#MY SPINEL CAME FIRST

[spaciebabie]

spinel is so jaspercore

[yogurthoopsart]

Blacked out. when I woke up this was on my computer. I swear there's a legitimate thought process behind the choices here. (which i'll list under the readmore so i don't drown you in my paragraphs)

I haven't thought about how the logistics of the game story would work or anything. But. I'm sure ill think of something/do sketches of them at some point.

(Design fun facts below)

Huggy Wuggy and Kissy Missy are quartzes (amethyst and rose quartz respectively) bc they came off to me as normal soldiers. In my mind the mini wuggies are rubies. They were also the hardest to design bc there is Nothing in SU that looks remotely like the wuggies so it just looks like OC quartzes. It's fine im fine.

Mommy Long Legs was the first one I drew and the one that inspired me to do the whole crew because I saw long legged pink woman and thought of spinel. Easy. Her gem is also on her lower torso bc she only dies when that part of her is crushed in-game.

Catnap is a pearl, and so are the rest of the smiling critters. It's the subservience catnap has towards the prototype AND the fact that there's a lot of them ("thousands of pearls being flaunted about on homeworld"). Also something something Canon Pearl being able to control sand/fog = catnap controlling the red smoke.

Poppy is an off color aquamarine. She was going to be a sapphire to make her important enough to keep in a case before i figured her body type matched the aquamarines better.

Miss Delight is a cracked Yellow Agate. Agates are the closest SU comes to having a "gem teacher" since Holly Blue fills the role of like... a boarding school matron?

The Prototype is a cluster whose base is a diamond. It takes shattered gems and fuses them to itself. Under the black glove is a hand that looks a bit like the canon cluster.

[zobiez]

I put this off for such a long time lmao

the first Spinel dump was posted all the way back in 2020 and I started this one not long after, but then the Procreate file went untouched for a couple of years because I was preoccupied with other art projects

I didn't get to finish this one for the Steven Universe movie anniversary last year, and so the WIP file for it was just sitting there in my procreate files for a while

so I decided to finally finish this a couple of months ago but when my iPad broke, that complicated everything lmao so I had to export it as a Photoshop document so that I could finish it on Paint Tool SAI using my laptop you'll notice that a few of the Spinels in this art dump look kinda different, that's because the sketches they came from are super old and my style changed a little since then thank god I finally finished this haha :')

The first post!:

[eco-lite]

Finally got to read Volume 6! I didn’t think anything could top Volume 4, but this one is a very close contender for my favorite. Here are my unedited thoughts:

“Sinhalite Beckons, Part 1”

* An extra case first??? Okay then.

* Who is this female version of Seigi? This is hilarious, they’re way too similar!

* Very curious where in the timeline this story takes place…

“The Wandering Conch Pearl”

* WAIT WTF?? That was Seigi’s dream? Did he dream of himself as a woman interacting with Richard in Sri Lanka??????

* Not the milkman omgggg.

* Oooh Richard’s assistant in Hong Kong. That’s probably the sleezy guy he was talking about in the last story. Can Seigi see into other peoples’ pasts now? Didn’t know there was going to be a supernatural element lol.

* “I couldn’t decide if I should serve tea or not, so my brain cells had a meeting and came to the unanimous conclusion not to” (34). I love Seigi so much. 😂

* “I couldn’t stop smiling. Richard thanked me. He said he thought I was dependable. His smile was beautiful enough to start, but boy, a direct hit from his charm sure packed a punch. I was glad he’s withdrawn to the back room, because I was pretty sure my face wasn’t going to go back to normal for a while” (42). Oh, honey… 😌

* Wow, I did not think I would be learning so much about post-WWII politics between Japan and the Dominican Republic from this series, but here we are.

* This conversation between Richard and Seigi from page 62-67 is all over the place. Richard shutting Seigi down when he invites Richard over, but obviously still wanting to let Seigi in. And he ends up asking Seigi to dinner even though he just made the argument that Seigi should go home and go to bed early. And then he gets frustrated that Seigi is being so amenable to going out to dinner with him?? Bro, get your emotions together! You of all people should know that Seigi is not a mind reader. Let him know how you feel, for fuck’s sake!

* “To me, Richard’s beauty was like Mount Fuji at sunrise or the windswept sand dunes in a desert. Anyone else’s beauty was…very human. When I looked at Richard, I felt a mysterious calm, like if I were looking at a lake or the sky or the sea. Normal human features weren’t even in the same category. But if I said any of that out loud, I was pretty sure I’d offend literally everyone” (67). Yes, would would offend literally everyone. You’re learning, Seigi!

* “To have someone look upon the grain of truth hidden within the most tender part of yourself, and tell you their unvarnished opinion of it—I thought that would, without question, be cause for joy” (69). Okay well then you better tell Richard how you feel about having to leave Étranger in the next story, Seigi! Expose that grain of truth!!

“Resplendent Spinel”

* Seigi is really too nice. Filling in for someone in a club where you don’t know any of the other members? Could never be me.

* Ayame describing the “insincere drivel” her boyfriend spouts at her and Seigi’s reaction is “I felt like I was about to go into cardiac arrest” (93). 😅 Is he finally gaining some self-awareness about how ostentatious his compliments of Richard are?

* Ayame: “‘And if you think that a compliment can’t cut as deeply as an insult, you’re terribly naive’” (93). Seigi: “I felt like I’d been sent flying by a body blow” (94). Seigi is really going through it…

* “‘But you are different. Your words are different. When your words brush my face, it’s like a playful wind. With your absurd vocabulary, you are expressly telling me that my appearance brings you joy. It does feel a bit peculiar at times, but perhaps I find that peculiarity oddly endearing, Seigi.’ And then he smiled. I was struck dumb for a while” (96). Holy shit… 😳

* “‘I have a hard time understanding the nature of your love for me. It’s be a great help if you could give me a rundown, as if you were briefing me for a job’” (101). I wish Richard would ask Seigi to do this. But I think Seigi needs to complete his “self assessment” first. He doesn’t even understand the nature of his own love for Richard.

* Wow, Itagaki is actually pretty mature. Good for him.

* “‘Well, I just want you to know there has been a lot of diversity in body type in the industry lately, and I would love you even if you put on a hundred kilos, so don’t overdo it’” (110). It’s really nice to see a male character so adamant that his girlfriend shouldn’t have to worry about losing weight, especially since she’s in the entertainment industry. I hope we see even more diverse body types in Japanese entertainment in the future.

* I hope we get to see this “long talk” they’re going to have in the next story.

“Paraíba Tourmaline Romance”

* Omg Tanimoto is back! And she’s finally meeting Richard!! The two of them ganging up on Seigi is so funny.

* “Once again, it was Seigi Nakata versus the allied forces of Richard and Tanimoto. Honestly, I was probably the happiest if ever been in my life, but I was also just as embarrassed” (135). This is so cute.

* “‘I agree that romance might just be a stone I don’t know yet, but it feels so removed from me—like that planet made from diamonds orbiting a distant star. Maybe I just don’t have the courage for interstellar travel’” (153). This is so ace. I’m so so glad Tanimoto decided to be true to herself and not force herself into a romantic relationship she didn’t actually want. Sometimes you don’t need to experiment. You just know yourself. I’m so proud of her!

* Wow, I really teared up seeing Richard talk about queerness and fluctuations in identity so directly. I’m so happy Tsujimura had the courage to include frank conversations about queer issues. Richard’s perspective here truly is “like a spring breeze rushing through a window that no one remembered opening” (153).

