#I feel like crab might win just cause of the block placing thing

[susiron]

The fact that I have to pick between crab, armadillo, and penguin for the Minecraft mob vote hurts my soul

[aggressive-positivity-network]

do any of the mercs play board games?

Mercopoly (Board Game

Headcanons)

Scout:

You think he has enough of an attention span to play something that doesn’t involve sweating out his energy drinks?

Hell no!

He gets very bored very quickly, especially with something complex like chess.

He’ll play cards sometimes, but only Crazy Eights and Go Fish - that’s all he knows how to play.

However, there is one true board game he plays occasionally: Candy Land.

It’s one of the few board games that you don’t really have to read the rules for, and there isn’t any writing on the cards.

However, he only asks to play it when he’s not feeling very well.

Medic even has a page in his medical journal for the mercs that says, and I quote:

“The Scout has an extremely short attention span, and if an activity isn’t active or immersive, he will not stay long. If at any point he chooses a sedentary activity, a check-up is in order.”

As sad as it is, a request to play Candyland is a good way to know if Scout needs a little extra reassurance or support.

By the end of the game, Scout usually feels more himself, whether he wins or not.

Engie is especially good with Scout when he’s this way, being the one of the most emotionally sensitive of the group. But he also knows Scout would never admit straight-away how he was feeling, so he usually has a more fun way of getting answers.

“You feelin’ more like a King Candy or a Lord Licorice?”

“...Fudge Monster.”

“That bad, huh?”

“Yeah...”

Spy:

If you ask him, he will most likely go off on a tangent about chess, and how it’s a game of strategy, deception, and crushing your enemy with your wit.

He scoffs at any other game, and constantly makes fun of several of his more intelligent peers for finding interest in them.

“You are mercenaries. Blood-thirsty killers of men. And you are playing ‘Hungry, Hungry Hippos’ like a hoarde of kindergartners?”

But one thing he cannot resist is Sorry.

He considers it above normal board games because it has strategy - or at least that what he says.

He actually just likes it because it’s a game of revenge, which is like a drug to him.

He’s gotten so good at it that if he asks you to play Sorry with him, it’s almost guaranteed that he’s mad at you and just wants to let off some steam by giving you a horrendous loss. However, occasionally, he’s the one who loses.

Spy isn’t a poor sport, exactly - he’s too cultured for that - but sometimes his pride outweighs his manners and he convinces himself that the other player cheated through made up signs of deception.

He simply “allows” them to win because he “doesn’t want to make a fuss.”

But god help the unfortunate soul who decides to rub their win in his face.

Sniper had won five games in a row, and it was clear Spy was getting hot under the collar.

Sniper ended their games with a mischievous, “You’ll get ‘em next time, tiger.” and a small pat on his shoulder.

Spy immediately saw red, grabbed Sniper’s hand, and before the aussie knew it, he was against a concrete wall with a butterfly knife to his throat.

“I could kill you right now. Your final cry for Medic will be drowned in blood, and I would leave you here to die a painful, dramatic death. You’ll be replaced with a rusted trash can of a bot until they could grow another clone of you. Every memory will be gone. The team will be shrouded in grief, not because of losing you, but losing what the clone can never have. And I shall bide my time, ask the clone to play the same game, and kill them when they win. Another clone, another kill. And again. And again. And again. You think the Manns give a damn as long as their work is getting done? You will never be able to form a single thought before I spill your blood - caught in an eternal prisoner’s dilemma where you always lose.”

After gathering his bearings, Sniper finally spoke.

“Is this about your takeout?”

Spy scoffed.

“Do you really think - !”

“Tonight, my treat if you don’t kill me.”

Spy squinted.

“Egg rolls?”

“And an extra order of crab rangoon.”

“Your treat?”

“Yep.”

“How do I know you won’t poison me?”

“Chemical test before and after the food arrives.”

“How do I know Medic isn’t in on it?”

“Miss Pauling as a witness and Scout as an overseer. Pauling’s main objective is to keep us alive, and Scout can’t do bloody anything subtle, even if he wanted to. You can also play back the cameras in the lab, if the mood really struck ya.”

Spy held Sniper against the wall for a minute or two while he thought it all over, then let Sniper fall to the ground.

“I don’t need your sympathy, bushman. But you had better keep your end of the deal. I am the only backstabber around here.”

Demo:

Can’t even stay awake long enough to play most board games.

On the rare chance that he’s sober, he, Engie, and Medic like to play Monopoly.

Here’s the thing: you should never ask a drunkard, an engineer, and a sadist genius to play Monopoly together. It will not end well.

They have been playing the same game for years, with new rules in place and physical extensions to the board in order to try and end the game. Every other Friday, they take the weekend to try and finish it.

However, it all ends up fruitless.

Demo is usually the one keeping the peace, since he is the least competitive out of the three. That isn’t to say he isn’t clawing for the win as much as the other two, but he is definitely the least invested. He’s mostly staying out of principle.

“If there’s one thing I’ve learned, ‘s ta ne’er give up, e’en when the goin’s gettin’ tough. Roll the dice, doc.”

Despite his confidence, he’s not even sure what he would do if he or anyone else won. It would seem more like a relief than a celebration.

Medic:

He’s the one who started the Eternal Monopoly game, which has led to some theories that the game itself came straight from hell, and is one of the many punishments used on sinners. The box does smell a bit of brimstone…

He seems to enjoy the chaos that each round brings and the challenge of coming up with new rules to the game. To any outsider, his commentary and directions are complete nonsense.

“According to zhe ‘Calvinball Rule,’ as stated by Engineer, and the ‘Double Kill,’ as stated by myself, since the current time ends vis a three and ve all received at least two kills zhis veek, ve need to double every other roll and whomever loses zhe resulting game of ‘Bim Bum’ vill have to go to zhe Purple Jail.”

The rules and mechanics are like an unholy amalgamation of Monpoly, Sorry, chess, D&D, Bluff, and poker.

However, when Medic isn’t stapling pages of rules together, he likes to play a nice, relaxing game of checkers with Heavy.

Both of them are excellent checker players, but neither of them care who wins.

In fact, they usually talk over the game, taking the other player’s pieces as one of them shares a story from that day’s battle.

