inquisition to while you were out, and know it'd be in good hands. I also thought it'd be fun to have someone from Antiva, since that area wasn't covered yet by anyone in the cast. And I needed her to be polished, smooth, but heartfelt, because of that aforementioned trust. And that was the core of Josephine! Her voice actor, Allegra, brought her to life with such lovely charm, and hearing those early sessions also helped me further hone her tone." [source, two, three, four]

"Our music supervisor Ron Dazo hit it out of the park with Emmrich's music IMO. And so glad you liked Hezenkoss! Just very fun to write as a character." [source]

User: "Did any specific watcher raise MW Rook?" / Sylvia: "Good question! I kind of left that one alone because I wasn't sure if I wanted to let Rook define that themselves, or leave it open, and also I'd have wanted a full conversation on it. In the end that was a little out of scope so I left it unsaid. Which is to say that it COULD be Vorgoth who helped raise your Rook. And that stands until/unless we give a definitive answer (or let you choose from a range of answers) one day." [source, two]

"It was such a pleasure for all of us to finally get to explore the Necropolis, I am very glad we got to throw open the gates." [source]

User: "I was wondering if there were any Mourn Watch details you wished you had more time to explore? I was so struck by some of the ethical implications in your stories" / Sylvia: "Geeze, now that's a question. I mention it with Emmrich, but there's some resentment over the power the Watchers hold as THE mortalitasi of the Grand Necropolis, between them and the other orders. There's something to that situation I liked. There's also questions of how they select people for the order. What their standards are, how closely they work with benign spirits. And how they cultivate those relationships. How deep does that go? I also mentioned in a codex "the lives and bodies of those who tamper with the undead of the Necropolis are forfeit unto the Mourn Watch." which is pretty chilling. What's that punishment like, exactly? And in general, writing about anything weird or unexplained in the Necropolis brought me much enjoyment, and it would be fun to dig around how the Mourn Watch deals with (or what they want out of) all these mysteries and entities." [source, two, three, four]

"Geeking out with Emmrich about spooky stuff was a delight to write." [source]

"I liked writing someone older this time, it was something different for me and rewarding in some unexpectedly different ways. (And thanks especially for the nice words on DAtDM - I was very excited to introduce people to the Mourn Watch there!)" [source]

"Ah, tomb-script. I named it but it was our concept artists who went developed it with the hexagon shape-language of the Mourn Watch, which I loved. Conceptually: I think it's used purely an occult or sacred language. Something for the graves, or books on magic, but not everyday things." [source]

"Some trans people kindly offered their help with some feedback on some of the romance lines and others, which absolutely made them much better." [source]

"Trick Weekes actually wrote a ton of the banter where Emmrich inquires into qunari artifacts and customs, and Taash talks about what it was like to grow up under a scholar. I really dig the dynamic they unearthed between the two there." [source]

User: "Do you remember what was written in the script to describe ✨this✨ moment? [link]" // Sylvia: "Lol. I miiiiiight? Let me look at my notes. Ah hah, I do! My note says that Emmrich "takes a second, surprised." And then he's touched afterwards." [source, two]

Sylvia: ""i hope it's not too late, but were there any designs in mind for what Nevarra City looks like?" Not too late! We've got a few sketches in the World of Thedas books, but that's it. If the team ever went back to Nevarra City proper, I'd imagine the art team would want to do a deeper dive." [source]

Sylvia: "(Glad you liked Myrna in particular. My first Mourn Watcher everyone got to know!)" [source]

Sylvia: "I'm glad to hear getting to know Emmrich has been of some comfort." [source]

[lgbtlunaverse]

Fandom is so nice to Jiang Cheng's inferiority complex because in reality every single thing he gets accused of is something Wei Wuxian is better at than him.

Jiang Cheng killed Wei Wuxian? Nope. Didn't even get close. Wei Wuxian's own spirits tore him apart before jc could even get there. wwx:1 jc:0

Jiang Cheng tortures people? We get two and a half rumours and a mention from jin ling that jc has 'captured' demonic cultivators before, but who is also apparently confident that just letting wwx run off will kill the issue even though those earlier rumours said ~no one who sandu shengshou captured was ever seen again~

The word jiang cheng uses when he tries to talk big game about 'beating the truth' out of Wei Wuxian's is a word that carries the context of pestering someone to do their homework. Doesn't exactly strike fear into my heart.

Wei Wuxian? Excellent at torture. A prodigy. Did you fucking see what he did to Wen Chao? Dude didn't have fingers anymore because wei wuxian made him eat them. He ripped out his hair, burned his skin off, and then stalked him for several days just to prolong the pain. He forced Wang Lingjiao to bite Wen Chao's dick off and then made her shove a stool leg down her own throat! 10/10, no notes. Absolutely horrifying.

Meanwhile Jiang Cheng's idea of torture is getting a dog to bark at Wei Wuxian for a few seconds. Weak, unoriginal, I bet fairy was literally wagging her tail the whole time. 2-0

Jiang Cheng made the entire cultivation world believe Wei Wuxian was up to no good on the burial mounds and ultimately orchestrated his downfall? lol. lmao, even

It's a big thing in certain corners of the fandom to really zoom in one one particular phrase at the end of chapter 73, where after wwx and jc have their staged duel to make the world believe they hate each other jiang cheng tells everyone wwx has defected and become "a public enemy'' or "an enemy to the cultivation world" or whatever the translation you're familiar with decided upon.

(As an aside, something I really like about this line is that the last half of it is almost exactly the same, like verbatim, as what wwx told him to say. like, the chapter is really hammering home just how much jc is speaking from a script here. wwx tells jc to say "今后魏无羡无论做出什么事，都与云梦江氏无关." and jc says "今后无论��人有何动作，一概与云梦江氏无关" the only meaningful difference is that he says 'this person' instead of wwx's name)

I've seen it said that this bit, the use of 'enemy' was said without wei wuxian's approval, that jc deviated from the script just to hurt his ex-shixiong for leaving him. And that this is what caused all the other clans to turn against wei wuxian. Regardless of if this is what jc and wwx discussed, or if jc had malicious motivations for it (considering my conclusions above, you can guess where i fall) it doesn't really matter, because the novel tells us when the clans completely freak out and become convinced wei wuxian is out to get them (though of course they've been wringing their hands about it since the literal day wwx ran off with the wen, months before jiang cheng visited) very neatly in chapter 75!

It's when they find out about Wen Ning.

And how do they find out about Wen Ning?

Because Wei Wuxian took him on nighthunts! And they kicked ass!

...Wei Wuxian, my man, why are you on nighthunts??? Why are you showing off your incredibly cool sentient fierce corpse buddy, who is way better and stronger than all the other fierce corpses, in front of the whole cultivation world??

Whatever his motivations (extra money, maybe?? they were strapped for crash) I can only draw the conclusion wwx had already given up on appearing calm or non-threatening and didn't care if the clans thought he was a threat, because they'd believe whatever they wanted anyway. Which he seems to clearly be aware of the whole time.

Regardless, we know that this is what created the myth of the Yiling patriarch. It's literally when the title first shows up!

Even if you really believe jc was secretly plotting against wwx in chapter 73, he's clearly doing a shit job of it because nothing he said made anywhere near as big an impact as this. Flopped!

The other point people use to argue Jiang Cheng caused wei wuxian's downfall is Jin Guangyao's speech in Guanyin temple about how jiang cheng could have saved wei wuxian if only he stood by him. Setting aside that jin guangyao is trying to get into jiang cheng's head here, and isn't necessarily saying what he really believes (though it very well might be! who knows with a character like jgy. assuming he's always lying is just as misleading as assuming he's always saying the truth) the fact is, if you read the speech closely, what he's talking about is not the 'public enemy' line, he's talking about the bond between them. The fact that people wanted wei wuxian out of yunmeng jiang, because the two were too powerful together.

He's talking about that one time Jiang Cheng very publically kicked wei wuxian out of the sect!

Which, unbeknownst to Jin Guangyao, was in fact Wei Wuxian's idea the whole time.

final score: 3 for you wei wuxian, you go wei wuxian! And nothing for Jiang Cheng bye.

[msbigredmachine]

Co-Star (Roman Reigns)

Juliana “Juju” Hamilton, a celebrated TV star, and Roman Reigns, a former WWE icon stepping into his first major acting role, play star-crossed lovers on a hit series. But as they prepare to film their first sex scene, the lines between fiction and reality begin to blur.

Pairing: Roman Reigns/Actress Black fem OC

Warnings: Smut

Word Count: 4.5k

King, Season 1

Ramona Kane is the heiress to the Kane Hotels & Hospitality empire and the mastermind behind the biggest illegal arms syndicate in the West Coast. They call her ‘King’, because everyone thinks it’s a man calling the shots. Using the hotel chains as a front, she immerses herself in the dark, ruthless, cutthroat underworld to avenge her parents, aiming to become powerful enough to ultimately take down the drug lord who brutally murdered them. 

Logan is a mysterious Black Ops agent who falls in love with Ramona, but he soon discovers her ties to the entity he has been tirelessly hunting down for years.

It’s a great script. Juju was hooked from the first page. She was also happy to report that her love life was not as complicated as that of her character. But that would mean she currently had a love life, which she absolutely did not.

The King set is bustling, yet Juju Hamilton feels like she’s moving through molasses. Her nerves are high-strung, her mind circling the same thought over and over again: Today’s the day. She’s been in the industry long enough to handle big scenes, intense stunts, even emotionally grueling moments. 

But this? A sex scene with the Roman Reigns? 

That’s another beast entirely.

“The very first sex scene,” Sienna chirps from the couch, grinning like a Cheshire cat. Her excitement only adds fuel to Juju’s already fraying nerves. “Are you ready?”