* “‘What really matters is that you never forget that while you possess the potential to change, your present self continues to become your future self… I know it’s hard to decide what choice will be best for you, if I were in your position, I would not think forcing myself into a romantic relationship would be that choice… While dying on your feet is all well and good, one wrong step might make it nothing g more than foolhardy and reckless. And perhaps in the same way, a strategic retreat isn’t running away so much as it is a change of course’” (157). Ace ally Richard is so important to me. This is why he’s my comfort character.

* “‘When Seigi told me about this place, I thought it was a shop run by a foreign man who would show his customers wonderful gemstones. I see it’s actually a shop that provides kindness and comfort to those who see themselves as Étranger’” (158). fUCK.

* I’m so glad Seigi apologized for what he said to Tanimoto at the museum. I know it’s hard for him to let go of the fact that Tanimoto doesn’t feel romantic love since he has a crush on her, but I think he’s more understanding of her feelings now, thanks to the conversation with Richard.

* Omg Seigi and Tanimoto having a mature conversation about why they wouldn’t work out romantically. So nice to see. I think Tanimoto still kind of misunderstood why Seigi wanted to ask her out before, but that’s very on brand for her lol.

* “‘I feel like having you around has made me a better person than I was before’” (173). Richard!!! 💘💘💘

* Tanimoto defending Seigi and telling Richard to never hurt him again! I love her so much!

* I love this story so much! It was great to learn more about Tanimoto’s past and see her finally interact with Richard, who was just so thoughtful here. I can’t believe he felt bad for telling her not to worry about romantic love because he thought it might hurt Seigi. That’s sweet, but I’m glad he was true to himself and what Tanimoto needed to hear in that moment. And Seigi got just a bit more mature, too. I have such intense affection for everyone in this situation. But not Seigi’s father coming to ruin the vibes at the end. 🤬🤬🤬

“The Tanzanite of Rebirth”

* Seigi’s father is such a disgusting manipulator. I always say I want to learn more about Seigi, but learning how awful this man was to him and Hiromi, and how dark Seigi’s thoughts were at that time… How dark they are now… It’s really distressing.

* The fucking tonal shift from this melancholy last dinner together to Jeffrey showing up in the hotel room is so funny. For real though, what did Seigi think would happen when he followed Richard to his room?? 👀 But it’s really concerning that Seigi felt he had no choice but to follow Richard to his room. Obviously that’s Seigi’s extremely negative headspace talking, but please have some self-respect!

* “‘Maybe you’ve forgotten, but I spent a long time stalking you within the realm of what’s legal, of course. Obviously, I’ve repented of my actions—please, God, forgive me for my trespasses. And since I’ve repented, I hope you’ll forgive me for reoffending. It’s plain for anyone to see that something’s been eating at you’” (228). JEFFREY. It’s kind of sweet that Jeffrey has been keeping an eye on Seigi, but did he have to get this intense about it? This kidnapping situation is so chaotic lol. That is his style, though.

* “‘Why do you treat me like some rock on the side of the road? What do you think I am? A doll that’s not good for anything but being on display? I’ve been on this Earth longer than you have. I possess more knowledge than you, and I have enough free time to be able to afford to spend some on you. And yet you had the audacity to try to abandon me and walk off into the darkness. It’s beyond asinine and irrational’” (230). YOU TELL HIM, RICHARD! (Not to even mention Richard told Seigi he loves him just before this rant.) But I feel like Seigi could have said this exact speech when Richard ran away to England before. They both feel that the other should rely on them more, but wouldn’t want to be a burden. After the England debacle, Richard learned that it’s okay to rely on people who love you. Now Seigi has to learn that lesson too.

* “There was a large dam inside my heart, and what it was holding back wasn’t water but sludge. And I didn’t want any of that getting on Richard. It’s the sort of thing that you let out into a drainage ditch in secret” (232-233). Oh, honey, no. First of all, Richard is a human being who loves you and can withstand hearing bad things. You’re not tainting him. He’s asking you to trust him with this. Second of all, please go to therapy…

* It’s really concerning to see how Seigi thinks of himself as having the potential for violence against people he loves. It’s really common for witnesses of domestic abuse to think that way, but it’s so clear in Seigi’s actions that he could never do that. He has such a good heart. But he’s really clouded by dark thoughts from interacting with his father. It’s not like he was thinking this when he wanted to date Tanimoto. These thoughts resurfaced very recently. Thankfully Richard has done enough self-reflection to throw his own situation in Seigi’s face to show him how ridiculous he’s being.

* “‘You don’t think of me as normal or expected. You don’t think of me as tangible, something that is always by your side. That is why I remain someone distant and unreachable to you… You never attempt to close the distance between us. And you never allow me to pay your price, the affection, you are worth’” (243-244). Wow. This reflective Richard is extremely powerful…

* “The moment I realized that he had been watching over me and accepting me for who I was on a much deeper level than I could even have imagined, I felt like I’d been tossed into the middle of the ocean—it was salty, and I struggled to breathe. I was such a loser, such a thoughtless person, a timid child crying in the dark with his knees held tightly to his chest, and yet it felt like he took it all in and said that it was fine. But it wasn’t just a feeling, he believed in me, more than I could ever believe” (247-248). Yes, Seigi, that’s what you do when you love someone. You did the same for him.

* Omg punk Jeffrey?! I wish I could see all those photos Richard keeps as blackmail. 😂

* I’m glad Richard brought up “what floor?” Seriously, Seigi not feeling able to reject him was scary. For both of them, I think.

* Seigi’s stepdad is an absolute legend! King of positive masculinity! “‘I don’t think being strong or not has anything to do with whether you’re okay’” (272). Fuck yes. Hiromi did so well marrying this man.

* “‘I don’t want an apology, I want you to reflect on your behavior. I imagine you understand this by now, but your number-one assignment at the moment is learning to value yourself more’” (274). The fact Richard is able to say this to Seigi is a reflection of his own growth as well. I’m so glad they’re in each other’s lives. They make each other better. 🥹

* Seigi trying to tell Richard he wants to keep being around him even if he doesn’t work at Étranger anymore but it keeps coming out likes he’s proposing or asking him on a date. I think his first statement was the truest to how he feels: ‘“I want to be by your side from now on, if you’ll let me’” (280). I think Richard was ready to accept that as a proposal until Seigi made a bunch of qualifying statements lol.

* Wow, this story means so much to me. Everything that came out of Richard’s mouth was something both Seigi and I (and so many other people, I’m sure) needed to hear. Their relationship got so much deeper. And I can’t wait to see what shenanigans Seigi gets up to in this hotel lol. Especially if Richard is staying there as well. Very excited for the next volume. This one had better come out on time! 😤

“Sinhalite Beckons, Part 2”

* OKAY this is wild! I swear to god the person on the motorcycle in part 1 is Richard, but it seems to be Seigi now???? And he and Richard seem to live together in this nice house in Sri Lanka???????

* Omg she’s the sister of the airport lady from “Flourite By Your Side!” 😲 Glad she’s feeling better!

* Okay so it’s been three years? And there are pictures of the shop in Ginza and their families on the coffee table?? This is so fucking domestic. Is this their future???

* It’s refreshing to see someone call Seigi attractive for once! RIP Keiko’s love life though lol.

* “‘But you know, you really surprised me. You speak textbook-perfect English, but your Japanese sounds like someone from a local convenience store.’ I told him I thought is was a very interesting gap, and he smiled bashfully. ‘He always tells me that—“At this point, the language you might be the least eloquent in might be Japanese.” It is the one language he didn’t teach me, after all’” (301). This is so funny. And it’s making more sense why I thought Seigi was actually Richard in the first part. I can’t believe Seigi speaks English with a British accent! 😂

* Lol once again somebody’s first assumption is that Seigi and Richard are a couple, and it’s still not hard to see why. Love that Keiko immediately asked Seigi out after learning they’re not together, though. You go, girl! But Seigi’s heart belongs to someone else, huh? For real, please tell me he knows it’s Richard at this point!

