#Dragonfly Dojo

[fyeahspyroandcrash]

[almightyhamslice]

“Good work, Spyro. Use the stones to get to the Dojo. Remember Spyro, find the dragonflies before Ripto.”

Spyro begins his journey to find the missing dragonflies. He is off to Dragonfly Dojo, guided by the ferryman, Miyagi. Though... neither of them have any idea what’s happened to the other dragon elders at the dojo while they were gone. 

Their little orange and pink friend here is Ember (like from A Hero’s Tail! except not rlly); she tags along with Spyro because she’s completely lost in the Dragon Realms, and Spyro is the only person she can recognize... Though, Spyro does not recognize her. Miyagi suggests that Ember has amnesia, but Ember assures them both that she can remember everything QUITE clearly, it just all changed suddenly, leaving her behind. Enchanted Forest? Cutthroat Cove? Baked Alaska? Gnorcs?! None of it makes any sense to Spyro. Even so, Ember clearly needs his help, so he lets her follow him around. Besides, two dragons are better than one, right?

.... ok so I will admit I have been INCREDIBLY hyperfixated on Spyro: Enter The Dragonfly ever since I watched Mr. FO1′s documentary abt it LOL. I suppose I like it for the same reason a lot of people liked Crash Twinsanity-- there is a vast amount of cut content from the game and it’s RLLY interesting to me! So I think I might make a habit of drawing these ‘Spyro and Ember’ illustrations depicting ETD’s gameplay/world in... unconventional ways. I am also considering adding Flame from A Hero’s Tale to this story as well, but I feel like he has no reason to be here-- Ember was originally designed for ETD, Flame was not. But I find Flame interesting because he was redesigned to be more generic, just like Ember was. What would he have been like if they didn’t dumb him down like that?? Perhaps I can explore that...

Ember and Miyagi’s designs are ‘personalized’ in a way-- I wanted Ember to be orange like she was originally supposed to be, but the feathery wings, dark horns, and spots are all just stuff I added bc I thought it’d be cool. Miyagi, on the other hand, has a unique design because I wanted to differentiate him from Chow and Patton. Chow is probably the leader of Dragonfly Dojo because you meet him last, but Miyagi is the only dragon you can find in the hubworld... so I wanted him to feel kind of authoritative and wise, because Spyro was originally supposed to take runes to the dragon elders so they’d help him use them iirc. So I thought, hey, what if Miyagi knew about the runes? So as such with his more integral role in the story, he has the most dramatically different design. I like to think he, Chow, and Patton are brothers.

I am pretty excited abt this little ‘project’ of mine but I will admit. I am rlly NOT excited for whenever they get to Crop Circle Country because I dONT want to draw the fucky looking human npcs lol!! HELP? They are so freaky I dont like them

[cheesus-doodles]

What about Toman Boys with a reader who knows/does karate. Not exactly like Red Dragonfly reader. Do you think they would try to convince the reader to quit, or would they encourage it?

Masterlist

‎

Received a surprisingly number of requests on this previously! Sorry it took so long to get back to yall :’) I’m trying my best

Ahh so I take this to mean that reader knows karate like Mikey? Absolutely they would convince you to quit, by force even if it comes down to it. Don't think it matters if you were a competitive fighter, that you had a black belt, that you insist that you could hold your own against other delinquents; if you couldn't beat Draken or Mikey, let alone Mitsuya or Baji then you simply weren't strong enough to do karate. And it doesn't matter one ounce to your Toman friends how much you protested that Mikey has literally never been defeated or that Baji can take 50 guys on his own, and that each and every single founder was a monster on in their own right, even in the violent world of gangs and delinquents.

It wasn't just about the unsightly bruises that marked your skin after each fight, or worse, having to watch you dislodge joints or get knocked unconscious. Kazutora would by far be the most affected by all this “unnecessary violence”, which coming form a delinquent such as himself is hilarious, but you can’t bring yourself to laugh at those watery eyes. More so the fact that one, with growing strength meant an increased chance that you didn’t need them to protect you anymore, two, that you were actively interacting with a community that was beyond their control, and three and most importantly - you were allowing others to leave a mark, their mark, on you. Unacceptable. The cons of karate were way more than the pros of allowing you to learn self-defence, even the more tolerant of the boys (Pah, Mitsuya and Draken) could clearly see that. Which means it was time to put a stop to this nonsense for good.

But the boys wouldn't make you promise or swear that if you couldn't beat them, you couldn't learn or practice anymore karate - oh no no. That would make them the enemies that took something you loved away from you, and the last thing these Toman boys wanted was to drive you away into the arms of someone else that might be more... supportive. No, your friends would probably go for the alternate route of making karate so miserable for you that you would willingly give it up of your own accord: they would offer to train you themselves. It wouldn’t even seem that far fetch an idea, Mikey’s family owning and running a dojo that he and Baji had been training at since young, and with the other four being strong enough to be your practice dummies despite knowing no karate themselves. All six boys would be more than happy to spar with you though, but let it be known that they wouldn’t be holding back as much as you originally thought, no matter how much the thought of hurting you on purpose weighed down Mitsuya, Draken, Baji and Pah, with Mikey and Kazutora feeling no such guilt. At least with them offering to be the ones training and sparring with you, they manage to convince you to pull out from that stupid-ass karate class with all those dangerous strangers - you were only safe with them.

