#this is an old post but i remade it so i could make some updates

[blockgamepirate]

Techno's Minecraft Mondays!

Just wanted to give some more video recs: IMO the best weeks from Techno's POV are

week 1 with ShotGunRaids

week 3 with Ava Kris Tyson (she/her!) (note: this is pre-transition)

week 6 with Jschlatt

week 10 with Phil

Other weeks are also great but if you don't feel like watching all of them, these four would be my recs

Techno made his own highlights videos of weeks 1, 2, 3 and 14:

Jschlatt made a highlights video of week 6:

Phil made a highlights video of week 10:

^ All of these are great, can recommend. Week 10 is basically a must watch tbh, it's the beginning of a beautiful friendship (I actually prefer to watch the full VOD from Techno's POV but I included Phil's highlights video for people who don't have the time to watch the whole two and a half hours)

I also have a handy playlist for all of Techno's MCM VODs if you do wanna watch everything in full, unedited:

If you do though, I have a few potentially helpful content notes (these are from two years ago so they're not up to date but it's a start)

Week 5 Techno teamed with CallMeCarson but thankfully for most of the VOD they aren't together

If any of you would like to skip the Carson content, here's a handy list of timecodes and a summary so you can skip to the good bits:

20:06 Carson leaves

23:52 Carson comes back

28:35 Carson is muted

34:10 Techno joins team 11's call to find Carson

39:12 I think this is when Carson leaves the call?

48:15 Techno joins Carson again

48:57 Leaves the call

1:11:59 Carson comes back

1:14:50 Carson leaves again

1:16:30 And he's back

1:18:05 And he leaves for the last time

1:43:40 Techno attempts to contact Carson one last time but notices that Carson has left the server entirely

Summary: it's basically just Carson bullying Techno as a joke, which he did warn Techno he was gonna do ahead of time, except it gets very awkward very quickly and Techno hates it and asks Carson to stop but he just doesn't stop. Also it involved him spamming Techno with soundboard messages, most famously "Hey, Technoblade!" which became a meme. Also he tried to teamkill Techno a bunch, which led to Techno losing pretty badly in the first game

Techno spends most of the tournament either just doing solo commentary or hanging out in other teams' calls.

The parts without Carson are still great! Special shoutout to that last game where Techno plays hunger games solo

Also a warning for repeated jokes about a particular disease from AntVenom when Techno joins his and Jordan's call during MCM5. It's during Dropper if you wanna skip that

Other notes:

The first three weeks I would recommend maybe not reading the ingame chat too much if you don't wanna see people hating on Techno. Week 2 and week 3 are especially bad IIRC. But if you don't watch other POVs or read the chat you're mostly fine.

Also I wanna give a content warning for like a lot of food talk and also talk about not eating in week 4 (James talks a bunch about food and eats on stream and Techno has a running joke about not getting fed unless he wins)

I won't bother listing all his teammates. If Techno is teaming with someone you don't want anything to do with; unless it's Carson you're probably just gonna have to skip that week entirely.* Carson is the only one who Techno spends long periods of time not talking to, everybody else he's in VC with pretty much the whole time

(* actually week 14 might still be worth watching despite the teammate (Wisp). That one used to be on my recs list and I only took it off just now because of Wisp, but the highlights video really doesn't have that much of him in it and mostly everybody's just in a massive group call so I think it's fine? It's on the first playlist I linked. For the VOD maybe skip to about 1:01:00 and watch from there?)

Anyway I'm not gonna tell you what to do, I still feel fine about watching those weeks despite the teammates*, because the streams are mostly fine out of context as far as I can remember and it's not like I'm giving them views when I'm just watching Techno's POV, but if you don't feel comfortable doing that, that's understandable and you can skip those weeks.

(* this was written two years ago, I would probably skip week 13 now just because I personally can't handle hearing that guys voice anymore, not that there's anything bad in that VOD from what I can remember (it used to be one of my faves rip))

(Hopefully there isn't anything big that I'm forgetting)

[nefaricussims]

My "Choices" Sims-ematic Universe

Many years ago, my friend got me into the app "Choices", which is one of those apps were you play through choose-your-own-adventure stories. Pixelberry's quality has decreased drastically in recent years but I'm still a big fan of their older works. I'm also a big fan of the Sims and CAS so over the years, I've grown a collection of Choices characters remade as Sims which I lovingly call my "Choices Cinematic Universe" (you know...like the marvel cinematic universe...) because they're all living in one save lmao.

I didn't think I would ever share these Sims here but people actually noticed I used Blades of Light and Shadow for the promo of this posepack and the lovely @simsillagrim asked me to share my other Choices Sims sooo here they are!

I didn't always make the whole cast of a book because, well, I only made my favourites lol. Some of these are from 2019 and some were made in the last year so the quality and likeness varies a LOT. I never said I was good at this. 😂 I'm also weird and couldn't decide whether to add MC, the default names or my own so expect a mix of all lmaoo.

Another important note is that 95% of the "It Lives" Sims were NOT made by me. They're made by the AMAZING @alltimefail-sims. I'll explain more when we get to them.

ANYWAY, let's finally start:

I think these were some of if not THE first Sims I made. You can tell by the kind of clothes I chose for some of them 💀 although I did slightly update them for this post. I only made my LIs and Diego & Varyyn because they're one of my favorite choices couples ever.

I cannot tell you how MANY times I've changed Edward. There's something about his face that I just cannot get right. 😭 I do like how my MC looks though. I'll forever mourn this book, it deserved a sequel. :((

Made them around the time I bought Horse Ranch bc duh. BSC was such a silly book, I loved it. And yes, I accidentally called my MC like a character in the book. It was hilarious.

The most recent addition to the CCU! And a joint effort between me and my friend @thatwinglessthing, and by that I mean they did all the work and I just tweaked things on Donovan a little. 🤣 And made my MC of course.

To prevent this post from becoming too long, I won't list every picture individually. Shreya and my MC are almost as old as the ES Sims I think. I've always wanted to make the rest of the Pend Pals but never really got around to it. Ironically, Shreya wasn't even my LI, it was Beckett. 😂 Nik & MC are fairly new and I'm quite proud of Nik tbh.

Random combo but we're nearing the end of the smaller groups haha. Guinevere is still missing her Lancelot, I honestly don't know why I still haven't made her. 😔 I'm super proud of the ROD Sims tbh, especially Mona. They were fairly easy, too. On the other hand, I struggled with TCH, especially Jack. 😭 I LOVE his canon ouftit but I just couldn't get anything remotely close and at one point I just gave up lmao. I do like Kieran's outift though.

Alright, now we're entering It Lives territory. 😂 As I've mentioned before, a huge thanks goes to @alltimefail-sims who made ALL of the It Lives characters and gave them away for free!! I marked it in the pictures as well but every Sim except MC, Noah and Jane were made by them!! And yes, I made an adult Jane. 💔 Her design as well as some of the others are based on the characters' looks in ILW instead of Woods bc that's basically the canon time in my CCU. It's only very slightly visible in the Noah/Jane photo and later in the ILW photos but I even built the cabin where most of Within is set in because I have problems. 😂 If you wanna see that too, let me know! I'm actually quite proud of it haha.

Listen, I know Parker is missing.....but I just do not like him. 😂 Or at least I didn't care about him enough to put him in my game. There are countless other characters who deserve to be added to the CCU before Parker LMAO.

And we conclude the It Lives section with the Within crew! One could also say the founders of this little project as I've made Choices Sims before but it wasn't until I added all the It Lives Sims to my game that I actually made a save file and started playing with them. 😅 MC #2 is missing their blind eye (where the scar is) because I just cannot find any CC for a blind eye on that side, it's always either the other or both eyes?? Technically, they should have 2 cyan eyes as well as they're my Shadow Rowan buut. I wanted to keep the heterochromia.

Annnd last but certainly not least the Sims that started this post. 😂 Technically, you've seen them (minus Kade) before but this list felt unfinished without them soo, here are the Blades Sims again. 😂 Nia and Valax are definitely my favorites, I think they turned out really good and Nia's outift is just PERFECT. They're all a mix of their book 1 & 2 outifts because I did try to make book 3 outfits as well but failed miserably. 💀 So I just chose those I could remake the best. Except Kade because he deserves a cool outift too and not just the same fit for all 3 books. 😭

And that concludes this massive list. 😂 I haven't made new Sims in a while but I definitely wanna keep adding to this save. I'm not sure if anyone out there will ever see this AND read everything but if you did: thank you! And I hope you enjoyed this little insight on my mediocre CAS skills. 😆

[bleedingichorhearts]

𝐔𝐩𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 (𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 & 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞)

This is my list of updating everything. There maybe a few that’s missing, but I think I got everything. If not, oh well. The old post will be deleted in favor of making a new one that may or may not have a new title. This, of course, will take time.

𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐡𝐚𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫 40𝐤:

Peace of Mind: Captain Xanthos returns from a grueling mission and wants nothing more than to make love to his awaiting little spouse.

Long Lost: Ruslan finds his lover of over 15 years and something a bit more while he’s at it.

{Typhus The Traveler} Decayed Loyalty: Typhus is aware of a denying butterfly that has yet to evolve with his mark.

{Konrad Kruze} Your Mercy: Konrads’ hand is “gentle,” slow; only for you.

Communications: Robute has found a device of the past that still has “service.” He’s not keen on giving it up.

{The Emperor of ManKind} Fitful Dance: A… simple dance with a seemingly playboy grows into something more.

𝐒𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐇𝐮𝐬𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐲 𝐒𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞:

Mini Marines: No Summary.

Raven & Swan: This one is more misc, but it may or may not be remade.

Sentinel Embrace: Headless Horseman version.

Dual Appeal: No Summary.

Carnality: 20 Lustful Character's.

Solor Sweetheart: “I’m sorry, sweetheart.”

Marine Museum: Take them to the Aquarium. One is stealing turtles.

Canoodle: A game of cuddles.

Little Ophis: He wants’ your attention, give it to him.

Running Amour: 3 to the 4 package deal.

Bloody Sweet: He needy, lets help him.

Turtle Plushie's: A plush gift to the Hydra.

Knightly Kisses: Many kisses for a knight.

A List Of Things: A list provided by your loving legionnaires.

Post-Nails: A surgery for a World Eater.

𝐒𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐇𝐮𝐬𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐲 𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐒𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞:

Watcher: This one switched for two reasons. One: I figured I could make the reader/you/??? talk, make some good comebacks or somethin’. Two: possible gore.

Mistress Nux: No Summary.

Ferrous Salvage: No Summary.

Set Validity: No Summary.

As you can see, some don’t even have summary’s. Quite possibly showing how under developed the story actually was. Anyway, there a few other recreations like my Bioshock fic and Skyrim oneshot too that’s going to be recreated too.

[dialovers-lover-xoxo]

MyWTC had some awesome updates, so I'm remaking the characters! Other characters will be posted soon, here are the Sakamaki Brothers!