* I find it so interesting that Tsujimura decided to show us this glimpse of Seigi and Richard’s future. What was the purpose?? It’s a fun and cute story, but not very satisfying if you’re routing for them to get together. And it weirdly feels like an ending even though I know there are at least two more volumes after this…

“Afterward”

* This isn’t a story but I need to record my reaction to the sentence “the first part of the story has now come to a close with Volume 6—though there is still more to tell.” 😲😲😲 Okay, I didn’t realize this story was in parts! Maybe “Sinhalite Beckons” is a way to transition into this new future chapter of Seigi and Richard’s life. 🤔

* Tsujimura actually knows a jeweler who taught them how to make royal milk tea lol. That’s adorable. They do say to write why you know.

* “It would make me very happy if you would keep me company on their journey for a little while.” Tsujimura, I am with you for the long haul. 🫡 Let’s do this!

[catboymoments]

are you planning on watching/have you watched steven universe future or the steven universe movie? sorta wanna know your opinions on them :)

Oh girl I already watched that the moment it came out a few years ago, TRUST. I was a HUGE Steven universe fan growing up, I’ve mostly just moved on to other shows but my love for su is still there!!!! I’ve been sick so rewatching my comfort show is on the agenda while I wallow on the couch and sniffle JFBAJFBSJ

I lovedddd the movie and SUF. oh my god. I need to rewatch SUF but rewatching the movie is what got me on this series rewatch train in the first place, Steven is so so cutiepie and I love how his issues were handled !!!!!! Also spinel is going on the kinlist

[the-himawari-otome]

[Shuuen no Virche]  The radiance of wishes and vows on Christmas Eve. Filling every connection with meaning - Ankou

<Original post here>

･ﾟ･:,｡★ translation under the cut ★,｡･:･ﾟ

When I was trying to think of a gift for you for Christmas Eve, the first thing that came to mind was a ring.

But then I was troubled for a moment.

One day, you will grow old—and your finger will become much thinner than that ring of connection.

However—what could I do?

My desire of wanting you to be happier than anything else... won me over.

Please—will you accept my feelings of anguish and love on your right ring finger? Princess.

...Beautiful, is it not? It's "un spinelle".*

...I hear it's called "spinel" in other countries.

—Haha. That's right. You can't help but be reminded of her, right?

But even before I learned of that fact from the jeweler.

Without a doubt, it was fate that the moment I saw this gem whose name I did not know—I reached my hand out and thought, "this is it".

Even if this ring becomes loose.

Even if this ring is the only thing that remains—let us stay together forever, my beloved princess.

I will never forget—you smiling while donning this stone on Christmas Eve.

---

*Because of language shenanigans I decided to use the French word for “spinel” here

[DO NOT USE OR REPOST MY WORK W/O PERMISSION, THANK YOU]

[pepsifrfr]

Steven universe rant .

I'm BEGGING that people agree with me on this cus this has been on my mind for YEARS. Remember when the diamond swap was a thing? Where they would change pink diamond with a different diamond, like blue for example? No? Yes? THAT DOES NOT MATTER RN. When they did that, I saw many that had (for example) blue diamond be Stevens mom and blue pearl as that Stevens pearl. IT WOULD NOT BE BLUE PEARL, ITD BE YELLOW PEARL!!! My reasoning for that is, most pearls represent their diamond or who their owned by. The main pearl we see in the show looks alot like white diamond, the gem on the forehead, the mostly white skin and gem, hair cut and her obedient/ almost emotionless attitude before pink/rose 'set her free'. As for pink pearl/volleyball, she looks a lot like pink with her hair in swirls that can represent curls, pink everywhere, gem placement, and playful personality, SHE WAS ALSO CONFIRMED TO BE PINKS ORIGINAL PEARL! What about our pearl? She clearly belonged to white at some point. I think White saw that maybe pink was getting a bit to close to volleyball or that volleyball was acting a bit more like a friend and not a servant so white swapped her out for her own and spinel. This pearl to serve her and spinel to entertain her. I think that before swapping them out, white reset pearl to make her obey pink instead. In the flashbacks we see and when pearl goes to rescue Steven and Greg from the human zoo, why didn't holly recognize pearl? Surely there aren't many pearls that look the exact same. They clearly knew who the 'rebels' were and know that it was a pearl that looked exactly like pinks that was one of them. I'm assuming holly knew the story that was told before Steven came in. Holly should've known what pink and her pearl looked like, right? Right! So how did she miss pearl in that scene? IDK!! Then there's spinel, how did all of the diamonds forget about her? They obviously knew her and probably liked to have her around, even if finding her annoying at times, so why didn't they realize that she was abandoned or why didn't they tell her the news? I get that it was for the plot in the movie but if rose had taken spinel with her then she'd be one of the main characters and probably be one of the gems to help steven out the most and spend time with him during the first episodes when steven just wanted to spend time with the gems. If the diamonds found her, she would've become one the bigger villains in the original series. I think she'd want the same thing as in the movie but considering she would've had the diamonds on her side, spinel would've been a bigger threat. It'd make sense for her to maybe appear in "the return" and for spinel to fight along side Jasper, they both want pink back so it'd make sense for them to maybe be a team if spinel was found. I think either peridot or the diamonds would've found her. Peridot because in the episode of her debut she was checking out warps and maybe she teleported to the one in the garden and informed the diamonds of a gem found in an abandoned garden. Maybe the diamonds because let's say one of them wanted to see what pink left behind one day and found spinel and took her in, informing her of what happened to pink, and they'd either keep her around as a prized possession or a trained her to fight with Jasper or lead with holly blue. Why I think amethyst came out 'deformed': so she came out after a long time leaving rose to find her, amethyst is shorter and 'weaker' than the average amethyst and I think that it's because of the injectors were running out of juice when producing amethysts, like when you have only a bit of cookie dough and make one cookie smaller than the rest. I think that's what happened to her, or I'm just incredibly stupid.

[amelikos]

I had my suspicions that Spinel was the one who sent false information to Dot, so it's nice that their dynamics gets furthered like that and isn't just ending in chapter 1. It could potentially evolve in different ways in chapter 2.

Spinel is a personal challenge to Dot's character since his involvement made Dot come out of her room in chapter 1 (and officially become partners with Kuwassu and eventually experience her first battle against Spinel). He already tricked her with false information once when she was trying to look for Liko in HZ015, and while Dot came up with a plan at the time to find her by getting Nanjamo involved, he is outsmarting her again by sending false info about Rayquaza. Both times, Dot lost her cool and became frustrated when she is usually more levelheaded so it's interesting how Spinel is getting under her skin and pushing her out of her comfort zone by challenging her (in a different way than other characters do). Dot is questioning herself and is clearly affected and brought up the fact that she was tricked "again" so Spinel's involvement in Dot's turning points as a character is becoming a pattern now. It shows that Dot has further room to grow, too. I wonder if they'll eventually face again in some capacity, or if Dot will have an opportunity to outsmart Spinel in the future... it feels like they are both characters who would be effective if they teamed up together.

Either way, both times Spinel was involved so far, Dot came out of the situation closer friends with Liko so it's nice to see! She is opening up to Liko more and more every time. In Spinel's introduction arc as an antagonist, she told Liko that they were friends for the first time and eventually revealed that she was Gurumin, and now she is showing her weaknesses to her, admits her fears but also acknowledges that she is happy she got to experience sharing a meal with everyone and talking to Liko.