Juju forces a laugh, smoothing her hands down the fabric of her dress. “Born ready.”

Sienna waggles her eyebrows. “And Roman? You think he’s ready for you?”

Juju shoots her assistant a playful glare, but her stomach flips at the mention of him. Roman isn’t just her co-star...he’s a complication. A magnetic force who commands attention without even trying. She had assumed his wrestling background would make him stiff or overly rehearsed in front of the camera, but instead, he’s been disarmingly natural. His instincts are sharp, his presence undeniable. And, admittedly, maddeningly attractive.

Too attractive.

She’s spent months keeping things professional, pushing aside how effortlessly he flirts, how his deep voice lingers just a second too long when he says her name. But now, they’re about to strip down—literally and figuratively—in a way neither of them can take back. And for the first time since meeting Roman Reigns, Juju isn’t sure if she’s ready for him.

She stands in front of the full-length mirror in her trailer, smoothing the neckline of the custom-made evening gown that clings enticingly to her curves. The material shimmers under the dim light, the design sculpted to showcase Ramona Kane’s lethal elegance and sensuality. The dress is stunning, undeniably powerful, but it feels like a weight tonight, one she knows will literally fall away in the course of filming. The script demands it. She closes her eyes briefly, shaking her hands to dispel the rising tension in her chest, but the thought still lingers, as potent as the role itself.

She’s acutely aware of what’s coming. Every glance, every deliberate touch, every heated whisper that will lead to Logan stripping Ramona bare. 

She runs her hands over her dress one last time, as if to anchor herself, before meeting her own reflection with a steadying gaze. For a moment, she’s not Juju anymore. She’s Ramona Kane, poised and unapologetically seductive, ready to make the world—and Logan—kneel.

The scene unfolds in a lavish hotel suite, one of Ramona's, where floor-to-ceiling windows offer a breathtaking view of the city skyline, sparkling under the night sky. The suite exudes luxury, just like Ramona, with plush velvet furnishings, gilded accents, and a crystal chandelier casting a warm golden glow across the room.

Roman stands near the grand piano, tall and commanding in a sleek black suit, the jacket gone and the sleeves of his dress shirt rolled up to his elbows. His dark, piercing gaze is fixed on her. He embodies Logan completely: calculating, enigmatic, and hopelessly captivated by Ramona even against his better judgment.

“And…action!” the director yells, and the room plunges into a charged silence.

Juju steps into the scene, slipping into Ramona’s skin as if the weight of her secrets has always belonged to her. Across from her, Roman transforms into Logan—rigid, betrayed, simmering with fury barely held in check. The truth has detonated between them, and now, there’s no turning back.

“You lied to me,” he growls, his voice rough and edged with something rawer than anger; something dangerously close to heartbreak. His fists flex at his sides, his entire body wound tight like a coil ready to snap.

Ramona feels the accusation hit like a bullet to the chest. Her composure crumbles, her lips parting as if she can swallow back the truth, but it’s too late. “I lied to protect you,” she says, voice thick with desperation, heavy with regret. “You wouldn’t understand-”

“Bullshit!” Logan spits, his voice cutting through hers like a blade. He steps forward, and instinctively, she retreats, her back pressing against the edge of the desk. But there’s no escaping him. His anger, his presence, his damn-near palpable heartbreak pins her in place just as surely as his gaze does.

“It’s not bullshit! I lied to save your life!” Ramona pleads, her voice rising, cracking under the weight of her guilt. “If they found out who you were, you’d be dead! And if you knew who I was…” Her breath hitches.

“And who are you? Huh?” His voice is quieter now, but no less lethal. He reaches out, gripping her arm; not cruelly, but with an unyielding force that makes it impossible to run. His touch burns through the fabric of her sleeve, sending her pulse into a wild staccato. “Tell me what you’re part of, Ramona. Tell me the truth.”

Juju moves as if the weight of the scene is pressing down on her, her every breath heavy with Ramona’s turmoil. She rips her arm from his grasp, her eyes burning with unshed tears. “I’m not just part of it, Logan,” she confesses, her voice shaking but unyielding. “I am it.” 

The words land between them like a death knell. “The entity you’ve been hunting, the one you’ve risked everything to bring down…King…” Her breath shudders. “King is me.”

Silence stretches between them, thick and suffocating. This revelation has shattered everything, and now they stand on the wreckage of trust, trying to find footing where none exists.

Logan exhales sharply, his expression flickering—disbelief, rage, and something far more dangerous. Hurt. 

“You…” He stops himself, shaking his head like he’s trying to clear it. A bitter laugh escapes him, sharp and humorless. “You shoulda told me.”

Her lips part, but she says nothing.

“You should’ve told me,” he repeats, and now his voice is raw, fractured. “You let me hunt you down. You let me look for a monster, knowing the whole damn time it was you.”

Tears well in her eyes, but she blinks them away. “If I told you, Logan, you wouldn’t be standing here.”

“You don’t get to decide that for me!” he snaps, furious. “You think I can’t handle myself? That I needed you to play God with my life?” His jaw clenches. “I’ve been in the crosshairs my entire life, Ramona. I didn’t need your protection. I needed the truth!”

Ramona shakes her head, pressing a fist against her forehead as if trying to hold herself together. “You don’t understand! If I didn’t lie, they would have used you against me. They would’ve killed you just to hurt me.” Her voice cracks. “I had no choice!”

Logan steps closer, and suddenly, it’s like the entire room disappears. The heat between them is unbearable, suffocating. He looks at her like he’s trying to memorize every line of her face, like the truth is burning through him but still—still—he wants her.

“And what about me?” he asks, his voice barely above a whisper, yet thick with emotion. “What if I wanted to fight for you? What if I would’ve risked everything just to keep you?”

Her chin trembles, as does her voice.

“You shouldn’t,” she whispers, “You shouldn’t have to.”

“But I want to.” His voice is barely more than a breath, but his pain, his longing…it’s all there, simmering beneath the anger. “And you hate it, don’t you?” 

He should be mad. He should hate her. But standing here, looking at her, all he can feel is the crushing weight of knowing that none of it changes the way he feels. 

He’s in love with Ramona.

His fingers twitch at his sides, as if resisting the urge to reach for her. “You hate that you feel the same way I do. Because it makes you vulnerable. Makes you human.”

Tears fill Ramona’s eyes. Another shuddering breath. “I don’t hate it,” she confesses, “I hate that I can’t stop it.” Her eyes lock onto his, glassy with unshed emotion. “I hate that I can’t stop what I feel for you.”

Logan’s jaw tightens, his expression torn between anger and something softer, almost fragile. He exhales, his head bowing for a moment as if he’s trying to regain control.

“Logan…I…” she begins.

“Don’t,” he cuts her off, shaking his head. “Don’t say it. If you do, there’s no going back, Ramona.”

It’s almost a threat, and she understands exactly what he means. But the walls have crumbled already. Finally, she takes a step closer, lifting her hand to his chest. Her touch is light, hesitant, but it sparks something in both of them.

“I love you,” she says, her voice barely audible, a plea and an admission all at once. “I tried not to. God, I tried…”

Logan’s shoulders sag, his eyes closing as if the weight of her words is too much to bear. For a moment, she thinks he’ll walk away, finally let her go. But then his eyes snap open, blazing with emotion.

“Dammit, Ramona,” he says hoarsely, his hands coming up to cup her face. “I told myself I wouldn’t let this happen. I told myself I couldn’t love you—but I do. I do.”

Juju can barely keep her composure. Roman’s proximity is intoxicating, his scent, a mix of cologne and something warm, something distinctly him, pulling her under. The script calls for a kiss, but the moment he leans in, the air shifts. The line between fiction and reality dissolves.

His lips crash against hers, and instinct takes over. Her fingers tighten around his shoulders, his grip firm at her waist. The kiss is raw, desperate—full of something neither of them are willing to name. It’s supposed to be just a scene, just acting. But the way his mouth moves against hers, the way her body melts into him, says otherwise.

“And cut! End scene!”

The director’s voice slices through the moment, sharp and commanding, but neither of them react right away. Their lips linger, the ghost of the kiss still hanging between them. Roman is the first to pull back, just an inch, his breath hot against her mouth. His dark eyes flick to hers, still half-lidded, still caught in whatever that was.

Juju swallows hard, her chest rising and falling in sync with his. The air between them is thick, charged…dangerous.

Roman’s tongue swipes over his bottom lip. He doesn’t say anything. He doesn’t have to.

Juju forces herself to take a step back, but her fingers are still curled into his shirt like she’s forgotten how to let go.

The scene transitions to the bedroom, where Logan and Ramona’s turbulent emotions ignite into a raw, unrelenting passion. Juju lies back on the bed, completely bare beneath him, her body exposed and vulnerable under the soft glow of the set lights. Roman moves over her, equally nude, his skin warm and firm against hers. His hands glide over her bare curves, deliberate yet trembling with a restrained intensity. Despite the boundaries they’d discussed, his touch feels unguarded, electric, each brush of his fingers sparking a fire in her veins.

“And…action!”

Juju barely has time to inhale before Roman is on her, his body pressing her into the mattress with an intensity that makes the scripted moment feel anything but staged. His breath is hot against her throat, his lips dragging over sensitive skin before parting to press an open-mouthed kiss just below her ear. She shivers—an unplanned reaction, one that isn’t in the script—but it doesn’t matter. It fits.

His weight settles over her, heavy and consuming, and the slow roll of his hips sends a shockwave through her core. The modesty barriers between them—the flesh-toned strap securing him inside his boxers, the seamless covers shielding her chest—should make this feel clinical. But they don’t. Because when he thrusts again, slow but firm, she feels him. Feels the hard length of him pressing exactly where her body craves it, even through the barriers.