I really like how they came out so reblogs are very appreciated my loves! ❤️

Old versions for comparison 👇🏻

Remade Mukami! 👇🏻

Genderbent! 👇🏻

[loosiap]

Updated old hair default replacements

Maybe I should reblog all of these because old MEGA download links are broken as it doesn't allow updates I am a dumbass... But I'm not reblogging because I think it's too much and it could be annoying for you. So for the past few weeks (or more idk time) I was reblogging only replacements that I added more ages to. Here's all links to the rest updates with more minor changes.

What are those changes? Firstly I edited everything so the files contain as little resources as possible. For replacements with added ages I edited placement in the catalog if I didn't like it and some I remade to use method that I use nowadays (method of using hidden clones. When I started to upload DRs here I was using method from Spookymuffin, now I use it only if there's no hidden clones but in modified version so there's no unnecessary resources in the end product).

The changes are not that big but, you know, I just wanted to make sure all my files are nice and neat.

1) fhair barrett_blackclip → Anto's Levitating 2) fhair barrett_redclip → Ade's Lisa s.4

(those 2 are in the same post) 3) fhair barrett_blondclip → Newsea's Summer of Nancy 4) fhair barrett_brownclip → LeahLillith's Azure

5) fhair barrett_greyclip → Nightcrawler's Alice 6) fhair barrette → Newsea's Evergreen

7) mhair sixty → Newsea's Pinocchio 8) mhair shortsimple → Anto's Reload Flipped

9) mhair gelledrock → Newsea's Benjamin 10) mhair caesar → Anto's David

11) fhair ponytail → LeahLillith's Nancy 12) fhair poofs → LeahLillith's June

(those 2 are in the same post) 13) mhair shortcombed → Ginko's G10 14) mhair shortcenterspike → Newsea's Zac

15) mhair short → Wings' OS0214 16) mhair cornrows → LeahLillith's Lemonade

17) fhair pgchoppy → Kewai-Dou's Drag Queen 18) fhair crown → Newsea's Sweet Slumber

(those 2 are in the same post) 19) fhair frenchbraid → Anto's Firefly 20) fhair weddingtiara → Wings' ONT1201

21) fhair wreath → AH00B's Nadja 22) fhair mohawkspike → Newsea's Bad Kid Shaved

(those 2 are in the same post) 23) mhair dreadsband blue → 3t2 Skinny Dreads 24) mhair dreadsband dark → 3t2 Dreads Long

(those 2 are in the same post) 25) mhair dreadsband myrtle → 3t2 Modern Braids 26) mhair dreadsband maroon → Skysims' 128

(those 2 are in the same post) 27) mhair dreadsband tan → Nightcrawler's Nala 28) fhair dreadsband tan → Nightcrawler's Nala

(those 2 are in the same post) 29) fhair dreadsband myrtle → Nightcrawler's Sparks 30) fhair dreadsband maroon → Nouk's Thin Braids

(those 2 are in the same post) 31) fhair dreadsband blue → Nightcrawler's Lemonade 32) fhair dreadsband dark → 3t2 Dreads Long

(those 2 are in the same post) 33) fhair highponytail_brown → Simpliciaty's Reign 34) fhair highponytail_grey → Jujujam's Tia

(those 2 are in the same post) 35) fhair highponytail_red → Tankuz&Newsea's Chantal+Leona 36) fhair highponytail_blond → Anto's Audrey

37) fhair highponytail_black → S-Club's Eve 38) fhair ponypuff_green → Jujujam's Hot Milk Tea

(those 2 are in the same post) 39) fhair ponypuff_purple → Skysims' 132 40) fhair ponypuff_yellow → 3t2 City Side Braids

(those 2 are in the same post) 41) fhair ponypuff_blue → Wings' OS0814 42) mhair ponybandana_blue → Wings' OS0814

43) mhair rodhumble → Anto's Tyron 44) mhair david → Anto's Carlota

45) mhair ponytaillong_EP7 → Anto's Rocio 46) mhair longsimple_EP7 → Nightcrawler's Fusion

47) mhair modbangs → Newsea's Soledad 48) fhair messysideknot → Newsea's Bluebird

(those 3 are in the same post) 49) fhair hatbonnet_blue → Newsea's Lavender 50) fhair hatbonnet_pink → LeahLillith's Bling v2 51) fhair hatbonnet_beige → LeahLillith's Layla

That's all I think. Take care! And let me know if I linked something wrong I was kinda speadrunning it. Now I'm heading to bed (￣▽￣||)

[updatingranboo]

stream recap - 7/10/24

opening stream announcements!

ranboo will be updating new sub emotes after stream! the original artist lumi has remade some of the old emotes so ranboo is uploading those

hopefully updating monthly/bimonthly charities after stream as well

dnd tweet wasn't just to attract dnd nerds, ranboo IS working on something dnd related

also working on some cool genloss stuff, hoping to put out a surprise for the next ranboo day 07/26/24

the ranboowaslive channel workers are working on new shorts and videos, they're putting together a stockpile before uploading!

reminder of fallout fridays this friday! they will also be looking for a horror game to play saturday

small bittersweet moose update, due to moose's (ranboo's cat) heart condition (enlarged heart) he had to go to the vet today to have a little procedure. sadly due to the condition he could have a heart problem any day, but could also live for 5+ years beyond it. ranboo and moonzy have been spoiling him every day because of that <3

ranboo doesn't know if they're going to be able to keep to a stream schedule, but they're hoping to keep to streaming mondays/wednesdays/fridays/saturdays!

ranboo wants to add a fanart carousel to the starting soon screen! (with proper credit ofc) they're going to look mainly on twitter for art, but want to also look at tumblr and instagram for art too

they want to put together more game lobbies maybe, and are also possibly planning another ranbathon that might happen around the 4 year anniversary of them streaming!

rest of stream:

ranboo recaps everything wrong with their LA house (list posted here LMAO)

ranboo talks about a youtube series they've been thinking about making for a while now, called "this is why i" (or TIWI for short) it would be formatted like "this is why i love saw" "this is why i hate jigsaw" etc. they also hit a subgoal to make a review of the movie "longlegs" a few weeks after it comes out! they're making moonzy hold them accountable to actually make it lmao

moonzy has been working on an outfit for a miss beloved revamp, ranboo said they want to spend some time at the gym for a few months before they make another miss beloved video (they want to be a buff mom?? transition goals ig)

ranboo is also interested in adding more timestamps to vods! they're going to try to do it more often, like how the sims vod has chapters

rest of stream consists of chatting about random topics while playing cult of the lamb!

next stream: fallout friday episode 2 - 7/12/24

ranboo is LIVE! playing "cult of the lamb" :D

[title: "PRAY PRAY PRAY PRAY PRAY PRAY PRAY PRAY"]

[polyhexian]

Reply too big to keep in replies, forgive me

Flash emulation won't actually work with the way the site is coded. It's really difficult to truly illustrate HOW fucked the site is if you aren't familiar with it.

So the flash games are INTEGRATED into the site. They don't just play. They send scores and those scores are validated by the site and then affect the game in real time by awarding points. Thats backend stuff and it seems EASY. But flash EMULATION will not really let that process work. Not blanket. Ruffle is a browser add on for flash and you can play some games with it but every game has needed to be worked manually and individually to try and get it to play correctly and to let it send scores.

Here, so like. Last year you may recall having heard about the data breach. It was a long time coming. Neopets has terrible security and always has. So someone got backend access, downloaded the server and this had all of the usernames and passwords ever used. Were they hashed? Yes. Was the hashkey stored in the server and thus also available to the hacker? Also yes.

As a result neopets finally moved from http to https. Great!

Not for flash games.

Every game has links in it right. Backend stuff. Mechanics. But all those fucking links redirect to http, not https. And you cannot change that without editing the game and you can't do THAT without a program that makes flash elements. So they're basically unfixable on site. On one fell swoop, every single flash game broke at once. You could play them but scores were now unsendable.

The workaround neopets USERS found was, I shut you not, using developer tools to modify the way your entire computer communicates with the internet

"oh, that seems simple"

Look the fuck at what is IN the js file

It is 538 lines! It is manually overriding the links used in these games. This IS hacking. Technically this is against the rules, it's just not being enforced.

Don't worry, I'm terrified.

The workaround before this STILL had you download a new browser, modify it, take your internet offline and manually reinstall an old version of flash to create a jury rigged flash browser. Oh my God this is so dangerous and we Still do this. Did I do all this fiddler stuff? Yes! I did! Because neopets is very much like transformers in that there is a small user base but every single person there is fucking insane!

So.... Emulation is not a solution. Every game needs to be individually ground up REMADE in html5. And you can't just import the old game and tweak it. It has to be made from scratch. That's why there are so few html5 games. It's incredibly difficult and time consuming and probably not all that worth it when there's so much to be done.

This is what I mean when I say the site is virtually unplayable. This is the kind of shit that we have to do to make the site work. You basically cannot play unless you are accessing fan sites and communities to find resources that can offer fixes to everything that is broken. There are legitimately pages of this website that have not been updated since 1999. Until like two years ago you still could not say "gay" on the forums because the chat filter caught it. And do you know why?? Staff literally did not know where the chat filter was stored in the backend. They could not find it. The site traded hands and staff so much that no one remained who knew where it was.

There is LITERALLY a guy who found backend access several years ago and can, whenever he wants, get into the server and look at everything. HE could have stolen those passwords (which the other hacker was selling for $10,000!!) At any time he wanted. Instead he just made an anonymous reddit account where he would post info about how the fucking site works and why things are broken and "yeah they lied about fixing this its still broken" or "yeah actually they secretly shadowbanned a bunch of people from submitting scores to the big yearly event next year if you dm me I can tell you if you're on the list"

And he IS STILL THERE!!!! HE STILL HAS SERVER ACCESS!!! ITS BEEN YEARS AND THEY HAVENT KICKED HIM OUR BECAUSE THEY STILL HAVENT FOUND THE BREACH!!!!!!!

This. THIS is what staff is dealing with. THIS is the absolute shit storm they need to tackle if they want this site to work. The way pets are stored, the way accounts work, all of those things cannot be changed without causing severe issues conflicting with users accounts, pets, items, and all of that was originally coded in 1998/1999 and it cannot be changed. It cannot be modernized. They need to find ways to integrate old code that cannot be changed into a site coded for a modern internet. That is beyond the scope of normal site building.

All that is to say... I'm hesitant to believe things will improve, not because I don't think staff wants to, not because I don't think they have the drive and the passion to throw everything they have at it. Just because... Jesus dude I don't know if they actually have the resources to fix this mess at all.

[archfeyworkshop]

Let's start with worldbuilding rambling, shall we? Above is the world of Arturium, what is ultimately a five-year project that has gone through...three and a bit iterations and two editions of gaming. So let's summarise quickly:

When I started GMing for TTRPGs, I made the big mistake of making a whole world from scratch for three weeks and ended up absolutely in over my head. I was a worse storyteller and world designer, and I don't think I even have the original map, made in Hexographer, anymore. At the time it was so much simpler too - the pantheon was pulled wholesale from Eberron despite knowing nothing about it, I had more cities in some places and fewer in others. For the time it wasn't bad but...it wasn't a world exactly. More a caricature.