[cosmignon]

you may have talked about this before but i'm very curious how olivia got into the mix, both in fiction and in meta :0

also do you have any animals you associate with the squad? like not necessarily fursonas but if the shoe fits 🤔

also also, do their colors have significance to their personalities/names/etc? as someone who also has a set of color coded ocs i always love to see how folks decide what colors to put with each character :3

Olivia is a fascinating facet of the Stardust Scouts story because in zer earliest iterations ze was NOT such a major character like ze is now!!

Ze used to be this minor character in a scrapped arc about the Scouts going to Mars in order to confront an opposing, alien group of martian magical girls and get them to join their side in protecting the galaxy instead of trying to fight them on their home turf. This arc doesn't exist anymore, I think the opposing alien force is further away from Earth than that & are sending basically drone/scout enemies to Earth to try to conquer/destory it.

These were the original martians' designs! They have music associated with each of them because the main 4 Stardust Scouts were originally designed based on a "randomize your playlist and design a character based on the first 3 songs" prompt, so I figured the rival magic girl team should be inspired in the same way.

The conceit of the martian arc was that our MCs the Earth scouts would've used their magic to blend in with the martians w/disguises. Inversely, once the martians were on their side they would come visit Earth and wear their own disguises as well.

Can you guess which of these martians eventually became Olivia as we know zer? I will give you a hint

It's the one who's the obvious TAK from INVADER ZIM EXPY! YAAAY <3

Zer original role was the skeptic martian cleric/priest of the martian scouts, who was the most distrusting of the earth scouts having any good intentions, and I believe might've also had a toxic yuri thing going on with either the pink or blue martian.

All the other martians here never got developed much because Olivia, as the Tak Expy, meant ze had a lot of my favorite character design tropes going on and I wanted to specifically explore those more and ze became the obvious favorite haha. After that Zer role just kept increasing over time.

I think the most major development though was definitely when I decided ze could keep the toxic yuri energy originally planned for zer, but with One Of the Main Scouts instead... Tabitha and Olivia have HISTORY BABEY!!!!

(Fun Fact: My files say this was drawn Oct 2019, soooo... 1 month after the Steven Universe Movie came out. Spinel got her fingerprints all over this damn character, for real, she's one of my voice claims for zer)

This was the point where I decided Olivia was not an alien anymore, but a human who had been abducted BY aliens back when ze was a teenager and best friends with Tabitha. The both of them were private school goody two shoes with parents who put way too many expectations on them to get perfect grades. They would start breaking the rules a little bit by going out at night in the car Olivia got as a gift for good grades + passing zer drivers exam (important to note, Olivia used to go by she/her bc ze picked up new, alien genders while out in space)

The two sneaking out once in a while turned into most nights which culminated in the both of them being out in the woods when one of the Inciting Incident meteors with the Scouts' special magic maguffin rocks crashed nearby. Olivia was bolder than Tabitha at the time so ze investigated and got both magical girl powers and abducted by the enemy aliens who had been chasing the meteor at the same time. Tabitha was left absolutely shaken up and in the middle of a missing persons case where she couldn't tell anyone the truth of the matter bc it sounded absolutely batshit nuts.

This is information I give freely bc I don't really think it's worth hiding, but I know in the actual telling of The Story, The Stardust Scouts, this would all be information that was slowly handed out during the actual plot where Olivia initially serves as a disguised, alien general of the grunt forces being sent out to Earth. Ze's like, a hammy villain of the week that likes fucking with the Scouts because it's funny and ze Doesn't Respect Them.

Olivia doesn't recognize Tabitha at first bc he's changed so much over the years, transed her gender, stopped caring about things like school and grades. Tabitha also doesn't recognize Olivia bc ze is dressed in a full body suit, also transed zer gender, and Tabitha never thought he'd even see zer again. Spicy drama!!

Look at those dramatic fuckers... having feelings about rivalry and lost friendship and abandonment issues!! I should redraw the fake anime screenshot/do more of those sometime, those are always fun.

Also! This is an old design, but Olivia's main power when an antagonist is that ze can copy the powers of the other scouts and counter their attacks, meaning in the moments when the gang can fight zer one on one ze has the upper hand and can get away every time. I imagine then, that Olivia's main color scheme is very steely and grey when NOT using this copy cat ability, and ze doesn't have a sense of identiy beyond what ze can do for the aliens ze considers zer superiors.

Also! Also. Zer a jester/joker, since ze doesn't "fit" into the group's dynamic of being based on playing card suits.

EVENTUALLY, eventually, through a lot of monster of the week encounters, plot progression, and secrets revealed, Olivia's original identity would be uncovered and the team would convince zer to defect from zer alien captors, making zer a top level wanted deserter in the eyes of the big bad alien group (which I could talk abt another time).

Then Olivia gains a color of zer own, orange! Because the gang was always (in fiction) meant to be a team of 5, like the 5 points of a star! And colors of the rainbow/light spectrum, red orange green blue purple (yellow acts as a unifying accent color!).

To answer your question about the color meanings, I mostly assigned them originally based on vibes without too much through about specific symbolism. Plus I just like having characters all get one specific color, makes giving them outfits more enjoyable and fun for me. Like, you can see up above that Olivia (being Tak and all) originally had purple as zer main color. It took me a while to change that after I decided Savannah got purple instead, bc I was attached to how it looked. But orange felt like a good logical landing place. It's vibrant and fun and a little off the beaten path, again based on vibes.

Olivia starts off the story living among humans ""in disguise"" while plotting evil bad bitch things, and then after defecting ze just starts crashing at everyone's places while learning to really return to humanity in zer own way and hopefully make amends with the scouts for maybe sort of taking delight in fucking with them. Lol. Zer demeanor stays irreverent and annoying and punk throughout, even after zer turn to good/becoming the 5th ranger of the group, which makes zer a really fun character to think about and write.

[abandonedvirtualfriend]

i actually have another interesting question for the mod! What inspired you to make your au? Were there any inspiration at all or you just came up with an idea?

---Mod---

I'd say my own abandonment issues with a bit of Spinel from Steven Universe (I listened to 'Drift Away' one too many times again)

Also, Aban!Kinito wasn't even an AU at first, he was just how I drew anthro Kinito, but eventually he just became an AU version

[rhys-ravenfeather]

ROSE QUARTZ/PINK DIAMOND GOT DONE DIRTY BY THE SU FANDOM, AND THE SHOW ITSELF

Quick disclaimer: I will admit, upfront, that part of the reason I’m even making a vent post of ANY kind of all is because I’m just not in a good place right now in general, and I just need to scream at something. That being said, that doesn’t make my feelings towards this any less real.

I’ve already talked about this a couple times before in the past, but I really do, legitimately, hate the treatment Rose/Pink got in the later parts of Steven Universe, both the main series and Future.

Look, I almost feel that it could have been a good thing in a way, since Rose was kind of put on a pedestal for most of the show’s first half, and seeing as how the series was about Steven discovering himself, and trying to step out from his mother’s shadow, I feel like, if this was handled better, it could have probably been really good.

But dang, this was NOT the way to do it.

Did Pink Diamond, both as herself and in her guise of Rose Quartz, do awful things? Absolutely.

She hurt her Pearl.

She abandoned Spinel.

She made impulsive, and even selfish, decisions.

But she also turned against her fellow Diamonds, her FAMILY, to protect the earth.

She faked her own shattering so she could keep fighting for the same planet she was originally meant to colonize.

She looked after others and cared for life, both human and gem.

Pink did a LOT wrong, but neither her past actions from when she was still a Diamond, or the mistakes she made as Rose Quartz, change the fact that she spent the entire rest of her existence trying to do good, to change, and become a better person.

And it really DOES strike a chord with me that the fandom, and even the SHOW ITSELF, act like she’s some horrible reprehensible villain especially since it seems to ring very true for how some treat people in the real world who used to do/say some not-so-great things, even if it’s been literal years since then, and they’re genuinely different people from who they were back then. Yeah...it kind of hits just a bit close to home for me...

