#This is Indeed the [It's you!] [Despite everything it's still you] Meme

[cicerosfavouritelistener]

Workin on some Slips art, so here's this WIP that was an beautiful accident while I went to work on the background + Joke Lore for it.

AU where Slips and Cicero fought the rest of the Falkreath Sanctuary after the Attempted Astrid Stabbing and they won but died shortly after and now haunt the Sanctuary

[classicanalyzer]

LEGO Star Wars Rebuild The Galaxy Thoughts

"Nothing makes sense, and everything's mixed up, and that's okay. Things fall apart, but maybe they can come back together better than before." Sig Greebling

Rebuild The Galaxy is my favorite out of all the D+ LEGO SW specials. I really love the connections to LEGO and SW, including the previous LEGO SW shows, especially Freemaker Adventures. Michael Kramer did an amazing job with the soundtrack, Sig's and Yesi's themes were well-composed.

Part I

"For someone who spends all his time telling stories about heroes, you have no idea how to be one. Maybe that's why you like history so much. It's over and done, but your life isn't. There's so much ahead of you if you'd just try, but you're afraid." Dev Greebling

Sig Greebling is such a cool name. I really love how he's a literal in-universe SW fan, yet someone who actually wants to be normal despite his Force sensitivity. I find it funny he's a literal Nerf herder. I do emphasize of how he wanted to avoid all the expectations if people know he's Force-sensitive.

I love the reference to Wookiees originally being a part of RotJ before being replaced with Ewoks.

Fennesa is a cool-looking world. Yesi Scala is another cool name (I get reminded of Scala Ad Caleum from KH haha). It's too bad Sig's indecisiveness and inability to step out of his comfort zone translates to his social life, even his crush. The background painting showing the sunset is so beautiful.

I really like how the Ackbar Troopers are the Clones in this universe. They must have chosen Ackbar as the main host due to his skills since he was a skilled warrior and leader, but definitely also for the memes out of universe. I also love how Phase I was used because the Kaminionans designed the Phase I suit based on aquatic species like themselves and would fit the Mon Calamari Clones.

The fighting animation and choreography for Yesi's fight against the Ackbar Troopers are so well animated. I laughed seeing that one Ackbar Trooper shooting with two blasters. I can see why Sig likes Yesi. Also ooff, Yesi lost her father in this timeline to the Empire. You can feel the bleak state of this galaxy under this Empire. At least, Yesi's desire to fly among the stars and not live in a backwater world is still there. I like how Sig also mentioned how Rancors are actually misunderstood intelligent creatures.

Double ooff, Sig's brother is now Darth Devastator "Dev". At least we finally get our first on-screen appearance of Jedi Bob!

Part II

"Being a hero is easier when you don't know the cost...Sig, the Force doesn't work that way. The dark side is loud and obvious like a big, mean Gamorrean kicking you in the head over and over. But the light side, the light side of the Force is just a whisper in the back of your mind." Bobolian Afol "Jedi Bob"

Darth Rey as Dev's apprentice feels so wrong about the intentional nature of aspects of this new universe. Jedi Bob!...or rather Bobolian Afol lmao (I also love how the markings seem a bit faded which signals his age). I love this cynical Jedi who sucks at fighting but is amazing at the Force...which is what a true Jedi should specialize in.

FREEMAKER LORE! THE FORCE BUILDERS ARE BACK! I love seeing them once again and hearing Bob recap them feels cathartic.

Ewok Bounty Hunters is one thing but bounty hunter C-3PO channeling his Triple 0 and HK-47 vibes in a Naboo Royal Cruiser with gold plating feels so right yet so wrong in the best ways possible. Yesi really has a lot of baggage with her wanting to prove herself and redeem herself for accidentally getting a rebel base captured.

Mos Eisley Marina made me die on the inside lmao. Tatooine isn't boring anymore lmao. I do love how this is a nod to how the BoBF and Legends mention Tatooine being once covered with oceans before becoming a desert world.

Like father like son indeed, however, even Anakin wouldn't go that far to cheat. I do love how Luke and Anakin use the same Podracer. Poor Max Rebo.

I love how Maul in this galaxy is much more relaxed and happy. At least, in this galaxy, Maul gets to live his life without the tragedies in his main galaxy life.

I love the implication that Nubs is well-known in the main galaxy that Sig knows about him. I'm incredibly confident that Darth Hammerhead is Rusty. Even in another universe, nobody remembers his name lmao.

That brief Duel of the Fates theme playing when Darth Jar Jar appeared was so hype and chilling. His line goes unironically hard.

Part III

"I know you can't restore a galaxy once it's gone because I tried to restore my own, and I failed. In the galaxy I'm from, things were simpler. I was a Padawan on Alistan Nor, learning the secrets of Force Building. I'd heard rumors about the Cornerstone. The more I read, the more obsessed I became. Was it possible to remake an entire galaxy? I needed to know the truth. My Masters forbid me from searching for the Cornerstone, but I wasn't exactly good at following orders. There were so many rules. I just wanted to do things my own way. I thought I could control the Cornerstone. I never thought -- When I left that temple, everything was different. My galaxy was gone, Sig. And yours had just been born." Bobolian Afol "Jedi Bob"

We truly reached the pinnacle of miniaturized Death Star tech with the Dark Falcon lmao.

Darth Jar Jar definitely isn't dead and I love what little time we had with him.

I love the lights looking like the Binary Sun and the music playing as Luke looks towards them.

I love how Palpatine in this universe is a cynic who gave up on fighting. I like that fascinating take on this alternate Palpatine. The new Jedi Council (I like the faded and scratched markings similar to Jedi Bob signals their age and tiredness of a seemingly hopeless war) is insane with Jedi Vader (I love that this is a SW Infinities comic reference, it felt cathartic to see it realized in visual media), Dooku, Cad Bane, Jannah, Lobot, IG-88(?), and even Jabba. I really love that Jannah has more to do here including her actress returning to voice her.

Greedo being the Han of this universe was so funny. He even has the Rodian ears for his Slave I Firespray ship lmao.

I love how Yesi recreates the energy in TFA when she does smth incredibly insane with Greedo's ship. Sig saying I do feels like his and Yesi's "I know" moment. And a Star Trous mention. I also feel like Yesi's point of how you fix the mistake got to Jedi Bob and got to him into revealing the truth. I love how Grevious is one of the rebels in this universe.

Alistan Nor!!! THAT'S THE FORCE BUILDER WORLD AND IT WAS MENTIONED IN FREEMAKER ADVENTURES.

Damn, this Han really became just like his mentor in the old universe. A true scoundrel.

God that twist of the old universe never coming back is gut-wrenching...especially since Jedi Bob is the only survivor of his old universe. The story of Jedi Bob is beyond tragic. One simple curiosity into the cornerstone left him the only survivor. Spending all that time alone in the Temple to make sure it doesn't happen again...only for it to happen again. I also really love how the simple galaxy is represented by 4:3 aspect ratio and all LEGO figures are the classic yellow designs.

WHEN SERVO WAS DESTROYED, I FELT MY HEART BREAKING APART. God that was heartbreaking to see, just like many heroes before him in his stories, to save his friends Sig gave himself up.

Part IV

"The tales of my galaxy. The tales of people like Dev. My Dev. I don't wanna forget them. They matter." Sig Greebling

God the intro with the sad music and Servo shutting down just hurts me in ways I cannot comprehend. The collapsing logo really showcases we're in the endgame.

I love how Yoda is voiced by his Young Jedi Adventure VA in this show. It is heartbreaking to see Ian Han hate Yoda given the very first major LEGO SW special (The Padawan Menace was one of my first non-SW movie experiences in my childhood).

Even if Dev is mentally messed up, I really like how he came around to having a brother and want to be brothers. I like how Sig realizes this is all a fantasy of a galaxy he can never restore. He fights to save this galaxy now.

I'm happy Tico got to a substantial role in this show alongside Rey. Reusing the Nobody line toward Darth Rey was pretty cruel.

The space battle was shot very well and I love the designs of the Calamari Destroyers.

Dev's breakdown was pretty disturbing to see and how he took the rage and lack of happiness in his life to put his idea of "order" and to take control of his life. Especially how he sees himself as beyond redemption and the point of no return.

The quote I used for the introduction quote is beautifully anti-nihilist.

The fight is so well choreographed and so peak, especially when the brief moment the windows were destroyed and the energy shield was activated. The fact the Nerf herder stick came back to be a major turning point in the fight against Dev is great. It was heartbreaking and I got a bit misty-eyed to see Dev ultimately decide to remain evil.

My heart repaired itself as Servo was reconstructed. The old galaxy is gone but the stories will live on. And leave it for Servo to interrupt Sig and Yesi's tender moment haha.

The ending shot with the new crew really felt like the passing of the torch between the Freemaker Adventures to Rebuild the Galaxy. I hope we get to see the Freemaker cast, especially the Freemaker family on Alistan Nor.

Also, The Landolorian and Evil Grogu has been so hyped as the sequel hook alongside Darth Rey and Tico being in charge of the Empire.

This is such a great show and I can't wait to see more LEGO SW stories set in this universe.

I love the score by Kramer who is also responsible for Ninjago’s score (alongside Jay Vincent):

[midnight1nk]

Love is a powerful force.

The love between friends, family, partners. And most importantly, the love one has for themselves. In the SMG4 show, this is no different. I’ve touched on this back in my ‘ONCE UPON A Ṕ̷̱E̴̺̽R̵̖̎̕F̵̢̗̈́̀E̴̞̍C̴͈̽T̶͓̘̈́ SMG4’ theory. In IGBP, Boopkins said this:

“Love wins! Love always wins!”

[’It’s Gotta Be Perfect’ // timestamp 28:56]

He wasn’t wrong. The countless enemies the Crew has encountered, all were resolved one way or another through the power of love. No one ever said love didn’t come at a price.

The good guys indeed win, but not without sacrifice. They kept their promise, but not without loss.

However, despite everything, love always remained.

A connection bounded by love is delicate. It can either make itself stronger or it could break.

For our returning character, Marty, his connection with Mario was broken due to a one-sided betrayal. As I also discussed in my ‘WOTFI 2024 Predictions’, Marty would take his revenge on Mario in WOTFI 2024. Ever since his debut, Marty has been overworking and feeling underappreciated. Underestimated. The only ally he had was Mario. That was until Mario, his own creator, abandoned him for a plate of spaghetti. And that is who Marty will go against.

There is one more taking his revenge on the crew: Mr Puzzles. As seen at the end of The Meme Factory Arc, Mr Puzzles swore that he would be back and indeed did in ‘SMG4: Inside Out’. Well, at least that was how it was. With the current episodes coming out, some people were confused about why this wasn’t mentioned again.

The truth, my dear fellows, is that his plan has already started and we didn’t even realize it.

Follow me as I discuss the parallels between previous arcs, a callback to narrative foils, and most importantly: a sequel…

PUZZLEVISION 2: NOW AIRING

⚠️ DISCLAIMER IN INTRO POST ⚠️

“The worst of times are when you have to force your biggest smiles…”

I’ve made many theories on SMG4, a few now posted on Tumblr. However, this was the actual first theory I came up with, not ‘ONCE UPON A Ṕ̷̱E̴̺̽R̵̖̎̕F̵̢̗̈́̀E̴̞̍C̴͈̽T̶͓̘̈́ SMG4’. It all started back after the Puzzlevision arc ended when, out of pure curiosity, I decided to check out the PV website. It was mostly to see if it was still up and, to my surprise, it was. Not only that but it was replaced with a whole new image.

If Gravity Falls taught me anything, it’s that something never truly ended.

Ever since then, every Wednesday and Saturday, I would check back at the website to see if there was any change. It seemed like my efforts were worth it because, on one of those days, the image became a GIF. I unfortunately wasn’t able to capture it to show but I know I’m not the only one who has seen this. All I could offer instead is this…

Back when it was still the PV arc, there was a moment when you could save a PNG of Mr Puzzles, and every time it did, it would show a message.

“Downloading me is pretty rude” (correct me if I’m wrong) — Mario’s Mysteries ”Still pretty rude of you” — Once Upon an SMG4 ”You don’t seem to listen, do you?” — Scooby Mario, Where'd You Go! ”HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA” — Mr. Puzzles' Incredible Game Show Spectacular!

Now, when you save the image this is what comes up:

“Now Airing”

And if you look closer, the file type is also there [gif-to-webp]

The term "Now Airing" is obviously used when a program is currently on the airing schedule of the channel. The people behind SMG4 didn’t need to put this image in, they didn’t need to keep this website on. But they did.

"That's All Folks!" Yeah, right. Nice try.

Looks like this website is about to come back to life, and a new game is afoot.

WOTFI 2024

In my ‘WOTFI 2024 Predictions’, I’ve picked apart the episode ‘We Must Kill Mario’ and how it would relate to this year’s WOTFI.

I’ve intentionally left some details/questions out from the post. The biggest example being Marty’s speech. It stuck out for me when I first heard it, it was way too specific and way too familiar.

“The one person I trusted the most has left me behind for… SPAGHETTI! Now I’ve escaped! …And it's time for… everyone to suffer like I have! At the hands… of the one thing YOU love the MOST.”

Then I realized why: the Meme Factory mini-arc.

Mr Puzzles never had friends growing up, it’s what got him obsessed with television. It was also the core motive to creating the perfect show, that any kid who is just like he was won’t be alone anymore. Of course, he got defeated by the SMG4 crew.

In the mini-arc, Mr Puzzles and Leggy went through the Meme Factory so he could have power again. For the first time, he got to experience what was like to have a friend. While he initially wanted to do this on his own, he had Leggy as part of it. That was until the Crew beat him once again, turning Leggy back into Meggy. This was different, this truly did hurt.

Because what’s worse than having no friends? It’s to be betrayed by someone who you thought was your friend. And the SMG4 crew was to blame for it. Now with the Marty speech, it applies to him:

“The one person I trusted the most has left me behind for… them! Now I’ve returned! …And it's time for… everyone to suffer like I have! At the hands… of the one thing YOU love the MOST.”

If that's so, then what is the 'one thing'?

Well, with spaghetti going from Mario’s one true love to becoming poison, it’s only logical that Mr Puzzles would turn someone from the Crew to go against them. A friend that would destroy their friendships. And he already had the perfect choice:

“And SMG4, who knew you could play an antagonist so well! High marks from me.”

[Puzzlevision]

When Mr Puzzles returned in ‘SMG4: Inside Out’, he latched onto Four’s mind and took over. For what purposes, we don’t know. Yet. But the Crew would have to save Four once again.