The next iteration made some big changes. I laid out much clearer overviews of each nation, and threw out a lot of the Eberron gods in favour of my own. I kept one or two that I appreciated, but the new pantheon still kept the dual-domain style of the old pantheon, and a couple of higher powers like Asmodeus and Mephistopheles remained even today. The Hells just don't feel the same without them. That was the first glam-up on the map too.

I had a drawing program, go figure. It looked better than the original but was essentially a redraw, and continued with the geographical issue of me not being very aware of how terrain formed. But it was mine. And was still...pretty empty. It was made during my first campaign which ended up running for three years, which ended up taking place over two continents and a lot of lore that was ultimately altered but not quite abandoned.

This most recent iteration and a bit has been the most substantial and worthwhile one. The pantheon got properly cleaned up with the last of the remnant gods being remade into entirely personalised ones, and resulted in the map above. Between iterations I had picked up bits and pieces about how terrain was loosely shaped, and that resulted in the remade mountain ranges and rivers. National borders became properly contained by natural terrain and we got some actual islands. It was the biggest change that took the world into feeling like proper terrain, breaking things up like landmasses that have drifted.

At this point all the nations got fuller updates on their individual cities with a paragraph for each, and a more complex interaction with the world around them. A topic for another post, perhaps. Keeping things at a macro level for now though...a number of species got reworked or renamed, or cut out entirely as I decided they weren't doing anything in the setting ecology. The Crayshaw Mountains got renamed to Agryphida, and then mysteriously disappeared from the earliest ages of the world...but that's its own story. Oh nine, there's the entire reworking of the timeline getting shorter and shorter too...welp, there's going to be a lot to talk about, much of it that will never make it into campaigns, so here's as good a place as any.

That's the final thing I'll talk about for this start post, I reckon. When I started my setting it was a D&D 5e setting. Now, thanks to my own system preferences, it's been adjusted to Pathfinder 1e. But I mean, with all the holes in 5e...that wasn't too difficult. It did force me to assign proper mechanical domains and alignments to the gods.

But I'm writing this quite late at night. A world has a lot of stuff you can do with it and plenty I want to talk about. Hell, there's plenty to do with a breakdown of each nation, the history I'm still writing, how the species interact. There's an entire dissertation I could write about how the northern nations on Almahd came out of one bit of art of a Lamia in a crop top...

So I'll leave you with that. The promise of much worldbuilding rambling and character design in the future. Probably tall and wide.

[mistresstrevelyan]

This is now my PINNED post!

Greetings and Salutations my Starshines!

UPDATE: We made it to 750+ Parlour residents this year, my sweetlings. Words fail me, I will never be able to put into words just how much you guys being here means to me. Please EXPAND to see ALL updates!!

When I remade my blog all the way back in 2016 after the messy breakup a year earlier I never believed Persephone’s Parlour would EVER rise this high again and today I am both honoured and humbled to inform you that our Parlour now has over six hundred seven hundred and fifty residents. 

The past six years have been filled with highs and lows alike. From me finding my stride in my career and getting therapy as well as sadly losing my leg and my Dad’s heartbreaking cancer diagnosis and passing in April this year. Fandom wise I am still happily BioWare centred but have also branched out, IE Red Dead Redemption II, Baldur’s Gate III, Final Fantasy XIV etc. etc. 

Update II: Sadly this year was the hardest since 2015, making that traumatic breakup almost seem frivolous because I lost my Dad to cancer this year. After Mom died of cancer at merely 48 I had hoped that my Dad would live at least as long as The Queen but sadly...he only made it to 70 before that accursed disease took him away from us. Here’s a pic of my Dad at about my age with my baby sis on his shoulders:

I have met friends both old and new and also said goodbye to some who have since moved on to other fandoms or have unfortunately left us altogether. (Still miss you, Miri, A LOT)

I don’t know if I can do a Giveaway or something of the sort but I’ll keep you guys in the loop. (I’m thinking of a little Steam Giveaway since I cannot draw and my writing mojo still being very erratic) 

Update III: I will do something this time around, pinky promise!

But ABOVE ALL there is one thing I’d like to say and that’s THANK YOU. Without you guys this blog wouldn’t have become my online refuge and main online presence. Thank you for every single comment, Ask, reblog and piece of gift art. Words CANNOT describe how much you all mean to me. With everything that has been going on I just want to give something back. I love you all and I hope you will all find the happiness and joy you so richly deserve.

Thank you. Be well everyone, be safe! /Persephone out

Updated PS: Words fail me when I TRY to explain how much this place has become my online refuge again just this year. I have known some of you for over a DECADE now (Hi wifey @imperiius  dear friend @mloreley who introduced me to this place, dear friend and fellow GK obsessor @nikichidon and bff @knightofphoenix ILY!) And ofc hello to my new dear friend and fellow GK/von Glower obsessor @poptart-cat-78​ your enthusiasm INSPIRES me daily. I could go on and on but I’ll just send hugs to you all who want them and a gentle smile at those who are touch averse or aren’t into hugs for any reason at all bc you’re all valid and I love you to bits. THANK YOU. Thank you for making a hellish year something I could survive. It means the world to me!!

[descaladumidera]

Tag Game

I was tagged by @kiki-shortsnout. Thank you, darling!

.

1. Why did you choose your url?

Long story short: My ex came up with it by accident by making fun of (in good spirit) people giving characters in MMORPGs weird names. I liked it, so I kept it. He thought it was funny.

2. Any side-blogs? If you have them, name them and why you have them.

Since I had to make a new blog (yes, I’m still a bit pissed Tumblr deleted my old blog without warning or reason) I only remade one of my old side-blogs: @iamdoctorstephenstrange. It’s a Doctor Strange ask-blog that answers asks with little drawings of Stephen answering to the asker.

3. How long have you been on Tumblr?

Uhh … I think since 2015 or 2016, because I was a sheltered little German only using German fandom sites before that (except for FFN, which, I realized soon enough, is a dumpster fire). Yes, I know. No need to drag me.

4. Do you have a queue tag?

No. If I queue something, it’ll have the usual tags I use when simply reblogging stuff. Also, I rarely use the queue. You either deal with my reblogging sprees that occur every blue moon or you unfollow/block me.

5. Why did you start your blog in the first place?

Because Tumblr seems to be the only website to connect with fandom folks nowadays, except for Twitter. And New xKit makes it way easier to curate your experience than the block and blacklist function on Twitter. Even though New xKit is kinda fucked since the last big Tumblr update. Also, there was pr0n when I joined. And I draw pr0n occasionally. So this was a website where I could upload my stuff. Until I couldn’t. Yes, I’m salty.

6. Why did you choose your icon/pfp?

Because I’m here, I’m queer, and I don’t care. I also art occasionally, so it seemed like a good idea to draw my own icon.

7. Why did you choose your header?

Because I’m here, I’m queer, and I don’t care. I also art occasionally, so it seemed like a good idea to use one of my fanarts for my header.

8. What's your post with the most notes?

This one. On my old blog I had a few that got a few thousand notes. 😭

9. How many mutuals do you have?

I really don’t know. And I’m not gonna start counting as this tag game is taking enough time as it is.

10. How many followers do you have?

As of now 472. I’m still trying to rebuild my follower base from … before.

11. How many people do you follow?

29, because I’m an anxious gremlin who would probably log out of Tumblr and never log in again if my dash was flooded with too much stuff every day. There’re also not that many IronStrange blogs I’m interested in following, so there’s that.

12. Have you ever made a shit post?

Yep.

13. How often do you use Tumblr each day?

Uhh … Considering that my laptop is running most days all day and Tumblr is one of my permanently open tabs … A lot.

14. Did you have a fight/argument with another lot once? Who won?

Not on Tumblr. I don’t count the hate anons that occasionally crawl into my inbox, because, frankly, Idgaf anymore. I’m also far too old and tired to fight.

15. How do you feel about "you need to reblog this" posts?

I ignore them, because this shit usually has the opposite effect on me. I don’t like being guilt-tripped. I also want to keep my blog my happy place with as little negativity as possible.

16. Do you like tag games?

Depends on the tag game. Currently I feel guilty, because @kiki-shortsnout tagged me multiple times already and I think I never did one of the tag games she tagged me in. I usually like them, but I simply … don’t have the energy. Depression and executive dysfunction are bitches I never needed in my life, but they’re here anyway. Like parasites.

17. Do you like ask games?

Usually yes, but they need to be specific. If there’s only one question in them that I can’t answer/am not comfortable answering, I won’t reblog it. Which limits the ask games I actually reblog drastically. Not that I get many/any asks anyway whenever I reblog an ask game.

18. Which of your mutual do you think is Tumblr famous?

Uhh … Considering that I don’t exactly know who my mutuals all are and by only assuming that my friends are also my mutuals … probably no one, lol. But some of them are fandom famous! Not that I care about that, because all of them are lovely people and that’s all that matters to me.

19. Do you have a crush on a mutual?

I don’t do crushes.

20. Tags?

No. Whoever wants to do this—feel free to do it. I think everyone I would want to tag got already tagged anyway.

[knight-without-armor]

ooc update

Hello all! I am not sure who all here are people who know of me. My name is Marinda and I have been RPing Jean Havoc on and off since 2012. This post is to give a little insight of the going ons from 2017 to now. If you do not know me, no pressure to read further but I would like to give insight.

I started RPing here on my original blog (found here) many years ago. I came to tumblr to RP Jean after my friend Jess (previously found at thesnakechimera, but it is deactivated) moved RPing here and fell in love with my character. After she passed away in 2014 though, I kind of lost the connection I had to RPing. Since then, I remade my account, being this one here, but through college and many life changes, never could keep up. 

To not go too in depth or give a sob story, the last few years have been hard. I have had some ups and many downs. Through a battle with mental health, homelessness (on 3 separate occasions) and trying to both work and go to school, this was not something I could keep up with. Especially with finding it hard to write as Jean, or RP at all without my original RP partner here.

I currently am in a rough situation where I live with an ex as well as their parents and have to move out. As I moved to Michigan on my own 4 years ago, I don’t have many options besides moving back to Ohio and am currently trying to work out the details. I don’t drive so getting to work is rough as is, but I did graduate with my first degree this past May and am taking a year off school. In the mean time, I am trying to get a hold on my very much declined state of mental health. And, of course, try to work on my life as a whole to avoid the whole moving situation and for once in years, have stability.

As of right now, I have no idea when I am coming back to begin RP again. BUT. I am trying to make that comeback be by the end of 2021. There are no guarantees but that is my goal. This was always such an amazing space to be and write in and I’ve missed it. I do plan on working out the details and will make posts updating along the way, but my real life is my priority of course. I want to rewatch FMA before I come back to better get back into a space to write as well as revamp my blog.

If you made it this far, thank you for reading! Please message me if you would like to plan a RP after I come back or just to say hi! I don’t know if I will see them for awhile, as I am not sure when I’ll pop on or how this will all work till I come back, but you can also find me @dancing-with-gavin. I don’t use tumblr as much anymore but at least then I’ll know things are waiting for me here.