It just doesn’t sit well with me that someone like WHITE DIAMOND can be forgiven, while Pink, the one Diamond who dared to turn against Homeworld and fight to protect the life of a planet that wasn’t hers, is the universally-agreed upon hated character.

Whether her reasons were ultimately altruistic or selfish, that doesn’t change the fact that she protected the earth and cared for the people she came to love, the best she could, until the day she gave up her physical form.

TL; DR: PINK DIAMOND WAS A VERY FLAWED, BUT ULTIMATELY NUANCED AND HUMAN CHARACTER, AND I WILL NEVER FORGIVE THE SU FANDOM, OR THE SHOW ITSELF, FOR TREATING HER LIKE A MONSTER WHEN SHE WASN’T.

[rising-volteccers]

After watching HZ022 with subs, I can safely say that Friede continues to be the guy I love so much for a reason. I have Thoughts�� about him just from what we learn in this episode so here comes another hyperfixated post from me.

Screencaps and what not under the read more so spoilers be warned -jazz hands-

First and foremost, I absolutely love how we get to see why he's a Pokemon Professor.

He has vast knowledge about Pokemon that he could make this possible connection and eventual realization that what they're chasing after might not be Rayquaza after all. I could easily picture him pouring hours over all recorded information involving Rayquaza. You can see that proud smile on his face, hear the budding excitement in his voice. Regardless of how he feels about the title, this man continues to have a passion in learning about Pokemon.

I also love this little callback to HZ008 where the kids disappear on him when he's absorbed in explaining things.

Next, I love how they show the deep bond and trust that he has with his Pokemon.

Friede understood Cap's intentions and he trusts Cap to look after the kids if he found them first. He trusts Cap to take care of himself too seeing that in most situations, it's wiser to stick together. Last thing you want is for more people or Pokemon getting lost.

And man, I absolutely love how Cap shares Friede's protectiveness over the kids and their young Pokemon. He fought to keep them safe against a strong opponent, so much so that he got badly hurt from it. Friede's trust in Cap is warranted, and I can't imagine how bad things would've get for Liko and Roy had Cap not arrive as he did.

Back with Friede and Charizard, you can see the deep bond that they have too.

Breathing in sync with Charizard so they can both spot that split second of Ceruledge coming out of Phantom Force and react accordingly? That's not something achievable without years of battling together, where Charizard trusts Friede's order and has the reaction time to hit Ceruledge with Dragon Claw. I love how Horizons continue to showcase Pokemon bonds with their respective Trainers.

Going back to Friede, once again we see his playfully serious nature when it came to battling against Amethio. Compared to his last encounter with Spinel, there's a pretty significant difference in how he sees both opponents. He battles them seriously but Spinel showed he was a dangerous opponent while Amethio, while strong doesn't convey the same level of danger to Friede. He knows that Amethio will fight him in a straightforward battle so he's able to make all these quips.

Meanwhile Friede mentioning that Amethio won't catch him looking away is a callback to that battle on the island where he kept getting distracted by Roy's battle. This shows that he learnt from that battle and is taking Amethio seriously. On the other hand, Amethio's eye twitch is an indicator that he thinks Friede's still not taking him seriously, which I find is a nice touch.

Lastly, I love how they showed him to immediately jump into action. Unlike Amethio who watched on as Galarian Moltress emerged from the mine shaft, Friede spotted Liko and Roy being chased by it. He had Charizard attack it so the attention shifted to him instead of the kids. Just the zero hesitation of attacking a strong, dangerous Pokemon he likely didn't know of to protect the kids, and trusting them to take care of Cap literally had me screaming his name alongside Liko.

All in all, I absolutely loved this week's episode! It gave me crumbs of his personality that I will put into my future writing of him haha!

[kittygamer2888]

If you were to give your Evil Sonic a redemption arc how do you think that would work out? I love thinking about possibilities like this! <3

That's... a really good question, ngl.

I was just thinking about that yesterday--

If a redemption arc were to happen, I'd say that he would probably break down to the point of wearing himself out, making himself vulnerable and weak after consuming all of that Chaos energy, giving Knuckles and the group no choice but to carry him back to their base as he's unconscious along the way. And then after he wakes up to find himself bandaged up but also tied down on a medical bed so he wouldn't escape, Miles steps in and tries to reason with him one final time, but he's met with nothing but outbursts and rage by Maurice due to his bias and showing how his anger blinded him throughout the years to the point where it feels like he's doing this for no reason whatsoever at this rate. This would make Miles finally snap and actually call out Maurice and the things he's done to not just him but also to the world and he himself, which then leads to Miles leaving the room that Maurice was in and slams the door shut in anger as he leaves him in the room for hours.

Maurice would never admit it out loud, but even he knows that, deep down, he doesn't know if what he did was even right at all. After all, he always thought that what he was doing was right because there was no one there to show him what was right or wrong, and considering how all he got was being bullied and picked on for almost half of his childhood years, he made the decision to go against the world instead. He never once acknowledged how Miles genuinely thought the things he did were interesting, even when he was still working for him, all he saw was just an assistant who wanted to join his plans of world domination, not seeing how he actually had someone to be around with and make good memories with each other, like a real friend, maybe even a brother.

Realization would eventually start to hit, and after some complications with him and Knuckles, along with the Resistance, it was only a matter of time before he took in his first baby steps into becoming a better person.

But hey, that's just a possibility. Who knows if this could be cannon or not. Because in my head, i was debating whether if i should take that possible route or keep him as a villain for the rest of the AU, just like how Eggman is still a villain even after the very few and rare moments of him working with Sonic when it came to very dire times.

Fun fact: I was actually planning on showing a doodle of this possibility, but in the form of the part where Spinel breaks down during her fight with Steven in the Steven Universe Movie :P

[thathermitweirdo]

So recently I posted fusion art of Grian and Doc from the Gemcyt au, and I love them so much (bc toxic) so I wrote a oneshot for them. This oneshot features Grian, Doc, Scar, Mumbo, Watermelon Tourmaline (my fusion of Mumbo and Doc) and Purple Azurite (my fusion of Grian and Doc). I’d recommend looking at their designs if you haven’t already, just to more easily understand the oneshot.

Credit to @chrisrin for Scar, Grian, Mumbo and Doc designs, and also for making Gemcyt au in the first place :)

-

The day was like any other, Mumbo watching as Scar and Grian practiced their duels, standing on the balcony of the beach house. His gaze was focused on Grian, watching as the aquamarine pulled water balloons from his gem, soaring above the ground as he attacked Scar. The spinel sliced through each of the balloons with his cane sword, giggling happily as he did so.

“Hey, Mumbo!” Grian paused, tossing a water balloon in his hand as he waved to the peridot. “Why don’t you come down and practice with us?”

“Oh, um-“ Mumbo blushed slightly. “I-I’m okay. You know I’m no good at fighting..”

“Awe. Okay.” Grian said, turning back to continue his fight. Only, he ended up pausing, his wings slowly flapping as he landed on the sandy ground.

“Gri?” Scar raised an eyebrow. “What’s up? Why’d you stop?”

“I thought I saw—“ He said, before smiling. “I did! I-I think that’s him!”

“Him?” Scar and Mumbo asked in unison, the two looking further down the beach to spot a large figure. Grian smiled widely as he flew off, rushing to meet the figure.

Mumbo came down the steps of the beach house, he and Scar sharing a confused look. “Do we…follow him?”

“I suppose.” Mumbo said, walking along the beach to follow after Grian.

Grian and the mystery gem were already walking back to the beach house, so the four met at the halfway point. When Mumbo approached the two, the gem that Grian was with was nearly twice his size. And Mumbo was quite tall, this new gem had to be at least twelve feet!

