#&. did i do a good job? ╱ arc four. ’

[hwei]

finally read some lore today. imagine being so amulet-able and sealable. everyone keeps sealing you away because you're cringe

[forbidden-sunlight]

yandere! literary agent with fem!reader scenario

warnings: implication of obsessive thoughts or love.

There might be potential triggers in this story. If you do not feel comfortable venturing any further, please hit the 'back' button on your mobile device or computer and read something much more pleasant.

You are responsible for your Internet consumption!

Hey guys, welcome back to another yandere fic, introducing Yulian Prescott. I'd like to give a big shout-out to my dear friend @deathmetalunicorn1 for helping me write this and finding the perfect likeness for my character, especially when this idea came to me all of a sudden on a Sunday night when I should be sleeping instead of staying up an ungodly hour.

As always, bullying on here will not be tolerated. If it does happen, this scenario will be taken down. I'm not sure if this will be a series. At the moment, this is just a scenario.

With that being said, sit back, relax, and let's dive into the cutthroat world of publishing.

PART TWO

Yandere!Literary Agent is a man who prides himself on being very good at his job. He represented one of the best publishing houses in the country. Anything less than what he expected from his clients was unacceptable.  

If the manuscript arrived in his inbox exactly two minutes past the promised deadline, he would not look at it. If his client is acting like a stupid moron at a function or royally fucking up their reputation by posting something inappropriate on their social media account, he is not cleaning up their mess. He is not their babysitter. They are full-grown adults. And if one of them is not able to produce another book that will actually sell past the number of copies slated to be printed, he will let them go. Call him cruel if you want. Yandere!Literary Agent is simply being pragmatic. He wasn’t cheap. He only wants the best of the best.

So imagine Yandere!Literary Agent’s surprise when a particularly difficult client sent him a completed manuscript. He planned on writing her an email that after much deliberation, it was time for her to find another agent to represent her. The client, Abigail Crowley, had written an adult dark academia trilogy and a feminist retelling of the myth of Theseus, told from the perspective of his lover Adriane. The manuscripts following the conclusion of her last book, however, were complete shit. Her royalties were nearly gone, having squandered them on a penthouse in a high-end neighborhood, the latest clothes, and a wine fridge. You heard him. A fucking wine fridge when she could have replaced that shoddy laptop of hers with something better so she could keep writing books and not have it crap out on her. 

Half-amused and half-annoyed at this pathetic attempt to keep her contract with the publishing company from being null and void, Yandere!Literary Agent clicked on the attachment and read it. One page became four, then fifty. He had to force himself to stop when it was lunchtime and he was already at the mid-way point. 

This story, it was…good. No, it was more than good. It was absolutely fantastic. And Yandere!Literary Agent did not compliment his clients’ works very often, which meant he believed at this very moment, this manuscript will most definitely become Abigail’s comeback to the literary industry. Book sales would go through the roof, A Netflix deal was also possible. But the first hurdle he had to overcome was pitching the manuscript, and making sure the query letter was at least consistent with the story that Abigail was trying to sell to him.

And he’ll make it happen. He is very good at his job, after all. 

Once he had successfully pitched it with a bit of extra charm, he contacted Abigail. She was over the moon, promising to make any necessary edits to the manuscript and it will be sent to him on time. From there, time fast forwarded. ARC books were sent out, Abigail selected the cover designs for the regular and special editions, and a tentative book tour was scheduled. Seven cities, and one international trip, maybe another in the future. Sales for this book were projected to exceed expectations. Yandere!Literary Agent was very confident things would go smoothly from here. At least he had thought so.

A month before the book was to be published, his secretary knocked on his door and said he had a visitor. They insisted on seeing him. Yandere!Literary Agent raised his brow, rising from his desk and stepping out into the hall and saw you. 

In the beginning, he will begrudgingly confess that his first impression of you was someone who is painfully average and out of place. A backpack slung over your shoulder, dressed in navy blue medical scrubs and looking absolutely haggard. Your eyes, though, shined with anxiety and determination. You inclined your head. 

“I apologize for the sudden intrusion, I know you’re busy, but I have some concerns about the book that’s going to be released soon by Abigail Crowley.” 

Yandere! Literary Agent’s gaze sharpened.. “And what, pray tell, are your complaints?” He crossed his arms. “Are you one of the people who had signed up to be ARC reader and didn’t get their copy?” 

You raised an eyebrow. “...No?”

“Then why -”

“Because it is my novel that is being published. Without my consent.” You sighed, running a hand through your hair. “Look, I know it is hard to believe, I get it.” You then swung your backpack around to your front, unzipping the larger compartment. You pulled out a large notebook, some papers, and a flash drive. You held them out to him. “But I think what I have here might convince you to allow me ten minutes, if not five, to hear me out. That’s all I’m asking. This isn’t about money, this isn’t about suing your company. I just want my story back. I’ve already tried talking to Abigail about it, and she isn’t picking up my calls. Please.” You said. “Three minutes.” 

His schedule was clear until the two o’clock meeting with another client on the other side of town. That was about an hour and half from now, as he had just come back from lunch. He supposed he could give you three minutes. Rolling his eyes, Yandere!Literary Editor swiveled on his heel. 

“Let’s see what you have. Melissa, please hold my calls until I’m done.” His diligent secretary nodded and went back to her desk. You followed him like a lost little duckling back to his office. Once the door was closed, you handed him everything. 

Yandere!Literary Editor went over the materials carefully, flipping through the pages of the notebook. The outlines and character designs were here, all written in excruciating detail and in such tiny print. He asked you random questions, going off of his memory from the manuscript and these notes. You answered him without hesitation.

“Yes, that’s correct. What? No, absolutely not. I would never have those characters be romantically paired up! Their relationship is too toxic, and wouldn’t set a good example to the target audience. I’m sorry, what? No, that isn’t her name! It’s Cristabel, not Anastasia! She’s supposed to be assisting the Night Emperor with collecting intelligence via the gossip of salons under her alias, not swooning over his brother when he’s already happily married to his wife! Good God, no. That scene should not even be there! That’s filler content and makes the character growth of the protagonist seem like the pay-off wasn’t worth it, or that he didn’t learn anything at all since the beginning of the book!” 

Yandere!Literary Agent grounded the molars of his back teeth, inhaling slow, deep breaths through his nostrils. Keeping his emotions in check is one of the reasons why he has survived in the publishing industry for this long, and he’s such a successful man. 

But hearing you speak about the characters, perfectly recalling the manuscript’s themes and looking back at the notebook in his hand, seeing the colorful  sticky notes with edits and improvised scenes written on them…he couldn’t deny it any further. You were the real author of the book he’s representing, and Abigail Crowley played him like a goddamned fiddle.

 If this wasn’t enough damning evidence of his client’s plagiarism, you had shown him an original illustration of the world you had created. It was done by an artist you had commissioned on Etsy, with proof of purchase for their services and a timestamp. Three years ago. That was when Abigail’s last best-selling book hit the shelves, and when her creative well began to dry out. 

You must have caught on to his irritation, because you told him that you weren’t here to intentionally stir up any trouble. A coworker had told you about Abigail’s newest book coming out, and the premise was exactly yours, at least what was advertised in the BookTok and Youtube trailers online. You’ve been searching high and low for your manuscript, and the only other person who has been in your apartment and knew about your creative endeavors has been Abigail. She wasn’t really your friend, per say. You took some of the same creative writing courses. You eventually found another career to pursue, and you kept writing as a hobby. She went on to become a professional author and never missed an opportunity to show off her success whenever she invited you out for drinks at an upscale bar or went to fancy dinners. 

Why would Abigail steal the book you’ve been working on for three years when you work a full-time day job, you had no idea. She’s living the dream that she’s always wanted, defying her mother’s wishes to get a normal job because writing is everything to her, and she would never give up on it. But if you were to be hypothetical, it might be another attempt to somehow get one up on her self-proclaimed rival, Cindy Chen, who is an even bigger success than her. 

You then rubbed your eyes. “Sorry, it’s been a long day.” You murmured, standing up from your seat. “Keep the notebook, the maps, whatever you want. If you could return them to me when you’re done, that’s all I ask. And an apology from Abigail, if you’re able to get one out of her. Like I said, this isn’t about money, royalties, or fame. I just want my story back.” 

Yandere!Literary Agent immediately stood up, his eyes slightly widened in fear. “Wait, please, just a moment! I know you’re tired, you want to go home…but I need to set things right. If I had known that this manuscript, your story, had been stolen, I would have never spearheaded its  publication.” And he wouldn’t have. Not only would it affect his reputation, but the company’s too. Stocks would plummet, and there would be a feeding frenzy on social media with #abigailcrowley, #plagiarism, #sailboatpublishinghouse. 

When you looked at him, his heart lurched uncomfortably at seeing your lips fall into a crestfallen expression. You looked so tired, so done with everything, and oh god you looked like you were about to cry shit. Walking around his desk, Yandere!Literary Agent eased you to sit back down and quickly prepared an espresso, possessing a machine to make it in his office so he did not have to walk down five flights to the break room. 

You thanked him for the drink and took a sip, wrinkling your nose slightly, no doubt surprised at the taste. You must not be a regular espresso drinker, or prefer how you made it. Either way, he was grateful that you did not bolt out of the office. Picking up his office phone, he dialed Melissa’s number. 

“Call all of the heads, including the marketing and social media departments. This is an emergency meeting. Now!” Bless Melissa, she did not ask him questions and said she would get on it immediately, hanging up on him. The next person he called was Abigail fucking Crowley. He sweet-talked her into coming to the office, apologizing for interrupting her ‘creativity time’ and promised it won’t take long. She swore to be there in a half an hour, so long as traffic didn’t back up. Yandere!Literary Agent played the understanding card and hung up, his smile being replaced with a smirk. Hook, line, and sinker. He scoffed. He then turned to you. 

“Everything will be resolved soon.” He promised. 

“Sir -” You began. 

“Yulian, please.” 

“Mister Yulian, I understand that you want to make things right, but…can you really get Abigail to talk? She blocked my calls, and the book is hitting the shelves in a month, maybe less than that? How are you going to recover the money that has gone into getting it published, the fees for the printing companies, and the marketing? Correct me if I’m wrong, I’m not too familiar with how publishing works these days.” 

You weren’t wrong, at least in the aspect that the company has put a significant amount of money into the publication of the stolen manuscript, your work, he added mentally. It was too late to stop the printing, and the final draft would need a significant amount of changes. Unless…

“Abigail is a plagiarist, and you are the rightful creator. The way I see it, we can salvage the financial loss by putting your name on the cover, and fixing the glaring omissions as well as other scenes you claim shouldn’t even be there.” He sighed, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “Of course, we would need to have a press conference and explain why we are changing authors, and what she has done. Considering the timetable and coordinating with the printing companies, it will be cutting it close.” 

You stared at him silently for a long moment before placing the espresso cup back onto the tiny saucer with a soft clink, releasing a heavy sigh. “If I agree to do this, to help with the edits, probably fuck up my sleeping pattern and might potentially be fired from my job unless I can use some of my PTO, what will I get in return?” 

He smiled. “Abigail will be the one to pay for publishing and marketing fees. I can extend the deadline for the revisions by a week. And you will be paid for your time, of course. There will be no need to come here to drop off revisions either. All correspondence will be through email. As an agent, I am qualified to be your representative during press conferences, so you will not have to be present. All I would ask of you is to turn in the final manuscript on time and not say anything on social media until our legal team is fully prepared.”

