#I haven't played much more right after it finally allows you to save (and I wanted to stop sooner. the cutscenes didn't allow me lol) but

[zeeckz]

I reached the part where you play as Raiden and, just as I thought it would, my brain is now infected with Raiden thoughts

Kazuhira Enjoyer who? This is Raiden's palace

[taeloke]

Overanalyzing 4KOTA Chapter 142 instead of just waiting for more info (2/2)

Part 1

This is the part where I talk about King and no one else. Also, this is more ramble than analysis by the end, and I'm making myself not worry about length this time, so...you have been warned :) As for Mertyl, I'll definitely talk about him again over the next chapter, though I might not say as much as I did the first time.

Firstly, look at this face. Remember all those seasons ago, when everything was peaceful for like a single week? How sweet and thoughtful this little guy was, especially against his own personal wishes?

This is King--regardless of how he's like on the outside.

Elaine herself described him as someone who tries to act tough but is really a crybaby. He's someone who can't seem to stop wearing his heart on his sleeve. He always tries to hide his feelings to keep everyone else from worrying, but try as he might, anyone will see through his "tough act" if they're around him for long enough. Awakened or not, he's not King if he's not a highly emotional character like that. He's just a lot better at putting a cover over those feelings now. He's grown up for real.

If you read these last few 4KOTA chapters without remembering the original Seven Deadly Sins story, it only makes sense to look at him more like an ass of a father right now. There's a lot to his perspective that we just haven't gotten to witness yet, and one of the easiest conclusions to make from all of that unknown space is "King loves Nasiens more than the adopted son he raised." For crying out loud, he's giving an immensely scarce cure-all to a young man who introduced himself as a human without an explanation for why Myrtel hasn't received it yet. We don't even know for sure if he's tried using the Drug of Yore to treat Myrtel's condition in the past right now.

There's just one problem about that conclusion: King isn't like that at all. It only looks like he is because this family drama is fatally poisoned with tension and misunderstandings at this point. It's starting to explode.

Remember how way back in the series, King first thought Diane without her memories of him would be better off without him at all?

I think that's a lot similar to what he's thinking with Nasiens right now. If King didn't play a part in their present happiness, then what right does he have to want their love? He'd label that as too greedy or selfish in a way that he can't allow himself to be. He thinks he knows his place, and that place is somewhere forever distanced from his first-born kid.

But he can't just do nothing for Nasiens. Maybe just one totally subtle yet significant expression of love can slide, right? What could he, seemingly as nothing more than a ruler, possibly give to Nasiens to make him happy? Maybe if he gives Nasiens just one perfect gift, Harlequin will feel like he was good for his son at least once. He'll feel like he's finally atoned for losing Nasiens for too long and failing him as a father, and then he can let that "sin" go. Surely, Nasiens wouldn't be happy knowing the truth anyway. He'll be better off never learning about his true relations, since he's built his life without it already. Assuming that "logic" is what King's going through, a lot of his actions make sense to me.

And yet he still almost slipped up and spilled the beans.

Nice save, King, but if you gave Nasiens more time to think he would have realized what you really meant. Tioreh gave him time to realize she believed he's a fairy and his initial freeze then was the exact same.

None of this is easy for King. It isn't easy for any of them. In some ways, those past 2 years must have felt like forever to him. Precious time to have his first-born kid around that he'll never get back. And after 2 years of keeping distance...

"Sorry, I couldn't help but follow you."

"I just wanted to help you out, in any way I could."

King can't keep his distance anymore. His true feelings are starting to break free.

"Hee hee... Don't be shy, now. I just want to be of assistance."

Sure, King. Saying it like that totally doesn't make it sound like there's more to this, even with your confident/amused chuckle.

Of all the gifts he could give Nasiens, I'm sure King believed this was the one thing Nasiens couldn't refuse to accept from him. A powerful healing drug that he advertised as one-of-a-kind and a once-in-a-millennium opportunity. With it presented not only as that, but also as something that might bring Percival back, how could Nasiens reject such a gift? Right?

...And then Nasiens rejects the gift. Immediately, King gets so nervous that he breaks character.

He immediately started sweating too. King prepared everything up to this moment, and he has no excuse as Nasiens questions him and calls him out.

And Nasiens is right to call him out because of how this looks.

Nasiens, just like us, doesn't yet know what the truth here is. He's right to be suspicious and King needs to realize that plans in how the changeling duo is handled need to change right now. Ready or not--telling the truth is the only way to save what's actively starting to cave in.

But the sad thing is...I have a feeling that it's too late already.

Things are only going to get worse from here... I don't know how, and in a way that makes this feel more awful.

Sixtus should tell King that Mertyl saw him offer the Drug of Yore to Nasiens. There's no doubt in my mind that King will realize the problem once he has that information and try to do whatever he can to make things right. PLEASE don't make him too late again. At least give him a chance to talk to Mertyl before things fall apart if that's where all of this is headed.

[peanutbutterwrites]

My Good Looking Boy - Part Four

warnings for series: angst, struggles with self worth and self esteem, issues with appearance, childhood trauma, and mentions of death and murder.

summary: taking place after the southern raiders, zuko and katara finally learn to understand each other a bit more and long held on to feelings come to the surface. the gaang go and watch the ember island play and chaos ensues with katara's feelings.

part one - part two - part three - part four - part five

author's note: and here comes part four! this is where the story really starts to take a turn, so thank you to all your patience, here is zutara and where she finally starts to (maybe?) understand her feelings. part five might take me a bit longer, i lowkey ran out of motivation so I haven't started it yet, but hopefully not too long. as always, please let me know what you think and enjoy!

also thank you so much for all the notes and reblogs on this story, I really appreciate all of it! <3

word count: 2.1k

Katara made her way downstairs fully dressed and hair tied neatly into a half top-knot. Her red two piece consisted of a tight, cropped tank top with flowy and breathable pants she had managed to snag from the old clothes left here. It was clearly designed for the frame of a teenage boy, so Katara chose to ignore what or rather who they were made for in favor of just enjoying the freedom they allowed.

She knew it would be her job today to gather what was necessary to feed the group, along with multiple other things, so she wanted to get that particular job done as soon as possible. Over the last few days, the comments made about her in the play affected her less and less. Yes, she did talk a lot about hope, isn’t it important to have hope during such a difficult time? And yes of course she did the housework, who else would? Pushing aside what had been on her mind, the conversation with Aang, she grabbed the basket next to the entrance and dug through the makeshift wallet to see if she could afford to go into town today and continue to save. Zuko and Toph were only able to save so much money, and Katara absolutely refused to let the kids continue with scamming people; it had turned out rather horribly for them in the past. With her nose to the wallet, her visibility was severely impaired and she slammed into a rock hard surface. 

“Ow!” She yelped as she fell backwards, but she felt a hand grab her wrist and yank her back upright. 

“Oh, sorry.” Zuko murmured, still holding her wrist.

“S’ok.” She whispered right back, frozen in place. He noticed that he was still holding on to her and flushed as he slipped his hand behind himself. In doing so, he examined her full outfit and his flush turned into his full face overheating. He recognized those pants quite easily after all. 

“So, uh, where are you off to?” he choked out.

“Oh, well, the market. I think we have enough money to get some actual food.” 

“That’s good.” It was painfully awkward. They stood there, each shuffling in place debating on their next words. 

“You know-”

“I could-” They both began at the same time. 

“Uh, sorry, you go first.” Katara mumbled, looking anywhere but the boy in front of her while a light dusting of pink covered her cheeks.

“I was just thinking, I’m done training Aang for today. I could come with you.” Opening her mouth, rejection her go-to response, she closed it, opting to think for a moment instead. 

“You know what, why not.” She half-smiled up to him and he let his own hesitant smile crawl its way up. Walking side-by side they made their way down the dirt path towards the day market that was no doubt in full swing by now.  “About the other night,” she began, “I never got to thank you. I’m sorry you had to see that but, uh, thank you.” 

“You don’t have to thank me, Katara. I told you before, I’ll always be there for you. No matter how big or small the issue is.”  She smiled softly at him.

“And I’m sorry for assuming your childhood was, well, privileged.”

“I mean you’re partially right. I never had to worry about food or clothing, nothing money could buy anyway.” 

“So then what was it? What put the idea in your head that you’re worthless Zuko.” Silence fell over them and the only sound noticeable was the crunch of the dirt and gravel beneath them as they continued to the village. “Oh, I’m sorry. I overstepped, didn't I?”

“No, you didn’t. It’s just hard to talk about. I don’t like to talk about it either.” Katara nodded in understanding and gently grasped his right hand in her left. Zuko dropped his eyes to look into hers, shocked she was finally accepting him and willing to listen. It was the first time he didn’t feel pity or condensation in someone’s gaze when this topic came around.

“Well, I’m here for you too, you know.” Silence. After a few minutes walking, he began.

“I spoke out of turn.” She turned to him and squeezed his hand as they kept walking to give him support. Tilting her head to the side, she made it clear she was listening. “A statesman, one with many years of service and honor, wanted to use a young squadron as a decoy. He wanted to sentence them all to death just so we would get the advantage in a battle with a surprise attack. I argued against it. I was only thirteen at the time, but it seemed like a perfectly logical thing to do, to speak for those boys who were unable to speak for themselves. But in speaking out of turn, I disrespected him, threatened him. He challenged me to an Agni Kai to learn respect.” 

“An Agni Kai? You’ve mentioned that before.” 

“Yes, it’s a battle between two firebenders. It’s meant to be life or death.” Katara tensed as anger began to rise in her.

“But you were so young.” 

“It didn’t matter to him. I insulted his place of authority, so foolishly I agreed. I knew I could beat an old statesman so it didn't bother me.” He gripped Katara's hand harder as he continued. “But it wasn't him I had to fight in the Agni Kai. When I turned it was my father.” Katara’s breath hitched in horror. “He claimed by arguing in his war meeting I disrespected him more than the statesman.” He softly shook his head as he continued, “I refused to fight him, he thought that I was weak, a coward. So he gave me this.” He looked at her in the eyes and her own widened in horror. Her teeth ground as Katara felt rage like she’s never felt before. White, hot, outrage. The fact that Zuko had been burned was something she could make her peace with, everyone had their scars, visible or otherwise. But for a parent to do that to their child? She wanted to scream out in anger, to march into the palace at this moment and kill that man. But she knew Zuko didn’t need that right now, she knew he would only end up comforting her instead. 

“I, I’m so sorry, Zuko. I never imagined.”

“I know, it's okay.” They began walking again in silence, but Katara’s hand never left his.

“I’m sorry I didn’t heal it, I don’t have the spirit water anymore otherwise I wouldn’t hesitate.” He hummed softly and rubbed his thumb over the top of hand. 

“It's fine Katara, it wouldn’t fix anything. Just make me a little more easy on the eyes.” Katara stopped in the dirt road and Zuko only paused when he felt her hand leave his. “What’s wrong?” He frowned, turning to look back at her.

“You, don’t think you’re attractive?” He flushed in embarrassment and crossed his arms defensively over his chest.

“Well I mean, isn’t it obvious?” He left out a humorless laugh. 

“I think you’re beautiful, Zuko.” It was just a whisper, but to him it felt like so much more. She was looking him dead in the eye, no hint of embarrassment or lie. He felt himself stop breathing. Not bearable, decent, hot, but beautiful. She thought he was beautiful. And for some reason this word shook him. His gut flipped nervously and he had to swallow down his tears that threatened to unleash at any moment. 

“Well, thank you. Katara.” He said, his eyes still piercing into hers that kept their intensity. She simply nodded and gathered his hand back into hers as they continued their walk into town. 

They were able to haul a decent amount of food back, as surprisingly Zuko was pretty good at haggling with the older merchants who ran the stalls of the day market. Even after such a heavy topic, Katara found herself watching him with pride. His ability to live and forgive, to be kind after suffering such horrific actions against him made her eyes twinkle with emotion. He carried the heavy basket all the way back and offered to help her with the cooking as well. 

“I think you are officially the most helpful member of the group, Zuko. Thank you!” Katara spoke cheerfully as they boundered into the entrance of the summer home. Zuko smiled after her and gave a small chuckle. 

“I think that’s my favorite title I’ve earned yet.” He put the woven basket down in the kitchen, he began unloading their haul into their proper places as Katara let out a breathy laugh and went to gather the new laundry. Thankfully, the rather large fountain on the property made it easy to wash all the clothes. The next thing she knew she was bending water into the dirty clothing and Zuko was bringing out the tea set the house had been equipped with. He placed the pot out on the edge of the fountain and began brewing her tea as Sokka and Suki came down from their bedroom. 

“Good morning! I guess you guys went to the market huh? Couldn’t find you anywhere.” Suki mentioned and Katara nodded in agreement. 

“Yeah, and Aang’s lesson with Toph should be over soon so I thought some tea would be nice.”

“I’m sure your hot leaf water will be greatly appreciated, Zuko.” Sokka teased and Katara frowned.

“You do realize he has helped more today than you’ve in the past two weeks, Sokka.” Sokka froze and Suki let out a loud and exuberant laugh.

“Since when are you defending him?!” He said with a high-pitched voice crack and Katara had to fight with herself to stop from laughing outright.

“I’m not defending him, it's just the truth Sokka! And even if I was, it doesn’t matter.” Sokka’s mouth dropped in shock. 

“I think she’s right, you guys really need to help out more. She’s always doing all the housework.” Suki mentioned as she took a small cup of piping hot tea from Zuko. Sokka let out multiple gargled and disgruntled sounds with a small “you don’t help either Suki!” while she yanked him down to sit and hushed him. 

“Oh hey sugar queen, sparky.” Toph joked as she and Aang returned from their earthbending practice. 

“Oh tea! Thanks Zuko!” Aang cheered, after a long morning of practice he must be exhausted and grateful for the break.

“Here, Aang.” Katara reached over to grab some bread she had been able to get at the market. “Relax and keep your strength up, we still have our lesson.” she smiled down at him and his apprehensive smile brightened quickly. Katara knew she couldn’t let personal issues get in the way of her teaching Aang, the world being at stake was of far greater importance than her confusing feelings. Zuko took a seat next to her and handed her a cup of tea, to which she smiled warmly at him and thanked him for.