He was some kind of centaur gem, maybe bloodstone, used for heavy construction and even wars. His gem was on his left eye, and he was laughing with Grian perched atop his shoulder.

“Oh, guys!” Grian smiled as the new gem came to a stop in front of the two. “This is— wait, hold on..”

He paused, suddenly noticing the spikes along the new gem’s body that were leftover from corruption. “Oh my gosh, I-I didn’t even notice! Doc, what on earth happened to you?!”

The gem known as Doc let out a slight chuckle. “Oh, I was hoping you wouldn’t notice those..”

“Doc..” Grian spoke, his voice nearly a whisper as he placed the palm of his hand against the bloodstone’s cheek. “You were corrupted, weren’t you?” He asked quietly, a sad look across the smaller gem’s face.

“I wanted to get stronger.” He muttered, his voice somewhat ashamed of his actions. “I missed you. I missed fusing with you.”

“So you fused with a corrupted gem? Oh Doc..” Grian’s expression saddened further at that thought, leaping off the bloodstone’s shoulder. He flapped his wings, hovering face to face with Doc. His tiny hands were placed on Doc’s cheeks, while Grian pressed his forehead against the larger gem’s. “Is that why it’s been so long? You’ve been corrupted? All this time?”

“It was just a couple thousands of years.” Doc said gruffly as he pulled away, a slight blush across his face.

“I can’t believe you!” Grian put his hands on his hips, the wings on his back flapping angrily. “You fused, knowing you would get corrupted!”

“Um, sorry.” Mumbo stepped between the two, a bit nervous to approach the twelve foot tall gem. “Gri, who exactly is this..?”

Doc seemed a little upset as the peridot referred to Grian with a nickname, though the smaller gem didn’t seem to notice. “Oh, sorry Mumbo. Sometimes I forget I met you and Scar after leaving Homeworld. This is Doc. He and I worked together back on Homeworld.”

“Mm.” The bloodstone nodded, opening the palm of his hand to give Grian a place to land comfortably. “We ran away together after we realized the diamonds would never allow gems like us to be together.”

“Buh-, be together-?” Mumbo seemed a bit jealous as he stumbled over his words, while Doc simply had a smug grin across his face.

“I-it was a long time ago, really.” Grian said dismissively, sensing the tension between the two gems.

“Wow! So you two were together?” Scar asked excitedly, while Mumbo looked away sadly.

Doc nodded proudly. “We even fused. Y’know, back when it wasn’t acceptable.”

“Wow G! I didn’t know you had this whole other life before us!” The spinel said excitedly, reaching out to try and pet the fluff on Doc’s chest as he spoke. The larger gem slapped his hand away, growling slightly. Grian pat his shoulder, helping to calm the beast down.

He gave an awkward chuckle. “Oh boy, there’s a lot of things I haven’t told you guys.”

“Oh.” Mumbo sighed, deflating visibly. “I’ll um, let you two catch up. I’ll be inside, okay?”

“Wait, Mumbo!” Grian tried to follow the peridot, who was clearly upset, though Doc grabbed his wrist.

“C’mon, let him go.” Said the bloodstone, shooting a cold glare at Scar as he spoke. The spinel gem looked intimidated, shrinking under the stare.

“I’ll, uh..go check on him…” Scar forced an awkward giggle, rushing after Mumbo.

Grian frowned, clearly concerned about the two, though Doc dragged a claw through his hair, bringing the aquamarine back to the present. “I never thought I’d see you again. I thought I’d be stuck a corrupted gem forever.”

“I really am glad to see you again, Doc.” Grian nodded, a sad smile across his face as he glanced back to the house. “But I think my friends are a bit intimidated by you..”

“Aw, they can use a bit of toughening up.” He said dismissively, “Those two haven’t seen what we have. Especially that peridot.”

“Mumbo is fine just the way he is.”

Doc’s nose wrinkled in disgust, the bloodstone glancing away with a mix of anger and upset across his face. “So he’s clearly your new fusion partner.”

“Don’t talk like that, Mumbo and Scar are my friends. Yeah we fused, but as friends.”

“I don’t think that peridot thinks so.” Doc sneered.

Grian frowned. “You’re not being very nice right now. I’m starting to remember why we went our separate ways.”

“You mean how you left me?” The bloodstone asked, raising his voice slightly.

Grian opened his wings, flying slightly above Doc’s hand. “Because you wanted to stay fused! You know that’s not what I wanted! All you wanted was to fuse to be stronger, you just wanted to use me!”

Doc scoffed, looking insulted. “You loved being Azurite just as much as I did. Don’t act like I forced you to fuse.”

“That’s all you ever did! You only wanted me because I was able to make you stronger! You could have done that with any other gem!”

“But I wanted to do it with YOU!”

The two went silent, staring at one another with anger and frustration in their eyes. Grian sighed, turning away while crossing his arms. “You’re the same as ever. I don’t think you should stay.”

Growling, Doc stomped closer to the aquamarine. “I came all this way, just to see you, and you’re just going to reject me?!”

“What, were you expecting things to magically go back to normal?” Grian snapped. “It’s been hundreds of thousands of years! We were only together for a couple hundred!”

“I came back because I wanted to fuse with you again! To be Purple Azurite again! Don’t you want that too?!”

Grian shook his head, keeping his back facing the bloodstone as he crossed his arms. “No, I don’t. I want you to leave.”

He growled again, a deep growl from his chest, Doc grabbing ahold of Grian’s arm to pull him close. “We’re fusing.” He spoke darkly, a cold look in his eye.

Grian frantically shook his head, trying to pull his arm free. “W-Wha-? Doc—?! Nono, I-I don’t want to fuse—!” His voice cracked, tears starting to well in his eyes as he began to panic.

He tried to spin Grian in an attempt to dance, though the small aquamarine wasn’t cooperative, squirming in Doc’s grip while trying to escape. “We can be together again.” Said the bloodstone, “We can be Purple Azurite forever.”

“N-no! I don’t want to be, not with you!” Grian said, kicking Doc’s arm to try and free himself, with no success. “M-Mumbo! Scar! Anyone, please!”

The two gems came running out of the house upon hearing their names called, both had clearly been watching the whole time out of concern for Grian. Doc paused with a growl, pulling the aquamarine closer to him. “What are you two runts supposed to do?” He spoke tauntingly with a laugh in his voice.

Scar and Mumbo shared a look of concern, the peridot grabbing the shorter gem’s wrist. “Scar.” He said, eyes pleading. “Please. Fuse with me to help Grian.”

The spinel’s lips curled into a grin that spread across his face, excited at the proposition. “Oh boy, it’s been a while!”

Mumbo wrapped an arm around Scar’s waist, dipping the gem slightly. “Then let’s dance, shall we?” The green gem smirked, taking Scar’s hand with his free one.

The gem on Mumbo’s forehead began to glow, as well as the gem in the center of Scar’s chest, while Grian’s face lit up with hope. Mumbo tossed Scar into the air, catching him by the waist before twirling with the spinel in his arms. Scar giggled as he was dipped again, before Mumbo lowered his head, pressing his gem against Scar’s.

Their bodies were enveloped in a white flash of light, Doc growling underneath his breath. He clenched his teeth tightly, shaking his head in annoyance. “Fine. I’ll take care of the two of you.” The bloodstone said as he released his hold on Grian before stepping forward.

“Don’t you mean the one of us?” An excited and bubbly voice spoke up, causing a tall figure to step through the light, the fusion of the two gems revealing himself. “Oh, wait, is that grammatically correct? Oh dear, that would be embarrassing if it wasn’t.”

