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hacked-by-jake · 4 months

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I didn't finish the first episode yet, but I saw a lot of people saying that the ending was amazing and worth the pain. I was disappointed in the game, but the way all people boycott Everbyte without even finishing the episode is ridiculous to me.

I understand the anger about AI art, the emptiness of the characters, and ESPECIALLY the pay to win concept. Just because it has a good ending doesn't make up to the negative parts. But people should have first finished the episode and only then give their opinion. It wasn't fair. Yes, we are all disappointed. I also get the conspiracy theory about Everbyte having an investor or someone else taking over the design and completely messing it up. It's still no excuse to shit on the work of Everbyte like that.

People played the episode for about 15 minutes and immediately hated on Everbyte and I was one of them and am a little ashamed. It was a smart move of Everbyte to mix the main game with the side story, but I also get the people who are upset by it. We waited 2 years for answers and now we have to pay diamonds and money to get the full experience. I fully get it, yes. The criticism is completely fine but hate to the point that they insult the developes? No, just no. I can't wait to find out about the end of the episode. Until then, I wish you a good day. 🩵 Thank you for your work.

Greetings, an old friend ♡

Well, I absolutely get what you mean and I also understand why you think so.

But I have to say, I don’t think finishing the episode before wasn't necessary to see the problems and to point it out.

Many people had problems right after starting the game. It started with bugs. Of course we all had to look around before we started playing. And I guess many people immediately went to check the profile customisation options etc. Then we were greeted with AI art only. We directly saw the pictures aren't even free and most of us, or all thought we're allowed to put our own pictures as profile picture etc. Which was another disappointment right away.

Then we had to realise that we cannot pick a specific picture and buy it but only randomly.

Just a bunch of disappointments from the beginning and it didn’t get better. I mean, I saw so many people who said they gave up to play because of bugs and the mini games and stuff.

So actually, I think it's very understandable that some started to show their disappointment right away.

Of course, I only talk about critism. Not hate. There's a difference. And I said a lot of times by now that hate is absolutely disgusting.

Luckily, on Tumblr I almost saw no one really hating on Everbyte. I don’t know how hate looks to you and when it was already hate in your eyes. I think we don’t know exactly what we others meant and saw. So it's hart to give my opinion on that.

It's simply hard to say much when I don't know what exactly you saw or said or mean. Hating can look differently and I think even harsher words don’t have to be hate right away, it always depends on the context.

However, I find it very strong of you to admit that you were involved. And your words show that you have empathy with Everbyte and reflected your behavior. This is a good thing to be proud of.

I think we all might have made a mistake or two in the situation, Everbyte, but also the community. But hey, I just have to say: These games that Everbyte has created are visibly attached to our hearts and thus evoke stronger emotions. Which actually only shows how much we like the games and especially want to play them.

It’s just problematic that there were so many people at once, but that’s not our fault. We can’t just be quiet just because others have already mentioned it, it just doesn’t work that way. And unfortunately, in this situation Everbyte received criticism with the side effect that many more people follow them. So it is clear that the outcry is much bigger and louder.

Everbyte deserved the criticism. And the normal critism was much more silent than the hate. Because unfortunately it is always the case that the hate is much more noticeable than the normal critics. Hate is much louder and that’s why we remember it longer.

The whole situation was just overwhelming and we were all just full of emotions. This can get stronger and stronger, and sometimes it can make us say things we regret later.

Pure hate is a completely different story. Especially when the hate was deliberately pronounced just like that because people don’t care that we still talk about real human beings.

But I think we can all forgive ourselves for saying something in a very tense and emotional situation that might have been a bit brisk. It happened and we can't change it. The situation was too much for many of us, and it’s part of being a human being to do or say sometimes rash things without think a lot beforehand.

So I think we should not be mad at ourselves for it. (Unless you spread real hate and pure hate by insulting Everbyte personally or anything)

I would like to thank you for sharing your thoughts and especially for mentioning positive things at the end. And I hope you are doing better now and all thoughts can be classified and understood more calmly.

I wish you a wonderful day/evening/night. 💚

Lots of love to you, old friend. 💚

#cute mv anon #hbj mv answers #moonvale #moonvale criticism #everbyte criticism #moonvale episode 1 #moonvale spoiler #moonvale episode 1 spoiler #moonvale fandom #everbyte studio #everbyte game

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dollymylove · 11 months

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many people aren't sure where to start when it comes to palestine. they're told "it's complicated". what complicated really means is an oppressor is saying "don't research this too much".

this is the simplified entire story: in the 1900s britian controlled a place called "palestine". in the 1880s in europe, a movement to give jewish people a homeland called "zionism" started. a few places were proposed in europe and colonized africa but eventually they decided on palestine for 2 main reasons: 1) it had religious significance in judaism 2) many christians believe that the second coming of christ cannot happen until jewish people return to "their kingdom" in modern palestine (where jewish people will then all promptly be killed or converted in the rapture). nobody asked the people living there what they thought or informed them of this plan.

originally they live in relative peace with these new-comers in their separate villages. until more and more people coming and the people who've been there the whole time go "why are so many europeans arriving..." and britian is like "...don't question it too much". so because they keep questioning it, britain kicks out or squashes the leaders of the groups voicing concern. skip forward a few years and the holocaust happens. terrible world changing event. europe is feeling extremely guilty about doing basically nothing to combat centuries of antisemitism and they still dont want to deal with it. so they tell the zionists "okay you can have it all". and the natives go "wait what. but we live here already". and britain goes "well i own you brown savages sooooo". but it's really such a hassle to deal with so they tell the newly established united nations to figure it out. and reminder, the natives are being ignored completely still. so the UN decides "okay you both can have the land. zionists get 80% and the natives get 20%". but people are living on that 80% of land still and they are not part of the decision making crew and britain kind of intentionally destroyed all their leaders.

so zionists, realizing those people haven't left and won't leave willingly, commit an ethnic cleansing of the country. over half of the entire native population (800k of 1.3 million) will be expelled or killed in a single year in an event called "the nakba" aka catastrophe. those who remain in palestine will not be given equal human rights or equal citizenship. most will end up in a small piece of land called the gaza strip or a small piece of land called the west bank. in these places, they will not be allowed to leave the walls of their town without permission from israelis. palestinians who were expelled from a village during the nakba will be largely banned from returning let alone stepping foot in their former village.

anyone saying it's impossible to understand wants you to take their words at face value. they don't want you to research and form your own opinion on the facts you learn. you do not need a degree to understand it

edit: i am palestinian. i am not going to sit here and tolerate nakba denialism (which my family EXPERIENCED). i am simply going to block you and/or delete your reply. for more detailed information on anything i said here, consult decolonize palestine which is a resource organized by two palestinians in ramallah.

#jewish ppl arent all zionists yada yada #i would hope you realize that but just in case #basically it was british settler colonialism #palestine

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weatherman667 · 10 months

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Bloodborne

Finally got it. Glad I waited until it was at bargain bin prices.

I was going to go easy on it, until I looked up the release dates, and yes, I was right, Dark Souls 2 released a year before Bloodborne. I thought I got the order wrong, because Bloodborne is infinitely inferior to Dark Souls 2.

To do this, we have to ask ourself what makes a Dark Souls game?

Punishing cruelty?

Dark, decaying once great kingdom?

Tank controls?

Well, Dark Souls is known for being tough, but fair. It's incredibly fair, but this means that game can be incredibly tough.

The dark and decaying once great kingdoms have a story and weight to them.

In Bloodborne is seems like they tried to turn Dark Souls into Devil May Cry, failed, and slapped on a gruesome Victorian veneer to make it seems deep.

It makes the game easier, but also makes it less fair, and this is because of the introductions of firearms. Which, funny enough, Devil May Cry audibly telegraphs ranged attacks, allowing you to dodge without even seeing it. One of the first enemies you face has a rifle that can hit you in ways the game engine simply would not allow you to fight back. But, it's a rifle? You can get inside it's range?

No.

For those not used to Dark Souls games, distance is absolutely vital. The difference of an inch will turn an axe attack into a haft attack. The different of a couple degrees will turn a normal attack into a back stab.

And...

Bloodborne doesn't have a back stab. Or a parry.

Seriously, did no one on the Bloodborne team ever play a Dark Souls game? Because backstabbing is kind of important in a Dark Souls game.

Bloodborne gives you firearms... that you cannot aim. It also gives you Quicksilver bullets, which is an interesting idea, exceptit also not only gives you a justification for not needing Quicksilver bullets, it gives you a way to manufacture bullets really, really easily. With your own blood. They could have saved the Quicksilver Bullets for bosses? Like Metro does with pre-war ammo.

They also don't let you aim. You have one button to use the gun, rather than simply making it like bows are, which is treated like any other weapons.

They also decide to make all weapons Trick Weapons. So, each Trick (main) weapon has two different modes. My first one was the... something cane. Basically a whip-sword that looks like a cane. It works a lot like the Puzzling Stone Sword from DS2 DLC, except inferior in every single way.

If they were going to make firearms a single button press, and a key part of the gameplay, they could have, say, given it a face button, like say []. If you eliminate the mode change and fire from the shoulder buttons, you have four buttons, which could have integrated all of the trick weapon's attacks into a single form. User interface is just something that sticks in my craw. If they didn't to leave /\ as a two-hand button, which would allow you to still block and parry.

Conclusion: Is it a bad game? No. Just not as good as a Dark Souls game.

#bloodborne #video games

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saunne · 11 months

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Writing - Reflection and Personal Analysis (Pt 2)

(or the actual plan of what the rest of my NaNo will look like)

I have two main problems at the moment : Lack of STRUCTURE and lack of STYLE. And a less important BRAIN problem.

STRUCTURE

The biggest blockage comes from my lack of planning and the fact that until then I was writing in semi-improvisation. I had an overall plot line to follow, but nothing very detailed.

Which is the heart of the problem.

Because since this isn't a fanfic, I need a lot more careful planning. Chapter by chapter, I need to know what the chapter should be about, who we meet there, who we follow, what information we learn, what scenes take place there, what their purpose is, what clues I should slip in, what false routes pose... I need a step by step manual, a complete checklist, with scene fragments and possibly color coding.

So from now on, this is what I'm going to do for NaNo, officially switching to the Rebel side. No novel writing for me this month, we will focus on the detailed planning of said novel, scene by scene, chapter by chapter.

Well, I say "novel", but it would be more correct to say story. In order not to get stuck by a rigid structure that I'm bad with, I'm just going to put aside the volume by volume structure and simply plan according to my narrative arcs, since I already have some of the planning written during last Camp.

I am more than capable of catching up if I switch to this method. I already have a good backup of information, and putting everything in order and detailing what I want to achieve will help me move forward faster than the blind writing I was doing until now.

STYLE

It’s obvious that I need to develop my novelistic style.

My fanfic style has developed over 4 years but I will not and cannot wait 4 years for my novelistic style to mature. Having a clear plan will already help me avoid going off track when writing, but I need to figure out how I'm going to manage.