But Four isn’t showing any signs of control or possession?

No, but it doesn’t mean Mr Puzzles isn’t working behind the scenes, watching over Four’s every move.

Back in ‘We Must Kill Mario’, when Karen’s kids were flipping over the videos on the SMG4 channel, they stopped and jumped for joy at ‘Mario’s Mysteries’. A Puzzlevision episode.

Later on, when Marty revealed his motive behind his poisonous spaghetti sauce and declared that he was going to come back when he escaped from Karen, it left many questions:

How did he escape from jail?

Who is driving the helicopter?

How did he even get inside the house?

We can assume. But to know in absolute, no.

After Marty escapes, Karen thanks Four and Mario for keeping her kids safe, saying:

“I owe you one.”

Now, I did say that this could mean that Karen could have a big role in WOTFI ‘24 where she will finish the job. But it also could be interpreted in another way.

You saved my kids, but now let me help save your life, SMG4.

If Mr Puzzles is really working behind the curtain, then it would turn out that, as of right now, two arcs are happening simultaneously.

And this wouldn’t be the first time.

WESTERN SPAGHETTI & WOTFI 2023

Let’s rewind to Marty’s debut episode, ‘SMG4: Mario is Fine’ when, just as any other episode, a wacky adventure with Mario. Except for the very end, when the episode ends with an ominous close-up of Marty, clearly implying that there is more than what meets the eye. For the rest of the episodes, it went along like this:

[Marty’s debut]

Marty’s strange and subtle appearances (he was just standing there)

the Western Spaghetti arc

Marty’s even stranger appearances that none of the crew took seriously (like the interrogation scene with Shroomy in 'SMG4: SMG4 Kids')

WOTFI 2023 (the Notebook arc)

It starting to parallel to episodes we currently have:

Mr Puzzles’ Return (’SMG4: Inside Out’)

His sudden appearances like 'Mario Lost His M(o)ustache'

(+ perhaps future subtle hints that something is wrong with Four)

WOTFI 2024

"something is really wrong with Four" moments

Puzzlevision 2

Structure-wise, it is similar. But with Four involuntarily along for the ride, this makes things more complex character and lore-wise. Hmm, curious…

Possession, power, perfection.

Do any of these words ring a bell?

…I think it’s time to revisit an old enemy of the SMG4 crew, one achieved far greater than anyone of us could’ve imagined.

To create the perfect universe.

GENESIS & REVELATIONS: THE INFAMOUS TWO-PARTER

Before I called this "Puzzlevision 2: Now Airing", this was the "Reverse Genesis" theory because I saw how Genesis and Puzzlevision were really similar. Genesis had Revelations right after, so I suspected that Puzzlevision would have a sequel of sorts. Let me explain:

GENESIS

⭐️ Initial Motive

Zero, a virus from a different universe. He traveled from universe to universe, destroying them by killing their corresponding avatars.

Zero had the power to convert Mario into his new Avatar and a new universe. He was close to completing the process until the SMG4 crew intervened.

⭐️ Zero's Defeat

The Crew worked together to save Mario. Three and Four were able to use their guardian powers to transfer meme energy to Mario.

Axol sacrificed himself to save everyone and defeat Zero (but didn’t outright kill Zero).

REVELATIONS

⭐️ True Form

It turns out that Zero is two people: SMG0 and Niles.

SMG0 wanted things to go back to the way they were when the memes were getting corrupted > Niles and the creation of the meme cycle > Niles getting obsessed with the idea of a perfect universe.

He returns in Revelations to carry out his plan, carrying a grudge for the other Meme Guardians.

We see Zero’s true appearance, the one without Axol's physical features.

⭐️ Controlling the Most Vulnerable

Nine latched onto Melony, who was grieving over Axol’s death.

He used Melony to learn her god powers so he could use her to get to the God Box and reunite with SMG0.

⭐️ The Drawing

Melony drew a picture of her and Axol a week after WOTFI ended.

In her mindscape, Niles impersonating Axol ridiculed Melony for not being strong enough and for hanging on to Axol, ripping her drawing.

Melony fought back, claiming how their friendship gave her strength and it would be the same thing that she'd use to end Niles.

⭐️ Round Two: The End

Another fight against Zero in his true form, back to where it all started: the God Box.

Zero finally gets defeated, being killed in the explosion, allowing SMG0 and Niles to move on.

⭐️ A Sacrifice

Terrance was sacrificed to save everyone before the God Box gets blown up.

PUZZLEVISION

⭐️ Initial Motive

As I already mentioned, Mr Puzzles didn't have friends growing up and got obsessed with TV.

He wanted to be on TV and tried to achieve 5 stars with his streaming service, Puzzlevision.

He managed to get them and create the perfect show where the audience gets to be involved. At least, for a moment.

⭐️ Mr Puzzles' Defeat

While he managed to get 4.5 stars with 5 episodes, the Crew beat him with 5.5 stars within an hour special.

Mr Puzzles received a final but non-fatal blow from SMG4.

Technically, Luigi sacrificed himself by taking the hit from Mr Puzzles instead of the Crew. But no one really died.

NOW AIRING

[We're entering the predictions part of this theory, let's go:]

⭐️ True Form

Due to the Meme Factory arc, he is motivated more than ever to crush the SMG4 crew.

PREDICTION: he might show this true self(?), one where we see his body mingled in wires and metal

⭐️ Controlling the Most Vulnerable

Mr Puzzles has three choices regarding who to control:

Meggy — Tortured in ‘Western Spaghetti’, was friends with him when she was “Leggy”

Four — Possessed in ‘It’s Gotta Be Perfect’, terrified that another IGBP incident would happen, a perfect narrative foil to Mr Puzzles and the most likely choice.

Three — Notebook stolen for WOTFI 2024, has the most to lose (his café, friends, domestic life, etc), and able to emotionally manipulate.

⭐️ The Drawing

Just like Melony, Three drew him and Four in his notebook after WOTFI. The only difference is that her page is more open and seen whereas his notebook is personal and secretive.

This drawing will come into play whether Controlled!4 or Mr Puzzles find it and ridicule him for being soft, ripping it even.

OR

Three would use it as proof to Four that Three really cared about him, that as much as he denies it and play it off like they aren't, they're friends. What he said when they were in the pit wasn't out of desperation to save himself. He meant it.

⭐️ Round Two: The End

Final Battle with Mr Puzzles, perhaps this time being his final goodbye.

⭐️ A Sacrifice

As mentioned in my ‘ONCE UPON A Ṕ̷̱E̴̺̽R̵̖̎̕F̵̢̗̈́̀E̴̞̍C̴͈̽T̶͓̘̈́ SMG4' theory, someone may be sacrificed. A character doesn’t necessarily have to die, it could just be a fake death, which leaves us with several options:

Three — to show that he does care.

Four — feel guilty for being a “villain” again, so he would have to take Mr Puzzles down himself. Turning Mr Puzzles own weapon against him.

Pedro — Yes, Pedro of all characters. From his first appearance, it's likely that he's not going to come back. But then again, narrative foils. Pedro was created to be a funny man for Mr Puzzles (Pedro was able to still remain funny by the end) meanwhile Marty was created to take over the pizza shop for Mario (constantly being underappreciated and underestimated). If he doesn’t sacrifice himself to save Mario in WOTFI '24, then it would be here.

Another meme like in Revelations (please not the children please not the children please not the children)

ROLLING DOWNWARDS

With all of these arc parallels and Four's mind being invaded by Mr Puzzles, there would have to be hints about something being wrong with Four. Well, there kind of was. There are a few ways that I could think of that Mr Puzzles could use Four:

Man on the Inside

In 'Mario Lost His M(o)ustache', Mr Puzzles overhears Three’s idea to rig the votes, stopping the idea from even happening. Of course, it could be that they were right next to him, and/or they were loud. That was what I initially thought. But it could also be that Four at this point is still under his control. Four could be acting as his eyes and ears when he isn't near, unintentionally becoming a spy for Mr Puzzles.

(Those familiar with Sonic X and the Cosmo Arc, yeah, it's like that.)

Mr Puzzles could listen to every conversation, every detail. And he would know if the Crew is plotting something to get rid of him for good.

2. "Tear Themselves Apart"

Another thing I left out of my WOTFI '24 Predictions was that Mr Puzzles could speak for SMG4, interfering with Four's thoughts to make him say what Mr Puzzles wants him to say. A script of sorts.

Being in Four's mind gives him a huge advantage: Mr Puzzles has access to all of Four's memories. For one, Mr Puzzles could find out about the cosmology lore and all of the Crew's adventures.

Second: Mr Puzzles could interfere with his memories and change them. He could make Four forget about stuff.

Third: Mr Puzzles could go through and pick out what makes each member of the crew tick, making Four do all the talking for him. For example, he could bring up Desti for Meggy, Terrance/the Youtube Arc for Three, etc. Mr Puzzles wouldn't have to even lift up a finger when they can tear themselves apart.

If I wrote it: I would have Controlled!4 namedropping someone from their traumatic past or bringing out their insecurities in a passive-aggressive manner. Basically, like the examples I gave. And every one of them would start to leave the crew, hanging out less and less at the castle. SMG3 would be the last one Controlled!4 would break. I imagine them getting into a heated argument that becomes way too personal, something along the lines of:

Four?: “Dude, you fell off. You’ve gotten soft. Domestic even. And where did that get you? Oh, that’s right… Terrance.” Three, offended: "Don't you dare bring him into this!" Four?: "Hmph. Oh, yeah? What about Eggdog? Face it, SMG3, you'll always end up alone." Three: "Did what I told you at the pit meant nothing to you?" Four?: "Like I would ever believe you! You just didn't want to die. Even if you aren't a villain anymore, you are still a selfish piece of shit. Still comparing yourself to me, ha. I don't get why you would even try, you'll always be second best."

Then, Mr Puzzles, talking through Four, would slip up. Mr Puzzles would be more interested in finding all the Crew's weaknesses so any detail that wasn't part of it was skipped over. It wasn't like it was important, is what he thought. But for Three, it was everything he needed to know,

This isn’t the real Four.

Three, smirking: "Oh, so this was your big plan? I would've come up with something better than that. I guess we meet again, Mr Puzzles."

3. What if: the demonic goop is still in Four...

“Oh, SMG4! It never left.”

It would be a sort of Venom situation that, even if you tried to get rid of the parasite, some of it still remains. [insert spider-man 2 black suit theme]

During the Meme Factory arc and in several episodes, his strange behavior from IGBP came back. At times, scenes looked incredibly identical.

[........Announcement?????? // I Put Mario In Danger For Views]

Could it be bad writing? Likely. But the fact that IGBP was referenced once again for this arc, everything has to be put into consideration.

If it is confirmed that the demonic goop is still inside Four, Mr Puzzles will use it to his advantage. After all, it did work the first time in IGBP, so why not again? Not only that but it also gives him a bonus advantage, he could be working on his plan in two places at once and none of the crew would notice, thinking that they already got rid of it. It has a lot of potential to bring back the keyboard, the goop, the pit, the USB with the perfect video, and even Peach.

And if we are acting like it's a Venom situation, then maybe we could have the goop have a voice on its own. Could you imagine a "We are Venom" moment, that would be sick! (sorry, I'm just a spider-man fan.)

HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT

What else could happen in Puzzlevision 2?

It may be a bit too early to call since we still have to go through WOTFI. However, knowing me, that doesn't stop me from trying. For that, we have to dive into some semiology.

That’s right, we’re going in the deep end here.

Let’s head back to a familiar arc:

It's Gotta Be Perfect

While I was going over the movie for these past theories, I remembered something that piqued my curiosity.

The goop itself.

As someone who is into mythology, I spotted some familiar symbols and I've decided to give you an insight into what they are and explain why they were one of the top-tier design choices of the show.

Let's start with this one:

The Eye of God

You probably have seen this before. This is as its name states, the eye of God.

It's also known as the All-Seeing Eye because, according to Christianity, no matter what you do to hide your sins, God would see it. He sees all.

The symbol consists of an eye in the middle of a triangle. The triangle represents the Trinity (Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit). Because of this, this symbol is used for protection.

It is also similar to the Evil Eye symbol, where it's a circle instead of a triangle. This one is to ward off evil spirits/energy. (I actually have one of these myself.)

Secret societies use the symbol for other reasons: for power, wisdom, and control.

Well, yes. It would make sense why it would be in IGBP. Four's audience watches his every move and no matter what secret he has, they will pick up on it. But the symbol is also used in a negative connotation; the keyboard and Mr Puzzles use their power to control Four.

The Eye of God is also known to be the 'Third Eye', which God uses to put judgment on the people. On a human face, our third eye would be in the middle of the forehead.

And where on Four exactly did Mr Puzzles take control of?

That's right, in his mind, near where the third eye would have been.

Now, onto the next one:

The Eye of Horus

In Egyptian mythology, there are two eyes, both from deities, that are considered sacred. One of them is the Eye of Horus from, you guessed it, the sky god Horus. His left eye, to be precise.

Symbol representations include: protection, wisdom, good well-being and health, re-establishment of order from chaos, and the moon.

The eye is used as a form of measurement for pigments and medicines. We'll get to that.

Two myths connect to this symbol:

In a fierce battle between Seth (the god of deserts, storms, disorder, violence, and foreigners) and Horus, Horus got his eyes ripped out. Thoth (the god of writing and secret knowledge) helps him restore them back to where they belong, becoming a symbol of life and restoration.

The eye itself can be divided into 6 pieces, each one representing the six senses (smell, sight, thought, hearing, taste, and touch) and a specific numerical fraction. Think of it as a measuring spoon. But if you put the pieces together, the fractions don't add up to a whole. Some suspect that it was because of the magic Thoth used to restore the eye. Some say it represents the fact that perfection isn't possible.

Perfection isn't possible, that is exactly what was said in IGBP. I went frame and frame to see if this eye was flipped in any way (due to it being a texture pattern). But, nope, it stayed exactly this way. This will come back in some way in PV2, especially if the whole "the goop is still inside him" theory comes true.

PREDICTION: by the end of Puzzlevision 2, something will change about Four’s left eye (heterochromia, blind, etc.)

Still don't think it is relevant? I present to you this frame:

His left eye is within the corruption of the goop.

To the fans who had this as a headcanon, congrats on predicting this somehow!

Now, let's not mistake the Eye of Horus for the other important eye:

The Eye of Ra

While the two eyes are similar, the Eye of Ra, the right eye, is different in terms of appearance and purposes.