“No need to worry about Twitter or Facebook. Haven’t logged  on to my account in years.” You raised the espresso cup to your lips. “Too much politics.” You tilted your head to the side, a puzzled frown stretching across your face. “Any chance I could get all of this in writing? I might need to get a lawyer if Abigail tries to take it to court and sue me for defamation.” 

Yandere!Literary Agent nodded. He opened up a blank document and immediately typed up the contract, including everything that you have discussed and a few other variables. Once he finished, he printed it out, handing it to you. You read through the contents carefully before handing it back to him.

“It looks good - it’s all here and I’m agreeable to the terms.” You said.

Humming under his breath, Yandere! Literary Agent signed the bottom. You signed your name next to his, with today’s date and the time. 

He ignored the tiny tingle that crawled up his spine when your fingertips brushed against his as you gave him back the pen. You agreed to stay until the matter with Abigail was over, and he would email you the manuscript so you could go through everything when you get home. 

As it turned out, you did not have to wait much longer for the best-selling author to make her entrance at Board Room 3. Exchanging numbers with Yandere! Literary Agent you would wait in the adjacent room until he sent you a text to make your entrance. Melissa escorted you to said room when he received a message from Abigail that she would be here in ten minutes. 

It’s time. That was the message he sent you. When you opened the door, revealing yourself to the staff and the flustered Abigail…she snapped. 

She rambled how she needed a book, just one more successful book, and she would be set for life. She wouldn’t lose her penthouse, she would still be considered a worthy rival to Cindy Chen, and above all else, she could still write as she had always wanted to do since she was a teenager. You already had a normal job, you had a steady income, you weren’t even a writer. Being a hobbyist writer did not count. Yes, she took your manuscript, but it wasn’t a big deal! You could just write another book when you had time between shifts at the hospital, right? 

The look you gave her…it was resignation. Hopelessness. Disappointment. 

“Abbie…it wasn’t just a story I wrote. You should know that. Writing is so much more than that. I’ve tried to be nice, to talk to you but you wouldn’t listen. I’m sorry it’s come to this, I really am.” You said. That was the last thing you said before you were escorted outside of the door. Seeing your part in this is over, Yandere! Literary Agent took control of the room. 

“Whether it is a hobby or professional writing, it doesn’t change the fact that you stole someone’s work and tried to pass it off as your own.” He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “You are a thief, nothing more and nothing less.” Then the lawyers approached Abigail, presenting her with the fees she will need to pay. If there was an issue, going to court would not be an issue as he had all of the evidence needed to ruin the once best-selling writer Abigail Crowley. 

Her reaction was….amusing. 

After security had escorted the screaming woman off of the premises, Yandere!Literary Agent went to search for you, thinking you had gone back to his office to wait for him. You weren’t there. Melissa said you did stop by her desk, only to leave a message on a sticky note that you needed to go home but promised to get the revisions done as fast as you could, and thanks for the espresso it was really good. 

Yandere!Literary Agent smiled softly at the hastily written chicken scratch, pocketing it in his trousers before going back inside his office. You weren’t like any of his other clients. And he would like to get to know a bit more. Who knows? Perhaps….he could persuade you to sign a contract with him, be your agent. You shouldn’t hide your talents from the world. There were people who would love to read your stories, and he had no doubt that the company would benefit from it too. 

But there was no need to rush. There was a month until the book was to be released. That was more than enough time for him to work his magic. He is good at his job, after all. 

Taglist

@impeakcharacterdesign

@faesdreaming

@faux-ecrivain

@majestichugs

@abelheilonwife

@suiana

@lxdymoon0357

@dxmoness

@tired-of-life-86

@imperfectbloodmoon

@lovely-nightmares

@yandere-dark-cupid

@beardedblizzardexpert

@d10nsaint

@likesugarandcyanide

@justcressida

@mooly-artistic

@cassanderasblog

@swallowtailcherry

@amidst-the-tempest

@usernames-are-so-hard-to-create

@navierkalani

@yanderefangirl

©️do not repost or use any of the characters depicted here without the author’s permission. forbidden-sunlight, 2024

[thankskenpenders]

IDW's Fang the Hunter miniseries! All four issues are out now! I don't have as much to say about it as I did with the Knuckles show, but I do have some thoughts.

So! This is a pretty fun miniseries. I liked it.

It's fun to see Ian get to write a four-issue arc starring the Hooligans, his precious boys, with a B-plot showing Sonic and Tails' perspective on this little adventure. As always, Ian captures the characters' voices well. In particular, I really liked Bean in this, who despite being a slapstick screwball is actually a pretty perceptive guy. He often acts as sort of a voice of reason for Fang, seeing right through his sweet talking and pointing out how badly all of their schemes go but sticking around nonetheless just for funsies. And the art (illustrated this time by Mauro Fonseca for the first issue and Thomas Rothlisberger for the rest) is as good as we've come to expect from IDW's Classic Sonic output. Overall, this is a fun little romp that captures the vibes of the Classic era very well.

...But...

Well, as I've said before with the Amy and Tails anniversary specials, I feel like we're kind of seeing diminishing returns with these Classic spinoffs. They're fun, sure, and very nice to look at, but their writing always leave me wanting more.

A big part of this is just that there's just less to work with compared to the Modern universe. The Classic cast is much smaller, and within that cast there are a bunch of characters currently going unused, some of which are currently off-limits. Aside from the appearance of the Witchcarters in Tails' special, we've pretty much just stuck with the cast of Sonic Mania and the Hooligans, as established in the first special. No Chaotix, no Battle Bird Armada, barely any Honey. (Classic Vector was able to get a tiny cameo in the Amy special only because he was so obscured that it gave the IDW team plausible deniability to say it was actually a different character if Sega complained.) It's a very small box, and Ian's recent Classic comics haven't particularly expanded the boundaries of that box. They're just excuses to play the hits for old times' sake. And that was a lot of fun the first time around, but the novelty is starting to wear off for me.

I will admit, sure, the tighter focus on a specific set of characters from the games is a big part of the appeal of these Classic comics. They're simpler. They're nostalgic. They're shining the spotlight on characters that can't be used in the main series. They're the slavishly faithful old school Sonic comics that we could never get in the '90s, because the comics we did get diverged into their own continuities with tons of new characters. I get all that.

But the thing is, the Sonic comics have always added all those new characters because you can just do so much more with them. The game cast is great! But they're corporate mascots Sega keeps on a tight leash. You can do so much with a character like Sally or Surge that you could never do with any of the game characters, and by pushing into new territory with these new characters you can also bring out interesting new sides of the game cast. Maybe Sonic himself can't have some crazy complex character arc, but you can see how he'll respond to the things going on with these other characters, and how these other characters' arcs are informed by their relationships with Sonic.

So I look at the Fang miniseries, and I'm like. This was pretty fun. But by the end, what was the point of the story? What did we learn about the Hooligans as characters that we didn't already know? Is the point just to depict an adventure where things go off the rails a little and Bean and Bark end up a little miffed, explaining why they weren't with Fang in Superstars? There's potential for an arc there about the dissolution of the group, but it really does come off more as the type of spat these three probably get into all the time before coming back together for the next job. It's neither super dramatic nor super funny, feeling more like it ends on a fairly matter-of-fact note where Fang's like "welp, time to go do the events of Sonic Superstars" at the end, not particularly plussed by anything that happened in this arc. What we're left with is four issues of the Hooligans encountering recognizable characters and visiting recognizable locations from the Classic games, with little that really feels new or fresh here.

Ironically, the most interesting story element to me here (aside from Bean's characterization) is its tie to the main comics, something previous specials couldn't do since Sega had yet to reunify the Classic and Modern timelines. The plot of this comic revolves around Fang following the myth of the "eighth Chaos Emerald," riffing on both old playground rumors and Sonic the Fighters. What they actually end up finding isn't an extra Emerald, but rather the Warp Topaz that would eventually end up in Starline's possession in the Modern era, having apparently been found by the Hard-Boiled Heavies in the cave seen in the 900th Adventure special.

That's kinda neat, and the abilities of the Warp Topaz are used in fun ways. But this isn't exactly something to write home about for people who aren't lore nerds like me. There isn't a particularly meaningful connection between Fang and Starline's arcs here due to the presence of the Warp Topaz, it's just a thing for the wiki. Again, Ian's in his connect the dots mode a little more than I'd like here.

(...So wait, if Starline didn't find the Warp Topaz himself, did he track down the cave where the Heavies found it to leave that "greatness began here" graffiti? Eh, I guess that sounds like something he'd do. He's known for nothing if not his obsessiveness.)

So, again. This was a pretty good miniseries. This all makes it sound like I hated it, but I did like it overall. I particularly liked seeing the Hooligans fight the Hard-Boiled Heavies. But it leaves me feeling less fulfilled than something like Scrapnik Island or Tangle & Whisper or Imposter Syndrome. I get that, by the very definition of the word, Classic Sonic is always going to remain trapped in amber to some extent. This isn't the version of the franchise that's supposed to grow and change. That's what Modern Sonic does. Classic Sonic will always be trapped in the early '90s. I'm not asking for them to add a dozen new characters with complex dramatic arcs to the Classic comics, since that's not what Classic Sonic is about. But I think the other Classic Sonic stories not written by Ian - i.e. the driving school story by the McElroys and the two stories about Amy by Gale Galligan - show that you can tell fresh new Classic Sonic stories that aren't just about remixing the hits from the games.

If we're going to continue getting Classic Sonic comics from Ian (and I hope we do!), then I just hope he's able to find a better balance between familiar and new ideas, like he and Evan do so consistently with their Modern Sonic output.

[skyward-floored]

Dawn part 4 analysis, here we go! At it again with my ramblings.

Starting off with THE GLORIOUS RETURN OF THE MAILMAN! The moment I saw the flag I was like :O HE’S BACK!!!

(I also got the blue’s clues mail song stuck in my head)

Hey look, it’s Warriors’ money! And the inkeeper who’s happily admiring the ridiculous amount of rupees Warriors now does not own!

Rip Warriors’ money. It will be dearly missed.

Also no vacancy?? I mean, it’s possible there’s other people staying there, or it’s just a small inn, but... it kinda looks like Warriors literally bought every available room there was. Mad lad.

I (like everybody else lol) took a crack at figuring out who’s signature was who’s, based on their respective game’s Hylian texts/scripts, order of when they got there, and the OG tags on the comic. So here’s my best guesses—

1. Time is first, which makes sense based on him being the one to take Twilight to the inn

2. Hyrule appears to be next— his games don’t have a written script, but the hylian here is close to Legend’s, so I’m assuming it’s his, based on the fact that he was part of the next group to get to the inn.

3. Four is who I’m least sure about I’ll admit, but seeing as how he came with Hyrule, (and he’s the only Link left I couldn’t identify at all), I’m assuming it’s his.

4. Warriors we know for sure, since the tags say this signature is his. He gets a shout out for being the only Link who can actually write in the lines.

5. Wind seems to be next, as his hylian is very close to what’s here (his signature partially obscures Warriors’ XD)

6. Legend is who I’m going with for this one, but I’ll admit it could be Wild’s since their script is pretty darn close. But once again, based on when they all got to the inn, Legend would make the most sense to be here.

7. Sky is definitely here. His hylian is very unique compared to the others (I think it’s my favorite)

8. Wild is probably next, but same case as Legend, they could be swapped. But once again, probably not, since Wild was the last to get inside.

9. Twilight bringing up the rear! His hylian is unmistakable, and it makes sense that he’d mark his name last. I don’t think he could handle it until he woke up that morning, though I do wonder which arm he wrote it with...