“No seriously Katara, did something happen? Cause I swear, even after your guys’ trip you weren’t this buddy-buddy.” Sokka finished with Suki elbowing him in the side and him huffing out an exasperated “what?” to her. Zuko tensed up, his grip on his tea strained and contemplated grabbing Katara right then and there to stop her from saying anything. But she made her decision before he could.

“Oh be quiet, Sokka. We aren’t ‘buddy-buddy’, and nothing happened. Gosh, would you give it a rest?” She huffed and crossed her arms in an irritated fashion. Zuko visibly relaxed and took a long sip of his tea, shooting Katara a grateful smile. She knew he would tell the others in his own time and resolved to let it happen naturally versus forcing him to have that conversation right now. 

“Karara!” Aaang, called out after gulping down most of his tea. She perked up at his voice, “Let’s start training now.” He smiled and she nodded in response, promising she’ll be back in time to cook dinner.

[i-cant-sing]

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTR5jyERH/

Wholesome ish au where Dabi got custody of his daughter.

God- this is the best tik tok to exist 😭😭 like I just know that the man gonna give her the best life and its so beautiful 💕

As for Dabi, bro- he's way more emotional. My dude has tears streaming down his face as he finally hugs you.

Like I'm seeing Rei and Enji had gotten custody of you after Rei framed Dabi and made him kill cops. And maybe it took a couple of years (maybe 5, maybe 10) before Dabi was finally able to come out of hiding and with proof that he was framed or something to prove he was innocent. And then it was the start of a year long custody battle, and all the odds were stacked against him, especially since Enji and Rei had a whole firm working for them while Dabi only had 1 lawyer (someone like Saul Goodman lol) that he had blackmailed into working for him.

Dabi had to see Rei drag you to court and have you witness as the lawyers pulled up his past criminal life and all his villainous activities to prove that he was unfit to be a father. He hated the way they brainwashed you, the way they tried to turn you against him. He could bare it all, but he couldn't live with you fearing him. Not you.

Rei had gotten a restraining order against Dabi that prevented him from reaching out to you in any way until the custody battle was over. He couldn't even talk to you, defend himself, tell you that it's all a lie.

After 6 months of court hearing, Dabi earned ti feel that he was gonna lose the case. So he decided to do something he never wanted to do.

He went to Enji for help.

Dabi asked him to drop the custody battle, that they could both have joint custody of you, to help his son that he knows isnt as vile as they potray him. But Enji told him "I know, son, I know. But your mother- she wants full custody of Y/n. She wants you out of her life, forever." And Enji didn't budge, as much as it hurt him to watch Dabi beg on knees to help him, he couldn't.

Another month passes and the reality of losing you forever to Rei is dawning on him. It makes him depressed, he stops eating, stops sleeping, stops taking care of himself.

It isn't until the doorbell rings and his siblings walk in. They're shocked at his state, and immediately start taking care of him. Fuyumi cooked food, Shotou cleaned up around the house and Natsuo checked on Dabi.

Dabi only played around with food as he kept thinking about you. "So, how is Y/n?" He asks Natsuo, and he sees how the 3 of them share a concerned look.

"We haven't seen her... in a while."

Dabi's eyes flick up at them. "What?"

"Dabi." Fuyumi grabs his hand. "Mom- she hasn't allowed us to see Y/n for a long time now."

"How long?"

"A year."

"What?!"

"She's been keeping her at home too. Locked up ever since you demanded custody." Shotou said. "She's not a nice person."

Dabi looked at his youngest brother. "What do you mean?"

The 3 shared another look before Natsuo spoke. "Mom... she's not in the right state of mind. She's very paranoid, and as much as she loves Y/n, sometime.... her paranoia gets the best of her, and Y/n gets hurt because of it."

Dabi couldn't believe what he was hearing. Rei- she'd been hurting you? All this time, all this time that she insisted that she loves you- she's been hurting you.

"Dabi." Fuyumi called out to him. "We need to save Y/n."

"How?"

"We've got some stuff that'll help you." Natsuo smiled.

"We'll show up at court even if we have to." Shotou promised.

And for the first time in months, Dabi felt like he had a fighting chance against Rei.

"Okay."

-

Natsuo pulled some strings and got Rei's past medical history (aka the part where she was put into an asylum). Fuyumi had a few pictures of wounds on your body that you'd gotten from Rei (and Fuyumi took these pictures in the past to ask Natsuo for medical help). And Shotou? He spoke up as witness to Rei's abusive behaviour towards you, and to him in the past when she'd thrown hot water on him.

And just like that, Dabi had won the case.

All I can see is you just being frazzled as Dabi hugs you to his chest, and starts crying. You're confused and scared because Rei had told you that he was a bad man. But... he doesn't feel like it. He feels so warm, so familiar.

He feels like home.

Reluctantly, you put your arms around hum and burry your head into his chest, sobbing.

"D-dad?"

Dabi just crumbles to his knees right there and then, pulling you down with him. It's been far too long since he heard you call him that.

"Its me, baby. Its me." He hugs you tighter. "I told you I'd come back, didn't I?"

You cried harder. And Dabi could understand why. He just kisses your forehead and rocks back and forth with you. "I'm sorry I took so long. But its gonna be okay now."

His siblings run over and join in on the hug, and Dabi feels complete.

It's gonna be okay.

And then you live happily ever after with your father and his siblings💖💖💖

[rose-sophia-isabella-rogers]

A Tide That Turned Everything: Chapter VI - We Can Do This Together

Chapter Summary: You finally face Alina and her allies in the Fold. Each one of you believes to be one in the right and is ready do fight till the end. But when Aleksander's condition suddenly becomes worse, what will you be willing to do to save him?

Pairing: Aleksander Kirigan/Reader, Alina Starkov/Mal Oretsev, Ivan/Fedyor Kaminsky

Characters: Aleksander Kirigan, Reader, Fruzsi, Fedyor Kaminsky, Ivan, Mal Oretsev, Nina Zenik, Zoya Nazyalensky, Inej Ghafa

Word Count: 4578

A/N: This chapter contains some plot from episodes seventh and eight of season two. Inspired by prompts: https://pl.pinterest.com/pin/207306389089560564/ https://pl.pinterest.com/pin/207306389089559891/ https://pl.pinterest.com/pin/207306389089554965/ https://pl.pinterest.com/pin/207306389089554960/ https://pl.pinterest.com/pin/207306389089559865/ https://pl.pinterest.com/pin/207306389089571761/

Tag list (let me know if you want to be added or removed):

@budugu

@intothesoul

@mizelophsun11

@pansexualwitchwhoneedstherapy

@zeeader

You wake up to the feeling of arms around your waist. You smile and focus on this feeling. You missed it so much. For a moment you allow yourself to believe you're in Aleksander's bed in his bedroom in the Little Palace and everything is as it should be. You want to stay like this forever. But reality is calling.

Outside the tent you can hear voices of Grisha getting ready for a battle. You sigh quietly and attempt to sit up. Attempt. The arms around your waist tighten their grip. You can't help but smile.

'Where do you think you're going?' Aleksander murmurs in your shoulder.

'Well, I'm not sure if you've been informed, but there's a battle to fight,' you answer.

'Outrageous, no one told me a thing,' Kirigan plays along. 'And I should know. I'm the Black General.'

You laugh and turn around. Your eyes meet. You smile.

'Hi, pretty boy,' you greet him.

'Good morning, lapushka,' Aleksander hums, caressing your cheek. 'Did you manage to sleep after I woke you up?'

'Yes,' you answer and peck his nose. 'Shall we?'

Kirigan just nods. Reluctantly, he lets you go. You both get out of the bed and get ready. You finish first. Years of being a servant taught you to always dress fast. So, you walk to Aleksander and help him.

'Still missing that?' Kirigan asks.

'Some parts,' you admit. 'Dressing you for one.'

'I always thought you preferred undressing me,' Aleksander teases you.

'Yes, but that I haven't stopped doing after becoming Grisha,' you say cheekily. Kirigan laughs and you grin. He looks at you fondly. You turn around and make the bed. Aleksander adjusts his cuffs.

'Unless I screw this up again, I'm going to marry you,' he says. You freeze for a second. Then, you resume your task.

'Well, you better not mess this up,' you say casually. This time Aleksander freezes. He looks at you with wide eyes. Hope, which he criticised just a day ago, shines in them. His heart skips a beat.

'Do you mean it?' he asks. Slowly, you finish making up the bed. You turn and walk to him. You look each other in the eyes.

'You know that I am not perfect but you make me feel perfect and beautiful in every way,' you say. 'I thank you for that. So, yes. I do mean it. Ask me properly when this is all over and I'll accept your proposal.'

Aleksander grins. Before you can smile back, he takes you in his arms and presses a kiss to your lips. You sigh and answer it with passion.

'General- Oh,' a familiar voice says. 'Sorry.'

Aleksander sighs and pulls away. You turn your heads and see Fedyor and Ivan standing at the entrance. Both of them are stopping their smiles.

'We just wanted to say we're ready,' Ivan says. Two Heartrenders quickly turn and leave. But not without winking at you.

'Why do we keep them around?' Aleksander asks, annoyed.

'Because they ship us more than we do,' you answer. Kirigan laughs and kisses you again.

'Shall we?' he asks. You nod.

'I just need a moment,' you answer. Aleksander nods and leaves the tent. You exhale shakily and walk to a mirror. You adjust your hair slowly. You're scared. Of losing. Of facing Alina. But as you told her, you're with Kirigan for better or for worse. So, you turn and leave the tent, joining the others. Just in time to hear Aleksander speaking to others:

'Your orders are very simple. Kill the King.'

'And the tracker?' Fruzsi asks. 'His existence puts everything at risk.'

You wince. You did a good thing telling Aleksander about Mal. Obviously, others that were with you have told the rest. You look at Kirigan and see him already looking at you.

'The tracker is not to be touched by anyone other than me,' he says harshly. 'Is that understood?'

Others bow their head and confirm. You smile slightly.

'Good,' Aleksander says and turns to leave, as others disperse. But Fruzsi stops him by asking:

'And how do we know he hasn't already sacrificed himself to amplify her?'

Aleksander turns. His eyes meet yours again. You walk to stand by Fruzsi. She looks at you at once.

'I believe she would die before allowing that to happen,' you answer. Aleksander nods and walks away. He faces a familiar orphanage. You join him.

'Strange,' you say. 'I thought I will never come back here again.'

'How did it look like?' Aleksander asks. 'You didn't grow up here.'

'My family's house used to be not far from here,' you explain. 'I used to sneak out and meet Mal and Alina here, on this meadow.'

Aleksander nods. You both stare at the orphanage. You sigh.

'Are you sure about this plan?' you ask. Kirigan simply takes your hand in his. You smile and look at him.

'Together?' he asks. There's only one answer you can give. So, you say:

'Always.'

*

Everyone but you, Aleksander, Fedyor and Ivan go to ambush Nikolay's team. The four of you rides on your horses toward the Fold. You stop by it and get down from your horses. Aleksander helps you and you two share a smile.

'Are we sure about it?' Fedyor asks, eyeing the Fold.

'Yes,' Aleksander answers, taking a special lantern. 'This is where we shall bring the fight.'

You all turn to the Fold. You shiver. You still hating entering it. But Aleksander goes in it and you follow him.

After a moment, you stop. Kirigan passes you the lantern. You hold it and he focuses. He weaves his hands. The Fold rumbles as it slowly spreads. You wince.

'That part I could do without,' you murmur.

'It's necessary,' Ivan says. You roll your eyes. Fedyor hides his smile behind his sleeve.

You hear a screech behind you. You turn just in time to see nichevo attacking a Volcra that was about to attack you. After the Volcra is dead, it disappears.

'I thought they protect General?' Fedyor asks, puzzled.

'Protecting [Y/N] is above their the purpose to protect me,' Aleksander explains calmly, continuing to spread the Fold. Ivan and Fedyor look at you. You blush.

'Shut up,' you murmur.

'We're not saying anything,' Ivan says, smirking slightly. You exhale slowly. You ignore your companions and focus on the Fold. Soon, it encompasses the fort. You feel sadness. Your former friends are there.

'What will it be, Miss Starkov?'Aleksander asks, after dropping his hands. 'Your convictions... or your heart?'

You watch Volcras flying toward the fort. Part of you screams at you to run there and help the ones inside. But you shut this part up and follow Aleksander.

'The heart of the Fold now?' Fedyor asks.

'Yes,' Aleksander confirms. 'This is where Miss Starkov will go.'

'Unless a Volcra eats her first,' you say. 'It can happen.'

'No, she will get there in one piece,' Aleksander says. You shrug.

'Fine,' you say. 'But if a day passes and she's not here, I'm not the one that's going to see what is left of her.'

Fedyor snickers. Ivan sighs.

'Must you always be so pessimistic?' he asks.

'I'm just saying the Volcras are unpredictable,' you say. 'They don't know Aleksander wants her here.'

You and Ivan continue to bicker. Fedyor and Aleksander exchange a look. It's going to be a long walk.

Still, you finally make it. You look at the ruins in wonder. But in silence. You must be vigilant now. Your former friends may arrive any moment.

And soon they come on a flying ship. You see Alina, Mal, Zoya, Nina and a girl you don't know. You smile, seeing Nina is safe and sound.

'Now?' Ivan whispers. Aleksander shakes his head. So, you watch your friends for a moment. Finally, Alina and Mal embrace and she gains power. Light, different than usual, floods from her. It forms a dome around them all. It slowly becomes bigger.

'It's beautiful,' you can't help but say quietly. You smile, as Alina and Malina kiss. Of course, this is the moment when the dome reaches you and allows others to see you. And Aleksander, naturally, must ruin the moment by speaking up.

'How touching,' he says. Alina and Mal jump away from each other. Starkov, with eyes wide, pushes Mal away from herself, making the light disappear. She spreads her arms, glaring at Aleksander.

'I almost feel bad for what I have to do now,' he says, walking forward. 'He is family after all.'