Starts off as them landing hits that would leave you with …inconvenient bruises and injuries. The crook of your elbow would start to creak and hurt when you tried to bend with the number of kicks and punches you were catching there, same with your knee. Not only walking would become a chore, but cooking and even writing. And when that fails to convince you to give up your little lessons, Mikey and Kazutora are quick to escalate, hitting out with enough force to pop a join, then fracture a bone. Passes it off as an accident, a hit too hard - they had thought you had reached that level already, and with those teary eyes and dramatic waterworks, no doubt you believed them, and forgiveness quickly followed. After all, Mikey, Baji, Kazutora, they were all your beloved friends; they would never do something so horrendous to you on purpose would they?

Anything got to do with karate, they would make sure it becomes associated with inconvenience, pain and suffering. Trust me, it hurts them as much as it hurts you - Baji and Draken are always ready with ice packs, Pah with a cold drink and something light to eat, Kazutora with his waterworks, and Mitsuya brings you to the doctor or hospital whenever something happens. They don't like to see you suffer, but if that's what they need to make you understand that this isn't good for you, then its just temporary pains to keep you safe in the long run. After all, they didn't want you to get the idea that you could take someone on without their help after learning some rudimentary self defence, not with your fragile body that couldn't even take a hit from them.

And if you do ask to go back to your normal lessons, Mikey makes it a point to beat your entire karate class - instructor included - just to show you how weak they were in comparison, and of course deter them from taking you back. Best to just give it up before this boy considers breaking both of your legs to teach you a real lesson.

[crystalfissured]

Enter the Dragonfly's Dragonfly Dojo has been recreated as part of the upcoming "Return of the Dragonfly" Reignited mod! Enjoy.

[aquillis-main]

Top 5 Spyro levels

Ohhhh, Spyro levels!

Artisans! My favourite starter levels!

Dragonfly Dojo. Possibly only level I like in Year of the Dragonfly.

Dragonfly Falls. One of the better levels in Heroes Tail.

Mushroom Forest in Legend of Spyro - I'm starting to see a pattern here.

Dragon Shores - Oh, good, the other one of the levels that isn't at the start.

[jetaloen]

Idk if this has been answered before, but what character inspired you to create Rohan?

i have talked about it a little bit on other sites, but not here i dont think....I LOVE SHARING MY INSPS

so i do have this pic that kinda shows characters/random elements that inspired rohan. most the actual shit about him is drawn from samurai champloo and vagabond tho

his background is based off jin from samurai champloo. jin's parents die and he is taken in by a dojo, where he trains constantly to compensate for his lack of family and structure. as a result, he is leagues above his peers, who ostracize and fear him. that's literally exactly what rohan is too, except i made rohan's PARENTS run the dojo he's in, and THEY make him train constantly with the reasoning that it will ensure rohan's future. i love themes of alienation in childhood, but i also love when characters are trapped in toxic family dynamics. jin grows into his role as a swordsman though he eventually must leave after he's forced to murder his master, but rohan resents his lack of choice and feels trapped, so despite his skill (that he doesn't appreciate until he comes to hisui) he yearns for a life where he isn't pressured.

personality wise, rohan is mostly based on soho takuan (vagabond), ryoji kaji (nge), and shunsui kyoraku (bleach). they are all easy-going but perceptive characters who, to varying degrees, can cut right into people when they need to. rohan is really similar to volo in some aspects as well, namely in terms of his tenacity. the whole point in originally creating rohan was to ponder the type of character that could realistically befriend someone that selfish and immature. i came to the conclusion over time that volo needs someone who will show him—the real him—a little care and empathy, someone older, wiser, and more mature; but it is imperative that that person must still go to war with volo on his level. and rohan will fight volo over and over until he dies, because that is what reaches volo the best: the determination to stop him. rohan knows this, even if volo doesn't recognize it himself.

other little elements of his character just kind of happened randomly.....such as catcher wrist wrappings to match volo's hisashi iwakuma pitch. he also wears brightly colored, patterned kimono usually typical of women's clothing bc i love ukiyo-e art, where a lot of the subjects are women, courtesans, and kabuki actors, all with intricate, patterned clothing. while the dragonfly print kimono is taken from PLA, most men in warring states/edo period japan typically would wear something more understated for everyday attire. if anyone had something to say about his clothes, he could just kick their ass i suppose lol

[jerrika3xo]

Spyro 4: Enter The Dragonfly Soundtrack - Dragonfly Dojo

[lonita]