(Rip Mr. Mailman in trying to figure all this out)

Moving on!

It’s gotta be close to mid-morning by now based on the light, but Sky obviously does not handle waking up at dawn well. It’ll be interesting to see if he stays sleepy during the rest of this arc, or if he'll wake up a bit.

(Side note, Sky looks so soft and fluffy here, I want to hug him)

Sky is so relatable in this update, he’s got some serious “I have no idea what’s going on” vibes. That first one he's got such a deer in the headlights look XD

The mailman is just like “you! I’ve been looking for you! Great to see you!” and Sky’s just “I have never met this man in my life” (probably forgot he actually did see him once (because he’s sleepy))

Four letters, all different languages and dialects... I’m guessing at least one Zelda based on the seal on that blue letter (it seems fancier to me), but I don’t know about the rest. I would guess Malon for one, and maybe another Zelda? Warriors or Wild or Four’s Zelda maybe? Maybe Twilight got a letter from someone in Ordon, or the Resistance!

Only thing I do know is that there’s probably not one for Sky, since he wasn’t immediately like “letter for me! :D”

Four trying to do something nice and fix Wild’s sword and this guy just laughs at him, rude 😤 At least he didn’t make a short joke, which was honestly what I was expecting. I mean I get knowing that your equipment won’t be enough for the job, but sheesh.

(Also the blacksmith’s goggles look a bit like Gondo’s in skyward sword’s, plus the ones the rescue knights wear, thought that was interesting).

(Cool pose mode: engaged)

I love this panel!! They all decided to follow Four and help him out just like they did last time, fix the sword and get Wild a good, reliable weapon.

I’ve also never noticed how similar these guy’s hair looks before, especially Warriors and Hyrule’s— if Rulie’s hair was a little shorter and blonde, it would be pretty near identical. Very interesting...

(Plus Wind has the funniest expression, he's so cute)

We interrupt this rambly analysis to bring you a brief moment of me yelling about Warriors' smile ABHDGFSFKHSBBG LOOK AT HIM that stupid cocky grin and the way he's rolling up his sleeve I'm *swoon*

Four absolutely losing it over Warriors’ jab about teamwork is SO funny, Captain you have no idea how good your joke was. (also Four, bud, you good? Little hysterical there pal)

Also he looks so happy!!! Compare that to any of the faces he was making the night before, he's doing so much better. I’m so glad he’s happy and smiling now, even if it was just at a dumb joke :)

I don’t even have anything to say about this panel. Just look at it. Glorious.

And one last thing...

MULTILINGUAL WARRIORS HOLY CROW that's such a cool trait to give him, I am in love with it now that's awesome.

An amazing update as always, it was fantastic all around <3

[rachetmath]

Pyrrha: Hi you must be Alyx.

Alyx: Yes.

Pyrrha: Well I just want to talk to you about something.

Alyx: I mean sure but what-

Pyrrha: Not what. It’s who. You know Jaune Arc?

Alyx: I mean y-

Pyrrha: You know the Rustud Knight? The one you betrayed? Who you poisoned?

Alyx: Well I can- *attempts to run*

Penny: *blocks her path*Nope. All attempts of escape are at zero right now.

Alyx: You can’t be serious.

Penny: As the current generation would say," Oh yes bitch. Try me."

Alyx: Okay I may have wronged him a little bit.

Lewis: A little? You completely poisoned him.

Alyx: Lewis you are not helping.

Lewis: At least like Jaune I was trying. But you never listen.

Alyx: Look I understand but what’s the big deal? He got back to Remnant.

Pyrrha: Why?! Why did you do it?

Alyx: I mean… well… I… um….

Pyrrha: Alyx, understand, you have two deadly women on both sides of you. If you don’t give us a good explanation well…. I guess we’ll finally see if you can fall from heaven.

Alyx: Well I saw this vision and I didn’t like it.

Penny: Understood, what was the vision?

Alyx: Um… I *whisper* don’t remember.

Penny: You what?!

Alyx: I don’t remember okay?!

Pyrrha: What vision? Who’s vision?

Alyx: I don’t know. The writers didn’t give me anything. I saved him though. That counts, right?

Pyrrha: No. He just survived.

Penny: Plus your ‘help’ could give him problems down the road.

Alyx: Like what?

Me: I mean the fan base speaks for itself. I mean the guy hasn’t been in Remnant for years it’s going to be kind of hard for him to readjust. Not only that he has to recover from years of isolation, PTSD, trauma, and because of you he might as well also be having trust issues. Not only that he had to leave another friend behind. You and the Ever After might as have shattered him

Alyx: Oh Oum.

Pyrrha: Yeah. Oum can’t save you. Penny.

Penny: Way ahead of you.

Alyx: Wait you wouldn’t hurt an innocent black child right?

Pyrrha and Penny: ………..

Me: Alyx you heard the saying, “Equal rights equal fights.”

Alyx: Let’s say I don’t.

Me: No matter your race. No matter your sexuality. No more matter your gender or age. You made a choice to do what you do. And as a result of said choice you must face said consequences. Weither they be good or bad. Basically you may be a kid but you were grown enough commit murder. And as such-

Pyrrha: You have this coming.

Alyx: *crying* I’m sorry. I just wanted to home. Jaune had no idea how. So I did what ever took. And then the Cat betrayed me and I died. Please? Don’t hurt me!

Summer: Come now ladies. I know you’re both upset but-

Pyrrha: Ms. Rose! Shut up!

Summer: I’m sorry? Who are you talking to?

Pyrrha: You are a nobody. You have been irrelevant for a while now. You left your daughters and died. Your daughter ain’t shit. Your team is still disbanded even after you died. You might as well be an afterthought at this point.

Summer: Said the girl who’s only job was to run away.

Pyrrha: I went out in a blaze of glory. I proved myself. What the fuck have you done?

Summer: Um.

Penny: Friend Pyrrha I know I have no rights to talk.

Pyrrha: Damn straight. You suffered more than myself. All you had to do was live. Instead, you traumatized my man. He just got over me too. Why would you do that?

Penny: Okay, I’m sorry. But, he’s going to be fine now. Let’s just let her go. And we pray he gets better.

Pyrrha: Fine. You're lucky Alyx.

Alyx: Thank you. But I am sorry.

Pyrrha: Shut up. Oum damn. If this story continues he better get stronger and kill Cinder. Because this is stupid. I mean how much trauma does one guy need? How he is not a villain? I mean, come on, he can’t be like Yuji, he doesn’t have skills like that.

Penny: Well friend W-

Pyrrha: If you say her name I will end you.

Summer: Okay woah, it’s been nine volumes why are you mad about this?

Pyrrha: One; he deserves better. Two; I prefer your daughter or anyone else than her. Three; she’s fucking useless. And four; it took him being an old man for her to start liking him. Fuck that bitch.

Summer: Well like said, if you stayed alive then-

Pyrrha: If you stayed alive maybe Qrow would have stopped drinking. If you stayed alive maybe your baby daddy wouldn’t be in a state of depression. Maybe if you stayed alive you could help your daughter learn how to control her eyes and be less useless in fighting the Queen of Grimm.

Summer: That was uncalled for.

Pyrrha: Move along side character.

[thekristen999]

Anytime the show needs a dramatic arc, or a bad guy, they do a pretty good job of going back through past seasons and plucking out a person.

We're going on four years, but I still think it would be interesting if Eddie crossed paths with the fight promoter from the street fighting arc.

We have no idea if his whole operation was shut down after Eddie called the cops and they started an investigation. Did the guy lose a ton of money?

Does he see Eddie at a scene and just....hatches plans.

Or what about the guy he almost killed? I bet Eddie's face is burned into memory. The other fighter guy is still struggling with hard times, and he sees the dude who not only sent him to a hospital that racked up a big medical bill, but maybe cost him a bet that was his 'ticket' out of a jam?

How dare this guy be walking around happy as a clam after he kicked bone cartilage into his freaking sinus cavity-- that still gives him hell to this day.

Give me Eddie targeted by a big bad...and the team racing to figure out who put Eddie in the hospital. Could you imagine the emotion??

Athena tracking the baddie down, Bobby right there with her. Bobby who has a fiery side when you hurt one of his family.

We finally see the team work together when they discover Eddie in his crashed car or crumpled mess at his home. Hen and Chim pulling out all the stops to save his life.

Buck at his bedside! The freaking will reveal...

Come on Tim, it's here for taking. You love this stuff!

[palaceofpassion]

The life of a House Husband

"Uhm... are you sure that I'm needed for this sir?" Jaune Arc was many things, he was a young awkward man, he was also the only boy in a household of eight women. Something that had a rather grand affect on his life, from cooking to cleaning, he could do every household task with ease. Something that had come akin to his mother wanting everyone to chip in.

And of course, being under the thumbs of his sisters. Whether it was through brute force, or being unable to say no. So... when he received a call from Headmaster Ozpin, of Beacon Academy, that he had a job for him, he was a little shocked.

"Yes, Glynda has informed me that you're quite skilled at helping others."

His cheeks felt flushed as he stared at the elderly man. "I mean, my semblance is good at helping bring out positive emotions but... I wouldn't really say I'm good at helping others." That was a lie, and he sort of wondered what his Auntie Glynda had told him. Glynda being his late father's sister of course.

"Mmhmm, she has spoken quite highly of you."

Now he was just embarrassed, "Oh. Well, that's honors." She was very brutal about the truth, even to family. "But I don't see why that means anything here."

"Well you see." Ozpin put a photo on his desk, ushering Jaune to pick it up. To which he did of course, the image had four young women. Ordered from tallest to shortest. Though he did note that three of them were quite short when compared to the tall redhead, who appeared to rival even him in height. "These four young women are some of our, if not the most promising huntresses this year... except."

"Except what sir?" He was a little confused, a bit embarrassed, if they were important and famous, he should know them... but he was kind of just a country bumpkin.

"Except that they would be unable to take care of themselves if left to their own devices. " Ozpin seemed frustrated by the statement, grabbing a cup of coffee to take a deep sip before continuing, "You see Mr. Arc. These four are the hope of Beacon, and while I would love for them to succeed, they have... problems. Ms. Cruz." He pointed at one of the shorter girls... actually THE shortest. With soft green hair, and dazzling emerald eyes. "She has unfortunately had... issues with the loss of her past team, so it's hard for her to open up to others, and she lacks self confidence in herself. And while the most calculating mind on her team, and their leader... it's doubtful whether she'll be able to communicate with the other three." He next pointed at the next shortest girl, with snow white hair, and frosty blue eyes, "Ms. Schnee is... strong willed, to say the least. She's grown in an environment that was about being used or to use others. As such, she'll be abrasive to the others, she also has very little experience with chores or taking care of herself, or so her mother has informed me."

Next was the maroon haired woman, with a stoutly figure, and pretty grey eyes, "This is May Zedong. She's similar to Ms. Cruz, but whereas Ms. Cruz has fears of being around others. May chooses not to involve herself, she's also had a hard time. Apparently she's had issues with both male and female students in the past. And likes to keep to herself. She's also quite soft spoken."

"And finally, this." He pointed out the dazzling red haired woman, with shining green eyes. "Is Pyrrha Nikos, she is, the strongest member of their team. However, she lacks the will to lead. She would rather not ruffle any feathers, and takes on an overtly polite persona when around other people. She's also quite famous, so it's not strange for people to come to her with ulterior motives. She's not quick to let people in, especially when she feels they'll be coming for her name. Unfortunately Ms. Schnee has already seemed to get on her bad side, and whether they'll work together at this point is impossible to tell."