Am I more comfortable with a more compact or airier style ? Do I favor very long sentences or short sentences? What is the rhythm of my writing ? Do I have writing tics, words that come back too often, turns of phrase reused in all sorts of ways? How do I deal with dialogue ? Descriptions of decor ? The emotional and reflective side of internal monologue ? How do I integrate the information in a fluid way, the flashbacks, the questions ?

I think the easiest thing would be to practice writing short scenes, or even short stories. This probably won't be something I do during this NaNo, barring sudden bursts of inspiration for Erasde that override my obsessive hyperfocus on my fandoms, but I won't rule out the possibility.

Another possibility could be to restart written role-playing with @gabrielwritessometimes . I have OCs in his world and he has some in mine, so this might be something interesting to do together, depending on everyone's available time and energy.

BRAIN

I can't really change my brain, so we're going to have to learn to overcompensate for the ongoing mess.

I already know that I need to be in a certain mood to write and that if I'm not, there's no point in forcing it. The frustration of not being able to write my fics also plays a big part, so alternating between NaNo and my WIPs according to my mood, energy level and inspiration rather than forcing myself to follow NaNo seems to be a good solution.

Certain places (my bed, the library, cafes, parks) work better for inspiration and concentration. So setting aside a little money to go and spend a few hours in a café at least once a week with one or two drinks and a pastry could be a good idea.

And my brain being a 5 year old with a sugar addiction, it seems that returning to a reward system based on candy and other sweets could alleviate the fluttering in my brain. Watch out for Mom and don't forget dental hygiene I guess.

POST NANO AND CAMP

I'll probably be busy in December, covering shifts at the library, but I plan to continue writing. After NaNo, I'm going to set a daily writing goal : no word limit, but write at least once a day, on any project or WIP.

I plan to submit my thesis and take my oral exam at the beginning of next year, at the earliest for the February holidays and at the latest at the beginning of April. Once my thesis is out of the way, I should be much more relaxed in terms of writing, which will undoubtedly help.

I plan to attend next year's Camp NaNo, both April and July.

If I haven't finished planning by April, this is what I will continue. If I finished it, I will slowly start writing the novel and continue writing during July Camp.

In order to reduce my anxiety, I will work chapter by chapter. That is to say, write a chapter, send it to my friends who wish to give me feedback, whether as readers or official beta-readers. Allow some time to pass, during which I work on other projects or another chapter, before rewriting the revised chapter.

I write primarily for myself, with no publication goals at present.

I don't yet know what I will do with my story once it is sufficiently advanced, if I will try to translate it myself into English to share it, if I will publish it on a platform like ao3 or Wattpad or Webnovel, if I'm going to send it to publishers hoping to get published, if I'm just going to keep it for myself and my group of friends... We'll see.

#writing process #writing analysis #writeblr #writing #writers on tumblr #erasde #nanowrimo #nano 2023 #nanowrimo 2023 #nano report

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kaus-quietis · 2 years

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The circus videoclub - November, by Rainer Sarnet

There are movies that haunt you, years after you watched them. These movies give off a particular feeling, one you cannot get out of your mind. Today in the circus videoclub, I want to share with you November, a masterpiece produced by estonian director Rainer Sarnet.

Hello there! I'm the circus resident poltergeist, Eliott, managing this blog until Lav comes back. Here in the circus videoclub I share with you my most recent discoveries / films I wish everyone would watch one day!

Rainer Sarnet was born in Rakvere, Estonia, in 1969. He is an estonian director and writer who started his work in animation. His film, November, was released in 2017, and is based on Rehepapp ehk november (the currants of november), a novel by famous estonian writer Andrus Kivirähk.

I have a lot of passions in life, which include black and white movies, folklore, good movies, books, and beautiful sceneries. November might have been just the perfect work for me in all these regards. Released in 2017, the movie is based on a novel, Rehepapp ehk november by Andrus Kivirähk (we will get to this author in another episode of the Circus Bookclub).

A quick note on Rehepapp ehk november, which happens to be one of my favourite novel: I cannot recommend it enough, however it hasn't been translated into english yet, from what I am aware of. You can read it in many other languages though, including finnish, latvian, russian, hungarian, french, etc. It is a great novel and has inspired a lot of artistic creations in Estonia (including this movie and a beautiful graphic novel).

In November, we follow the life of a nameless, fictional estonian village in the 19th century. The action takes place during the month of November, when winter is already there and life becomes harsher. In this village, however, things are not as ordinary as one could think. The villagers seek the help of treasure-bearers (kratts) to steal from each other and accomplish tasks, make deals with the devil at crossroads to buy a soul for their kratt in exchange of their own (fooling him, each time), trick the Plague and some turn into werewolves and ask the advice of witches. It is a strange and fascinating ballet of folktale, mythological themes, somber atmosphere and strange, beautifully written interactions between the villagers and the strange creatures/habits/phenomenas they live with, without questioning them. These strange things are part of the life of the villagers, and their acceptance of them gives to this movie a beautiful and particular ethereal feeling.

I simply love when such weird, strange situations are not perceived as weird and strange by the people living them. In November, these are just part of the story, without taking too much space or being put into question. As we see a kratt stealing, it is simply that: a kratt stealing, not a mystery to be solved. This is I think part of what makes Rainer Sarnet's movie so powerful, this perfect balance between the strange and the mundane.

November is a beautiful movie, with great images and well-written dialogues. It is strange and ethereal, but this strangeness is masterfully crafted, and does not put us outside of the action. From the first shot, the movie creates an atmosphere, a space from which it is impossible to free ourselves from: we have to wait for the credits. November is described as a fantasy horror drama film, and this mix of genres creates an original, unique and inspiring work. There is no movie like this one. As Hideo Kojima said on his twitter account: November is the movie for me.

I cannot encourage you enough to watch it. Not only is it a unique masterpiece, it is perfectly crafted from every angle, be it the scenario, the acting, the photography, the dialogues, the rythm, everything. Everything feels perfectly thought about, controled, and therefore flows perfectly in this strange yet fascinating film that unfolds. The main story itself -although there are many, many stories in this film, is quite simple, and it is a good thing. It allows the universe to unfold and takes all the space it needs and the atmosphere to settle.

This is it for November! I discovered this film a few years ago and it has been one of my biggest cinematic shocks so far. As time goes, I see this film gaining more and more recognition, and this makes me extremely happy. I hope you will enjoy it as well!

#circusghost #rehepapp ehk november #november #andrus kivirahk #rainer sarnet #i do not know if this movie have been dubbed but even if it has -if you are able to watch a movie while reading subtitles #please please please watch it in its original language #it is so important and estonian is sublime #i cannot express enough the love i have for this movie -it is a masterpiece #it so beautifully uses andrus kivirahk's novel as support and conveys it perfectly #yes i mentioned hideo kojima are you proud of me Lav

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taigastyle · 2 years

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Why am I seeing so many people convinced P**k is coming back and soon.. I’m not strong enough to go through it seriously… if ratings aren’t currently “doing well” and how is bringing back *that* one person a major win? Isn’t it kind of troublesome that ratings will improve because one person returns? I think that says a lot about the company is they’re propping up this person and giving them “quality” and not to the rest…

quick answer: because chris jericho tweeted that he had always loved working with @ punk so obviously everyone who were clowns and thought jericho was the only/main anti-punk voice in the locker room are celebrating thinking this means they've won!! he's back. and jericho is a goat and the best ever etc. the rest of my reply is beneath the read more because i got rambly and long winded

longer answer: the ratings aren't even doing that badly, january was really strong both for ratings and for in person ticket sales (their walk up tickets sales were really good) but one meh week and one bad week means the sky is falling and we have got to bring back in the hero cm punk because he is a ratings mega draw (which ignores the reality that the aew product had never been hotter in the june and especially july lead ups before punk even stepped foot in the company at the end of august, but again people don't really care about the real facts, it is simply that hurr durr purrnk is a draw).

now when hangman was champion the bad ratings were put on his head, but the good ticket sales/ppv numbers weren't accredited to him. which i think is unfair, as people were invested in the hangman and hangman/kenny story for all the years building up to the crowning moment of his win. and it was kind of thrown away in favor of guy who was having a goldberg run burying over talent he could leech off of (if that sounds familiar to say cody rhodes fans: hi!! how ya doin, welcome, hope you enjoy his mania moment). i genuinely think you can look at these bad ratings and see there's been a decline since mox lost the title. mjf is not over like he was, his character is stagnant, and his offensive promos aren't edgy they're just bad.

people think punk coming back will fix the ratings, but i genuinely don't think so. he was very protected when he was on tv, given the best spots so of course his numbers look good, but if you really look - and especially say the time he returned from injury - the numbers weren't great. punk talked about how he made that million dollar gate but they've done three of those without him, and a lot of the fans of aew from before punk showed up have said that the original feel of the company is gone and it is soulless. good wrestling alone cannot keep a company hot.

all that being said here's where we're at, pretty much every journalist is sniffing around it and afraid to say it outright but kenny omega's working on either injured time or a handshake agreement. aaa who had a fine working relationship with aew until wwe hopped in have said they're not working with aew anymore, but they'll work with kenny omega. the bucks contracts are up at the end of this year. hangman's contract is up this year. tony is at a cross road right now where he can pick the four guys he chose and made this company with, who the fans are invested with, who are younger and have proven they'll work through injuries and pandemics to make aew work. who have scouted and brought great talent in, who have invested into the company from day one, or a guy who has maybe a year, two years max left (if he doesn't get injured again) who was offered day one to be a part of everything and said nah and waited until everyone else had made it clear aew was successful and came in to rapturous applause and love and killed that good will throughout the fanbase and locker room as the months ticked by.

four vs one.

wwe have said they're not as aggressively pursuing jay white because they're focusing on a bigger talent, and i know everyone wants that to be ibushi, but it's gotta be Kenny or Hangman. ibushi would be a great book end to nab as well, but both kenny is the bigger name, kenny is who they wanted in 2018, who they were so sure they had that vince, trips, steph, and shane all came out and cut a promo smugly alluding to the fact they had them, only to be made to look like geeks over it. or page who is young can go in the ring/cut a promo and is so beloved he could be one hell of a top guy for them.

do i think punk will be back soon? idk maybe, they've set up a precedent about what he has to do to be welcomed back with thunder rosa. she stood before the locker room and apologized/owned up to all of the things she did that had hurt people and if you think phil brooks is capable of going mea culpa! then sure he's coming back.

do i think punk vs any elite match would happen? no. and i do think if punk comes back the elite will leave. do i think that in the long run this will be better for the aew numbers? not one bit! i personally won't start watching wwe again i watched it for years and not even a golden lovers reuinion could make me watch their product on a weekly basis again. it's bad, it's production is nauseating, and on a 'parasocial note' it would be incredibly disheartening to see guys that i respect and who have been consistent in calling out the fed and the fans of the fed go over there it's gonna be crushing.

would i keep watching aew? idk probably not. there are wrestlers i love within the company, but largely the stories they're telling right now, and their top champion (and their potential next tag champs) i actively dislike and don't enjoy. so there's not much impetus for me to keep watching a product for a couple wrestlers i like. again, i did that with wwe and it became insulting as a viewer to do that, and was in part what made me stop watching for years! so i think i would stop watching wrestling again and move on with my life. sucks, but i'm very into watching things i like and not giving my time to things i don't.