My sword

An iaito is an unsharpened blade (sharpened katana are called 'shinken'), generally sandcast of aluminium-zinc alloy (as opposed to a forged carbon steel shinken). They are used primarily for the practice of Iaido. The length of the blade depends on the user's arm length and the style of Iaido they practice. The method of noto (re-sheathing of the blade) is a primary factor in Ryu-related sword length. My style, Muso Shinden Ryu, uses the - to my knowledge - longest blades because of sayabiki - how far back we are pulling the saya during nukitsuke and the start of noto. In a lot of schools/dojos, you aren't allowed to use a shinken in class until you're of a certain rank - third or fourth dan. Because shinken are so hazardous to use, iaito were created to facilitate the study of the art without lopping off body parts. I acquired this sword from Taylor Sensei in Guelph in July of 2016. In so many ways it is not aesthetically what would I would have chosen had I the opportunity to get a custom sword made, but the first time I held it in the dojo, I knew this sword was mine. It felt right. For the detail-oriented - it's 2.45 shaku (about two and a half feet), with dragonfly menuki, vines around the fuchi, and Musashi tsuba. I read somewhere that samurai used to name their swords. I haven't yet come up with a name for this iaito yet, but I figure that someday I'll just know what's right. I need to take some better photos of it. One of these days.

You can get swords with very ornate sword fittings. Mine are fairly simple, except for the dragonfly menuki (the fittings under the handle wrapping - they facilitate grip). Vines on the fuchi, a Musashi tsuba (hand guard), and a very simple tsuka-gashira (pommel).

Update 2020 05 14: Ever pick something up for the first time and just know it's yours? It wasn't until I was talking with a fellow iaidoka a few months ago that I truly noticed something about my sword.

This person uses a very inexpensive shinken despite his rank, and I'd asked him if he ever considered getting a different one. I wish I could recall exactly what he said, but it did make me think about the 'life' marks on my sword. It wasn't until then that I really thought about the tarnish on the kashira, the wear on the ito/maki, the tiny nick in the blade where I accidentally hit one of my dojo mate's blades during class the first couple of weeks I had it. I'd noticed all these things before, but hadn't thought about them.

More significantly to me, though, was the spot on the tsuba worn shiny where my thumb has rested to hold it for the past three years. This sword is showing my life. I actually cannot comprehend acquiring another.

One of these days I'm going to have to find out what sort of hamon that is. I never have.

[thedestinysunknown]

Spyro: Enter the Dragonfly - Dragonfly Dojo:

“First official level of the game and it’s quite a fun one. This is your “japanese” theme level, and I am a fan. Love the colors, the challenge and even the minigames. A very sweet level.”

PS: the footage of this gifset isn’t mine. You can find all the videos used in HERE.

[funky-vg-beats]

dragonfly dojo spyro: enter the dragonfly ost

[legends-live-in-memories]

“How Did All This Happen?”- A Memoire by one Marinette Dupain-Cheng 5

hi. im back. after slightly longer than usual (my usual was like everyday, not happening again) i have returned. :) this update is also slightly longer than usual too but who complains about that?

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 6

without further ado

Did Marinette Miss Her Own Wedding? I

Constantine was having a horrible time, as far as Marinette could tell. His phone kept ringing, which he was pointedly ignoring, and he looked more and more frustrated as he skimmed through one of his many grimoires. He was also very sober. Maybe that had something to do with it.

After Marinette’s little excursion out with Plagg the previous night, Constantine joined her and her grandfather and explained the lore behind the Renlings and what they were capable of. Marinette was already over it. It’s one thing to be magical guardians of one set magical gods, but animal spirits that transform the wielder into the respective animal is borderline ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous. And Constantine wants her to find them. Why not the Justice League? Or their team of proteges? Well, apparently, Constantine has a healthy distrust of the Justice League and magic they are unfamiliar with. Something about a mystical house no longer existing because somebody was suspicious. They fucked around and found out, as Plagg so eloquently put it. She didn’t know how she felt about aiding Constantine in his paranoia.

Anyways, Marinette was now Constantine’s go-to whenever he wanted to keep things away from the JL. She would have said no like a reasonable person, but she was at least getting more magical training and could actually use some of the spells in the Miraculous grimoire. Speaking of which, the grimoire that Constantine was hunching over was supposed to help them in finding the other Prodigiouses. The Kwamis were surprisingly unhelpful as they have never heard of the Prodigiouses or Renlings. 

After what could have been hours of grueling translating and spellwork, Constantine had finally figured out the location of the eight total Renlings and what their prodigiouses looked like. While Marinette and Master Fu began scheming appropriate retrieval plans, Constantine went to answer his many missed calls.

“What?!” Well that sounded concerning. Constantine looked ready to pull his hair out from scalp with tweezers. Whatever news he just received must have been awful for him to lose his composure like this. Good.

“You lot are planning to do what now?” Oh, was this JL business? Should Marinette be listening to this, albeit one-sided, conversation?

“And why do you all need to do this?” 

“Don’t give me that attitude. I’m working on something important.”

“Yes it is important, Zatanna. Please don’t let that group of League Juniors do this.”

“You even got me saying ‘please.’ No I can not tell you why”

“Well what do you mean you can’t trust me?!” This was starting to sound serious. The popcorn that Wayzz brought was also making this ten times more entertaining. 

“Zatanna-” Oh he got cut off. Serves him right.

“Fine, be that way.” Constantine forcefully ended the call and was pouting like a child. 

Marinette didn’t know if she should ask anything but she had the feeling it was related to the prodigiouses and tracking them. Were the League getting involved? It would explain his desperation to not have them interfere. 