There was obvious frustration in his voice, "Unfortunately, while each are all incredibly skilled huntresses, they haven't put much time, nor want, into self care. And that's where you come in." "So... you want me to be a nanny?" "Something to that effect, though you'll also be providing them with a shoulder to stand on." He wanted to say something, but as the most normal sibling, amongst a cavalcade of spectacular and amazing sisters. He sort of knew his position, and knew where people with talent tended to lie. Their single minded pursuit on improvement and being the bet. Especially if they have mental or emotional hang ups... he hated to admit it. But his semblance would definitely help. But more than that, as he listened to their stories, he wanted to help. "Okay." He would do what he could to help ease their lives, and besides... while he never wanted to be a huntsman. It would be interesting to see what kind of lives they lived.

While eyeing the image, he started to try to work things out. He didn't know their backstories, but one was afraid that she would see others die, or that she would be the cause. One is afraid of letting others in, because she's lived in a harsh environment, one is unable to communicate her feelings with others, used to being ignored... or something happened between her and a past team. And one has learned to close her heart, an actress if you will... He took a deep breath and sighed, "Okay, I suppose I should go meet them." "Mmhmm, they've already been informed of your... inclusion." He nodded, hopefully things wouldn't be too bad. But as he held the photo, he couldn't help but worry.

[riiwrites]

Can you make something for Oda? Where he started seeing his s/o who also takes care of the orphans and are gifted as well, maybe able to sing a deadly lullaby, and when the orphans got killed his s/o takes down the Mimic instead, out of grief and rage by using their gift and maybe Oda comforting after that, then maybe they leave together to start a new. (this man seriously deserved better)

a quiet life

a/n : i actually couldn’t wait to write this idea, oda truly did deserve so much better. asagiri when i catch you oda is coming back in the next arc (trust it trust it!)

a/n : i found it quite odd i used 'mom' considering i’m scottish but oh well!

pairing : oda x gn!reader (reader is referred to as mom by kids)

genre : fluff at the beginning, angst angst angst

warnings : mentions of blood & murder

wc : 3k

masterlist taglist main page

"Don’t you think stars are a beautiful sight to gaze upon?"

Oda turns to you, a soft smile placed upon his features.

"Rather lyrical tonight, aren’t you?"

You turn to him with furrowed eyebrows and a playful smirk on your face at his harmless comment

"Don't you enjoy my whimsical poetry?

“Indeed I do, but you only seem to talk like that when something is on your mind.”

You relax your expression and your smirk falters only to the same soft smile he gave you. You look down at the concrete below you as you begin to speak.

“Don’t you think a quiet life would be nice?”

Oda’s smile falls down to a small frown. He reaches from under your chin to lift your head up so you can face him.

“A quiet life?” He repeats, beckoning for you to elaborate.

“Yeah.” Your eyes follow his own as you look up at him. “A quiet life with the kids.”

“You mean the five children who are anything but the definition of peace and tranquillity?”

At this you laugh, your smile returning to your lips as you cock your head to the side with Oda’s hand still resting underneath your chin.

“Absolutely.” You say with such certainty. Oda smiles as his hand traces up to cup your cheek, his thumb stroking your skin ever so gently.

“I’m happy with the life we have currently of course, but..” You pause.

“But?”

“Don't you think having such a delicate part of your life along with such a tough part of it also could shatter everything in such a short bit of time?”

He frowns, understanding what you mean by your words.

“You mean my job, correct?”

You nod, letting out a soft sigh as you turn away from him, his hand no longer resting on your cheek as you look up at the night sky.

“I know I tell you this almost every night but you know I’m right, Oda. This mafia life you claim to have going for you isn’t great and it’s going to catch up on you sooner or later, no matter how much of a good person you are.” You truthfully say, giving him a look of hurt and worry.

Oda gives you a look with sympathy, him only nodding in understanding and turning to also look at the sky. A moment of silence passes through the wind before you continue.

“I just want us to be safe.”

“We will be.”

He brings down a hand to cup your chin once more, bringing it up to make you look up into his eyes.

“Do you remember that creative mind of yours describing to me what our future could be if you had the world in your hands?”

You think for a few moments, recollecting your thoughts until you eventually find that fond memory.

“To build a cabin house with six bedrooms, around four windows placed in each room alongside the kitchen..” You whisper.

“What else?” He urges

“One little TV placed on a cabinet table in the living room so the children can eat their home cooked meals with a proper working furnace, beside it being a cozy warm fireplace that’s well kept away from the children..” You giggle at your last comment.

“And?”

You pause, resting your cheek into his palm as tears fill your eyes, attempting to hold back your sorrow but when you imagine such a peaceful life with such ordinary requests that you can’t reach it becomes a bit difficult for you to maintain composure.

“A little baby room, for when we have our own one day..”

Oda smiles at this, rubbing his thumb up and across your cheek, wiping away the tear that threatens to fall from your waterline. He gives you the sweetest kiss on the forehead, his other hand coming up to rub the back of your head in a comforting manner.

“I want to sit in a room that overlooks the sea.” He says, now resting his forehead against yours. “A room where we can read to all of our children those stories I will write one day and those lullabies you will sing to them also.”

You look up to meet his eyes once more.

“Our children?”

There’s a moment of silence before he lets out a breathless chuckle escape his lips.

“Our children.”

More tears escape your eyes, you sniffle and wipe your tears as Oda wipes some more from his fingers.

“My beautiful partner..” He starts.

“My beautiful soon to be married..” He continues.

“We will be alright.”

You brush through Sakuras hair with one of her pretty pink hairbrushes she insisted on you using. You were helping each one of the children get ready for bed, each one having their own unique personality and behaviour to them.

Kōsuke, being the oldest out of all the orphans Oda took in. He always insists he can get ready himself, and although he can - he hates the rule of having to actually getting ready for bed specifically so it’s naturally your job to make sure he’s managed first.

Katsumi, the second hardest to actually help get ready for bed. Not because he can’t manage it, but simply because he would much rather play baseball outside even when it’s dark.

“I just don’t understand why you two would want to play out here after hours, especially when there’s creeps and bad things out here that lurk in the night..” You speak to the children from the balcony you were standing on, looking down at the two boys who were so persistent on an extra five minutes.

“What, bad things like monsters? Hah! I’m not five anymore! Those stories are stupid!” Kōsuke argues, crossing his arms as he stands stubbornly to clearly state he isn’t moving any time soon.

“Yeah! Plus, if any creepers came up to try and hurt us we’d beat them to a pulp!” Katsumi shouts, balling his fist and punching his baseball glove, his eyebrows furrowing and smiling mischievously, showing his missing tooth on his upper teeth. You giggle, propping your elbows up on the bannister and resting your chin on your hands as you stare fondly at the kids. You pout jokingly as you begin to speak.

“Well, it’s a shame really..I guess I’ll just have to sit all alone and read my lullabies to myself.”

At this Katsumi’s expression flickered into a change rather quickly, his eyebrows now furrowing in a sad manner as his demeanour changes within a flash.

“Hey wait!! I wanna listen to your lullabies Y/N!”

Kōsuke turns around to Katsumi, a look of betrayal written all over his face as he stomps his foot.

“Hey!! You’re supposed to be on my side!”

“But Miss/Mister Y/N’s gonna be lonely..” He pouts.

“Uh- no, they’ll have Mr Oda to keep them company!”

“But I enjoy the lullabies..”

“Oh come now Katsumi it’s okay, just go on and get ready for bed kay?” You say with a sweet smile on your face, Katsumis face immediately lighting up as he runs up the stairs to the balcony and into the building.

Kōsuke watches in disbelief at Katsumi rushing off within an instant. He glares at you as you stick your tongue out at him, blowing a raspberry like a child yourself as you turn around and beckon for him to come in, him following behind you without any hesitation with him mumbling and grumbling like the five year old he said he wasn’t.

Next was Yū, he wasn’t much of a bother considering how he was rather preoccupied with his games, although he sure liked to keep your mind busy with him joining the other boys antics and frequently sneaking his electronics into his bed so he could attempt to play them overnight, most of the time his plan fails.

“Yū..” You say with a quirked eyebrow, your hands on your hips as you stare at him from the bunk bed.

He turns to you with a sweet smile that could’ve fooled anyone, but not you.

“Yeah?”

“Give it.”

He tries to pull a confused expression, only making him look silly due to the fact he was trying not to smile whilst being caught in a lie.

“I don’t know what you could be talking about..“

“Miss/Mister Y/N, Yū hid his gameboy under his pillow!!”

“Sakura!!”

He groans in annoyance as you smirk, holding your hand out for him to give you the electronic, him complying with harsh movements as he grabs his pillow, lifts it, grabs the gameboy but places it in your hand ever so gently, crossing his arms and pouting. You pat him on the head with a soft smile, taking his hat off in the process.

“Bed, now.”

Now for the most competent one, Shinji. He was the sweetest and timid boy you ever met when you first started seeing Oda. Rather quiet and cautious with himself and around others but the more you got to know him, the more you saw just how easily comfortable he got with you.

“And no reading under the covers!” You say as you take the book from Shinji.

He nods with a sweet smile as he heads to bed. But before he gets into the covers, he pauses for a moment and stays there, almost seeming like he was hesitating to ask something. You stand as you watch his back freeze and you wait patiently for him to turn around and gain the courage. He turns around cautiously and fiddles with his little fingers before asking quietly.

“C-can you read me it..?” He asks kindly, pointing to the small picture book you took from him and then instantly looking down when he notices you glancing at the book and back at him. Your heart melts, a small pout forming on your lips as you smile.

“Of course, sweetheart. Come on let’s tuck you in.”

Oda doesn’t think Shinji’s ever smiled so brightly in his life.

Sakura was the quietest next to Shinji, although she had a bright and caring personality around everyone. It was kind of hard being the only girl out of all the kids for her, not being able to have the same interests as the boys all seem to have. Sure, she messed around with them and played tricks on Oda with their silly fake mafia style games, but she never actually had someone to talk about the things she really wanted to talk about or do - which is why she found the most comfort in you.

Which is where you are now, brushing her hair gently with the pretty pink hairbrush she so desperately “needed” you to use. She claims it makes her hair shine, you believe so too.

“Your hairs so pretty, Miss/Mister Y/N..” Sakura says with a cute smile as she stares at you through the mirror, seeming so mesmerised by you overall. You grin as you brush her hair so gently, not wanting to brush too hard through her tugs.

“Thank you, Sakura.” You say softly, looking down at her head so you don’t miss any unbrushed ends.

“I wish I had hair like you..” She tilts her head to the side slightly, kicking her feet back and forth on the chair she was sitting on. You furrow your eyebrows playfully, the smile still remaining on your lips.

“That so?”

“Yeah!” She beams.

“Well, what if I told you that I’d much prefer to have your hair?”

At this her face lights up brighter than before.

“Really??”

“Mhm.”

“But why?”

You stop brushing her hair for a moment before placing it on the desk of the bathroom, smiling and placing your chin on top of her head.

“Because it’s so perfect, silky smooth and is the best to style.”

She gets excited at this, bouncing up and down as she pats her legs.

“I really do like my pigtails..” She says with a bit of shyness.

“They’re beautiful on you dear.”

“You do them best though!!” She exclaims, giggling as you hug her gently.

“Hey Miss/Mister Y/N?” She says after a few moments of giggling.

“Yes, Sakura?”

There’s a little pause before she thinks of what to say.

“Are you technically my mommy?”

You stop for a second, practically freeze in place. You blink at your reflection in the mirror before you turn to look at her fully.