Symbol representations include: power, violence, fury, and the sun.

The eye is the embodiment of his daughter, Sekhmet.

Pharaohs would adorn them as amulets as a form of protection against their enemies, usually painted with a dark red. It must be handled with care because its power can easily get out of control.

Similarly to God's Third Eye, the Eye also obtains information from what it sees.

A little fact about this god: Ra places a solar disk on the top of his crown aka his head.

Again, there is a myth linked to this:

Ra was becoming old and weak, making him vulnerable. That made the people of his kingdom disrespect him, they ignored his laws and instructions. They basically made fun of him. Furious, he set his daughter (Sekhmet) to punish anyone who did this. The lion's eye, Sekhmet, went on a rampage, her roars so powerful that they conjured diseases. This killed millions of people. When Ra saw the devastation she caused, he tried to call her back to his side. She ignored him and continued on. Blood-thirsty, literally. Without a choice, he tricked her into getting drunk by using a mix of beer and pomegranate juice. She passed out for a few days and afterward, she calmed down. It wasn't all bad as the priests who worshipped her were able to create new medicines. Without her, there wouldn't be medical advancements, naming her the goddess of medicine.

What does this have to do with the SMG4 show?

Narrative foils are a constant in the show, especially in arcs. Two sides, complete opposites, are more similar than they ever realize.

Three versus Four in IGBP

Meggy versus Wren in Western Spaghetti

Four and Three versus Mario and Marty in WOTFI 2023

and of course, Four's crew versus Mr Puzzles

Then, who would be the Eye of Ra to Four's Eye of Horus?

It's Mr Puzzles.

Mr Puzzles and Four are indeed different but they are also really similar with one thing: they want to keep their audience happy. What makes them different is that Mr Puzzles sets himself is high standard for the sake of being popular while Four does it for the sake of his audience.

Just as Ra places his solar disk, Mr Puzzles got rid of his head and placed a TV, a luminous object, in its place. His obsession became his identity.

From the Meme Factory arc, Mr Puzzles swore revenge on the SMG4 crew after they disrespected him. That he seemed like a laughing stock.

But we haven't seen the Eye of Ra anywhere in the show. Unlike Four, Mr Puzzles doesn't face a humanoid face anymore. How could he have the Eye when his face is just pixelated screen?

Actually, he does and we saw it ourselves.

I present to you this from the Puzzlevision arc:

In the most human we have seen of him, we can see his right eye. Not only that, it's almond-shaped, the same shape as the Eye.

That is why one of my predictions was that we might see his 'true self'.

Am I reading too much into this? Yes. But if they were able to put the name "SMG4" into the castle door frame design, I would think twice about these design choices. This fits just perfectly right.

THINGS I WOULD LIKE TO SEE IN PV2:

Signs of Controlled!4

If the whole “he still had the demonic goop inside of him” is true, then Four’s pink scars might return.

Even better, I want to see Four already having scars from the incident, hidden under his glove and sleeve.

If not scars, then they could show his change through his wardrobe. I mean look at them:

All Four needed was some suspenders, a hat, add in a puzzle piece pattern, and they're basically twinning. Give my guy a new outfit, please!!! Hell, give him a mask even!

Meggy talks to Mr Puzzles

She confronts him for the last time, telling him that she understands where Mr Puzzles is coming from but it should give him an excuse to do what he did. What he did was unforgivable and Mr Puzzles will have to see that.

Three’s Part of the Crew

Three tells the Crew that they are his friends. Probably it slipped out or he did it on purpose. Either way, he meant it.

Three would confirm to Four that they’re friends. As much as it was Three denies it or acts very tsundre about it, he meant what he said in the pit back in IGBP.

BONUS: Three promises Controlled?4 that he would take them home. (She-Ra moment OMG!)

Mr Puzzles’ True Form Prediction

With the power he has left, he’s going all out, revealing his body mingled with wires and pieces of metal.

Cosmology Lore Returns

Before the battle, the Crew would have to gear up. Three might return to the Meme Factory to get as many memes as possibly could, using the Meme PokéBalls. He urges Eggdog to stay home.

At the battle and Four is saved from possession, Three and Four use their meme guardian powers to defeat Mr Puzzles. Add in the WOTFI 2020 tracks and the crowd goes wild!

(For those who were in the Owl House fandom, it would be a 'GROM' moment!)

Reprise of the Song ‘Creative Control’

Originally, it was about how Mr Puzzles was willing to do anything to get 5 stars and his perfect show.

Reprise could be about the SMG4 crew fighting back against his control, accepting imperfection.

(sort of how real-life TV show executives put limits on the creative team on what is allowed in the final product.)

SMG4’s Left Eye Prediction

Using the meme powers and/or defeating Mr Puzzles affected Four’s eye.

Pink - a reference to his scars and pigments, matching his ‘S’ logo (also because he looks good in pink).

Blindness — due to his scars

Mario’s ‘Best Friend Award’ For SMG4

Mario wasn’t able to give his award on MAR10 day or after IGBP.

He has the chance to give it to Four here.

THINGS ARE DEFINITELY ARE NOT GOING TO HAPPEN, BUT COPIUM

SMG4’s Locket

We never got to see who was inside Four’s locket. Who was the person waiting for him back home?

They could bring it back and finally reveal what was inside Four’s locket.

X and FM Return (+ Redesigned Models)

To be fair, it’s their choice not to be back, but I would love the Meme Machine(TM) together again.

The Boarded-Up Room & Upper Floors

Finally reveal whatever the hell is that closed-off room in the SMG4 castle.

"...And... This...Well...I'm not sure what's behind this door."

"...uh we don't talk about that room."

[SMG4: The New Castle]

Hey, Four, now is a good time to show it off. C'mon, I wanna see!

.・-: ✧ :--: ✧ :-・.

And that is my "Puzzlevision 2: Now Airing" theory and predictions. Undoubtedly, a sequel to Puzzlevision is going to happen. But as to what it is about? We would just have to wait and see if the power of love would be perceived once again. An arc starting from a betrayal.

"…And it's time for… everyone to suffer like I have! At the hands… of the one thing YOU love the MOST.”

The game is afoot and with that, my dear fellows, we shall see in the next upcoming episode. But, in the meantime, that’s just a theory…

AN SMG4 THEORY

🎶Thanks for dropping by🎶

[margareth-lv]

👑 The Royal Family 👑

Caution: the contents of this post should not be seen by those who are hypersensitive to 🧛🏻‍♂️.

Ladies, beware!

☣️☣️☣️

My post below is kind of… weird,  I know, but still, I want to share my thoughts with you.

The whole story was actually quite bizarre, thus my analysis couldn't be anything but, well, strange. And as I went AWOL for almost a year I’m coming today with some outdated news, let’s say to celebrate the king’s coronation last Saturday.

(All I want to say is that you read it at your own risk)

One more warning: I’ve posted below a photo of 🧛🏻‍♂️. Please, be warned.

I’ve also posted a „photo” of Baby Augustus, but his “image” was so heavily (and badly) photoshopped, that I don’t feel bad about sharing it on my blog.

So, as you can guess I want to discuss with you damage control post-funeral photo published, supposedly, in Irish Daily Mirror one day after the funeral, but made public five months after, in January 2023.

You know, from the legal point of view, if it was a REAL funeral photo with a REAL baby image published without the consent of the family, it wolud have been removed from internet months ago. It’s not such a big deal even for an aspiring lawyer. Baby’s image (apart from rules of sharing images with or without consent of baby’s parents) is considered as a personal data. So, as Ireland is a member state of the European Union, the GDPR (data protection rules) applies there. It means that a short request to cease the infringements would end the case.

But the photo, despite of everything, saw the light of day five months after it was taken.

You don’t have to be a genius to come to the conclusion that it was meant to go public.

What a creepy family, indeed, The Balfes.

By the way, poor quality of work in Photoshop on Baby Augustus photo reminds me the story of,  if you'll excuse me, failed “Potato Jesus” (aka “Monkey Christ”) restoration, a certain amateur restoration job that gone terribly wrong. 

Making long story short, the painting of Jesus wearing a crown was given a fresh lick of paint by an elderly local resident of a small village in Spain and in the end the face appeared to have been strangely smeared (just like Baby Augustus 😉). The result of the botched restoration spawned a photoshop meme:

(Anyway, the depth of the image of “Potato Jesus” is comparable to Baby Augustus “photo”, best proof of lack of skills in Photoshop. Caitríona’s PR department never bothered to pick a guy with any talent, IF YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN).

And now…

☀️

Here Comes the Sun.

The Royal Family in all its unflinching glory:

⬇️⬇️⬇️

No, this wasn’t my idea.

Someone wrote on Tumblr that Baby Augustus was strikingly similar to prince William.

Yup, he really was. As if he was William’s twin brother.

… or younger brother who wears old clothes of his big bro.

And why on earth the whole family looks like a cost-reduced version of the royal family?

You know, I can’t help thinking that there's more than just a coincidental similarity in these photos.

Another conspiracy theory.

I'm tired.

💁🏻‍♀️

[May 8, 2023]

[m1ckeyb3rry]

Pomegranate Ink: XX

Series Synopsis: Unable to heal but willing to fight, with a fiancé in Kyoto and a last name that looms over everything you do, you accept an offer to study at Tokyo Jujutsu Tech. What you did not know was that your salvation and your ruination alike would soon join you at the school, neatly wrapped in the form of a boy followed by death.

Chapter Synopsis: You go on a mission for Gojo.

Series Masterlist

Pairing: Yuta Okkotsu × Female Reader

Chapter Word Count: 5.9k

Content Warnings: angst, misogyny, naoya zenin, forbidden relationships, canon-typical violence, character death, original characters included

A/N: there’s been too much gojo in pomegranate ink recently but the next few chapters after this one should be the exchange event which means minimal gojo !!

Although you were technically his coworker and equal now, the admiration you held for Kento Nanami had never quite faded. He had even given you his recommendation, so he obviously did not feel like there was a massive gap in your statuses — or, indeed, any gap at all — but that did not change the fact that when you joined Gojo in his office and saw that Nanami was standing there, you immediately straightened your back.

“Nanami, sir, I didn’t realize you’d be here!” you said before turning to Gojo. “And what was that crazy ominous text about, huh?”

“I’m the teacher here, so why am I the one you disrespect so much?” Gojo muttered. You gave him a look, because if you had to list all of the reasons why Gojo didn’t deserve any respect, then you’d be talking for a very long time.

“It’s good to see you again, Y/N. I hope you’ve been doing well,” Nanami said, as polite as ever despite the typical squabble between you and Gojo. “I expect I’m here for much the same reason as you. Although, I’m not quite sure how keen I am on Gojo asking a child to do his dirty work.”

“She’s a Grade 1 sorcerer, the same as you, and you’re the one who recommended her, so why would I treat her as any lesser?” Gojo said. Nanami gave you a sympathetic frown.

“I recommended her because she deserves to be paid more. That’s not a reason for her to be getting jerked around by you and your inane demands,” he said. “She’s still only a second year, so please remember that the next time you ask her about something so serious.”

“What’s going on?” you said. “It’s alright, Nanami, sir. I mean, whatever Gojo’s about to say is definitely going to be something stupid, but I don’t mind helping him out. He’s done so much for me that it’s only fair.”

“Still, you should try to stay out of harm’s way as best as you can,” Nanami said.

“I can use my Reverse Cursed Technique now, so there’s definitely no issue,” you said. “Anyways, Gojo, get on with it. I’ll show you the meme Yuta made for me earlier if you’re quick enough.”

“He’s onto making memes now?” Gojo said in surprise. “That’s big news.”

“I think Toge got him into it,” you said. Gojo thought about this before nodding. It made sense; Toge had been a master with photoshop since birth or something, probably, and he was Yuta’s best friend. It stood to reason that his habits would eventually rub off.

“You’ll definitely have to show me later. I asked you to come here for a reason, though, so we should go over that first. Do you remember what I was telling you earlier, about that special grade curse that performed a Domain Expansion in front of Yuji and I?” he said.

“Yes. It was definitely a worrying thing, especially because Domain Expansions necessitate such a high level of skill. Even sorcerers that can perform them are so rare, which makes it a big problem that there are curses which now can,” you said.

“Exactly. There was recently an incident at a nearby high school that I believe those curses might be involved in, so I’m sending Yuji and Nanami to investigate. I’d go myself, but I have to go on a trip, so I can’t,” Gojo said.

“I don’t recall agreeing to do this,” Nanami interjected. Gojo ignored him; of course, Nanami definitely would go. Even though he was a rule-follower, he didn’t have a great love for the higher ups, and despite his comically constant irritation with Gojo, he also had a lot of faith in the man, which meant he’d begrudgingly oblige his requests, no matter what.

“Why’s that involve me?” you said.

“Originally, I thought about having you take the mission instead of Nanami, since you were a Grade 1 sorcerer who already knew about Yuji’s existence, which would mean one less person would have to find out, but I realized that there was a flaw in that plan: because you’re still a student, the higher ups would definitely be suspicious about that kind of assignment. Even a tiny bit of added scrutiny would be enough for them to pick up on Yuji, and I don’t need to explain to you why that would be disastrous,” he said.

“That’s why you went with Nanami,” you realized. “They don’t really care about him and what he does. Uh, no offense, sir, it’s just that you give off such a stiff vibe that they think you’re firmly on their side, so you’re totally above suspicion when compared to me and Gojo.”

“I understand,” he said. It was something about Nanami which you appreciated, the fact that he didn’t really get upset very easily. He was a relaxed man who was very unflappable, at least as long as Gojo was uninvolved.

“He’s also trustworthy enough to not reveal any details of the mission,” Gojo added. “These are all compliments, Nanami, so you should accept them!”

“Get to the point,” Nanami said. “I see what you want from me, but if you can’t send her on that mission, then why have you called her?”

“Y/N, while Nanami and Yuji are busy investigating that scene, I want you on a different case. You see, a few days ago, a restaurant randomly burst into flames. Although that could be a coincidence, something tells me that there’s more to it. It might even be that same curse from earlier. I want you to see if there’s some kind of greater plot going on here that the curses are working together to achieve, or if it’s just a coincidence that this kind of thing has been happening on such a mass scale recently,” he said.

“Very few things are coincidences,” you said. “Although I do think this one might be. I suppose there is a chance it’s not, though, so sure. I can do that.”