“I can’t believe them.” Looks like Marinette didn’t have to make the decision after all. He was going to rant about it.

“What can’t you believe, Constantine?” Her grandfather appeared equally as curious.

“The Team are going to try and track down the prodigiouses. Luckily, they only think there are five rather than eight.” He paused to run his hands through his already disheveled hair. “I don’t know which five they’re tracking. Also, they probably know you have the Snake’s Fang.”

“Pardon?” Marinette doesn’t know what she would do if she was on the Justice League’s most wanted.

“Zatanna didn’t outright say it, but Kobra probably told them it was taken from him. That’s probably how they knew about the others too. Thanks for that.”

“First of all, I didn’t even know what these things were so don’t blame me. Second of all, this could have all been avoided if you just told them!” Marinette did not appreciate the blame being put on her for the League’s involvement. She wasn’t done ripping Constantine a new one yet either. “Especially considering the fact that you knew that their secondary team had a mission there. UN rules or not. But no! You wanted to keep all your magical secrets to yourself. So don’t blame me for the consequences of your own actions.” She was fuming at this point, probably overreacting, but she was tired of cleaning up after people who won’t so much as thank her. 

The ensuing silence was deafening and eyes that weren’t on Marinette were on Constantine. He looked rather surprised at Marinette’s show of spine, probably forgetting that she was born and raised in the League of Shadows. He never will again if he keeps pushing his luck. 

Fu cleared his throat, probably clogged from the awkward tension. “Well, now that that’s all dealt with, do you know what your next move is Constantine? Do we actively hinder the League for the sake of your own peace of mind or do you talk to them and work collaboratively with them?” 

Constantine, who was still doing his best fish impersonation since Marinette—no, Mei Fu—dragged him for everything he’s worth, tried to string together an answer. 

“I still think it’s best we don’t involve the Justice League with this. We should try to intervene and cut off their attempts of retrieving the prodigiouses.” He sounded like a child trying to convince their parents that they didn’t break the expensive vase. Very pitiful and very unconvincing. 

“Fine.” Pardon? Did her grandfather just agree? “We’ll help you keep the prodigiouses and the Renlings away from the Justice League.” Wow. Okay. So he’s just agreeing with him. Three guesses as to who will actually be the one to retrieve them. Wonderful.

Groaning with the weight of a thousand suns, Marinette also voiced her consent. The Kwamis were silent throughout this, not expressing their opinions. Except for Trixx, who had periodically rolled his eyes so hard Marinette would have been concerned he had popped a few blood vessels, if he had any. 

They spent the rest of the week planning and convincing her parents that she wasn’t in danger with her grandfather. They agreed that Marinette would retrieve the Dragon’s Claw first. Despite Brazil being closer, the Monkey’s tail would be harder to find in the dense forestry so they didn’t want to waste time on an extended search until much later. 

If you were to ask Marinette, the week was not enough to prepare. She made arrangements to stay with the Tsurugi family and convinced Kagami to help her in the mission. Her mother would be providing them with non-miraculous weapons as a back-up. Lady Tomoe was too understanding of her daughter being a magic-wielding superhero in Marinette’s opinion. Not one to look a gifted horse in the mouth, Marinette did not make any comments about the very impressive artillery of weapons. She chose a pair of double broadswords while Kagami stuck to a katana. Kagami also had the Dragon and the Ladybug prepared while Marinette stuck to the Tiger and Horse. Plagg didn’t want to miss out on the action and planned to tag along again. Wayzz made an off-handed comment about Plagg’s sixth sense for chaos and his recent desire to accompany Marinette on these missions. Overthinking whatever that was supposed to mean had cost Marinette six hours of sleep. 

While everything had been physically prepared, Marinette had yet to cope with the whole ‘going behind the backs of the Justice League because Constantine was paranoid’ thing. But this will not be the worst thing she has done. She also has the godsend, Kagami, to pull her out of any impending mental spirals. Now all that’s left is to actually get the Dragon’s Claw.

According to Constantine, the Dragon’s Claw was located inside the dojo of a martial arts master, O Sensei. Kagami, to be referred to as Tonbo, meaning Dragonfly, was to guard the perimeter for any individuals who could get in the way, while Marinette, codenamed Tigerlily with this combination of miraculouses, was to find the Dragon’s Claw, camouflaged by the tiger miraculous, and teleport them both back out. It was simple enough in planning and should be simple enough in execution. Even if the sensei of the dojo was to be made aware of their presence, They were expecting the element of surprise to give them an advantage. You know, outside of Marinette’s assassin training. So, yeah the plan was simple.

Except for the part where a group of the young Justice League heroes were already there negotiating with whom she assumed was O sensei. She recognized Kid Flash, Robin and Nightwing. The two women with them were unfamiliar. She also found the Dragon’s Claw in the sensei’s hand. She was positioned on a tree branch looking into a window in the room. If she timed this right, she could grab the necklace and portal out of the room to Tonbo and then portal back to the Tsurugi residence. That plan carries the risk of being seen but the pay-off should be worth it.