“What do you mean, dear?”

She shifts on her butt and turns around to now fully look at you, hugging her knees to her chest as she slowly continues to elaborate.

“I mean..you always take care of us..and you act like our mommy, and although i wouldn’t mind if you were my dad also..I’ve never had a mommy before..”

Your heart breaks at this. She was right, Oda was their father figure that was present in all of their lives from the beginning, saving them one by one from death and raising them up until now without any mother figure present. Although, Oda has clearly done an amazing job raising these kids you can’t help but have sympathy for all of them for feeling so..empty? You’re snapped out your thoughts quickly as you feel Sakuras tiny hand tug on your sleeve.

“Can I call you mommy?”

You pause, until a soft smile is placed on your lips and you lean in to kiss her forehead.

“Yeah, you can call me that.”

She smiles happily, now crawling up to you using her tiny hands to claw at your sleeves to help her get up to your lap. Now sitting on it she cuddles into you, feeling warmth on your chest as you smile happily, wrapping your arms around the small little girl as you rub her back soothingly.

“I love you mommy.” She says sweetly.

“I love you too dear.” You whisper softly, not knowing that Oda had been leaning against the door the entire time with the most heart warming smile ever present on his face.

“You are my sunshine

My only sunshine

You make me happy

When skies are gray

You'll never know, dear

How much I love you

Please don't take

My sunshine away”

“Mom! Why do you always have to sing that one song? It’s getting boring now..” Katsumi whines, resting his cheek against the corner of the chair as he looks up at you.

“Yeah, it’s a stupid song..” K��suke grumbles, crossing his arms as he looks to the side in a huff.

“Hey, don’t be mean!! I love the song mommy, I do I do!!” Sakura beams, grabbing your leg with her hands as she begins to shake you in her grasp.

Oda chuckles at this, leaning against his hands from where he was sitting on the floor with the kids as you sat in the rocking chair, singing them lullabies before bed.

“I didn’t think you guys could be so opinionated. I remember back in the easy days where I’d just give you all a bottle of milk and you’d be content.”

“Hey! I am content!” Kōsuke retorts, glaring at Oda.

“Do you even know what that word means?” Katsumi asks.

“…”

“No.”

“Neither.”

“Okay but seriously! What’s the deal, mom? Why can’t you sing us another song?” Katsumi exclaims whilst Yū agrees.

“Yeah! I wanna know too!”

You tap your cheek with your finger a few times as you look up at the ceiling, pretending to look as if you were thinking before you looked down at Oda who was looking at you like a lovesick fool.

“Should I tell them?”

“Should you?”

“Should I?”

“STOP IT!!” Kōsuke shouts. “Just tell usss!” He groans.

You giggle. “Okay okay,” you say softly as you place your hands in your lap before you whisper gently.

“What if I told you all..that I had special powers?”

“Like super powers?” Yū asks, you nod. The children all beam at this, even little Shinji who was placed on Odas knee now hitting it in excitement along with Sakura on the other.

“Like Mr. Oda’s super powers..?” Shinji asks.

“Well, the same term - but not the same power.” You start.

“My ability, is to hypnotise those who dare to hear my lullabies..” You explain. “And unfortunately, due to my ability, I can’t sing specific songs to you guys because I don’t want to harm you all with my power, so I found that this song which you all liked seemed to work wonders!” You beam.

“Used to like, now it’s so overused..” Kōsuke groans.

“Be nice!!” Sakura snaps as she slaps Kōsuke on the leg.

“Ow! Hey!”

“Alright that’s enough..” Oda grabs Sakura and places her away from Kōsuke, who just mutters under his breath and sinks further into his pillow.

“Wait wait wait!” Katsumi holds up his hand as to say ‘pause’.

“Is that why whenever I hear your lullaby, I feel myself getting sleepy..?” His eyes widen as he speaks, as if he’s just had a realisation. Oda chuckles at Katsumis accusation.

“I don’t think that’s quite it, Katsumi..”

“No no!! It totally is!! Look at their creepy face!!” He screams out and points to your mischievous smirk as you look down at all the children to which they all squeal at this, now all attempting to hide behind Oda although Kōsuke on the other hand remains unfazed, staying in the same position in his pillow.

You laugh, breaking character completely. “Alright alright! No, Katsumi, I’m not hypnotising you to sleep.” You begin, reaching over to boop his nose. “You, are just naturally tired.”

“Nuh-uh!”

“Yuh-huh!”

Oda picks up Shinji with one arm and Sakura with the other, smiling softly at the other older children. “Alright guys, time to sleep.”

They all groan.

“Nooo!! Please!” Sakura whines, kicking her feet in the air from where Oda’s holding her to which Oda ignores her pleas as he takes her and Shinji out the room, Yū and Katsumi trailing behind soon after, leaving you and Kōsuke alone.

You turn to Kōsuke to see him staring at the floor, seeming to be lost in thought.

“Something on your mind, Kōsuke?”

Kōsuke looks up at you and purses his lips together, muttering a little 'no' under his breath.

You know he’s lying, so you persist.

“Is it the song?”

“…”

“No, the songs fine..”

“I thought it was overplayed..”

“No!” He snaps. “I like the stupid song! I just hate how it makes me feel..” He says the last part quietly, you raise an eyebrow, looking down at him.

“How do you mean?”

“Just..makes me feel stupidly tired and..stupidly..-“

“Content?” You finish for him.

“..Yeah, whatever the hell that word means..”

You smile as he says one more thing. “I don’t want you to stop singing, your voice is nice, you’re nice.”

“I’m nice?”

“Mhm..”

Your smile only grows. You reach over and ruffle Kōsuke’s hair to which he slaps your hand away.

“Thank you for telling me that, Kōsuke..and for what it’s worth, I think you’re just as nice too.”

You actually see him smile, he sits up properly now.

“Can you sing me it one more time?”

“Tomorrow, love.”

“Okay.”

You think that would be the end of that while lasting moment, until he says one more thing.

“Thanks, mom.”

You turn to him as your health melts for the last and final time.

“You’re welcome, dear.”

Little did you know, that would be the last and final time you’d ever sing that precious lullaby to your sweet babies before they were taken from you.

You were walking back from the grocery store, two bags full of sweet treats occupy your arms as you hum the same sweet melody you sang to your kids the previous night.

It wasn’t until you had reached around the corner you see..what is that, smoke? Coming from near the place the kids stay. ‘That’s strange' you thought, maybe the chef had burned something? He’s always one to make mistakes, or so you thought.

You hear police sirens, ambulance sirens and even..screams? You recognise it within an instant ; Oda. Your eyes widen as you begin to rush over to the scene, only to find your boyfriend on his hands and knees, practically sobbing his heart out and screaming his lungs up at the ground as he’s infront of a blown up van. You rush over and kneel down to Oda, dropping one of your groceries to touch his face.

“Oda, baby, what’s happened talk to me please, are the kids okay..?!”

That question made his stomach churn, and he turns his head up to finally look at you, and he looks traumatised and absolutely broken, although it doesn’t answer your question, so you repeat it.

“Are the kids okay..?”

“…”

“Oda..”

“…”

“Oda, god don’t do this to me tell me the kids are okay..”

Oda shakes his head, tears now streaming down his face as he lets out choked sobs inbetween his next words.

“Y/N..I-I’m so sorry..I tried..I tried to keep them safe I just-..I didn’t..”

Your heart drops, your eyes widen even more as realisation hits you like a truck.

You stand up and slowly walk over to the van which is now been surrounded by yellow and black caution tape. You look down at the floor and see blood, lots and lots of blood and one thing that truly confirms your fears makes your heart break.

Kōsuke’s sunglasses rested on the floor covered in smoke confirms absolutely everything.

You drop your groceries, your body shaking with fear, sadness, and anger. You fall to the floor You fall to the floor on your knees as your breathing becomes heavy, little gasps escaping your throat as your throat closes up, your hand covering your mouth as you sob, Oda within a flash is now by your side as hes also on his knees, cradling you and hugging you so close to his chest that he’ll think you’ll disappear from him anytime soon.

“I’m so sorry..I’m so sorry..” He repeatedly whispers, sobbing into your hair as you sob loudly into his chest, both of your hearts hurting so much full of grief and woe.

“My babies..they were my babies..” Your screams are muffled by Oda’s jacket as you breath heavily into it, hyperventilating hard.

You dig your nails into his shirt, tears staining it as you claw as if you were looking for answers, looking for practically anything as to find any source as to say 'Hey, this is a dream' but no, you were right infront of it, the truth.

Your babies were gone.

Days later…

Oda was sitting on the same rocking chair you once sat on when you read and sang those cherish-able words and lullabies to the children. He stares at his feet, in such a grave state of confusion, denial and depression. You had been AWOL for the past few days now, Oda giving you your personal space as he doesn’t want to overstep or push you any further but oh what he would do to be basked in your affection and comfort right now, it was all he needed. He fears if he’s alone for any longer he may do something drastic. That is until..a creak from the door let’s him escape his thoughts.

Blood, the first thing he sees. You covered in blood, your face and body and hands all covered in someone else’s blood made his own run cold, his eyes widen as he sees your hurt expression, you both look into eachother eyes knowing how much you were both truly hurting.

It wasn’t until you dropped to your knees, grabbing the covers of one of the children’s bunk beds Oda gets out his seat swiftly dropping down and hugging you tightly, a little similar to a few days ago. He lets you let it all put, god knows you both need it. You sob and sob until your heart lets out everything you had left to offer, because what else was there left to give? Everything you once had was taken from you within a second, something so delicate, so fragile ; shattered.

“I killed him.” You start, Odas heart drops.

“You killed who..?” He whispers.

“The bastard who took our babies..” You seethed.

Oda notices your voice and how hoarse it was, and that’s when he realises the painful truth. You had used your ability, a deadly lullaby, to kill the mastermind of the plot to take away your children.

“Baby..it’s okay..please j-“

“Run away with me.”

“..what..?”

“You heard me goddamnit, run away with me Oda what the hell are we waiting for?!” You scream out. Your voice, raspy and breaking from the previous moments you ripped that disgusting man’s life away from his throat and body.

“We’ve been sitting, imagining and talking but why not live it already? Nobody’s stopping us!”

“My job is stopping me, Y/N-“

“No the hell it isn’t, stop bullshitting it!! You can quit, you can be free, Dazai will be fine he can come visit us and whatnot the kid will be the boss by twenty-three you know it, I know it..!”

You grab his face into your hands, his cheeks becoming covered in blood from how dirty your own were. With wide eyes you whisper, desperation and need evident within your voice as you plea.

“Please, for me, for the kids..”

Oda looks at you in disbelief, his breathing shaky as he stares at you with wide eyes staring into yours.

“You don’t know what you’re saying, you’re hurting..”

“So are you, but we can heal.”

A pause.

“And..hey, what way to start that goddamn journey by building a cabin house..?” You let out a breathless laugh, Oda laughs with you, resting his forehead against yours as he finally whispers.

“With a room that just overlooks the sea..”

2 years later…

The waves crashing against the shore make a perfect combination with the melody you now sing in the depths of your dark brown clattered cabin.

“You are my sunshine

My only sunshine

You make me happy

When skies are gray

You'll never know, dear

How much I love you

Please don't take

My sunshine away”

“Please don’t take my sunshine away..” You whisper once more with such genuine feeling before you plant a kiss on your gorgeous newborns head, stroking her head as she sleeps peacefully in your arms as you rock back and forth amongst the rocking chair.

You hear a few creaks from the floorboards and from your husband, who carefully steps out of his writers room as he doesn’t want to wake up his child.

