#WATCH OUT THE DOWNFALL DUO IS COMING

[commanderwindy]

THESE TWO

[penguinbuttcheeks]

Three's a Crowd - ghost x reader

summary: you’re the latest addition to the 141. price and gaz have each other, ghost and soap vice versa. you start to realise that you’ll never be able to gain the attention of your comrades - let alone your lieutenant - the way you so desperately crave.

pairing: ghost x gn!reader

cw: angst, typical cod violence, character death, mw3 spoilers

word count: 2,318

A/N: feeling angsty so have this :D (FURTHER PROOFREADING IS NEEDED !!! but im eepy and impatient its 2am)

also i genuinely can't live without music, so i always end up adding a song that kinda reminds me of my fic. its not something that needs to be listened to - simply any song i find that kinda suits the vibe of the story and also just sharing some good music for others to enjoy !! idk, just something i enjoy doing (im rambling)

Being the latest addition to the TaskForce 141's ensemble had its downfalls.

While you were immensely grateful for the opportunity to have been recruited by John Price himself, there was still the lingering discomfort of trying to fit in with a new group.

It was childish really. Such a minuscule concern whilst in the midst of fighting a war.

It had been several months since you were enlisted, yet your relationship amongst the four members seemed to lag in comparison to the camaraderie they each shared between one another. Years of companionship amidst the terrors of combat had strengthened the bindings of their connections, forcing them to rely on one another when faced with life and death. It was something that you had yet to experience with them.

You know that these things take time - especially given that fact that it was so common to lose comrades in this field of work. Everyone was terrified of getting attached. 

Over the coming days, the five of you had been preparing for an upcoming mission. It was crucial that everything panned out perfectly. Price wasn't leaving any room for fault, not when the safety of thousands were at stake. thousands of civilian lives. Men, women and children.

While Price and Gaz - with the assistance of Farah - had set out to Urzikstan to lead an infiltration on a Konni base they believed Makarov was operating at, you were assigned to Verdansk with Soap and Ghost. 

The task; stop Konni from destroying the Gora dam.

The three of you were currently grouped at the meeting point, scoping the area before setting off to defuse the bombs scattered across the site. With the little numbers you had, you were going to have to rely on stealth. You hated stealth.

Stealth required trust. Trust in your comrades to complete their designated tasks without fault, trust in your comrades to stay alert. 

You had none. 

You were determined to change that succeeding this mission.

"Be advised, Konni personnel are grouping near multiple locations below you." Laswell's voice snaps you from your thoughts, her voice ringing through the comms. 

Ghost and Soap look up at where you were perched. You were their sniper for this mission. They were relying on you to keep them covered and you were not going to let them down.

You raise your hand in the air, giving them a thumbs up to alert you were ready and in position. The two men send a curt nod in return before setting off to track down and defuse the explosives.

With Laswell over-watching the operation, and you giving the duo support from a higher vantage point, the low numbers were of little concern. The four of you knew that you would be able to carry out the mission smoothly. Besides, 

Failure wasn't an option.

You watch as Ghost silently takes out several guards, advancing his way through the facility as he tries to locate the bombs.

"Bagged 'em" Laswell confirms another kill for Ghost.

“Two guards, on your three by the barrels” you alert Ghost, watching as he stealthily approaches the guards. “I’m lined up, I can get them in one”.

They’re on the ground before Ghost can even blink.

You grin as you peer through the scope of your sniper. This was going to be cake.

“Good to see you in one piece, Johnny” Ghost huffs, splayed on the floor of the heli alongside you and Soap.

“Haven’t felt better, LT.”

It was a scramble trying to meet with Nikolai and board the aircraft, lifting off amidst the enemy's gunfire. You ensured there were no men left standing by the time you all were long out of sight. 

Price would be pleased. 

“Yeah, I’m okay too. Thanks for asking” you huff out in annoyance, watching as Ghost lends Soap a hand, lifting him to his feet with a small grunt. 