Poised to leap from the branch, Tigerlily steadied her breathing and prepared to call on the Horse’s Voyage. Still camouflaged, she jumped through the window and summoned the portal, about to grab for the necklace. Except she grabbed nothing and was suspended in the air. 

Who she knew now was Ms. Martian was using her telekinetic abilities to suspend her. Kid Flash sped his way over and quickly tied her, the contact breaking the camouflage charm. They must have figured she would appear at one of the locations eventually and planned a contingency plan for her appearance. The martian hasn’t read her mind yet, so maybe they thought she was non-hostile. That thought wouldn’t last long however as Tonbo emerged from the portal and, using the Flame Dragon, took down Ms. Martian. Tigerlily used the distraction to undo the bindings and get in a fighting stance. Nightwing and Robin were protecting O sensei while Kid Flash and the other woman charged at the two. 

Kid Flash was circling the two faster and tighter, corralling them together. Tigerlily drew for her broadswords and slashed the old floor boards. Kicking them in Kid Flash’s path, she knocked him off balance and thumped him the back of the head with the butt of her blade, knocking him down. Tonbo called for her Storm Dragon to subdue her opponent, who was also knocked down, then strung up both with the Ladybug yoyo. Tigerlily began a steady approach to the two batboys. She was ready to attack first but Nightwing got the upper hand. He drew his escrima sticks and swiped for Tigerlily’s head. She blocked with one sword and jump kicked to his chest, missing him entirely as he had crouched to sweep her legs from underneath her. Rolling out of the fall, Tigerlily slashed for his rising back but he intercepted with his other stick. He turned to face her and barrelled his full strength into her. They crashed into the nearby wall and at a standstill.

Tonbo was caught in a clash of katanas with Robin, neither side giving way to the other. If Tigerlily was more conscious of their fight than her own, she would have noticed familiar fighting techniques that were ingrained in her since birth. Alas, her attention was on the blue bird in front of her. Using his force that kept her against the wall, She double kicked him in the chest, forcing him away. Robin and Tonbo had broken away from each other and Tonbo aimed to stab Nightwing in the leg. Nonfatally of course, she wasn’t an ex-assassin as far as Tigerlily knew. Right? 

Anyways, her attack switched up the fight as now Tigerlily tried to dodge under Robin's incoming blade. Sliding on her knees, she reached to where O sensei was situated with the Dragon’s Claw. Frustrated with the night’s turn of events and forgetting all sense of pleasantries, Tigerlily tried to grab for the necklace. The business end of a katana was swiftly placed under her jaw. One wrong move meant game over.

“What do you want with the Dragon’s Claw?” Robin sounded like he was holding back from saying something. 

“An acquaintance of mine wishes for you all to not have it. I am merely doing him a favor, Tweety Bird.” Where did that nickname come from? She must have been internally catastrophizing more than she thought she was if she was actually trying to flirt her way out of this. Tonbo’s exasperation was made loud and clear with that answering sigh.

“Flattery gets you nowhere, Mei.” Robin’s arm twitched at that.

“Wait, you know her?” “You know him?” Nightwing’s and Tonbo’s voices overlapped but Tigerlily registered none of it as her ears were ringing with spiked emotions she thought she had buried years ago. Only a few people knew her by that name. Kagami, Chloe, Luka and Adrien were the only people outside of the League of Shadows who knew her by that name. Even then, there was only one person her age with the Shadows who knew her. But it couldn’t be him. He was supposed to be dead. There was no way in hell that the Boy Wonder holding a katana to her throat was—

“Damian?!”

Taglist:

@deathwishy @neakco @virtualreading @f-rget-lt @your-resident-chicken-nugget @nathleigh @toodaloo-kangaroo @irontimetravelflower @trippingovermyfeet @t1dwarrior-of-earth @tip-tap-tired @fidget-eep @thenillabean @officiallydarkgeek @mystery-5-5 @moonlightstar64 @just-an-observer-ignore-me @nightstarblue @certainmuffinbagelcalzone @fan-written @jjmjjktth @vixen-uchiha @zorua-adorable @nnon-it-up 

[fyeahspyroandcrash]

[almightyhamslice]

Enter: Flame! a third party memeber for this team... he is older than spyro, and is found in the dojo! He seems out of place, but he doesn’t know that n thinks nothing is wrong. He tags along w/ Spyro and Ember in order to find his dragonfly. After that, he think’s he’ll ditch them.

Flame is normally blue with a purple mane, but can turn red with a yellow mane when he becomes angry! chameleonic, almost... 

[cheesus-doodles]

Sarashi

Yandere Platonic Toman Former Gang Leader Darling

Recommended Readings: Still You

Masterlist

‎‎

just really really wanted to write something short that was Red Dragonflies related, so enjoy :) p.s. this happened roughly 4 years before the events of Red Jacket, if it wasn't clear!

"Check."

A groan of despair, and Hirosyou, the first of Jun's two Vice Division Captains, sank his head into his palms, pulling at his eyes. "How did I not see that coming?"

The Second Wing rolled his eyes. "Fuck if I know how you lived this long with balls for a brain."

"Says the baseball nut."