so all this to say there's no actual anything that says he's coming back, and the earliest he could be back is still a couple months away. but people love to work themselves over the winks and nudges some people who maybe know something might have maybe implied. but you're right bringing one guy back to save the show means you've fucked up the show, especially when it was pulling in over 1mil viewers before that guy came in. if you're fumbled the bag over making the show just about him once (and i think that is easy to say, no matter how good the matches were you cannot point to a guy he was in a feud with who was better off after losing to him! but i can point to a good few who were worse off.) at the expense of guys who are fan favorites (twitter and tumblr are a bubble, it's seen time and time again. remember when everyone hated britt baker and were tired of her and wanted her off their tv except she was still getting the loudest pops from crowd after crowd?) idk

it's bad all around, contract szn is always miserable but who knows where and what will happen. show to show my enjoyment for dynamiate & rampage remains about the same because i have fun watching it with friends/family and talking about it, but everything outside of those three hours i am just not having fun with wrestling unless it is fun i am making for myself. so i'd just say if you're in a similar boat as me then have fun! make your fun, i love doing my silly little edits that make me insane, and talking to friends about the hot guys who beat the piss out of each other. and if i don't have fun i solve that by muting it when mjf speaks <3

#this is long and idk probably not too coherent so i hope it kind of answers it maybe idk #sorry lol

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lemonhemlock · 2 years

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I saw lots of anons sharing your thoughts with you so I will add mine point of view to this discussion. The whole "Making Aegon the main bad in greens side to be Daemon mirror when it could have been Aemond from the start" I understand all the parallels between Aegon and Rhaenyra both in books and in the show, but what is really beyond me is that people are still mad that show is not the same as books. They called it whitewashing, giving Greens more agenda and not showing that Blacks are on the right side of conflict 🤦‍♀️ like if one watches the show only to point out that it differs from book where the narrators are unreliable because they didn't witness all of things happening during the Dance, then this conversation makes no sense. Like, apart from certain battles (between Aemond and Daemon, between Tessarion, Vermithor and …, between Aegon, Aemond and Rhaenys) + some characters deaths like Jace, Joffrey, Rhaenyra, Aegon, Aemond, Daemon, Alicent, Tyland Lannister, Rhaenys and Corlys we cannot say that book contains the facts and show is lying. Book is filled with speculations and needs to be treated as such. Not like some true source of knowledge from the showrunners decided to not take into account. To quote Littlefinger "None of you were there to see what happened." Another thing is that after season 1 ended, all that everyone do is talk about whitewashing. Okay, Aegon was made worse than in the books, but again, some people are mad because Alicent is not a villain and then say that she should have been like in the books and 5 minutes later they say it's good that Aegon is worse than in the books because no one will root for Greens now. Aegon was there for short time in season 1. I don't want to jump into conclusions and predict his whole story in show when I have only few scenes to see him. What will happen for sure is that Sunfyre will kill Rhaenyra and Aegon will be a ruler for a short while and then he will be poisoned. Maybe they gave him such short time in season 1 and he wasn't much into spotlight as Aemond because simply he will live longer than Aemond and after Aemond dies we will get plenty of scenes with Aegon? As for the part whether will make him hide in the Red Keep when Aemond fights (aka is regent) - no he won't be hiding, he will be basically barbequed so he will be lying in his bed with maesters surrounding him trying to heal his burned body. That's the reason Aemond is regent, because Aegon state is that bad he cannot leave his bedchamber. Aegon clone of Joffrey? Coward? Like when? When he is smart, escapes King's Landing before Blacks arrive and goes to Dragonstone and waits for Rhaenyra? He is much smarter than Joffrey. Aegon power hungry? I would say applause starved and being a King provided him what his family did not. And why are you all so mad that show didn't let us know that both Aegon and Rhaenyra are not suited to rule? Like, maybe wait a bit until she takes King's Landing and then you will see? Part 1

I understand all the parallels between Aegon and Rhaenyra both in books and in the show, but what is really beyond me is that people are still mad that show is not the same as books. They called it whitewashing, giving Greens more agenda and not showing that Blacks are on the right side of conflict 🤦‍♀️

the problem is not "things are different from the books", the problem is that aegon is the only character from the cast that received the worst interpretation possible from the books (from unreliable source mushroom, nonetheless), whereas every other character has been softened up. the changes are not random, they were specifically designed to make certain characters look good - like daemyra not fridging gay character laenor and rhaenyra not being involved in vaemond's murder. so far aegon did not get one single change that made him "look better" in comparison to his book counterpart

Maybe they gave him such short time in season 1 and he wasn't much into spotlight as Aemond because simply he will live longer than Aemond and after Aemond dies we will get plenty of scenes with Aegon?

my issue is not really with his short screen time, it's with his ridiculous past times. take away the rape and the child fighting pits, leave him as an irresponsible debauched drunk and we're fine. i wasn't expecting him to be a paragon of morality or responsibility, but more on par with rhaenyra at the same age

Aegon clone of Joffrey?

lots of people make the joffrey comparison. i disagree, as stated in my previous posts

And why are you all so mad that show didn't let us know that both Aegon and Rhaenyra are not suited to rule? Like, maybe wait a bit until she takes King's Landing and then you will see?

bc it's ridiculous to make them unbalanced to this level. rhaenyra literally gets "divinely ordained" framing and aegon gets rape and a hobby only the most deranged psychos partake in. there is nowhere near this level of discrepancy in the text

#ask #anon #hotd critical [aegon]

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ariswolfram · 20 days

Text

History Long Past...

"Yonox! Yonox!" Nosinx runs into the living room of their house, excitedly holding up a DVD of the newest Avengers movie, "I GOT THE MOVIE!"

"Woa- you did? Where?" Yonox sits up on the couch and looks at it tiredly.

"From some beautiful place called Errth or Terra or something!"

"Go ahead and put it in then-!"

Nosinx, almost expecting that answer, goes to the DVD player and puts the disk in, powering on the television in preparation. As he does so, the front door opens up, and someone enters the house.

"Oh! Truth is here! TRUUTHHH! GET THE POPCORN READY!!"

"OKAY!" Truth replies from the entry way as he walks toward their room.

Nosinx sits on the couch next to Yonox as Truth walks into the room.

Yonox looks up at him with a smile, then siezes up.

"Whats up?" Nosinx looks as well, seeing the massive armored body of Null standing in their doorway instead.

"HAHAHA! THE LOOKS ON YOUR FACES RIGHT NOW IS PRICELESS!"

"w... what-"

"But i heard... Truth-"

"Awww, you actually believed my act? Why isnt that adorable!" He walks forward, the sounds of his heavy feet shaking the floor as he walks, "Glad to know it was believable. Maybe i can get rid of some of the others that were getting in my way now hm?"

"P-please- go away-" Nosinx hugs Yonox in fear.

Null stops in front of their faces and leans in, glancing outside a nearby window to view the setting sun, "I mean... i can go away. But i want to have my fun with at least one of you first. Plus, dying together gives you closure... and we cant have that now can we?"

Null grabs the scruff of Nosinx's neck and begins to drag him.

Nosinx cries out in a panic, "No, NO! NO!! NO!"

Null cackles madly as Nosinx continues his pleas of help. Yonox being unable to move as thanks to one of his spells, "PLEASE- I DONT WANT TO DIE- NOSINX-"

The sun erupts and expands rapidly with loud and powerful energies, ripping the skies open and clouding the horizon in a pure black shroud, outlined in white.

The deep bass filled sound of annihilation rapidly approaching, outlining their fear.

Null opens a portal to the Void and pulls Nosinx through it, "YONOX NOOOO- PLEAS-" His sentence is cut short as the portal closes behind him.

The black horizon continues its ever-fast advance, as the skies burn and the rubble rises.

Yonox cannot do anything but sit in his seat, paralyzed with fear and sorrow.

"I... couldn't save you... Im sorry... i..."

He turns his gaze to the window just as the sphere passes the barriers of his house and encompass him.

He speaks, for not even he can hear his voice anymore.

The sphere shrinks, its walls pushing Yonox deeper into its center.

The house rips to shreds and crumbles apart, the air compresses and him curls into a ball.

The sphere shrinks until it reaches its smallest in near-instant timing.

Though as he is a god, the instant lasts for ages...

The sphere compresses his form, he tries to fight its grasp but cannot do anything but sit and wait as everything he was soon decays.

He tries to come up with excuses, calling it a dream; a nightmare.

He tries to beg Truth for help, he tries to break his way out...

But its become too much...

His body shrinks under the impossible forces...

And then... He is lost.

I know this ones a bit cheesy, its an old excerpt from a story i did a while ago.

The gods present in it are Nosinx, god of Light. And Yonox, god of Darkness. I made them both moths cause it is funny. The god of sun is a moth, lol.

But yea, hope you enjoyed it, especially given the fact its fairly old. I try to not change my old works too much, simply cause i like to see how i have advanced over the years. Though i will need to change it a lot when i get to actually publishing it, as otherwise its just... cringy...

I mean, theres a part in the first arc where the main characters are literally handed a magic item for no reason, just because the guy was dying-

But yea. This indeed happened

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skorchinq · 5 months

Text

Bows Only: WE'RE SO BACK!!!!!!!

[Image IDs in alt text]

Ok so apparently the last time I updated was in August? And it's April now... um. Sorry about that? I didn't realize it's been so long TTOTT there hasn't been much to talk about honestly

Actually uhhh scratch that. I didn't update in so long ON PURPOSE. Totally. The reason I didn't was because I didn't want to update again until the curse of Jean was broken. And guess what finally happened B)

But before we get to that, let's start where we left off with our last post... way back in August of 2023...

As we waited with bated breath for the release of Version 4.0, I did manage to get a few more notable acomplishments. Namely...

Childe friendship level 10!

And clearing floor 9 with all 9 stars! (I still cannot do this consistently on this account as I type this btw ._.)

When 4.0 finally dropped, I fist went to wish on Yelan's banner. Things were off to a great start:

We got another stringless! I already had two built up, so I used this one as refinement for one of them.

And then... the shooting star lit up gold, and... well, you know how that went.

Try as I may, and Try as I might, Yelan would not come home. And, in this account's most humiliating L to date...

The banner cycle ended with no Yelan and no Lyney.

Still, I could not afford to simply give up. I still worked hard throughout September, earning primogems and building my characters...

I got this really satisfying set of Daily Commissions once

So like. That kinda makes up for not having Yelan. sure

Also! I decided to test Childe's limits!

Look at that damage. All Tartagles babyyyyyyy

And uhhh the date on that one is in September and the date on this next one is in January so. I suppose nothing of interest happened in those months. Makes sense honestly, I had enough to gurantee a 5 star on here so I wasn't quite as desperate for primos and therefore wasn't logging on much... Plus with all the new content that comes with a major version update I was spending more time than usual on my main, leaving less time for this account. But anyway!

In the second half of 4.3 came two very important banners, one for each of my accounts:

On my main, My Raiden went from C1 to C2!