I hope all of you, new followers or old, are doing well. 

[stellaangelica15]

Boruto: Sacrifices [Remade] | Chap.10 - Hardest Battle

Written by: Eleanor-Devil & @mirage-05​​

Prologue | Chap.1 | Chap.2 | Chap.3 | Chap.4 | Chap.5 | Chap.6 | Chap.7 | Chap.8 | Chap.9 | Chap. 10 - You’re here

Checking on her daughter to make sure she was tucked in safely, Hinata’s eyes drifted back to the clock on the wall. Naruto was running late… Of course, that wouldn’t be the first time. The woman had adjusted to the life as the Hokage’s wife smoothly and without a complaint, she knew Naruto’s dedication to his duties and that was one of the many qualities she admired in the man she loved. And with the village still on high alert after the recent attack, she knew it was Naruto’s top priority to see the village to safety and peace once again before being able to rest properly. But it wasn’t very usual for him to call Boruto to his office at such a late hour. It was already past midnight… and something nagging at the back of her mind gave the woman a chilled feeling. She sighed and leaned down to gently caress Hima’s hair as the little girl mumbled and shivered in her sleep. And just then, there was a soft knock on the door. As quietly but quickly as she could, Hinata went down the stairs. She opened the door and came face to face with her husband. Or well… a clone of his. For her Byakugan induced eyesight, even when the dojutsu wasn’t activated, it was a very clear distinction. “Naruto…” she whispered, concern and apprehension in her voice, especially because she noticed the grave look on his face. “Hinata-san…” Ironically, the clones would always address her with honorifics, although it was a little awkward for the young woman. “Naruto-san will not be able to come home tonight. There has been another attack.”