You get up by yourself, a simple side glance sent your way from Ghost before both the men turn to Nikolai. At least Soap had the decency to return a relieved smile.

“Mission accomplished, Bravo. You three took down an army and saved lives tonight” Laswell congratulates through the comms, her usual monotonous voice doing little to praise the successful operation that the three of you had completed. “Makarov will not take this well.”

“He’s a big boy,” you respond with an amused grin. “He can handle it.”

“Don’t underestimate the rage of the Russian’s” Nikolai chuckles back in response, looking back at you momentarily to ensure all three of you weren’t seriously injured.

“Speakin’ from experience, Nikolai?” You smirk back, walking over towards the front of the heli where both Ghost and Soap stand, your sniper left discarded on the metal floor of the military carrier.

“Firsthand” Nikolai simply snorts back.

The rest of the ride back is silent, Ghost and Soap sat beside each other, a singular empty seat distancing their proximity. You? You sit across from them, alone on the empty bench. 

You don’t mean to let your guard down. You were simply exhausted and finally allowing yourself to stare aimlessly into space as the adrenaline in your system slowly drained from your veins.

“Don’t.”

The harsh voice has you crashing back to reality, eyes focusing in place to meet dark hazel ones, narrowed and directed at you. You hadn’t realised you were staring at Ghost while you silently decompressed. It was a rude startle from your meaningless thoughts.

“Sorry, I zoned out. My eyes were just comfortable” you respond awkwardly, adjusting your seating position and clearing your throat. “Didn’t realise I was staring”

Ghost simply glares back at you, his usual cold and emotionless stare making your hands clammy and stomach flutter. You quickly avert your gaze, turning your head away to stare at the metal tread plate flooring, instead focusing on the loud hum of the aircraft you were all seated in.

It suddenly grew too hot, too cramped in the helicopter. It was claustrophobic - suffocating almost.

You’re the first to scramble off the heli, exhaling in relief when you’re no longer boxed into the hunk of metal you had just spent the last hour travelling in. With your sniper draped loosely over your shoulder, you make your way inside the small safe house nestled on the outskirts of Verdansk. You don’t bother to wait for Soap and Ghost.

It’s late at night. Your body is near spent. Your only goal in mind was getting the heavy military gear off your body to finally allow yourself the comfort you crave. 

It’s a small shack, only the bare minimum provided. An old, tattered couch and rickety square dining table with four chairs on each side, each varying in design and wood finishes. They evidently didn’t come as a set. There is a small room off to the side, various camping cots packed and stacked against the furthest wall, at our disposal for when we choose to retire for the night.

Ghost, Soap and Nikolai soon enter after you, Nikolai retreating into the small room to set up the cots and get some much needed rest.

You keep to yourself while Soap settles on the small couch, Ghost taking a seat at the dining table to clean and check over his equipment. 

You hastily peel the stiff fabric from your body, vest and outerwear folded on the floor in the corner of the living room, your sniper. Resting atop of them. Your aching body can finally breathe now that the extra layers were finally discarded

“Ye did good today” Soap finally speaks up after a beat of tense silence. You turn to him in slight surprise, not expecting him to initiate any sort of conversation with you. “We’d have been fucked without ye” he continues, Scottish accent thick as ever.

You can’t help the small smile that creeps on to your face.

“You guys did the dirty work. I simply scoped the area from above” you assure modestly, not wanting to come across arrogant.

“Aye. Saved our asses several times. We owe you.”

Ghost simply scoffs quietly, standing to move outside where there would be less chatter. He was tired and didn’t want to indulge. 

Your smile is wiped from your lips, replaced by a slight frown at Ghost’s exit. It doesn’t go unnoticed by the Scot.

“He’s a crabbit old man. Pay him no mind” Soap assures you, voice low and seemingly unaffected by the Lieutenant’s departure. “The lad’s not one for meaningless blether.”