And, here on Bows Only, that 50/50 gurantee from the Yelan disaster finally came in use:

After dodging us countless times... in 2.8... in 3.2... in 3.7... Finally... FINALLY!!! We've obtained the most elusive fireworks maker!

Our quest to max ascend all our characters also continues:

And uhhh here's some event scores:

I also did Klee's story quest, and something they mentioned at the end really stuck out to me:

...They talk a lot about Ludi Harpastum in this quest, but we still haven't gotten to see that festival in game... Not once...

And it was soon after this that... my computer broke .-. I downloaded genshin on my phone while I waited for the repairs on it to be complete, but mobile genshin fricking sucks so I was only logging onto my main account to do limited time events and that's IT. I wasn't even doing my dailies on there and I was barely even touching Bows Only at all...

And it was only supposed to be a couple of weeks, but things kept getting delayed (They ordered the part they needed. they were sent the wrong one. they sent it back. they got the right part but it was broken. they sent it back. they got the wrong part again--) and my computer was gone for like two months TTOTT So I was stuck on mobile for the entirety of 4.4 and the better part of 4.5...

But eventually my dear puter came back to me (and I deleted genshin off my phone immediately) and I was able to consistently play on both accounts once more! It's a good thing, too, because coming up in 4.6 was a Lyney rerun...

I decided to do the Ararycan quest on this account because there's a follow-up to it I still haven't done on my main and I wanted to replay the first as a refresher. And uh

How do I still keep forgetting this is my name. Genshin characters talking about David Bowie still throws me through a loop.

We garnered up primogems upon primogems... by the time the 4.6 update day came around, I had 94 fates at hand. But I also had 0 pity, and no 50/50 gurantee...

I knew what was coming. I knew exactly what to expect. When that shooting star turned to gold, it would be C5 Jean coming to greet me. But even so, I had plenty of savings, and 3 weeks to get even more. As long as I was a little lucky with how many fates it took for each 5 star, getting Lyney afterwards wasn't out of the realm of possibility.

At the 5th 10 pull, it turned gold. "Good," I thought. "That's early. I could get back up to soft pity before the banner ends."

And then, on 52 pity, the impossible happened...

BOWS ONLY HAS OFFICIALLY WON OUR FIRST EVER 50/50!!!!!!!

Ever since this account first came to be, nearly 2 years ago now, we've lost ever single 50/50, and to the same character no less. But finally, after L after L, right when I least expected it, we've finally taken the W. And it's all thanks to this wonderful, amazing, magical catboy. Thank you, Lyney. I love you

I... did not prefarm for him like at all but that's okay, I had over 100 fragile resin saved up. I fought that crab countless times, and in only a day:

It's what he deserves <3

He's not the only one who got to be ascended that day, either. After him, there was only one character left who was still on ascension 5, but not for much longer:

Now that all of our characters are max ascended, we have three main goals for this account:

Continue to build our characters in other ways. This includes ascending and/or replacing weapons, leveling up talents, and of course, the artifact grind... and also I might level the characters up to 90. We'll see. Pretty sure I have the books for it tbh

Gather primogems. Because of how early we got Lyney, we've got a good head start on our savings for the next 5 star bow to release or rerun (though the only character we still need to rerun is Yelan). But it's always better to be safe than sorry. Just because the curse of Jean has been lifted doesn't mean we can't still lose 50/50s (though if we lost a 50/50 to Tighnari I'd be quite amenable to that). And finally...

Advance the main story. Cyno's Act II story quest is being added this version, so I'd like to replay Act I on this account first before playing the new one on my main. In order to do that though, I first must complete Act IV of the Sumeru Archon Quest-- and I haven't even done the Chasm Archon quest on here... Still, I think it's about time we did the Sumeru Archon quest. Actually, assuming there's another Traveler Archon Quest coming before Natlan, which there ought to be, I should play Caribert on this account too. So, that will be our goal. We play up to Caribert, and then give archon quests a rest for another while.

With those goals in mind, I think this series may be seeing more frequent updates for a while... maybe. Don't @ me if that ends up being wrong.

As always, feel free to send a friend request if you're on Europe server:

And if you're on America server, here's my main:

#Bows Only #Childe #Yoimiya #Lyney #Genshin Impact

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i-am-megalodonna · 2 years

Text

Collector's Curse AU

I heard some interest so here it is folks, the Collector's Curse au textpost, copypasted fresh from my google doc. Well, part of it. Approximately two pages, to be exact. This is what I consider the main, need-to-know stuff before I get into anything else. Enjoy.

(Sidenote: As I say on the first point, not everything is figured out yet. When I do fill those plot holes I might make other posts, or I might just edit this one. Haven't decided yet. We'll see what happens.)

The beginning and the end cannot be fully developed just because there’s still so much we don’t know. Until we know that stuff, there’s gonna be some blank spots. After rewatching Eclipse Lake, however, we do know that the Collector likely isn’t involved with the portal, as we see Belos trying and failing to make a portal key and power the portal by other means. Things he wouldn’t be doing if the spell or the Collector were planned to power it. So the spell (and the Collector with it) and the portal are two different plots. So that opens up the possibility of Belos throwing the Collector overboard the second he’s got everything figured out with the spell. However, I could still be getting it wrong. Like I said, nothing is confirmed so nothing can be finalized yet. Just considered.

So while we wait on all that, let’s get right into the meat (aka the stuff that can be more finalized because it relies very little on the canon story).

The au is called the Collector’s Curse AU because the Collector, however Luz finds him, functions a lot like Eda’s curse. Rather than possessing Luz as he would’ve preferred, he’s trapped in Luz’s mind.

In order to keep this au intact and keep the Collector from just taking full control and going on a rampage (be that in the form of some Classic CollectorLuz ChaosTM or barging right on into the Emperor’s throne room and killing him with their bare hands), the Collector needs to be nerfed, hardcore. Which is how we get to the situation at hand. As it turns out, Luz is not an ideal host, and these are not ideal conditions. Shocker. The Collector is an immensely powerful being, and is wholly incompatible with Luz’s body. Especially without the rituals and preparations that would usually go into a proper possession. Simply put, it’s like trying to run Resident Evil 5 on an Altair computer. The software doesn’t exactly fit the hardware.

Point being, they need to be careful.

The two can talk in Luz’s head and the Collector can take form outside of it, but only Luz can see or hear him. They're basically a ghost, except now the pool of people they can interact with is even smaller than before. With immense effort they can make their powers tangible, but they can only do so in short bursts and it’s incredibly taxing for both parties. It also runs the risk of causing Luz physical harm, and harm to her is harm to him. Either way, Luz is knocked out and the Collector goes completely silent, sometimes for several days. After getting used to his voice, Luz can’t help but find it unnerving whenever that happens.

Because the situation functions similar to Eda’s curse, the elixirs actually help. “Help” being a pretty loose term. They taste terrible and Luz always feels sick after drinking them, but they shut the Collector up right quick, which he finds very unpleasant. It only took a few elixirs to convince him to not be too insufferable.

The two are connected by a string, each end tied around one of their wrists. The string both symbolically represents their connection, and literally acts as a leash preventing the Collector from leaving a certain radius around Luz. The string is not affected by walls or other objects, and extends about three Luz's in length before pulling taut.

As cruel and chaotic as the Collector usually is, they have pretty good motivations for going along with this whole… thing. First of all, survival. If destroying the disc didn’t set him free, destroying this human he’s stuck in probably wouldn’t help either. That and it would hurt. He hasn’t felt pain in a long time, and he’s reminded quite quickly just how much it sucks. So it stands to reason that if Luz dies, they die with her, and like most living things are, they’re very adverse to dying. Secondly, while this situation is far from ideal, it does have potential. Even if they were freed, it would likely be into the same shadow ghost form they were in before. They haven’t had anything remotely close to a physical body in forever; now they at least have some influence over one. It’s technically an improvement. For the time being, he needs someone to be his hands. He can make this work.

Oh yeah, forgot to mention (though you probably inferred it from the first bullet point), the Collector wants Belos dead. Belos and them used to be buddies, you see, before that jerk went and sealed them away after they’d “fulfilled their purpose” or whatever. So hey look at that we have a common enemy don’t exorcise me or whatever please.

The Collector has no power over Luz, so he needs to make appeals to her to get her to not tell everyone, because if she did they’d probably try to expel him in some way. He doesn’t know how, but he’s not into taking those kinds of risks. So he keeps everything nice and vague to make it as palatable as possible to his unwilling host, and offers her **insider info** about Belos, the goings on inside the castle, the Day of Unity, etc. How much that changes the game depends on where in the timeline it happens.

Surprisingly, this works, although it helps that Luz is just a good person who believes that the Collector is just some random spirit or demon that’s now stuck with her. This sucks for them just as much as it does for her, she tells herself, there’s no need to make it harder than it needs to be.

The problem with the information is that Luz has no way of knowing if what her brain roommate says is true, so the responsibility still falls on Luz to find that out. A lot of the stuff she does to prove Belos is evil still happens, just with different context.

Bonus points if Luz refuses to believe some of it and tries to prove him wrong, only to do the exact opposite. Emotional damage.

Bonus bonus points if when they go into the Emperor’s mind they see the Collector being cruel and sadistic and learn just how much he helped with Belos’ whole thing. Emotional damage.

As stated above, the Collector kept his dealings with Belos very vague. They told her about the draining spell, but conveniently left out that they were the one who told him how to do it. Whoops.

I should say now that part of this au is a pseudo redemption arc because I’m a sucker for powerful beings being redeemed by learning how to see the beauty in small things they never bothered to look at or experience before. I watched Peridot’s redemption arc and it changed my DNA. Anyway, the Collector certainly isn’t making an effort to redeem himself to anyone in particular, Luz doesn’t know who they are, but there is a noticeable change in attitude overtime. By the time Luz learns of their true nature they’ve become genuinely quite attached to the human, against all better judgment, so it’s really not a good look.

Okay that's all for now. Posts relating to this au in the future will definitely be shorter because it'll either be me exploring how certain events would play out or spouting random fun facts. See you then. :))

#collector's curse au #toh #the owl house #luz noceda #the collector #the collector toh #toh collector #toh luz #toh au #the owl house au #megalodonwrites

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iliveiloveiwrite · 3 years

Note

Hiii Hii!!! May I request for Draco🥺

Fluff prompt 3: "It's you. It's always been you."

Steams scenes 6: "Touch Me"

And miscellaneous 12: only one bed AU

Thank youuu❣️

Travelling Companions // Draco Malfoy

a/n: NSFW - minors DNI. FEMALE READER. 2k words (not really a blurb anymore), and the fic that has inspired my latest series so pieces of this will be taken and used there that’s why this may feel very rushed. The series will be slower.

Fluff 3: “It’s you. It’s always been you.”

Steamy Scenes 6: “Touch me.”

Misc 12: only one bed.

Upon the end of the Second Wizarding War and the disgrace of his family, Draco Malfoy left the country. There was very little keeping him tied to England; a family torn apart by their beliefs, a cold house that was not a home, an inheritance built off the very hatred pedalled by his father.

No, Draco Malfoy did not want to stay in the country.