“Hey.” You whisper.

“Hey.” He smiles.

“What you doing in there?” You say softly as you nod your head to the writers room hes just emerged out of.

“Working on my book.”

You nod, smiling as you look down at the baby, then back at your husband.

“I haven’t had the chance to ask, what’s it about?”

Oda cautiously walks up to you and kneels down next to you, stroking his baby’s head with the back of his hand.

“Just, how having such a delicate life along with a tough part of it also has its consequences and could shatter everything within a short space of time.”

“Rather melodramatic tonight, are you not?

“Don’t you enjoy my whimsical poetry?”

You smirk as he smiles, before he stands back up and glances out at the window, holding his hands behind his back. You stand up, being extra careful with your movements as you approach Oda and stand beside him. He opens the window wide open, revealing the night sky and the sound of the waves crashing down on the shore. You glance up at the night sky, looking up amongst all the beautiful stars scattered across the horizon, that is until something caught your eye.

Out of all the stars you saw, five took your fancy. Five stars shined proudly upon the horizon as they shined together and with no other star before, at this you smile, tears slowly filling your eyes as you nudge Oda gently.

“They’re beautiful to gaze upon, don’t you think?”

Oda looks up at the sky and instantly knows what you’re talking about and he smiles, his heart aching but healing it’s wounds just by looking at the scenery little by little.

“Yeah, they sure are.”

TAGLIST : @hauntedsol @hopefulpain @forgotten-blues @ruru-kiss @texas-bitch-yee @lvstyangel @thetizzler @is-therelife-onmars @atlasnessie @101strawberries101

@riiwrites

[eleanor-bradstreet]

Thoughts on Bridgerton season 3

No one asked, but putting it out there. (Written after viewing part 1.)

The Good

Polin - it’s their season after all. There is plenty of them and a lot of scenes pulled right from the book. I don’t think Colin/Newts is all that charismatic or great at acting tbh, but Pen/Nic is carrying the season. Seeing through her eyes, there is a compelling story of self-acceptance, struggle and romance. I was whooping whenever she got steamy with her man.

Debling - wonderfully acted and such an interesting addition to the ton, I love this character. He is so kind and honest, he deserves the world.

Francesca & John - Hannah Dodd is doing a wonderful job. We get to see the one and only shy Bridgerton, which is novel. Her odd chemistry with John is magical and I am already fucked up about them. I’m more invested in them than Polin 😅

Eloise - we are seeing more facets of Eloise which is wonderful. That she is willing to look deeper at peoples’ true character - including Cressida and Pen, though the reconciliation with Pen isn’t finalized yet. Cressida also makes Eloise check herself, her assumptions and privileges which is crucial for her development. She’s growing this season.

The Cowpers - redemption arc for Cressida incoming! We are learning that her bitchiness stems from a competitive nature, which she feels she must have to secure a good match thanks to pressures from her awful parents. This is interesting in its own right but please please please have Sophie also being mistreated in their household. That would be the bow on top.

Marcus Anderson - hello handsome! He is wonderfully acted and immediately has a warm spark with Violet. The mystery is built as to why Lady D is so aggravated by him. What has he done in the past that makes her wary of him?

The music - great instrumental covers of on-point pop songs and revisiting a few tried and true Bridgerton original themes.

The Bad

Kanthony - But only for part 1. I'm guessing they had to work around JB's busy shooting schedule, but it sucks they found a lame way to essentially write them out of episodes 2-4. I'm happy to see from the trailer there will be more of them in part 2.

Benedict - for fucks sake, he does nothing. Season 2 might as well not have happened. Not only is he not sad nor frustrated with Anthony about art school, he has no introspection or personal development in part 1. He’s just shoved in the background again, making sassy little comments and fucking a random lady. Where is this ‘crucial role’ the showrunner mentioned? What ‘comes to a head’ for him as Luke keeps alluding to? All of his material must happen in part 2 because there is nothing in part 1.

The fucking Featheringtons - I know the entail is a plot line set up by season 2, but getting into microscopic detail about the sex lives of the elder two Featherington sisters is not the comic relief the show thinks it is. It actually makes me nauseous. The whole ‘race to produce an heir’ could have been a single line explanation from Portia and screen time with the Featherington couples could have been spent on more Benedict.

The sex - part 2 better be mind blowing because Nicola’s claim that Polin has ‘won the steamy battle’ is unfounded based on the first four episodes. Okay we’ve got Anthony and Benedict each with a scene between the sheets kissing ladies but not a single Bridgerbum to be seen. The claims of ‘threesomes’ and ‘lesbian sex’ are extremely generous. It’s 5 seconds of Colin kissing sex workers and them peformatively kissing each other. I know we have the mirror scene coming in part 2 which threatens to blow the roof off anything Saphne and Kanthony did but thus far, I am unimpressed. It feels more buttoned up than ever.

Now, I have also watched part 2 in its entirety. Without spoiling any details, see below the cut for a general note.

Part 2 contains some MAJOR twists that I feel are going to fracture the fandom. Brace yourselves.

[not-quite-normal]

hi! first off, thank you SO MUCH for your work on spiderverse - i'm still reeling from it. across the spiderverse was actual magic and to say i'm floored at the amount of work that went into it is a gigantic understatement ;-;

my question is basically: i've been animating in episodics for four years now, but our schedules are so tight there's barely time to breathe, let alone put together personal work for a reel. i wanna do better work and be involved in better projects (features like spiderverse are like, the ultimate ideal haha) but bad deadlines lock us into mediocre projects for years. i wanna break out somehow - you don't have to answer of course, but do you have advice?

and again: you people are magic and i am in awe forever, i wish you all the very best!!!

hey thanks a lot!

i totally get you, i worked in tv animation for 8 years before i started at sony (to which i applied and got rejected like 5 times before finally getting in). it can be very hard when you're on tv schedules to be able to animate something that properly showcases your skills for your demo reel. you could be the fastest, most talented, hard working animator but that's so difficult to see that on a demo reel full of tv work. so i have a couple pieces of advice for what worked for me!

time management. when you get assigned your shots, pick your "golden" shots that you want to spend a little extra time on. tell your lead/supervisor that you want to focus on these ones a little more than your usual shots so that they can give you a bit more in depth feedback (any good lead should be able to dive deeper for performance/polish notes). trade this extra time for easier shots that can be animated to a "good enough" standard

take an animation course outside of work. this one isn't for everybody because it can be a LOT on top of your actual job (and it costs some $$$), but i don't regret doing it one bit. i took an iAnimate course while i was working on tmnt and it was one of the best things i ever did for my career. my instructor was ted ty and he taught me so much about genuine acting/performance and feature level polish that i still apply to my workflow to this day. it's hard to get that level of feedback and attention to detail on your shots while working towards your weekly quota, so having that more personal one-on-one feedback is insanely helpful

workflow. this is more of a general tip but to help ease the deadline stress a bit to allow more time for personal stuff, it's absolutely worth it to put work into cleaning up/simplifying your workflow. take a hard look at areas that are taking up a lot of your time and see if you can find ways to make it easier on yourself! things like managing your rig setup to save you from having to counter-animate things, thoughtful constraint planning, using offset pivot points to create large smooth arcs easily, abusing tweenmachine (my beloved), and just overall thinking through how to set your shot up to make everything as easy and simple as you can!

i hope that helps, best of luck to you :)

[yyh4ever]

Oww, so you ship KuraHi too? XD I think it's impossible to not do it. I love that the anime added some more development like this scene with Kuwabara and Botan curious with Hiei and Kurama's talk. Do you have a favorite scene with KuraHi? I think my special one is Hiei ready to die for Kurama just to save him in Dark Tournament and Kurama always worried with Hiei. I really love Kurama in Yukina's mission too, the anime really did a good job. I missed him being in there in the manga.

Oh, so many, I think all the KuraHi's love is the anime's fault. These are my 3 favorite anime fillers:

Three Kings Saga

Episode 107

When Hiei tells Mukuro that there's no such thing as friends in the Tournament, that everyone is an enemy, Mukuro is like "is that so?" and glances at Kurama. She knows!!!!

Episode 108

After Kurama beat Shigure and ended up passing out, all of his friends immediately rushed to his aide. But, Hiei kinda had to ask Mukuro's permission. When she turned her back, he didn't think twice and ran off as fast as he could!😂

Episode 111

I think that's a classic! The scene where Hiei gives his hiruseiki stone to Kurama, and he pranks him. 😂

There's also an exclusive manga chapter (Chapter 045. "Battle at 'Hell Housing Development'!!") that I like very much.

After the Four Saint Beasts Arc, Yusuke and Kuwabara are completely worn out, weaker than an average human. Some youkai start to impersonating them, but Hiei doesn't wanna help. Kurama teases him so much, it's so hilarious: "Yusuke will lose to small fry youkai, but what do you care? He already beat you after all". Kurama is so smart manipulating him to aid Yusuke. Hiei's angry reaction is so cute.

[robyese3]

K. I'm writing this into the void but I have nobody to talk bridgerton to. I blow the dust off my Tumblr to rant. Season 3. Here we go

PT. 1

Trash. All four episodes could have honestly been condensed to one, maaaaybe two to compensate for all the side plots. It did nothing to redeem Penelope.

It did however make me love Cressida, and further convinced me Eloise is queer. That said - Claudia Jessie so far has had chemistry with every single person (Benedict, Penelope, Cressida, Theo). Maybe it's just her. Philip was cardboard though so... We'll see if she can rescue that.

Why would the wig department do my boy Colin like that? Dirtyyy.

Francesca is GORGEOUS. She does look older than Daphne and Eloise, but I don't even care. Stunning. And John is a button.

Where did Luke and Nicola's chemistry go?!

KANTHONY. Only redeeming factor, and not enough of them.

What happened to Debling? Why wouldn't they just have HIM marry Cressida???? Like...?? It would have been perfect.

I love the Mondrich's story line - why is everyone hating? I do agree that it would have been a great way to reintroduce the Duke into the story though. Kinda mentor them through it. I get Rege-Jean wanted out but like... Recast it?

PT 2

Ahhh there is their chemistry. Found it.

I am HERE for mama Featherignton's redemption arc. Only works because she seems genuinely remorseful.

Incredibly disappointed with the Cressida storyline. Just wrecked a really dynamic story. Ruined Eloise's character growth (which she desperately needs) and just undid the awesome set up from pt 1. Felt so wasteful, unnecessary, and sad.

Most of the sex scenes were hot as hell but there was one (I don't remember which) was kinda awkward getting off the ground. They were like... Talking too much? Haha

Daphne not being there for Colin NOR Francesca's wedding? Yeah right. Get your casting contracts figured out bridgerton! This family can't be this close and just be missing major events. Would never happen. Lock them actors in from day 1.

I felt like Colin's arc from finding out to supporting her was really vulnerable, realistic, and well done. He was hurt and angry, but never stopped loving her. Just needed to process and he defended her tooth and nail despite knowing she didn't want to quit it. Good job kiddo.

Ok does Benedict do ANYTHING else but fvck? So grateful they finally admitted he's queer. And I wish they would have gotten to that part of his development in pt 1 so we could see him navigating it more.

When Colin said he had to talk to Benedict about getting the money, and implying that Benedict has some responsibility in the family with Anthony's absence - that was the biggest character development for him outside of his sexuality.

Philippa has NOT gotten enough screentime during this series. How are we just seeing how delightful she is now?!

Part 2 did such a better job at redeeming Penelope. I drank the Kool aid, back on team Penelope. Wrecked Eloise though. Sorry girl. Be better.