You nod, evidently disappointed

Soap observes you silently, taking in your defeated expression, a low hum of acknowledgment absentmindedly leaving his tight lips.

"Ye like the Lieutenant" he voices aloud. There was no room for argument in his statement.

Your head darts to Soap in stunned horror, mouth parted in shock. You're unable to respond, Soap speaking up before you're able to form your words.

"Keen een."

You immediately shut your mouth. There was no point in arguing. He knew.

Soap chuckles, a bitter and amused sound that leaves you feeling uneasy.

"Foolhardy choice"

You watch as Soap leaves to the makeshift bedroom, closing the door behind him and leaving you alone with your thoughts and anxieties. You don't get much sleep that night.

Returning to the 141 base was a relief in itself.

Touching down on British soil allowed you to finally relax. You were finally familiar with your surroundings once again.

You sigh happily upon entering your private quarters, throwing your bag carelessly to the ground. A shower was in order. You waste no time in stripping down bare to prepare yourself for the best shower of your life.

When you emerge from the shower, hair still damp and leaving small patches of dampness along the fabric of your fresh shirt you immediately make your way to the rec room. Some caffeine was in order if you were going to set your sleep schedule back to its usual.

You inhale sharply when you see Ghost sat alone, immediately on edge.

He turns his attention to you momentarily before wordlessly resuming back to the reports in his hands.

Message received.

You quietly walk over to the coffee machine, pulling out a mug as you put the kettle on.

You keep your eyes trained on anything but Ghost, not wanting to anger him again. You can't help but lose yourself in your thoughts once again as you wait for the water to finish boiling.

It wasn't anything more than a physical attraction that you had towards the aloof man. You didn't know the slightest thing about him. You did know however, that he was loyal. Just from your observations alone - it was obvious just how passionate he was about the 141. He would lay his life down without a second thought to ensure a mission was successful, to ensure his teammates were safe.

All of his teammates, save for you.

He was a machine during training, a monster on the field. Rippling muscle and deadly speed, accuracy that rivals even Captain Price himself.

So many times you've caught yourself staring, admiring from the peripherals of your vision with your lip caught between your teeth. You felt like a lovesick teen in high school. It was absolutely infuriating.

"It won't make itself"

You jolt in alarm, head whipping towards the voice. Ghost simply stares at you, eyebrow raised. His skull mask was replaced by his usual black balaclava he wore around base, the prominent shape of his brow bones underneath the knit fabric the only giveaway of his expression. His thick thighs are spread lazily in front of him, large feet planted on the floor as he leans back against the dark leather couch, papers still in hand.

You quickly tear your eyes away from him once again.

"I know." You internally grimace at your response. Stupid. So stupid.

Ghost chuckles, still eyeing you as you stare dumbly down at the now finished boiling kettle and empty mug.

"You're an open book" he speaks up, shaking his head slightly in disapproval, lowering his eyes back down to his reports. "You need to keep your head in the game, sergeant. This is a war, not a dating reality."

You glimpse over at him from the corner of your eye, fighting down the heat that tries to spread across your face.

"I'm well aware of that" you respond sternly, hastily making your coffee.

Fucking. Soap.

"Start acting like it, soldier"

You swiftly leave, coffee rushed and head lowered in shame. You didn't bother drinking the sloppy coffee, instead tipping it down the bathroom sink and watching as it swirls down the drain.

Makarov was defeated - the 141 finally accomplishing what they had chased like hell hounds for months - finally at its end.

Ghost stares down at your lifeless eyes.

What should have been Soap’s life was instead replaced with your own.

It was a selfless act of bravery.

No one was fast enough to respond. One minute you were here, yelling out to Soap in alarm, the next you were motionless. An instant death after Makarov lodged his final bullet in your skull.

Ghost knows that he should feel something - anything for the life lost. His teammate stolen from life too soon, but he can't find it in himself to care.

Price places a large hand on Ghost's shoulder, pulling him away from the scene.