Similarly, you refused to stay at home too. Having seen the lifeless bodies of your friends, the nightmares had become too much for you to remain at home. Instead, you packed up your things, kissed your parents on the cheeks, promising to send them a postcard from every destination.

It’s in Italy where the two of you cross paths.

The night was unusually warm; sweat rolling down your back as you walked through the thick crowds on the Ponte Vecchio. You had no distinct aim of your night; happy to wander until the early hours of the morning, falling into your bed with very little to think about other than your plans for the following day.

It’s as your dodging multiple bodies that you spy a shock of blonde hair that you swear was familiar.

“Draco?” You call, watching the tall figure pause, “Draco Malfoy?”

The blonde turns at the sound of your voice.

“Of all the people to meet in Florence,” You smile, “What are you doing here?”

“An extended gap year as the muggles would call it,” He answers, looking mildly uncomfortable at being recognised abroad.

“Well,” You nod, “It was nice to see you, enjoy the rest of your travels.”

Draco nods, a small, polite smile on his face. He doesn’t say anything to which you turn away, continuing your journey across the bridge in the hopes of finding something to eat and soon.

“(Y/N)!” Draco calls after a moment.

You turn back to the man, finding him only a few steps behind you. His eyes are bright, cheeks flushed as he asks, “What are your plans for tonight?”

“I was going to get some food and then walk about aimlessly. Why?”

“Can I join you?” He asks; the words leaving his mouth in such a rush that Draco looks shocked at the speed. “What I mean to say is: would you like some company? It would be nice to catch up with a friendly face.”

“Of course,” You laugh, “You’re more than welcome to join me.”

Draco falls into step beside you as you wander the length of the bridge, both eagerly looking for a restaurant to catch up in.

Conversation flows naturally with the blonde, as does the laughter and the wine. You reminisce over the lighter days of your education, as well as sharing countless stories of your travels, finding yourself enjoying Draco’s company far more than you expected.

“Where are you going to next?” Draco asks, grey eyes inquisitive as he sips at his red wine.

“Greece,” You answers, “I’m island hopping for a little while. I’ve heard stories of an island that feels like the end of the world, and I want to check it out. Where are you off to next?”

“Greece, if you can believe it,” He answers, topping up your wine glasses with the dregs of the bottle.

“I’ve a proposition for you, Malfoy,” You announce over your refreshed glass of red wine. “I’ve grown tired of travelling alone, I miss conversation and company. We’re both travelling to Greece next – why don’t you join me?”

Draco ponders your proposition through his next bite of food, weighing up the pros and cons through a mouthful of Tagliatelle Funghi Porcini e Tartufo. “Alright,” He eventually says, wiping his mouth on a cloth napkin, “I’ll join you. I’ve grown lonely on my travels too.”

Your shoulders sag as Draco’s words wash over you. It had become lonely travelling alone, that much was true, but you couldn’t shake the feeling that you were meant to run into Draco tonight. That there was something bigger at play.

-------

The Ionian Islands were beautiful; travelling with Draco at your side made it easier for you to rest at night, no longer plagued by nightmares as often, but it gave you someone to talk to when the night had been bad.

Kefalonia held its own charm; its quiet punctuated only by the clinking of wine glasses on the wine tours shared with Draco.

Your time on the Ionian Islands had you seeing Draco in a different light; the sun had bronzed his skin and you couldn’t help but stare when his shirt came off at the beach. Something was changing between the two of you; the both of you lingering on a night, not wanting to be the one to say good night, not wanting to be the one to draw it all to a close.

You could only hope that things would change soon.

---------

“Are we staying in the port?” Draco asks, eyeing you carefully as you hold your hand out for a taxi. Wearing black slacks and a white t-shirt, Draco was unintentionally drawing the attention of most women and men in the port of Skiathos

“Nope,” You answer as the taxi pulls up beside you both, “We’re staying in Troulos.”

The hotel was a small, family run establishment that you had read about in one of the many travel guides bought before you left England. Draco leaves you to check in, letting you admire the scenery as you wait patiently for him to return.

The owner is the one to lead you both through the hotel, smiling politely at you as he leaves you outside your room, explaining the opening times for the bar and the pool.

“There’s only one bed, Draco,” You state obviously as you enter the room, pointing to the bed in offence.

“I noticed,” He deadpans, fixing you with an unimpressed look. “Look, I’m not sleeping on the tiled floor. So, we either share, or you sleep on the floor.”

“Ever the gentleman,” You drawl, arching a single eyebrow. Draco smirks as he bows; the motion executed perfectly, highlighting his very expensive etiquette lessons as a small boy. “Fine,” You huff, dropping your bag onto the bed, “We share, but I’m warning you now, Malfoy, I hog the blankets.”

“I wouldn’t expect anything less,” The blonde snorts, wandering to the bathroom where you hear the shower begin to flow.

Settling down on the bed, you press a hand to your forehead, already sticky with sweat. Your stomach turned with butterflies as you think of the night to come, sharing a bed with Draco. The feelings for the man had surprised you; you hadn’t expected to feel anything for him, simply happy to have company on the last leg of your travels, but here you were – craving his touch and his attention as if it were your lifeline.

The shower turns off, and you jump up, grabbing your toiletries in an effort to give you something to do to draw your mind from the sight of Draco in a towel.

“I’m going to shower and get ready, and then we’ll go get some food, okay?” You call out, pushing past the blonde as he leaves the bathroom in nothing, but a small, fluffy, white towel wrapped around his waist.

“I’ll be waiting!” Draco calls out, laughter rich in his voice.

As you sink against the bathroom door, it’s then that you realise, you’re fucked.

-------

It became a quick tradition on your travels with Draco that you would alternate who would pick the restaurant that evening. As you chose where to eat the previous night, it was now Draco’s turn.

The restaurant he chooses is quaint, set off just from the main road running through that part of the island. It’s fairly busy, many families laughing and drinking through the evening.

The waitress hands you the menus, her eyes lingering on Draco a little bit too long for you to feel comfortable. You smile politely as you give her your drink orders, immediately feeling awful for the curtness of your tone when you had no claim to the man sat next to you.

Food is ordered and conversation continues to flow, but you find yourself caught up in the way that Draco makes you feel. Every glance, every smile, every unintentional touch – it leaves you close to breathless with butterflies raging in your gut and your heart close to pounding out of your chest. You had never felt like this, and your poor heart could only hope that Draco felt the same.

When the food arrives, it doesn’t take long for you to gush over the meal. “You have to try this!” You cry out as you take your first bite of your meal, gathering another forkful for Draco. “It’s wonderful!”

Holding your fork out, you expect Draco to take the utensil from you, but he doesn’t. Instead, he leans in, his lips wrapping around the fork in a manner that leaves you hungry for something that certainly wasn’t food.

“What do you think?” You ask huskily, throat dry.

Draco chews, pondering over the food. A smirk gathers on his lips as he swallows, “Delectable.”

The both of you fall silent as your meals are finished; the only sound between you being the scraping of cutlery on plates, but you cannot help but wonder whether Draco can hear the pounding of your heart every time he smiles at you, or whether he can sense the change in your feelings as you yearn for him silently.

“You were jealous – of the waitress – weren’t you?” Draco’s voice sounds, breaking your reverie. Blinking, you find him watching you with a curious look on his face.

“Yes,” You confess in a single breath, shifting your gaze from Draco’s, fiddling with the napkin in front of you.

“There was no need.”

“Oh?”

“It’s you,” He breathes, tucking a strand of your hair behind your ear, “It’s always been you.”

“Take me back to the room, Draco,” You whisper, leaning into his touch.

Draco wastes no time paying the bill, whisking you from the restaurant and down the road to your hotel.

The door slams against the wall as you both fall into the room; hands pulling at clothing, lips attached save for the breathy laughter filling the room. He tastes of the anise instilled into the Ouzo shared at dinner; his lips fit seamlessly against yours as he backs you through to the bedroom, his hands wandering – memorising every dip and curve of your body.

Draco lays you out on the bed gently as if worried of hurting you in some form or another.

“What do you want?” Draco asks, grey eyes bright in the muted light of the room.

“You,” You state, sitting up on the bed, pressing your hands to the man’s bare chest, scraping your fingernails down his pale skin.

Draco shivers at your touch, barely repressing the low groan growing in the back of his throat. “Where do you want me?” He hums, not giving you the time to answer the question as he begins his onslaught of addictive kisses.

“Here?” He purrs, kissing your jaw. “Or here?” He asks, dropping a feather light kiss to your neck, pushing you back onto the bed. “What about here?” Draco teases, pressing blazing kiss after blazing kiss down the centre of your cleavage to the top of your underwear leaving you a wanton mess as you writhe underneath him.

“Darling,” He whispers, “What do you want from me?”

“Touch me,” You all but beg, reaching for the blonde’s hand, fitting it where you need him most.

It’s then that all self-control Draco had snaps; his hand slips into your underwear, fingers slipping through your slick folds. The gasp that leaves your mouth is swallowed by Draco’s lips, his teeth tugging on your bottom lip as he wrings every single ounce of pleasure from your body.

No nightmares are had that night; finding peace in each other as you sleep wrapped up together in the one bed.

#draco malfoy x reader #draco x reader #Draco Malfoy #draco malfoy smut #draco smut #draco malfoy fanfiction #moments with millie #draco malfoy blurb #blurb night #draco malfoy imagine #draco malfoy imagines

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scarlettscribbles · 4 years

Text

she used to be mine

- Anthony Bridgerton & TwinSister!Reader

Tags: 4k words - 3rd person POV, sibling fluff, family fluff, Anthony/Siena (not the main focus), Anthony is a soft boi when it comes to you (the softest, in fact), mourning

Warning/s: a bit spicy at the beginning, mild injury, mention of blood, major character death

Summary: A question from Siena about love sends Anthony into the past; making him recall his memories of a sister long loved, but never forgotten. A story told in moments.

a/n: don’t mind me, just manifesting my angst and bridgerton needs >> titles from waitress the musical

i. it’s not simple to say

“What do you think about love?”

“Love? What’s this all of a sudden?” Anthony laughed. He captured between his hands Siena’s own and kissed it playfully, making her giggle. “What do I think about it, well. I love kissing you, touching you-” he planted a soft kiss on her collarbone as his hands trailed down her abdomen. “I love--”

“Okay, no stop. That is not what I meant at all!” Siena stilled his wandering hands, laughing. She snuggled closer until they were chest to chest. “Love with your friends, family,...women.” she waggled her brows at the last word.

“Women, hah.” Anthony cast his eyes upward. “The only women I’ve ever loved are my mother and five sisters.”

“You mean four.”

“What?”

“You have four sisters: Daphne, Eloise, Francesca, and Hyacinth if memory serves correctly. Unless your mother’s pregnant, which I believe is unlikely. My lord, did you perhaps miscount?” Siena teased.

“No, no.” he waved his hand, chuckling. “She…”

ii. i still remember that girl

She was born 9 minutes before him; the eldest Bridgerton. This was a fact she liked lording over him teasingly. She won many arguments by simply stating “I am the eldest Bridgerton and therefore…”

Sometimes he could still hear her say it in his head.

“Remind me why I’m accompanying you again?”