The woman’s heart skipped a beat. “Is it… bad…?” she managed to ask, her mind immediately snapping to her son. “No, it has already been thwarted, but…” Naruto’s voice faded away as he had to look away for a minute. “But… something unfortunate has happened.” “Naruto…” Hinata was almost hesitant to ask. “Boruto’s friend, Mitsuki… he was attacked by the assailants. He was taken to the hospital, and both Naruto-san and Boruto are with him now.” The woman’s hands flew to her mouth, her eyes widening. Shock was still the dominant expression on her features when she was eventually able to lower her hands a minute later. “A-and how is Mitsuki-kun…?” Naruto sighed. “We don’t know all the details yet but… I’m afraid it doesn’t look very good. We will keep you updated.” Not able to say anything more, Hinata just nodded, and had to lean against the door sill as the clone disappeared in a puff. … The first thing Shikadai noticed as he was heading to the border for his patrol duty was that there was an abnormal activity in the village for this late hour. The jounins were rushing everywhere, apparently in a big hurry, and whispers… there was a great deal of whispering going around. And although he didn’t stop to listen to most of them because duty was awaiting, the young Nara caught some words… “new attack”... “genin”... Just what was going on…? Well… surely he would find out when he reached his post. He had always viewed these late-night patrols as a kind of a drag, but now he was feeling anxious, restless… At first, it didn’t seem like anyone was going to pay attention to him when he arrived at the border. It had been almost a solid minute before he finally came across a familiar face. “Mirai!” The young woman strode over to him, looking a bit distraught and… very confused. “Shikadai… what are you doing here?” “Uuugh… I have the next shift...” “Oh…” This fact, for some reason, seemed to be an inconvenience to the Sarutobi. “Look… the circumstances have changed. You are no longer on patrol duty.” “What? But…” Now he was more alert and anxious than ever. “Mirai, just… what’s going on? I heard something about a new attack…” A pensive look settled in Mirai’s red eyes. “Yes… there has been an attack not even an hour ago. It was thwarted, but…” She didn’t continue for a moment. Shikadai’s eyes widened. “The genin…” The woman sighed. “I don’t know all the details… Only that… apparently Konohamaru-nii-san’s team got involved and now they’re in the hospital. I don’t know which one of them got hurt.” She might not, but with a sinking feeling in his stomach, Shikadai realized he probably had a good idea who. After all, there was only one known hot-head in the team. Mirai clamped a hand on his shoulder, giving him a small but gentle smile. “There’s nothing for you to do here now. Just go home and rest.” As she turned and walked away from him, the Nara muttered to himself. “Sure… I’ll do just that.” ... He had a bad feeling about this. He had just barely seen Kurama bringing in two men before a call came from the hospital, stating that 0 blood type was needed immediately. So, curious as he was, and being also someone that happened to have that blood type, he had rushed to the hospital. To put it mildly, there was total chaos going on. It took Kakashi a while to finally stop a nurse. "I came for the blood donation..." "Oh, Lord Sixth," a relieved look came over the nurse's face. "You are type O, right? Please, follow me." She brought him to a small room. Kakashi was too wired up to sit still. "What is the situation?" he asked as the needle pierced his skin. "The Hokage will come here to inform you in a second." the nurse said simply. Indeed, as soon as the nurse finished and rushed out with the blood bag, Naruto walked in. "I'm so glad you could come, Kakashi-sensei..." "What's going on, Naruto? I came as quickly as I can..." "Just in time, too. The surgery has only begun a few minutes ago, we needed immediate-" Before Naruto could finish, there was a ruckus outside. “Yamanaka Inojin, I thought we taught you better manners than to come barging in a hospital!” “But we came for the blood donation too!” “You don’t have the correct blood type, young man.” “These are our friends we are talking about!” Perplexed, the Hokage turned to the door of the room as six agitated-looking genins indeed pretty much barged in, followed closely by a strict and exasperated looking Ino. “Lord Seventh, forgive me, I did try to stop them.” Naruto nodded wordlessly to her. The kids, on the other hand, seemed to have totally forgotten about hospital rules in their panic, they all started talking at once. “Lord Seventh - I heard it on the news-” “And I spoke to the border guards-” “Where are Boruto, Sarada and Mitsuki?” “Are they okay?” As they paused for a minute to catch their breath, Kakashi leveled a gaze to his old student. “I’d say you owe an explanation to all of us.” Naruto sighed before conceding with a nod. “I will. Let’s just move out of here.” … “Boruto…” the young Uzumaki heard Sarada’s voice all of a sudden, which was the only thing that made him turn away from the doors that directed to the surgery room. He didn’t even have time to blink as two blurred green and purple shapes moved forward, and a second later he was being hugged tightly by Metal and Sumire. “You- you guys…” he managed to stammer as he felt a pang in his heart. “We heard about the attack…” Metal said sadly as they pulled back. “But I didn’t imagine it would be… damn…” Shikadai shook his head as he took in his best friend’s appearance, mainly… his blood-soaked shirt, that was something hard to miss… especially when said shirt used to be white and it was now massively tinted in dark red. “Lord Seventh told us what he could…” “Is Mitsuki-kun gonna be okay…?” Sumire asked in a tiny voice. “We… we don’t know…” Sarada stammered in a shaky voice, wiping her eyes on her sleeve. “Well, we didn’t come too long ago… All we know is… he left us a letter telling us he was leaving Konoha and-” “What?!” was the collective response they received from their friends, which resulted in a passing nurse shooting a disapproving look at the group and then hushing them. “What do you mean, leaving Konoha?” Inojin said at last, flabbergasted. “Yeah… that’s one thing he’s gonna have to answer to us for when he gets better…” Boruto’s voice faltered as he looked at the doors again, and his next word was almost inaudible. “If…” “Hey hey, what’s with the pessimistic attitude?” Chocho said, rubbing her best friend’s arm. “Mitsuki is strong, right?” “One of the best in our class,” Metal added with a kind smile. “There’s no way he will just give up like that, I won’t believe it!” Iwabe supported them firmly. They were finally able to bring a thin smile to the faces of the remaining members of Team Konohamaru. “Thanks guys…” Just then, Ino approached them. “I appreciate your concerns about your friends but you really can’t all stay in here, and there’s no point, we don’t know how long the surgery will take.” The kids definitely looked reluctant to leave, but there was nothing to it. One by one, they bid goodbye and started to leave but Shikadai didn’t move. “I will stay with you guys.” he said determinedly. ”I won’t be able to rest properly if I don’t know Mitsuki is okay.” … There was no news. Simple as that. It had been hours now and there was still nothing about Mitsuki's state and how the surgery was going. There had already been an exchange between the medics and they all looked exhausted, it was clear to the adults that the situation wasn't good... Naruto was trying to control himself from pacing around the halls, it would only put the kids nervous, and right now they were calm, smiling softly at something they were watching on Boruto's phone, they did not need to have a nervous crisis because of him. So instead of pacing, he sighed... again. He looked sideways at Orochimaru, who... hadn't changed his position much or at all since his son had been taken down the hall, standing at the very same spot, not having even moved an inch. His arms were crossed, his fingers tight. His eyes, hard and cold as steel, were glued to the surgery hall's doors. Minutes ticked away, slowly, agonizingly turning into another half an hour... 'Please...' Naruto thought, closing his eyes for a minute. 'Please help him... Please let this turn out alright...' The doors of the hall opened and everyone's eyes turned to it but no sight of Mitsuki in his bed. Instead who came out was one of the medics. He didn't look exhausted but he seemed close to it, so Naruto guessed it was yet another shift. But instead, the medic stopped close to him before bowing. "Lord Hokage..." he started. His heart skipped a beat and he tried his hardest to not think of every single thing that could have gone wrong inside that surgery room. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Ino and Kiba moving a little closer to the kids, while Sasuke, Konohamaru and Kakashi moved closer to him and the medic. The Hokage gulped once, and although keeping the calm tone to it, his whisper came out a little strained. "How is he holding up?" The medic sighed through the mask. "He lost a lot of blood but thanks to the donation he is stable. The surgery is still going but it's very complicated. His heart was damaged by the lightning, I'm afraid that will leave a scar but..." He stopped for a moment before he continued. "...but that will be the least of his problems if he... if he survives..." 'If...?' The hollow word echoed in the man's mind, leaving behind horror and a terrible sadness...  He slowly raised his hand to grab the front of his cloak, where his heart is. It felt like he couldn't hold it in place... "What... what do you mean, the least of his problems...?" The medic sighed again before looking back at the Hokage. "Lord Seventh... if the boy survives this... it will be a miracle if he doesn't get a heart condition after that lightning trauma he suffered to his chest... all in all I’m afraid to say that his heart might become very weak." The silence the medic's words left behind was... deafening. A lump had formed in his throat, and trying to gulp it down, Naruto felt a lone tear making its way down his cheek. "Excuse me... I need to go back." "Thank you..." he managed to whisper. Please... please bring the child back to us, safe and sound, he wanted to add... But words simply didn't form… “I just don’t get it…” Konohamaru muttered, his hands pushing hair out of his eyes, although the motion looked more like he was pulling his hair out. “Mitsuki wouldn’t just barge in battle without fully assessing his enemy, he knows better… And lightning is his second main chakra nature, he never once lost a battle that way…” "You said that he sent a distress message to you?" Kakashi intervened. "Yes..." Something then clicked on the Hokage's mind, and he turned to look at his former sensei. "You think he heard something he shouldn't and had to defend himself when he was attacked?" "Well, that would be my best guess. Or he tried to turn back and warn the guards, and that was when those ninjas found him." The older man's tone was disgusted. "It's something we will know once the interrogations are over." "Heartless cowards," Konohamaru growled, so mad that he was shaking. "So they thought it was easier to go all out against a child... Didn't even have the courage to face stronger ninjas..." Silence once again reigned over them as they returned to their torturous wait. Sasuke glanced over his friend for a brief second, then walked over to him. "Naruto..." he said silently, apparently only for him to hear. "Maybe it's not the time for this but... We should also consider the possibility that the boy could have some connection with those ninjas." The Hokage's head immediately snapped to him, a confused look on his expression. "What is that even supposed to mean?" "You know what I mean. Maybe this was not a coincidental attack." Naruto's eyes hardened, so much so that they looked like two dark storm clouds. "You are right. This is not the time, nor the place." "We can't just disregard this. For just one time, use your head. With Orochimaru here-" "That's enough." the blond cut in, and his tone was so sharp and unrelenting that Sasuke had to close his mouth, only with a slight frown on his face. "There is a child in there, the same age as our children, fighting for his life. Put your heart in it for once, and just pray." They didn't say anything more to each other after that. Naruto glanced once again at the Sannin, who had not moved, at all. Realizing that he had to tell him about what they had learned, the Hokage took a deep breath, gathering his courage, and approached the older man, Sasuke right behind him. "Do not waste your breath." the man practically spat out of his teeth. "I heard all of it." "Orochimaru..." Naruto tried to start, but he was cut into yet again. "So you all think that my son is somehow related to those ninjas?" the man continued, and the blond had to gulp, not knowing what to say. "Be glad... be glad that my son tried to protect your worthless lives even when he was barely clinging to life, because if I had not promised him... We would not be having this conversation right now." The Hokage closed his mouth in a tight line when those words left the Sannin's mouth. He didn't know what promise Orochimaru had made to his son but he was clearly holding on to it... "What... promise?" he dared to ask. "A promise to not crush this village. He seemed to think this was not your fault... Although I fail to see why." The Sannin's voice was almost emotionless until this point, but the hint of a dangerous threat etched its way to his tone as he spoke next. "Just know this... My promise is only ever valid if Mitsuki makes it out of there... So you better start praying that he keeps holding on." he finished in a low, venomous hiss, his eyes moving to Sasuke for a fraction of a second. Naruto felt another lump in his throat but didn't look away... Instead he looked into the Sannin's cold golden eyes. "That is not the only reason why I am praying." The Sannin just kept glaring at him with those icy eyes, unimpressed. After a moment of assessing the Hokage, he finally spoke again. "Tell me one thing. Why... did Mitsuki decide to leave Konoha in the first place?" Naruto didn't know what to say... the situation was already bad enough as it was, with Orochimaru threatening to end Konoha if Mitsuki didn't survive... What would he do when he found out about the harassments...? But... he couldn't hide it either... better tell the truth now. Sighing, he looked down. "Three days ago... there was an attack in Konoha's orphanage. Everything pointed that it had been you behind the attack and... Mitsuki suffered the consequences of that. Because he is your child..." And just like that, Orochimaru felt his careful control slipping, albeit only a little, and managed to control the shaking of his hands, of anger. "So that was your idea of peace...? I thought Konoha had become a better place... Yet my son had to suffer the aftermath of an attack - which I have not even heard of, mind you." He was silent for a moment, and then squinted. "What kind of consequences?" he demanded, a dangerous tone audible in his whisper. This caught Naruto's attention. He knew that the Sannin, from years of experience, would praise an attack if he had been the one behind it but... that wasn't the case now. "You mean you weren't behind the attack...?" "I guarantee you, if it was indeed me behind the attack, I would not go into hiding like some coward," he hissed through his teeth. "I always play my cards on the table, if you did not notice that just a moment ago. What motive would I have to attack your village?" A venomous glint came into his eyes as he asked once again. "What kind of consequences?" Naruto gulped... No... he couldn't just go and say that the clans were the ones behind the harassments against Mitsuki, not when he was dealing with Orochimaru. "Children... that's all... they played some... pranks against Mitsuki." "Do you think... even for a minute... that I believe my son was driven out of the village because of some childish pranks...?" His anger and hatred were brewing deeper down. He hated being lied to - especially when he was doing the exact opposite. "Tell me the truth." What could he do…? Orochimaru was clearly losing his patience. But he was the Hokage and although the clans were at fault, he couldn't expose them like that "I..." he started. "The clans did it. They ordered harassments to be held against your son." A new voice joined the conversation and although Orochimaru just moved his eyes, Naruto turned his head completely in Sasuke's direction. "And they were done, by children." "Sasuke...!" Naruto hissed, low. The Uchiha eyed his friend with his usual calm look. "Those people are grown-ups, Naruto. They knew clearly what they were doing. If they had courage to do that then they also should have the guts to deal with the consequences." He eyed his former sensei once again. "Children, however, can be very easily manipulated into the best soldiers, they don't question, they don't think if it's right and they don't think of consequences." "Oh, there will be consequences, you can be sure of that. If Mitsuki doesn't survive... the clans won't survive to see another day. I guarantee you will suffer for all eternity." He silently added, 'Like I am now...' in his head, his mouth a thin, straight line. "The matter is already being taken care of..." said Naruto. "The clans are not going unpunished for what they did, I assure you of that." The Hokage then sighed, the matter from before suddenly returned to his mind. "I still don't understand...why they would attack him... Kakashi-sensei theorizes that he might've heard something..." "He would not let rogue ninjas discover him...!" He had taught the child better than that... "But in any case, he should not have been there alone." His gaze once again drifted to the doors of the surgery hall. "Especially not tonight..." The last part did catch both Naruto's and Sasuke's attention. The Uchiha narrowed his eyes as he eyed the Sannin carefully. "What do you mean by 'especially not tonight'...?" "Ever since he was little... I noticed the moon has a powerful effect on Mitsuki." the older man began. "At nights with the full moon, he would always be full of energy, there were nights he would just stay up, training or doing other things that would normally wear people down. On new moons though... he would become so weak, sometimes even to the point of falling sick." He jerked his head to the window that was not too far from them. "What moon do you think tonight is?" Naruto's eyes widened as he recalled that in that night, before Mitsuki had come to say goodbye, he had casually looked up at the night sky and noticed there was no moon. "Crap..." he murmured. Sasuke was surprised for a moment but was quick to recover. "I see... does that influence his chances of survival as well...?" At Sasuke's question, the Sannin didn't bother to say anything, his only answer was the closing of his eyes and his fists tightening a little more. As the two stayed silent, it was clear that their talk was over. He had nothing more to say, anyway. He was already going through a plan to crush all those meddling clans... The deep silence was killing Naruto, pretty much all that could be heard in that hall right now was the sound coming from the video that Boruto and Sarada were watching on the cellphone. Sighing, the blond looked at Orochimaru before asking. "How...far does the moon affect Mitsuki...?" The Sannin sighed, nearly regretting having let this information at their disposal. "The child is affected by the full cycle of the moon, as per say. As I have said, when it is nearing the full moon, he is energetic, lively, he would be hard to handle. The waning moon has the opposite effect. He would mostly spend all the night in his room, sometimes not even coming out of the bed. I remember during one cycle he got really ill, Karin had to stay up all night..." Not a random choice for name at all, he thought, his mind was far away... If what Orochimaru was saying was the full truth then Mitsuki was extremely vulnerable and weak when the ninjas attacked... had he known that it was new moon night? Had he known he would be weak at that very moment? Naruto wanted answers... badly... "I have never heard of such a thing before... I wonder why it affects him." A humorless, cold smile came to his face. He glanced for a short while to the window again, before turning his gaze back to the door of the hall. "You are aware Mitsuki is not an ordinary human, are you not?" he said simply. Orochimaru was and always will be a full mystery that Naruto would never understand... even his current words had left him more confused than ever but... he did not dare to ask for the meaning of it because he was sure... that if Orochimaru wanted them to know, he would have let them know. … Shikadai looked up at the adults with a worried look on his face, he had caught up to a couple of words from the conversation, not the full length, but it was enough for him to get the scope of it… This was serious, Mitsuki’s condition was very serious… Thankfully, though, Boruto and Sarada didn’t seem to have heard it, they were focused on the videos and photos including Mitsuki on the blond’s phone, and Ino-san had been careful about diverting their attention too. Determined to keep things that way (because heaven only knew that they couldn’t handle a breakdown from the two right now), the Nara tried to force an uplifting tone in his voice. “Hey, Boruto, why don’t you show us the next photo?” Boruto smiled a bit at his friend before turning back to face his phone, he slid his finger across the screen to the next picture but actually found a video. At the beginning he couldn't remember well what that video was about but as the scenes started going, his smile widened, though it didn't reach his eyes. "Aren't there safer ways to go on ice?" came a voice, and by the closeness of it, it was clear that the speaking person was the one who was holding the camera. The voice was easily recognizable as Mitsuki's. "Oh come on, are you telling me that you're chickening out?" a figure suddenly skated into the frame, and they were all looking into the widely-grinning face of Boruto. "If you consider making sure I don't break a leg, an arm or even lose my teeth, chickening out then so be it." replied