They’ve even played while Heavy was in surgery - leading to many unfortunate times when Medic had to fish a piece out of Heavy’s intestines.

One would think that a genius doctor would also have a passion for chess, but he expresses his disdain for it almost every time the checker board is brought out.

“Ach, people think chess is such an intelligent sport. Let me tell you, liebling, it is terribly overrated. If zhe devil can play chess, anyvun can. He might as vell just give souls avay, vis those shaky claws of his.”

Engineer:

Being the engineer, he is usually the one to add to the Eternal Monopoly.

Pieces, board extensions, cards, trivia - it gives him a nice break from all the weaponry.

He’s usually the one who remembers all the mechanics and rules, and serves as the judge if rules contradict each other.

“Alright, now let’s see here…we’ve got the Infinity Loop over here, but now you’ve got the Time Travel card…how many years? Infinite? Ho boy…looks like I’m gonna have to add a Hilbert’s Hotel square somewhere. Hold on…”

Despite his affinity for Eternal Monopoly, Engineer will play almost any board game. He learns new rules and figures quickly, and enjoys the challenges that brings.

However, if he’s particularly burnt out, he likes to take a break by playing Jenga. He and Spy have a friendly rivalry, since Engie can tell which blocks are supporting and Spy has quick fingers.

Spy, oddly, is a lot more amiable losing in Jenga - he knows Engie won’t think less of him - but Engineer hates when the bricks fall over. Not because it means he lost, but because, to him, it’s a failure on his part…even if it was someone else that knocked it over.

He’s made several blueprints for the perfect Jenga game, but has concluded that no human hand could put it into practice.

During one particularly bad day, Engie bumped the table, causing the whole column to come crashing down. Spy had already recovered from the noise, but Engie was still standing there, stone-faced.

His eyes were covered by his goggles, but it was clear he was crying.

Several of his machines had broken on the job, and to him, this was just another egregious mistake.

Spy carefully put the blocks back in the container, and Engie came to his senses.

“I’m real sorry, Spy. Maybe another time…?”

Spy only nodded. He was thinking.

The next time they played, Spy brought out a different container.

Instead of wood, the bricks seemed to be made of a sturdy foam.

“They fall a bit more…quietly,” Spy explained. He dropped one, and it only made a small bouncing sound. “Pyro uses these, but they allowed me to borrow it.”

Engie was a bit skeptical at first, since it was a new material, but he got the hang of it rather quickly. He was almost ecstatic the first time it fell - the blocks barely made any sound at all!

After a few games, Spy had to leave for an assignment. Engie put a hand on their arm.

“Thank ya, Spy. Maybe you ain’t the cold-blooded backstabber I thought you were.”

Spy chuckled, but said little else. He didn’t want to admit that noise sensitivity plagued him as well.

Pyro:

Pyro loves board games, and has quite the collection in their room.

Each plastic piece is at least a little melted, and all the boxes have two or three scorch marks.

Hungry Hungry Hippos, Candyland, and Uno are among her favorites.

He is an absolute beast at Uno, though.

They take each game very seriously, especially when they can convince the whole team to play.

As you can imagine, it’s pure chaos - it even led to a rule in the Merc Guidebook: “When playing Uno with three or more players with the inclusion of a Pyro, at least one Mann Co. representative and/or a mediating Medic must be present.”

Pyro has been known the hide cards, bribe players, or even try to set flame to competition. Playing Uno is almost like a mission, with weapon preparation and Spy posing as other players.

The mercs even have a betting stand that Sniper runs. All parties have lost a lot of money that way.

It’s pretty much the only time outside of battle that the team remembers how cruel and malicious Pyro can be.

Sniper:

Conventional board games aren’t exactly his forté, but he does enjoy a bit of cards every once in a while - Solitaire being his favorite.

He even has a pack of cards in his Sniper Square for that exact purpose. It allows him the pass the time without having to look away from his targets too often.

On occasion, he could be pressed to play poker, but only if the stakes weren’t monetary (i.e candy pieces, crackers, duties, etc.).

His favorite part of every match is shuffling the cards. Pretty much every merc could shuffle cards, but Sniper could make them almost float with how quick his fingers and wrists moved. He always began the game with a new trick he learned, which delighted his fellow players (usually Spy, Engineer, Medic, and Demo).

You could always tell if he had a busy day because he would avoid tricks with too much movement, which would be murder on his sore fingers and hands.

Pyro is currently learning card tricks from Sniper, and show off what they learn at the beginning of every Uno game.

Heavy:

He isn’t a huge fan of the bright, plastic-y board games that Pyro has, although he will play them if asked.

It’s mostly because of how complicated the rules are and the fact there are almost never a Russian translation for the directions.

He always prefers checkers, cards, or mancala, which he almost exclusively plays with Medic because he’s the only one who speaks fluent Russian.

Heavy can play a mean game of mancala, though, and it’s the only game he can beat Medic at.

Soldier:

The only games he will play are Battleship and Uno - but only after Miss Pauling convinced him it was “American enough” because the game had red, white, and blue cards.

He prefers the electronic Battleship because of the sound effects and voices. However, if it’s out of batteries, he’ll make his own sound effects.

Miss Pauling is the best at pretending to be a commander, so she’s usually the one playing with him - but, sometimes, Demo gets in on the action, too.

[shebeafancyflapjack]

Defrost

Weather is starting to turn cold here so quick Wintry S2 fluff with a still kinda bad demon kitty.

Vicky decides to cause a snowstorm at the worst time, for Eleanor.

Michael was beaming. This was absolutely hilarious.

It was only his third ethics lesson and definitely his favorite so far, none of which had anything to do with what he was supposed to be learning. Presumably. 

When he’d begrudgingly arrived, all of the humans had been gathered waiting for class to start, Chidi stood at the chalkboard tapping his foot, while Jason and Tahani sat awkwardly at either ends of the couch, as if it wasn’t obvious enough that they were having a ‘secret fling’ the rest of the dummies were too blind to notice. 

There’d been an annoying twinge in his chest when there didn’t seem to be any sign of Eleanor, the one human who wasn’t afraid to sit near him and make these damn lessons somewhat bearable. 

“She’s decided to skip today. Apparently the weather was far too good to stay inside when there’s good ‘Arizona style skin baking’ to do.” Chidi had explained with a groan when Michael had asked about his missing classmate. 