Mal and Alina exchange a look. But then Mal notices a nichevo trying to get through Alina's sun barrier behind Nina and others.

'Get down!' he shouts to them, pointing his gun at the nichevo. He fires some shining bullets at it, forcing it to back away.

Alina prepares herself to make the Cut. But suddenly, she groans and wavers. Mal looks at her in alarm.

'Alina!' he shouts, supporting her. He looks at your group, expecting Ivan and Fedyor to be doing something to Alina. But to his surprise they're not there. They've already sneaked away and are now engaging in a fight between Nina, Zoya and the third woman. Instead, he sees you holding your hands together and staring at Alina.

'Did you know that up to 60% of the human adult body is water?' you ask casually. 'And more of 70% of the heart is composed of water?'

The moment you say that, Alina groans and grabs her heart. Mal looks at you, horrified. It costs you everything not to break your façade. Because you hate do hurt Alina this way.

'Mal, I don't want to do this,' you say. 'Just come-'

You gasp and grab your throat. Your concentration breaks and Alina breathes in deeply. This time Aleksander grabs you in panic. He looks up, looking for the culprit and sees Nina holding her hands together and looking at you with pain. Because you used to be friends and she hates to hurt you.

'Fedyor! Ivan!' Aleksander shouts. But the Heartrenders are too busy fighting with Zoya and the other woman.

'Remember our conversation?' Mal asks Kirigan. 'You said you had nothing to lose. And I asked you if [Y/N] was nothing then. Is she?'

You're really curious when did Mal and Aleksander talk, but the fact you can't breathe is a bit more important now. You get angry. You like breathing. It's one of your favourite activities. So, you focus on that fury and bring your hands together.

Nina, Mal, Alina, Zoya and the woman gasp, when they feel pain in their bodies. You control water in their bodies, hurting them. Nina's concentration breaks and you can breathe again. You take in a deep breath and fall into Aleksander's arms. You let your hands drop and free others of your hold.

'Let's end this,' Alina says after catching a breath and summons light. Aleksander pushes you away and takes the blow on himself.

'No!' you shout. But he's fine and he answers Alina with shadows. They start fighting. Ivan and Fedyor rush to help, but Zoya and Nina stand in their way. The woman fights nichevo'ya with some sword that actually seems to destroy them. Which means there's only one person not occupied besides you. Your eyes meet Mal's.

'I don't want to hurt you,' you say softly.

'Me neither,' Mal sighs. 'We used to be friends. Very good friends.'

'I know,' you say. 'But I can't let you hurt him.'

'And I can't let you help him win,' Mal says. Before you can respond, he jumps on you. You can't even bring your hands together. You barely miss his blow and you have to fight back to stay standing. You're really grateful for all the training Botkin forced you to take.

At one point, Mal manages to kick you in the legs. You fall on your back, but you manage to bring him down with you. He lands on top of you and you start rolling. Still, you're the one who ends up on the bottom. Mal holds your wrists and pins them on the sides of your head.

'What do you even see in him?' he asks you angrily. You glare at him.

'Everything you lot don't,' you answer and headbutt him. He groans and his grip on you loosens. You manage to bring your hands together and he groans, feeling you controlling the water in him again.

'He's not perfect,' you say, 'but he's all I want.'

You push him from you and knock him out. Then you turn around, panting, and gasp. Alina and Aleksander are on the ground. Starkov stands up slowly but Kirigan is not moving. You sprint forward. You put yourself in front of him a moment before Alina creates the Cut. You quickly do the same.

Your Cuts meet in the middle. The force of the combined power pushes you both back. At the same time a blinding lightness surrounds you all. Before you hit the ground, a thought enters your head.

Ah, yes. Water reflects and amplifies light.

*

You open your eyes and are greeted with a sight of Volcra flying at you. But then nichevo shows up and kills it. Well, at least you know Aleksander is still alive.

'Saints,' you groan and sit up. You look around and see Fedyor rushing to you. You couldn't have been out for long, then.

'Aleksander?' you ask when he reaches you. He helps you up.

'Ivan is taking a look at him,' Fedyor answers and looks you over. 'Are you okay?'

'I'm fine,' you assure him. You find Aleksander not far behind you. True to Fedyor's words, Ivan is by his side. He sends you a gloom look.

'It's not looking good,' he informs you. 'What do we do?'

You look at Aleksander. There's a wound on his side. It's glowing. No doubt Alina's work. He's unconscious and breathing heavily. Add the merzost to that… Fear seizes your heart.

'Alina!' you hear. You turn your head. Mal and others rush to Alina. She's awake now as well. They help her up. She looks straight at you. You can almost hear her thoughts.

'[Y/N]… please,' she says. 'You can't truly want all this. People are dying. Your friends.'

'Don't listen to her,' Ivan says harshly.

'Ivan,' Fedyor silences him. He knows what is the most important to you right now. Your eyes fall on Aleksander's tormented face.

'You, Mal and me, [Y/N],' Alina says. 'It's always been us. And we can be the ones to end this. We can bring Ravka together again.'

'Destroying the Fold won't reunite this country,' Ivan says. 'And our enemies will strike at us at once, while we're not strong but in fear we can be.'

'Together with Nikolay we can reunite this country and keep it safe,' Alina insists. 'Please, [Y/N]. Think of Ravka and its people-'

'I've never cared about this country nor its people,' you snap and look at your friend with pain. 'Why should I? It never cared for me. Not when I was little girl on the countryside, not when I lived in a big city, not when I was a serving girl, not when I was Grisha. This country is broken, Alina. It needs a miracle to be fixed. Or someone strong enough and with strong convictions.'

Your eyes fall on Aleksander's chest. It's moving irregularly. Your heart aches.

'I don't care if it gets fixed,' you say. 'I've never felt love for it.'

'What about its people?' Alina asks. 'Do you want them to die? Because many will if Aleksander will spread the Fold even more.'

'I don't care about them either,' you say and pause for a moment. 'But I know you do.'

You look at her. Alina stiffens, seeing in your eyes you've made your choice.

'Promise me you'll let us go after this… and never look for us,' you bargain. Alina's friends want to argue, but she raises her hand.

'What about your parents?' she asks. 'If you go… you may never see them again.'

'That's alright,' you say sadly. 'I'm not the person my parents wanted me to be anyway.'

Alina looks you in the eyes. She's searching for hesitation. She finds none.

'Deal,' she agrees. You nod.

'[Y/N], we can't,' Ivan protests, as Alina and Mal face each other. They talk in hushed voices, glancing at you.

'He's dying, Ivan,' you say quietly. 'It's the only way for him to live.'

'He may not live long after this anyway,' Fedyor says quietly. You exhale shakily.

'But he may,' you say. 'And that's all I care about. Like I told Alina, I don't care about this country. I only care about him.'

Fedyor nods, ready to support you. Ivan sighs and looks at Aleksander.

'He'll have our heads for that,' he says grimly. You smile.

'If it means that he will live, then so be it,' you say and turn to Alina. She's already embracing with Mal again. She looks at you, to make sure you're still going to fulfil your end of the bargain.

You raise your hands in answer and concentrate. You start weaving them and a moment later streams of water flow all around you. You make them spread across the whole Fold. At least you hope for it.

Alina smiles. Mal looks at it in wonder. But quickly he's occupied as his lover's mouth are on his. A beam of sun goes out of her, brighter and more powerful than before. It hits the water you have summoned and at once you're surrounded by blinding light and rainbows. You shield your eyes and watch in wonder how it defeats the darkness of the Fold.

It's over soon. Volcras are gone, they have flown away from the light. The Fold has disappeared. You look up and see sky and sun. You can't help but smile.

'Blue skies…' you hear. You whirl your head around. You see Aleksander looking up in amazement. But his eyes soon close.

'Aleksander,' you say and hurry to his side. 'Aleksander? Aleksander!'

'You did it,' Mal says not far from you, smiling.

'We did it,' Alina corrects him. Mal looks at her and they kiss again.

'Wait,' he says, pulling away after a moment with a frown. '[Y/N] and Kirigan.'

'I promised them, Mal,' Alina says quietly. Mal sighs but nods. He lets go of Alina. She clears her throat.

'[Y/N]-' she starts, turning around. She cuts herself off, stunned.

'Where are they?' Zoya asks, rushing to them with Nina and the woman, Inej.

'I…' Alina says, puzzled. 'I don't know.'

Where a moment ago were you, Aleksander, Ivan and Fedyor, there's no one. You're gone.

*

You're not sure how long you've been riding through this forest. Hours? Days? Time is blurring. Same as images in front of you, because of your falling tears.

'Please, Aleksander,' you whisper. 'Hold on.'

Just then Ivan and Fedyor stop their horses. You force yours to do the same. Aleksander's horse stops by itself when you do. He's been galloping loosely by your side, since his rider is riding sprawled in front of you. You insisted on it.

'Why are we stopping?' you demand.

'The horses need a break,' Fedyor explains. 'And so do we.'

'We must also plan what to do,' Ivan adds, dismounting his horse. 'We can't just continue riding forward.'

You feel the need to do that. But you nod, understanding their reasoning. They gently take Aleksander from your horse. Then, you dismount her yourself.

'How is he?' you ask, as they lay Kirigan on the ground. They check his vitals. Fedyor winces, while Ivan becomes even more grumpy.

'Not good, then,' you sigh.

'We've managed to heal the wound Alina inflicted on him but… there's more damage in his body,' Fedyor says, exchanging a look with his lover. 'Damage we can't heal.'

'Merzost,' you sigh. Fedyor and Ivan look at you sharply.

'I'm not blind nor deaf,' you scoff. 'I know it's been killing him. I hoped we could find a cure but…'

'He and Vladim were close,' Fedyor says. 'Maybe I should go back, try to find Vladim?'

'We don't even know if he's alive,' Ivan protests. Fedyor looks at you, ready to do it if you order it.

'No,' you shake your head. 'Ivan's right. We must… find some other way.'

Just then you hear a twig snap. You surround Aleksander, taking defensive positions. Your heart is beating fast. Did Alina break her promise? Or are these Nikolay's men?

But from behind the trees comes an old man with twigs in his arms. He stops, surprised to see you. He looks harmless, but none of you lets your guard down.

'Grisha,' the man says, eyeing your keftas. He huffs, clearly not pleased. Then, his eyes fall on Aleksander. He stiffens, shocked.

'The Darkling,' he whispers. You and your companions shift to stand more protectively in front of Kirigan. The man looks up at you and sees traces of tears on your face.

'Come with me,' he says after a moment of silence and turns. He starts walking away. You and your friends exchange a confused look. The man stops and looks over his shoulder.

'Come if you want him to live!' he barks and resumes walking.

'This can be a trap,' Ivan says after a moment.

'Honestly, what do we have to lose?' you ask and walk to your horse. You take her rains. Ivan and Fedyor put Aleksander on his horse, groaning. Then, you follow the mysterious man.

He leads you to a small cottage. You take Aleksander there. The Heartrenders take him to a sleeping area, to which the man has pointed them. He then leaves the house, murmuring something under his breath.

You look around. You walk slowly, hesitantly, afraid of traps. You stop by a table. There are notebooks on it. You tilt your head, curious, reading the only open one.

'[Y/N]?' Fedyor calls you. You hurry to the sleeping area. Aleksander is laying on the bed, breathing heavily.

'We think he's waking up,' Ivan says and leaves. You sit by Kirigan's side and take his hand.

'He doesn't want to be here when I tell Aleksander about what I did?' you guess.

'Probably,' Fedyor sighs. 'Do you want me to stay?'

'No,' you deny, shaking your head. 'I think it's best we'll be alone for this.'

'Thank Saints,' Fedyor murmurs and hurries out. You crack a smile and wait.

A few minutes later Aleksander wakes up. He looks around groggily. When his eyes land on you, he smiles.

'Hey, beautiful,' he croaks out. You smile and almost start crying again.

'Hello, pretty boy,' you greet him. 'How are you feeling?'

'Weak,' Aleksander answers and frowns. 'Where are we?'

'In a hut in a forest,' you answer. 'You need to rest and recover.'

'I saw… the sky,' Aleksander suddenly remembers. 'She destroyed the Fold, then? We lost?'

You brace yourself for it. You're afraid he may hate you for your decisions.

'I helped her with that,' you answer and Aleksander looks at you with surprise. 'In return, she promised to let us go and don't look for us.'

'Why?' Aleksander whispers, looking at you with hurt. 'What happened with "your battle is my battle"?'

'This was the only way to make sure you'll make out of this alive, but we can go and attack them again,' you answer at once. 'The deal was, I help her and she lets us go. I never said we won't be back. So if you want, we can do that. I will follow you everywhere. But you need to be alive for that. And at the moment you're in no good condition.'

Aleksander stares at you, stunned. He sees devotion in your gaze. But also stubbornness. You won't back down on this.

'You're dying, Aleksander,' you say. 'The merzost is killing you. Yes, I know about it. What, you think I didn't hear your cough? Didn't see the black stuff on your handkerchiefs? Haven't noticed you becoming weaker? I have eyes and ears. I wanted you to tell me yourself… but you kept a secret from me once more.'

'Not really if you were aware of it,' Aleksander murmurs. You stare at him sharply. He sighs.

'I didn't want to worry you,' he admits.

'Idiot,' you say. 'As if not telling me what's wrong would make me worry less.'

'I'm sorry. I should have told you.'

'Yes, you should have. And I'm sorry, too. I know I failed you. And betrayed you.'

'You tried to save me. I can't be mad at you for that. I'm just sad it was for nothing.'

'Don't say that…'

Aleksander answers you with a fit of coughs. He can't even cover his face and black stuff falls on the sheets. Tears well up in your eyes. Just then the old man shows up in the door.

'You must leave the room if I am to save him,' he says. Aleksander stares at him with wide eyes. You glance at the moment.

'Just give us a moment,' you plead. The man murmurs something and leaves. Aleksander looks at you.

'Who's that?' he demands. You sigh.

'The owner of this hut,' you answer. 'We met him in the forest. He recognised you and told us to follow him if we want you to live. Honestly, I didn't see what we have to lose.'