“Because I am your older sister and--”

“I should always agree to what you’re saying, blah blah. Oh this is so crowded! Why could you not just send a maid to fetch the book?”

“Well what’s the fun in that? Come on Tony, you’re being too slow! It will be nighttime when we arrive there and the book I wanted will be gone!” she moaned miserably, turning around and tugging on his hand to encourage him to make haste.

“You and your dramatics. Why is this book so important anyway?”

“It simply is. I need it for when I become the Viscountess.” she smiled at him, chin jutting out proudly. “I can’t wait to get Papa’s watch. I will get it right, as Viscountess? He will pass it onto me along with the title.”

“Uh no he won’t. I am the heir in case you have forgotten, sister.”

“But I am the oldest. We might be both 10 but I am 9 minutes older than you.” she argued, waving her pointer finger at him.

“Yes, yes you’ve said that like a million times now! But you’re a girl, so you can’t. You shall marry some guy, not that there are any worth marrying. Why just the today I saw the son of that family I cannot remember for the life of me, doing something horrendous! I think it would be better for you to stay away from any and all men.” Anthony paused, realizing that he was - or is soon going to be - one of those men. “Except for me and Papa, of course.”

She merely looked at him in amusement. “Pish posh.” his twin huffed, eyes glinting in the sunlight. “I’m not going to exchange my ambitions for some mere man. You shall see Tony, I will have that watch. Now come on!” she dropped his hand and gathered her skirts, ducking and maneuvering between the throng of people. Anthony felt a tinge of panic, seeing his sister slowly becoming engulfed by the crowd.

“Sister wait!” he started to chase after her. He saw the blue tail-end of her skirt when someone bumped into him. He whirled around to complain to whoever it was; however, he seemed to have miscalculated the strength of his spin and tripped, landing on his bottom. “Ow, hey watch it!” he shouted at the people who accidentally kicked him, not noticing his figure on the ground.

Anthony hissed as he dusted his pants. He examined the palm of his hand and noticed scratches from when he landed too roughly on the floor. There were spots of red slowly making its way down his hand, along with drops of water.

Oh. He was crying.

“Where are you?” his voice warbled. “Sister…”

Has she left him, truly? Surely not. His twin is many things but never cruel. She was tenacious, smart, and…

“Tony! I let you out of my sight for a second and - goodness!” She ran over and knelt in front of him, glaring at the people who would come too close. They parted for her, giving them a wide berth. “Here, take my handkerchief. We should get home and wash your hands. We don’t want it to be infected. And your clothes are a mess, Mama is going to have a fit. Come now,”

“But your book?” he sniffed.

“Eh, I can get it some other time.” she smiled and patted his cheeks. “Don’t cry now, sister’s got you.”

...kind. She was kind.

iii. reckless just enough

Anthony was sulking. Not that he’d let anyone know. Papa had gotten angry with him. It wasn’t even a big thing. He simply...borrowed his watch to look at it. Anthony thought maybe he could figure out what made his twin so interested in it. It was a plain thing, nothing special maybe besides the monogram. He didn’t mean to drop it from the stairs. He really didn’t. He heard his name being called for lunch and he jolted.

He got a dressing down from Papa with his siblings present; Benedict and Colin in particular snickering at his plight. It was embarrassing. As soon as Papa dismissed him, he ran for his room, ignoring the calls of his twin.

Right now he was hidden beneath the curtains and behind his bookshelf. Did Papa really have to scold him at the lunch table? Anthony buried his face between his hands.

“You didn’t eat.”

Anthony banged his head on the wall when he looked up too fast.

“Are you okay?” his twin asked him, smiling amusedly. She carried with her a plate with bread, cheese, ham and a slice of blueberry pie.

“Don’t laugh at me.”

“I’m not.”

“You’re smiling.”

“Laughing and smiling are worlds apart, Tony.” she shook her head and sat beside him, nudging him insistently until they were shoulder to shoulder. She slid the plate from her lap to his. “Eat.”

Anthony looked at her blankly. “Are you so distraught that you cannot eat? Do you want me to hand feed you like a child?” She made a motion as if she was going to grab the plate but Anthony shooed her hands away.

“I’m perfectly capable, thank you.” he stuffed a piece of bread in his mouth. “How’d you find me anyway?”

“Please swallow before you talk.” she said. “And, this is your room Tony. I’m simply using common sense.”

“Oh.”

“Yes.”

Anthony picked up the ham and cheese and continued eating. For a moment, they just sat there in comfortable silence.

“It’s unfair.” Anthony said, breaking the silence.

“What is?”

“Papa.”

“How come?”

“He was way too angry. I didn’t mean to drop his watch! And it wasn’t even broken. If it was, he could’ve repaired it easily.” he pouted.

“You could’ve also just asked him to look at it. You know, in his room. Where you can’t drop it from a height and possibly damage it.” she replied with a bit of sarcasm.

“Fine, yes, I could have.” he conceded. “I just don’t know why he was so angry.”

“It’s important to him.”

“It’s just a watch.” Anthony rebutted, pouting. His twin gave him a look that he knew meant “you look adorable but also stupid.”

“Nah.”

“No?”

“Nope.” she answered. “For one, it’s an heirloom. Heirloom is defined as -”

“I know what it means.” Anthony waved his hand. “Do go on.”

She gave him a faintly annoyed look which merely made him smirk. “I shall, and not because you told me to.” she cleared her throat. “The watch being an heirloom is just its value as a thing. There’s also the sentimental value. The memories and emotions attached to the watch. For Papa, he treasures it because it - probably - reminds him of grandfather and grandmother. Grandfather especially. Because he was the one to give the Papa the rights and responsibility for our family.”

“Is that why?”

“Why what?”

“I wanted to know what makes it so special for you.” Anthony shrugged. “You always talk about it, about getting the watch when we become older. I didn’t see the big deal. Is that why it’s so important to you too?”

“Yes, quite.” she answered. “I want to take care of our family, Tony. I know I can, I just do. I don’t want me to just be a wife. I’m meant for greater things. Also,” she grinned at him. “I want it so I could count down the seconds until I see you again.”

Anthony fake gagged, pretending to chuck the bread and cheese onto his twins’ lap. His twin scrambled away far from him and yelped. “You are disgusting! Mama! Anthony ruined the new dress that we just got!”

“I did not!”

“You were about to!”

iv. i was never attention’s sweet center

It was just a stupid, off-hand comment from Benedict. Anthony knew his brother meant no harm but still, the comment hurt.

“Maybe she truly should have your title, brother.”

Anthony was no stranger to her loud and obvious wanting to inherit the head of the house. In fact, he supported his twin. If Papa permitted it, he would gladly concede to you. However, it was unspoken between the twins the knowledge that Papa would never agree to such a thing; no matter how much he loved his eldest daughter.

Anthony was no stranger to her excellence either. While the both of them worked hard to set an example for their younger siblings. He always thought she was great at everything a girl should be and more. Though the ‘more’ part would never reach the ears of their mother or anybody else. Nobody should know that Anthony taught her how to sucker punch anybody that vexed her except maybe Benedict and Colin...also Eloise. That girl was far too curious and also far too attached to Benedict. Anthony thinks in the privacy of his mind that if she were a boy, there would be no quarrel that she’d get the title.

Other people also thought the same. Though they expressed it in a much less pleasant way, in words Anthony does not care for. They speak condescendingly. They speak of her gender with pity in their voices, their admiration twisted. They mention that her excellence should be toned down, that she should focus instead on things better suited to her. They speak of how inadequate Anthony is, how poor that a boy be overshadowed by a girl. They theorize how Anthony must hate her for taking all the spotlight. He hears all this, and she does too, seeing as they’re almost always attached at the hip. If it bothers her, she does not speak of it.

They speak of lies. Anthony thinks that her abilities suit her as they are and that no matter how bright she shines, it would never be something to be upset over. He basked in her light. They are wrong for thinking that she’s taking a piece of his life away when in truth, she completes it. Best friends, twins, soulmates; he loves her and she loves him. Still, their words leave a mark.

So when Benedict said that albeit in a teasing manner, Anthony just ran away. As he got older, he found it the preferable way to escape his problems. If he could not run to her then he must run away.

Anthony hugged himself as a strong breeze blew and made the unoccupied swing beside him rock.

“Tony.” And there she was. His twin was holding a book. She sat at the swing beside him.

There was silence. The only thing he could hear were the wind, the scuffling of his feet, and the soft sound of her flipping the pages.

“Sister,” she did not look up from the book but she hummed, signifying that he was heard. “Why did you come out here? It’s better to read inside, surely.”

“You’re upset. Of course I would come.” she said matter-of-factly.

“Did Ben tattle?”

“Ben? Tattle? His mouth is tighter than a woman’s corset when it comes to secrets.” she laughed lightly. “Surely you know better than that.”

“Yeah, I do.” he smiled. Since they were little, even if they were distances apart, both of them would always know - or at least had an inkling of - what the other was feeling. During their early years they chalked it up to magic but now they both just conceded it as a twin thing. “Actually, I don’t. Know better, I mean. Everybody seems to think so. Am I inadequate, sister? Dumb perhaps? I feel like I cannot do anything right sometimes! Compared to you I - “

His twin laid a hand on his shoulder. “Tony.” her brows were drawn and her lips pursed. “First of all, there is no comparison brother. I am me and you are your wonderful self. We are both excellent, please do not doubt yourself of that no matter what anyone says. And I know they say a lot. I’m just so used to tuning them out that I never considered that you might not do the same. I’m sorry.”

She stood up and drew him into a hug. Anthony’s arms stayed limp at his side. “People will flap their mouths because that’s what they do; say their opinions even though it’s unwelcome. If we tried to stop every single one of them, why I believe it’ll take all our lifetime and more!” she chuckled. “We cannot change them so we must change how much we’ll let their words affect us. Their words don’t matter at all! If I could, then I would shove those words back up their mouth and let them swallow it. Which I don’t know how to do. D’you suppose punching them would work just as well?” Anthony laughed wetly at her quip. It would work but it would also involve somebody calling Mama and Papa for her ‘inappropriate behavior’.

“What I know is this.” she grasped his shoulders and held them so she could stare at him in the eyes. Anthony met her determined gaze head-on. “You’re good enough Tony. Hell, you’re excellent.”

Anthony sobbed and quickly drew her into a fierce hug, his tears surely wetting her dress but he knew she didn't mind. “That is as sure as the sun that rises in the east. As sure as our family’s love, and ours for each other.”

v. bring back the fire in her eyes

It started with a cold. She had stayed up too long outside and now she’s bed-ridden. Anthony crossed his arms at the corner of the room as his younger siblings ran around. In his opinion there was too much ruckus for her to properly rest. However, Mama brought it up earlier and his twin just waved her concern away, stating that some liveliness will do her good. And who was Anthony to go against the wishes of his dear sister? It doesn’t mean that he has to like it though.

“No you’re the troll!” Eloise insisted.

“I was the troll last round!” Colin argued back.

“Now, now,” Benedict placated them both, then he glanced at Anthony in a way that promised mischief. “Why don’t we let Anthony be the troll then? He certainly looks the part with how grouchy he is.”