One hand was on his hip as he spoke, while the other scratched his chin. The second pair of hands lifted up the fusion’s tophat and scratched the top of his head as he pondered for a moment. “Oh well, no time for that!”

“Watermelon!” Grian smiled upon spotting the fusion, relief washing over the aquamarine. “I’m so happy you’re here!”

Doc began to laugh, reaching up to his gem. “Watermelon? You gotta be kidding me.” He said, pulling his battle axe from his gem. “I’m going to shatter the two of you.”

“Watermelon Tourmaline, to be exact.” The gem introduced himself, lifting his tophat as he bowed. “And I’m not too sure my friend there is on board with fusing.”

“And you’re supposed to stop me?” Doc snorted, letting the handle of his war axe rest on his shoulder. “Even as a fusion, you two are still runts.”

Watermelon blushed out of embarrassment, before letting out a sigh to keep his cool. “Yes, we are, but I won’t tolerate any violence towards Grian.” Said the fusion, reaching to his chest gem. He pulled out a cane in a matter of seconds, pointing it at the bloodstone. “So either leave, or we’ll take care of you.”

Doc chuckled darkly, raising his axe slightly. “It might be one vs two, but I don’t lose to scrawny gems.”

He tapped his cane against the ground, causing the end of the walking stick to reveal the hidden blade attached at the end. Watermelon raised his cane sword, a smile across his face. “En garde.”

Doc growled as his face heated with anger, raising his axe as he galloped forward. He slashed down at Watermelon, the latter blocking easily with his own sword. He stepped to the side, avoiding a follow up attack, and brought up his cane to block Doc’s next attack. Watermelon smirked, using his sword against the axe to hold his ground.

“You aren’t good enough for Grian.” Doc spat as the two fought to hold their ground.

“I wouldn’t say that.” Replied Watermelon with a sly smirk.

Doc growled in annoyance as he charged once more, swinging his axe downwards. Watermelon parried, making contact with the axe before slashing upwards, knocking it off balance slightly. He then thrust his left leg upwards, knocking the axe out of Doc’s hands and sending it flying into the air.

Watermelon’s second pair of arms cartoonishly wrapped around Doc’s body, tying him up securely. His other pair of arms took off his hat, and without breaking eye contact, he held the hat off to the side. Doc’s axe came down from the sky, falling right into the tophat. Watermelon smirked as he showed Doc the inside of the tophat, revealing his weapon was suddenly gone.

Grian’s smile grew wider as he began happily clapping his hands together. Watermelon placed his tophat back on his head, chuckling slightly as he began to do a few bows. “Thank you, thank you! I’m here all night, folks!”

Doc looked at Grian, wrath burning in his gaze. With the sudden burst of rage Doc grabbed Watermelon’s arms, still bound, using them to swing Watermelon Tourmaline around with enough force to send him flying into the side of the rocky cliff. Doc pulled a new axe from his gem, clearly more angry than before.

Watermelon groaned, adjusting his top hat. “Jeez, this guy packs quite the punch.” He muttered underneath his breath, reaching to pull a new cane sword from his gem.

Doc moved quicker than before, practically leaping across the beach to reach Watermelon before he could grab his new weapon. Just as he had grabbed the edge of his cane, Doc used the flat end of his axe to knock the cane out of Watermelon’s grasp.

“I told you.” Doc growled, lowering the axe just an inch away from Watermelon’s chest. “You two will never be enough for Grian.”

He brought the axe down, slicing Watermelon’s body, causing the two gems to split from their fusion. They fell apart, both exhausted as they landed onto the sandy beach. “And you-“ Doc growled angrily, grabbing Mumbo by the collar of his shirt. “I’m going to enjoy shattering you.”

“Doc, no! Stop!” Grian rushed over, grabbing the handle of the bloodstone’s axe, trying to pull the weapon from his grasp. “Please, d-don’t! Y-you can’t, d-don’t shatter him.”

Grian was begging, tears rolling out of his eye as he shook his head. “Please, I-I’ll fuse with you, I’ll stay with you, I swear! Don’t hurt Mumbo or Scar, pl-please!”

Doc smirked, dropping Mumbo to the ground. He fell limp, barely conscious he hit the ground. “Good. That’s what I wanted to hear.” The gem leaned in close, cupping Grian’s cheek with his free hand. “I promise I won’t shatter your friends, then.”

He looked back down at the defeated Mumbo, before shoving his axe into the peridot’s chest, causing his body to poof, while his gem landed safely in the sand. Doc chuckled, turning towards Grian while offering his hand. “Shall we?” He asked, a dark grin across his face.

Grian sighed, placing his hand in Doc’s as he nodded. “Yes. Let’s fuse.”

“G-Gri—“ Scar tried to speak up, though he was clearly very beat up from the fight. Doc growled at him, glaring down the spinel.

“Scar, it’s okay.” Grian spoke softly, refusing eye contact with the pink gem. “Just..please. Don’t look for me. And take care of Mumbo.”

Doc began the fusion dance, not giving Scar a chance to react. Grian stayed in the air to keep the dance easier, the bloodstone twirling the aquamarine before pulling him close. He chuckled darkly as their gems began to glow, the light overtaking the two of them.

“NO!” Scar yelled, watching as the light cleared.

Purple Azurite had his arms wrapped around his body, as if he were hugging himself, his breathing ragged. He looked down at his purple skin, dragging his hands through his long hair. His face twisted into a dark grin, a laugh escaping the fusion as he dragged a hand along Grian’s gem.

“We’re us again.” Azurite spoke, looking up at the sky while he chuckled to himself. “I’m me again.”

Scar reached into his gem, pulling out his cane sword. He stood up with shaking legs, eyes filled with tears. “Gr-Grian, no, s-stop-“ The spinel tried to argue. “Don’t, d-don’t do this-“

“That’s not our name!” Azurite snapped, eyes filled with fury. “Grian isn’t here anymore. He’s gone!”

“P-please—“ Scar reached out his hand, using his cane as support to hold himself up. Azurite grabbed his wrist, lifting the pink gem off of the ground with a horrifying grin. He threw Scar against the wall, hard enough to cause a crater to form and shake the cliff side.

“Stay down.” Azurite spoke, his voice more of Grian’s than Doc. “Don’t make me poof you.”

Scar curled up into a ball, shaking from the pain and fear. His breath came quickly, short gasps coming from between clenched teeth. He looked up at the fusion with his eyes filled with tears, watching as they walked to the edge of the beach.

The wings of water formed on his back, opening up to reveal they were three times the size of Grian’s original wings. Azurite looked back for a moment, before looking forward once more.

His wings flapped a few times, lifting the fusion off of the ground, before he flew off.

[haro-hawayu]

CCS: Clear Card Ch. 80

FINAL CHAPTER! I actually read this the day it came out, but didn't get to finish this post and it was sitting in my drafts for a few days TuT. This chapter can be found on CLAMP-net’s YouTube Channel. As always, please check out @meimi-haneoka's post on the latest chapter for EN-JPN translation differences!!

Links for previous chapter reactions can be found here.

Reading Reactions:

And for our final chapter, our wonderful protagonist/heroine, Sakura

Whoaaa, so did Sakura split the books in order to better hide them?

Fujitaka-papa so kind.

I also can't help but made me think of Yuuko's shop...

Eriol and Sakura keeping us readers up to speed on what's happened XD

WHERE IS MOMO???

Awww Flight is still there!!

UM, THE KEYS?? MORE TRC REFERENCES???

Touya is the same as ever haha~always teasing, but always so kind

Lol, love that we can see Kero-chan and Touya being in the same scene even when things are back to "daily life" things

SYAORAN

SYAOSAKU ARE SO CUTE GAHHH

I really love how Yukito's bonding with Nakuru and Spinel~

AKIHO TuT

I'm sad that she's transferring, but at the same time, am happy that she's happy.