Michaela Sterling. Was kinda digging the "soft" love, and autistic thing that was circling the Internet so I was a little disappointed to see that all it was is that she's actually not attracted to him (knew the second they kissed haha). BUT the actress is stunning and I'm intrigued on how they'll develop Francesca's yearning for children with the queer storyline.

I would have loved for another King George cameo. Or just an update on his health, idk. Anything.

All in all, this show could do with adding another episode or two to it's roster and figuring out their pacing earlier on ESPECIALLY if you're going to be splitting the season. And even more so, if you're going to be juggling 82 different storylines.

If we're slowly shifting back to traditional tv practices (weekly releases episodes, commercials, etc), let the next thing be a full episode count. Done with this single digit amount episode. Order at least 10-12 episodes!

[raayllum]

Re these prior musings / promises but speculation regarding the secret scene possibly being Claudia murdering Sir Sparklepuff got me wondering, so... let's talk about Rayla, Claudia, and symbolic to non symbolic notions of suicide.

Tw because this will mention / does talk about cannibalism, suicidal ideation, and suicide in passing. If you're not comfortable reading about those things in more detail but you still want the gist of this meta, scroll down to the TLDR that will have a couple sentence summary of the idea.

With that out of the way, let's get into it.

For a while now, I've been interested in the metaphorical mechanics regarding Rayla murdering Viren in 3x09. As we all know (even if Aaravos 'pretends' otherwise in 4x04), Rayla did successfully kill the man, retroactively achieving her earlier mission of killing a king of Katolis because he was responsible for both the death of the Dragon King and because he'd killed Zym (which Viren was in the process of doing).

However, Rayla kills Viren in the most Rayla-y of ways, as she does so without her assassin blades, while acting as the Last Dragonguard, and in a way that means killing Viren is not just an act of protection or revenge, but also something that meant sacrificing (killing) herself.

And this felt notable to me, since unlike either of the brothers, Rayla hasn't killed anyone else. Ezran would've burned people alive with dragon fire if not for immunity spell, and Callum blasted plenty of people off the side of the mountain and presumably to the Storm Spire. But Viren was the sole blood on Rayla's hands, even if the narrative has Claudia (and we'll get to her in a minute) resurrect him. Her one act of murder being something that also, as stated, required her to sacrifice her whole person, and is also in line with her assassin training: "I am already dead."

When Rayla rebuttals Ezran's assertion that "[You spared him] because you knew he was a person, just like you," you can read Rayla's assertion of "That shouldn't have mattered, I had a job to do," solely as her talking about the guard's personhood... but you can also read it, I think, as her dehumanizing her own personhood. She is a weapon and he is the target and that's all that should've mattered.

We can tether this thread all the way up to season four with Rayla's refusal to murder Callum, but put a pin in that, cause now I want to talk about Claudia.

Much like we can read Rayla's attempted dehumanization as twofold, I also think we can read Sir Sparklepuff's mimicry of Claudia as something with multiple layers. The first and likely most obvious one of course is that Sir Sparklepuff mimicking Claudia in earlier episodes is to setup later that he is her (magical, technical?) half-brother and one of Viren's children. Kind of like how we had Ezran and Zym mimicking each other in mid-S2 to set up their mental/emotional bond later that season.

And this implied connection likewise loops back around in the finale when Viren simultaneously refuses to sacrifice Sir Sparklepuff for his own survival while also lamenting that he's led (sacrificed?) his own daughter down a dark path (and perhaps regret that he sacrificed his son once, too).

Arc 2 has also ramped up Claudia's willingness to destroy herself further for the "good of her family" (and her own desires that often steamroll over theirs) in having her take on more and more animalistic forms when doing dark magic, blurring the lines between her de-personalization of magical creatures and also herself.

This reflects dark magic's cannibalism motif quite well, as Claudia carries on metaphorically cannibalizing her own body throughout most of s4 and especially s5: refusing to rest from Terry, using her own blood in spells, etc.

This all reinforces that while dehumanization was something Rayla struggled with for both her target(s) and to a lesser degree herself, it's something that Claudia has only continually excelled at. And we know, thanks to S4 with Rayla walking away from the drake in the woods ("We can't save everyone") that she's gotten better at it as well.

But what does this all have to do with symbolic suicide? Well...

If the secret scene is what a good deal of us have been speculating / that Claudia is covered in Sir Sparklepuff's blood in the teaser trailer, then: if Sir Sparklepuff is a stand in for Viren's innocent, made to be an asset, processing learned behaviour child - if he is a stand in for Claudia - then through killing him, Claudia is symbolically killing herself.

Now, there's no doubt in my mind that Claudia isn't viewing things that way, but we also know just how much she's willing to ruin herself for the people around her first hand, and how persistent that characterization has been: "Are you okay?" "You're going to be better now. That's all that matters." While Claudia also has some selfish, twisted self-preservation in there as well (she cannot or will not cope with the fracturing of her family, even when she really probably should), the self-destructive tendency that's led to her S6 spiral is well established.

This attitude of "it doesn't matter what happens to me, so long as other people are okay/safe" is something we see for many characters, of course, but I think is best embodied in Rayla's continual, emphasized thread of sacrifice / her tendency towards subtle but consistent passive suicidal ideation regarding her own safety and her own wants/desires.

R: Don't worry about my hand. The egg is all that matters. / It doesn't matter what happens to me. / I have to go after [Viren]. / It's agonizing, but I know our mission comes first.

This is important regarding her and Callum in regards to the possession plot line. As long as Callum is Callum (not possessed, or she has reason to believe he's still in there), Rayla likely won't be able to bring herself to kill him. This is from an emotional / characterization standpoint, of course, but from a thematic standpoint, we can see where it stems from Callum and Rayla continually being each other's main connection to their sense of identity.

As long as Callum is Callum ("you're the destiny is a book you write yourself guy"), he's worth saving. As long as Callum is Callum, she can be Rayla ("Rayla's brave. She saves people" / "Rayla. My name is Rayla, and I'm going home"). As long as she's Rayla, he can be Callum. Because if Callum isn't Callum, then he's dead, and if he's dead, she can kill him. And if Rayla kills him, if Callum is dead, then she won't be Rayla anymore. Because to literally kill Callum would be to simultaneously symbolically/emotionally kill herself.

Now of course, some of this is already differing wildly.

If Claudia is going to kill Sir Sparklepuff, it makes the most sense for it to have already come to pass in 6x01, whereas Callum and Rayla's plot line would only come later on in the season. Claudia will presumably succeed at her symbolic suicide, but that doesn't mean she's not still worth saving / unable to be saved in the future (perhaps by her family). Rayla will probably fail at her symbolic suicide and succeed at sparing herself through sparing/saving Callum.

However, it's an interesting symbolic thread and potential foil contrast, and I thought it was worth pointing out. I hope you think so too!

TLDR below:

Due to Claudia's parallels to Sir Sparklepuff, if she kills him it holds a layer of her symbolically killing herself. In contrast, Rayla's symbolic suicide would be in killing Callum, as that would destroy her own sense of identity/life. For Claudia, this means likely being saved later by her family, and for Rayla, this means likely sparing Callum and herself simultaneously, thereby saving and sparing both of them.

[mdhwrites]

TOH's Double Ending Error

The show ends twice and the second one is way more fanservicey... And just objectively worse. Worse yet, it literally takes longer than the first ending by two minutes, making it so that six minutes of the finale is just... Pointless. In a show that was shortened and people say needed every bit of time it needed.

For those who don't know what I'm talking about, the first ending is what happens right after Belos is beaten. We get narration over scenes by Luz who is letting us know effectively the aftermath of the big events. This is actually pretty classic as far as endings go because it's a good way to de-escalate things and cover questions people might have. Here we see scenes showing people are safe, happy, back with their loved ones, better off than they were before, etc. like that. It even takes a realistic but optimistic viewpoint on how the Isles will be after Belos' defeat. That it will be hard but that people are interested in coming back together and putting aside old pains. The lingering shadows will be dealt with and the future is bright.

And then we have Luz come out of The Owl House with Stringbean to reminisce about herself. A farewell to the main character as she does mourn her magic but assures us that she doesn't need it anymore. That everything has made her stronger and ready to face the future. It is a genuinely good, final moment for her arc, regardless of if you think she has gone on an arc at all. Then, we get a glamour shot of her thinking about how this isn't the end of her story, but the start of a new chapter!

I... Genuinely like this ending. The only issues I have with it effectively are just ones that plague the entire series, like how Luz still has Stringbean so still has magic, just not the magic that made her special. The fact that she hasn't really changed or grown. She's just whined. And yes, the Collector does just bluntly suck dicks, especially without helping with the actual rebuilding efforts. But in general, objectively, this is a good ending. It works just on its own, brings the thematics together for a final statement, leaves the future open but also makes sure people know that everyone is happy and safe. It is classic, it works and it is a great capstone that takes four minutes.

There are still six minutes of the episode left.

The second finale is longer, shows off way more characters that I bet half of the viewers barely recognize if they even realize who they are, has a genuinely good like 30 seconds of showing the removal of the sigils, glamor shots of the Isles that really just highlight how few places we went to, are worse than the glamor shots in the first ending, and also remind people how few monsters were actually in the show. We do get future designs but a lot of people's jobs don't actually function with them or are so blunt as to be pointless to show. Luz is right back to wanting to be a witch of all trades explicitly when the first ending allowed some wiggle room for one to claim she did let go of her fantasies, or more so had a healthier relationship with them and reality now, and will move on to treating life differently. More responsibly. Like she isn't the hero of the story. That's part of why the first ending works thematically but now? Now Luz is just Luz from fucking episode one. The First Day at the latest. It just sucks.

All the thematic weight, all the resolution of plotlines, all the theoretical nuance and possibility space for what the future of the Isles would look like? GONE. And in it's place? Repetition. We already saw people get their happy endings. We already saw they were safe and going to do well. We already saw Luz have her twin families. I guess this ending gives us a portal door but we didn't need to see that when it was so blunt already that Luz would live in both worlds... Except because of the killing off Luz's final character moment by having her study EVERYTHING at the Isles' school, we're pretty much told that the human realm is just her Summer home. She clearly doesn't give a shit about anything other than her fantasy world or else she might have actually decided on a major than "A witch without magic."

It says so incredibly little about anything and loses even a nice, thematic ending that is supposed to be taken as the message of the show for... A fairy tale goodbye with some really lazy jokes and fanservice.

Which also explains why I pretty much ONLY heard about this ending. The first one is entirely skipped by the fandom to go "FUTURE DESIGNS!" And admittedly, why shouldn't they? The second ending invalidates the first but also the first ending makes the second one look like a joke. It's just a disaster.

Now, I actually want to bring up what could be considered something similar but... Not quite. Amphibia could be argued to have two endings as well. The first is after the Core's defeat where everyone is saying farewell to those closest to them. Marcy and the Newts, Sasha and Grime, and of course Anne and the Plantars. But... It's not actually presented as quite the end.

It is a final conflict. An acknowledgement that this does hurt and it's a pain not everyone wants. It shows how this final change is one that is reasonable to be scared of. Anne does talk about how they'll always have each other though and that could work for the final message, especially since that's theoretically the message the show wants to go out on. The problem is... That's a lot of tell, not a lot of show.

And so we get the actual ending of the timeskip. The show thematically wants to say that change is a positive thing and that even what you think you lose, still strengthens you for the better. So time HAD to pass. It's also why the narration over top only starts now, though it's mostly just a montage until we get to Anne's final thoughts. It shows how much better people are off now and how they don't forget those old connections. It is proving its thesis and then tacking on a final note that helps bring back a more optimistic tone.