"Shut the fuck up." Waving the other to hurry up and make his move, Jun glanced back up at the empty front garden of the Sano dojo, the barred metal gate that stood at the end of a short driveway doing little to block the gaze of outsiders into the compound. While he supposed it wasn't too far fetch for you to spend time at the Sano residence after your classes had ended for the day, what was unusual was that you weren't here to consult with the former Black Dragon President like you had previously; he would have known if you were, given Hase would have requested he accompany you to the meeting. So what could possibly be the reason you were here out of the blue?

Absentmindedly biting down on his thumb as he racked his mind to think of the possibilites, Jun picked up his queen, shifting it to a space a few squares away from the opponent king before setting it down with a definite, final click that broke the stillness of the lifeless street. "Checkmate."

A sudden gust of wind that peeled down the street both they and the Sano dojo sat on floated the sigh of acceptance that escaped from Hirosyou, the boy falling backwards to rest on his outstretched palms against warm concrete. The brutal afternoon heat that had baked the earth just an hour earlier had finally let up as the sun started its slow descend from its peak towards the distant horizon - a relief the two friends welcomed together with the comfortable quiet that had settled over the area.

But it seemed that he had once again spoken too early, the momentary peace broken by the all-too familiar rumble of a motorcycle pulling up from behind him, quickly followed by the heavy stomping of boots across asphalt that announced the arrival of a most unwelcomed guest - one that Jun didn’t bother turning around for, the scowl on his face only growing at the shadow thrown over him.

"Furusawa-san." Hirosyou greeted with a quick bow of his buzzcut head. It was more than Furusawa probably deserved, the Second Wing thought, seeing that all the other received was a questioning look from the oblivious Right Eye and Vice Captain, Furusawa turning to glance at him for a mere moment with furrowed eyebrows before looking back at Jun, jabbing a finger in the other's direction. “Who’s this?”

The baseball bat that just been idly propped against the wall just a few moments ago found its way into his hand in moments, the thud and echo as it bit into flesh and muscle enough to wring a wince from Hirosyou’s face, despite the other being a veteran deliquent. But Furusawa didn’t even seem to notice the bash, now more concerned with trying to discern what was being screaming at him by an exasperated Jun. “You shit walnut, it’s been two fucking years! My fucking Vice Division Captain?! Hirosyou??”

Yet Furusawa only looked even more perplexed, chocolate eyes once more swinging around to land on the black-haired boy. A moment of silence from scanning him up and down only earned Jun another shrug right before he settled on the ground with a huff. “Doesn’t seem he can fight all that well.”

"And who the fuck fights well next to you?!”

“Hase. He’s not too bad. You should get yourself a Hase.”

As if Hases sprouted on trees like rotten fruits. Plus the last thing Jun wanted was having to drag around that lifeless, permanently depressed sob of a human being anyway.

How did you even put up with all this, was his next thought - the sheer incompetence and utter lack of brain enough to drive anyone insane. Yet there you were, somehow never bothered with having to handhold Furusawa in any matter that required the slightest amount of thinking.

You must be some sort of saint, Jun concluded, even as he grumbled under his breath to no one about monsters and inhuman strength, his hands back to quickly packing away the chess pieces that littered the sidewalk around where the board had been reverently placed, replacing them neatly back into the little drawers inlaid along the sides of the chessboard.

Unlike what the fathead that had the privilege of being your other Eye believed, there were ways other than fists and blood to settle bets and disputes in the Second Division. The clinking of wood against wood that filled the otherwise silent street only served to quickly catch the attention of the man with the mob of black and pink hair who looked intrigued, picking up several pieces that were hilariously tiny in his giant hands, his head tilting to one side. “What’s all these?”

“Nothing you will ever fucking use, trust me.” The Second Wing snorting, snatching the final pieces back, before passing the well-worn board to Hirosyou. “Just leave this on my table. Need it tomorrow.”

For someone that just got called weak by his own gang's Vice Captain, Hirosyou looked surprisingly unbothered - he must have already accepted that there was no measuring up against a beast like Furusawa. “I’ll head back to base first, Captain.”

“Remember, it’s all the fucking paperwork on my table. Don’t miss a single fucking piece.” Ahh the wonders of winning a bet - his entire fucking afternoon was cleared in a go.

A loud, long sigh. “Yes sir.”

Propping his baseball bat back against the wall as peace once more fell across the land, Jun dug into his pockets. He was sure he still had some somewhere. As expected, Furusawa instantly perked up at the muffled rustling of plastic, turning to watch as he brought his hand back out, fist now filled with colorful wrappers of sweets of various sizes.

Dropping his emergency stash of bribes into the other’s awaiting outstretched hand, it was at times like this that Jun had to wonder how anyone could be afraid of the boy next to him happily digging into his sudden windfall, looking much like his own younger siblings rather than a well-feared underground fighter. Was he really two years older than himself? “So what’s Boss here for today?”

“Playdate.” Furusawa replied from between clenched teeth, carefully picking through the pile of sweets, already in search of his next treat.

“A fucking what?”

“A playdate.” Furusawa repeated, one hand scratching at his ear as ther other set another newly empty wrapper down on the ground next to him. “Boss never really got to be a kid, ya know?"