WHAAA STOPPED TIME!! STOPPED TIME?!!

I wonder if one of the major factors of Eriol deciding to help them stemmed from Clow & Yuuko stuff... oof, not the TRC/Holic feels again

Yes, KEEP TALKING KAITO! So many overdued words!!

asdfjsldjfj REAL NAME REVELATION!

I'm SO HAPPY THAT THEY'RE TALKING!!! TUT

Annnnd they're still keeping a space for her (i.e. Eriol buying the house so Akiho's stuff remains, Akiho's room remaining as is in the Kinomoto home), even tho she's leaving, she has a place with the people she's leaving behind, a place to return to

Awww it's cute that the boys are talking ahahah--they can actually be friends!! They even exchanged numbers!!

asdfjslajlk AKIHO HAS A REAL NAME TOO

It makes so much sense too!! TuT

THE END (????)

~~

Wow, just wow.

I'm sad that we didn't get to see Momo returning... I'm hoping that the special chapter that's coming out next year will address this... is it too much to ask???

For the most part, I am satisfied with this ending. There are some hinted tie-ins with TRC (the tattoo, the wand), prob a bit more than I expected, so I wonder if TRC will uhhh get a little jumpstart, or if we can see what's been going on over at the other side of things... Clear Card arc's end leaves things very hopeful. Even though the way they talked about how Kaito's time being "stopped" makes me think about Yuuko, there seems to be so much more hope that Akiho & Kaito will be able to find a solution to this, whereas with Yuuko, there seemed to be so much regret and problems as a result.

Speaking of Akiho & Kaito (I'll still call them as such LOL, their true names can be just for the ones they shared with... like how TRC SyaoSaku will always be SyaoSaku to me even after their name revelation), I'm glad they were able to have that talk in the end. With Kaito apologizing for his actions, and knowing WHAT he did wrong. As sad as I feel about the two of them leaving their friends, the fact that they will be together makes me feel very happy. I found it so cute at the end where Akiho shares her true name with Sakura and not Kaito yet bc she's still a bit upset with him XD oh Akiho~

This is so surreal because back then, it felt like such a far-fetched dream for there to be a CCS sequel. I still remember when TRC was FIRST announced ~2003 (wow 20 yrs ago), I thought it was a sequel since it's featuring Syaoran and Sakura. And when it was addressed that it's not the SAME two, I was hoping we will at least find out what happens after end of CCS bc of CLAMPverse (what I called CLAMP's version of multiverse). Seeing an ACTUAL CCS sequel just made me so so happy (although a part of me feared: but at what cost??!!--I think this was slight TRC/Holic trauma speaking). There definitely were some dark moments, especially involving Akiho, but I'm glad it had a good end. The anime adaptation was great as well, so I really look forward to the continuation.

CCS was the first anime series that I watched (USA dub) that got me into anime; in fact, it's still my favorite anime series of all time! But I was a very immature fan back then and it's kinda embarassing to admit LOL. I used to really dislike Meiling back then and wondered why they had to create her at all when I found out she was anime-only character (I saw her as a threat to SyaoSaku relationship). I also did not like the idea of Eriol x Kaho because I liked Eriol x Tomoyo more (ET still has a very special place in my heart... being one of my earliest uhh... fanon ships)... it was also to the point that I kinda disliked Kaho, until I rewatched CCS series in it's entirety. I love both Meiling and Kaho A LOT now btw. But gosh, I was such a silly child then... cuz I literally was XD I guess my point is that I'm glad that as an older fan, I am still able to follow Sakura's journey and the "essence" of the series/characters has not changed even after all this time.

Until next time~

[ecargmura]

Pokemon Horizons Episode 16 Review: Spectacular

I’m sorry, Episode 10, you just got dethroned; Episode 16 is now the best episode of Pokemon Horizons by far. The animation, the execution and the buildup to what’s to come were all handled beautifully!

The animation was the best I’ve seen the Pokemon do. Ufotable actually helped with the in-between animation for this episode; no wonder the animation looks so crisp, especially when it comes to Pokemon movements! I think my favorite part is when Dot gets a closeup of her face as her hair flows in the wind and shows off her eyes and then Quaxly is shown with a serious look and its hair flowing in the wind as well. I think that is just flawless animation right there. 

The way things were executed were handled well. I’m amazed everything fit into the episode without it being too rushed or too underwhelming. Though, I was a bit surprised that Quaxly had been a wild Pokemon all this time; I wasn’t expecting Dot to capture it in the beginning, but I liked how the writers wanted to get it out of the way first before going into the good stuff. 

I also really liked how well the Rising Volt Tacklers worked as a team. Friede used his Charizard to go to and from different locations and he even got a battle of his own. Murdock, Orla and Mollie were doing their best to gather information about where the kids could’ve gone. Ludlow was being Ludlow. The real meat of the friendship came from the kids. All three worked well together. Dot being a clever battler but not a strong one was actually something I was expecting. She’s inexperienced, but still used her intelligence to find a way to let Liko and Roy know where she is by making Quaxly use Water Gun. Liko was struggling to get on the boat, but Roy was helping her along the way and even protected her from Beheeyem. Liko then protected Dot by being brave and challenging Magneton and Beheeyem to a battle. The RVTs are a huge cast but the way the writers are able to incorporate how to use them in an episode is seriously amazing because I know for a fact that for some animes with a huge cast, screen time is a struggle.

Liko, Roy and Dot didn’t actually defeat Spinel in battle, but the fact that they beat his Beheeyem and Magneton together was a good improvement from them. Spinel didn’t lose to novice kids, but had to retreat because he was caught off-guard by Arboliva and knew that the it would be no match for him. This is a total step up from Episode 5 where Liko beat Conia’s Golduck offscreen (No, I will not be calling her Onia). 

The buildup for what’s to come both intrigues and excites me. I actually like Spinel as a villain. He’s cunning and intelligent. The way that he’s able to piece things together and even goes out of his way to hide information from his colleagues for his own purpose makes him even more intriguing; he figured out that the pendant’s key is Liko and he hid that information as he let his colleagues berate him.

Speaking of which, the new Explorers admins all have amazing designs. I’m surprised such designs are used in a Pokemon anime because these guys look as if they could be villains in a urban fantasy Shounen anime of sorts. The way they showed up makes me want to know more about them. Their names are Onyx, Agate and Sango (Coral in Japanese). I like how they keep the gemstone/mineral theme names. It reminds me of Sailor Moon where the Black Moon Clan from Sailor Moon’s second arc were named after gemstones. Also, I’m surprised that they got Ikue Ohtani, the voice actress of Captain Pikachu, Ash’s Pikachu and Sawyer from the XY anime, to voice Sango. The way that this is her second major human character and a cute female one at that makes me intrigued for what’s to come for this character and how Ohtani will voice a villain. I can’t wait for future episodes! Out of the three new admins, I think that Agate has the most beautiful design. It’s rare to see such a design in Pokemon, from her skin tone to the trapezoid motif. It makes me want to know more about her.

The way Dot decides to tell Liko her secret of being Nidothing as a way of thanking her for everything was surprising. I thought this running gag would go until the end of the anime, but I’m glad that’s not the case. I’m wanting to see how this will affect Liko and Dot’s relationship now. Will Liko be a fangirl? Will Liko be super protective of her? I can’t wait see where this reveal will head.

My review ended being rather long. I can’t help it. There was so much to talk about; amazing episodes deserve to have long reviews. This episode had extremely positive reactions amongst the community and I can finally see why. What are your thoughts on how this episode turned out? Are you excited for what’s to come for the Rising Volt Tacklers?