the voice to which the Boruto in the video rolled his eyes before moving a bit away from the camera. "Aw fine. At least make sure you get everything on record, because I'm planning to use my amazing skating skills to-" WHAM! Not exactly looking at where he was going while boosting, Boruto had skated, turned around in what was supposed to be a graceful twist... and had slammed right into a huge trunk of a tree. Needless to say, Mitsuki's chuckles soon echoed through the whole video sound and it was clear that he was trying to calm himself down as the camera moved closer to Boruto and he tried to speak in between laughs. "Are you okay?" "It's not funny," the pout Boruto pulled off was so... cute and funny that in a moment, more laughter could be heard, while those who were watching the video just smiled brokenly. "Delete this, will you?" "Oooh no," Mitsuki said with a chuckle. "This, I'm definitely keeping." "No, come on man!" All that the camera was filming right now was the greyish winter sky, meaning that Mitsuki must have raised it really high so Boruto couldn't reach it. "Give it back, Mitsuki! That's so uncool!" "Nuh-uh," that was all that he got for an answer. As the only sounds after that were heard, which were the two boys horsing around and finally falling back on the ice, the video came to an end. Boruto was now gazing at the screen with slightly teary eyes, a small, fond smile on his face. "I never thought I would be glad he kept this..." he mused, then gulped. He had forgotten about the video altogether... Ino didn’t know what more comforting words to offer, it didn’t seem like anything she could say reached these two right now, so… out of her motherly instinct, she just reached out and held the blond in her arms. ... It had felt like ages... When he finally heard the doors of the surgery hall open and a general shuffling as everyone gathered, Boruto practically jumped to his feet, and the phone slid from his fingers, hitting the ground with a thud. Slowly, the stretcher on which his best friend was lying was pushed out, followed by the nurses and medics and finally Sakura and Tsunade, all of them looked very tired. It wasn't like the blond could notice anyone but his best friend right then, though. Mitsuki looked... almost peaceful, his chest rising and falling rhythmically. He could've easily been just sleeping, if not for the fact that his skin was even paler than usual, and he was covered in bandages, everywhere... His friend never seemed younger to him then he did right now. "Please, give us some space." one of the nurses urged, and Boruto noticed pretty much everyone had gathered around the stretcher. The adults drew back slightly, but Boruto, Sarada and Shikadai remained by Mitsuki's side as he was brought to his room. The Nara, for once in his life, seemed to be at a loss of words. They watched in silence as the staff connected their friend to some machines, including an oxygen supply and the heart monitor, filling the room with steady rhythms in a second. Sarada brought her hands to her mouth, trying to hold back her sobs. As Sakura and Tsunade came out after the nurses, the three approached them. "Mama, can we... go inside?" Sarada asked in a tiny voice. Sakura sighed and thought about it. "Only for a little while," she said finally. "He needs his rest." The children quickly nodded as they immediately walked inside the room. In less than a second, they were by Mitsuki's side. Boruto and Sarada grabbed his hands and squeezed them a little, not too tight of course... “Dammit, Mitsuki…” Shikadai mumbled with a catch in his voice. “How did you even get into this…?” "He’s an idiot, that’s how..." Boruto said in a whisper as he looked at his friend, biting his lip. "...do you have any idea of how much you scared us...?" Sarada sighed, Boruto was right, but if Mitsuki was hearing them, as some people claimed that while sleeping people could still hear the others on the outside… that sure wouldn't cheer him up. "He is right but… don't listen to him now..." She smiled softly. "You're going to be okay now and that's what matters..." The adults had gathered in front of the room, silently gazing inside, relieved that the kid had made it through the surgery even with such serious injuries. Konohamaru felt pride filling his heart, trying to drown the sorrow inside, as he looked at his students. "He is going to be alright..." he mumbled, more to himself than anyone really. "He sure is..." said Naruto softly. It was apparent in his features... he was grateful to God for having listened to their prayers. The Sannin was trying his hardest to keep his emotions at bay as he watched his son fighting for his life. He had always been the fighter, the strongest... His warrior spirit had not failed this time, either. He realized that he was proud... and glad - really glad that the child still carried that stubbornness... It seemed like they had been there forever, with the adults carefully watching over them, and medics dropping in every now and then to check. The three kids remained at the boy's side, talking to him... in hopes that he would soon wake up and... do something to cheer them all up. After what felt like an eternity, Boruto noticed a movement out of the corner of his eyes. "Mitsuki...?" he whispered unbelievably, as the blue-haired boy's fingers twitched once again. Sarada raised her head and looked at Mitsuki in amazement as his eyelashes fluttered slowly, his eyes opening a crack. Both of the kids gasped then, and a tearful smile made its way on the girl's face. "Mitsuki..." she whispered happily. It took a while for the blue haired boy to understand his surroundings. Where was he...? What had happened? Why did his body feel so... weak and numb...? But slowly the images of what had happened flashed in his head... the attack, the rogue ninjas... his father's arms... Mitsuki closed his eyes back for a moment before opening them again. "Bo... ruto...?" he whispered. "Sar... Sarada...?" He still couldn't make out the figures in front of him, but the blonde and black hairs seemed unmistakable… and another one… was that Shikadai…? His throat suddenly feeling parched, Mitsuki tried to gulp, but everything seemed to hurt now... Boruto was so relieved that he actually laughed - it was a broken laugh if anything, but a laugh nonetheless. "That's right, we're right here," he said, hastily wiping at his eyes to prevent the few tears from falling. "You are where you truly belong," Sarada mused in a broken voice, giving a gentle squeeze to Mitsuki's hand. Mitsuki couldn't help but return the smile with an equally broken, weak one. “Just take it easy, you’re going to be alright…” It wasn’t usual to see the always well-composed Shikadai like this, but now he looked quite shaken indeed. Mitsuki moved his golden eyes slowly to where Boruto was but looked past him, to the people outside of the room staring at him. "He is awake," he heard one of them say, though he couldn't make out who. Konohamaru had moved closer to the glass panel, a huge weight lifted from his heart as he saw his youngest student's eyes turning towards them, and couldn't help but smile himself as the general mood around him lightened with the child's awakening. "Well done kiddo... I knew you would make it..." he whispered. The boy felt his eyes burn slightly. He felt content... everyone in here was safe and sound. He had done it right... He tried to say something but no words came out. He felt his heart tug. Something... didn't feel right about this. He felt his body growing numb and cold with each passing second, so much that he had begun shaking a little. His heart was thumping loudly in his chest, he could feel each pound... but they were getting slower... 'Was this how it was supposed to be...?' he wondered. He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again, this time slower. Somehow... he felt this was just right, and that he... was actually ready. He gently pulled his hand out of Boruto's, reaching for something that was covering his mouth and nose. He didn't know how much strength he had left... He needed his friends to hear him... Boruto panicked a bit when he saw his friend reach for the oxygen mask. He couldn't take it off yet! He still needed it! The blond was quick to put his hand over Mitsuki's again. "Hey, easy there man. You can't take it off yet..." Sarada felt something was off, the look in Mitsuki's pale golden eyes was strange... Something wasn't right, they were so... empty, nothing like the gaze she was used to from him. Mitsuki felt a tremor shaking his body as his heart tried to do its job against all odds, even if for a few prolonged seconds. He slowly tried to raise his other hand but pain shot through it immediately. Seeing that he crumpled his face because of it, Sarada held on to his hand more tightly. With the last bit of his strength, Mitsuki gave his friends' hands a weak squeeze. "Thank you..." he whispered, and his eyes moved to Shikadai as he heard something in that steady noise change. "...for being my friends..." "What... nonsense are you talking about?" said Boruto, a worried frown crossing his features. "Why are you thanking us?" Shikadai felt his heart starting to race as his eyes widened, something was definitely wrong about this! He had been to hospitals before, he was sure he never heard the machines going haywire like this! “I-I’m going to call the medics!” he stammered to no one in particular, his friends’ attention wasn't on him. "Mi... Mitsuki..." Sarada whispered, a mix of emotions replacing her relieved one slowly as she got up from where she sat, watching the boy's chest moving slower - this was definitely not right! Her head whipped to the heart monitor as the pace picked up. Boruto didn't really know what these all meant, but their reaction gave him chills. "Mitsuki!" he shouted, holding on to his friend's hand, but the blue haired boy had lost his grip. "No, no... stay with us!!" This was more like a scream, and the blond felt himself losing his grip. "Fight it, stay with us!!!" "Boruto..." Even through all the sounds of the machines and the ringing in his ear as a reminiscent of his yelling, Boruto heard his friend's voice, and his own heart skipped a beat. "I'm sorry..." Mitsuki's hand slipped from his grasp and fell onto the mattress, just as the blond watched in horror his chest stopped moving altogether. An ear-piercing cry filled the room, breaking harshly into the deafening silence. … Shikadai froze, face-to-face with the adults as he heard the sound, their expressions a reflection of what he was suddenly feeling inside - a large, terrifying hollow, as if his stomach had dropped a couple of feet, leaving his body behind. Without even realizing what he was doing, the boy turned behind, his horrified gaze landing upon two of his best friends… trying to reach Mitsuki… He… was supposed to do something, he went out of this room for a reason, he was sure of it… but suddenly… he couldn’t remember what that was at all… ... Naruto had realized something was wrong the moment he had seen the kids start to panic, so he was ready to go get Sakura and Tsunade when Shikadai opened the door and came face-to-face with them. What he wasn’t at all prepared for was, though… His blood froze in his veins as his head quickly turned towards the boy in his bed, watching both his son and Sarada screaming for their friend. 'No, no, no...! You have to fight it!' This and many other frantic thoughts raced through the Hokage's mind as he stared in disbelief at what was happening... "Naruto!" Kakashi’s sharp voice woke him from his shock as he remembered what he had to do. He ran as fast as he could towards Sakura's office. He didn't even knock, he just abruptly pushed the door open. "Sakura-chan, Granny Tsunade! You have to come now!" Just the way he entered the room and the pure horror on Naruto's face left no need for further explanation as Sakura and Tsunade both practically ran out of the room, a few of the nurses also on their heels. Tsunade reached for her com to announce code blue and the room number, and Sakura, hearing the shrill cry of the heart machine, upped her pace. ... The little, blue-haired child was completely alone in the darkness... Well, that wasn't really accurate. There were people around. People he... remembered somehow. All with their backs to him. And he was scared... For some reason, he was scared beyond belief. He opened his mouth to call for them, tried to reach forward... But it seemed like they were too far away... 'You are no longer wanted here...' a voice came, and following that, one of the people surrounding him started walking away. There were many words, many hurtful phrases ringing around the darkness, and one by one people left, as the child only watched in fear and helplessness... Getting smaller and smaller with each step taken away from him... 'Why won't anyone come to your help...?' A tall brunette with a blue scarf walked away, and tears now started to fall from the child's eyes. 'Outsider!' rang a chorus of voices, as a blond and black haired duo walked away laughing, hand in hand, not taking a glance back. Broken, Mitsuki tried to run after them... but fell. He turned to the last person... A tall, black haired man. 'Dad...?' came a very feeble, childish voice. 'Why don't you hurry up and die already...?' with that, the man was gone, too. Now but a toddler, Mitsuki pulled his knees to him, hugging them with his small arms, and cried, cried... After what felt like an eternity, a shadow fell over him. The toddler raised his head, wondering, hoping if anyone had come back for him... His eyes widened in fear as he saw a gruff man with spiky blond hair looming over, looking down at him with a merciless leer. Without a heed to the child's crying and whimpering, the man grabbed a fistful of Mitsuki's hair and raised him in the air, laughing loud and cold... ... The girl, Sasuke's daughter, got up on the bed, trying to revive his boy, the Sannin could see how endless tears rolled down her cheeks one by one, unstoppable, as her whole frame shook. The boy had completely frozen... 'Mommy...?' a young voice inside his head asked, an almost hysteric tone to it, and for the briefest of seconds the room disappeared as the man saw two familiar bodies in front of him... A black haired man and a brown haired woman... Lying side by side, apparently dead... Then a small figure with long, black hair approached them. 'Daddy...?' ... Boruto had completely frozen in time the moment his friend's hand slipped out of his own and fell with a silent thud against the mattress. Blue eyes widened in horror, mouth hung open, he even found it difficult to breathe. Sarada was in shock too, but she was quick to snap out of it. She had to do something! Anything! Practically climbing on the bed, the Uchiha put both her hands, one on the top of the other, against Mitsuki's chest and pumped it. "No, no, no, you're not gonna die on us, you idiot!" Tears were starting to fall from her ebony eyes but the girl just kept on pushing the chest. But Mitsuki's eyes remained closed and the machine kept its chilled sound around the room... it wasn't working! "Mitsuki, come on!" Sarada cried out, and even more tears rolled down her cheeks. She wasn’t going to give up on her friend, she couldn't! "Get your heart beating!" She tried to hold back her sobs, but it was no use. "Please don't leave us!..." Her frame shook with the harsh sobs that were almost tearing her lungs apart, but she kept on pumping. "Please..." she begged, trying to tune out that awful sound. ...At that moment, her mother and Tsunade came in running. "Get them out of here!" yelled Tsunade as she reached the bed and pushed Boruto out of the way as gently as she could. Sakura took her daughter in her arms and quickly set her back on the floor. The pink haired woman then moved swiftly to the dying boy and returned to do what her daughter had been doing all along. "Start keeping track of the time!" Boruto only came to his senses as he felt strong arms grabbing him. "No! NO!" he screamed, his eyes still on his friend. "LET ME GO, I NEED TO BE WITH HIM!!" he continued screaming, and actually tried to kick whoever was holding him as he was being taken out of the room. "MITSUKI!!!" he screamed at the top of his lungs, and started sobbing harshly. Then that someone scooped him up and he suddenly found himself snuggled into his father's chest. "Don't look..." Naruto whispered, his voice strained and grave. Boruto held onto his father's clothes as he started crying his heart out. He never realized Naruto was taking him out until he felt a cool wind ruffling his hair. Sarada tried to return to her friend's side but as soon as she did, a strong arm grabbed and scooped her up as well. She only realized she was being taken when she saw Mitsuki and her mother getting further and further away... But she didn't have any strength left... not even to scream the way Boruto had... … “Move away, boy,” Shikadai heard Lady Fifth’s urgent voice and felt her hands firmly moving him aside. Maybe he shouldn’t… but he just couldn’t help it as he immediately drifted back to the window of the room, watching the chaos inside, his friends getting forcefully taken away… He couldn’t move… All his muscles were locked in place as he looked on, shell-shocked… He had forgotten that they weren’t at all alone, at least not until he felt a familiar touch, a motherly but firm one… “Please don’t take me out too,” he whispered, his tone so listless that he wasn’t sure Ino heard him. Gently, Ino turned him away from the window and held him tightly to herself. “Don’t watch then…” “This… this can’t possibly be happening…” the boy kept murmuring numbly, not even realizing he was shaking like a leaf. “We… we are still children… there has to be some sort of rule setting kids apart from these situations, right…?” Ino didn’t say anything more, just held him closer. They would have to bring him back… right…? ... Not... all was lost, no he wouldn't believe that. Truthfully, he should have taken this in his own hands from the beginning instead of trusting Konoha. There was still Juugo... And even if that plan fails, he could always deliver his son's soul to another, healthy body, maybe even one of those children's bodies if it came to that point... 'I just want my parents back...!' the voice, his seven-year-old voice screamed in his head, tears in his voice... He was... crying...? 'Why did it have to be them?! Why do I have to be alone?! That's not fair!' ... "How many seconds?" Sakura asked, sweat dropping by the side of her cheek. "Fifteen," a nurse answered, quickly looking at her watch. 'Good Lord,’ Sakura thought, forcing her mind to stay clear. "Move your hands." she heard Tsunade call, and she used the time to focus her chakra in her hands. She watched as her mentor injected a small portion of adrenaline directly to the boy's heart. "Hekirekite no Jutsu!" She brought her hands back down on Mitsuki's chest, and the boy's body lifted slightly from the bed. ... The boy was crying, the pain was too much to bear... Why... why did he have to suffer so...? Shouldn't it be quicker if he just let go, and never looked back...? Suddenly, the man's cruel laughter stopped, and his hand released the toddler's hair. Before he could fall, though, he was caught, held gently and lovingly in a pair of warm arms. He dared to raise his head and look... The angel's light was pushing away all the darkness, all the hateful voices, trying to heal his heart... The pink haired angel smiled fondly at him, her arms tightening around him a little more, her expression so merciful and loving... 'It's okay, baby, it's going to be alright...' she mused, almost cooing. 'Don't be afraid... I'm here...' ... Sakura mentally cursed as the machine's sound didn't change. Seeing no changes with the first charge, Tsunade repeated the same move... She had to be careful, the boy’s heart was already so weak due to the burns... but they had to bring him back. "Come on..." Sakura whispered, not taking her eyes from the boy's face, counting as she continued with the compressions. "You can do it, Mitsuki, come on..." she let her chakra flow to his body once again, but the results were the same... ... Don’t be afraid...? How was he supposed to do that...? The little toddler could feel nothing but fear, even with the angel here... None of those people who he cared about was here... They... didn't... care about him... 'Why do you fight...?' a sinister voice rang in his ears, blocking the angel's. Squeezing his eyes shut, the toddler pushed away from her. He scrambled to his feet quickly and started running, deeper and deeper into the darkness... Then he stumbled onto something and fell forward, landing hard on the ground. Cruel laughter echoed all around the black void, and the toddler curled in on himself, sobbing. 'Outsider! Outsider! Outsider!' the chants echoed repeatedly while the boy kept crying, wishing this to all end... ... The minutes passed, excruciatingly slow but also painfully quick... and nothing. "...Sh... Shall I announce the time...?" The nurse couldn't finish the sentence, a sad look visible in her eyes. Sakura was distinctly aware that there was some sort of chaos going on inside or outside of the room, but her mind had automatically tuned out any sound other than the machine. "Wait... wait just a second..." she mumbled in response to the nurse. She still had her hands on the kid's chest, she couldn't give up... She had to act careful, but she knew just the tiniest amount of shock that might do the difference, and she would never forgive herself if she didn't give it all her best. "Sakura-san... It might be too much already..." The nurse warned her. "Let's just leave the child in peace..." another nurse said, her voice shaky. Tsunade snapped back to herself and hastily hushed the nurse, staring at Sakura. Sakura remained in silence as she kept looking at the heart machine, her chakra still flowing through Mitsuki's chest... 'Please… please come back...' Sakura thought... ... The toddler wasn't sure how long he stayed there, curled up in the fetus position, crying, hurting... He felt a warm presence approaching... felt someone putting their arms around him yet again, but he lacked the energy, the will to look up... He didn't know anymore... ... Outside, a leaf from a nearby tree fell from its place as the clouds dropped their first tears and wetted the ground, little by little...        