“Hold on a second. You said that that curse could perform a Domain Expansion. What if it pulls that out? Does she have any counter to that?” Nanami said. “If she doesn’t, then it’s totally irresponsible of you to send her. Even more irresponsible than I ever thought you’d be.”

“Um,” Gojo said. “Y/N? Do you have a counter for that?”

“Wow, Gojo,” you said. “I can’t believe you didn’t think of that. Thank you for the concern, Nanami, sir, but as the case may be, I actually do have something I can use if things come to it, so I’ll be alright.”

“If you say so,” Nanami said.

“I knew you’d have a way around it! Or else I wouldn’t have asked you to take the mission in the first place!” Gojo said.

“Oh yeah? What’s my counter, then, huh?” you said. Gojo was oddly quiet for a second.

“I don’t know?” he said finally, voice quiet like a mouse’s instead of boisterous as usual. “I just had faith that you’d figure something or another out. You’re a talented sorcerer, so I had no doubts you’d be alright. Besides, like you said, sorcerers with Domain Expansions are a rarity, so it’s not like I could just find and send someone who can use it to investigate. Even if I could, I wouldn’t trust anyone else the way I trust you, and anyways combat should be your last resort. Avoid it if possible.”

It was very difficult to be angry at Gojo. He looked like a sad, wet cat that had just been sprayed and scolded, pouting slightly, his shoulders slumped. You clicked your tongue before leaning over and hugging him tightly.

“I was only joking. I know you wouldn’t put me in harm’s way if you could help it. I’m a Grade 1 sorcerer now; how could I claim that title if just a Domain Expansion was enough to take me out? You were right to ask me. I’ll take care of things, don’t you worry, and I’ll be back in time to take part in the exchange event, too,” you said.

“For the record, I wasn’t joking,” Nanami said. “But there’s no point in further argument. You’re right about one thing, Gojo, and that’s that there aren’t that many sorcerers around that we can trust. Like it or not, we’ll have to make use of Y/N’s talents.”

“I wouldn’t have asked her if it wasn’t like that,” Gojo said. “That’s the world we’ve been given, though, so we’ll make the best of it. Y/N, I’ll take you out for dinner and shopping once you’re back as a thank you.”

“You don’t have to do that,” you said. “But you know I’d never say no to such an offer! You better have that credit card at the ready. I’m taking you up on it for sure.”

“Good,” Gojo said. “I expected no less.”

You were wearing a pair of sunglasses Gojo had lent you as you walked down the street, attempting to look as inconspicuous as possible. You didn’t want to be at all recognizable — not by the curses, who would probably not remember your face even if they saw it, but by anyone related to jujutsu society who might be out and about. If one of your cousins or someone like that saw you, then you’d be in a world of trouble. After all, they’d definitely ask you why you weren’t at the school, and what would you even say to that? You couldn’t exactly tell them that you were on a secret mission for Gojo, so it would be an awkward conversation overall. You had faith in your disguise, though, so there was definitely no issue —

“Hey, Y/N! I wasn’t expecting to see you out here!” a friendly voice said.

You whipped around, trying to discern who it was that had recognized you. The typical culprits were absent — any of your classmates, the third years, your family members, or any of the higher ups. Finally, your eyes lit upon him, beaming and obviously about to say something again, just as loudly as he had the first time.

“Shut up,” you hissed, wrapping your arm around his neck to yank his head down and slapping your hand over his mouth. “I’m supposed to be in disguise right now.”

“Really?” Takuma Ino said, voice muffled by your palm. “You look exactly the same but with sunglasses, though. As far as disguises go, I don’t think it’s that effective.”

“What are you doing here, anyways?” you said, deciding you’d have to reevaluate your disguise at a later moment. Pushing your sunglasses up to rest on the crown of your head, you let go of Ino, who rubbed the back of his neck and readjusted his shirt collar.

“I was planning on going to see a movie at the theater a few blocks down! Do you want to come?” he said. You thought about it for a second. It would be fun, after all — Ino was the kind of person that you couldn’t help liking. He had this unfailing optimism about him that made him a great mission partner, and he also was one of those people that had a moral code they actually followed. Overall, you were definitely really fond of Ino, but you knew you couldn’t take the time off even if you wanted to. Gojo was counting on you.

“I’m sorry, I wish I could. I’m actually busy right now, though,” you said. Ino shrugged.

“No worries,” he said. “I’ll see you around, then! Let’s try to go on a mission together at some point. It’s way better doing stuff with you than it is with most of the other Grade 1 sorcerers. Last time I went, they had me go with Naoya Zenin.”

You winced at the mention of the name alone. “I’m so sorry.”

“It was fine, I guess. He’s just kind of—” Ino leaned in to whisper in your ear “—a douchebag.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice,” you said with a snort. “Luckily, I haven’t seen him since he was suspended after that mission where he supervised me. Douchebag is the best way to describe him, so don’t think I’ll tell on you for thinking like that.”

“Thanks,” Ino said, clearly relieved. “Anyways, I should go! The movie’s starting soon, and I like watching all the trailers that come before it, so I can’t be late. See you around, Y/N!”

“See you,” you said, waving as he turned the corner. It was a little disappointing. The downside of being a Grade 1 sorcerer: you had even less time to just enjoy your time as a student. Instead of getting to train with your friends and watch movies, you were completing a dangerous mission, with unregistered special grade curses as your opponents. While Ino watched his movie and your classmates prepared with one another for the exchange event, you were conducting a potentially fatal investigation.

At least you got paid way more than the rest of them — bar Yuta, of course, who was rolling in the cash of his special-grade salary. But he was also an entire continent away, so you didn’t envy him too much.

The restaurant that Gojo was talking about was closed off with construction barriers and yellow tape. Fiddling with the pouch of needles you carried with you at all times, you stepped over the tape and around the barriers, closing your eyes and sharpening your cursed signature detection.

The incident had happened a few days ago, so they were incredibly faint, but the residuals were definitely there. Gojo had been right in sending you; the whispering remnants of cursed energy would’ve escaped almost anyone else’s notice. It was only because of your advanced signature perception that you had caught them, and even then, you would’ve missed them if you weren’t looking for them in the first place.

“One — two — three — four,” you counted, crouching before the only seat that wasn’t scorched. For some reason, this residual felt familiar to you, though you couldn’t quite place where you remembered it from. That only made you feel more uneasy; was it a curse you had faced before? Or was it a possibility that someone you knew was working as a curse user alongside the special grade curses?

It couldn’t be anyone too familiar, though. You would’ve known who they were for sure if you had met them more than a few times. Whoever’s residual this was, they were a person you had only encountered once or twice. That didn’t narrow it down any, of course, and indeed it made it more difficult for you to pin down who it could’ve belonged to. How were you supposed to recognize someone you barely knew?

Pulling out your phone, you typed out your findings in a new note. Four residuals at restaurant. Three belonging to curses. One belonging to a curse user. Curse user’s residual is familiar but unidentifiable.

You’d email the entire attachment to Gojo once you were finished with the mission so that he had a frame of reference and some background for when you gave him the official report in person. This way, you’d also be sure to not forget anything, since you were writing it all down as you discovered it.

Leaving the strongest source of the residuals behind, you went over to one of the charred pieces of wood that must’ve once been a chair. When you poked it with your finger, it crumbled away into ash. Your lips tugged downwards into a frown, and you knelt, squinting at it. This was the important part; curses could appear anywhere, but whether they were involved in the disaster was what you were supposed to be investigating.

All residuals told a story. What did these ones have to say? What had happened at this restaurant? Was it something mundane, or was something more sinister at work?

A man set ablaze by something cursed. Flames bursting up at random. People burning. Fire licking throughout the restaurant, stopping at the feet of the three curses and their benefactor and then suddenly extinguishing. The foursome leaving the restaurant with nary their clothes singed.

Gojo was right: it had not been a coincidence. This restaurant had burnt on purpose by what you could only assume was the curse he had met earlier, the fiery one with the head like a volcano. Furthermore, you could sense no other residuals besides the ones left by the group, which meant that the curse had done it for no reason other than because it could.

Naturally, there was no sense in trying to assign meaning to the actions of curses. They were who they were; it was in the character of a curse to destroy, so there wasn’t any morality to it. They weren’t evil out of conscious choice — that was what was intrinsic for them, so that was how they acted. Still, this felt unnecessarily cruel, a display of senseless violence just for violence’s sake.

Fire seems to have been set with malicious intent. No evidence of a struggle. No evidence of a need for self-defense. No evidence of outside intervention via sorcery.

Leaving the restaurant behind, you leaned against the wall, trying to figure out what you should do next. Any residuals that the curses might’ve left as they made their escape would be washed away by now, simply due to the massive traffic in the area, so you couldn’t track them that way. But what other clues did you have about their hiding spots? How else could you observe them? Your findings weren’t anything special, especially without much to substantiate them. They could be put down to the typical behavior of curses, even though you had this sense that something else was at play.

“Honestly,” you said, puffing out your cheeks and letting your sunglasses fall back on the bridge of your nose. “This blows. What am I supposed to do now?”

“You know,” a wheezy voice said from beside you, “I never thought someone as mortal as you would dare stick their nose where it doesn’t belong, but I guess humans really are stupid."

It was like that snake curse of Elakshi’s all over again. You hadn’t even noticed the curse approaching, but here it was, in this deserted alleyway with you, right next to you. It was a grotesque mixture of person and horror, too close to humanity to be dismissed in turn, too close to monstrosity to be given any real sympathy.

As Itadori and Gojo had said, his head resembled a volcano, with one single, huge eye glaring out in front of him. His back was hunched, like he was an elderly man, and he wore a yellow-spotted cape draped over his shoulders. He mirrored your position, making no move to attack you, obviously delighting in the fact that you recognized him.

“You’re the curse that Gojo fought,” you said. The curse spat, his saliva splattering against the concrete and melting it, steam arising from the spots where it had dropped.

“Satoru Gojo,” he snapped. “Yeah, I fought that weakling.”

“Didn’t he beat you? You shouldn’t call him weak. If anyone’s weak, it’s you,” you criticized. This was, in hindsight, not the smartest thing you could’ve done, but you found it a little humorous that this curse really believed Gojo was the weak one between them two.

“What?” the curse said, flames bursting from the openings which must’ve functioned as his ears. You winced, taking a step back from the massive heat suddenly emanating from him. “You think I’m weak? You are nothing compared to Satoru Gojo and I. You could never defeat me, and yet you dare call me weak?”

“How did you know I’d be here?” you said, deciding to get to the point before he began to attack. “You must’ve, or else you wouldn’t have come. I know your hideout isn’t nearby, because I would’ve sensed it, which means that, for some reason, you believed that a sorcerer would come to the scene of your crime. Why? What tipped you off?”

The curse ignored you. “If you think I’m so weak, then fight me yourself! Come on, girl, why don’t you?”

“I’m not in the mood,” you said, eyeing him warily, taking another step back. Gojo had recommended you avoid combat, and you were inclined to agree with him. This did not seem like an ideal matchup for you; this curse, whoever he was, seemed to be the type that was focused on brute strength and sheer power. Furthermore, there was no way you could take him by surprise, and even if you got lucky and managed to land a hit or two, there wasn’t a guarantee that they’d be immediately fatal.

Your best bet would be to escape now, before he could attack you. But where would you go? The alleyway opened up into bustling streets on either side, which meant that you’d be putting civilians at risk if you fled and the curse decided to chase you. The question of where he had come from also remained. Did he have backup? Even now, were there more curses on their way to attack you? Or were the majority of their forces located in that high school where Itadori and Nanami were operating?

��That high school,” you continued in a forced show of bravado. “You’re involved in that, aren’t you? You and the other unregistered special grades. Have you all formed some kind of group?”

“Why should I answer your questions?” the curse shouted, the top of his head emitting wisps of smoke, threatening at an eruption. “You’re a human, so I owe you nothing! I know you’re running because you have no hope of fighting me, but don’t think I’ll let that happen. I’ll kill you before you can take another step!”

“Who are you?” you pressed, ignoring his threats. “Curse, tell me your name. If it makes you feel better, mine is Y/N L/N.”

The curse froze in his tracks, fire abruptly cooling, the air almost chilly in the absence of his furnace-like heat. Then, to your surprise, he took a step backwards, though he still trembled with rage, his single eye narrowed at you. There was a war in that iris, like he could not come to terms with what he had to do.

“Y/N…L/N?” he repeated. You hadn’t been expecting that kind of reaction, but you definitely weren’t complaining.

“Yes,” you said. “And you are? Who do you work for? I know you’re operating alongside at least one curse user. Who are they? I know I recognize their residuals, but I can’t place where from. Who is it? Tell me, now, before I — I call Gojo!”

“Satoru Gojo is abroad,” the curse said. “So don’t think that that kind of threat will work on me. But if you really are Y/N L/N…I’ve heard about you, in fact.”

“From who?” you said, still trying to figure out how he knew Gojo wasn’t in the country. “Who told you about me? Why does it matter who I am? Didn’t you just want to kill me?”

It wasn’t like you wanted him to kill you, but the total flip in his attitude alongside the reluctance with which it had occurred made you mistrustful. Was this a way for him to catch you off guard? If that was the case, then it wasn’t working. You still didn’t believe in him one bit, and you also couldn’t figure out what kind of angle he was playing it. It was totally unbelievable for him to have heard of you — unless he somehow knew about that.

“I’ve been told that you cannot die if we want Sukuna on our side,” the curse said, though his hands twitched, like he wanted to reach out and burn you with them regardless. “If we want him to fight with us, then we cannot kill you.”

“So that’s your goal,” you said. “Or at least one of them: you want to reawaken Sukuna fully. I guess that that’s not too much of a surprise, though I don’t understand what my involvement in the scenario is.”

The curse’s lip curled in disgust. “I don’t, either. You’re just a bag of bones, held together with a minuscule amount of cursed energy. What vested interest does someone like Sukuna have in a weakling like you? Why does it matter that you live? I’d ignore the warning, but last time I did…well. We can’t risk it. Not yet, anyways. Get out of my sight, irritating pest, before I change my mind and decide that killing you and shutting your insufferable mouth is worth risking Sukuna’s aid in our plan!”

“That’s fine by me,” you said. “I’ve found out more than enough. I hope to never see you again, Mount Fuji!”

“Mount Fuji?” the curse screeched after you. You could see the air shimmering around him, a warning of an imminent explosion as you sprinted away. “Be grateful you escaped this time! It won’t be the case if we ever meet again, Y/N L/N!”