The Taskforce retreats. They would send reinforcements to retrieve your body, to be able to send something back to your loved ones waiting anxiously on your return.

It was a shame really. The potential you had was evident, destined to continue fighting for your country alongside Ghost, Price and Gaz.

Ghost turns on his heel, following after his comrades and boarding the heli, your empty seat bringing a deep sense of impending doom, the reality finally setting in for the four men.

Ghost scoffs, shaking his head.

Three was always a crowd

[somehow-a-human]

The angels don't have to ask to enter the bookshop.

DO NOT ASK NEIL ABOUT FAN THEORY.

We've been operating under the assumption that BOTH the angels and demons have to ask to enter the bookshop, but I don't think that's true. I'm pretty sure it's one of our red herrings for season 2.

Continued under the cut.

When Gabriel shows up to the bookshop nude and oblivious, the doors are closed and (i believe) locked, Gabriel doesn't even know who or where he is, so he does what the default is... he knocks, and asks "Can I come in?" Aziraphale is frightened at first and tells him he can't come in but eventually our angels empathy wins and he says "Alright! Just... just get in!"

>> We're never told Gabriel wouldn't have been able to come in otherwise.

When the Archangels show up Aziraphale literally cuts them off before they reach the door of the bookshop. Saraqael suggests, "Shall we discuss this inside?", and Aziraphale continues, "By all means. Would you like to come in?"

>> If Aziraphale hadn't rushed out to meet the angels, why wouldn't they have just walked into the bookshop like they did numerous times in season 1?

When Muriel arrives to surveil Aziraphale they ask, "Great! Well, could I come in and do it inside please? Only cause it's really noisy out here and I can't hear anything." Aziraphale replies, "By all means."

>> Muriel is a plucky angel who doesn't know much about life on earth but had the shop been open and unlocked they might've just wandered in as well.

We're never told the angels *can't* enter the bookshop explicitly like we are for the demons. We've always just assumed the same rules apply to all of the ethereal and occult beings.

But then, might I ask, why does Aziraphale tell us "Technically, this bookshop still counts as an Embassy"?

If the bookshop is still an embassy, the angels wouldn't need permission to enter, they would still have jurisdiction, and would still be able to monitor what's going on there... yes?

Let's compare this to the demons attempts to enter the bookshop, because Shax states clearly that she can't enter without permission. We see this again when she tries to get into the Bentley after it's canonically 'our car', and therefore at least partially owned by an angel.

I'm pretty sure John and Neil make a point of having the angels all ask in some way to enter, and Aziraphale seem to grant them permission as a red herring. They don't need to, but they want us to assume a false sense of security, to think that the bookshop is a safe space for our duo, outside of the reaches of both Heaven and Hell.

Technicalities are big in season 2 and I definitely think they're a huge underlying string running through all of Good Omens. In season 1, Crowley and Aziraphale stop Heaven and Hell from trying to restart Armageddon on a technicality. Gabriel and Beelzebub don't technically know if the great plan *is* the ineffable plan! It's definitely a favorite trope of Terry and Neil's to mock unfair, broken, bureaucratic systems, and Heaven and Hell are a PERFECT example of this.

**Somebody has written a meta on technicalities, I know I've seen it but I cannot for the life of me find it so if anyone could tag me so I could link it that would be brills! (Yeah that's right I'm adopting that from Charles from Dead Boy Detectives, 80's british slang ftw, I'm obsessed; please watch it please I need a second season.)

Neil has mentioned that the plot for season 3 might've had to be changed from he and Terry's original vision a bit, based on the political climate of the current day, and I'm sure that means we'll see some technicalities being the downfall of Heaven and Hells systems in Season 3 as well. I don't think the metatron is a villain, nor any of the other angels or demons. They're just fulfilling their function, following a set of rules, very much to a fault. This is all just God's big experiment after all, freewill, choice, eating the apple, and the angels and demons aren't exempt.