'Your lives,' Aleksander answers sharply. 'You think I want to trade mine for yours? You know nothing of this man. He may sell us to the First Army. I'm dying anyway but you-'

'It's worth the risk,' you insist and look at him with pain. 'If this man is my only chance for saving you, then I'll gladly pay the price. Because I am not losing you again.'

Aleksander freezes. Then, he understands. You already thought him to be dead, after the first battle in the Fold. You already grieved him. You can't do it again.

'Forgive me,' Aleksander says quietly. You shake your head.

'Just let him try,' you plead.

'We don't know who he is,' he sighs. You hesitate.

'I have suspicions,' you say slowly. 'I think… it's Ilya Morozova.'

'I beg your pardon?' Aleksander asks, stunned, after a moment.

'Your mother herself wasn't sure if he really died that day,' you say. 'And think about it. Who else would know how to help with your poisoning with merzost? Also… I saw notebooks on the table in another room. I didn't manage to read the words but the handwriting… It was very similar to the ones from Morozova's diaries.'

Aleksander stares at you with disbelief. He opens his mouth to say something but the man… Morozova?... enters.

'If we do this, it must be now,' he barks. 'Or he will die.'

You nod and stand up. You lean down to Aleksander. You stare at each other for a moment, fearing it's the last time you see each other.

'I love you,' you say at the same time. You smile at each other. You kiss him softly and straighten up.

'Live,' you plead him. 'For me.'

Aleksander nods. You leave, not looking back. You join Fedyor and Ivan outside. You exchange a look, then look each your own way. All you can do is wait now and hope for the best. For Aleksander to live.

A/N: Thank you for reading! Let me know your thoughts! Reblog, like and comment if you could.

This can also be found on Archive of Our Own: https://archiveofourown.org/works/49965037/chapters/126767995

[shinysamurott9]

I finished Xenoblade X again today and... wow.

OK so, I played Xenoblade X for the first time last year in a marathon of Xenoblade 1, X, and 2, and honestly, compared to 1 & 2, I didn't enjoy it as much. It was the only one I didn't really know much about going in. I felt like it had a lot of good parts, but I hadn't any idea what I was doing because the game has literally no tutorials and I ended up stumbling through the game when I wasn't able to use my Skell, so I just didn't have as much fun with it compared to the trilogy.

However, after finishing Xenogears and the Xenosaga Trilogy, I thought it would be a good idea to give X another shot as a nice way to bookend playing the Xeno series, specifically after watching some guides and learning how the combat actually works (Thanks Enel)

And, holy shit. Out of every game I've ever played, this and DMC 3 are the ones I'm most glad I gave a second chance. I genuinely could not stop thinking about this game after I started playing again. Before I stopped pretty much as soon as I beat the final boss, this time I went literally all the way and completed the entire Mira Survey. I'm just gonna take this chance to go in and incoherently go off about about all the stuff I have in my head about this beautiful mess of a game.

Ok so the combat. Overdrive, is a completely balanced mechanic that doesn't allow you to completely take the main game’s difficulty and snap it over your knee like a fucking twig. Except it is. Like, it is honestly comical just how trivial almost everything becomes with the right arts on your build. And if you throw really busted arts like Ghostwalker/Ghost Factory or Blossom Dance into the mix, literally nothing can stand up to you bar the literal endgame superbosses, and a big part of that is just because a lot of them, Telethia in particular, are in positions where you literally can't fight them on foot and realistically survive without a highly specialised build. But with that proper build, that probably takes a lot of grinding, you can still beat them fairly quickly, save for Levael The Terminus, because it's literally in the middle of the ocean. All because of this funny counter gear.

Going along with Overdrive, is the amount of customisation this game offers you. Almost every weapon type offers you at least a couple arts that work really well alongside Overdrive. The build I ended up with at the end was a Knife, Dual Gun combination, mainly because Smooth Recovery, is an amazing art for Overdrive, and Black Butterfly and Full Specs are great compliments for an Ether Build with Executioner as the main Damage Art. Yeah sure I ended up using Ghostwalker/Factory like most Endgame builds, but hey that shit is comically busted, and I absolutely love abusing stuff like that, intentional or otherwise. Plus I do enjoy the idea of my Cross, Coraline, using the arts of Irina and Elma, her immediate superior officers in BLADE. Which actually brings me to,

I was honestly surprised at how much thought I ended up putting into my Cross this time around, but it was fun. Not just deciding on a good look both when creating her and finding what gear she'd wear, but also thinking about how her character woukd respond to the situations and dialogue options presented throughout the game. It's to the point that Coraline's basically become my first OC, depending on how you count Milton the Mythrakid I guess, since he's an interpretation of a character we know exists but we haven't seen or heard about. Either way I definitelywant to do more with Coraline. Probably gonna draw her some more as time goes on to get a better feel for the design as well as drawing her skell too just because.

That actually brings me around to the story. I'll be the first to admit that overall X's story falls short compared to the trilogy andveven Gears and Saga but it still has a lot of solid stuff that really git me thinking, in addition to stuff I only picked up the second time around, something Xeno stories have been fantastic with since the beginning with Gears. Obviously spoilers ahead as I talk some notable stuff in the plot

This moment really stuck out for me after simmering on it for a while. Because this idea that memories and the continuation of a person's consciousness are what make them who they are would continue as a prominent thematic plot point in the following games. Xenoblade 2 emphasises it the most heavily with Blades losing their memories with each reawakening, thus they lose their "contuity of consciousness". It's quite literally the central source of conflict for Blades and is everywhere in the main story and side content with characters like Praxis, Theory and Vess. Xenoblade 3 has this too, albeit as a more subtle background element with the Agnian and Kevesi Soldiers effectively being reset upon death as they are reborn, however there are still cases where things slip through the cracks, most notably with Eunie and Ashera. Yet despite that, Monica asserts to Eunie that whatever her past life was, it wasn't her and she didn't make it, all because soldiers simply don't have that continuity of consciousness.

Thinking about it now X has plenty of thematic ideas that 2 & 3 would go on to pull from. Things like a cycle of death and rebirth, something that Blade and NLA are trying to achieve with finding the Lifehold Core. As Lao puts it, they're the lucky ones who can come back as many times as they want. Lao's arc is particularly well done all things considered. A moment early on that stuck out to me was when they were discussing how Lin got her spot on the Whale as a way to repay her parents who were crucial in getting the ship going in the first place. Lao, whether he shows it or not, would have some misgivings about that, and Elma seemingly picks up on that and is quick to point out Lin's own skill were crucial in her getting her spot and that it wasn't just pure nepotism. It's really interesting to see Elma pick up on Lao's misgivings so early. If we do ever get an X sequel, which I do think and hope we will sooner or later, I'll be very curious to see where Lao's character goes from here. Speaking of characters who I really want to learn more about,

Elma is a really interesting character honestly despite the many unanswered questions surrounding her, it just has me more intrigued to learn more about her. The question of what her species and planet are like is one i really want to see explored someday. Funnily enough, 2 actually gave us a breadcrumb of that. Elma has a line when receiving a Seafood pouch item, one of her favourite categories, where she expresses fascination with the concept. "Making meals out of marine lifeforms, fascinating" which I've always taken as her species just straight up not having a concept of seafood. Idk why, it's such a minor inconsequential detail that isn't even from X but I always found that super interesting. Her designs are also two of my favourites in the Xeno series, especially dince they double as subtle references to Kos-Mos and T-Elos. I think I lean a little more towards Alien Elma though, something about the crystal hair is really cool to me.

A few other Miscellaneous things I can think of:

The sidequests are fantastic. While many are a little tedious, they do a really good job of building the world and fleshing out the natures and cultures of the different alien species that come to inhabit NLA.

The Affinity Missions go hand in hand with this, they do a great job of fleshing out all the different party members all the while giving you an avenue to learn their unique abilities. Most of those party members are also really well developed abd mostly compelling characters. Even the most if the ones who seem like assholes at first, like Boze or HB, do get better as their affinity missions progress. They clearly knew it was a great concept as it came back in 2 & 3 with the Blade Quests and Hero + Ascension Quests.

The ost is fucking incredible, I've been adding X music to my personal playlist over the course of my playthrough because there's so much good stuff in it. It's honestly criminal how much you end up missing because the Overdrive and Flight themes override 90% of them.

Skells are incredibly cool and a brilliant way to bring in the concept of mech combat systems from the previous Xeno games.

Phew, I think that's everything I've had to say. I've called out many of this game's flaws in other places and most of that I do still stand by. The game is in desperate need of an actual tutorial and QoL improvements. The game's draw distance can be quite frustrating at times trying to find specific things or characters and getting certain materials can be a really annoying grind, (Neinail Materials), but if you can put up with that there is a hell of a game there. I don't know if I'd consider it better than the trilogy, just because it has more complete stories, but it's quite close.

Overall I'm so happy I gave X a second shot and now I'll definitely be there waiting for a port or sequel. It's easily the most underrated game I've ever played. I'm confident it'll happen at some point but either way I'l likely have more Xeno stuff to play in the meantime if whatever's next is Xenoblade 4.

My reaction to this game.

[wildfluffyappeared]

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Help us leave a potentially unsafe living situation! Our landlord is facing us with a likely illegal eviction after months of us facing mistreatment and tenant's rights abuse from them. We know they likely cannot follow through as they haven't followed standard legal procedure, but we do not feel safe here and need to gather expenses to cover moving asap with a deadline of June 30th. They have done nothing but use us for months now, and now that they do not need us to pay their mortgage thanks to a new job they're starting soon, they've taken the first excuse they could think of to put us in the street.

For the past several months, we have been living in extremely subpar conditions in a dirty house with limited access to ways to bathe thanks to our landlord. They had us move from Tennessee to Michigan, promising us safe housing and manipulating us by sweet talking us about gardening together, playing games, and forming community. When we got here, we learned the basement room they wanted us to stay in (they said they needed the entire first floor to themself) was unfinished; they do not clean upstairs with any regularity, leading to lots of dust coming down into our room while we cannot regularly bathe, causing skin irritation and breathing issues. Multiple times have they left drinks out that their cats have knocked over, which spilled through the floor directly onto our bed. Additionally, there is no soundproofing; we have no privacy, and they've even joined in private conversations we've had from upstairs.

Our shower has been broken the entire time we have lived here, and the second we brought up the fact we cannot regularly bathe after they told us all about the new high paying job they'll be getting, they served us an eviction notice not even a week later. They had told us the polar opposite not even two weeks before– that they'd stop accepting rent so we could plan to move out. This was going to be a blessing to us, as house prices here aren't horrible, and we had wanted to attempt to get a mortgage and save for a down payment. The bathroom they expect us to use is theirs and is left so dirty and cluttered (often with sex toys left out on the counter) that we cannot leave any of our things in there and have to bring everything up and down with us– which is especially difficult for me as showers tend to make me faint, and theirs does not ventilate steam well. Their solution was to tell me to shower with the door open– something I am now 100% uncomfortable with.

They had blamed all the dirtiness on their former tenants, but within two weeks finally admitted they had an issue with hoarding and cleaning. We offered to help many times, but they were never willing to communicate with us and treated us a if we should have been the sole people responsible for the cleanliness of the house. We did all of the dishes for months while they wouldn't even rinse a single one and would regularly fill the entire sink and all of the counters with dirty dishes. They never clean up after themself when they make messes, which has led to an ant infestation in the kitchen. They also demanded more space in the fridge when they have an entire other fridge still plugged in that we aren't allowed to use because they claim to want to sell it but have not done so for months. Our items in the fridge barely take up the top shelf, one drawer, and a small portion of the bottom shelf while the rest is often occupied by food they leave to rot for months.

They claim to be kicking us out because we are “too expensive to live with”-- citing seeing one of our tiny windows open a few times when they had the AC on. As a social worker you would think they'd understand that some families are neglectful and do not teach things– we understand its annoying, but they leave their windows open literally all the time, have been leaving lights on upstairs at all hours of the day even when they are not home, will not raise the AC above 70° (and even kept it at below legal temperatures over the winter), and still have an entire fridge they apparently do not use plugged in upstairs.

They are horribly neglectful towards their cats as well: two long haired cats and a short haired one that sheds excessively, but they do not brush them. By their own admission, they do not play with their cats either, and we had to tell them to buy their cats toys and scratchboards. They have not clipped their cats claws or gotten them clipped in the entire nearly eight months we have lived here. They clean the cats’ litter boxes maybe once a month, multiple of which sit outside our unfinished basement room. They also neglected to inform us that there was an entire flea infestation in the house prior to us moving in. They have also told us to get rid of our cat who used to be theirs because at the time they agreed to cover her expenses since we had not been prepared to take on a cat, only to suddenly change their mind when we pointed out issues she display repetitively, indicating they likely severely neglected her too– and this took place not even a week after we told them they needed to take care of their boys better because they wanted to bring two more cats into the house. We know she was confined to a single room that is even smaller than the one we are in now and had her boundaries violated often by their own admission as well.

We have been trying so hard to make nice and keep the peace– we have some evidence of their mistreatment, as we've recorded our entire group chat and have taken pictures and videos of some of the dirty areas of the house, but we don't know that its enough to help us in the event they do take us to court. They have a tendency to corner us in our room or the kitchen. Often times to talk about themself and the latest person they've hung out with (aka the latest person they had so something for them, buy something for them, or had some sort of ~physical encounter~ with; they are vocal about when they hang out with other people and the hang outs always fall into one of these three categories), but the second it comes to us, they end the conversation. They are extremely condescending and treated us in a way that reinforces both of our varieties of trauma. Lately they have even begun altering their sleep patterns so we cannot even be awake and doing things quietly like feeding ourselves without them looming over us in the background. They stress we're in is affecting our cat too, leading to her refusing to eat decently often. We had thought we'd had more time. That maybe we were finally close to having a safe space to call our own. We shared our plans with them and almost immediately they began talking us down. Not even a week later, they served us an eviction notice out of nowhere, knowing we have no other friends in this town and our family is all the way back in Tennessee. They were not willing to even discuss it and come to a compromise– it is clear we've served our use to them.