With trembling fingers, you finished typing your report on the bus, glancing out the window periodically in case the curse had decided to chase you all of this way. Once it had been formatted and updated with all of your findings, you downloaded it as a PDF and emailed it to Gojo. This was a weight off your shoulders; at least now, even if that curse did come for you, you had managed to get the information to Gojo.

It had been more productive of a mission than you had originally anticipated. Although some of your conclusions were little more than conjecture, only guesses based on offhand comments made by the curse and the more circumstantial evidence, you felt confident about most of it being correct — and you told Gojo as much when you met him next.

“You really think there’s someone leaking our information?” Gojo said. You sighed, swirling a spoonful of sugar into the tea Gojo had offered you. Nanami and Itadori had just returned from their mission, and you were sure that whatever they had discovered would reflect what you had.

“The curse knew that I’d be there, which I suppose you could put down to a lucky guess, but he also knew that you were abroad. There’s no way he could’ve just happened upon such a random explanation; the most likely solution is that someone’s giving them our information. It would also account for why those residuals felt so familiar,” you said.

“Someone in jujutsu society, who you’ve only met once or twice, is working with the curses,” Gojo said, massaging his temples.

“I’d like to say it’s Naoya,” you offered. “Mostly because I hate him and believe that most of the world’s problems can be put upon him. But, unfortunately, I’d have recognized his signature, and anyways he wouldn’t benefit from jujutsu society collapsing, so we can rule him out.”

“I wouldn’t have really suspected him in the first place,” Gojo said. “If I had to guess, it’s someone associated with one of the schools.”

“Another student?” you said. Gojo nodded.

“Or a faculty member, possibly. I doubt that they would be the curse user whose residuals you recognized, but I do think that that’s where that group is getting their information from. I’ll ask Utahime to look into it — I’ve known her since I was young, so I can be reasonably assured that she’s not the one who’s leaking our secrets,” he said.

“Then whose residuals could they be?” you said. Gojo shook his head.

“I don’t know. I hope that, by catching the spy, we can figure that part out,” he said.

“There’s another thing I don’t understand. If the curses are working together to resurrect Sukuna, then why would a sorcerer be working with them? What use would any of the students have with a world where Sukuna reigns once more?” you said.

“Use your imagination, Y/N,” Gojo said. “Think about it. There’s a lot of reasons that people would want to ally themselves with the curses, especially because of how powerful they are. Even if they don’t agree with the final outcome, they might be trying to use the curses’ powers to their own ends.”

“Do they really think that they can deal with curses like that and win?” you said derisively. “It never ends well when sorcerers get involved with curses, especially inexperienced sorcerers, which is what they would be if they’re a student.”

“If they’re inexperienced, then they wouldn’t have the foresight to realize that. Or maybe there’s something they want badly enough that they’ll take the risk,” Gojo said. “There’s a lot of reasons. I can’t be certain, but anyways, I think it’s the most likely explanation. Like I said, we’ll have Utahime help us. She may not excel in strength, but she’s always been the observant type. If anyone can get to the root of things, it’s her.”

“That’s good,” you said. “Yeah, you’re right. There’s not much more we can do. It’s just all so much, and so sudden, too.”

“I’m sorry,” Gojo said. “Thank you for going on that mission. You definitely managed to make the most of it. I’m just glad that you escaped the curse without having to fight. I don’t know how that kind of a confrontation would’ve gone.”

“Probably not well,” you admitted. “He’s not the kind of opponent I’m best suited to face off against.”

“How’d you manage it? You were obviously around him long enough that you could have an entire conversation with him, so how were you able to escape fighting? He was so ill-tempered when we met,” Gojo said.

“Maybe that’s just your personality,” you suggested weakly. You had avoided including that particular detail in your report, mostly because you were still struggling to come to terms with it and what it meant.

“Do you really think so? If that’s the case, then he definitely would’ve fought you, because according to your report, you were just as annoying as I would’ve been in the same situation,” he said.

“No,” you said. “That’s not why. It’s because of Sukuna.”

“Sukuna?” Gojo repeated incredulously. “How’d he end up there?”

“He wasn’t there. Not physically, at least. It’s the same thing from when I went to help Megumi, when Sukuna refused to genuinely, properly fight me. For some reason, my death is something that he wants to avoid, to the point that even that curse believed that killing me would automatically disqualify Sukuna from their list of allies,” you said, and you were surprised to feel your throat swelling, choking with inexplicable tears. “I don’t understand it, Gojo. What does he want from me?”

You buried your face in your hands. You knew it was a little ungrateful — after all, you had the King of Curses supposedly watching over you, his name alone ensuring you did not die, but why did it not feel like a blessing? Why was there no benevolence to it? Why did it frighten you so much?

Sukuna did not care about you. He wasn’t protecting you, necessarily. He was just keeping you around for some greater purpose, one that only he could fathom. That was what you feared. What would Sukuna’s whims cost you? What was it that he was saving you for? What would he do to you once you had fulfilled his wish? Because you knew he hated you. He hated your ancestor, and therefore he hated you, and although there was something blocking him from it, he certainly wished for your death. So what was it that he could possibly want from you above all else? What could he possibly want so much that he would even delay the death he so longed to see for it?

Gojo’s hand was soft atop your head. He did not pat you, nor did he stroke your hair. He just let his hand rest there — it was as much comfort as he knew how to give, after all. This was Gojo at his core: a man who did not really understand how to love someone else. Maybe another person might’ve resented him for it, but it only made you feel fiercely more for him, made you wish you could go back in time to when he had been a child and tell him that one day, he would meet you, someone who’d always love him, no matter what, and that he only had to hold on until such a day could come.

“He wants something only you can give,” Gojo said. “I don’t know what that could be. Sukuna’s never been the kind of person that can be easily understood. It doesn’t make sense to me, either, but that’s how it is.”

“I don’t know, either,” you said. Gojo ruffled your hair before retracting his hand.

“It’s okay. You don’t have to know immediately. But think about it, alright?” he said. “And in the meantime, you might as well enjoy the benefits a little. You can’t escape it, so take advantage of the fact that he’s decided, for some reason or another, that you are important to his plans!”

“Yes,” you said. “You’re right. There’s always a bright side, isn’t there?”

“There you go. Cheer up! Let’s move on to more fun topics. The exchange event is in a couple of days. Aren’t you excited to see everyone again?” Gojo said.

“Not when one of them might be a traitor,” you confessed. Gojo shook his head.

“Don’t think like that. Certainly, you shouldn’t trust anyone with your deepest secrets — except for Yuta — but they are all your friends. You can still be happy to see them. Let Utahime and I deal with the problem of the traitor; you just enjoy yourself at the event, alright?” he said.

“Alright,” you agreed. “And although I agree that he’s definitely not the traitor, why is only Yuta deemed so trustworthy? Why didn’t you include Maki or Tullia on the list?”

“He’s in Africa, so it wouldn’t make any sense for him to be the spy,” Gojo said. “He’d be an awful source of information, since he pretty much…has none at the moment. We have to suspect basically everyone else, even though you’re right in thinking that it’s unlikely for either of those two to be spies.”

“I see,” you said. “I guess there’s nothing to be done about it now, is there? This is what it’ll be like until we can catch the spy.”

“I’m afraid it is,” Gojo said sympathetically. “Hey. Wanna go get ice cream with me?”

“You just got back from your trip, didn’t you? I don’t want to make you go out if you’re tired,” you said. Gojo had insisted on meeting with you the instant he had returned from the airport, and though he had done an admirable job at hiding it, you knew he was still exhausted. Still, he shook his head.

“Nah, I was going to go either way. It’ll just make me less lonely if you come along, too,” he said, standing up and pulling you to your feet. “Come on, it’ll be fun!”

You laughed softly. “You know, Gojo, sometimes I think you’re not that bad.”

“Hey, thanks! Anyways, I’m thinking of trying a new flavor, but I’m not sure if I’ll like it. Do you promise to finish it for me if I don’t?” he said.

“Yeah, sure. Whatever. You have to pay for it, though,” you said.

“Pinky swear?”

“Don’t push your luck.”

[ottomanladies]

Hello! I’m so happy to see you’re back.

I believe Gevherhan was Ahmed's first daughter for several reasons:

Considering how fond Ahmed was of his great-aunt Gevherhan, it's likely that he named his first daughter after her. This makes it plausible that Gevherhan was the eldest daughter, born in March 1605, or even before Osman. If this is the case, she would have been old enough to give birth to her first child by 1620. While we could push her birthdate a little later, there is no evidence of any other baby born in 1605 besides those in March.

If Gevherhan was indeed the daughter born in 1605 or before Osman (based on her wedding date and the birth of her first child, she must have been), this would mean that neither Kösem nor Mahfiruz could be her mother.

It's also possible that Gevherhan was born around this time, but her mother may have died during childbirth or shortly after. In this scenario, she might have been given to Mahfiruz, as the first consort, to raise, which could explain why people assumed she was Osman's full sister, since they appeared to share the same mother. Of course, it's possible that Gevherhan was born in 1605, but not in March, and the daughter born in March was one of the daughters who died young. If that’s the case, then Gevherhan could indeed be Mahfiruz’s daughter.

Lastly, if Mahfiruz was Gevherhan's mother, it's intriguing that Ahmed made Kösem the Haseki Sultan so early, despite already having two children with Mahfiruz.

Also, are you planning to continue with the “(OTTOMAN) WOMEN’S HISTORY MEME”? I’ve really missed your gifts—they’re so beautiful.

Hi, thank you very much! Since I'm currently working on this, my interest has rekindled.

I completely agree with you and to tell you the truth, I also thought that maybe she could have been given to Mahfiruz to be raised (especially if, at the time, she was the only mother in the harem).

Mmh unfortunately I don't find making gifs fun anymore and I also deleted everything related to it... I think I may still have a gifset in my drafts, though, if you would like to see it.

[robo-milky]

1. I have no issue in being the spokesman for this ship i swear. Also so be it, outta the way Cloche, Epel bby come here 😍

2. I thought that ask didnt send?? I completely forgot about the carved apple hc thou good thing you still saw it <3

3. Im just now noticing being tagged as a mutual?? Like i know you follow me too but the tag 😭💕

4. And lastly response to the previous ask (this has been a series of full-blown responses, back and forth amongst us)

Shinning light on Epel's character, he does indeed feel conflicted. He fears Cloche's paranoia and vulnerability after the incident is what made them to be closer. If that's the case then he hates it. Dont get me wrong now Epel's the kind who "fell first and fell harder" but he wants to be sure that his Relationship with Cloche even as friends is genuine. He wants to be sure that the closeness Cloche develops with him is not related to her incident even in the slightest. While he still sees glimpses of OG Cloche with how she responds it still makes him uneasy with how he got closer to her in a few months then he could in a year. He knows Cloche doesn't like him back. The way she looks at his vice housewarden with love in her eyes, he wishes he could be that person. (Dont be jealous of that wannabe Dora 🫶)

But he knows he'll never be. But that doesnt mean he wants to cut all ties with Cloche. She is still special to him. He can move on but he knows that wont be the case for a good while but till then he'll be there for Cloche in her time of need when rook is ojt for internships.

Now thats enough angst on my side since now i just feel bad 😭

That being said, signing off till the next responses, peace out and hugging cloche <3 (and hugs for you as well :D )

Throwing in a lighthearted meme as a cleanser <3 If you know the source, you know 😭 God… The amount of layers to get this- (Shout out to y’all following along the SY! Cloche lore)

[Response]

The true ship was Epel x justm3di0cr3 all along- I’m losing it at the irony of you being the spokesperson of ClochEpel yet also writing the downfall(?) (er… Not ClochEpel ClochEpel)

Sending hearts back at ya <3 Any mutual is a mutual ^^

Going straight for the angst path I see- Not that I’m complaining- I’m all for it!

Waiting for Cloche’ epiphany arc to come, when she finally realizes she shouldn’t have taken Epel and his feelings for granted when he’s gone for good. Before the incident, Cloche would have known about Epel’s one-sided affections for her (at some point), but she’s more confused why he would like her. With that, if Epel ever confronts SY!Cloche to set things straight or were vocal about missing the old Cloche, she’d feel upset and lost.

As the person experiencing the changes, Cloche views the new development as growth. OG!Cloche was distant, always trying to not be a burden, and now she’s opening up her heart to rely on others willingly. Cloche, herself, didin’t think the incident changed her, but was an excuse for her to act upon the fears she already had. How Cloche sees herself vs how Epel sees her, would make for an interesting conflict of misunderstandings. Since Epel wants to be there for Cloche, he probably wouldn’t voice his personal conflicts, and Cloche is too prideful to open up any more.

The few remnants of OG!Cloche that Epel can find, is mostly her uncaring, “so be it” attitude. Despite having been there for her for so long, he’s still bitter that a simple “Salut” from Rook on Magicam is enough to make her …smile. (Barely. The corners of her mouth can tilt up by 1mm, I guess.)

When SY!Cloche does feel better, she wouldn’t apologize to Epel, but more so give a word of acknowledgement. She’d drop the bomb out of nowhere, when they’re just alone, without any warnings at all. And ofc, in OG!Cloche fashion, it’d be hella dry but gets the point across. She is chewing on her pride (she cannot swallow it completely.)

“Thanks …for everything. You make this world a little more tolerable, I guess…”

FR— Epel dealing with SY!Cloche’ hot-n-cold reception is such a big improvement from OG!Cloche’ hot-n-cold.

[lonelimbless]

(Different anon, just wanting to clarify that real quick.)

This is mostly my own spin with some wholesomeness thrown in:

During Legends, Raymesis ends up teaming up with Rayman (hence why he's playable) in order to take Ales down, as he got quite enough of the dude.

Before Legends though, all the way back during Rayman 2 actually, Raymesis ends up befriending Dark Globox and at some unknown point also Glombrox. Despite being a seemingly big brute who likes to scare people, Glombrox was surprisingly the most level-headed of the group. Raymesis ends up actually prefering the hero-turned-criminal that was Glombrox over his original father (Mr. Dark). So Raymesis ended up getting himself and his two siblings some new frog friends. If you know that meme of a tired looking guy holding a gremling on a leash, that's pretty much Glombrox with the group, or at least most of them, but he wouldn't have it any other way.

Glombrox and Tychon could enjoy just taking the day of and read or go explore some ancient ruins for lost knowlegde.

Zephyr and Dark Globox pretty much constantly encouraged each other's chaotic nature.

Raymesis mostly just rolled with everyone quite frankly.