A moan spills from her lips, raw and breathless, and the sound seems to trigger something in him. His grip tightens on her hip, fingers digging into the curve of her waist as he moves faster, more desperate. The bed creaks beneath them, the set fading into nothing as their bodies move in sync, grinding, needing.

Her legs tighten around his waist, anchoring him closer, urging him to keep going. And he does. His forehead drops to hers, his breath coming faster, rougher, as his hips stutter just slightly. His dark eyes burn into hers, and for a split second, the question in them is real. Is she feeling this too? Is she lost in this the same way he is?

“Cut! And that’s a wrap, people!”

The director’s voice slices through the haze, forcing them to stop. But their bodies remain tangled, breathing ragged, sweat beading at their skin despite the cool studio air.

Then, reality crashes back in.

Roman lifts himself off her, his arms shaking slightly as he steadies himself. Juju remains beneath him, her chest rising and falling, her body still buzzing from something she can’t name.

“You okay?” His voice is soft, like a whisper meant only for her.

Juju nods, though her pulse is erratic, her body still buzzing from his touch. “Yeah. You?”

His lips curve into a slow, devastating smile, his dimples deepening as his gaze holds hers. “Never better.”

The words linger between them, weighted with meaning she doesn’t dare acknowledge.

The rest of the set is silent. No one dares to speak.

Because whatever just happened between them…

It wasn’t acting.

Juju sits on the edge of her trailer’s narrow bed, her fingers gripping the hem of her robe as if that alone will anchor her. Hours have passed since they wrapped for the day, but her body hasn’t forgotten. The heat of him. The way his weight felt pressing her into the mattress. The way he had moved against her until the lines had blurred.

She lets out a slow, measured breath, but it does nothing to steady her pulse.

This is stupid. She should let it go.

Tomorrow, they’ll be back on set, pretending like nothing happened. That’s the unspoken rule. What happens under the lights, in front of the cameras, stays there. Professionalism. Boundaries. Distance. But none of that explains why her skin still tingles where he touched her. Why her body reacts as if he’s still there, his breath ghosting over her neck, his voice rough with need as he rasped her name.

She stands abruptly, pacing the small space of her trailer.

If she goes to him now, what happens next? Would they fuck just to chase away the tension? To get it out of their systems? Would it ruin everything? Or worse…would it make things unbearably real?

The whispers on set would start the moment someone saw her slip out of his trailer in the morning. It would be all they talked about. And the aftermath. God, the awkwardness. That post-nut clarity that only comes after you’ve given in to something you can’t take back.

She grips the doorknob, hesitating.

She should go back to bed. She should forget this.

Instead, she exhales, opens the door, and steps out into the night.

The air is crisp against her overheated skin, but it does nothing to cool the fire burning in her veins. The camp of trailers is silent, save for the faint hum of a distant generator, the occasional rustle of wind against metal. She moves quickly, her bare feet barely making a sound against the pavement.

When she reaches his trailer, she hesitates just long enough to hate herself for it.

Then, before she can change her mind, she knocks. Once, twice. 

The door opens, and there he is; damp hair curling against his neck, a loose T-shirt clinging to his broad chest, sweatpants slung low on his hips.

“Juju.”

Her name in his mouth is thick, warm, like honey over gravel. But his expression, half-surprise, half-knowing, is impossible to read.

“Couldn’t sleep?” His voice is lower than usual, rougher.

She shakes her head. She’s not sure she’s slept well in months.

Roman steps aside, and she moves past him into the trailer, barely aware of the door clicking shut behind her. The space shrinks with his presence, heat rolling off his body, thickening the air. It hums between them, the same volatile energy that’s been sparking since their first chemistry read. The same current that made the director say, Jesus Christ, you two are money!

Juju shifts on her feet, arms wrapped tightly around herself. “I…I couldn’t stop thinking about the scene.” The admission scrapes out of her, barely audible.

Roman swallows. Hard. “Me neither,” he murmurs.

She doesn’t miss the way his jaw flexes, his fingers twitching like he wants to reach for her. She wants him to.

Then, low, nearly guttural, he says, “I can still feel you.”

Her stomach tightens.

He steps closer, just enough for the air between them to thicken. “Your legs around my waist,” he continues, his tone edged with danger, lust. “Your nails in my back.” His eyes drag down her body, slowly, deliberately. “The way you moaned for me.”

Juju’s breath stutters.

Roman’s hand lifts, his knuckles ghosting along her jaw. “Even through the pads…even through all that fake shit they had us wear…” His thumb drags over her bottom lip, gaze dark and locked onto hers. “I could feel how wet you were.”

A pulse of heat licks up her spine.

Then, like a dam finally bursting, they crash into each other.

His hands framing her face, his thumbs stroking her cheeks. Her fisting his shirt, pulling him flush against her. He groans into her mouth, his fingers slipping beneath her robe. It parts easily, and his hands find her bare skin, gripping, kneading, burning his touch into her. There’s nothing tentative about it. This isn’t slow, or sweet. It’s raw, a collision of lips and tongues and unspoken need.

Her head falls back against the nearest wall as he presses against her, solid, unyielding. The hard length of him settles between her thighs, and she welcomes it, gasping softly as he grinds against her, as he pulls her leg up to hook around his waist.

“Baby girl,” he rasps against her lips, his breath ragged. “Tell me to stop. If you don't want this...”

Juju digs her nails into his shoulders, her response immediate, breathless.

“Don’t you dare.”

They’ve been fighting this for months.

No more.

He lifts her with ease, her legs wrapping around his waist as he carries her to his couch. The kiss turns feral, their mouths devouring as his hands explore her body, reverent yet insistent. When his lips trail down her neck, her breath catches, and she presses closer, needing more.

Clothes fall away in a blur of heat and urgency. Roman’s skin is hot against hers, his muscles flexing under her touch. He lays her down, his hands and lips leaving a trail of fire along her skin. Her body arches into his as if they’ve done this a thousand times, as if they’ve been waiting for this moment all along.

Roman’s mouth never leaves hers, the urgency in his movements igniting something deep within her. He holds her with deliberate care, as though she’s precious, but the look in his eyes tells her he’ll be anything but gentle tonight. His hands skim her thighs, spreading her open as he climbs over her, their bodies flush with each other.

“Look at you,” he murmurs, his voice low and thick, sending shivers racing down her spine. His fingers trace the curve of her hip, then move to her breast, teasing her until she gasps. “I’ve been wanting to touch you, really touch you, like this, Juju. You don’t fucking know what you do to me.”

Her breath catches as his lips press against the hollow of her throat, dragging down her chest. “Roman…” His name comes out in a breathless plea, her hands finding their way into his damp hair, tugging him closer.

“You like it when I touch you, don’t you?” he growls against her skin, his teeth grazing her nipple before his mouth closes over it, sucking until she arches off the bed. “Say it, baby.”

“Yes,” she gasps, her voice trembling as heat pools in her belly. “Fuck, yes!”

“Good girl.” His voice is a dark promise, and he kisses her again, devouring her like he can’t get enough. His hands are everywhere; cupping, squeezing, gripping her body like he’s memorizing every inch of her. He kisses a path down her stomach, taking his time, his beard rough against her soft skin. When his face hovers between her thighs, she forgets how to breathe. He spreads her wider, his thumbs pressing into her soft flesh as he looks up at her with a sinful smirk. 

“I bet this pussy taste as good as you look,” he taunts.

Before she can respond, his mouth is on her folds, his tongue moving with precision, dragging over her in ways that make her back bow and her toes crack. He groans against her pussy, the vibration making her cry out, her fingers clutching at the sheets.

“Roman…oh god…”

“That’s right, baby girl, lemme hear how much you love it,” he murmurs, his voice husky as he kisses the inside of her thigh before diving back in. 

She’s trembling beneath him, the coil in her stomach tightening with every flick of his tongue, every slow circle he draws. When she shatters, her release comes in waves, pulling her under as she gasps his name like a prayer.

He doesn’t give her time to recover. Moving over her, he positions himself between her legs, his body radiating heat and power. His dark eyes meet hers, and the raw hunger there makes her heart palpitate.

“You’re so fucking beautiful,” he growls, kissing her long and deep. “You have no idea how hard it’s been keepin’ my hands off you.”

“Then don’t,” she whispers, her hands sliding down his back, nails scraping lightly over his skin. “Don’t hold back, Roman.”

He groans, the sound primal, and he slides his dick into her in one fluid motion, making her cry out. The stretch is exquisite, and she clings to him as he moves, his pace unrelenting. The couch shakes beneath them, rocking forwards with each of his powerful thrusts.

“This what you wanted?” he growls against her ear, his teeth nipping at her lobe. “You wanted me to fuck you like this? Hard and deep until you can’t think straight?” Without warning, he winds his hips, hitting a spot that makes her mouth drop open. “That’s it, baby. Take it. Take all of me.”

“Yes, baby,” she gasps, her nails digging into his shoulders. “Fuck, Roman…”

He leans down, his lips capturing hers in a searing kiss, moaning when her hands slip south to knead the firm skin of his ass. Their bodies move together in perfect rhythm, her moans and whimpers mixing with his groans as they both get dragged closer to ecstasy. The friction, the heat, the intensity; it’s all overwhelming, incredible. 

When she falls apart again, her climax hits her like a tidal wave, her entire body trembling as she cries out his name. Roman follows moments later, his thrusts faster and harder until he freezes abruptly, his hips jerking as he spills into her, his groan low and guttural from the incredible sensation.

For a moment, neither of them moves, their bodies still fused with the aftershocks of pleasure. Their breathing is uneven, mingling in the small space between them, the air thick with sweat and something intimate.

Roman’s fingers trace slow, lazy circles along Juju’s spine before he presses a lingering kiss to her forehead, his touch unexpectedly tender as he brushes damp strands of hair from her face.