Jun opened his mouth, before snapping it shut again. There was no arguement to be made here no matter how much he hated to agree with Furusawa - when was the last time he had seen you acting your age?

Your oldest friend continued on. "So she’s been coming here to play with Takeomi’s little sis. Heard she’s about the same age as Boss. Plus Izana hangs round here too sometimes.”

Takeomi’s sister - Senju wasn’t it? She’s alright, Jun thought - reminded him of his own baby sisters: lively, energetic and cute (or at least when they were being well-behaved). Might even remind you to let loose once in a while. But it was the second name that had his hackles instantly raised. Everything about Izana, especially when it came to you, screamed wrong. “I don’t like that little fucking creep. Makes my hair stand.”

Furusawa only shrugged. “Hase said he was out today.”

Translated: who were they to tell you what to do? It wasn’t like Jun hadn’t already voice his opposition to you dating Izana - anything beyond that would be overstepping. You were his Boss after all, but it didn’t mean the he had to like your choices.

“Furu! Jun!” The cheerful call of his name broke the depressing train of thought Jun was spiraling down, and he jumped to his feet. Furusawa did the same, though Jun bemusedly noted the other quickly stuffing his remaining treats into his pocket.

“Boss! You’re b-” His words died away at the sight of you making your way over from the gates, Senju pausing to lock them back behind her.

“Look what Senju helped me with!” The stars sparkling in your eyes reflected your excitement as you gave your friends a quick twirl, a feeling that Jun could not find in himself to replicate, showing off the neatly bound bandages stretching from around your chest down to your midriff that formed a makeshift sarashi. “Don’t I look cool?!”

“Boss, are you?” Jun stammered out, his brain going into overdrive as it desperately tried to process what he was seeing. Now would be a good time to start fucking eating what he was thinking earlier about Senju.

You paused in your little celebration, tilting your head as the excitement in your eyes was replaced with confusion. “Am I?”

“Are you wearing anything underneath?” Was all he managed to squeak out, his cheeks starting to burn even as he failed to shift his gaze away from you. Fuck fuck fuck - Jun already knew the answer to his question from the way the dread was settling at the base of his gut.

But worse still was when you misunderstood what he was asking, your wandering hands reaching down to tug at the hem of your skirt. "Pretty sure I am."

Senju thought she was doing you a favour. New friends were hard to come by, with her brother being a delinquent as known as the God of War. So when you - one of the few people close enough for her to call a friend and with the added benefit of being about the same age as her - had begun to rave non-stop to her about how awesome some nameless dude in a haramaki had looked, she had been eager to lend a hand in making your dream come true. All in return for a little promise that you would invite her to watch one of the fights that the Red Dragonflies’ mediated of course, and you had been happy to agree to her request.

"Stop that!" His face must have caught on fire at some point without his knowledge, seeing how hot his cheeks felt as he slammed one hand over his eyes in a desperate attempt to erase what he just saw, the other quickly slapping your hands away. Where was the eye bleach when he needed it? How was he ever going to look at you normally again?

‎

‎

But what the pink-haired girl hadn't anticipated was you wanting to show off her little handiwork to your other friends, only to be caught off guard when you had tugged her outside to reveal your new look, completely unaware of the looks of horror dawning on the boys’ faces and her own.

Shit. Hopefully she doesn't land herself in trouble again - Takeomi would be furious.

But before you could question Jun any further, a giant black tee had already been dropped over you, you almost instantly becoming completely lost in the fabric that dwarfed you twice over. Though it wasn’t long before your head finally found the top with some rearrangement help from Senju, it was only to the sight of Furusawa carefully draping his jacket over your shoulders, a very strained smile now stretched where his usual grin was. “Girls can’t go out without clothes, Boss.”

“But I’m wearing clothes, Furu!” You protested, waving your arms in the air. “These are clothes!”

Your gigantic friend gently flicking your forehead was enough to send you into a full-blown pout - seemed like you already knew what he was going to say. “Bandages ain’t clothes.”

Stretching back up to his full height, the infamous Vice Captain of the Red Dragonflies looked a lot more menacing with his tattoos now fully on display, grin now back on his face now that you were fully dressed once more. Enough to have Senju shrinking slightly behind a still upset you - no matter how many times you reassured her about how “Furu” would never dream of hurting her, that bloodthirsty grin you never seemed afraid of still scared her. Even Shinchiro flinched at his name.

But all you did in response was pout some more, your feet tracing patterns in the ground, whining under your breath about how you thought you finally looked awesome, and that it wasn’t fair that Furu could go bare-chested but you couldn’t wear a sarashi.

To which he simply patted your head, ruffling up your previously neat hair. “Takeomi in today?”

“Yeh.” You mumbled dejectedly. “Said hi to him and Shinchiro-san on the way out just now."

Reaching into one pants pocket and pulling out a fistful of money, the tattooed boy carefully laid it in your comparatively tiny palm. “How bout you go ahead and get something to eat with Senju, Boss? I’ll come find you later.”

He adjusted the collar of the red jacket hanging off you like a cape. “And don’t take this off, you hear?”