I wouldn't be surprised if there's some sort of technicality about the angels and demons themselves in season 3. We've seen that they're of the same stock, and we know Crowley at least is technically still the same person he was when he was an angel... more or less. Could the book of life end up revealing something like that the demons still exist perpetually as their angelsonas? A technicality, if you will?

Given the bookshop is still technically an embassy, is everything that happens inside observable by Heaven? Can they access the bookshop in their Earth Observation Files? There is some questionable blocking surrounding the bust in Aziraphale's bookshop, coupled with a curious record cover from Maggie's bookshop pointed out by @noneorother

One more thing to add, when Crowley and Aziraphale do the Gabriel hiding miracle, and the first large time discontinuity happens, something that still draws my attention in that moment is Aziraphale's expression after Jim emerges upstairs.

Just after Crowley has suggested the miracle, and just before Jim emerges from upstairs, Aziraphale is looking off toward the bookshop entrance, and after we cut away to Gabriel and then back...

Aziraphale looks momentarily terrified, he knows Gabriel is upstairs, and he's the one who wanted to hide him in the first place why would he be so scared? And he clearly isn't looking at Gabriel. Crowley is looking up at the archangel but Aziraphales eyeline is lower, possibly looking toward a certain... statue???

Anyway... Let me know your thoughts. I haven't been posting as much, I have been mega busy and I'm trying to be thankful for it. Love you all, hope you have something nice happen for you today! <3

[the-ninja-legacy-whip]

How would you rank each season and why? What did you like and dislike about them?(Including wildbrain if you want to)

ooooooooooh okaaaaaaaay fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine

*cracks knuckles* Just remember you asked for this

Buckle up bastards and bitches, we're tearing this shit apart!!! Going from worst to best so we can end on good taste!!! *loads my opinions into a bazooka like Lloyd with an Ice Cannon*

Rebooted- *drags hands down face* ....I really don't actually hate NS3, but as I mentioned on another post, a lot of things this season tried to pull off (read: practically everything) at least one other season did better. And I know it's not really this season's fault that it's such a mess, since it was whipped up in a whirlwind of unexpected serendipity, and it had less time to explore its ideas, but when people only truly remember and constantly bring up the worst parts about it, rather than few (if not far inbetween) good things that it brought to the table? Or people consistently straight up forget other things about it (primary shoutouts to Techno!Wu and the ninja going to literal space???) Yeah, probably not a great season overall.

Pros: Fun aesthetic, wasn't afraid to try new things, attempted to expand and build on previously introduced ideas, did well with the emotions and aftermath generated by Zane's sacrifice, Pixal, killer music, X-1 Ninja Charger, Sensei Garmadon, had the agenda of getting people back into Ninjago after it supposedly hit its grand finale and did succeed in that if nothing else Cons: Absolutely breakneck pacing to the point that its hard to recall what happens where, when, and even why, you could literally take out like 3-4 of the episodes (half the season!!!) and very little would be ultimately impacted, poor execution of: the established character arcs, dynamics, and motivations within the season (with exception of Garmadon); the attempts at further world building; and the ultimate impact of the antagonists (...people rave about Cryptor but he doesn't even really do anything!! And why did they need to bring the Overlord back at ALL—if this was really something of a Zane-centric season, Cryptor would've already been the perfect foil for him!! AND WHY PYTHOR. I AIN'T ACTUALLY MAD ABOUT THAT TBH BUT WHY THEN)

Hands of Time- This season's biggest issue is that it's...boring. Technically doesn't even do anything wrong, but even when trying to follow a mystery as big as what the heck happened to Nya and Kai's parents, or watching Lloyd begin to come into his own as a future master, or exploring the downfall of two ex-Elemental Masters who turned to evil...it comes off so...stilted and stale. Literally an episode is called 'The Attack'. The whole show is full of attacks, this gives me nothing!!! (But, to be fair, most of the other ep titles this season are pretty kickass). It's like NS6 in the way that a bunch of things happen (and not even nearly as incoherently) but 85% of it doesn't have any lasting or satisfying pay off, and most of it doesn't really mesh in a natural way either. A lot of it feels very contrived, with events happening just for the sake of it happening, and that probably contributes to why it's not quite as compelling as other seasons, despite absolutely having the foundation to be.