“You good?” he murmurs, his voice husky, still laced with the remnants of desire.

Instead of answering, Juju tilts her chin up and captures his mouth in a slow, drugging kiss, all tongue and lingering heat, a noisy, post-coital indulgence that neither of them is ready to break. She moans softly into his mouth, her toes curling as his tongue sweeps against hers, deep and unhurried. Roman growls low in his throat, his grip tightening on her hip as if already debating whether to take her again.

With great reluctance, Juju breaks the kiss, her fingers trailing down his back, feeling the rise and fall of their joined breaths. “Never better,” she smirks, throwing his own line from earlier back at him.

Roman chuckles at that, his dimples flashing as he carries her from the couch over to his bed area, her ass firm in his grasp. “Good, because I ain’t done with you yet. We fucking all night, baby.”

Her laugh is breathless, but her body sparks to life again as his hands begin to wander, gearing her up for another round of earth-shattering passion.

The next morning, they arrive on set together, both of them glowing in a way that doesn’t go unnoticed. When they approach the director, Roman speaks first.

“So look…about yesterday’s scene…”

Juju finishes his sentence, “We think we can do it better.”

The director raises an eyebrow, a knowing smile tugging at his lips. “If that’s what you want.”

As they take their places on set, Juju catches Roman’s eye. He winks at her, and she feels her heart flutter. The line between Ramona and Logan, Juju and Roman, is gone. All that’s left is the undeniable connection between them…and the knowledge that they may have crossed the point of no return, but boy, was it a fun trip.

THE END

Thoughts? How was it?

Roman gif by @dejameflorecer

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[gayofthefae]

Thinking about how if you cut the whole Cali rode trip plot out season four would not be altered at all. They were missing for a whole episode and nothing was hindered.

So why not cut it?

Because season FIVE would be DESTROYED by it.

Because Byler is so vital it needs this set up. Foundation laying seems useless when you don't know something will be built.

Yes. The Cali plot could have been cut entirely. They were glorified chauffeurs with extra obstacles for filler (and literally only one extra obstacle). But that's actually Byler PROOF.

It was useless to the season 4 plot. So the only reason to keep it in when they could have easily just incorporated the characters into other plotlines - they're able to fly to Hawkins, they go with Joyce, some do one, some do the other, whatever - the only reason to isolate them then have them do seemingly nothing of value is SETUP for something that IS needed.

The only reason for having that is if without it, season 5 rolls around and now VITAL plotlines are out of the blue. It is the "blank makes you crazy" to "From Mike". The "I love her" to "from Mike".

Because Byler was not a plotline in season 4. Not really. Not totally. Not vitally, at least. What it was was threads woven back of a plotline in season FIVE. What it was was planning, preparation.

Jonathan and Argyle are basically comedic relief. Mike and Will do nothing to help El except get to her with a car that they did not drive or need to be in for their plan to work. And if the plot were Mike and El, Mike and El would be there, no. The plot is Mike and Will talking, is just the conversation topic - the same way Will was for Mike and El in season 1.

Mike and Will only setup romantic plotlines, assist the supernatural plotline in no way, and are physically isolated from affecting any other characters' plotline, but have no romantic payoff and their romance is not even addressed.

Because this isn't a vital season plotline. This is "I know you wanna see what the NINA Project is doing but season 5 would be shit without this you guys I promise".

Don't care about it but can't live without it of storytelling. Almost everything in season 4 is the same without it. But almost everything about the ending of the show is exponentially different. Season 4 is unchanged. But season 5 falls apart. Without Byler. Without us knowing the little things here and there that we now know.

Because if you go over it, barely anything even happened in their plotline. I've said this before, it really was just a bunch of unpaid setups - which makes sense given season 4 and 5 were supposed to be one season.

It's really just because we need to go into season 5 with the knowledge in the back of our minds "Will loves Mike, Will lied to Mike tpo get him to stay with El, Mike's scared the truth about his love for her would hurt her, Mike told El he loved her to save her life".

4 facts. 4. Not plotlines, facts. Some of which are single scenes, many of which are just single lines. It's information. It's setup. It doesn't matter now. But not cutting it is their way of saying it WILL. "It'll pay off," as the Duffers said to Finn Wolfhard.

Nothing else happened in this plotline and they could have integrated these characters elsewhere. This plotline didn't even really have a plotline, just a sparsely scattered series of facts.

But as someone who predicts lots of mysteries accurately, THAT'S how they show you their hand. Not what they tell you is important. What they try to convince you is useless (but made space for anyway).

That's a twist the only way to do a twist. They said in tightening the season 4 scripts they went back to episode 1 to write in that Eddie played guitar so it was planted for later. This is the same thing. It's just planting things so they aren't out of the blue. THIS is how you do a twist, and why we know to predict one. People are right, they do not have a love story plotline. But what they do have is 'rewatch details' with no other purpose. What they do have is "uselessness".

If season 4 is unaffected by their plotline, it means season 5 falls apart without it.

[lucy-literates]

I was wondering if you could write something were reader has a secret tattoo that's that not visible to the eye and Arthur Leclerc doesn't know about it and he see it for the first time.

It could can smut or not it's up to you.

A/N: oooo ok. I had 2 ideas for this. 1 was a tattoo hidden in a spot that not many people see, like the hip. 2 was one of those tattoos that only show up under black light and he spotted it when they did an activity with that light. I ended up going with the first one but i would be happy to do the second if you like. Enjoy, inbox is open :)

Inked Into You

Arthur’s fingers skim your bare skin, slow and reverent, as the two of you lie tangled up on his bed. His breath is warm against your neck, lips brushing your jaw like a secret.

It had been a slow night—dinner, too much wine, flirtation humming between you like electricity waiting to arc. Now, you’re half-undressed, flushed, laughing in whispers under his sheets.

Until he freezes.

“What’s this?”

You blink. “What?”

His fingers trace your ribs, featherlight. “This. You have a tattoo?”

Your breath catches. “Oh. Yeah.”

You glance down at your side, where delicate ink sits inked just beneath your bra line—small script or a symbol (your choice), meaningful, hidden. Intimate.

“I’ve never seen it before,” he says, sounding a little breathless.

You smirk. “You’ve never had me shirtless before.”

His eyes meet yours—wide, a little stunned. “Fuck.”

He sits up on his elbow, gaze dropping to your ribs like he’s seeing you in an entirely new light. His fingers brush over the ink again, more purposeful this time.

“What does it mean?” he asks softly.

You tell him. Maybe it’s something from your past. Maybe it’s just for you. Maybe it’s the kind of thing you didn’t plan to explain to anyone.

But with Arthur looking at you like this—curious, reverent, hungry—you let him in.

And he loves it.

“You hid this from me,” he murmurs, eyes darkening.

You tease, “It’s not like I was gonna flash you in the paddock.”

He grins. “Maybe you should.”

Before you can respond, his mouth is there—pressing a kiss just beside the ink, then another. Then lower.

His voice drops. “Gonna leave my own marks around it.”

You laugh, breath hitching. “Possessive much?”

“Of you? Always.”

Then he’s between your legs—slow, teasing, tongue dragging where you need him most. One hand gripping your thigh, the other still brushing over your tattoo like he wants to memorize it with touch.

You come with his name on your lips—and when he finally pulls away, he whispers:

“Next time you get a tattoo… I want to be there when you choose it.”

You grin lazily, pulling him back on top of you.

“Only if you kiss that one too.”

[sparrowlucero]

ik you were joking but I would be genuinely interested to hear about the flux cowriting credits strife if you feel like going into detail on it

So I have a big conspiracy theory about season 13 of Doctor Who ("Flux"), namely that there's a lost episode was scripted and even possibly filmed in near entirety, but ended up being cut and cannibalized in post production due to behind the scenes issues, and the fandom has yet to pick up on it.

For anyone who doesn't watch the show: Flux is a miniseries of Doctor Who; a full season was not commissioned because it was produced during Covid. The most important stuff about it for the purposes of this post are:

It's 6 episodes long (¹). The episodes are all directly continuous and could not be shuffled around. (I should clarify here that, no, the showrunner can't simply choose on a whim to make 10 episodes, or only make 4; they had to stick to 6, as that was the amount they were picked up and scheduled for)

The showrunner, Chris Chibnall , wrote every episode apart from episode 4 (Village of the Angels) which he has a co-writing credit on.

(More subjectively but perhaps relevant) The season is largely considered to be kind of a structural mess and (less subjectively) there appears to some abnormal and consistent production issues (²)

So the first thing I need to evidence here is that Chris Chibnall, aforementioned showrunner and writer of the entire season, was late. Like, really late.

Word of mouth gossip had been circulating for a while that there was some sort of on-set problem involving filming having to be paused because he was still finishing scripts: (³)

This would later be confirmed at a Gallifrey One panel (⁴) with Matt Strevens, the executive producer, who suggests that filming stopped to allow Chris Chibnall to finish scripts; he further implies that large swathes of episode 5/Block 2 weren't written until Episode 4/Block 1 (in which Kevin McNally debuts) was filming:

So with that context, let's talk about that Episode 4, "Village of the Angels", the only episode not attributed solely to Chris Chibnall. Co written by Maxine Alderton.

The filming pics reveal an interesting bit of trivia for Village: namely, the clapperboards show that the story was actually filmed as episode 5, not 4:

As the above tweet suggests, this doesn't make much sense. The miniseries is, again, a single continuous plot. It's not like they flipped Village and the current episode 5, Survivors of the Flux; the latter explicitly takes place chronologically after it. And yet, Village having been intended as the penultimate episode 5 is further evidenced by the original trailer for it, in which a character states that the story takes place on the 28th of November. This line is dubbed over in the final episode and subsequent trailers to instead say the 21st:

Why is this line important enough to dub? Because that's meant to line up with the air date of the episode. Episode 4 aired on the 21st and 5 on the 28th. But something happened in post production, and now it's episode 4 on the 21st instead (⁵):

So if none of these episodes were moved around but it does seem like Village was meant to be episode 5, where and what is the original episode 4?