The brief irritation and pettiness that Eleanor hadn’t asked him to ditch classes with her was quickly replaced by a burst of giggles, his hand moving to his mouth.

“What is so amusing?” Tahani asks, looking up.

“Oh, it’s great, trust me! I was about to warn you all; Vicky’s about to get Janet to mess up the weather so that we have a week of insanely cold snowstorms! Apparently something to do with Eleanor giving you ‘the cold shoulder’, yada yada,” Michael waves off, addressing the egocentric princess; “And...Ha! Eleanor is out there sunbathing?! Oh, that’s priceless!”

Why did he never think of that in all those reboots? Maybe because sending murder hornets after Chidi whenever the two of them tried to have a romantic picnic or soak them in torrential rain seemed too similar. But this was even better! If only he could take credit for it.

A flash of white outside the windows gets all the humans to their feet as they turn to see Michael’s words come to fruition. Heavy, sharp winds carrying the thickest of snowflakes begin whirling around and burying the ground outside in a quickly rising layer of powder.

“Oh, so THAT’S snow! Awesome!” Of course the Florida DJ hadn’t ventured far enough beyond his swamp city to see such weather before; “I wanna go eat it!”

“Trust me! You really don’t wanna go out in that, it’s not designed to be fun. I’m supposed to make some announcement to be broadcast in your homes later about a glitch and you all needing to stay inside.” Michael warns them of that.

Chidi turns on him; “And you said Eleanor’s out in that?!”

“Yeah! Imagine her trying to make her way back in that! She’s probably frozen solid already. That’ll teach her to skip class, right, Teach?” He raises his hand in the air.

Chidi leaves him hanging. As does Tahani. Not even Jason will indulge him.

Ugh. So much for a team. He drops his hand down as their stares on him turn to full on glaring.

“Tough room.” Michael puts his hands in his pockets.

“You’re supposed to not torture us anymore, you need to go make sure she’s okay.” Chidi tells him.

Oh, for fork’s sake. Why should he do that when Eleanor was gonna leave him to endure this dumb lecture while she got to relax and top her tan up? This was the best he was going to get to payback...as well as for the eight hundred previous defeats that he seemed to care less and less about each day.

“She’ll be fine! It’s only a bit of snow. And anyway, this isn't my torture, it's Vicky’s - speaking of which, Janet will be offline for a little bit as she’s supposed to be helping fix this, but it’s really just to make your quarantine more boring.”

See? He’s nice enough to fill them in on that and what thanks does he get?

“Okay then, I’ll go-.” Chidi starts towards the door.

Michael huffs and blocks the professor’s path; “No, you’re supposed to stay in...Plus your limbs might fall off from frostbite in five minutes.”

“You just said-.”

“I know what I said, she’ll still be fine...” Michael turns and stomps his way out the door, muttering under his breath; “...So long as I find her quick.” He clears his throat and exits into the snowy chaos.

It’s lucky his extra senses are able to help him find the path towards the beach, as the fog is getting denser along with the downpour. He snaps a pair of snow boots on to help him trudge through where his loafers don’t help quite as much, along with a long, blue coat flapping behind him. He doesn’t feel the cold as bad as the humans would, but it’s still a pain in the ash. It’s bad enough relinquishing control of his experiment, now his beautiful torture city is going to be wrecked by this wintry storm. 

He hopes he wins some major extra credit scores in these ethics lessons for journeying out into this to help bring one filthy cockroach back...even if she was the most enjoyable cockroach to be around. 

A claw reaches out to grip his ankle.

“AH, SHIRT!” He almost trips, at first expecting one of the ice demons to have taken off their skin and planning to surprise him; “Sven, is that you?!”

He glances down, seeing the hand still exposed through the snow on the ground, his sight adjusting to make out the fallen form, half-buried alive...well, close enough.

Oh. Crab.

He kneels down and digs the inches of snow away, exposing Eleanor’s shivering, half-naked form on the ground. Her hair is damp and her lips nearly bright blue, arms hugged tight around herself, her swimsuit possibly making her more cold than if she was wearing nothing at all.

“Eleanor? Eleanor, can you hear me?” He shakes her by the shoulder.

Flakes are caught in her eyelashes as she tries to open her lids, teeth chattering like those little wind-up novelty set he has in his cabinet.

“H-h-h-hey b-b-bud.” She says, smaller and weaker than he’s ever heard her; “C-c-care to t-t-turn up the...th-thermostat...a b-b-bit?” 

About another twenty degrees Celsius? 

Michael sighs, brushing the snow away from her hair, though more quickly falls on her. He knows he should take this moment to mock her, to take advantage of this rare opportunity to see her in true misery...But he’s pretty sure she’s going to pass out at any moment. And, damn it, has she always been this small?

He shrugs his coat off and swaddles it around her frame, trying to make sure every corner is tucked in against the icy wind, before he lifts her up.

Her head turns to find its way to the crook of his neck.

“Wow....H-h-how are you so warm? You made of f-f-fire?” She whispers, jaw still moving rapidly beyond her control.

“Yes.” Is as much as he reveals, for now. 

He scoops her close in his arms, turning to go back to the clown house before spotting Vicky beyond some trees, possibly on her way to look for him.

Cursing inward, he turns and heads back towards the rocks near the beach.

“R-r-really not in the mood for a beach read r-right now, man.” Eleanor barely has the strength to stand in her giant coat burrito as Michael releases her near some boulders.

Michael snaps his fingers, summoning an igloo behind the giant rocks, out of easy line of sight for any potential scouting demons, though he knows not many venture this far out - usually making it the perfect spot for his and Eleanor’s after-school study groups (aka the Make Fun of Chidi and Forget To Study groups).

“Oh, n-nice! An ice house for me to f-f-freeze in some more!” Eleanor’s quickly numbing face makes it difficult for the sarcasm to translate on her face.

Michael rolls his eyes and nudges her to get inside.

Obviously, it’s no mere igloo. It’s more like one of those ‘glamping’ - as Tahani would say and then lose points for using - pods or tents, essentially a portable mini-apartment with a sofa, a TV, a stove and a lit fireplace that doesn’t melt the walls. Because magic. 