Thankfully we are planning to move into an apartment with a friend, but we need to come up with the move in costs as soon as possible. The listings we find often close out fast– there isn't much available housing in this area, so we need to act fast. Anything helps. If you cannot make the minimum, please contact us for alternative methods.

[marshallpupfan]

Just Some Thoughts About the Third Film

As many of you know now, it was official revealed recently that PAW Patrol will get a third theatrical film. It's due to release on 2026, three years from now. Third movie, three years, and a certain spotted pup drives a vehicle with the number three. It just fits, eh?

Okay, maybe that's a stretch. As of right now, we still don't know anything about the third movie, it's plot, or which pup it will focus on. From what I've noticed, most fans are rooting for Marshall, as am I. Despite my complaints in the past, I want this to happen for a specific reason; to put Marshall back in the spotlight again, which I feel is sorely needed after the way the franchise treated him these last few years... ESPECIALLY during season 9. To see the TV series practically treat him like a side character for nearly a whole season was... annoying, to say the least.

Marshall headlining a theatrical film (and a good one, I hope) would surely mark a great turnaround for the pup and hopefully negate all of that. However, despite how much I want to see him be its main character, I must admit, I do have some reservations.

This isn't a rant, but more akin to a fan expressing some thoughts and concerns. This is, however, easily one of my longest posts yet, so if you're curious, click "Keep reading".

Whenever I look back at the first theatrical film, I have mixed feelings about the way Brunker handled Marshall. On the plus side, he had some great rescues, especially when he saved all those people on that subway. And if I have to credit the film for anything, it's that I'm grateful it allowed my favorite spotted pup to actually be a fireman and put out fires. This seems to be carrying on into the sequel, thankfully. Believe it or not, the last time the TV series allowed the pup to put out a dangerous/uncontrolled fire was, no joke, all the way back in season one. Only the theatrical films, and Rubble & Crew, interestingly, seem to let him do this anymore.

While his rescues were really cool, everything else wasn't as good, in my opinion. And one of the biggest reasons I say this has to do with how Brunker handled one particular element; Marshall's clumsiness.

You all know I love that aspect of the spotted pup... but if I had to take a guess, I'm going to assume Brunker does not. The first film only gave us two brief bits of clumsiness, and both were restricted to the first twenty minutes, no less. Furthermore, he wasn't even allowed to have his pre-mission wipeout, which is arguably one of the franchise's most iconic elements. Brunker skipped over it like it was nothing. Granted, we did sorta/kinda get something else in its place, but it was given to Rubble. Sadly, I can't help but believe both of these will be lacking once again in The Mighty Movie (at the time of typing this, I haven't seen it, so I've no idea yet).

It wasn't just the lack of clumsiness, but how it was handled that also left me disappointed. In the TV series, Marshall might get careless while playing a game and trip over his own paws, or he might slip during a moment of haste. It just depends on the situation, how serious he is, among other factors. And yet, it tends to be, for lack of a better word, natural. Marshall was excited to finally find Jake in that dark cave, wasn't watching where he was going, slipped, and he slid all the way down and kept going until he was stopped by a stalagmite and started spinning on top of it. Classic Marshall! If Chase has slipped, he likely would've only slid a little or stopped near Jake, but with Marshall, we always seem to get so much more out of it.

And in truth, his clumsiness isn't always a detriment, but often a moment of humor. It's something we've all come to expect from him over the years. He saves or helps save the day, and we tend to get a laugh or two along the way because... well, that's Marshall!

In the theatrical films, each moment of clumsiness always seems to be specifically *caused* by something. So far, he's been "clumsy" because he was dancing in a moving vehicle, startled by a hologram appearing beneath his paws, and Chase startling him when the shepherd snuck up behind the Dalmatian with his super speed. Cute moments, but with his tumble in the PAW Patroller being a possible exception, none of these felt like natural moments of clumsiness to me. Rather, they're scenes that, arguably, could've made any of the other pups react in a similar way. What if Rocky was the one standing there when the hologram appeared? Wouldn't he have jumped, too? Or, what if Chase startled Zuma instead? Couldn't he have accidentally sprayed someone or something with his water powers?

I guess what I'm getting at is, to me, these didn't feel like genuine clumsy Marshall moments. They felt less "this happened because of Marshall's characteristics" and more "Brunker wanted a funny scene, and any pup might've reacted the same way so it largely didn't matter which one it was". Maybe I'm wrong, but that's just the feeling I get.

Now, compare that to Marshall's appearance in "Rubble & Crew". That episode included his trademark clumsiness at just the right moments, even during the mission. They never restricted it to the first act, but rather, it was seen throughout the whole episode. Even little moments, like when he slipped while climbing into Mix's truck, left me with such a big smile on my face. His clumsiness wasn't caused by something, but rather, it happened naturally and in a way we, the viewers, expect! And these moments really made me appreciate the episode all the more, as I felt the writers took their time to understand Marshall and get him just right. If you ask me, they did a great job!

Going by the first movie alone, I don't get that same impression. Maybe things will be different in The Mighty Movie, but for now, I don't think the director seems to *get* Marshall. He might just see him as the one who "trips a lot" which is why he wrote his clumsy scenes in a way that, to me, didn't feel natural. Instead, they felt forced. Something *caused* Marshall to be clumsy, instead of something happening *because* Marshall is clumsy. There is a big difference, and I'm not sure if Brunker sees this.

And if he doesn't, and he sees Marshall's clumsiness as something that can be turned off as easy as the lights in a room... then I fear we might be in trouble if he directs a film based on the spotted pup. Personally, I don't see Marshall's clumsiness in that way, nor do I believe that was ever the intention. I think it's something the pup simply can't help at times, and it's just a part of him he has to live with. He always gives it his best, but his paws just slip more than the others. It just happens, although it doesn't make him or his actions any less heroic.

And I don't know if Brunker sees it that way. His version of Marshall doesn't trip down the slide, doesn't get a wipeout before the mission, and only acts clumsy when something causes it to happen. Due to being unwilling or uninterested, I don't think Brunker understands Marshall's clumsiness, which in turn makes me think he doesn't understand the pup...

...and to write a whole movie based on a character he might not understand? That... is what has me concerned.

With that said, it's not like Marshall is super complex or anything, so Brunker can certainly take the time to learn more about the pup and how he's like. I just don't know if he will, as he has a tendency to shrug off stuff from the TV series. As he, himself once said, he doesn't treat most of the cartoon as canon to his films. He ignores everything after a certain point in season two, which is why the pups are discovering their Mighty powers for the first time again in his theatrical sequel. Will he try to build off what we know about the character, or will he instead pull something out of thin air again, like he did with Skye and her sudden lack of confidence about her size? Or will he pretend Marshall's clumsiness is the result of something from his past, and like Chase's fears in the first movie, will a pep talk before the finale make it magically go away? Again, I don't know.

Furthermore, I also fear things becoming too stale for film #3. From what little I know so far, it seems like The Mighty Movie, and even Skye's backstory, might share a few too many similarities with the first movie and Chase's own backstory. These films even share similarities with his The Nut Job 2, oddly. Brunker seems to be following a template of sorts, and he's sticking to it like glue. Will Marshall's movie involve more of a corrupt mayor? Will we get more adventures in a city? Will Marshall suffer from a lack of confidence due to a painfully sad backstory, too? If so, I fear people are going to start getting bored. I'd hate to see that happen, especially if Marshall is the focus. The pup has plenty of potential, if Brunker's willing to see it.

It's times like this I really wish I was a somebody in the entertainment industry. I'm not saying this out of arrogance, but I'd like to think I possess a considerable amount of knowledge about Marshall... possibly more than anyone at Spin Master now. To them, he's just a thing in a cartoon that's helping them make money... but to me, he's a character who I've admitted before is my #1 favorite of all time. I know and remember things they've likely forgotten over the last ten years. The character has become special to me and I love him to death, whether that's a good thing or not.

I just wish I could be a consultant to Brunker, should the third or any future theatrical films focus on Marshall. Not to say I'm perfect, but I'd like to think I'd be useful with helping him decide what would and wouldn't work for the character, how the pup might react to certain situations, when and when not to add some [natural] clumsy moments, among other things. I'd even help figure out ways to push the character to help him stand out, especially in-regards to avoiding any similarities between Chase and Skye's stories in the theatrical films thus far. It's wishful thinking, I know. In the grand scheme of things, I'm a nobody, and I'll be the first to admit that. I don't have the slightest chance of this happening. I doubt anyone at Spin master or GURU know I exist... I doubt Brunker knows much of me, either (he might not like this post, so maybe that's a good thing). 😅

All I can do at this point is hope for the best... which I find myself saying a lot nowadays, it seems. If film #3 is about Marshall, I just hope Brunker takes the time to understand the character and get him right. Maybe he, too will start to see why so many of us, both young and old, have fallen in love with this clumsy pup over the years.

As usual, only time will tell.

[bluerosesburnblue]

1. I don't know if you're keeping up with FFVII Rebirth stuff, since I know you haven't played FFVII Remake (though I know you at least kept up with the general idea of what happened with FFVII Remake). But have you noticed how divided some of the fandom is with what's going on with it? Like, how some people think there are multiple timelines going on (which I definitely think is the case. And I think SE just confirmed that). Whereas some think there are only one.

2. And not even just with the timeline thing (though that's certainly part of it), people are just so adamant that everything they think about how FFVII Rebirth is going to go is absolutely right. And I'm just... worried that people are going to be wrong in some areas. And are building it up in their heads too much, and are going to be disappointed in the end. I feel like I learned my lesson some with Game of Thrones and KHIII, but this recent fandom trend (not just with FFVII oc) concerns me. 3. And I guess I'm wondering if you've also noticed that kind of thing in other fandoms, or feel the same way. I'm sure we could name other fandoms that are doing that (KH very much still is). And I also feel like FNAF definitely does that: like in "I've solved the story of FNAF (or this part of the story of it), and everyone else is wrong." And it feels like, at least in some ways, people are in danger of making their own stories of the stories they say they love, and not loving the real thing. 4. I'm hoping that the FFVII Rebirth thing will be SLIGHTLY better, now that SE has confirmed that it's multiple timelines. But a part of me is still kind of biting my lip, because it still feels like at least parts of the fandom are like, "FFVII Rebirth is going to open like X, and then do this thing, and then this is going to happen, and end like this." And I'm kind of like... why? ...Not that I want to put bad thoughts about FFVIIR out there now, when there's so many reasons to be hyped atm.

You know, funny enough, I was actually talking to a friend of mine yesterday about this exact same thing happening in the Pokemon fandom right now with regards to the ending of Pokemon Scarlet/Violet and how the fandom is completely split on what a certain device in the finale (not gonna spoil things since you did say you might be interested in the game) does. One side takes what the game says it is at face value, the other has a conspiracy theory that "fixes" certain plot holes that they're adamant is correct. And both arguments, to me, are kind of pointless since we already know that the upcoming second DLC this winter is going to cover it? They weren't even subtle about the fact that we're going to be getting more on it, with the DLC pack being called "The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero" (Area Zero being the location of the game's finale)

And you're right, it is a worrying trend across a lot of fandoms. There's this... I don't know, obsession, with the idea of being "the one who called it" amongst certain people. As someone who's been known to engage in theories myself, I don't think there's anything wrong with theorizing, necessarily, or with defending the merits of your arguments pre-release, but you also have to be open to being wrong and willing to look at your stuff before and after and realize that "being wrong" isn't always some sort of failing on your part (though some people are just wrong because their comprehension of established facts were wrong and that usually is their fault, that's only an issue if you stubbornly refuse to allow yourself to be wrong when presented with corrected information)

Like, you might remember some of my KHUx theorycrafting and the fact that I was half-right, half-wrong on some things. Like, I called the fact that Ephemer and Brain were going to split up with one going outside of the Datascape to try to save the others and one staying behind, and that the one who stayed behind would also get out of the Datascape after the others were gone. I was wrong about which was which. Looking back, I can look at my own reasoning and see where it was sound, and where I was just limited by the available information (IIRC I said all of this before Brain handed Master's Defender and the Book of Prophecies over to Ephemer, which would have certainly changed my reasoning). Not having all of the pieces because they hadn't been revealed yet isn't a failing on my part. A failing on my part would be seeing those pieces and how they contradict what I've come up with, and refusing to adjust my stance because I won't allow myself to be wrong

Being wrong isn't some horrible, life-ruining thing that a lot of people in fandoms make it out to be. More people should be open to being wrong, actually. Takes the fun out of things if you always know what's going to happen, and to me it also kind of belittles authors by assuming that you know their own work better than they do (which, again, sometimes warranted because some modern authors shun "predictability" and make nonsensical plots just to surprise *COUGH* GAME OF THRONES *COUGH*, but frequently not)

Actually, another example. I've mentioned that I'm a fan of the comic One Last God: Kubera. It's a really wonderful, intricately crafted narrative and part of that is due to the fact that the whole thing was written as a fully complete novel before the author decided to convert it to a comic. It isn't being written as it goes, but has been fully planned out from the very start of the comic. Now, up until one of the most recent updates, there were two big theories in the fandom that most people... just kind of assumed were probably going to be true. Without giving too much away, one of the theories was that a certain character who would frequently seem to have their motivations and what they know shift between scenes, was time-traveling (and we were sometimes seeing their present self, and sometimes their self from another time). Another theory was that two of the highest-level gods in the series (Primeval Gods) were actually split personalities of the same person. Now, the former theory had some merit to me, the second made no goddamned sense since we had seen the two interact with each other, they've always been depicted as separate, and there's at least one instance where one is in the room and gives the exact location of the other (which even people who believed the theory took as fact even though it being fact would contradict the theory?), but the people who believed that one were diehard about it. Couldn't go into a discussion about either character without it being brought up

Well, lo and behold, one of the latest updates from this past month revealed that, actually, there's a way for someone to impersonate a god and that's what's been happening, with this directly being the real answer for the first theory and having a strong implication to be the real answer behind the second theory. I'm loath to even call it a twist, since the mechanic behind it is just... something that we knew about from the very start of the series and just didn't realize the implications of until it was said outright. I sure as hell didn't think about it, but when I saw it my first thought was "oh, DUH." But I saw people genuinely upset about this reveal because it contradicted the theory, calling it "disappointing" because "it feels like the author thought about it at the last minute," and "the time travel theory made way more sense." When, no, it doesn't. The new update is literally just taking something we were told at the very start to its logical conclusion. And yet people were getting upset because they had completely sold themselves on the theory being the true answer and their belief in it being "right" to the point where they were blaming the author rather than their own guesswork. It's something I find infuriating

All this being a very long-winded way of saying that from my observation, there's an ever-growing intersection between fans who are entitled and fans who refuse to allow themselves to be wrong that's leading to an unfortunate trend of people desperately coming up with theories, then refusing to admit when they're wrong and counting their theories as "better" than the source material. And this, unfortunately, just makes fandoms a much more hostile place between people who actually do like the source material and are open to new experiences and these fans

And I do want to make it clear that there's a distinction between defending your theory and reasoning when you have confidence that you're correct, and outright refusing to accept contradictory information because you can't handle the idea of having a flaw. I would know, because I got accused of doing the latter constantly at my last job when I was doing the former. The difference is in being able to verify the evidence you're using to support your logic. Like, for fuck's sake, I'm not "being defensive" or "trying to get out of things" when I hand you the stats and say something doesn't look viable. Same stuff can apply to fan theories

Also, as if this wasn't long enough already, I just gotta add:

And it feels like, at least in some ways, people are in danger of making their own stories of the stories they say they love, and not loving the real thing.