I have a theory.

Flux has a recurring subplot involving two side characters, a married couple (Bel and Vinder) who have been separated by the titular disaster and are traveling the universe to reunite with each other. This story is told through segments sprinkled throughout the episodes. These have a different writing style (including a diary-esque narration only present in these scenes) and an internally consistent visual style that looks somewhat different to the other parts of the season.

Village of the Angels, for instance, is a moody, dark episode set in a village in the 1960s:

However, Bel and Vinder's segments in the episode have a somewhat different look:

On top of this, they never intersect with the episode's A plot (literally or in any clear thematic way), and the majority of these segments piece together into one single scene that seems to have been cut up.

So, what I think is that the bel and vinder scenes across the middle of the season were originally a single full story, an episode 4 that took a breather from the main plot and characters to follow the lives of these two side characters; the differing visual and writing style is due to it originally having been filmed separately and with a somewhat different artistic intent. I believe Chris Chibnall's cowriting credit on Angels exists because these specific scenes are from a script he wrote, but that otherwise the Angel script can be credited solely to Maxine Alderton by normal cowriting standards.

"But wait," you might say, "I thought there were already 6 episodes that are all plot relevant? If no episodes existing right now can be cut, how could this 7th episode exist?"

Remember this tidbit:

The adventures in question comprise a large amount of the next episode (Episode 5: Survivors of the Flux), nearly 20 minutes of a 50ish minute runtime (and frankly, much of the rest of the episode is somewhat fluffy build up that feels like it's taking advantage of an extended runtime). A version without this added plot would, in my opinion, only warrant one final episode rather than two.

I think the showrunner, still scrambling to finish scripts as the episodes were being filmed, and making a snap decision to include a new major subplot (⁶), wrote a finale script so long and with so many plot threads that the only way to keep all this material of was to split it into two episodes, 5 and 6. And because they only could only make 6, he had to get rid of one of the previous 5 episodes - the already scripted and filmed ones - to make room for this new episode 5. A tough order when it's a plot-heavy miniseries... if not for episode 4 being a standalone divergence from the main plot about the lives of two side characters, one that could, in theory, be cut up and dispersed throughout the season without continuity issues for the main story.

(Some notes and clarifications under the cut)

(1) some sources initially reported the episode count as 8; this wasn't inaccurate - the 2022 new years/easter special were part of the episode order. Flux itself was always meant to be 6 episodes long. (2) A few of the production issues include: - episodes filming without a second draft:

- the fx team that had been on the show since 2005 abruptly leaving midseason (because they "didn't feel like part of the team anymore") and returning as soon as the creative team changed, including the head of the studio implying they weren't properly credited (mild vfx body horror warning in link):

- people working on additional projects such as books not receiving clear information on the characters they were assigned to write:

- and likely a director who was put on hold due to a script being rewritten:

Among other things I can't directly cite at the moment, including vfx artists having to do whole episodes solo in crunch time and writers not being told their work was massively overhauled until it aired due to major changes being extremely late in production.

While I don't wish to pontificate too much here and many of these things are pretty normal by themselves, I do think it could paint a picture of a production where an episode well into filming may genuinely be cut on a whim and without consideration for the crew, artists, etc. working on the show. (3) This reddit post comes from a leaker who was known to be consistently accurate. (4) Gallifrey One does not allow filming of panels. I know Kevin's livetweets of panels to be accurate. (5) It's very, very unlikely the entire season was moved back a week, as the premier is a Halloween special that was certainly always intended to air on Oct. 31st. (6) I don't wish to insinuate Chris Chibnall is, throughout his career, an inherently poor showrunner, but I do think that maybe his jump from police procedural - a genre that doesn't involve quite as much concept art, vfx work, marketing, convention panels, set building, episodic storytelling, and keeping in touch with expanded universe producers - to flagship science fiction adventure show may have contributed to some of these issues, especially when he was already in the mindset that things could be changed on a whim (perhaps not such a major issue when it's broadchurch and no new sets need be built)

(source) Basically I don't really think this is "the showrunner's fault" or anything; more that a perfect storm of a showrunner who was habitually late on scripts, used to writing lowkey cop dramas, covid, an entirely serialized season, etc. may have led to these issues

[blairxbear]

Game of Flirts

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3

A/N: GUYYYYYS, I am GAGGED. I loved writing this so much, I'll be releasing all parts this week! I hope you guys enjoy it as much as I have! I am a sucker for this man.

Hawks was always a smooth talker, he knew how to ruffle feathers and get reactions from people with his outlandish comments. He thought you would be no different, oh was he wrong. You were about to turn the tables on him.

Pro Hero Hawks x Pro Hero Reader

Keigo Takami—better known as Hawks, Japan’s Number Two Pro Hero—wasn’t used to losing.

He was fast, he was smart, and he was devastatingly charming.

At least, that’s what he thought—until he met you.

You, who had the audacity to turn his own game against him.

You, who lived to see him squirm.

You, who had him completely, utterly, hopelessly flustered.

And what was worse?

You knew it.

It had all started as a simple game.

Hawks was a natural flirt—it was effortless, second nature. And when you first started working together, he had assumed you’d be just like everyone else—blushing at his winks, stammering at his smooth lines, melting under his unmatched charisma.

Easy.

Or so he thought.

What he hadn’t expected was for you to flirt back.

And not just flirt back—but do it so much better than him.

It had started with small things—little counters to his usual routine.

Like the first time he had leaned against your desk with a cocky grin, wings flaring just slightly, and purred, “So, what’s a gorgeous hero like you doing in a stuffy old office like this?”

You hadn’t even blinked.

Instead, you had tilted your head, dragged your gaze slowly down his frame, and smirked.

“I dunno, Hawks,” you mused, voice smooth and dangerous. “What’s a pretty boy like you doing getting all up in my space?”

He had choked.

Actually choked.

And the worst part?

You had just laughed, patted his shoulder, and walked away like it was nothing.

And just like that, the game was on.

The next few weeks had been absolute hell.

Keigo had spent his entire life being smooth, being in control—but you had thrown him so off balance that he could barely function.

You turned every single one of his flirty comments into something ten times worse—flipping the script, making him the blushing mess instead of you.

Like the time he had purred in your ear during a mission briefing, “Don’t worry, sweetheart. I’ll keep an eye on you out there.”

And without missing a beat, you had turned to him, smirked, and purred right back, “I’d rather you keep your hands on me, handsome.”

He had malfunctioned completely, wings flaring wildly behind him as his brain short-circuited.

You had winked.

And then, as if that wasn’t enough, you had walked away, swaying your hips just to taunt him.

Keigo had actually had to take a lap around the building to cool off.

It was infuriating.

It was exhilarating.

It was driving him insane.

The worst part?

He knew exactly where this was headed.

Because this wasn’t just flirting anymore.

It was so much more than that.

It was the way you smiled at him when you thought he wasn’t looking.

It was the way he watched you work, completely captivated by your focus.

It was the way his heart skipped a beat every single time you touched his arm, his shoulder—anywhere.

It was the way he ached for more.

And you knew.

Oh, you knew.

Because every time his breath hitched, every time his cheeks flushed, every time his wings twitched with pent-up frustration, you would just smirk—as if to say:

I got you again, bird boy.

And goddammit, you did.

Every.

Single.

Time.

One night, after a long day of flustering him to the brink of insanity, you were sitting on the agency rooftop together, enjoying the cool breeze.

Keigo let out a long, suffering sigh, rubbing his face. “You’re gonna be the death of me, y’know that?”

You grinned, That usual grin that made his heart soar,leaning back on your hands. “That a promise?”

He groaned, tilting his head back. “Oh my god.”

You laughed, and god help him, he loved that sound.

After a beat, you nudged his knee with yours. “We both know where this is going, Hawks.”

Keigo inhaled sharply, wings tensing.

Because yeah.

Yeah, he knew.

He knew that you were meant to be his. That was inevitable.

But this—this flirty, teasing, ridiculous phase—was so much fun.

So instead of agreeing, instead of finally giving in, he just smirked, rolling his shoulders.

“Eh,” he said breezily. “Maybe I just like keeping you on your toes.”

You laughed again, and this time, you leaned in, your face dangerously close to his, your lips just shy of touching his own. Finger placed under his chin.

He stopped breathing.

“Oh, Hawks,” you murmured, voice low and syrupy sweet. “We both know I’ve got you wrapped around my little finger.”

His entire body erupted in flames.

And then, with a wink, you pulled back, stretched, and stood up.

“See ya tomorrow, bird boy,” you called over your shoulder.

And Keigo Takami, Number Two Pro Hero, untouchable flirt, smooth talker extraordinaire, sat there speechless, his wings flared behind him, his body on fire with frustration, his entire soul screaming for you.

He groaned, falling back against the rooftop with a dramatic sigh.He was so, so screwed.

Tag List:

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Ko-fi / Masterlist

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[marvelous-bamf]

in honor of (its looking like) frank castle in born again episode 3, id like to revisit the beloved "punisher chains daredevil to the roof so they can have a moral debate" scene because i do think theres a couple of things that get glossed over

1. frank's line of "You know my moment of clarity came from the strangest of places... what the hell kind of name is the Devil of Hell's Kitchen, anyway?". the punisher was inspired by daredevil! hes technically one of the "devil worshiper" copycats. its why matt feels responsible for the punisher and by extension every person hes killed.