“F-f-fork...I t-take it back,” Eleanor exclaims, swaying as she clutches the coat around her and glances at the surroundings which are, of course, bigger than the outside would allude to; “This is pretty swe...Sweet set...”

Michael sees her begin to fall to the floor despite being no where near the large sofa. He catches her and hurries her over to the fireplace, snapping his fingers to ignite some more flames.

“Better?” He asks, rubbing her arms, watching her aura and studying her vitals.

Probably not the best thing for a human to get hypothermia, even when already dead. Especially so. The ones being tortured in the snowy Bad Place neighbourhoods looked rather happy, though that was mainly because their mouths were frozen in permanent smiles, the ice forever smothering their screams.

Eleanor nods a little, before shuffling out of the coat.

“T-that things too wet...So is this...” She gestures to her skimpy blue bathing suit, struggling to move her numb fingers; “Dude...gimmie a hand?”

A hand? Wait.

She wants him to...? Oh. Right. 

His throat suddenly goes dry, which is ridiculous as he shouldn’t ever need to hydrate. Michael nods, moving his fingers to fumble the knot on her back, allowing the bra to slide off of her after a couple of minutes.

He hears her chuckle; “Wow, even demon boys still struggles to get a human bra off, huh?”

Michael feels the blush on his cheek, not having expected that to be a skill he would need to learn.

He watches her keep her back to him, pushing her bottoms down to her ankles before kicking them aside on the warm, white ‘carpet’ he made up for the igloo, before she shuffles as close as she can to the fireplace. Sitting bare naked and not seeming to give a fork that he can see every inch of her.

Thank Upper Management the whole shivering and blue-tinted skin doesn’t make her the least bit attractive...Not that she ever was...Gross, dumb human.

“Lemmie guess...Vicky’s latest idea? Why didn’t you tell me, man? I thought we were a team.” She berates over her shoulder to him.

“Hey, I was going to tell you and the others at class. It’s not my fault you decided to ditch without giving me a heads up.” He tries to look away as the side of her breast is in view when she turns and this...Damn it, why does she have to be so carefree and public with her nudity?

She smirks; “What’s the matter, dude? First time you seen a hot human naked you weren’t covering with scorpions?”

“Please, as if I care if your skins are covered or not.” He rubs the back of his neck; “You should be thanking me! I decided to venture out into this weather to rescue you, of my own accord, with no external persuasions needed!”

“Chidi told you to find me, didn’t he.”

“Yes, he did. But I could’ve said no and I didn’t. So...” He shrugs; “Progress?” Is it? He’s still new at this.

Eleanor suddenly starts to laugh and Michael can’t help but smile. He takes it that he’s right then. He notices that her face is still rather off-color, her lips now a shade of lilac, even though her shivering isn’t as violent as it was when he found her.

His chest aches, just for a second, as he remembers hesitating to come out. 

How he’d been excited at the idea of Eleanor suffering from this...Why wasn’t it enjoyable to see it happening before him?

“Uhm, Janet’s gonna be AWOL for a couple hours...But I could get something to warm you up? Humans like drinking warm liquified chocolate when it’s cold, right? Or I could fill one of those bags with dangerously scalding liquid?” 

“How about you just bring that internal fire of yours over here, bud?” She curls a finger at him, her other still wrapped around her shoulder; “You can be my hot water bottle while we wait this out.”

He isn’t sure what she means about that until he goes to sit next to her and, suddenly, Eleanor is grabbing his arms and folding them around herself as if he were now the wrap to make up her human-flavoured burrito. Her hands grip his, tight, bringing them around to rest around her stomach.

Michael shifts, awkwardly. He’s still getting used to the whole ‘hugging’ thing, which was mostly something Eleanor did as her own torture to annoy him, also Jason sometimes not having much of a concept of a personal space. It’s a whole other set of issues he thinks to put his arms around her when she’s completely naked. She has no qualms about leaning back into him.

“Awww, yeah, that’s nice. Demons make for good bean-bag chairs.” She smirks as she snuggles into him.

He isn’t sure whether to be flattered or insulted.

“Am I...helping then?” He asks, oddly nervous.

“Mmm hmm.” She hums, her heartrate steadying a little, as well as the pink returning to her lips.

The glow that fills Michael’s chest as he watches her smile in his arms, that sated buzz rushing through his stomach, is what he had expected to feel from seeing her be successfully tortured. Instead it had brought him some weird after-sad sensation that was new and frightening. And yet, helping her, making her better...That was the result that made him feel better?

Holy shirt....What was happening to him?

“You okay there, buddy?” Eleanor asks after a while, “You’ve got the look I used to have when someone told me they were bringing their toddlers out to lunch with me.”

He shakes his head; “S’fine....A-are you okay?” His hands shift around her middle, wanting to make sure she’s getting as much warmth as she can from him.

For some reason it matters a lot that she is. The softness of her skin beneath his fingertips is distracting him from working out what he’s heard in his ethics lessons so far that might explain this. 

“Well, sat nude in an igloo, cuddling up to the demon who tortured me for three hundred years, isn’t quite the weirdest thing that’s happened to me in this place...but it’s also far from the worst.” She quips.

He feels as if he could melt now, that look she’s giving him making his essence fizz like a well-shaken soda bottle.

“Thanks for coming to get me...Eventually.” She says, moving a cold hand up to touch his cheek; “Damn, that touch would be good payback if you were human.”

“Sorry.” He smirks back; “I can’t help being a hot Architect, Eleanor.”

“And they call me full of myself!” She grins; “Whatever, we’re right and we should say it.”

That’s not what he meant but...Sure, he’ll take that. 

“Actually...your face could do with helping mine warm up.” Eleanor’s thumb brushes against the corner of his mouth.

Michael frowns; “...Really? How?”

She smiles, a twinkle in her eyes; “Like this.”

She moves in close, before he can even comprehend her next action, pressing her lips against his and sucking, lightly, her tongue invading his mouth while her hand gently head his head in place. Michael freezes, to start, stunned in shock and confusion. 

Do humans really do this just to...warm up? He wouldn’t be against the idea if that was the case, but...This is Eleanor Shellstrop in front of him, Arizona born and bred, almost ninety per cent of her actions were a pathway to sex.