Pros: Has an interesting way of drawing parallels between several characters, added a good chunk of lore that generated fresh interest, Kai and Nya Sibling duo, introduced villains with unique motivations and complex history with the main character (directly or indirectly), Jay got that cool bike moment, getting to meet Ray and Maya, actually mention of Skylor being a "bad guy" previously and exploring some of her insight of that, previous EM info + flashbacks, Cons: ...executes a lot of the best things about it in such bland and unsatisfying ways, and could have been much tighter with tying its events all together–would've helped the ending (whether it was a "cliffhanger" or not) feel a lot more deserved and less....empty.

(Also not a real con for the season itself and its literally just a nitpick but I hate those outfits. How are they simultaneously overly-detailed yet so monotone??? There's no pleasing contrast nor a place for the eye to comfortably rest! How are my eyes to last beholding a season with THAT fashion?? This is literally the only time where the gi are a distraction to me because they're...clunky, in a way? But...y'know, given that impression, I suppose they do fit the season to a t, then— *bricked*)

March of the Oni- This season is like a collections of puzzle pieces for a good finale season...but, someone lost a few pieces from the box. Or a lot of them. Isolated, there's a lot of good bits that could've really thrived in a normal season format...but, once again, the limited number of episodes strangled the potential out of its own plotline, SO. Plus, it feels extra weak following off the heels of Hunted's already high stakes, and with these stakes supposed to be even higher, it just doesn't quite hit in the way it's supposed to. That being said, there's a lot of fun and/or intense character dynamics and moments interspersed throughout, and the ending was so cozy and bittersweet but lovely that I can't be too upset with it. It stuck the landing it wanted to, and I can respect that!

Pros: Very strong character moments, (mostly) well-placed use of nostalgia, beautiful music, and overall a suitable little wrap up to "Masters of Spinjitzu" Cons: Not enough room/time to let some plot points breathe (a problem common to a few other seasons as well), and the antagonists could have done more, especially given their previous build up.

The Island- I don't even really count it as a season but it's going here. It was just...okay. Not actually all that bad, but not out-of-this-world great either. Laid the foundation for lore expansion for Seabound which is appreciated, utilized the characters well (EXCEPT RONIN WHAT THE FUCK NO), and again, I can respect it for what it was trying to do. Just didn't do anything that really stuck with me in a mind-blowingly positive way.

Secrets of the Forbidden Spinjitzu- Kiiiiinda wish this season was strictly about "Forbidden Spinjitzu and it's secrets", rather than the "Forbidden Spinjitzu" leading to...assorted shenanigans. Could've made for a good Wu season, honestly. Also kinda wish they'd taken the concepts for the Fire and Ice Chapters and made them into more focused stories on Kai and Zane (especially if they were going to go on and do or attempt that exact thing for Jay, Cole, Nya, and Lloyd properly). Wishing aside, while there was a bit of a lull getting things started, the excitement did pick up soon enough. This season did eventually introduce some fun twists, (mostly) enjoyable character dynamics, and having a little lighter of an adventure until it wasn't after MotO was a refreshing change of pace.

Pros: Lots of individual moments to dig into and get invested in, a nice expansion on the lore of Wu's past + other realms beyond Ninjago, Cons: A little hard to initially get into, and can be even harder to keep wanting to push through and watch to the end. Both the Fire and Ice Chapter have points where they feel a bit "aimless" in their middle portions of their acts, and the season as a whole simultaneously feels like it's longer than it needed to be + didn't always use the time it had efficiently.