Senju didn’t miss the downright evil look that had washed over Furusawa’s face as he turned back to face the dojo, a sharp contrast to your dejected one, sadly telling her that your friends would never allow you to look so cool, even as you tugged at her to walk.

Having just awoken from the stupor he had been trapped in from seeing - of all people - you without a shirt, Jun found himself alone on the street that was once more void of life, you and Senju having disappeared to parts unknown, and a now half-naked Furusawa tearing his way into the Sano compound.

A look as sinister as the creatures and beasts that decorated the older boy’s back and arms, Senju shivered, monsters whose eyes seem to follow her even as Furusawa effortlessly pried open the bars of the locked dojo gate like they were made of cotton instead of steel, letting himself into the compound with barely a lost breath. Gulping and clinging to you tighter, Senju wasn’t sure how someone so scary was only 15, but at least one thing the pink-haired girl was sure as hell about was how thankful she was for not being her big brother now.

‎

‎

Everything clicked in seconds in his head. This should be good.

“TAKEOMI!” One half of a sliding door went flying out and over the compound wall as Furusawa stormed the house, the sound of shattering glass and splintering wood following the trail the other blazed with fists and feet.

A very audible yip echoed out, and the whole house seemed to rattle to its foundations. The sight of a figure scrambling out of where there used to be a door - Takeomi by the looks of it, from that well-gelled hair - brought the drama out into the open, the crashing and breaking quickly following suit. “HUH? WHAT? WHAT DID I DO?”

Oh, he saw where this was going. So Furusawa assumed that Senju had learnt the whole sarashi shit from Takeomi. Well, he wasn’t going to correct that anyway, not with the show he was getting. Fucker deserved it.

“WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TEACHING BOSS?!”

What looked like the entire Sano couch set was sent flying out a new hole in the house, right before Furusawa leapt out after the airborne furniture, looking very much like the beast rumours claimed he was - Jun could clearly see where the fear of the Vice Captain came from now.

“WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?” The other screamed back, lit cigarette still tightly clenched between two fingers as he threw himself to the side to dodge Furusawa’s fist that pulverized the stone lantern behind him.

Maybe he should go after you and Senju, Jun idly mused, baseball bat lightly tapping against his leg - Furusawa seemed to be doing enough damage by himself as is. But then again, there was nothing to worry about - he knew you well enough to know that you wouldn’t want to get into any sort of trouble while Senju was with you.

Besides, Koji should be free about now to go meet up with the two of you.

In addition - short black hair streaming back in a puff of air as Jun jumped the crooked gate in a single smooth leap - there was the fire already burning that he could fan to punish the smooth-brained ape who had dared give the okay for you to date Izana, prized baseball bat letting out a threatening clang against metal as the Second Wing joined the fray. “SHINCHIRO! GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE YOU PERV, YOU SAW BOSS HALF NAKED!”

Now a few streets away, you didn't look too much happier with your style being crimped, though Senju did make an effort to hold on to your hand as she led you down crowded streets. A good treat was bound to cheer you right back up. “Come on, let’s go get ice cream. I know a good cafe.”

Furusawa very obviously pausing where he held Takeomi squirming by the collar of his shirt, before the gears once more started to turn in his head as he whirled to scan the ruined wall, fury burning in those narrowed eyes. Hurling the other man back towards the house, Shinchiro only having time to let out a squeaked “I swear I didn’t” from where he had been half cowering, half watching, only to quickly diving behind the ruins of a wall in an attempt to hide.

‎

‎

Stopping at the traffic light, the red man stared you down unwaveringly as you shifted the gigantic shirt properly over you, tucking the spare material into the hem of your skirt as best as you could. Though this seemed to have given you another idea, Senju worriedly noted.

“Do you think Izana would think I look cool?”

Uh oh. She knew a bad idea when she heard one. But you had already made up your mind before she could answer, your face brightening into a cheerful smile, a hum bubbling up from between your lips. “I’ll go show him later!”

Senju instinctively held up the black card grasped in one small hand: a treat. Food had to be the answer to take your mind off stripping again and getting her into more trouble. “I swiped Takeomi’s card.”

“Don’t think we’ll need it.” Looking back down at the money that Furu had given you still clutched in one fist, you took advantage of your break to neatly arrange, fold in half, and stuff into your pocket. “By the looks of it, Furu gave me a 100 thousand yen.”

“…miscounted again?”

You shrugged. “Most likely.”

[crusherthedoctor]

What is it you like about Enter the Dragonfly's level concepts?

I mention Jurassic Jungle and Thieves' Den the most because those two are probably the most original of the bunch, but honestly? While the rest may be more obviously based on PS1 levels (Cloud 9 being similar to Cloud Spires, Dragonfly Dojo being similar to Bamboo Terrace, etc), I've always felt they still managed to set themselves apart, at least visually. I never considered them Sonic 4 levels of copy-and-paste, they always had their own identity IMO. And despite EtD being an unpolished early PS2-era game, and the areas themselves being overly large and empty, they still looked fairly nice regardless. (The character models, on the other hand...)

I'm not saying they ALL need to be given a second chance/spiritual successor in a hypothetical Spyro 4, but it'd be nice if some of them did.

[ninja-weapons]

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