Fork!

Michael pulled back, ignoring the softness of her lips, resisting the temptation to lose himself in...whatever that was.

“Ugh! Gross! Why do humans do that? Your food holes are for eating, you horny dinguses!” He makes a show of rubbing his lips on his hand.

Eleanor is laughing again; “Oh my god, you’d think I gave you cooties or something!”

“Is that a thing?! A human disease?! Do I need to disinfect myself?”

He starts to shuffle away but she reaches to grab his hand; “Relax, Mikey...It was just a bit of fun. Don’t worry, if you’re not into gross humans, I’ll be all good and pure and restrained...for one day.” 

He gulps, feeling as though he should be relieved; “G-good. W-why would I ever want to...Again...I mean. Good. Thank you.”

Now he has to stop his eyes from looking at her again, now that she’s warmed up and dried, no longer shaking like a leaf and looking smaller than usual. She’s sat in the glow of the fireplace, giving him that smile she had every time she saw through him, saw who he was, always too impressed or pleased with herself to be angry at him. 

Damn it, he should have left her to freeze.

You know you couldn’t do that. Not anymore.

She’s beaten you. Accept it.

“If you’re not gonna warm me up the fun way, the least you can do is snap us some hot chocolate.” Eleanor says, turning back to the fire and putting her palms up.

Michael sighs. Yes. That he can do, easy.

“And some dry comfy clothes....I wouldn’t wanna prolong your torture any longer.” She winks at him; “It’s only fair.”

[eatsomebuttercups]

Y’know as much as I don’t wanna seem like a nerd (Sky!), I do love history.

I love Japan’s history the most, I think. It’s a criminally short chapter at school so i’m gonna write about it here (this is medieval Japan).

Medieval Japan was mostly a Shogunate/warrior society. Japan becoming a warrior society meant wealthy women lost the right to own land and what little freedom they had to marry who they pleased. Poorer women had a greater say in marriage, but could never own land in the first place.

Japan being a warrior society meant the age of shoguns, daimyos, and samurai were upon it. The shogun was the military leader of all Japan-while the emperor was more of a symbolic position, being the shogun meant you more or less had all the power. The shogun would often behead his enemies. (We’ll come back to shoguns later.)

Daimyos were military lords who headed small territories-while the shogun owned all land, the daimyo ruled over a portion of it. The shogun would assemble all the daimyo in Edo-modern day Tokyo-every five or so years to keep an eye on them and make sure they weren’t starting any rebellions.

The relationship between a daimyo and his samurai-or the bond between a lord and his vassal-is feudalism. “Warrior society” Japan could also be known as feudalist Japan, and often is.

Samurai were warriors who followed the Bushido, or way of the warrior. They served the daimyo, their masters, and were skilled in horseback riding and swordsmanship. They were expected to be brave, honorable, courageous, and fearless. Oftentimes, samurai were zen Buddhists, as this form of religion allowed samurai to strengthen their body and mind through meditation and martial arts. Samurai bore leather strapped armor, helmets that would be molded to look much like a beetle’s horns and head, and two swords; one long and the other short. Samurai were expected also to fight until the very last breath, and if they could not win, to commit seppuku, a form of suicide in which the samurai would stab themselves in their gut and have their fiend behead them with their long sword. (I might revisit this later-remember also, that there were female samurai!)

Only about 20% of Japan was/is farmable, so the Japanese turned to the sea for food. The sea was a huge part of life in Japan-it provided protection, food, and isolated them from much of the world. Many Japanese dishes involve fish, crab, shrimp, or other forms of sea life because of their many fishing communities and small amount of farm land. The land that could be farmed was used to feed livestock or for rice and wheat.

Women in Japan often were mothers, farmers, craftsmen, or served as geishas, especially in the Edo Period. While these were the main roles of women, many were also successful poets, warriors, and even leaders. Murasaki Shikibu was a famous female writer in Japan who wrote The Tale of Genji-sound familiar?

The Edo Period was HUGE for Japan. It was an advancement in culture, food, lifestyle, and just-in general, the country evolved. Why? People-middle class people-craftsmen, farmers, etc.-needed things to do! Kabuki theater became huge, though the Tokugawa forbid women to act in Kabuki. Geishas-serving women who dressed in fine silk kimonos and played the samisen or flute for male travelers, often in the floating world, would perform and became more popular. Like I said-Japan evolved!

With industrial revolution, comes the need to read! Now-printing is a big big thing! For China, it was a nightmare. There were over 40,000 characters, so the movable type printing everyone nowadays is so used to is a nightmare. Japan borrowed everything from China-including government, religion, and printing. Japan used woodblock printing, which is exactly how it sounds. It took a lot of skill to carve the block, apply the colour, and let it dry, but the middle class loved it. They bought up printed paintings, woodblocks, everything-because they were affordable and nice.

This is an example of a very detailed woodblock print! This is Under the Wave off Kanagawa (The Great Wave) by Katsushika Hokusai as part of the “Thirty-six views of Mount Fuji” collection!

The Japanese were closed off to the world because of the Tokugawa Shogunate, who cut off connections to the outside world, banned trading with Europe, and banned Kirishitans. However, in the 1880s-1920s, Japan opened up more. Europeans came to Japan and were inspired and delighted. They were dazzled by the women who wore white face paint and the Kabuki theater actors who were talented in what they performed. They were amazed by the art and the paper umbrellas and they brought it back to France, England, everywhere they could-and some Japanese people did. Not. Like. It.

There were multiple Shogunates. The Tokugawa just so happened to cut Japan off and made a huge difference in the economy. Among these different periods with the Kamakura shogunate period. The Kamakura period was started by the Minamoto clan. Shoguns exist because the emperor was afraid of the Minamoto clan seizing power from him and overthrowing the throne. (The Minamoto clan won the Genpei war between them and the Taira clan.)

The Mongols attempted to invade Japan twice. Both times, their boats were flooded due to winds flipping them over. The Japanese believed these winds were caused by kami, spirits, and thus called them “kamikaze” winds. Pilots in world war two that dove down and went on suicide missions were named after the kamikaze winds.