Daphne giggled. “And how he’s guarding his corner.”

“And how horrendous his face looks!” added Eloise.

Now he’s had enough. “You all look far too happy for someone who’s going to be troll food soon.”

“Troll wuh - AAH!” Eloise screamed as Anthony lunged at her. She took off with a sprint and soon the other Bridgertons followed as well, laughing boisterously. “Noo, Ben save me!”

“This is survival of the fittest -”

“Survival of the fittest your face!”

“Ehem.” Suddenly all motion stopped. Colin face-planted on the floor, caught by his momentum. All eyes went to the door where Violet Bridgerton stood along with a maid. She had a smile on her face coupled with a vaguely exasperated expression. “I’m glad you’re having fun but please take you playing outside. I need to tend to your sick sister.”

Various moans and complaints filled the room but only with a raise of their Mama’s brow, they filed outside the room, murmuring farewells and well wishes to the sole occupant of the bed. All except one. Anthony remained rooted at the side of his sister’s bed.

“Anthony, please.” Violet gently said. A complaint was on the tip of his tongue when a hand laid on his bicep. He looked at his sister, looking frail among the covers but she merely smiled and shook her head.

“I’ll be fine Tony.” she said. “Go and check that our siblings haven’t set the house ablaze or anything.”

For a moment, both of them just stared at each other. A silent conversation passing between them both. Anthony sighed. “Get well.” he bent over to press a kiss to her forehead. “I’m not sure I alone will be enough to stop them from doing that.”

She laughed. “You will be.”

vi. sometimes life just slips

It was only supposed to be a cold. A cold.

Someone almost barreled through Anthony as he, Benedict, Colin came through the door. “Whoa!” he exclaimed as the maid said a rushed apology. Everyone in the house seemed to be in a mad dash. He exchanged looks with his brothers, who were as clueless as he.

“Anthony!” came the panicked voice of Eloise. He held her shoulders and looked over her for any harm of some sort that caused her to panic.

“What’s wrong?” he asked. Anthony was surprised to see her looking up at him with teary eyes. Eloise is looking at him like how she used to when she was much littler, pleading to Anthony. Believing with all her might that her older brother will make everything okay. He looked behind her to Daphne who was pursing her lips.

“Oh God, is someone dead?” Colin quipped, then promptly made a punched-out noise as Benedict elbowed him.

“Sister, she - “

“She’s dead?!” Colin cried.

“No!” Daphne growled, irritated. “She’s just...in pain. Mama and Papa sent for doctors.”

“Goodness, how serious is this cold? - Anthony, wait!”

Anthony didn’t hear Benedict’s call. How could he over the thumping of his racing heartbeat? He ran upstairs like the devil was on his tail, and even then he felt like he was too slow. He paused at her door, psyching himself to open it. If he went in, what would he see? He raised his trembling hands, the complaints of his siblings nothing but a faint echo.

The doors burst open and out came two elderly men and one woman. The siblings crowded around them. Anthony could only hear snippets as he zeroed in on you. Mama was kneeling beside his twin’s bed, holding her daughter’s hand tight to her chest.

“The young miss will be fine -”

“We expect her fever to break -”

“Dear.” Anthony jumped, startled. The woman accompanying the doctors addressed him. “Are you okay?”

“My - my twin sister, will she be alright?”

“Twin, huh. That’s why you’re so distraught. Well all of you are but you in particular,” she shook her head and smiled. “Your sister is strong. She will be fine. You can go in. I’m sure she’ll be glad for your company.”

She need not say it twice. Anthony ran into the room.

“Sister.”

“Tony.”

He felt like he could breathe again.

vii. rewrite an ending or two

“Are you sure you don’t want to get up here? We shared a bed when we were little. And when we grew, sometimes.” she paused, thinking about her statement. “Often.” his twin amended.

Anthony hummed when she stopped running her hands through his hair. “No.”

“The ground is cold, Tony. You might get sick.”

“How could I? You already took all the sick with you.” Anthony grumbled. “I’m fine, sister.”

“If you say so.”

“How about you?” Anthony asked.

“Hmm?” she smiled. Facing down and in the darkness, Anthony couldn’t have seen it but he felt it. “I believe I will be.”

viii. she is gone, but she used to be mine

It was a miserable day in spring when the eldest Bridgerton was buried.

ix. most days i don’t recognize me

“She…” Anthony clenched his jaw.

“Are you ever going to finish that sentence?” Siena asked, smiling until she noticed how tense he was. She reached out to touch his arm, inquiring, “My lord, are you alright?”

Anthony sniffed and quickly stood up, hastily picking up his clothes. “Yes, fine.” he answered, hopping on one foot to put his shoes on. “I’m fine. I’m fine.”

“Where are you off to in such a hurry?” Siena asked. Anthony barely spared a glance at her, pausing shortly halfway out the door. He checked his watch, eyes glazing over for a moment.

“I need - I’m needed. At home.” With that, he briskly walked outside and into his carriage. It was today. He must’ve forgotten. How could he have forgotten? But he also ‘forgot’ the other years. The grief consumed him on this particular day. It was always a sore reminder that he was missing his other half. So instead of going to her grave, he went drinking. Instead of spending the day with her in his mind, he spent it with his cock inside somebody. Anthony spent so much time forgetting but now it’s as if her ghost had come to haunt him. Every memory had come rushing back, especially the day she died.

He remembered the night before. The doctors had told them she would be better. She told him she would be better. But he needed to stay close to her. Anthony fell asleep with her hand in his hair. Then he woke up to her eyes open but her breath was gone. He had never screamed so loud in his life.

Anthony remembered their parents barging into the room, Mama taking a step back looking as if she was seconds away from fainting. Then she saw her son on the floor and immediately enveloped him in her arms. He woke up in a bed sometime during the night. He woke up convinced it was all a dream but that promptly shattered when all his siblings (all except one) filed into the room in their sleepwear. Their eyes were swollen and wet. And it stayed that way until her funeral, and even some more after that.

The carriage stopped. Anthony got out and stopped at the gate. He knew Mama held some kind of family gathering during this day. What they did in the gathering, he had no idea. He never stayed long enough to attend. But today was different, somehow.

He padded softly into the drawing room. A quick glance noted him of all his siblings’ presence. Francesca was playing a familiar tune. Colin was singing in a low tone. Benedict, Eloise, and Daphne were all sitting on one couch, leaning against each other. The youngest ones sat on the floor, trying to follow the lyrics Colin sang. Mama was sewing. The melancholy vibe was replaced with a startled one. Francesca stopped playing and Colin stopped singing. Mama dropped what she was holding and walked towards him, arms open.

Anthony crumbled. “Mama -”

x. for the girl that i knew

“Mama what do you think about love?” It was indeed a bleak day in spring. Everybody had left after the service but Anthony chose to stay, lingering.

“Anthony I -” Violet began.

“Why does it hurt so much?” he whirled around, uncaring as tears and snot fell messily down his tired face. “I feel as if someone carved an unfillable hole inside me. Like every breath I take is not right. Half of me is buried six feet underground, mama. How can I bear it?”

Anthony curled into himself as Mama enveloped him into her arms. “One day at a time, dearest. You have us still.” she whispered. “One day at a time.”

[fin.]

#anthony bridgerton #bridgerton tv #bridgerton netflix #fanfiction #bridgerton fic #sister!reader #reader-insert #anthony bridgerton & sister!reader #twinsister!reader #oneshot #sibling fluff #fluff #bridgerton x reader #anthony bridgerton x reader #scarlettscribbles

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dragonsareourfuture · 3 years

Text

I Don’t Belong Here — L Lawliet/GN! Reader

Summary: What kind of a story begins with the main character dying? Well, this one. L Lawliet has lived out his days on earth and finds himself in the afterlife. The Good Place, he is told by a neighborhood architect named (Name). One who shows him around his own neighborhood and introduces him to new people. But something doesn’t add up, L notices. Does he really belong in the Good Place?

(I'd advise having knowledge on the TV show "The Good Place" if you wish to understand the majority of this clusterfuck. Although, if you wish to proceed regardless, go right ahead!)

Chapter One: L Lawliet, You Are Dead.

Weclome! Everything Is Fine.

Everything is fine? Is that so?

The last thing L remembers is the ceiling. Just…the ceiling. The fans twirling on the ceiling of the headquarter building and the cross hatching of the tiles. It was peaceful. Was he sleeping? If he had been sleeping, then how did he end up here?

Now, instead of the ceiling, he stares at a wall. Big, green letters stare back at him. “Welcome! Everything Is Fine,” they say. Something inside L is prickling, like something he is forgetting struggling to find its way to his brain. He wants to ponder it, but something about the words splayed out on the wall in front of him is telling him that he doesn’t have to. Everything is fine, after all.

He only manages to tear his eyes away from the bold, sans serif font when the sound of a doorknob turning catches his attention. Huh. Has there always been a door there? If so he hadn’t noticed it, which L thinks is completely absurd as he usually takes mental notes of everything in a room before getting himself seated. But there it is, a door he missed while transfixed on the somehow calming message on the wall, now opening to reveal...a person.

You stand in the doorway, simply smiling.

Now that L’s attention has been drawn away from the mystifying message he can properly analyze his surroundings, and his new visitor. He’s in a rather simple room, nothing but a few plants dotting the perimeter and a couch in the middle, which he is currently sitting on. And he’s sitting normally. Hm. That feels…itchy. L inches a foot onto the couch in his discomfort of sitting with his bottom planted firmly on the cushions with both feet on the ground. Though he hesitates to bring both feet up and hug his knees to his chin as he normally would, because he senses that your sudden presence means he is about to be standing and following you into that mysterious room behind you. Like a doctor calling a patient into an appointment. Except in this case L has no idea what you are, and judging by your suit and comical, colorful bowtie, you are certainly not a doctor.

“L?” you ask, showing your teeth in a kind smile. “Come on in.”

And against his better judgement, he does. L was never the person to simply keep quiet and obey orders in a situation he does not understand. And there certainly is not a whole lot of understanding happening in his brain right now. He should be asking questions. He should be refusing you. He doesn’t know you, you could be leading him to his doom. All this is possible but something about the way you smile at him…like those big, green words, all he reads from you is “Everything Is Fine.”

The room that you lead him into doesn’t look all that much like a death trap, but you can never be sure. It’s a simple office, plants similar to the ones in the waiting room sit in pots in the corners and on the windowsill. The sun shines outside, seeping through the glass and illuminating the desk on the left as you walk in. On it are a few little trinkets, paperweights, and, right in the middle, a manila file folder.

You circle around the desk and settle yourself into the rollaway chair, gesturing to the sleek armchair across from you. “Why don’t you have a seat, hm?”

What is wrong with him right now? You ask him to do something and he just…does? What happened to his spine, other than it bending exponentially thanks to the way he sits?

No matter, there are more important things to think about right now. Like the fact that he might finally be getting some answers.

You open the file in front of you and skim whatever’s written, opening your mouth to say something when your eyes meet his. And then they drift down to his legs. You stare at him curiously with your mouth still agape for a few moments at how his knees are pulled up to his chin, eventually shaking your head and getting back on track.