At some point Tychon does end up getting a crush, this being on the princess Olympia, after she saved him by stopping a large ogre's fist with just one hand. Tychon ended up chatting with Olympia quite a bit, about her home of Olympus, her powers, why she was here and so on. She in return asked about a lot of the things Tychon had going on, true she wasn't booksmart like they were, but they were still curious which Tychon liked.

Zephyr meanwhile does end up getting a wholesome friendship with Tily the Fairy, both of them going around pranking people and causing mischief. This does help Zephyr slowly leaning more towards the good side of chaos. Zephyr does have to remind her that Dark Globox is not a frog to use as a bouncing castle from time to time though.

Rayman and Raymesis meanwhile becomes rivals/frienemis, but Raymesis would never admit to actually liking Rayman's company after all these years.

In the future, we're talking about post-Mini here, Mr. Dark returns to the group. Raymesis, after both meeting Glombrox and teaming up with Rayman is kinda hesitant to return to his side. At first they team up, but it's actually Glombrox and Zephyr who decides to make a change here; first with Glombrox beating Mr. Dark to a pulp after getting enough of his ego ruining everything they planned and just overall not liking the guy, and Zephyr who when later on Mr. Dark is near-defeat asks her to open a portal to get him out of there, she refuses which ultimately leads to Mr. Dark dying. (I was also thinking Ly the Fairy, but i thought Olympia would be more interesting, unless you want me to elaborate.)

For a moment they don't know what to do with themselves, but as time passes, they end up actually prefering to live without Mr. Dark. Tychon does eventually leave the group, deciding to move to Olympus with Olympia, while Zephyr ends up becoming Voodoo Mama's new assistant. Raymesis stayed behind with Dark Globox and Glombrox though, the three of them turning one of Ales' old hideouts into a new house. Raymesis still keeps in contact with his siblings to this day, and while he still doesn't wanna admit it, he's thankful that Rayman won that battle all those years ago.

Oh, this is very wholesome indeed...

Besides some things that I wanted to clarify is with that battling Mr Dark is much more of a team effort and I'm not too sure if I want Tychon to have a crush on Olympia, perhaps just have her as a friend or what not. Other than those, this is such good stuff.

I especially enjoyed Dark Globox and Zephyr being chaotic buddies so here ya go. I might draw the rest soon. And I think I'll rename Dark Globox into Maddox, to fit in with the group.

They're having soft tacos later ✨/ref

[cheeriecherrymain]

Incorrigible Flirts And Besweatered Men [Chapter 2]

Pairing: TA!Viktor x fem!Reader Rating: T Warnings: None that I can think of Proofread: Not even a tiny bit Chapter Summary: You enter friend territory with Viktor, get an email that might change your future, and get asked on a date (but it’s not actually a date).

It’s been two weeks since the new semester started. Two weeks, and you’re already stressed over the amount of work you’re doing. You’ve told yourself again and again that it’s only going to get more difficult as the year presses on, but somehow, the sentiment has not made you feel any better.

You suppose one of the bright sides of being in another one of Heimerdinger’s classes is that you’ve met Viktor.

When you’d asked for his number, you’d maybe given him the impression that you only wanted it for school purposes; however, he didn’t seem to mind that you texted him daily - if it bothered him, he’d never said anything. In fact, he was always quick to reply to your messages.

Viktor doesn’t seem to be the type of person who’s particularly attached to his phone, so you like to think that maybe he just enjoys talking to you.

—

You startle out of sleep when your alarm starts beeping aggressively in your ear; you don’t remember leaving your phone on your bed the previous night, but knowing your own habits, you probably fell asleep while watching meme videos. Again.

You squirm around a little bit to find the optimal stretching position, only to be deterred when you realize all three of your cats are curled up on your legs, rendering you immobile.

You quickly snap a picture of them, and flip to Viktor’s chat window.

Y/N: Good morning!

Y/N: Hopefully you’re already awake, and I’m not waking you up.

Y/N: I might not be able to make it to class today.

You find yourself smiling when a set of dots appear beside Viktor’s name.

Viktor (Phys510A): Good morning, indeed.

Viktor (Phys510A): Everything is alright, I hope?

Your heart flutters at his concern, and you take a moment to compose yourself. He’s just being nice, you tell yourself, He would check in on anyone else just the same. But despite your inner monologue, you still can’t help the warmth that spreads through your chest and down every nerve ending in your body.

Y/N: I’m okay, I promise.

Y/N: Just a little bit of potential legal trouble.

Viktor (Phys510A): Legal trouble?

Viktor (Phys510A): Do you need help?

With a wry grin, you send the picture of the cats piled on your blanketed legs.

Y/N: If I move them, I’ll go to jail.

Viktor (Phys510A): Miss. Y/N.

You can feel his exasperation through his text, and you barely manage to suppress a laugh.

Viktor (Phys510A): You are a menace.

Viktor (Phys510A): You had me genuinely worried for a moment.

Y/N: Awww, you care about me?

Viktor (Phys510A): Of course I care.

Viktor (Phys510A): You’re one of Heimerdinger’s top students.

Y/N: Oh, ouch???

Y/N: And here I thought we were at least friends by now.

Y/N: But I see how it is.

Y/N: I’m only a student, after all.

Y/N: Woe is me :( 

Viktor (Phys510A): You say it like you consider us friends?

Y/N: Of course I do!

Y/N: You’re one of the only two people I send good morning texts to.

Y/N: The other person is my cousin.

Y/N: She works at a pizza parlor.

Y/N: I get free pizza if I let her gossip with me.

Viktor (Phys510A): Is this your way of saying you want something from me?

Y/N: No!!!

Y/N: omg you’re missing the point completely.

Y/N: I can’t believe I showed you my litties when I’m being treated like this

Viktor (phys510A): What are litties?

Y/N: KITTIES*

Y/N: You’ve stooped low, Viktor.

Y/N: Calling me out on a typo.

Viktor (Phys510A): Physics and its subsequent lessons have no room for typos.

Viktor (Phys510A): I’m just preparing you for class.

Y/N: Physics and its concepts were discovered by total accident.

Y/N: That’s basically a typo, but real life.

Y/N: Therefore you cannot scold me for having fat thumbs.

Viktor (Phys510A): You’re really going to stick with that argument, aren’t you.

Y/N: Yes. Yes, I am.

Viktor (Phys510A): If you’re not in class today, I’m telling Heimerdinger that you’re hungover.

Y/N: But then he’ll be disappointed in me!

Y/N: He’ll make The Face and everything!

Viktor (Phys510A): It’s your choice.

Y/N: Terrible, awful, horrible man.

Viktor (Phys510A): I’ll see you in class :) 

You set your phone down with a pouty sigh, and debate just going back to sleep. However, you know that Viktor is a man who will follow through on his threats, however playful they are, and you don’t think you have the emotional capacity to deal with disappointment from the Professor.

So, with great difficulty and many protests from your cats, you haul yourself out of bed to get ready for the day.

—

You walk into the lecture hall, waving to Viktor and the Professor, and take your favourite seat; second row from the front, just to the left of the center of the room. 

The class had shrunk considerably since the start of the semester, with most of the unenthused students dropping the course, but in your mind, the front row was only for serious students. You might still be a part of the class, and you certainly cared about your grades, but you weren’t passionate about the subject like some of your peers.

The second row was the optimal choice.

Once you’re settled, you pull your notebooks and supplies out of your bag. It’s an ancient thing, made mostly of scraps and patches at this point, but it gets the job done. You only have to unwrinkle a few pages of notes as you go over them.

Then again, you only go over your notes for a few pages, before your mind - and your eyes - starts wandering. Specifically, over to Viktor.

He’s a good teacher, whether he’s helping Heimerdinger with lectures, or wandering from student to student to quietly answer questions. He’s insightful and intelligent, and he’s encouraging in his criticisms. 

Not to mention, he turns a lovely shade of pink when you flirt with him.

You’ve noticed a couple of your classmates try to behave the same with him - friendly with a flirtatious air - and you’ve never seen Viktor get as flustered as with you. In fact, with everyone else, he hardly gets flustered at all. He keeps his professionalism in check, and keeps the conversation subjects strictly on class material.

That isn’t to say he doesn’t do the same with you, of course; his first instinct with you is to help you with any questions you have about the days’ lecture, but he’s…warmer with you. Friendlier, and more open. Plus, you’re pretty sure you’re the only person in the class who has his personal number, and he’s always quick to text you back-

You startle out of your thoughts when your pocket vibrates and, with a quick glance around to make sure you haven’t drawn attention to yourself, you pull your phone out of your pocket.

You’re half expecting a cheeky text from Viktor, something along the lines of ‘Why are you checking your phone in class?’, and you’re only slightly disappointed when you don’t see any notifications from him. You do, however, have an email.

You swipe to see who it’s from, deciding it’s most likely junk or spam - but the name of the sender makes you pause.

Firelights Studios.

Your heart leaps into your throat so quickly that you nearly choke, and you’re quick to open the email.

You don’t fully read most of it - that’s a task better left for outside class hours - but you’re able to understand the gist of it; you try your hardest to keep your excitement at bay, but as you quietly slip your phone back into your pocket, you’re unable to keep your hands from shaking.

There’s no way in hell you’re going to be able to focus on working for the next three hours.

—

The class drags on far longer than it should, despite the fact that it ends right on schedule. Part of you is grateful for the longer lessons - it really allows you to get into your projects and be present for learning - but mostly, you’re just cranky that you have to sit for so long.

You walk swiftly down the steps at the side of the lecture hall, your mind still reeling from the email you got earlier. It had seemed to be good news, from what you’d read; you hadn’t seen any apologies or ‘we regret to inform you’s hidden within the multitude of paragraphs.

And then a tug on your shoulder, followed by the sickening sound of snapping threads, brings your thoughts out of the clouds and back to reality. It happens so quickly that you don’t even have time to react - your shoulder bag is torn open after getting caught on the edge of a bannister, and your various papers and school supplies explode across the floor.

You swear quietly, and stoop down to try to collect everything. You’re not sure how you’re going to carry anything, though, once you try to find space in the bag that is - at this point - little more than scrap fabric.

You sigh deeply, and run your hands over your face. 

And then the creak of a chair right beside you, and the shuffling of papers.

You remove your hands from your face to find Viktor just to your left, helping you gather up the mess you’d made. You just watch him for a second, both surprised by the gesture, but also not; because he’s Viktor. Of course he’d rush in to help.

“Thank you,” you manage to squeak out, scrabbling around to move all your stuff into a more tidy pile. You’re not entirely sure why your throat tightens the way it does, nor why tears start to sting the corners of your eyes; you just hope that Viktor doesn’t notice, or make a comment on why you’re so quiet.

Once everything is set up into neat little stacks, Viktor produces a fabric square from his own shoulder bag, and hands it to you. “It won’t replace an actual school bag,” he says softly, “but it will at least allow you to carry everything back to your residence.” 

You stare at the square for a moment, taking longer than you’d like to realize it’s a reusable grocery bag. You quickly unfold it to start packing your things up, mumbling your thanks once again.

Once all is said and done, Viktor stands up beside you and offers his hand.

“Well,” you sigh, as he helps you to your feet, “I don’t think I’m going to be able to fix it this time around.” You regard the ruined satchel in your hand, and crinkle your nose up.

“Are you sure?” Viktor asks, though you can tell by his tone that he’s just trying to be supportive. “A…little bit of extra fabric here and there, and maybe…”

You fix him with a disbelieving stare, and he trails off.

“At this point, the entire thing is made of scrap fabric,” you explain. “I’ve had this bag since I was thirteen, I think? Or maybe twelve?” Viktor looks surprised, but you continue, “It doesn’t matter. I’m overdue for a replacement, is the point.”

Your attention darts down to the worn-leather bag hanging at his side, and you ask, “ Viktor, you wouldn’t happen to remember where you got that, would you?”

His gaze follows yours, and realization dawns on him. “Oh- yes, actually.” He reaches into one of the satchel’s pockets, and digs around for a couple seconds. “It’s a little hole-in-the-wall sort of place - I don’t think they even have a website, all of his reputation is based on word-of-mouth.”

He pulls out a tiny notepad and a metal pen, and scribbles down an address. “Here,” he says softly, handing it to you, and you don’t miss the little jolt of warmth you feel when your fingers brush together. “It’s, ah. It’s reasonably priced, for hand-crafted goods, and there are lots of designs to choose from. You should be able to find something.”

Butterflies explode in your stomach when you see the pink dusting his cheeks again: he’s just as affected by the little touch as you are.

But your nervous excitement turns into anxiety when you read the address he’s written down for you.

“Is this place in the-” you pause for a moment, “Is this place in Zaun?” You try your best to keep your voice even, but it proves difficult. You don’t want to be the kind of person who judges any part of a community based on the worst of the people that can be found there, and you understand that most of the residents in that district are only trying to make ends meet: but you’d be naive - if not downright stupid - to walk through the undercity without a single care.

“It is,” Viktor confirms. “Is that an issue?”

You fidget nervously, picking at the dry skin around your cuticles. “Only because I’m a single woman,” you tell him, starting to feel like you’re overreacting. “It’ll be fine though, I’m sure. I’m just being my usual nervous self!” 

Your attempt at deflecting goes poorly, because Viktor continues to frown at you. You think for a moment that you’ve offended him or worse, but all at once his features soften and his shoulders relax.

“I hadn’t thought of that,” he says quietly, sounding almost guilty.

You shrug. “I mean, you’re a guy, so you don’t…I mean, obviously you have to be careful still, but…you don’t really have to be on guard every time you leave the house.”

“It is the same as when we met,” he says, “when you hesitated following me. Clearly there are dangers in the world that even I do not know about. But you need a bag, and I stand by my opinion that this man is one of the best craftsmen in the area; and I cannot send you there alone in good conscience.”

Then quieter, “Are you free this weekend?”

[katyspersonal]

Soulsborne bingo about Lady Maria!😎

Ohhhh yeah, her!!

I have written plenty of headcanons on her so far, and she was one of the first Bloodborne characters I got invested in - and one of the first characters I've drawn! She is amongst my most elaborate Bloodborne portrayals in terms of headcanons, analysis and story! Fun fact - she is also my second most posted character, after Mico! Not to mention her frequient appearance in my dreams, too? Again, it is a little... odd, how I do not express all that much passion about her, despite having a VERY elaborate map of her in my head. Do you know how sometimes you really care about the character, but for some reason you need an extra stimul to actually bring up your thoughts and feelings? I am like this about her. Unassuming externally, but having a lot of things to say internally! I also would like to link some headcanons about her that I've written for another ask meme for her: ( x ).