I hate to say it, that's most of fandom culture these days and I hate it. Go into any given character tag on Tumblr and you'll see a million headcanons that directly contradict what's said in the source material at best and completely undermine the character's entire storyline at worst. You'd start to suspect that the people making these have no sense of reading comprehension and are only here for the aesthetics, but then scroll a bit and you'll see dozens of "redesigns" that "fix" the character by completely ignoring a ton of the cultural influences, small personality-defining hints in the look, or in-universe justifications for things. Want to find a fic of a certain character because you like their personality? How about a dozen where they're so wildly out of character that the only possible explanation is that the author just decided to write out an OC and slapped the character's name on because that's the kind of look they imagined their OC having, because there's no way they could've gotten that from the source material

There's a reason I started a Fandom Critical tag on here for this kind of stuff. It's so pervasive nowadays. Like, it kills any desire I once had to publish my own stuff because, well, fuck, no one's gonna care about what I actually have to say about my works, they'll just appropriate whatever little bits and pieces suit them

And I just genuinely don't get it. I don't get how we got to this point where people will go around praising a creator's works with one breath while showing no sign of understanding or even liking that work with the "fan" content they produce. And this is a separate, but related, issue to the theory stuff above because, like I said, it's possible to just guess wrong with theories and it's fine so long as you don't refuse to accept that you were wrong or get militant about it, but a lot of non-theory fanworks? Those just go beyond into sometimes ignorant, sometimes spiteful territory. You don't even want to see what my blacklist on here looks like just to try to get a handle on some of that stuff because at some point the lack of respect for the original works and their creators just really eats away at me

[pico-digital-studios]

Into, Across and Beyond! Locations: FNF-NEW-2023

Benjamin: So, what did you bring me out here for, Pico?

Pico: Well, I know you've been busy with your rehearsals for the upcoming concert, and I can't really blame ya. It's just... It's something important I need to get off my chest. For now, it's just between you and me.

Benjamin: I mean, why isn't Grace allowed to hear it? She'd definitely understand.

Pico: Heh, I know. But right now, I don't want to start any mass chaos erupting because of this news, especially not if her dad learns about it.

Benjamin: What do you mean?

Pico: Well, Ben... I'm from the OLD iteration of this universe.

Benjamin: O-Old iteration? What do you mean?

Pico: It's... a long story. I'll explain it...

WARNING: From this point down, there are unmarked spoilers for Friday Night Funkin': Mario's Madness, ESPECIALLY for its endgame. If you haven't seen or played the mod, please stop reading now to avoid spoilers.

Pico: Remember the whole ordeal the three of us had with that creepy Mario and Xenophanes?

Benjamin: Yeah?

Pico: Well, that was actually meant to be our last conflict, but we managed to escape it alive.

Benjamin: Heh, yeah. We do make a good team.

Pico: However... That haunted cartridge was right at the end of it all for... the ORIGINAL you.

Pico: As "Boyfriend", you were even more brave, albeit with the urge to tackle practically any challenge laid before you if it meant keeping "Girlfriend" safe. All of what happened here was handled differently in the original universe. He fought those trying to kill him, those who just wanted some fun, and even some who... didn't exactly want to be a part of his business.

Pico: And no matter who it was, even if it was Xenophanes throwing tantrums over actually losing, Boyfriend always persevered in the end. That's what I admired about him; he was not outright a fearless fool. What I learned from the Corruption I experienced was that he always looked to the positives, knowing that there's always a brighter day ahead. At least, until THAT day happened.

Pico: Like what happened here, I was drawn into the cartridge business when neither BF or GF returned any calls. It must've felt like days when I came to check on them, only to find the TV blaring red static. Before I could even react, I was dragged into that world, where I had to fend off that "Mr. L" entity posing as Luigi... or apparently, a vengeful spirit of him. Even to this day, I don't know what its motives were, but it clearly wanted me dead for the evulz. I managed to escape safely and got on the hunt to find BF and GF safely. However...

Pico: They were dead when I finally found them... And I was all alone in that digital hellscape with no way back out. I've never forgiven myself for being too late to come to their aid, though I survived as long as I could, busting into the Minus World to try and evade that killer plumber. While there, I came across this entity that resembled... King Koopa? I didn't have long to process this, as everything vanished before my eyes as "Ultra M" approached.

Benjamin: Then what happened?

Pico: I was pretty much reborn into a new universe. THIS one. One key change was the links to the SEGAVerse; you being the younger brother of Hatsune Miku. And you had a bigger family than the "canon" iteration, who simply had a rap-rat as an adoptive brother. Events definitely played out normally, but with numerous changes:

You and Grace dropped out of high-school at 17.

I halted the whole school dangers quickly by dealing with Cassandra promptly, therefore saving even more lives than I once did.

You managed to get Daniel Dearest on your good side after he admitted to his crimes and felt guilty for it.

You've been arguably kinder than the original Boyfriend.

Updike stood down and shut down the Greater Good, thanks to the efforts of you and Whitty, along with Grace, Carol and Sunday, of course.

Benjamin: I had definitely been through a lot.

Pico: Mhm. And when we crossed into Alan Becker's computer, that's when we became teens again, and that's when the things I predicted came to an end. We met Chris and all the others, you got a new boyfriend in Luis, and, well... the rest is history!

Benjamin: Mhm. So, like OMT Tails, I'd be classed as some "anomaly" by those guys because of your actions?

Pico: It shouldn't come to that, hopefully. I'm just really concerned about how you're feeling after what happened to you back in MP-2021, Benji. I really don't want it to take a toll on your life. Same with what I just told you.

Benjamin: Hey, don't worry! I've got an optimistic future ahead! We got the whole Christmas Festival getting set up next week, and Softie's gonna be showing up. Heh, I can't wait to meet him in person. I really want to have him as a little brother and show him the care he deserves!

Pico: Heh, man. I really admire you for staying positive, even after all the hell you've been through.

Benjamin: I mean, I'll always have you guys. And as long as you're all okay, I'll always find motivation to keep on moving!

Pico: Thanks, Ben. I really appreciate that.

Benjamin: Alright. Why don't we go catch up with the others? They must be getting worried.

Pico: Of course!

Benjamin: Man. I wonder if Evan and Holly will be able to show up there.

Pico: Heh. I'm sure they can make the time if Evan's parents are alright with it.

Meanwhile, at Dimension URB-2023...

Bently: I'm happy things are okay in the original dimension. You keep being you, Benjamin. Well, who I once was, heh.

Isabella: You feeling okay, Bently?

Bently: Heh, yeah. If anything, I feel at peace, knowing everything's alright in a version of the universe I came from.

Isabella: Glad to hear it!

Bently: Well, let's get moving to school! We don't wanna keep Mrs. Aoibhe waiting for too much longer.

Isabella: You got it!

[fairytale-poll]

i am here to show a few reasons why cinders ouatis does, in fact, qualify as a cinerella.

(btw htis is not to pcik a fight or to be rude to that anon, i would sjut like to show that there are several thigns the propaganda did not speak of that qualified her for the position, if she's meant to follow all the cinerellea tropes.)

first, her story, then how it falls into line with what makes a cinderella.

so, her mom died. that's. that's kidna a big stapple in msot cinderallas. her dad (the king btw, i promise it's kinda important) remarried to her "wicked stepmother" and then had new stepsisters as well (wicked in quotes. they're- ok. there's a lot)

in the era of a war against king Cole, cole ended up taking over her kingdom/planet, with the help of her stepsisters and step mother, and they kinda turned her in ("wicked" part). she was then thrown into jail.

(also her love interest was, at least in popular theories since it wasn't explicetly stated, one of the commanding officers in the raid.)

rose, her love interest ("Prince Charming" but yk princess bc lesbians yippee!), got to know her a bit while she was still in prison, and there was like a lot of unresolved everything.

then a "godmother in white" (snow, rose's sister, or at least that's how i interpreted it, however it could very well be general white or whatever her title was that snow ended up adopting) broke her out the day that rose was resasigned and leaving planet. the godmother told her that if she and rose were married by midnight, then they woul be able to be together bc idk laws ig? (i mean, i've nevre heard of laws that allow that but yk ok why not)

then at the wedding cole ended up kidnapping rose and cinders fled (she also feels really guilty about this, but if you read the fiction for it, im pretty sure it said that rose had told her to run) and was one fo the few survivers of the everything that happened there.

then she spends the rest of her years hunting down rose wiht this like... mood ring? at least it kinda works like one i think.

then when she finally finds rose agin.... um.

well, i'll let you listen to the album.

(it's sad.)

NOW HERE'S WHERE THINGS OVERLAP

again, the remarriage of her father.

then the way her stepmother and sisters treated her. now, again. never explicitly stated how they treated her before cole came and stuff, but after that, she was in the position of being in rags when she deserved so mcuh more than that, but her stepfamily took it from her (in a few other ersion it's the stepmother making her the family servant/slave, in other version it's... something else idk i don''t read a lot of cinderella stuff tbh i preffer other fairy tales).

then we have the godmother saving her. that part speaks for itself. i think.

then for the ball (or in this case, a wedding to her "true love"), it IS explicitly stated that the rings, that turn red when its other is with it, are made of glass. in the fiction, it said that as cinders was putting the ring on rose's finger, the bmombs went off, and she dropped it. rose caught it, stuffed it in her wedding dress pocket (fuck yeah, i would love to have that on my wedding dress), told cinders to run. leaving the glass slipper (ring, ig, but yk it slipped so) behind, right around midnight.

also, her name isn't even cinders officially! i don't know what it was before, but durring the whole revolution and such and her looking for rose, she edned up taking a new name/persona, much like snow, and was dubbed cinders, "after the her ashen world" (or whatevr it was, idk, i haven't listened to the album in a bit). again, this plays into the whole thing with the name that many other version and adaptations liek to play off of.

tbh this is all i can think of rn bc im kinda tired, so feel free to expand on this. wanted to give as mcuh details as i could abotu her story and how it is fairly similar to every other cinderella story.

however to me, a lot of these cinderellas also jsut. aren't too close to a certain story of cinderella. there's a lot of creative liberaty taken in every version. now, the album in it of itself, (once upon a time (in space)) takes a bucnh of stories, this and many other fary tales, and twists them and makes it their own. it's an adaptation. and when it comes to things like folk lore, ledgends, myths, and fairy tales (especially those), there's always gonna be some inconsistancies than with other version derived of the same media. hell, even jsut the stories themselves almsot never stay consistent.

a cinderella is a cinderella if they are said to be based off of the story of cinderella. (im looking at you carrie, and how no one said she was any less of a cinderella than any other competitor)

-A

If this propaganda has convinced you, click here to vote for Cinders (Once Upon a Time in Space)!

[bengiyo]

21 Days Theory Finale Stray Thoughts

I kinda like this four-episode style of show. Good drama doesn't always need to play out over three months.

Deeply appreciate Q's mom doing her best to be supportive.

Also having huge feelings about Uncle Man deciding to handle things with his dad after helping Q navigate his own stuff. There's something powerful there about how helping the next generation can help you as well.

Also, X is so funny. I appreciate the way he makes his desire for Q known in teasing ways.

I can't believe this show has converted me, and now I'm rooting for teenaged opposite sex pairings in BL.

Baby is a messy eater, even though his mom is a professional baker, into a first cheek kiss was adorable.

I like keeping Man's conversation with his dad offscreen. It lets the audience envision the kind of talk they needed to have based on the sister's positive reassurance about how it went.

Uncle Man continuing to cover their adult embarrassment is top tier. This is a great show.

I am with Frank. His friends needed to ask about his face.

Everyone speaking at the same time also added a nice comedic element.

Hey, so I love these boys. What a great friend group. That was a lovely coming out scene.

Well that blew up instantly.

Oh, shit. That was a way-performed punch.

Well this thing with Frank and Mind ended up being super endearing. Nice way to twist expectations there, 21 Days Theory.

I think this is the first time we've seen parents in the middle of a Lovers' Quarrel in Thai BL. I am beyond invested in the outcomes here.

The confusion Q is feeling I think works best for high school. I think I chatted with @clairificusrex about this earlier this week, but these high school shows are HITTING right now.

I love Toy. He is my favorite boy. His righteous indignation for his friend above his own sense of betrayal and disappointment is admirable.

I love Frank. He is also my favorite boy. He understands that context is key and there could be a misunderstanding here, and he doesn't want his friends to suffer needlessly.

Yes, Uncle Man! Break down that door! We have a baby gay in CRISIS!!

Okay, this second coming out scene with the mom made me cry. You win, Rookie Thailand. This show is going in my top 10 of the year.

I so wanted Mook to take a 3-point shot there.

I will accept her throwing the ball at Toy's back to make him listen.

Uncle Man is amazing. "You punched him?! My nephew is dangerous when he gets jealous."