“My name is (Name), and of course I already know yours.” you say, folding your hands in front of you. “So, how are you, L?”

How should L even answer that?

“I’m…confused, mostly. How are you?”

Your eyes light up, as if you haven’t been asked that in a while. “Oh, well I’m fine. Y’know, busy, but fine! And, yes, I’d assume you’d be confused, everyone in your situation usually is.”

“My situation? What exactly do you mean by that?” Now that L has finally asked one question he can’t seem to stop the ball from rolling “Speaking of you, who are you exactly? Actually, never mind who, but where—“

You hold up a hand. “All of your questions will be answered, I promise. There’s just one thing that you need to know before we tackle any of that.”

“And what is that?”

Your eyebrows lift slightly, elbows digging into the surface of your desk as you lean forward. You look like you’re about to tell him that he’s fired. That his dog died. That some kid took the last of the strawberry shortcake and he’s going to have to settle for carrot cake. What comes out of your mouth is much worse.

“L Lawliet, you are dead.”

…

He’s…?

Yes. Yes, he is. That’s why he doesn’t remember how he got here.

He’s dead. Huh.

L is perfectly content in not saying anything about this new little factoid, but you’re looking at him expectantly, and a little cautiously. Like you either expect him to punch you or burst into tears. L wonders if that fear is based on experience. How many other people have to told this to?

“…Am I, now? That’s a shame.”

You breathe out a sigh, which could be from relief. “Yes, it is. But, not to worry! Because you’ve ended up in the Good Place, L. You’re going to be okay.”

“So it’s called the Good Place?” L brings his thumb to his lips. “A rather simple thing to call it.”

You nod. “Pretty self-explanatory, right? We didn’t want anyone to get confused. There are just so many names for it on earth. Heaven, Valhalla, Nirvana…But it all translates to one place. Here. And you get to be a part of it.”

“That sounds…” Before he can articulate his thoughts, a dilemma from earlier brings itself to the forefront of L’s mind. “Wrong.”

“I’m sorry?”

“My memories are all wrong. Before this, all I can remember is the ceiling and nothing else. If I were to have died, surely I would remember it, yes?”

You take a gulp of air and pull the manila file closer to you. “We take it upon ourselves to erase the memories of death if they are particularly traumatizing or embarrassing. Helps the residents adapt into a peaceful afterlife better, I’m sure you understand.”

“Yes, that is perfectly sensible. Although I may ask, what is an example of a death that is not at all traumatizing?”

“Pfft, there hardly is one. You’d be surprised how many memories we have to erase.”

“On the contrary, I am hardly surprised. I’m sure there are plenty of people who cannot accept the nature of their death, let alone the fact that they have died in the first place.”

You sigh, “You’re tellin’ me. Most people come around once I tell them that they’re basically in paradise, but some won’t even listen to me once I break the news. One person tried to convince me I was the dead one! It’s just—oh, um, but that’s hardly the point.”

“Do you ever tell someone how they died if they ask?”

Your expression hardens. “I do, but I like to know that they’re certain before I tell them.”

“I am.”

Exhaling through your nose, you prop the manila folder up like a book, scanning the files inside. “Alright then. Let’s see here…ah, okay. So, unfortunately this one’s pretty traumatizing, it’s not really one of those embarrassing deaths that some people get a kick out of, so brace yourself.” You look over the top of the folder as if checking to see if he’s braced himself. His expression and stance is unwavering, large eyes merely staring back at you patiently. “You were betrayed by your colleague Yagami Light – also known as your adversary Kira – and killed by the Shinigami Rem at his request.”

Oh yeah. That.

The ceiling was not clear in view, no, there was something obstructing L’s view of it. A face, staring down at him as his heart gave out right on the floor. Brown eyes filled with such cocky maliciousness, the upward tilt of lips L only knew to spout lies. It all equated to a side of Yagami Light that L knew existed but had never seen up until his final moments. It all added up to one final conclusion -- Yagami Light was Kira all along. L had been right. But the price of knowing that for certain is that, now, there’s nothing he can do about it.

“I’m..I’m sorry. I never know what to do when I have to tell people…” you try, reaching across the table and planting a hand down in front of him. Not asking to hold his hand, not even expecting a reaction. Just showing that you’re there, and that you’re trying.

“It’s up to them now. I’ve done all that I could. I trust my successors.”

“In catching the murderer Kira, right?” you ask, to which L confirms with a polite utterance of ‘yes’. Obviously you know the answer. “I understand that is one of the many, many cases you’ve worked on during your lifetime.” you scan your eyes quickly down what appears to be a long list in your folder. Do you have every detail of his life in those files? Every case he ever took? Hell, every day in his life? You set the file down flat in front of you and look at him with something L determines is admiration. “You’ve done so much good in your lifetime, L. You’ve worked so hard over the entirety of your life to make sure you left the world a little better than you found it. Now…well, now you can rest.”

You can relax, you tell him. And it seems to simple coming out of your mouth yet somehow it still feels out of reach.

“I can…” Is all L manages to say, his preoccupation coming across as dreamy and wistful. His mind is busy running a mile a minute and his mouth just can’t keep up. L decides to test the words out on his own tongue to see if they still sound foreign, “I can rest now.”

Yeah, no, it still sounds like bullshit.

“Yes! Well, after the tour, of course.”

“Tour?”

You start to stand, straightening your colorful bowtie and circling around your desk to the door which you pull open. You don’t exit right away, though. You stand next to the exit, waiting for L to follow you. While he works on untangling himself from his current position you clarify, “A tour of the neighborhood! Where you’ll spend your afterlife.”

#death note #death note x reader #death note fanfic #the good place #the good place au #l lawliet x reader #x reader fanfic #x reader #reader insert #death note l #l lawliet

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reflections-in-a-critical-eye · 3 years

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BTS Documentaries and Ethics

The purpose of music documentaries is usually to put a spotlight on a particular artist, band or major event, with an aim to cast a light into the behind the scenes. It can be intimate, offering fans a glimpse into the thoughts of their favorite artists. It can be expository, which is the main category of music documentaries, like No Direction Home, Gaga: Five Foot Two, Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, or it can take other shapes in order to tell a story differently than what is the norm, like Scorsese's Rolling Thunder Revue, a mockumentary that used footage from Renaldo and Clara, a film shot by Bob Dylan in the 70s while on tour, slightly altering some facts which would be caught on only by hardcore fans. Another example, which is a favorite of mine, would be 20.000 Days on Earth, which was a musical-documentary which portrayed a fictional day in the life of Nick Cave.

Turning to BTS now, their documentaries are expository, focusing on their tours, beginning with 2017. Burn the Stage is frankly quite relevant as compared to others as it was also the first one released. It's relevance is in showing the band on tour and also how they work. Not only that, it revealed on camera something which is absolutely normal, that is disagreement and honestly, it made it all more real. Not only that, it worked in terms of a documentary structure, that glimpse of conflict. Besides that, it showed some hardships and hard truths about the effect of such a tour and what a hectic work schedule can do to an individual. It's interesting to note that in the BTS case the purpose of a music documentary it's not the usual one. Fans don't really need to wait for it in order to find out more about the band, since BTS has had an online presence ever since the beginning, exposing part of their work life as much as they could. Either way, Burn the Stage had all the elements of a classic on the road documentary that managed to offer information that was not usually revealed up until then. I will not delve too much into the rest of the releases, as they're not at the same standard and over the years, not only it became a bit repetitive, it did not offer a ''realness'' like in the first one, a lot of footage was recycled, as it was used for other DVDs.

What my focus is on today is the question of ethics in documentary practices and I will talk about what was shown in Burn the Stage, specifically the parts of Jungkook getting sick, as this is an issue that was talked about a lot with many divisive opinions. My point stands for all similar instances in the BTS documentaries.

Documentary ethics is a very vast topic of discussion and a very complicated one, to say the least. A filmmaker has to think about what is considered to be necessary to get a story, how close can they get, is it ok to film some things, what impact it has on its subject, is it too intrusive? Or who benefits from it all? A filmmaker may say it benefits the subject or a certain community, depending on the topic, but it also benefits the filmmaker, as they can make money out of it, get some prestige if the documentary is part of film festivals, receives awards or it's shown on a major tv network. Or simply, money out of sold DVDs. There can be differences between what a filmmaker thinks and deems to be right, his subject and his audience. The first two can negotiate the lines of what is acceptable and come to an agreement and in some cases, a filmmaker spends years documenting, showing the subject what they have, what is their direction, getting their approval, while still maintaining artistic autonomy. It cannot be said the same thing when it comes to the audience, as there can be differences between what they think it's (un)ethical and the filmmaker's own position. I recommend this article that tackles this subject and the interesting part was the one that answered the question if the subject is to be treated differently, depending if they are average people of famous people:

“We say this to everyone at the beginning, we say you’re going to see this film before it’s done. You can see it when it can still be changed. We’re going to try to convince you that we need you in this movie; that it’s important for the story that it’s good for society in general to tell this story, and why your part of it is so important. At the end of the day, if I can’t convince you we’ll take you out of the movie.”

Quinn then went on to explain that the rules that apply to an average person, might not apply to someone who is already famous.

“If they’re already famous, they already have agency in the world,” Quinn said. “We want to get the facts right of course, and if it’s really something that bothers you or that you’re not happy with, you’re going to be listened to. But at the end of the day it has to be my decision.”

This doesn't mean there is a complete disregard towards someone just because they are famous, but the lines are drawn a bit differently when someone is a public figure and has consented to being filmed and appear in a documentary.

Now, how do all these ethical questions work on that particular part in Burn the Stage? When it comes to a documentary, in the best case scenario, the subjects consent to being filmed, they sign a contract. If there's something that should definitely not be seen, that part does not end up in the final cut or simply, not being filmed. As an audience, we have the outsider's point of view, which means we cannot possibly know what kind of discussions or agreements have taken place. The logical option is to understand that in that particular moment when Jungkook was sick, he more likely had not even payed attention to the camera as being intrusive. Not just because of the state he was in, but also because the camera is always there, ever since the beginning. If, after the entire situation, he would want that footage to not be included, he could have had the option to say so, but since that was not the case, we can assume that he consented to it. Of course we could come up with a bunch of scenarios, but that is too much speculation about information that we are simply not privy to so there's no point in going into that direction.

As I mentioned above, the way in which an audience perceives something shown in the documentary could be different than what was the filmmaker's intent, or in this case, also Big Hit. Before I proceed I would like to mention that when it comes to such situations we have to ask ourselves: is it gratuitous or it's there to reflect a reality? The purpose of the documentary was to show life on tour. It means that in such a work environment and given their profession, accidents can happen, people can get sick. It's not uncommon. And if the point is to show reality, then it makes sense that the decision was to film and include that particular situation. But why is there such a strong reaction to it? Is it because of the emotional connection fans have with the person being filmed? This is one answer and it's to be expected (I'm not judging it). Would this reaction be the same if the documentary was about a random average person? We should ask ourselves that, especially when we question intent because it's only fair that the audience as well can be aware of their own bias or preconceived notions.

#bts #bts discourse #bts documentary #burn the stage #documentary ethics

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