[celebritytgcaptions]

Status Update (8/12/21)

Update: Hiatus Not Really a Hiatus

Hi lovelies! Some of you may remember that I was planning on taking a hiatus from early September until October 1st when I would start publishing Halloween caps. Well I still am...but I’m also not.

Between Sept. 5th to the 24th I will only be posting remake captions.

Because of a lot of different things, a handful of posts were deleted from the blog over the last year. I’ve been slowly remaking them & posting them on Thursdays as part of Throwback Thursday BUT I’m impatient and tired of waiting around. So I remade MOST of the captions that were deleted and have them in the queue until Sept. 24th. There were some captions I couldn’t remake because they were too specific to the image I was using and some I’m waiting to post until later (for example: I have a few Halloween remakes ready for October). But for the most part, every deleted caption will be remade before the year is over.

Then from Sept. 25th to 30th I will be posting...RANDOM SHIT FROM THE VAULT!

Basically I ran out of deleted caps to remake and since I 1) only had a few days left until Oct. 1st when I could start filling the queue with Halloween caps & 2) am anal as hell, for those six days you’re going to be seeing some really random stuff. This includes captions I never posted before, failed attempts at new formats, alternate versions of preexisting captions, & maybe even a few remakes from the first time I tried this blog. Basically anything I could do to squeeze twelve more caps into my queue without burning myself out before Halloween.

What this means for the posts from Sept. 5th to 30th:

For the most part I tried to adhere to my normal weekly schedule when remaking and posting old stuff. Wednesdays will still have comics, Thursdays are throwbacks (sequels), Fridays will have GIFs. BUT there won’t be any games from Sept. 5th to 30th. The point of these September posts is to add content to the blog that was simple to make so I don’t get burned out before the holidays which always inspire a lot of caps. But don’t worry lovelies, I’m planning on three games in October all Halloween themed so hopefully you’ll enjoy that.

Oh, also, requests are open.

Any requests made today won’t be seen until October at the earliest but yes, requests are open. If you have a specific Halloween-themed request in mind get it in soon because there are only so many I can post before November and I’ve already written some. I will make a status update when I can’t take any more Halloween-themed captions if I have to. Otherwise try to limit requests to no more than two or three celebs at a time and I reserve the right to close the requests at any time if there are just too many for me to handle.

That’s everything lovelies! Hope you like what cums next. ;)

[partnersatfazbear]

I still have to make my Easter post...

I have a summer / beach themed Willry drawing I promise I’ll post for you guys. Probably will be a lot of sketches (composition) and a final peice that’s kinda whimsical. Like... playful/cute? Like you see those anime girls on posters in Otomedia and shit, but it’s gonna be our two bois. IDK what inspired it, but I am excited to have any inspiration at all.

I’m struggling a lot aka having my mid-life crisis... so I’m kind of figuring out what I want to do for the next twenty - forty years. I’ve thought about going back to writing (and self publishing). It is an expensive endeavor and I have no “fanbase” to speak of [aside you guys, but I’m not trying to push my personal projects on you even if I mention them now and then]. Writing isn’t even the hard part. I’ve got 12, maybe 14 books just sitting in my head. Since ‘98 (yes I’m old) I’ve only completed 2 manuscripts... however this is due to losing several due to tech issues, growing into a young adult, ect.

That’s depressing though? If any of you saw the art Scott put out for The Breaking Wheel story it’s so good. It’s how I imagined it.

My wife and I had some strain this last year so we have made Thursdays a day where we go mall walk and try to stay in shape. I’ve remade my savings by selling misc. things (truly, I wish I could own an anime/game store- in fact I will tangent a funny story below) and a little extra. Not trying to go crazy with it, but I figure I can get us a coffee to split once a week while we walk (although that kind of defeats the purpose). We’re gonna try to do more laps each time. There’s also the wonderful Peruvian booth and the salesman there... like I have to buy something every time I see him.

(I needed a new wallet and this one was amazing. My grandpa used to leatherwork and so this really reminds me of him.)

I have a strange fascination with the Inca history and culture and I even made a game demo I still intend to remake once (look up 2bitsgames on itch.io) but I may have lost the entire demo ... I think I have the assetts still, although I think I could make even better ones now. I’ve been itching to make a very traditional JRPG and this one is like Final Fantasy X (in terms of Yuna’s story) with some science fiction thrown in.

Now for that story I promised--speaking of wanting to self publish, I thought of porting my guides to importing games/anime into e-books or even Skillshare. I read horrible things about Skillshare lately, though. I think an e-book is still plausible, but not sure if there’s an audience for it. I have helped SO MANY people buy from Japan (not through myself) and that makes me feel like it would be a good endeavor...