Shinto and Buddhism were the two main religions in Japan, and you didn’t have to choose between them. Shinto was a native Japanese religion that followed animism, the belief all natural things have spirits. They called these spirits “kami”. To worship Shinto, they want to shrines, where a holy gate called a torii stood. Often, people went to these shrines to give money or other Earthly possessions or to pray to the sun goddess, Amaterasu. Shinto involved daily life for the Japanese. Buddhism came from China and Korea after it was spread to them from India itself. The Japanese were fond of Buddhism because of Prince Shotoku, who built monasteries and encouraged Buddhist worship and beliefs. Buddhism involved life after death, or preparing for the life to come.

This is a torii! This happens to be in Kyoto-which used to be the capital. This is in Fushimi Inari Taisha, a district in Kyoto known for its Shinto shrines.

The Yayoi were the first people in Japan. They came to Japan from a land bridge, since Japan was not always disconnected from the main continent of Asia. They introduced farming in rice paddies, metalworking, and pottery to Japan. One of the branches or clans of the Yayoi, the Yamato, believed they were descended from Amaterasu, the sun goddess, and therefore had divine powers, and deserved to be emperor. The first emperor of Japan was a man named Jimmu. The emperor of Japan now has Yamato blood running through his veins.

Prince Shotoku is said to be a main influencer of Japan, though this has been put up to debate many times. It is said he took power from his aunt out of her own will and used it to make Japan more like China. He copied their government, beliefs-he sent scholars to China who studied their art, medicine, and philosophy. He is said to have written Japan’s first official constitution, though it has not been completely confirmed that he did.

Another large part of Japanese history in the medieval ages was poetry. The first form of Japanese poetry was tanka, unrhymed, short poems. Later on, another popular form of poetry-even now-was/is haikus! Samurai were expected to be good poets, too-don’t ask me why.

That’s really it! Honestly, I hope this helps SOMEONE with their history test! I’m learning Japanese now-it’s a bit difficult, but learning a language improves memory and other skills, so. Thanks for reading and please point out any misinformation/spelling mistakes so I can fix it! Also, feel free to add on/ask questions!

[friendshipstates]

Storm Surge (Fanfic)

Nobody could match her in raw power. The Senshi of Jupiter was life, love, and lightning forged into a feminine frame. She had weathered apocalypses, stood in the gap against destroyers and shielded the weak with her might. Nobody could defeat her in a fair fight. That’s why the remnants of Jark Matter decided they would not fight her fairly.

Using all their cunning built up from millenia of controlling their own reality, the servants of Don Armage came up with a strategy to defeat Sailor Jupiter. They would not silence the thunder, but rather they would amplify it. They would take the storm, and make it their own.

They waited until Sailor Jupiter had already called down the lightning to destroy one of their planet-eating ships. A worthwhile sacrifice, if it meant removing one of this Earth’s strongest protectors.

They had counted on one other thing from their study of Sailor Jupiter. She was a self-sacrificing sort. So, as the dust cleared an orb of dark energy flew from the wreckage not at her, but at the body of Sailor Moon, who was currently distracted by trying to lift some rubble off a bystander. Sailor Jupiter saw the orb coming and immediately moved to block it.

For a few brief seconds, nothing seemed to happen. The magic that empowered the Senshi shielded her from the pain such an attack would cause. But as Sailor Moon stood up to check on her savior, a massive bolt of lightning jumped across the space between her and Sailor Jupiter, driving Sailor Moon back ten feet.

“Jupiter, why did you do that?” Sailor Moon shook out the numbness from her hand. She was confused and feeling betrayed. But she knew Jupiter would never hurt her intentionally.

“I don’t know it, just happened.” As Jupiter pulled her hand back, the same lightning started spreading across her body. As the lightning jumped from her fingertips, it created an electromagnetic pulse, shorting out all the electric devices for a hundred feet. After that first expulsion, more and more lightning leapt from her body, causing her to cry out in pain. Every shock was stronger than the last and each one caused her more pain.

Sailor Mars tried to get close enough to cast a healing charm upon her comrade, only to have the paper burned away by a surge of lightning.

Sailor Venus wrapped her Venus Love Me Chain around Sailor Jupiter to keep the lightning contained, but it only served to ground through her, driving her to the pavement.

Sailor Mercury attempted to scan the surging shockwaves, but couldn’t get close enough for a definitive reading.

It was Sailor Moon who came up with a desperate tactic. Somewhere else in the city, someone was helping with the fight against Jark Matter. With tears in her eyes, Sailor Moon stepped backwards from Sailor Jupiter. “Jupiter, I’m not leaving you! I’m going to go get help! I promise!” And off she ran, to find the one person she was sure could contain all that lightning.

There he was, down by the arcade, using the Winch attachment on his armor to help pull people out of the second floor of an apartment building. As the last victim slid down to the ground, Sailor Moon caught up with Kamen Rider Fourze.

“Gentaro! Something’s wrong with Sailor Jupiter! Her lightning is going out of control!” Sailor Moon eventually managed to get out between gasps for air. “Please, you’ve got to help!”

Gentaro couldn’t believe that Sailor Jupiter would ever lose control of her element, but he also knew that Sailor Moon would never lie to him. “Grab hold!” He activated his Board Switch, creating a hoverboard under his feet. Lifting Sailor Moon onto the board, he used the boosters in his armor to get them down the street faster.

Once he was close enough to return Sailor Moon to the other Senshi, he stopped cold. Sailor Jupiter’s body seemed to be more energy than woman at this point, and every second caused millions of volts to pour off her body causing her obvious pain.

Every impulse in his body told him to get in there, to do something reckless and save the woman he considered a big sister. But fortunately, cooler heads prevailed.

“Kisaragi! Turn on the Camera Switch.” The voice of his supergenius friend, Kengo Utahoshi, said over the communicator in his helmet. “I’ll study the energy and come up with a solution.”

The other Senshi watched as Fourze summoned a video camera on his arm and held perfectly still for what felt like an eternity, though it was only ten seconds.

“All right. I’ve got a plan, Kisaragi! Do exactly as I say.” Kengo said and Gentaro nodded under his helmet.

“Wouldn’t dream of doing anything else.” He responded, putting absolute faith in Kengo’s ability.