Cross cutting these scenes on challenging the presumptions is a great cinematic choice. It keeps them from feeling redundant if they were run sequentially.

I love Mook. She is my favorite girl.

Omg I hope we get a dramatic airport scene. Like Pike Dexter before them, our boys must chase after the man they love and get snatched by airport security!

I am with Frank. Don't take off my glasses so you can wear them dramatically!

This video Mook recorded is doing so much work. The candid nature underscores the honesty well.

Prefacing that Frank was hungry when he and Toy first arrived at the house, and showing the adults following to eavesdrop, set up great closure to allow him, Mom, and Uncle to gracefully exit the drama. Damn, that was good.

I like that Q missed the airport. It's a good way to show that there are real consequences to our misunderstandings as the world continues to turn. It also saved the production from having to film at an airport.

Oh that was a cute way to end this.

Well, that was an absolutely lovely experience. I haven't enjoyed a BL pulp like this in forever. I thought I was done with blue shorts boys, but they dragged me back in! Rookie Thailand did a great job here, and I'll have to pay more attention to future projects from them.

I have nothing but praise for this little show. Excellent pacing. Simple, yet effective cinematography. Endearing acting from a young cast supported by solid veteran performances. Excellent use of cast chemistry that showed clear benefits of coaching and workshops. Just fantastic.

10/10

[touchtranscendslanguage]

since AO3 is down, I'm back to looking to Tumblr for my shipping fix. a few questions for your excellent fic (only if you feel like it and it's not a spoiler!):

- do you think there's any way that Virgil and Janus could have ended up together if they didn't meet in such dangerous, specific circumstances?

- what's something V & J each do that makes their partner go "holy shit, that's so cute"? (the grammar of this sentence is fighting me but hopefully you understand what I'm getting at)

- what's everyone's favorite food?

also I vote Elizabeth for Remus's mace's name

Lol let's do this!

This is one way Virgil and Janus could have ended up together under different circumstances. Let's see what I can say without giving any spoilers.

It would have taken a long ass time. Virgil would have had to finish saving up to leave the MHA which would have taken forever due to the setbacks he had years before. After he left it would have taken him a long time to trust and be trusted by other monsters. We're talking decades. Then he would have had to get in contact with the right groups and made the right connections to [spoilers] that would have allowed him to eventually have contact with the royal family.

It would have taken Janus a long time to befriend Virgil. He would not trust him at first. They both would have their guards up and be showing each other the masks they each show the public rather than their true selves. Getting comfortable enough to allow each other to see cracks in their masks would have been a very long and slow process and it would take even longer for them to drop their masks completely.

Once they did drop their masks they would have been friends for quite some time before they would feel comfortable adding a claim or romantic aspect to their relationship. We're looking at them finally starting to date a century or two in the future. Even then that's a maybe. Something could go wrong at any step. Everything could go right and they still could have ended up just friends. There are spoilers that complicate things.

Them meeting at any other time under any other circumstances would not have gone well. The whole reason their relationship works now is because they saved each other's lives in the prison and they each showed vulnerability there in their own way. If they met under any other circumstances besides the one described above they would have had walls up and masks on. They wouldn't have seen each other. Not really. Janus and Virgil have chemistry. Prince Deceit and Paranoia would have deeply distrusted each other at best and gone for each other's throats at worst.

Janus bleps. He does it when he's relaxed and in a particular mood. He also does it if you boop his nose. It's adorable.

Janus thinks Virgil is really cute when gets super focused while playing with string.

Okay, I pulled up old character sheets for this that I haven't looked at in so long they're now full of inaccuracies only to realize that I never wrote down their favourite foods. Hmm. I'm going to tell you their favourite human foods because I don't feel like making up a bunch of faerie foods. I've avoided that so far.

Virgil's favourite that he will never admit to is rare, bloody steak. Specifically because it's bloody. If you ask he'll tell you his second favourite food which is chicken tamales. His favourite fruit is mango.

Janus hasn't been to Earth or eaten much of it's food, but he would absolutely and completely fall in love with strawberries.

Roman loves macaroons.

Remus hasn't eaten much human food but he loves honey - or as he calls in bee vomit - and would love baklava.

Patton would love fruit pies of any kind.

Logan would love sugar snap peas and eat entire bags of them in one sitting.

Thomas loves pomegranates.

Remy loves lamb.

Thank you for the suggestion! Elizebeth is a good name! I'm still open to more suggestions for what Remus named his morningstar if anyone wants to leave them in the replies or send me an ask!

[bahamutgames]

CHAINED AFTERTHOUGHTS

Game: Chained Echoes (December 8, 2022)

Console: Xbox One (Via Xbox Game Pass)

ALRIGHT! After a long and stressful move, a long and stressful destressing period, and just generally being busy. I finally wanna share some more thoughts on games I played recently. I figure I should start with Chained Echoes. Cause it's already been like 2 months since I beat it and with my steel trap mind (for keeping thoughts OUT rather than in) it's only a matter of time before I forget what the game was even called... What was I talking about?

I only found out about this game a little before it launched, but it looked GREAT and so I had my eyes on it for a bit, sadly I couldn't pick it up right away. But thankfully, Game Pass once again came in clutch and I was able to play through Chained Echoes on a trial! And now I'm gonna tell YOU what I thought!

As I always say, this isn't a review. This is just a messy write up on my thoughts about the game! Don't expect some sort of definitive review or well structured writing! If you're even slightly interested in the game, please check it out and support the hard working devs!

SPOILERS FOR CHAINED ECHOES AHEAD!! DON'T READ IF YOU DON'T WANT ANY SPOILERS!!

Opening

As I'm sure you all know, I'm a bit of an RPG fan. I haven't played all the greats, but I am always on the look out for something new and interesting to play. And nowadays most of the best turnbased RPG experiences generally come from indie games. So when I saw this game making the rounds as a call back to older turnbased RPGs, but with a wholly unique story and world that does everything its own way, I was really interested! It took me a bit to truck through the game but I'm very glad I played it finally!

Stuff I liked

Man, where to begin? Chained Echoes is AWESOME! There's so much love and passion poured into pretty much every corner of the game. First thing you'll probably notice is how WONDERFUL the sprite art is! The graphics of Chained Echoes seriously look AMAZING! Everything in this game looks wonderful! From the environments, to the enemies, to the characters themselves. The music is also sooooo good! Relisting to the soundtrack while writing this, I absolutely LOVE how it all sounds! It all feels perfectly right at home in an RPG if that makes any sense aha. The battle themes in particular are great, like "Never Forget Our Promise"!

And those characters, in addition to have really nice designs. Are all great! I actually really liked every team mate in the game (with a few exceptions but I still used Robb a BUNCH despite him being an awful person for most of the game lol). My team by the end was

Glenn > Amalia

Victor > Robb

Ba'Thraz (of course) > Mikah

Sienna > Lenne

And yeah you see that right, 8 teammates! This game has an AWESOME system where you can have 4 reserve teammates in addition to your main team and swap them out with each other mid battle! Which ROCKS and means you aren't gonna have to leave all your favorites behind. You can make use of most of the team in a single battle!

The whole game has a lot of systems to take the stress off usual JRPG burdens and also add a lot of unique flare to the game. Stuff like fully replenishing your team between battles is a GREAT touch that reminds me of Chrono Cross. Where it allows and encourages you to go all out in each encounter, rather than saving it (and potentially wasting it) at a boss. That's probably the biggest one people bring up. But there's also stuff like the Overdrive Bar, which encourages you to make a wide range of attacks to keep the bar in check so you don't spam your best skills over and over. This is a really neat concept and also a neat balancing tool since you get fully healed after each fight. Some of my favorite systems in the game were absolutely the ability to find random smaller teammates around the world who help from the home base in smaller ways. And also the reward board! Where you do small quests and earn rewards, then by linking those rewards together can get even bigger rewards! I actually found myself doing TONS of side content in this game cause it was just fun and easy to do thanks to the quick travel and the Sky Armors.

And that's not even all the cool stuff in Chained Echoes. The way you level up and learn new moves is cool, learning and equipping unique abilities is cool, emblems, even crafting (something I usually dread) is pretty neat in this game. And then of course there's the unique Sky Armor battles which are also cool. There's SO many unique systems in this game and they're all VERY cool!

The story is also neat, I like the world they created for the game. Particularly I thought the mana flow stuff was fantastic and very interesting. And the True Kings were SOOOO awesome! I loved the concepts behind them so much! And the different races were great, always appreciate any game with lizard people. And the classic clashing against the gods is always a nice touch, I LOVED the Gurren Lagann influence in this game. Great choice to include nods to that in here.

Also, yeah the ending of this game is VERY strong. A lot of games can fumble the finale, but Chained Echoes actually has a great and satisfying ending in my opinion. Genuinely almost cried while recapping it to someone after I beat it lol.

Stuff I Didn't Like

And, even though it is filled with so much creative stuff and interesting systems... Chained Echoes is not perfect... Let me start with the biggest issue in my opinion: The fights in this game can be TOTAL BULLSHIT sometimes! Don't get me wrong, the systems are all REALLY cool and the fights are genuinely neat! But sometimes... Oh man... Sometimes they are just total chores and last SOOO long!! The first major boss lasts FOREVER. And that wouldn't be a huge problem, especially since you start every fight at full power no matter what. Except for that pesky little Overdrive Bar.

On their own all these concepts and systems are GREAT, but it's once you start getting them all a little mixed in with eachother that they become a massive pain in the ass imo. Going through SUPER long fights, made even longer because you can't go all out on the enemy because you have to babysit the bar nonstop. Then losing the whole fight cause your teammates are dead and you can't properly use all the different moves to control the bar. It's a cycle. And especially early in when they CONSTANTLY MAKE YOU USE UTILITY MOVES EVEN THOUGH YOU DON'T LEARN ANY FOR A GOOD WHILE! It sounds small, but to me it made the game almost impossible at some steps.

And you can't grind either, which I know is a blessing to a lot of people. But I like grinding because it's an easy and measurable problem solver with an easy to see goal. But in Chained Echoes, you only level up after a boss fight, where you spend the boss fight currency I forgot the name of to learn new moves. So... if you just have the wrong moves for a fight? Tough. Your ass is NOT progressing. Again, all these concepts are GREAT! And I think with a bit of tweaking, they can all flow together nicely. But I don't know. They just... Didn't imo. I think having enemies also have to deal with an Overdrive bar would make fights feel on more equal footing? But obviously that could make the game too easy if you're not careful.

And you CAN lower the difficulty, but imo medium is just absolutely brutal, while easy makes the game unbearably easy. It's not a good middle ground. By the end of the game I straight up could NOT beat the final boss. So I had to go down to easy. Which was disappointing. Idk. Just made the whole game insanely frustrating to me even though it is forgiving.

I also have some other issues. Some NPCs deserved more time over others (Sienna's wife should've been a teammate and I WISH SO BADLY YOU GOT TO INTERACT WITH MORE OF THE TRUE KINGS!!). There's a lot of weird writing choices like I seem to recall there being NO contractions which is a nitpick but it always bugs me. A particularly big problem I have is. And I can't believe I'm gonna say this. Sexual Assault / Maybe Homophobia TW??? There's some story beats that REALLY rub me the wrong way. Particularly, Killian's backstory is that his sister was sexually assaulted into a coma. The coma part makes for a very compelling backstory, but the SA part is... completely unneeded. Like, I don't think it's ever mentioned ever again in the game. Which you COULD argue is good. But then. Why include it at all? Also I feel like Killian sleeping with another man is presented in a kind of homophobic way? Or at the very least, why is there no gay couple that's like, actually happy and together? To be fair there isn't a lot of love and romance in general but still. Idunno.

Final Thoughts

And even still? Despite the MASSIVE headache this game was to get through at times??? Immediately after I finished it, all I could remember was everything cool about it. The amazing music, the wonderful sprite art, the cool story, the great ideas, the times where I did like 50 reward board goals in a single sitting cause I couldn't put it down. There's a reason the massive roadblocks didn't stop me from playing. And it's because Chained Echoes is a fantastic RPG. I didn't want to give up at those roadblocks, no matter how many swears they made me shout. Because the game is genuinely cool as hell. (plus it doesn't help I realized you have to equip abilities learned through level ups until the end of the game). I think Chained Echoes is a game I will love even more when I get the chance to replay it in the future with a deeper understanding of how the game works and what I did wrong in the first playthrough.

Genuinely if you're into RPGs and you haven't given this game a shot yet... well, why did you read this? And also, I think you should give Chained Echoes a shot and see how you feel about it! Maybe you'll have an easier time with it and then you'll realize I actually suck at video games.

===

Thanks for reading. I'm a little out of practice so this one is probably particularly messy. But I keep thinking about it and I just REALLY wanted to talk about some damned vidjya games! Since the move I've been mostly playing older stuff on Nintendo Switch Online cause my time has been very limited. But I'm hoping to return to more RPG goodness soon with Dragon Quest II!

In the mean time, as always you can follow me on twitter to see in real time whatever the hell I'm playing instead of doing work to make money and be useful. Stop by! You might like what you find!

That's all from me, thanks for your time. Go out and play a game with cool new ideas!

[historyhermann]

Information gathering, the power of knowledge, and libraries in animation

In the 1973 film, Soylent Green, Sol Roth (played by Edward G. Robinson), a "book," talks to the protagonist, Detective Frank Thorn (played by Charlton Heston) about the fact that he can't locate the necessary files. This is a similar theme that plays out in animated shows like Tangled and Amphibia. Information gathering is an important part of being a librarian and it is integrated into many animated shows! [1] Spoilers if you haven't watched either one of your shows. Without further ado, let me begin!

Cass, Raps, Eugene, Lance, and Calliope's messy library

Let's start with the Tangled episode, "Keeper of the Spire." In this episode, the show's protagonists (Raps, Eugene, and Cass), and their friend Lance, travel to the spire to get information on the last part of the scroll, so Raps can complete her quest. In the process, they meet the pretentious "keeper" of The Spire, who calls herself Calliope, and she holds various artifacts in the spire, a closed-off museum of sorts. As a scholar of sorts who can do magic tricks, she also has a messy library. There are a lot of archivy vibes to this episode too, as they have to climb to the top of a mountain to get to a secret "vault," which is just a tower with artifacts, but an archives is not explicitly shown. It is then we learn the truth: she isn't the real keeper but only formerly the keeper's assistant. The real keeper, at the end of the episode, makes Calliope the keeper of the spire while Raps also gets the scroll she is looking for. That's a positive ending for everyone!