I also am dealing with some minor health stuff and trying to distract myself by binging a new show. I just finished some Sweets / Chopped and Sweets / Nailed It thing (I actually don’t LOVE sweets unless its marshmallow) and now I’m watching Disappeared (think: Unsolved Mysteries). These kinds of shows GRIP me!

I keep straying further from FNAF, but I’ll get way back into it once the new book or Security Breach comes out. I just thrive on new content, so it’s hard for me to look at all my work and be creative with it when I don’t have new inspiration. However, if you guys want to try requesting art or one shot fics for Willry / Helliam, I am completely open to that idea and would make time for that.

I know this post is all over the place and I apologize. I have been organizing the apartment (see *some* of my Star Ocean collection below) which includes cleaning and cooking, trying to “earn my keep” while unemployed (my idea, not my wife’s). The Star Ocean collection is my baby; it’s the one thing I would never hate and means so much to me. ALOT of items wouldn’t fit here (sealed games, more figures, plush, can badges, towels, tote bags, a clock, resin kits, keychains, posters... it’s a lot guys. Let me also note this is mostly for Star Ocean: the second story and it’s remake). I’ve been seriously considering updating my HiddenGemToys blog with more reviews soon...

I job hunt but for now I am clearing out everything I can part with to build a savings so we aren’t struggling all the time. I have been playing the Mana games as you know, but I soon move onto the SaGa games, which is daunting. I counted 9 main titles although I’ve read there’s 12 games... so I have my work cut out for me.

[avidrawsthings]

Just a small announcement I wanted to make!

Somewhat lengthy post below.

As mentioned here, after Hogwarts Mystery first released, I started off with my Ravenclaw MC named Avi Birb lol She’s not a self insert or an OC, but more of a walking meme more than anything. It was an excuse to have all the characters, especially Snape, say ‘Birb’.

I stopped playing after reaching Year 5 Chapter 18 as I found myself fed up with the game and therefore lost interest. At that point in time, Chapter 18 was the farthest that it went.

I can’t remember what got me back into playing from the beginning with Reina, so I can only assume it was when Year 5 hadn’t updated in several weeks up until that point. Since I was far more focused on Reina, I stuck through the game and made it all the way to Year 6 before I lost my file over a month ago. The only cause that comes to mind could’ve been an issue with the emulator (Bluestacks) I was using at that time.

Switching accounts meant logging out of the Facebook account it was linked to, uninstall Hogwarts Mystery, switch to the FB account with the other file, and reinstall Hogwarts Mystery again so that when it opened up, it’d be with the other character. It’s just as tedious as it sounds. 

Since I was using the same emulator for both (my phone is old and could no longer run the game), it suffered an error at some point that caused my original playthrough of Reina to vanish as it no longer appeared when used with the FB account it was saved on. Instead it just showed the default character select screen and no longer gave the option to select your saved file.

My solution to prevent this was to have a second emulator, Memu. Reina’s current file is in Bluestacks and Avi’s is on Memu. 

Rather than go back to Avi, I remade a new file with Reina since I was far more invested in her. Earlier today I finally caught up to Year 5 Chapter 18, as pictured above. Why mention this? For the time being, I’m going to pause my playthrough with Reina and go back to Avi. Once I reach Year 6, I’ll switch back to Reina and catch her up as well.

Now that doesn’t mean I’m going to stop drawing Reina. On the contrary, I’ll still be drawing her and have plenty of pics planned out I’m hoping to get back to soon. Just wanted to share this with ya’ll!

[noccalula-writes]

What are your favorite games and franchises? Top 5?

OH BOY have I got feelings on this subject. 

Please keep in mind - I’m a storyteller and a writer. I fucking /love/ a good story. I DM a DnD game and my biggest weakness is that I don’t often include enough combat because I am so much more interested in telling a story. So for me, there’s got to be an emotional investment for a game to really land. I also hyperfixate like a motherfucker so I often refuse to pick up new things purely because there’s not enough space in my head for them at the time, so I’m slow getting to things as they come out. 

So, I’m first and foremost a survival horror bitch. I cut my teeth on Parasite Eve before I played any others - my mother scrimped and saved and fought her way through Wal-mart back in like 1998 to get me the original Playstation gaming console and Tekken 2 (which was my first PS game, I played it in an arcade near her barber shop as a child - Tomb Raider 2 was my second). The old Playstation discs at that time came with demos for different games, including Metal Gear Solid, which I replayed until I could have done it in my sleep because poverty meant I wasn’t likely to get another game anytime soon. I mention this because the Parasite Eve trailer used to give me nightmares but I was super, super hooked. 

I am a huge Silent Hill fan. Huge. That is a tragedy I could write a whole ‘nother post about, because as excited as I am to finally get my hands on Death Stranding (again, poverty, so it’ll be another minute before we can get a PS4), we’ll never get another SH game again unless some major reconciliation happens with Kojima and Konami, which is unlikely (and also hard to hope for - I’m happy Kojima now has the creative freedom to go as balls to the wall as he wants). 

I am an equally huge Resident Evil fan. I’ve always maintained that my first fandom was The X Files, but my wife pointed out a few nights ago that my RE love started around the same time in the late 90′s, so now it’s a chicken and egg kind of thing. Point being, it’s either The or One Of my longest lasting fandoms/interests. RE and Silent Hill get compared to one another a lot - RE7 did nothing to help that - but they really are apples and oranges to me. Fruit, sure, but two totally different tones and experiences. 

I’ve been a huge Tomb Raider fan for forever - my first high school boyfriend was loaded and bought me Angel of Darkness to come play at his house and while it was def critically panned, I do recall enjoying it - so that’s been fun to get those games remade with updated graphics. I’ve only played the one but the others are def on The List. 

So now that I’ve talked for an hour, my Top 5 fave games ever - 

#1 - Resident Evil 3 I am beyond jazzed for this remake, and a lot of people in the 90′s complained about RE3′s lack of clear cut boss battles, but I don’t know what they’re talking about. The entire fucking game is a boss battle - Jill vs. Raccoon City, and of course, Nemesis, who used to give my mother nightmares and caused me to sleep with a leaf-stabber by my bed for years. Jill is far and away my favorite protagonist in RE; she’s got a resilience of the spirit that somehow isn’t conflated with naivety, which is uncommon in ‘nice’ female protags. She’s savvy but she’s still kind, and she’s committed as fuck to survival - not to mention, as zealotous a Chris and Jill shipper as I am, she and Carlos had hella chemistry and I’m excited to see where that goes (JD Pardo would have made a fuck of a Carlos Oliviera, btw). It was An Experience and it’s forever at my #1. 

#2 - The Last of Us 

There is no comparison for emotional weight in video games, as far as I’m concerned. SPOILERS if you don’t already know the ending (this game came out in what, 2014?) but to me one of the biggest thing in the game’s favor is that the protagonist made the wrong choice. He had an option to potentially eradicate the cordyceps fungus and maybe save the world, turn the tides back for humanity, and with the weight of the world in the balance, he chose to save Ellie instead. It was, on a global scale, the wrong choice - but it was the human choice. It was the thing that a dad who never properly grieved his dead daughter would do for the surrogate daughter he inherited by accident. As for Ellie, there is no other character quite like her in games, and she’s fucking quality LGBT representation, especially considering how little we see queer children in media. I still cry every time, we play this game twice a year like clockwork and every single time, I still cry. 

#3 - Silent Hill 3 

All of SH’s games will have a special place in my heart - and if you wanna talk shit about Downpour, I’ll meet you in the Denny’s parking lot at 11, you better square the fuck up because I will defend Murphy with fists - but 3 is the best, hands down. I felt like it did the best job of streamlining the series’ ... uhm... somewhat complicated lore into something more understandable. SPOILERS: The villains are horrific - the Missionaries strike fear into my heart every time I play, and Claudia eating a miscarried god fetus to become god herself? Fucked up on a level you rarely see. I suppose if you didn’t catch it in the last sentence - your protag Heather vomits up a fetal god late in the game. Yes, you read that right. The best thing about this game though? Heather. I could climb up my feminist soapbox and talk about Heather as a subversion to video game tropes all fucking day - she’s a nonsexualized teenage girl whose father is killed for her character development. She’s self-sufficient, tough but still vulnerable, and hard as nails in a fight. As I might have mentioned a time or six, she also voluntarily aborts a god because Fuck Your Plans, She’s Got Her Own. 

#4 - Final Fantasy X 

Listen. I don’t know how much of this is because of actually enjoying playing the game and how much of it is emotional attachment. As most of you who follow me know, my mother died when I was sixteen. When I was about fourteen, I dated a rich kid who used to bring his PS2 to our very not-rich house and play games for us to watch - the sort of neophyte version of Watching Guys Play Videogames, if you will, which is another rant for another time. He got a Gamecube specifically so I could play RE Zero and Hunter The Reckoning. He was a neckbeard but he was also desperate to keep me from ditching so he did the smart thing and plied my very poor ass with money and food. The #1 game in the watching roster, though, was FFX - and if you know anything about the game, you know how heavily spirituality features into the story. My mother, very caught up in a very Eastern Philosphy Meets Quantum Physics internal seeking about the nature of things, was hooked from the word Go. She used to sit and watch Trey play for hours - we all did, but having her join us and love it that much? Wonderful. Half my memories of this game are both of us crying - crying when Yuna dances to send the souls, crying when Yuna reveals she’s on a suicide mission, crying when she and Tidus fall in love anyway, crying when she sends her Aeons to die in the final fight, crying over ‘the fayts are waking up’, crying when the big reveal about Auron comes up, crying crying crying. My wife bought it in 2011 and I watched her play through it again and while it suffers from the same issue as all FF games - too much filler and weird battle scenarios - it was cathartic. I miss my mom. 

#5 - Resident Evil 6 

Eat my entire ass. You already knew this was coming. I will defend this game to my grave for the fact that we have complex, interesting narratives surrounding female characters who have actual personalities. Was it perfect? No. Did it take RE out of horror territory and move it more into action? Woefully, yes. Is this series deeply problematic for where it chooses to set down your mostly-white protags and have them kill their way through? Big time. Don’t gloss those facts. But it’s got emotional punch in spades and a few weird character breaks that ended up being kind of brilliant - Chris has been so resiliently relentless in his fight against bioterrorism that a major PTSD break was inevitable. Leon would of course risk life and limb to help Helena, even though she implicated herself in something terrible. The icing on the cake to me was a grown up Sherry Birkin, wide eyed and believing like hell in the fight she thought she was on the right side of and getting knocked down only to get back up. Ada’s entire side campaign was brilliant. I hate some of the control choices they made in this game - the running from the Haos scenes near the end of Chris and Piers’ campaign makes me want to eat my own fist - but so it goes with most RE games (until RE4, moving your protag was like driving a tank). Jake and Sherry are My Unsinkable Ship. There are at least six scenes across this game that never get easier to watch - when the bomb hits the city and the cut scene of the mass infections begin, I still get sick to my stomach - and that, to me, is the mark that this game struck a hell of a chord in terms of storytelling. 

This was long.