ELEK ON! With a much smaller surge of lightning, Gentaro transformed into his golden armor state, and marched towards Sailor Jupiter. The first bolt struck by his feet, grounded out by the asphalt. But the second one went right from her to him as she held up a hand to warn him off.

Millions of volts and almost a dozen amps flowed through Gentaro’s armor, channeling down into the Driver on his waist. There was a brief glow, but as it subsided, everyone could see that the Elek Switch was doing its job. It was absorbing all that electricity into itself, much like the Fire Switch had done against the Altar Zodiarts many years before.

Another blast of lightning rushed at him, and again, it only stopped him for a moment before the Driver absorbed it. By this point, the HUD inside his armor was showing a reading of “Power Levels at 1100%” But even with the armor nearing overload, he had to get closer. Step after painful step as his pace slowed to a crawl. But finally, he closed the gap between them and wrapped his big sister in a warm embrace.

“Makoto! I’m here for you! Give me all your lightning! I can take it!” But absorbing the lightning was only half the battle. He had to take a step that he would regret. “I hope you can forgive me!”

“Forgive you? For what?” Sailor Jupiter answered through gritted teeth, and then she saw the extent of his plan.

HAND ON! MEDICAL ON! With his own arms fully embracing his big sister, Gentaro had deployed a mechanical hand on one leg, and a first aid kit on the other. The hand opened the kit, drawing out a gleaming syringe.

Gentaro took one hand off Sailor Jupiter’s waist, and rested it on the lever on his belt. “Please don’t be mad at me, Makoto. It’s the only way.” That hand threw the lever forward then went right back to hugging her as the belt spoke “ELEK! HAND! MEDICAL! LIMIT BREAK!”

No normal syringe could pierce Sailor Jupiter’s skin. But this one had a surge of cosmic energy behind it. Gentaro let the mechanical hand find a vein, and soon the needle plunged into her body. The powerful sedatives inside soon took effect, and Sailor Jupiter fell into a deep slumber.

When she awoke, it was in a place she had been with Gentaro a few times. The Rabbit Hutch Lunar Base. There, her fellow Senshi were on hand to wake her up, to give her liquids and cold cloths for the headache she’d soon have.

“Is it over?” She asked, afraid for a moment that she’d cause the whole moonbase to erupt in sparks.

“Yeah!” Sailor Moon pounced on her to show that Jupiter is once again in control of her power.

Sailor Jupiter glanced around the room and sees her little brother leaning against the far wall, trying to make himself look small. “Hey, get over here!” She waved him over. “There’s more than enough room in this hug for you.”

“You’re not mad at me for knocking you out?” Gentaro approached carefully. Not carefully enough as she threw an arm around him, dragging him in closer for a tight squeeze.

“Of course not! You did what had to be done, Gentaro. You saved me, after all.” Then she leaned in close and whispered. “Of course, you’d never be able to knock me out in a fair fight, and you know it.”

“Oh yeah, I know that, Makoto. Trust me, I know.” He whispered back. Then at his normal volume, he said “Rest up. Moon, Mars, Meteor and I are going to track down the rest of those Jark Matter guys before they can hurt anyone else.”

Sailor Jupiter leans back into the pillow, releasing her little brother and her best friend. “OK. But if they send another one of those ships, you’d better call me in so we can destroy it together.”

“Will do, Makoto.” He gives her a winning smile and heads back through the gate to Earth.

---

Elsewhere, the Jark Matter commanders watch the results of the battle.

“Who is this human who took this victory from us?” One alien with ram’s horns says to the one with the unicorn themed armor.

There’s a ringing of metal against metal and both turn to see an interloper arrive. This one looks like he might be based on the Cancer constellation, but he has none of the markings that identify him as a Jark Matter commander.

“That human is Kamen Rider Fourze, and you don’t stand a chance against him because…” The Cancer Horoscopes holds up a hand. A glowing stream of energy flows from the Unicorn commander to the crab’s claw. There’s a sudden snap as the claw comes down on the energy, and the Unicorn commander falls lifeless to the ground. “Because your soul just isn’t in it. Heh. Don’t say I never did anything for you, Gentaro.” With that, the Cancer Horoscopes creates a portal and returns to Earth, leaving behind a terrified Jark Matter commander and a power vacuum in the evil organization.

[extremedivas]

Checking Ji Yong Kwon Direction.

0. Ji Yong Kwon.

The Two of Swords represents a period when you are stuck at a crossroads, in a waiting period, and you need to decide whether to move on or stay exactly where you are. When the Two of Swords  in a spread, it is implying that come and thought must be taken when making decisions and choices. Take the time to consider all options very carefully before making any firm commitments. Put off making choices until you are absolutely positive it is the right and most appropriate one.

Ji Yong Kwon seeks harmony in relationships and situations. He find it hard to function if there are confrontations and unresolved issues causing toxic undercurrents in his environment. Ji Yong Kwon need things to be very balanced and work hard towards keeping or restoring peace around him. He do not like conflict and will compromise a great deal to avoid arguments. Ji Yong Kwon find it hard to make decisions and try his best not to rock the boat. When faced with changes he worried of how it will affect other people more than how it will affect him. It is hard for Ji Yong Kwon to tell others how he truly feel, He like to keep it to him-selves. Ji Yong Kwon is a very private people. 

G Dragon isn’t a private person at all! 

Ji Yong Kwon is the real him.

1.The power of the past.

The Page of Cups can refer to a person, an event, or a part of yourself. Some facet of yourself that has been dormant that may be activated to enable you realize your dreams, or indicate the time when new people and new experiences may suddenly appear in your life. I see a Pisces person who can offer Ji Yong Kwon help. It can indicate either male or female with light brown hair and blue or hazel eyes. This Pisces person can really help you but he/she want something from you. So, They can get their way around you and your success. Maybe this Pisces person trying to controlling your love life for their own views. Ji Yong please control your emotion around this Pisces person.

Ji Yong Kwon is a kind and generous dreamer who is easily hurt and feels other’s pain. He is sensitive to the needs of others,Ji Yong can be a people pleaser as well. I feel people around Ji Yong is not truly helping him to be happy about himself. It’s like they just want him to do thing what they are telling him to do. Which is sad. However, We going to see the real Ji Yong Kwon and not G Dragon.  