Legacy of the Green Ninja- Fellas as I've been finishing up my planning for Legacy!S2, I have to confess this Season isn't quite the masterpiece we remember it as snksnksnksnk. There's literally 2-3 episodes that are ENTIRELY pointless, and none of them are even the """"filler"""" ones. It felt like it was trying to be a wacky shenanigan-of-the-week thing and a "dramatic world-ending thriller adventure" at the same time in both halves of the season, and that didn't always pan out in its favor, giving this season a bit of a lost/confused identity—especially one that so explicitly implicates Lloyd as being important, and yet most of the episodes are spent following the escapades of the Core Four still (which is not inherently a bad thing, but WHERE'S THE SO-CALLED LEGACY?!?! WHERE'S THE GREEN NINJA?!) ........anywho, negativity-fueled-by-recency-bias aside, even its short-comings still make for a highly enjoyable watch and rewatch, which isn't something that can be easily said for the previously mentioned seasons. And, there is still a LOT of funny, heartwarming, heartbreaking, and downright epic moments! But, not always immediately memorable ones.

(but also like please you have to UNDERSTAND there's literally a scene during the final battle where Wu, Misako, and Julien are on the ultra dragon and one of em's like "WE HAVE TO HELP" and, i swear i timed this this is legitimately accurate, TWO SECONDS LATER they make like two wing flaps going nowhere and Wu or Misako's like "THIS AS FAR AS WE GO" LIKE WHAAAAAAT?!?!?!!?! HELP LMAO)

Pros: Easy to get into, easy to keep watching, god-level music, and the simple ass humor still makes me laugh like a lunatic all these years later ("O'GRANDMA???" "I can make a little extra if I do the human piñata." "BEQUEATH! BEQUEATH!" *wordlessly using Zane as a battering ram* *the entire absurdity of Wrong Place, Wrong Time* *Dareth's existence*) Cons: The inconsistency of its overall direction still gives me whiplash all these years later, and I wish it had better embraced a singular identity, as that probably would've helped immensely both with character focus and the at times odd pacing of the plot.

Prime Empire- Finally, some good food! Similar to SotFS, this season took a while to kickstart and find its groove and keep it, but by the end it was sooooo much off-the-walls fun that it's hard to actually hate it. Lots of missed opportunities to expand on Jay's character though, especially when those Prime Empire shorts primarily focused on Jay released alongside the season would've been GREAT to see in actual episodes, and probably could've been what tipped it higher onto this list. While what we did get towards the end was super cool, it would've have MUCH more impact if it had better prior buildup. But, this season is incredibly solid in ways that may not be immediately obvious, though does still a bit to be desires at times too.

Pros: Fun and glorious setting for adventure, some very potent and very memorable character moments, SUPERSTAR ROCKIN' JAY, and a very strong finish that still gets me buzzed when it think about it. Cons: Slow start, many missed opportunities, left me wanting just a bit more (in the not-good way) despite the satisfying finish.

Crystalized- *folds hands in front of face* I probably should put this lower than Prime Empire overall quality-wise, but idk man, Crystalized scratched a lot of my personal itches...and also sent me banging my head into a wall, so. While I genuinely, honestly did enjoy my time with this season (I laughed, I cried, I "what the fuck"ed), there's the other half of my mind that just couldn't stop questioning sooooooo many decisions for the direction of the main characters, and constantly doing so did take me out of it way, way too often. For something that was going to serve as (another) big, grand send off...this one may have stuck the landing better than Hands of Time, but. IDK. Something still felt off at the end of everything.