2. if frank had just wanted daredevil out of the way, he could have much more easily just left matt for the cops when he passed out. but he didn't want daredevil arrested or dead, just out of his way for a bit while he killed the dogs of hell.

the whole "tape a loaded gun to his hand and force a moral dilemma" thing was definitely not the original plan. matt just managed to piss him off so bad that frank said "actually FUCK this guy" and pressed pause on his entire plan just to go kidnap grotto

3. all "so why did frank do all that, was he just horny?" jokes aside. the moment that frank decides to go off script? it was when matt called him unhinged and insane. that's what made him blow up, probably because it's something he was afraid was true

to me the entire grotto thing was frank saying "i'm not crazy, because even your self righteous ass would make the same decision in my circumstances. you arent better than me". thus the "what kind of choice is that?" and "the kind i make every day" lines.

i don't think it was as much about forcing matt to kill, necessarily, but more about self justification and proving a point using a guy's life as an object lesson. this feeds into why frank doesnt try to force matt to kill again and in fact discourages him from it.

in conclusion: god damn am i excited for these characters to interact again.

[amesrealmm]

Also since it took me a while to get my notes sorted out here are the small changes/things I noted reading the scripts for the first ten episodes of ‘Our flag means death’:

-stede keeps calling lucius ‘marcus’

-roach was named ‘salty’

-frenchie speaks french

-izzy is described as cat-like

-the tribe leader breaks up izzy and Stede, makes them introduce themselves

-izzy, fang and ivan help get the ship unstuck

-blackbeard’s room is described as ‘looking like it were decorated by david lee roth where he a pirate in 1717’

-frenchie also gets named frankie???

-jim steals’s spanish jackie’s hand

-the crew put up a flag saying ‘we love ed’ and cheer for him after he returns to the revenge without Stede (wanted to add, it’s not immediately after he returns but after a little bit of Ed sulking)

-the ghosts of badminton 1 and 2 still haunt Stede

-buttons keeps calling izzy, fang, and ivan ghosts

-jim spits their bread on frenchie in the mermaid scene

-ivan says he has always felt hemmed in by expectations of gender

-Ivan had a lot more appearances/lines :(

-the crew hosts a support group (sans, ed, Stede, izzy, lucius, buttons) to talk about gender???

-most scripts are 37-38 pages long

-lucius replies to izzy “your world, handsie. Were just living in it” during the pantry scene

-the revenge has a ‘chore wheel’ which dictates who does chores around the ship

-lucius sketches ivan not fang, fang is cleaning the barnacles

-izzy is called ‘izzy the barfer’ not izzy the spewer

-izzy ‘notes the chemistry’ between Stede and ed

-the ‘fucking on deck’ overhearding scene isnt here

-izzy and ed do laundry together and talk about killing Stede

-fang shuts the door on izzy’s face

-ivan wants to ‘seduce sailors and kill the dutch’

-izzy is the one who suggests the fuckery end with the kraken to cause ed to breakdown (?)

-ed hides under a table not in a bathtub

-wee john has a twin ‘big john’

-izzy calls Stede a boob

-stede and ed’s feet touch instead of a kiss in ep 9

-stede leaves a note for ed instead of not showing up entirely for the escape, it says ‘Dearest Edward: I can't. I'm sorry. Yours always, Stede’

[shiftthemoon]

why you’re wrong about quitting shifting

so, you’re ready to give up on reality shifting? let me get this straight—you’re throwing in the towel because it’s “too hard” or because you haven’t succeeded yet? honestly, that’s not a reflection of the practice; it’s a reflection of your mindset. i’m not here to sugarcoat it for you. this whole “i can’t shift” narrative is not only false—it’s lazy. let’s dismantle this flawed thinking piece by piece.

1. “i can’t shift.” wrong. you haven’t shifted yet. stop acting like you’re hardwired to fail because you’re not. stop convincing yourself that it’s impossible when it’s more likely you just haven’t given it the time and effort it deserves. imagine trying to start a fire with two sticks. most people wouldn’t get a spark on the first try. does that mean fire is a myth or that they’re incapable? no—it means they need better technique, more patience, and consistent effort. shifting is your fire. just because you haven’t seen the flames yet doesn’t mean they’re not coming. every moment you’ve spent trying has been building heat; quitting now ensures you’ll never see the light.

2. your impatience is not proof of impossibility. let’s be real: you’re expecting results on your timeline, and when it doesn’t happen, you declare shifting a failure. that’s not logic—that’s entitlement. imagine planting a tree and stomping on the roots because it didn’t grow tall overnight. that’s essentially what you’re doing. you have no idea how close you might be to success because you’re too focused on the absence of instant gratification.

3. you’re underestimating your brain. your mind is adaptable, but it needs consistency to form new pathways. reality shifting involves rewiring your entire perception of existence—it’s not something you’ll master just by wishing for it. the tools—meditation, affirmations, visualization—aren’t magic tricks; they’re exercises for your subconscious. if you quit now, you’re not only rejecting shifting but also your brain’s potential to grow.

4. your perspective on “failure” is flawed. let’s get one thing straight: failure isn’t the lack of success; it’s the decision to stop trying. every attempt you’ve made so far has laid the groundwork for future breakthroughs. you think those hours scripting or visualizing are wasted? they’re not. every time you try, you’re training your mind to align with your desired reality. quitting means throwing all that progress away.

5. you’re putting shifting on a pedestal. you’re treating it like some mystical, unattainable miracle instead of what it really is: a practice. people have been shifting, lucid dreaming, astral projecting, and training their minds for centuries. the only difference is that they stuck with it. if they can do it, why not you? what makes you the exception? the truth is, you’re not.

here’s the thing: the act of giving up is far more definitive than the idea that you “can’t shift.” quitting guarantees failure, while continuing guarantees possibility. do you really want to shut the door on that possibility just because it didn’t happen on your schedule?

the bottom line is this: shifting is as much about discipline as it is about desire. your current mindset isn’t just dismissing the practice; it’s dismissing your own potential. so, stop wallowing in disappointment and start recognizing that you’re not stuck—you’re learning. if you can’t handle that reality, then maybe shifting isn’t the problem.

[sexiestpodcastcharacter]

Sexiest Podcast Character 2024 — Scripted Undefeated Bracket — Round 2

Propaganda

Kayne (Malevolent):

He’s a god who acts like the main characters are his personal soap opera. His first appearance was playing the piano covered in blood after he had massacred an entire town. He just kinda shows up sometimes to cause chaos and is often munching on chips while he watches shit go down. Also he never wears shoes, for some reason

Madge Stallion (Fawx & Stallion):

Raging lesbian in a lavender marriage

Seduced someone working for the enemy

Is just as chaotic and at time brain cell-less as her male companions

Loyal but still willing to call her friend since childhood out on his bullshit

She canonically fucks. Like in canon she fucks so much. See above about seducing the enemy and then pepper in her on again off again romance with Martha Hudson.

#madge propaganda time : #she will flirt with basically any girl she sees and oh she does it so well #also !!! she once flirted and got on with technically an enemy in the middle of a spying mission ???? #she went like 'oh sorry just gotta go to the loo' to go spy in the house got caught and flirted so well she 1/ got laid 2/ got information #3/ came back like nothing happened #with some motivation she could flirt and get a boner from a dead rock tbh #madge stallion IS THE SEXIEST

Additional propaganda below the cut:

Kayne (Malevolent):

Literaly just a tumbr sexy man

black suit, no shoes, covered in blood, plays piano, quirky laugh

An eldritch god soaked in blood. He's Arthur Lester's number one cheer leader.

covered in blood, plays piano, silly laugh, very Will Wood coded

He's insane. He's so dynamic. Will Wood's The Normal Album in humanized eldritch god form. Always covered in blood. Need I say more?

#KAYNE SWEEEEEP LET'S GOOOO #my babygirl he deserves to win this entire thing #i'm not biased i swear

#Kayne my love #i want to end you but i love hearing from you

#kayne (haven’t even heard him) because i play piano so by that logic i’m sexy (in an asexual way)

#Kayne is such A Guy. like he’s just so Character #he does Things and says Lines and it’s great

Madge Stallion (Fawx & Stallion):

Madge Stallion was submitted without propaganda.

we gotta get our girl some propaganda. she would hate it, but the mystery of it all is kinda part of the appeal here.

Madge stallion NEEDS no propaganda

Madge: so sexy she needs no propaganda

#madge stallion is a great woman to lose to

#Madge she's a sassy lesbian detective what else do you want

#madge stallion needs no propaganda #by virtue of being madge

This is propaganda for all the female characters. Voters please remember how pretty all women are and factor that into every single vote you make. Thank you.

[subtextdecoder]

TBHX: Tying post 1 and post 2 with a few lines that sparked my curiosity.

But first:

Is this Zero? I don't know who this is but it clearly shows that they have some leverage over the heroes, since it shows them being on top of this person's hand. This made me think that the theory @marisandini-chu-blog told me about is in fact possible:

"What if X has a singular someone he's playing chess against?"

Would it be this person? I'm intrigued. I've got a lot to consider now.

For now, let's stick to the sequences that hint at everything I mentioned in the previous posts:

This one is pretty graphic if we think about X's ability. So is it what he is doing? Disrupting the system to establish a new one... It makes sense to think that he is helping the other heroes if we consider this line:

He needs them. Even if X is the most powerful being in the world—even if he were to create an entirely new system—he couldn’t sustain it alone. That’s simply not how life works. No matter how capable one individual is, society functions through collaboration. We rely on others daily to keep the engine running.

And X, surely, knows this. He’s far from naive, which leads us to a deeper question: if he is helping the other heroes, is it truly out of kindness? Or is there a more self-serving reason behind his actions? After all, aligning with them might be the only way to ensure the success of whatever he's trying to build.