Her design is really good, I love everything about it! Her face is so beautiful, and is more unique than you might assume! Her hair is not regular blonde but that paler, 'ashy' color, her eyes are not blue but mint green, her eyebrows are WHITE (Pthumerian blood much? :p) and the circles under her eyes (again - Pthumerian blood much??). And her eyelashes are very notably pale, too:

When I draw her, I always get stuck just looking at her. And her hunter outfit is really great variant of the Knight clothes! Her wearing normal fancy Knight outfit, full of red and gemstones would just not feel the same. More modest yet more elegant look is PERFECT.

There is a lot going on about this character, too. I obsess over the fact that she could not bear the heartbreak after Fishing Hamlet and discarded the hunt as a concept, instead opting out for being a caretaker for the patients. And how she parallels Djura who also quit the hunt! But Djura survived for such a long time, comfortable in his purpose, yet Maria gave up and killed herself. I mean, there is a merit in the cut content idea that Simon ended her life in reality, but I think her suicide works better. (And how much you want to bet it was Adeline's death that was the last straw for Maria?..) She is a knight that was willing to help the humanity and protect it, but ended up losing her own, which is a tragedy consistent for Bloodborne it seems.

I also feel like she did have some weakness, meekness even, to her personality in the end, which is why despite having abandoned her clan and distasting blood she was powerless to protect Adeline from falling into their questionable antics. And chose passive role of caretaker for Church's (questionable!!!) business and keep their secret, despite having regretted ever taking part in the massacre. And could not go on, unlike Djura. She is a strong and stoic person, indeed, and a very skilled warrior, but also there is just... something. You know? She will kill a scary monster without problem, but when it comes to putting up a fight of the character, like resisting an intimidating authority - I feel she can't do that. Not even to protect someone dear, like Adeline. That, or Laurence sucks in people's courage like a black hole, wouldn't put it past the bastard either She will act very decisively in life and death situation on the battlefield, but will be an absolute coward about confessing her feelings or something...? Like unrealised trauma that has been a 'crack' in her soul. But she still would rise up despite it to do what she believed was right. It feels like doing sport despite a physical trauma that might betray you any time, but mentally so.

Alright, you see what I mean? Any attempt to discuss Maria's personality makes me dive into one of the corners of her character. And she has several! I think if I was to write a devoted character analysis for her that is not spread across several posts, it would actually take a few days to put together!

We also can only be sure about her dynamics with Adeline and Gehrman, but there is otherwise a lot of potential for her knowing other characters, too! I love what we got, however! A lot to speculate on, both have good fundament for very elaborate story!

________________

In general, I love her character. You are not from the Western fandom but you will find that some fans will simplify her very unpleasantly. On the one hand, some drooling horny dudes that simply see her as a sexy female knight (that needs a makeover as if she is not attractive enough already...? wtf...). On the other hand, toxic adult babies that think her whole character will crumble and lose appeal if she likes not only women but men too, or if she has not only masculine sides to her character, but feminine ones too. I say, whatever character trait you pick on about her, she is always more than that. Exploring her beyond just being a badass, powerful, skilled hunter expands and complicates her character, but some people will call it "reducing" her because for them being strong and being "feminine" (?) are mutually exclusive traits for some reason. I'd also make a point that the fact she not only discarded the hunt, but her becoming a hunter again as a punishment in literal Hell is a BIG evidence against 'her TRUE self is a mean murderous warrior and Gehrman disrespected it' flex. But you already understand by now that in Western fandoms, based fans are in the trenches every day xD

All in all, Maria is probably the most interesting character in Bloodborne that can offer a lot to think about for everyone. There are always many ways to interpret her none of which is "absolute" and none of which "robs" any demographic off anything. This is what happens when a character is written like a person, and not like a 'statement'! ...and I say all this when she barely has any dialogue, and we as lore people are left to grasp at item descriptions, nonverbal narrative, actions of other characters, Dolls look in relation with Gehrman having feelings so warm it made Doll cry tears of joy, Doll wearing Maria's ribbon shoes and pendant, cut content, their spiritual connection, Cainhurst context......

Thank you for the ask!

[silphine]

ESCAFLOWNE Voice meme (2/5)

[ Escaflowne voice meme made by @drkstars-art ]

PART 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5

------------------   

2. Who is your favorite character and why? Was it love at first sight?  Has any of their qualities or quirks swayed you on characters in other series?

Instinctively, Van.

He was my favorite character right from the beggining. And despite I now love the vast majority of characters (for many different reasons), I'm still really attached to him.

WHY ? > Mainly because Van's story is the (painful and challenging) process of a boy growing up to finally become a man.

He has the widest range of emotions through out the series, which makes him very realistic and human.

He is the combination of a Life of Duty, Fight, Revenge with the tough, rebelous and doubtful period of adolescence. These two concepts confront inside him and I just love the dynamic it gives to his character :

- Deep inside, Van is a shy, kind, sensitive, pacifist and simple young man > But must endorse a King role he never aimed to and has to learn to fight and kill if needed.

- He lacks of self confidence, is also very impulsive and wholehearted with his beliefs (he is still a teenager after all) > But has to deal with many adult and overwhelming situations (with other royals, leaders, politics...)

- Physically, he is quite small for his age and pretty puny > But reveals being strenghful, mature (on many aspects) and determined. Plus, very dangerous in critical situations :

When he kills several Zaibach soldiers in Energist mine.

When he slaughters all Dilandau’s soldiers.

When he finds and enters Zaibach invisible forteress 

I just love this contrast !

Gaea is a violent world for his kind soul. But he finally accepts his fate and deals with it the best he can, even if it's too heavy for his young and small shoulders.

He internalizes his suffering most of the time and that's why I sympathize so much for him.

His resilience always impressed me.

> He lost almost everything at the beginning of the story, but manages to overcome the situation. We clearly see Balgus' influence in him. (I always loved Balgus. A strong, stoic, proud but so reliable and very kind man. An excellent father figure for any young becoming man.)

By the way, I love the fact that the promise Balgus made to Hitomi to find a way to send her back home foreshadows Van x Hitomi relationship all over the series until its very end.

" We will find a way to send you back on Mystic Moon." " A Fanelian warrior never lies. "

Indeed, Van never lies to Hitomi. By friendship (and because he genuily understands her sadness for being separated from her family), he takes up the promise Balgus made her...

...and reminds her later (in a bitter way) Even if he is deeply irritated by her presence on the moment, frustrated and full of jealousy towards Allen : he WILL keep his promise.

And he will. Definitely. Despite their mutual love. I don't think many young men would do the same. That's why I find him so special. Was it love at first sight ?   > Here was the very first time I saw him.

Frankly, how can it not be a love at first sight ? I knew nothing about his character, neither the story of ESCAFLOWNE. But I instantanly understood in this scene he was desperatly in love with this girl kissing a "perfect blondie man" and that all his hopes just gone up in smoke ! I felt so bad for him... (I feel the same each time I rewatch this scene.)

(Second dose... In case the viewer would not really get how much his heart is broken !) Honestly... How can a heartbreak be so beautifully portrayed and hurt so hard in a single image !? I also love watching him get irritated and not understanding his own feelings. He saves and protects Hitomi most of the time but, paradoxally, is unable to properly express his love to her. He is so lost on that topic ! To finish : his character taught me a lesson on humanity has a young teenage : > The most dangerous person may not be the one who attacks, cheats, enforces domination or hurts people in the first place.... 

... But the most kind person, pushed to his own limits... (Dilandau just freaked out...) > Everyone can become a monster if pushed too far or blinded by its hatred/anger. We all have violence inside us and it can be easy to give in to it. For all these reasons, I love his character. [ > PART 3 ]

[shmowder]

SO I was about to say that we never spoke on your BG3 blog, but I actually found one question by me, asking if you were playing the original Pathologic or P2 😂 By the time I found that blog you'd already pretty much moved on to this one (which is fine!). But I rb'd a couple fics to my sideblog. Certainly never imagined myself reading about a giant half-spider woman but here we are ♡ The thing about Minthara is that I adore her but I don't know anything about the rest of the game and it's too expensive for me to commit to right now - and I'm always hearing about her romance being bugged anyway.

Yuria <333 And Sister Friede but more importantly, Yuria! I love that you love her too! I confess that I never got past the Abyss Watchers but tbh I'm amazed I got that far. And at least my Ashen One got to meet Yuria (and heard her best line "And I, of course, am also thine" hehe). Good for you for getting through it! Bloodborne is the one Fromsoft game I've beaten and it was rough getting used to the Dark Souls combat, so I watched a walkthrough of the rest. And I've also watched a ~90 hour walkthrough of Elden Ring, which did put me to sleep occasionally lmao but I just don't have the willpower to play huge open world games anymore.

I almost finished a NG+ playthrough of Bloodborne recently, until I started the DLC and promptly got my ass handed to me and I was like hmmmm actually now is the perfect time to start a new SDV farm 🤔

But, I'm taking a little break because I've indeed started Patho 2 again!! It's the beginning of day 5, I'm using super easy settings again and I found my old notes of where the Dead Item Shop is every day and which items to save for upgrades etc. Despite that, I seem to be missing more than ever. I may have focused a little too much on trading and collecting herbs and caches. Forgot the bell rang on Day 3 and didn't gather the Apple Basket Gang rip :( (I noticed that Lara and Artemy both have dialogue about not being 30 yet, so there's that question out of the way) But on the bright side I have more eggs than I could ever need (maybe…) and I'm on my 3rd inventory upgrade.

Haha, based on that anecdote I'd say you know more Russian than I do. I know a lot of people listen to other things when playing games but I've never tried that except when hatching Pokemon eggs. I love hearing the in-game sounds and music. Victor and Yulia have the same theme playing in their houses!

Yes of course we can be friends! Requesting from writing blogs is what originally got me interacting with others, so, kind of like you, just the other way around 😅 Then I discovered it can be nice just to talk sometimes. It seems like you're having a good time on this blog! Chill is good. Part of me is still flabbergasted that there's a Pathologic x reader blog that exists and it's run by a great writer who obviously has so much love for the characters which is a huge plus <3 But I like the memes too :) I can't speak for other anons, but I always check my entire dash until I'm completely caught up.

Moving on… WHEN I TRANSLATED THE TITLE OF THE VICTOR X READER FIC!! Hooo boy, I'm a simple girl and the "You're good, my little dove, you're good. Despite it all, you're good" quote is one of my favorites. It's like you read my mind with the description - SOFT, TENDER, and UNSTABLE? Three of my favorite things 😇

So!! I am the human embodiment of this emoji while reading 🤭🤭🤭 Honestly so galaxy brained of you make it into a fic, I could never be upset about that. There's such an atmosphere to this from the very beginning, I don't know how to describe it but I want to bite it. Playing house with slightly off vibes, "Like handling a stray cat" OUGH. (I agree that'd he'd want to play at domesticity.) The way he notices everything, his solicitousness. Reader as sacrificial lamb imagery. "He takes and takes like you're the cure for his morose soul."

The immortality vs mortality thing! That's when I really got why this works so well as a fic instead of hcs. I love that it feels like a character study as much as a smut fic (and ofc I appreciate all the little details about time). TOP TIER SMUT ALSO. His endless patience while also being in emotional/spiritual/physical agony, him praising the reader's patience, he does seem like the type to draw it out a while - "He'll hide you from the world and everything dangerous outside" 😳

And the end!! What a beautiful, brilliant mind, what a sensitive fragile heart, what a lovely soul. My goodness. Just - [keysmash] [disintegrates]

That was AMAZING and you should be proud. Thank you for taking my request and running with it <333

If my overzealous reaction to the froggy chair birthday pic never made it through, thank you for that too! It's delightful.

Happy birthday!! 🧁🎉 I hope you enjoy the day.

🐿️ anon

You remembered my birthday! I love you!

God I was refreshing my notes waiting for your reaction over the fic. I'm so happy you liked it <33 Especially how you qouted your favourite lines and your reaction to them, that's literally the highest of praise I could receive. You understand the underlying themes, the whole playing house but something seems off, Victor's inner fits of monologue occasionally completely going off-rails and showing how lost in his head he tends to get. How his brain switches focus between topics constantly before snapping back to reality and vice versa.

Conflicted in everything. At times, he appears as if he's pleading with you, below you as loyal as a guard dog. At others he appears above you, pulling your strings with sheer authority and nothing else.

The whole turmoil of deciding to let Reader die a natural death, to be selfish and never allow them into the Kains grand scheme of immortality, to know you'll only exist by his side before your soul is lost to the cosmos forever.

I avoided bringing Nina by name but her presence is heavy in each line of the story. How much he would let you hurt him and others as much as you want like she used to do, how he lets your sins slide and sweeps your wrongs under the rug. How he clings to your mortality because part of his resents humanity for taking his wife away, for stealing his own life and future away.

The whole wings and feather symbolism. Immortality is the wings the Kains are sewing together one thread at a time, each feather plucked being a brilliant person's soul. That eventually, maybe they too will ascend past the larva stage and be able to live freely with no fear of death much like Icarus flew above the seas without regards to his father's words. They're flying straight into the sun and they mistake its blazing fire for the heavens above.

His little dove petname fitting perfectly with the Icarus symbolism, with you being a beautiful bird he wants to keep caged in the mortal real out of selfishness, out of the desire to finally call someone his own. All his life he has give for the future of humanity, both his wife and two kids turned into chess pieces to be sacrificed in times of need.

And that's fine that's okay. He can handle it. His family may belong to the future, they may belong to mankind and the utopia they're slowly shaping. He is strong and pragmatic, he can more than understand why heavy costs and live with the consequences. He will carry that burden of guilt indefinitely.

But you, oh you.... He won't allow it. You have to slip away from their clutches, from his own sharp claws. You won't belong to the future, you will belong to the present forever with him, forever to him.

I enjoyed writing it so much. I started as Headcanons but the words piled up and the sentences started weaving themselves on their own. It was so beautiful, I didn't have the heart to trim the growth and force it back into the headcanons mould, so i let it blossom into a full story even if it meant more work.

Headcanons are usually effortless, stories are not. I had several open tabs by the end of writing it searching for various idoms, symbolism and word synonyms. Looking through Victor's qoute then remembering the latin endearment term for dove.