 The Page of Cups conveys the message that time and space is needed for new feelings to grow and develop into a new path. Ji Yong might be ready to let your hair down, reinvent yourself, or throw away the old part of you that was not really living life. Just make sure you think things through before you leap into anything.There is a  verge of exploring a new relationship with new people because you are ready to take the risk and you are letting your intuition guide you into a new exciting journey.

2.The power of the present.

The Ace of Wands represent new beginnings, and in the case of the Ace of Wands, this can indicate the arising of exciting new opportunities - especially in the area of work and career. A new venture or unexpected opportunity presents itself which may create much clarity and excitement. A new job or career is a distinct possibility.

 Ji Yong passion and raw unformed energy. It's the spark of an idea that can be harnessed and then channeled into something tangible and real on his new album and world concert. 

There is an abundance of energy around Ji Yong, whether this be physical or mental energy. Ji Yong will be able to use it in ways that not only energize him, but also in ways that bring a sense of newness into his life. This can spur you on to new and exciting opportunities. 

3.The power of the future.

The Seven of Wands mean  this is not the time to give up. It's the time to sort out the massive pile of work you need to complete and make a list of what needs to get done right away and what can be done later. You need to get busy and start clearing the deck before you take on anything else. Do not lose track of what you need to do and how long it's going to take. You also need to have realistic completion times! 

There is a confrontation about Ji Yong best friends or close business friends toward him. I feel like Ji Yong need to defend his position and maintain his status. Staying on top is a challenge, but he need to fight with every step he take because the competition and challenges are rife. Ji Yong must refrain from compromise; if others do not agree with him, He must seize the initiative and act on his good moral beliefs by being firm and maintaining his personal integrity. Ji Yong fight for your privacy and your respect! You must stay strong and  have the courage to fight on!

4.Bad Suggestions and bad tips for the Ji Yong Kwon

The  Queen of Pentacles reversed indicates a Libra woman, who is obsessed with the material realm. She is often suspicious and jealous of others. Underneath the unpleasant exterior, however, there may be a very insecure person who craves love and attention. 

The Queen of Pentacles reversed tells of a woman who is quite cynical and who does not suffer fools easily. She want revenge on you with dating rumors or control in your life. I feel like she is blackmailing you to do what she tells you to do.However, I feel like a Taurus person is hurting you too about something. 

I see Capricorn woman and Virgo woman are the same as the Libra woman. I see Ji Yong got female friends and woman issue especially fangirls who wrote fan accounts and fake news on his dating life. 

 Advice - Ji Yong Kwon  do not hang out with a woman who is associated with Libra,Capricorn,Virgo or a Taurus person  . Ji Yong Kwon please control your emotions around them. Don’t anything say or do anything as dramatic! Just keep a level-head conversation with them. Ji Yong don’t spread your business to them as well. They might use it against you.

5.Good Suggestions and good tips for the Ji Yong Kwon. 

 The Ace of Cups is your sign, love is your answer. Ji Yong live in a world of abundance and you have all you need. Do not grasp, do not struggle. Move with the beat of your heart and open to love on every level of life.  Ji Yong are safe and surrounded by love; there is no need to worry. Look to see what fear may be rising and look to see how to fill it with love. Ask yourself, "what would love do?" Then do it - no need to overthink. Listen to the guidance of your heart; it knows the way. 

Made a decision which way you want in love coming from your heart. If you choose the one that everyone wants. You will be hurt and hopeless with the choice you pick. You can’t blame anyone but yourself. You allow them to chose your own fate in love. Now they are happy because you aren’t happy with the choice you made. Love always win you make a great decisions.

The Ace of Cups also reminding you that forgiveness is a key to expanding into love. Take time today and forgive anyone that has caused you pain, including yourself. Holding on to anger and resentment only blocks the flow of love. Let it go, step into flow, and know love will take you there.

Advice -  This is the time to establish boundaries and remember that self love is just as important as the love we have for each others. Love = Respect.

6.Obstacles that the Ji Yong Kwon must overcome or avoid.

The Chariot mean duality and tells that you can be both cowardly and courageous, weak and strong, and that you contain love and hate together in your heart. Allow yourself to explore the contradictory feelings.  G Dragon is an image of his inner struggle between the various different parts of the personality. He has made up of many feelings, thoughts and notions which may tug in different directions. Whenever he feel torn inside, perhaps wanting to do something he feel guilty about, the image of The Chariot may be conjured.

There is a relationship with Sagittarius, The Chariot tells of one who has the power to seek out and know the truth. The influence of Sagittarius tells of someone who sways from side to side, but who can also be very bold. 

There are two Sagittarius person must overcome or avoid. One is Yang Hyun Suk and the second one is  Seungri Lee.  Do not allow your emotions to overcome you, as you need to keep them in check to acquire what it is that you truly desire. There is a closely associated with the sign of Cancer and like Cancer the Crab there is a need to protect yourself. What better way to do this than to find a quiet place at home where you feel safe and secure. I feel like a older Cancer woman and older Cancer man will be there for you when you need support and protection. 

In a career reading your prospects are great, as long as you don't just sit back and wait for success to come to you. The Chariot  is to take control of a situation while remembering the important of compromise. Once the cause of the problem is identified, all aspects of life will begin to progress and improve. 7.The outcome .

The Five of Wands mean You love your job, but you work with someone who has a big ego and the relationship with this person always becomes a recipe for disaster, or a BIG POWER STRUGGLE that tests you with every step that you take.Or you might be dealing with someone who does not want to listen to your point of view, or is always competing with you and nothing ever changes.

It's also possible that you might be dealing with someone who wears "The Ego Crown" and thinks they can push you around. Ji Yong Kwon need to stand up to someone when you are not treated with respect.Then again, you might have contributed to the problem by pushing your point of view or opinion on someone or other people. I see Ji Yong Kwon is having problem with someone who is born on  April 15th to the 21st. I feel like a person is a bully to Ji Yong Kwon. He is telling Ji Yong Kwon to do this and that ( This person is a Aries sign of what I saw in my spread about Ji Yong Kwon ) . Ji Yong Kwon need to stand up to him and let him away from you.

 The Five of Wands meaning that someone is playing games and these games can very often be mind games like someone saying one thing and meaning another to made a person unstable to think clearly.