Of course, there's always room for speculation. Maybe he is kind. Or maybe he’s something else entirely—an embodiment of fate itself, taking on human form to guide the course of change. Who’s to say?

I think the Commission fears the people more than anything. After all, they hold the numbers, and in a world ruled by public opinion, that makes them dangerously powerful.

Imagine if the average citizen began to grasp the extent of their influence—how deeply their trust, or lack of it, could shape someone else's fate. Chaos would be inevitable. But the real issue lies in the Commission’s response: instead of fostering understanding or transparency, they double down. They tighten their grip, trying to enforce perfect control over something as volatile and ever-shifting as society.

But control, when forced, always slips.

Human nature resists over management. People are not static; they’re complex, adaptive, and unpredictable. The Commission gambled on a false sense of permanence—believing that if the rules stayed rigid, the people would remain obedient. But all it takes is one unpredictable act to unravel the illusion.

Nice's leap from the rooftop was that act. It cracked the narrative and exposed the system's fragility. Maybe that's why X chose that exact moment to step in—to nudge things further off-script. Once the first tremor hits, revolution doesn’t need to be sparked, only guided.

Which leads us to the present moment:

X says that while holding his coin—the one that supposedly helps him make decisions. Could he be the force of nature? A god? Someone who controls probability and thus, everything. What’s going to happen now, I wonder? It would be interesting if it turned out X isn’t actually the all-powerful mastermind, but Lin Ling. Or if, X actually really is behind the creation of everything, could he have sent a part of him to the heroes? Him and Nice share the "OCD" to a certain extent. In X's video we can see him fixing the files on his desk and all. I don’t know… I just sometimes wonder if he’s really that overpowered, or if maybe his ability comes with a huge drawback we haven’t discovered yet.

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - Many Tiny Idiots, Some Irreverent Hotness & an Engagement

Organized, in each category, with ones I'm enjoying most at the top.

Oct 2024 Week 4

Ongoing Series - Thai

Fourever You (Thai Thurs YT) ep 4 of 16 - OK so Hill has really been trying to pick him up from the beginning? I don’t understand why there’s any doubt around girls at all. He Gay everyone. Why is Tatch (2 Moons Ambassador) the only seme in Thai BL history allowed to actually just say "I don’t date women.”

Why is that so hard?

This show is definitely frustrating me, but I must admit that it’s the one I look forward to the most each week.

Love Sick 2024 (Thai Sun iQIYI) ep 6 of 15 - I am now only watching the uncut version, and I gotta say it makes all the difference. Please don’t watch the cut version of this show if you can possibly help it. It’s like cliff's notes of cliff's notes. I love the tiny side couple of tough kid + the dork of the music club. Ah the beach sequence. Condenced WAY DOWN, I see. We lost one of the most iconic lines in all BL but i think everything is improved by how much tighter the plot is in the remake (6 episodes became 1!). So I’m enjoying it. Weirdly, I'm not sure I would be enjoying it, if I hadn’t seen the original.

Is anyone watching this on iQIYI who hasn't seen the original? Just out of curiosity. Tell me how it's going for you, would ya? 

I'm doing a face-off style watch along of this new version versus the original 2014-2015 version.

Kidnap (Fri YT) ep 8 of 12 - I don’t entirely get it. They were apart for approximately 11 minutes. I would’ve thought GMMTV would’ve drawn it out for longer and more angst. Smiley face kiss was cute, but the star of this ep was that gorgeous pale blue waffle sweater on Q. What a great color for Leng! 

Jack & Joker (Thai Mon IQIYI) ep 7 of 12 - I do like that we’re seeing an honest exploration of poverty and hopelessness. I’m not sure how I feel about it inside my BL, tho I’m willing to persavere for this pair.

Battle of the Writers (Sun YT) ep 12 end - Someone said recently "just imagine what TutorYim could do with an actual script." And you know what? I agree. Because they sure as shit haven’t gotten one yet. And it’s getting quite frustrating. I’m having JaFirst flashbacks. Frankly, 2024 has been a year of unmitigated BL nonsense narratives. And I’m tired of it. I know it’s bog standard for the genre, but it feels like there’s been more than normal faff this year.

Summary 

An incredibly convoluted, disjointed, and badly-paced drama that is about(?) some writers writing a thing and some boys who knew each other when they were kids, lots of pretty sexy times, and not much else. The visuals are gorgeous, the side couples are overly appealing (with little to no screen time), the dubbing and sound is absurdly bad, and the fantasy novel (play within a play) makes no sense whatsoever while also managing to be the show that we all actually wanted to see instead of what we were given. 6/10 

In conclusion, I have no interest in attempting to understand or revisit this show, and I certainly wouldn’t recommend it, but if you have nothing better to do…… the sex is good (frankly I have exes that satisfy all the same criteria). So there it is: this show is like a bad but still hot ex.  

Every You Every Me (Thai Mon Gaga) ep 3 of 10 - Nice to see Fiat in something again. Namping is very angel baby.  This episode made me think that this pair would do a great Thai remake of Love Tractor, and now that’s pretty much all I want in life. I enjoyed wardrobe in this episode. It looks like we get the same characters next week. Cool. 

Bad Guy My Boss (Thai Sun Gaga) ep 6 of 10 - I guess everyone is messy slutty bisexual in this show? Do I care? Not even slightly. BLabies, I don’t think I’m gonna make it. I might have to drop this one.

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

See Your Love (Taiwan Weds Gaga) ep 1-2 of 13 - I adore it, what a wonderful meet cute. I love a Taiwanese BL that starts with a gratuitous kidnapping, some chasing, and a bit of a fight sequence. We in OLD fashioned territory. 

Teenager Judge (Vietnam Sat YT) ep 5 of ? - I continue to enjoy it very much.

My Damn Business (Korea Sat YT) eps 4 of 7 - Oh! Is the sleazy boss gonna turn out to be actually a sleazy player? That would be an interesting twist.

Let Free the Curse of Taekwondo (Korea Thurs Gaga) eps 3 of 8 - I’m really not a big fan of my pain coming from Korea. I’m getting a whiff of To My Star 2 from this one. And that does not make me happy. I know: high quality high angst yada yada blah blah blah. But also unnecessary pain? No thank you. 

First Note Of Love (Taiwan Mon Gaga) ep 12 end - Of course, I love the part where Reese and Orca spoke each other’s languages.

Conclusion

Had this been produced a mere 3 or 4 years ago, I would’ve been quite enamored. But by comparison to what we’ve been getting, this is a lackluster offering. A has-been musician and a much younger composer meet, fall in love, and attempt to rectify his stalled musical career. Cute side couple of a Thai popstar + his Korean manager. Everyone is very fine and it was a fine show. I wasn’t disappointed, but I wasn’t impressed either. 8/10 

Love is Like a Poison AKA Doku Koi: Doku mo Sugireba Koi to Naru (Japan Tues Netflix?) 6 of 10 eps - It was a fun little confession and climax, there was crying, and a bridge kiss (been a while) all of this appeals to me even if they are tiny idiots (in the immortal words of @heretherebedork )

Eccentric Romance (Korea Weds Viki) eps 5-6 of 12 - More tiny idiot boyfriends who don’t realize they’re boyfriends. That’s it, that’s all that’s happening. Ostensibly there’s some kind of murder. But it seems to be acting more like set dressing than plot.

It's airing but...

The Hidden Moon (Sat WeTV) 10 eps - Supernatural romance (my ghost boyfriend trope) by Violet Rain (I Feel You Linger). A man is hired to write an article about an old mansion. He sees the ghosts of people who died at the mansion, falls in love with one of them. Was substantially recast. I loved IFYLITA except the ending so I think I'll let this one run it's course you can tell me if it's work tracking down... if they managed to land it. I have my doubts.

In case you missed it

Mew & Tul legit engaged.

Love in the Big City (Korea Viki) 8ep - Vicki dropped them all at once which means I did what I do under such circumstances and skipped to watch the final episode. (I am well aware that this makes me a monster. ) Anygay, that told me that I’m not gonna be bothering to watch the series. Now y'all can tell me how amazing it is and what I’ve missed and blah blah blah. But I’m comfortable with my choice. It’s ICRY 2.0 + HIV. And I’m not willing to play its literatti game. At some point I might watch it on fast-forward for the sex scenes, but I’m not at that point yet. 

Next Week Looks Like This:

Upcoming BLs for 2024 are listed here. This list is not kept updated, so please leave a comment if you know something new or RP with additions.

Still Coming:

10/27 Perfect 10 Liners (Thai Sun YouTube?) 24 eps! - New directing yet another university BL with engineers + their mentees. Based on a Jittirain novel. with a massive cast and massive run time. We will be watching this until APRIL of 2025!

ForceBook playing the same old characters = enemies to lovers tsunder/sunshine jock/nerd thing.

PerthChimonSanta are doing the cohabitation cool guy/dork trope.

JuniorMark are doing popular sunshine meets lonely sad boy (the only interesting pair IMHO).

I think Blue Canvas of Youthful Days has started on iQIYI but I only get it on Viki and that doesn't drop for a few days, plus...... CBL......? Not sure I'll report on this one unless it's really good.

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

From Uncle Unknown which is truly terrible but this was so SO funny. I'm still chuckling when I think about it.

The first representation of shipping in a BL that I actually enjoyed. Also Dat's clear approval of being shipped didn't hurt. (Judge)

(lask week)

The tag BLigade: @doorajar @solitaryandwandering @my-rose-tinted-glasses @babymbbatinygirl @babymbbatinygirl @isisanna-blog @mmastertheone @pickletrip @aliceisathome @urikawa-miyuki @tokillamonger @sunflower-positiiivity @rocketturtle4 @blglplus @anythinggoesintheshire @everlightly @renafire @mestizashinrin @bl-bam-beyond @small-dark-and-delicious @saezurumurmurs

Sigh, Tumblr in its infinite wisdom doesn't like too many at-ings.