Nigel in the library, reading about dragons

So, perhaps that first example wasn't as much about information gathering as I had originally thought. No matter! In the Tangled episode "Pascal's Dragon," Nigel reads books in the library inside the Corona castle to learn more about the dragon. He learns about the dangers of dragons and why they need to be stopped. Libraries, you could say, save the day, in a way!

Eugene and the Lorbrary

Finally, there is the Tangled episode titled "Islands Apart." Eugene reads tiny books on an island in their tiny library, called the "lorbrary" after the beings who live on the island (named the Lorbs) to try and learn more about the evil magic there, to help figure out what's going on, to find where the tiny Cass came from. This is also the episode that has the famed Cass lesbian squad, as I like to call it, which is probably the best part of the episode, even better than the tiny library, even though that's cool.

Marcy Wu and King Andrias in the library

Another series, Amphibia, harps on the same themes. At the end of the episode, "Lost in Newtopia," Marcy and King Andrias are in the library (apparently the biggest and most comprehensive one in the kingdom), going through books, trying to find out more about the music box which bright Marcy, Sasha, and Anne to Amphibia. Marcy is frustrated at not finding anything, finds a lever which opens a secret passageway and a secret wing of the library...almost like an archives. A library is also featured in the next episode, "Sprig Gets Schooled." It would hard to say either Marcy or the King is a librarian, rather they are library users.

Let me end this post with another screenshot from Soylent Green. In this scene, Thorn sees Sol as his friend, and he later says he is having issues with old materials, making it hard to find what is needed.

While this actually gives a pretty good summary of the man's life, it also says a lot about librarians, and how they depend on what they know and you should never expect them to be everything. That's something we should all remember. With that, I close this post.

© 2020 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] This includes the "Volunteer Bot," an episode of Doug Unplugs, where two people, Doug and Emma, go to a library, a miniature library to be exact. Executive Producer Jim Nolan said that a library has beauty in the fact that it allows you to "learn in so many ways" and says that a library is a place to see "how humans learn and discover," adding that he has nothing "but affection for libraries and the libraries I grew up with," and notes that the heart of the episode is about  "a community coming together and everybody working for their own good," and they end up fixing up the library, saying it a perfect place to do that.  The show's other executive producer Aliki Theofilopoulos adds that the library is a great setting, as they get to show "another way we get information, basically." Yes, yes, yes! Finally, some producers get it. Similarly, co-executive producer Dana Starfield of the animated series, Madagascar: A Little Wild, states that libraries are "the best place to escape, because you get to escape to your imagination," saying it was fitting to add, with the library inspired by NYPL. The show's executive producer Johanna Stein says that when they grew up in Canada they spent a lot of time in a library and developed a love of reading, saying that reading is "one of the most direct, immediate ways" to foster the skill of empathy. Finally, Billy Lopez, creator of Welcome to the Wayne, says that they came up with the idea of a special library in the show called The Stanza, with the show's executive producer, Michael Pecoriello, says that the show makes the extraordinary come from places like a "library, a laundry room, a post office," making them having secret backstories, part of the "crazy, quirky, extraordinary world." Cool.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Library Review and Wayback Machine

[lythea-creation]

Broken Toys - Johanna Mason x fem reader (Chapter 15)

Chapter 1

Previous Chapter

word count: 2.393

------------------

When Mary pulled me into a tight embrace, I froze.

Was it real?

I had dreamed a lot lately, happy dreams instead of nightmares. Somehow, I dreaded those dreams even more. When I woke up, I always felt like I had lost something important. And then remembered that my nightmares still existed, although they had turned to reality. It felt like my own mind was mocking me.

Therefore it was hard for me to distinguish between dreams and reality. Nothing was too absurd or cruel to happen anymore. And at the same time, happy occurrings seemed simply too good to be true.

It had taken a few days before my family had gotten the allowance to visit me. But now Mary and Livia were here, visiting me in the infirmary of district 13.

Mary cried while holding me.

I had shut my tears away. Otherwise I would never be able to stop them again. I could not allow me to break down now. Instead I needed to concentrate on getting Johanna back and supporting the rebellion.

But President Coin had fended off all my attempts to persuade her to rescue the captives. Slowly but surely I started losing trust in her. I would always be grateful that she had saved my family from 11, but that did not mean I would follow her blindly.

Mary told me about their time in district 13. Although the rules were strict, no one was starving and there were no harsh punishments. It was easy to improve the situation for people who had lived in misery before.

“I wish I could have supported you. You must have felt so lonely”, she stated sadly.

I thought back to the last year. Thought about the day I had started leading the rebellion in district 11.

About my sleepless nights that had been filled with nightmares, fear and grief. About the comforting phone calls with Johanna. She had not even said anything special. Just hearing her voice had made me feel better.

Why had I not realized sooner, how important she really was to me?

Back then when our phone calls had stopped due to Snow, I had worked harder for the rebellion. Tried to blend everything else out. Tried to blend myself out, like I was doing right now. I was working against myself, losing myself, to save myself.

It did not make any sense and yet it appeared to be the only option for me right now.

“The fact that you all were safe was more comforting than anything you could have done for me”, I ensured her with an exhausted smile.

Pain, numbness and exhaustion was everything I felt. Kind of contradicting. You should think that numbness could not come with any other emotions, yet it did.

“(f/n), you've done so much already. Maybe you should rest properly”, Mary advised me.

Tomorrow my schedule would start; my training, preparation for the war.

“I can't afford to rest. Everyone's fighting to change Panem.”

“You have to think about yourself, (f/n). There are a lot of people willing to fight. You're finally safe now. Don't jump into risking your life again and again.”

Her words showed her concern about me, her love for me. I was aware of that, but she did not know how it was.

What it meant to be a victor, a survivor of the Hunger Games. As a victor safety simply did not exist. You could never turn back. You had a responsibility for the lives you had taken. And Snow did not neglect his victors either.

But if I said that to Mary, it would just hurt her more. She wanted me to be safe and happy.

So I took another direction. “What about the people of the districts? Where is their safety? Where is their choice? Mary, I'm not one of the Capitol's citizens who leans back and watches. I'm a citizen of district 11. I haven't forgotten my life before becoming a victor. If I don't fight now it only shows that the Capitol controls me. I may be the Capitol's pawn, but I won't play after Snow's rules, although I have to get Johanna out of there. And Annie and Peeta.”

Mary was crying. “You've grown too fast. That only highlights how much you endured.”

I pulled her into a hug. “It's alright. I'll fight for a life where we can all live safely.”

As I had promised to Rue.

The next day I got my schedule printed onto my arm. Weird, but I should not be one to judge.

My first appointment was breakfast. But I could not help myself and skipped it to go to President Coin.

I knocked at her door. “President Coin? It's (f/n).”

“Come in.��

My request to rescue the captives had only gotten passed on by her assistants. Maybe I could persuade her personally.

To my surprise, she was alone in her office. “Hello, (f/n). Seems like you recovered well”, she greeted me.

Something about her had unsettled me at our first meeting, but I had been too upset to notice what it had been. Now I knew. I could not read her.

Over the years I had observed the people around me. I had needed to do it to survive, both in district 11 and in the arena. Hence, I had gotten excellent at reading and predicting other people. But Coin did not show any emotions, neither through her voice nor her body language.

“Though you already deviated from your schedule”, she added.

I did not like her change of topic. “I did not mean to be rude or ungrateful, but I had to come here. Please, you have to rescue the captives. I ...”

She raised her hand, signaling me to stop talking. “Don't get me wrong. If I could, I would rescue them right away. But it's not that simple. We don't know enough about their situation. We might lose many soldiers and still not be able to save them. The risks and probability of failure are too high. Furthermore, Heavensbee can't contact his allies at the Capitol. So we don't even know where the captives are held”, she resonated.

I clenched my hands into fists, feeling my fingers getting wet again. Although I was already wearing a bandage around my hand, I still managed to reopen the cut on my palm whenever I was suppressing my emotions. It had not been able to heal until now.

“If you hurry, you can still eat breakfast. You have a tough schedule today”, she reminded me.

I could not care less. What was a tough schedule even supposed to mean? Could it get any harder than it was?

Before I could do something I would regret later, I left the room and went to the canteen. It was strange to be here. I knew literally no one, except Katniss, Haymitch, Finnick and my family.

Finnick was inside his hospital room, devastated because of Annie. I was also worried about her, but rather due to her mental state. They would not harm her too badly.

Johanna and Peeta would have it way worse.

I could not spot Katniss anywhere either.

Haymitch was somewhere underground, having to become sober.

My family had another breakfast time than me.

So I was on my own.

Reluctantly I gulped down my breakfast and followed my schedule.

The first few hours were strategize sessions. Like a mentor needed to be taught in strategizing. If I did not know how to strategize with my skills, how would I still be alive after two Hunger Games? Ridiculous!

I was able to answer every question without even listening, impressing the other students and the instructor. It did not matter. It was a waste of time. I should rather learn something useful! I lacked physical, fighting skills.

In the break I hurried through the hallway and met Heavensbee. At least my luck had not left me completely, although it seemed wrong to say that in the context of meeting the gamemaster of my own games.

“Heavensbee! Could you help me out, please?”

He smiled at me. Strange, but I had the feeling that I could trust him. Never mind.

“(f/n), what is it?”

“I need a new schedule. More physical training and less strategizing. As a mentor I already know all that.”

He nodded understandingly. “I will see what I can do”, he promised and continued his way.

For the rest of the day, I had stamina and strength training. It was exhausting, but nothing compared to the arena, where I had jumped from tree to tree for hours while fighting of stubborn attacks of the Capitol, or running away from other tributes, or peacekeepers in 11.

“For all of you who aim for the top and still have some energy and willpower left, you can stay here for combat training”, our female instructor Zianne declared.

“What do we need combat for if we have our guns?”, a man about my age wondered.

I sighed in annoyance. What had happened to me? My patience level had dropped significantly since Johanna had been captured by the Capitol. The lack of sleep did not exactly help.

Zianne eyed me sharply. I knew that my reaction had not been fair. “Cadet! What's your name?”

Seriously? Cadet? She could have at least called me soldier.

“You don't know?”, I thought aloud. That was something I was not used to anymore at all.

“No. Why should I? Do you think you're special and can degrade your comrades? Do you think you're better than everyone else? If that's the case, you will be up against me. Right now!”

The other people of my group had formed a circle around Zianne and me now. Of course, no one had left. They were curious.

Zianne was standing in front of me in a fighting stance.

“I don't think that I'm better than the others and I'm sorry for behaving inappropriately.”

“Save your apology for later. You can't back out now”, she simply replied.

How was I supposed to fight her? She was a skilled and trained instructor, while I had never fought like this before, just with Johanna and Finnick. But it had not been serious. My movements had been random.

Suddenly Zianne started attacking me instead of waiting for me to make the first move.

I dodged just in time. Actually I managed to dodge all her attacks.

After a while I had gotten used to her movements and was even able to land a punch, although she parried it. This went on for a few minutes.

I managed to land some punches, but at some point she managed to kick my leg which was still hurting from the burn wounds that were not completely healed yet.

I hissed in pain and my vision got blurry.

Out of habit my first instinct was to escape, but the other soldiers were blocking the escape route. So I had no other option than to keep fighting, although I was in the defense now.

I was used to moving despite pain, but my leg did not move like I wanted it too. Hence, I was able to dodge, but not to attack. My speed had decreased.

“That's enough!”, Zianne proclaimed.

Relief flooded me. But after all my experiences I still did not let my guard down.

“Surprisingly well done. Now tell me more about you. There has to be a story behind your skills”, Zianne encouraged me.

“I would not consider them skills. That was my first real fight”, I admitted.

“No way”, Zianne exclaimed.

“I'm (f/n) (l/n). Leader of the riots in district 11, victor of the 72nd Hunger Games and apparently survivor of the 75th”, I introduced myself, hearing gasps among the soldiers.

“I see. We usually don't watch the games here in 13”, Zianne explained. “But now I think I understand. Are you still injured, except your hand?”

I nodded. “Healing burn wounds on mainly my lower body, but that won't stop me. Could we continue the training, please? I have a lot to learn and not much time. I can't afford to slack off.”

Zianne grinned at me and turned her attention back to the others. “Take her as an example! That's the spirit! No matter how good you are, there is always room to grow!”

We trained for another hour, before Zianne called it a day.

“You don't belong here”, she talked to me privately.

“I know that my fighting skills suck. That's why I'm training”, I clarified.

“No, that's not what I meant. You're still injured and performed better than everyone else. You're too good for this group. You have experience and a strong will”, she complimented me.

“Thanks, but it's not enough.”

“What do you think about some private sessions? I could show you how to handle a gun. If you want to train it with the others, you will have to wait until next week”, she offered.

“You would do that? That'd be great!”

She gestured me to sit down on the ground with her. “First, tell me more about yourself. What are you good at?”

It reminded me of my first time in the train on the way to my first Hunger Games. Evaluating my strengths and weaknesses.

“I'm good at climbing, hiding and moving silently. Oh, and observing others. That's how I managed to land some hits on you. I analyzed your movements while dodging.”

She raised her eyebrows. “Impressive. I think I can work with that. Ever heard of snipers?”

“No”, I admitted.

“These people are hiding at a place a good distance away from the target. They watch their target and shoot in the right moment, giving no reaction time. When a good sniper wants to kill, they will kill. The target has no chance.”

“Sounds intimidating.”

“Yes. It's not easy to kill, especially for the first time. But you survived two Hunger Games. I guess you'll be fine.”

The description of a sniper actually fitted me. Hiding and watching, before ending it with one shot.

I agreed.

“Then, let's see what you've got!”, Zianne exclaimed excited.

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