I really wanted to paint the picture of how he makes loving you a form of self-flagellation, but I had to keep the message subtle so it shows how well he hides it. How on the surface you can easily mistake his infatuation for any adoring partner, but deep down he's completely unstable behind the calculated hardened face. I'd argue that he was as crazy as Nina if not even more. He just happened to be better at hiding it. It was an elaborate plan for him to play the role of the reliable soft-hearted self-sacrificing leader to win people's favour, to paint the Kains in an angelic light so their women may be as cruel as their hearts desire.

Again, thank you for leaving such a sweet message afterwards. People rarely do, you get accustomed to fulfilling requests then throwing your writing into the ocean after posting it. The reblogs and likes are good and all but I just want to hear another human's words at times you know? Another soul's opinion, something that proves that this exists and was read by an actual person rather than a number counter going up.

Although oh my god you read THAT Minthara fic?? A beautiful webbing?? IT'S ONE OF MY MOST PROUD WORKS! One of my most ambitious too! The descriptive scenery in that fic took a lifetime out of me, so much blood and tears poured onto the layout of the garden, of the sussur tree and blood rose. Writing it felt like my magnum opus at the time, although now I'd say Lingum Vitea holds the spot for the amount of Latin I had to research for that Burakhovsky fic.

I'm so glad you liked that fic! They're my favourite children <333 I like the rest too but sometimes I write things purely out of passion and they shine brighter than the rest in my eyes.

You've already started your P2 playthrough hell yeah! I hope it goes well and it's fun! I actually missed the apple basket gang meeting too in my playthrough- I thought it was scripted to be missed because it directly coincident with the Bachelor calling people to town hall and proclaiming quarantine so I thought oh, it must be cancelled duh! I didn't realise you could still walk to it ah-

You can never have too much eggs, trust me.

Being a trader hoarder is good! you'll eventually learn which people overpay for which items and look out for them. Usually trading is rng depent on which npc you meet on the road to your current mission because straying from the path means losing precious time.

Good for beating bloodborne and going on ng+! Hell yeah! I've never played it but it seems hard bc of the parries and no shield. I miss my shield in ds3 :( During the end of the game, my brother was watching me play and he tricked me into going to the end boss unprepared. He claimed it was just another npc for a quest and I didn't know it was the end boss bc I didn't watch anything about dark souls before playing it- I just walked to the soul of cinder all like "omfg hiii bestiee :3 " then got stabbed.

BUT I FUCKING BEAT HIM IN ONE TRY! EVEN WHEN I WAS TRICKED AND ALMOST DIED. I managed to clutch with my trustyyyy shieellldd.

But also I died to that weird balls tree 90+

I am not exaggerating, I genuinely couldn't handle that lame mini boss tree. I killee the abyss watchers in two tries and the soul of cinder in one but a fucking tree is responsible for 70% of my deaths through all of the game.

I'm celebrating my birthday today. it's not going well but at least I have a lot of cake and will buy myself flowers in an hour after the shops open. I got cheesecake! I love cheesecake! I think Yulia would like cheesecake or is she more of a dark chocolate person? I still have your request for her nsfw hc so don't worry it wasn't swallowed by tumblr.

Honestly I can't believe I'm the only pathologic x reader blog- Seems almost blasphemous tbh. I hope more pop up in the future, this fandom is surprisingly chill and nice. Especially for such a hardcore game.

I hope your day is amazing <3

Oh and I did receive your froggy chair submission! I just wasn't sure whether to reply to it publicly or not in case you wanted to stay anonymous to others on this blog. I'm glad you liked the meme I threw together and my other memes on this blog hehe. I like making them, it's like visual storytelling.

[pudding-parade]

Music Meme 2: Electric Boogaloo

@papermint-airplane and @simsdastra tagged me again for this, so apparently they, at least, want more from me. There's no accounting for taste, folks! ;)

🎶✨when u get this u have to put 5 songs u actually listen to, and publish. then, send this ask/tag 10 of your favorite followers (non-negotiable, positivity is cool) ✨🎶

I'll use YouTube embeds this time, just because it's easier than copypasting links and because ya girl doesn't have a Spotify account. (Well, technically, I do, but I forgot my login and idc enough to recover it.) Anyway, since embeds are huge plus I babbled as usual, I'll put them behind a cut.

And I guess I'll tag more peeps, so here you go: @twinsimming, @rollo-rolls, @ninjaofthepurplethings, @suratan-zir, @fluttereyes-ts3-blog, @danjaley, @unsimspirational, @lilidebergerac, @stargazer-sims, and @parystrange. And if anyone reading this wants to do it, too, consider yourself tagged, too. Feel free to ignore, as always. No pressure.

Here we go…

This one reminds me of my rave days. Man, I miss those rave days… I listen to a lot of ambient, trance-y electronic stuff whether I'm high/tripping or not. It tends to fuel creativity in me, and Delerium is always at the top of my list. I love the combination of dark ambient and ethereal female voices that most of their tracks have.

More belly dance music. Yes, I am really into belly dance. I've been taking lessons for….eight?…years now, and I'm good enough now to perform as well as teach beginners. In fact, I'm teaching my very first actual beginner's class this spring, and I'm very excited because 8 people (including one guy and one kid, which is awesome) have already signed up. SQUEE! :D I love everything about belly dance. It's excellent exercise and gives you amazing muscle control, which is great for inherently clumsy people like me. I love the music. I LOVE love that it makes me feel sexy and ultra-feminine and that there's no pressure for dancers to be super-skinny. (In fact, belly dance looks better if you aren't skinny, although lamentably I am skinny because of health issues.) But most of all, I love the outfits. The fabrics, the sweeping skirts, the colors, the BLING. ✨ ✨ ✨

ANYWAY! This piece is one that I have performed to. I prefer pieces that are all/mostly darbuka (That's the drum), and this guy is a master.

You wouldn't think that this combo would work as a duet, but it really, really does, despite the fact that, according to my first husband (who was a recording engineer and eventually a producer), Donna was hung-over as fuck during the (single!) recording session. Can you imagine singing like that while hung-over? I can't.

Ironically, I played the shit out of this song when my first husband left me. LOL I still play it a lot nowadays when I want to sing and dance like an idiot.

I wouldn't call myself a metalhead by any stretch of the imagination, but I do like metal quite a bit. My favorite metal genre is symphonic metal, which probably isn't surprising since I'm a classical musician. :) But yeah, give me all the Nightwish and Epica and, indeed, Within Temptation. This is arguably my favorite song of theirs.

And since I haven't put anything from my favorite band of all time on these lists…time to fix that. :) Though it definitely isn't my overall favorite song of Queen's, this is my favorite song from Queen II, which is my favorite Queen album. It's the height of their fantasy-theme phase. It's also their "heaviest" album, so I thought that something from it was a good song to follow Within Temptation. :)

[legendarybelmont]

For the shipping ask meme :3

Trevor/Grant + family

Walter/Leon + entertainment

Death/Juste + fate

Leon/Mathias + arid

AW YEAH WOO YEAH

1. my favourite guys... grants whole rebellion thing went incredibly south and in the nes translation i recall him saying dracula killed his family, so theres nobody for him to really introduce trevor to; and we're completely in the dark regarding the status of any family members trevor has, so im not sure on that. but i think trevor would have a lot of concerns about *having* a family with grant, after the way the belmonts have been treated for so long, so... i think that if they did, theyd probably give them the danasty name, just to be safe, and perhaps to give grant a bit of peace after his living relatives possibly all got mega mauled by draculas girl gang army

2. okay we know that the entirety of loi is walters favourite movie until the very end, lets not kid ourselves. even after that, i think walter would find leon at the very least incredibly intriguing. rinaldo says to leon at the very beginning that "he must really like you" which, HMMMM, but also has implications for any later developments after both their lives go completely down the drain. i think that no matter what they did after loi (possibly go on a dual revenge quest assuming alt ending, because we all know walter would be THE WORST influence), walter would regard it as a new sort of game, leon of course still at the centre: very entertaining indeed

3. FATE HUH. FATE. the successor of fate and the funny skeleton man doing everything he can to perpetuate that fate... we love to see it!! their dynamic in the game is incredibly interesting, with this being the (as far as release date goes?) first showcase of deaths down to clown attitude when it comes to helping slash not attacking 'enemies' if it doesnt endanger his master. hes flexible! and juste, in turn, doesnt attack him until death starts a fight. they cooperate for a bit! despite immediately recognising juste as a belmont (colour of his soul? idk thats kinda 🤨) death gives him some answers juste wouldnt have realised on his own and leaves him be until he himself actually realises "oh shit dracula time i gotta go prep", even though it wouldve been easier to deal with juste before he got more gear and whatnot, and juste showa him the same courtesy. theyre also kind of snippy? which is fun! they banter! the whole parallels thing juste has going on with leon is especially obvious, and especially fun when it comes to them. not death letting things slide because juste reminds him a bit of leon :p ahhh doomed relationships

4. arid huh? hmmm...

theyre both. both definitions. after loi, their relationship is a pit, a giant swathe of burned and dead land between them; nothing can ever grow there again, except for the hardiest weeds, the fruit of hate and loathing. and too, after loi, their lives are arid. meaningless. aside from vengeance leon has nothing, and now that hes had his vengeance mathias has nothing. their lives are dull and empty. quirky huh

[cinghialefedele]

I think... I'm gonna be a bit more selective in who I put effort into interacting with? Like, just in general, bc I'm starting to pick up on some patterns that feels like certain people are being fake with me? Like wanting asks from me, or lightly plotting things or saying they want to write w me and then completely ignoring everything I send them. Like not even joking, practically every single thing I send has never been responded to or asks answered despite these individuals saying they want to write with me and it's.

Like sending a very clear message certain people just want to satiate me ooc to shut me up and leave them alone.

I understand being busy, and having your own life. Trust me. I work 2 jobs, 12+ hrs a day, 6 days a week. But I still try to (and 99% of the time do eventually) get around to everyone I say I want to interact with, and i think it's also unfair to people as busy as me to fake interest in interacting with us when we only have so much time in the day and end up wasting it sending things to people who actually don't want to interact. It's not like their accounts are inactive. They're posting and writing with other people. Just block me or say you don't want to interact with my particular muse or something. Or don't ask to write with me.

This isn't about anyone I have current threads with, I know I owe you all and this feeling has effected my writing motivation here, but I promise I'm getting to it. I have two of the 6 ish drafts I have to write queued already as I slowly get back to it.

I'm grateful for all the people who have indeed checked on me since I've been here less and who've offered to send me things to get me back in the flow here, I will try to reblog some starter/ask memes like you suggested so we can get something going, soon.

TL;DR, My absence here is in part to realizing some of the people I admired and wanted to write with here probably see me as just a nuisance, but I'm going to tighten my writing gloves and stop giving those people my attention and start replying to my current threads again and trying to branch out and extend my current writing circle here.

Thank you all.

[mindsmade]

home - aeren pulls sh closer until sh’s face rests in the crook of aeren’s neck

@weaveshadows / meme

The terror rarely ceases these days, but Aerendyl can find reprieve from them here and there. In a way, he's stumbled upon one such occasion tonight — and then silently retreated from it. That moment by the statue of Selûne was meant for Shadowheart and her parents, and he can only feel glad to have played some part in bringing them together at all, circumstances be damned.

He stands now in the abandoned chapel bordering their camp, casting a cursory glance at the broken statues, the ruined pews lying about, and the flickering candle flames every now and again. He spent a minute or two leaning against the altar before his thoughts veered elsewhere — away from the Hallowleaf family, their reunion and the aftermath they're faced with now, and towards that of his own.

In the absence of distractions, he thinks of the letter etched into his memory. His mother's sloppy handwriting was and is unmistakable, but that what it described bemuses him still. Aerendyl briefly dwells on the initial relief he'd felt upon receiving it, thinking her safe after all, indeed, but the lack of sense in her words swiftly whittles that sensation down to mild despair.

The answer as to why she'd chosen to reunite with his father now, after that momentous fall-out decades ago, eludes him. Their impromptu reunion said to only be lacking his presence might have induced unbridled elation in his ten-year-old self, but his present-day skepticism wins out every time he meditates on the matter.

Something is wrong. His first thought always leads to Orin playing games; his second leads to those accursed tadpoles. There are no alternatives — even if he tries to fool himself into thinking his paranoia's getting the better of him at last, and he can simply no longer recognise a good thing when he sees it. Reconciliation between those two was never an option.

Aerendyl snaps out of his thoughts and reaches a standstill amidst his pacing as the heavy wooden door creaks. He forgets what he was thinking about for a while, and he's all too content with that. There's a welcome distraction in studying what he soon recognises as Shadowheart's silhouette against the backdrop of moonlight pouring in.

❛  I hope my leaving didn't cause any offence. I thought the moment best kept between you three.  ❜ He remains stock still in the middle of the aisle for another moment, briefly wringing his hands. By the time his hands fall to his side, Shadowheart's already within arm's reach.

'Are you all right?' Somehow, it takes until the second echo of her words in this vaulted building for him to register it. They form a simple question with a complicated answer, for he's beyond pleased to see Shadowheart reunited with their family ( despite any initial unease ). They have a future with each other in it now, and something to fight the Elder Brain that much more fiercely for.

But Aerendyl finds himself hoping the same might lie in his future, yet fears – expects – he will see any possibility for it shatter before his eyes.

❛  I'm not sure. Are you?  ❜ He won't lie to her, and he expects she'll offer him the same courtesy. They're both navigating troubled waters now, even if the directions of the tides they sail vary all too greatly.

The absence of an instant answer begs a change of tactic. Perhaps not everything needs to be put into words; some things can simply be felt, rather than discussed. But he wishes to share and partake in the resolution of what ails them both, even if it proves only to be a temporary reprieve — and so he reaches out, his right hand to their left, and pulls them his way.

Close, closer, closest — until they come together and he can snake his arms about her, coaxing her into resting her head in the crook of his neck. A sigh flees him as he rests his chin atop her head and languidly starts thumbing her shoulder blade beneath his hand. The other seeks refuge at the base of her head, right where it meets her nape.

He drinks in the comfort of their embrace, registering every point of contact. His chin to their hair, their breath fanning across his collarbone, the gentle ( yet somehow urgent ) press of their arms along his shoulders and neck — all rousing a sense of connection he feels more at home in than he can describe.

The faintest smile touches upon his lips as he shuts his eyes, pondering the solace that's draped itself across him ( and hopefully across Shadowheart, too ) like a warm blanket. ❛ Well, I do feel much better for having you here, for what it's worth. ❜