[hanamukes]

Uika in Ave Mujica episode 4

For episodes 1-3 of the Ave Mujica anime, I felt like while there was definitely stuff going on with Uika that's worth unpacking, the scenes were straightforward enough in what they wished to convey that I didn't feel like they warranted explanation. Episode 4 has completely turned my view of this character on its head though. It feels as if her every word and action in this episode completely contradicts what we knew of her prior. What is going on with her?

I wanted to talk about her in a longform post, so here I am. This is maybe half analysis, half just me rambling my thoughts on what's happening on screen.

DISCLAIMER: If you're not familiar with the way I discuss this character, let me make it clear now that I absolutely love her! This post is essentially a love poem dedicated to how fantastic I think her writing is. That said my tone here might come off a bit sharp, because of how contradictory she is (which I say as a compliment) and how I want to grab her by the scruff and shake her until she tells me what's going on inside that head of hers. Just wanted to mention something before anyone gets the impression I'm criticizing her or the writing when I'm doing nothing of the sort.

Her first moment happens and immediately a lot stands out to me

First: the models in this anime fall under two specifications, girls who always have a blush programmed in and girls who don't. For instance, Sakiko has one so she's always blushing no matter her mood. Uika doesn't. But throughout this entire episode, she does. Why? Why is she so... eerily happy, in a way we have never seen her before?

Secondly, what is her aim here? Sakiko expressed her discomfort with everyone's attitudes, and rather than just being "Sakiko's second voice" as she has been up until now (take the episode 3 fight as an example), she's taking everyone else's side. Her actions are already in total contradiction with the Uika we've seen up until now, who didn't care about anything except easing Sakiko's feelings

Then this happens. Uika is basically in la-la land daydreaming about having her destiny tied to Sakiko's forever (especially because Nyamu points out that sounds like something Sakiko would say), yet she's ignoring her beloved who sits on the other side of the table

Uika, do you really love Mujica as it is when Sakiko's expressing to you directly that she's unhappy?

Ironically, when she does acknowledge Sakiko directly, it only leads to further frustration for Sakiko

Because she's focusing on the wrong thing. She's more worried about Sakiko's exhaustion from writing songs (which is something she can physically see, thus easily pick up on) rather than Sakiko's concerns with the band (which is something she'd have to actually stop to think about). It really feels like she doesn't understand Sakiko at all. How much does she actually stop to think about her feelings? How surface leveled, rose-colored lens does she view her?

Her actions here scream, "well, so long as I get to stay with Sakiko, I don't actually care if she's happy," regardless of if that's her intent. Sometimes your inner feelings aren't enough, Uika. Sakiko is actively looking miserable in front of you and what are you doing about it?

Are you really just going to leave without saying anything to her? You express concern when halfway out the door, yet when face to face with Sakiko, you act like nothing is wrong?

Again, yes, Sakiko is exhausted, but that's not all there is to it Uika. And she hasn't exactly been subtle about what she's worried about!

Mortis keeps the focus of the conversation to Sakiko having to write all the scripts (thus prompting Uika to point out that she's been pulling all-nighters and maybe that's the problem), but I quite like this line, as there's a lot to unpack here

前はそういうの絶対見せなかったのに

The translation gets the idea across fine to be clear, but in Japanese, there's an emphasis on the "never" part. It feels unthinkable to Uika that Sakiko would perhaps lash out, or show her exhaustion to the others. Kind of putting a mental pin in this because that's not the impression we, the viewers, have seen from prior episodes (Sakiko in this episode was acting incredibly in line with what we've seen of her already in this anime), so I wonder where Uika got this idea from. It makes you wonder just what Uika's impression of "normal" or "prior" Sakiko is

This line is genuinely sweet of her, if not a bit ironic because Uika's already absolutely overworking herself for Sakiko, which Sakiko pointed out in episode 1 (a lot of the officially published interviews have been pointing this out over and over too, just as a side note). They really want to ease each other's burdens...

Yeah, we're not even being subtle about Uika having to "borrow" ways to cheer people up anymore

I actually noticed this about her even back in It's MyGO. When Uika comforted Tomori in episode 10, it was eerily close to what Sakiko did in episode 3. Tomori even associated Uika's actions as being reminiscent of Sakiko's behavior. I had no evidence about Uika copying what Sakiko did then (I don't... think? know? that Uika saw Sakiko's meeting with Tomori and thus could copy it), but now? There's evidence that perhaps her acts of generosity are in fact just things she's imitating from others. If you're curious about the It's MyGO example of this, I highly recommend watching this for yourself

Oh, I'll also mention that in my pre-anime analysis post for Uika, I mentioned she probably doesn't "shine" at all as an idol without Mana, and she more or less just confirmed that for us

Again there's a lot to unpack with this part

Hoo boy. Let's go back an episode. In episode 3, Uika was feeling insecure about the fact Sakiko "knew" Mutsumi "very well since they were kids." She looked visibly bothered by it before changing the topic. So hearing from "Mutsumi" herself that "Actually, you're the one closest to Sakiko, not me" must be making her day. Mortis is actively using Uika's affection for Sakiko against her (well, for the sake of the band, but she's still manipulating (for lack of a better word) her regardless). It's a bit harrowing when you realize that Uika's happy that her "competition" for being close with Sakiko is dead, despite her not realizing Mutsumi more or less is dead at this point...

Moving on to the scene in her apartment, my only addition here is... well, it sure is something how the only things she said to Sakiko were what Mortis told her to say. She has no lines here that weren't just parroting advice. Is that really all you have to say to your beloved?

This is an interesting comment from her

Because there's a couple ways you could interpret this. Is Uika referring to the "stiff" expression, or the close proximity? We know for Sumimi, she views herself as having a "terrible expression" (when Mana's not around to change her energy), but it's also not lost on me that it could also be referring to "my image of Sumimi [where we take photos together in close proximity]"

Sakiko's reaction to this is what makes it so meaningful to me

Nyamu and the photographers are saying "this doesn't look like Mujica at all, but that's a good thing," which Sakiko is obviously displeased about. Why would going against Mujica's worldview be a good thing? And yet... even Uika, who founded the band with her and who writes all their songs, is saying she likes the photo. Once again, Uika is completely disregarding Sakiko's feelings despite how close she is to her. Physically, they're almost close enough to brush shoulders, but emotionally, I don't think Sakiko's ever felt further from her. The betrayal in her face and voice feels so obvious, yet Uika's still in la-la land like she was earlier in the episode and doesn't acknowledge it at all... we really can put ourselves in Sakiko's shoes throughout the whole episode, because truly, what is going through Uika's head?

Uika doing sweet gestures for Sakiko. This is the character I recognize!

It's not lost on me that 1. she has two umbrellas like she does in her apartment, and 2. there's this almost eerie focus on Uika making coffee for people. I say this because the opening itself has a shot of her mugs, there's that weirdly placed clip of coffee dripping in episode 2 (it's also in one of the trailers), the donut scene in episode 3, and now this. I'll be interested in seeing why this is so important to her

I do wish we had gotten to see the conversation Uika and Sakiko had here. Sakiko has a habit of brushing Uika off, but she was finally able to open up to her about something. They finally talked together amidst all of this miscommunication and not understanding one another, but we didn't get to see it... (which may be a sign they didn't really talk about much, but hey, I like my Uisaki crumbs where I can get them)

Thank you for the confirmation that Uika would be the first victim in a slasher film. Moving on

I love the way this comment is framed. If Sakiko left the band, who would be most hurt? Sakiko or Uika?

Uh oh. She's having her words used against her

What she said in episode 3 was honestly a bit careless* (she said it in front of Sakiko, who famously broke up Crychic by leaving it)... but she did have a point. She just wanted to articulate that Ave Mujica should be the 5 of them, and that surely they have a strong enough bond that if one of them left, they wouldn't be able to carry on and just "find a replacement," right? She's our kindhearted front of the band who loves everyone equally, right?

Well

(To clarify the translation, it's not super clear whether Uika said this directly to her, or if Mortis just hit the nail on the head)

Oops! Now that's an awkward position to be in, especially in front of Sakiko herself! Zero denial either...

(*I'll just tack this thought on here, but there's potential Uika's "Please don't hate me" line from the trailer could be because she feels guilt for having said the "if one member quits it's over" line (and thus bringing about the downfall of the band))

Last thing for this episode...

Same, Mortis. What? Why does she have no fight in her? Why doesn't she care? Why is she not saying anything? Are her feelings of guilt, embarrassment and self-hatred actually overpowering her drive to be with Sakiko? Is it over for her, now that the cat's out of the bag regarding the fact she only ever cared about the band to be with Sakiko?

I noticed she acted like a kicked puppy in episode 3 as well. When someone points out how selfish she actually is, she loses all her edge and goes quiet. She wants to escape the situation. She can't fight against what's true about her (the ugliness in her heart), after all, lest she drives herself into a corner as a hypocrite even more than she already has. But her reactions are fascinating to me, because you'd think the front of the band, and someone who swore her life to Sakiko out of profound love for her, would put up more of a fight to keep the band together so she can stay with her. She's not doing damage control at all, she's just taking the hits and all the impact that comes with it. Maybe it's some form of self harm...

(I'm also incredibly curious to know what Sakiko thought of all of this, but maybe that was the least of her concerns...)

Anyway, we'll see what happens next week. I wonder if and when we'll get closure on why she's been so apathetic to Sakiko, despite her claimed devotion for her. I get the impression Sakiko will be moving out (next episode?), so we'll have to see how she reacts to that...