"But of the things you let go, you'll be surprised what makes its way back to you."

A final note that says you don't have to lose things forever. A prayer that distance does indeed make the heart grow fonder. That change in all it's form, in loss and gain, can be positive. All while it keeps the possibility space of the girls' future, Amphibia's and everyone else's open but still lets us know that they'll be alright because these experiences and connections made them better.

It is a secondary finale that has a point to exist. It's not just for a victory lap and fanservice, it's actually thematically important and its message would not have hit as hard if not for the timeskip. It needed to be there, so it is.

TOH's timeskip doesn't have that excuse. It's just a circle jerk to give the fandom one more treat, one more redesign, and then leave. That is all it genuinely adds AND it takes over 10% of the finale just for that SINGLE purpose. Any other purpose was just as unnecessary, could have been just another minute on top of the first ending, or actively damages the story of the show.

Never tell me the shortening hurt the show. Not when even in its final moments, it undercut its own themes and pushed the story to the side just for fanservice, especially when this isn't new for TOH. Not by a long shot.

======+++++======

This post helped me know I could still be at least fair-ish to TOH. Genuinely, I liked the first ending. That wasn't just to setup the failure of the second ending, which I'd always thought fine before seeing the finale properly, but that I can appreciate a good, happy ending with a positive message. And that is a comfort to me I guess.

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead. If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

A Twitter you can follow too

And a Kofi if you like what I do and want to help out with the fact that disability doesn’t pay much.

[blackcatruse]

𝔣𝔯𝔬𝔪 𝔞𝔰𝔥𝔢𝔰

Story Synopsis: In the aftermath of the Tokyo Civil War Era, three gangs rose to the top: Kanto Manji, Rokuhara Tandai, and Brahman. These powerhouses have been locked in a stalemate, which only serves as temporary peace. In order to truly control Tokyo, one gang has to obtain all the money, power, and status. You’re a runner for a gang affiliated with Brahman, trying to claw your way out of debt that was never yours. The deals you make turn a significant profit, but your string of luck is starting to fray. When a deal goes south, you have no choice but to work with the infamous Haitani brothers. In exchange, you were promised freedom, but as you work the jobs with them, you begin to realize that the shadows hold something larger at play.

«prev. ❃ next» ❃ m.list ❃ ao3

pairing: r. haitani/fem!reader ↳ she/her, fem descriptors, nickname ❃ chapter synopsis: Enemy territory is a perfect, totally acceptable place to do business, right? The Haitani brothers don't think so, even if you do. word count: 1.4k chapter cw(s): swearing, physical violence, drug mention, death mention a/n: okay so, this is... loosely attached to the three deities arc. canon is just a suggestion, but because it's a stupid ass suggestion, i have elected to ignore it. i also threw in a ton of OCs, more than i was expecting too, oops. was not beta read & minimally edited. beware possible ooc

Being on enemy territory wasn’t on your to-do list for a Friday night, but the deal was important and the man you were supposed to be meeting said it had to be done here. Your boss said to do whatever you could to make it happen because it would make a huge profit. So here you are, decorated by neon pink and purple lights. The floor of the club was filled with moving bodies and reeked of sweat and alcohol. The thumping bass of the music vibrated the ice in your drink. Goddamn, if you weren’t annoyed. It was already nearing midnight and you hadn’t seen a lick of the man you were meeting. You couldn’t leave, but you also didn’t want to be seen here. You tried to stay in the shadows as much as possible, but you had already shooed away a few men that tried to hit on you, offer you a drink, or try to get you on the dancefloor.

You glanced down at your phone with a frown. There were no messages to be seen. Taking another sip of your drink, you scanned the sea of people writhing in the black lights. Maybe you should just go outside.

“What’s a pretty thing like you sittin’ all lonely?” A heavyset man plopped into the booth across from you. He smelled like a liquor cabinet.

You put on your best smile. “I’m just waiting on someone.” You stared over the man’s head and immediately saw the mule you were looking for. “Actually, he just got here. Sorry, got to go!”

Cursing men under your breath, you got up and weaved your way to him. His tattoos and piercings lined up with what you were told. You didn’t know his name, just an alias. But if you were being honest, you didn’t give him your real name either. The music made it almost impossible to speak without yelling, but when you came into his field of vision, he stared intently. You held up four fingers. He nodded and jerked his head towards the door.

Outside was far colder than the inside of the club. Your leather jacket did little for you. Both of you were in a narrow alleyway, underneath a flickering streetlight. Neither of you spoke, but you broke the silence. “Yon?” you asked.

A smirk, followed by, “Ah, so you’re Suzaku’s little Lotus.”

“Has your boss considered our offer?”

“Straight to the chase, I like that in a woman.”

If you were going to start a fight, you would inevitably lose. This monster of a man probably had a good eight or nine inches on you and at least a hundred pounds more muscle. You settled for a slight tick in your jaw. “You know that we’re experts at trafficking all sorts of things,” you said. “Running your drugs and dirty money would be a simple task.”

“Don’t you think Wuxing is getting a little greedy? You aren’t even a big name, just a subsection of Brahman. You have no negotiating power,” Yon scoffed. “Boss says he would consider it if you dropped your fees, then we could make something work.”

“Our rates are considerably lower, especially considering your gang isn’t well known either. You wanna get footing around here? You work with us.”

“Ambitious, aren’t we?”

“You know just as well as I do that money is power. Imagine how much money we could make you by running your goods through Shinjuku.”

“We’re not sure that profit will outweigh the costs. We’d rather run it ourselves in that case.”

It was your turn to scoff. “Brahman would never let you. They’d wipe you out in a second. But if you work with us, Brahman doesn’t know what we’re up to. We cover our tracks and we turn enough profit that the higher ups are willing to turn a blind eye.”

“Tell you what, we’ll think about it some more. Let Suzaku know he needs to send someone else other than his prized Lotus.”

With that, Yon turned and left. You knew this was something that could go south, but you figured the temptation of money would be enough. No, Yon was too smart for his own good. You should’ve met with someone dumber, but Yon’s boss started strong out the gate. Dammit. What were you going to tell Suzaku? Your string of luck with deals was running out, and it wouldn’t be long before he decided he was through with you.

You punched the brick wall next to you hard, ignoring the pain that seared down your arm. How had everything in your pitiful life come down to this? You could be at a university now. You could be on the path to an honest living, but no. That was never going to happen. There was blood on your hands that would never come off. It wasn’t your fault. You did what you had to in order to survive, but you couldn’t stay afloat much longer.

Damn your brother for getting tangled up in business with Wuxing. You could’ve had a normal life, but he had to go and fuck everything up for you. His debts were suddenly your debts when the leader of Wuxing decided your brother was worthless. Not only that, but your brother had tried to sell you like some kind of broodmare. At that moment, you realized that the older brother who was supposed to protect you didn’t care about you at all. You didn’t flinch or look away when the bullet went between his eyes. You didn’t feel anything except white hot rage.

You could have had a normal life. Instead you were making back alley deals and running money, drugs, and weapons. All to pay off a debt that would never truly go away.

Hefting a sigh, you glanced at your skinned knuckles. Yeah, that was gonna sting later. Well, you’d deal with everything tomorrow. You had a meeting with Suzaku. You’d tell him you weren’t successful, get the shit kicked out of you, and try again later.

“Well, well, what do we have here? A little mouse straying into enemy territory?” A deep voice behind you startled you, but before you could make a run for it a rough hand grabbed the collar of your jacket. You were lifted slightly off the ground and you couldn’t kick at your attacker.

Shit. You knew better than to panic and instead shucked off your jacket as quickly as possible. You hit the pavement with an unceremonious thud before sprinting away. You can’t say you didn’t try, but you really should have anticipated the person that tackled you. Before you could even process what was happening you were on the ground, your right arm prisoner and your upper body pinned by a pair of legs. Goddammit. You really were in trouble now.

“She’s fast, bro,” a voice said, you could almost hear the shit-eating grin.

You couldn’t struggle, but you heard the nonchalant footsteps. There was a painful tug on your arm, but you refused to scream. You didn’t want to meet in Minato ward for this exact reason, but Yon insisted or else the deal was off completely. Why, for the love of any deities that existed, would he want to do business where Rokuhara Tandai ruled? Especially when the gang had the S62 generation among them. Getting caught would basically be a death sentence, though, you supposed it was your fault for lingering too long.

You tilted your head up to see a tall, lanky silhouette outlined by the streetlights. A baton twirled in one of his twin braids. You were familiar with your captors. In your line of work, you’d be stupid to not recognize the Haitani brothers. There was Ran who loved beating anyone senseless by any means necessary, and then there was Rindou, who would trap you and break any limb he caught.

Another jerk of your arm had you gritting your teeth, but you wouldn’t give in. You’d had worse. They wouldn’t get the pleasure of your fear.

The tip of the baton touched your face as Ran leaned down to get a closer look at you. It trailed down your cheek almost sensually before it went underneath your chin. “I would really hate to mar such a pretty face,” he cooed.

You heard something crack as Rindou pulled harder. Tears welled in your eyes, but your lips stayed sealed.

“Wow, you’re tough,” Ran remarked, sounding rather impressed. His boot came down on your face with a sickening crunch. Stars danced in your vision and blood gushed from your nose. You still didn’t make a sound. You’d had worse beatings, and you didn’t want them to have any satisfaction. So you spit your blood at the older Haitani, and that’s the last thing you remember before blacking out.

Thanks for checking out my self-indulgent little story! I hope you enjoyed. Have a great day <3 I had wanted to post this earlier, but life got in the way and then i wanted to make a fancy banner, but i didn't have the skills so i asked a friend to do it (she did awesome). the concept was mine, but the art is hers lol

Please do not reupload, translate, or steal my work! If it isn't here or on my ao3, it's not me!

Can't wait? Ao3 has more chapters posted!

Banner Credit: @/cafekitsune

[tobiasdrake]

Tbh Beerus in BOG and DBS feel like completely different characters. I feel similarly about Beerus in modern DB and thought I just misremembered liking Beerus, but no, he's still cool af in BOG. There he's a dude you'd wanna hang out with. He's the life of the party. He can have a real meaningful conversation with Goku. He isn't even a bad person. He's just doing what needs to be done in the same way a forest fire does. It's in DBS that they depict him as having a mean streak, then he just hangs around, and then we're told he's not even good at his job. It's like Shin all over again but worse somehow.

Speaking of Kaioshin, one thing about Beerus that kills me is the way his existence is tied to the existence of the Kaioshin. I think it was the Zamasu arc that introduced that? If a Kaioshin dies, so too dies their associated Hakaishin because the pair are two sides of a coin.

Y'know. God and Piccolo. They did God and Piccolo again. This isn't even a Toei-ism; It's in both versions so it came straight from Toriyama's notes. But. Like. It's just God and Piccolo again.

And it doesn't even make sense, because Kaioshin isn't supposed to be a singular entity. Our Kaioshin is a singular entity. But there's supposed to be four. They're a set of Four Heavenly Kings, like the Kaios, serving under Daikaioshin. The only reason our Kaioshin is singular is because Majin Buu killed all the others.

So. Like. Why is the life of the Hakaishin cosmically tied to East Kaioshin specifically and not, say, Daikaioshin? Seems arbitrary as shit to me. And what happened to all the other Kaioshins in the other universes? Did Majin Buu kill them too?

I think Toriyama, decades after originally writing it, forgot how his own cosmic hierarchy works.