Pros: (Mostly) incredible fight scenes, and action moments, we got to see perspectives of certain character dynamics that hadn't been explored before or not as often, there really is a lot of cool shit in here, loved the return of so many old faces, honestly very enjoyable if you're able to turn your brain off just a bit Cons: WHAT THE HELL DID THEY DO TO NYA, WHY ARE Y'ALL SLEEPING SO HARD ON THE PERFECT OPPORTUNITY TO FINALLY GIVE LLOYD SOME REAL ACTUAL DEVELOPMENT THAT MADE SENSE, IF YOU WERE REALLY PLANNING ON "REDEEMING" HARUMI WHY DIDN'T YOU PACE IT OUT BETTER, WHY ARE THE CORE FOUR NEAR USELESS, DID WE REALLY HAVE TO SPEND A FOURTH OF THE SEASON IN A PRISON WAS THERE NO BETTER WAY TO GET OLD VILLAINS INVOLVED OR FOR RUMI TO INTIMIDATE LLOYD FROM THE SHADOWS, WHAT WAS THE POINT OF THE NEW NINJA, THERE'S SOOOO MUCH MISSED STUFF SURROUNDING NYA'S SACRIFICE/RETURN, AND WHY DID THEY SCRAP SO MANY ACTUALLY NEAT IDEAS FOR THISSSSSSS *dies*

Hunted- Gonna be honest, it's been a hot second since I've watched NS9 because everyone being in such distress stresses ME out just thinking about it (I'm apparently the people Jay was worried about lmao) and I haven't quite brought myself to subject myself to it again. However, I do remember it being an incredible watch and every episode bringing something epic to the table, and honestly I just see it as a sequel or a part 2 to SoG. Good music, strong character beats, satisfying in pacing all the way through; a great and surprisingly introspective season, just got outshined a bit by some of the pure spectacle and overall enjoyment of other seasons.

Not gonna give Pros/Cons here because I genuinely don't remember specifics—not because any of it was "Forgettable"; I literally just technically only watched it once snksnksnk. I know it's mostly nothing but good stuff with maybe a few snags here or there, but a superbly solid season.

Sons of Garmadon- Ah yes, one of two fan favorites. And a favorite of mine as well! Just...well, it's not really a Season I ever have the urge to go back to often, which is something the following seasons to come are about to have in common. It's got a rock solid plot, delicious twists, always kept me on the edge of my seat, had a lot fascinating locations and new lore...all wrapped up in a gripping entertaining time to be had. Though, it's kind of a season where you watch it once, are completely satisfied with, and then maybe only come back to it if and when you're rewatching the whole series (at least for me—that being said, I've watched season 8 waaay more than I've watch season 9 snksnk).

Pros: Well-thoughtout plot, fully compelling antagonists, another shout out to the music, dared to take some risks as the show entered a new era, and for once everyone felt like they were contributing as a single group, which was nice to see until they weren't Cons: As stated, already a very solid season; it's just a few scenes that probably could've used some polish for extra impact in hindsight.

Way of the Ninja- Well, if I'm including the Island, might as well include the Pilots! It's only above Hunted/SOG here because *I* happen to like it more and have rewatched it a great many times haha. Honestly the only cons are that I wished we'd had some little adventures in the Ice Fortress/Floating Ruins, and that the ninja themselves had more of a presence in the ultimate confrontation with Garmadon. Otherwise the Pilots did an absolutely fantastic job of laying the groundwork for the show to come, and using witchcraft to hook many of us into adoring these characters with insane chemistry from the get-go with nothing but the bare minimum. Nothing but love and respect for my pilots! <3

Skybound- Only reason this is higher than the previous three on this list is because *I* personally enjoyed it more, that's all. For overall quality and consistency, Hunted, Pilots, and SoG clear it easily. ANYWAY I LOVE SKYBOUND. It's probably actually my second favorite season these days but I'm already about to be crucified for putting it this high on the list rip. Oh there's plenty of things wrong with this season: out of character moments including but not limited to misogyny, contradictory statements, contradictory actions, saying things they would never say prior to this season; the antagonist has wildly changing motivations almost every episode along with uncomfy tendencies, every episode feels wildly different and/or disconnected from the others, the things are happening all over the place at any given time...it's chaotic, messy, and I LOVE IT. It's a mess but it's my mess and if you dig deep enough there's a lot to love buried in the muck that I, as an individual, feel that makes the season worth it all <3

Pros: PIRATES, everything about Jay, Watching Jaya develop over the course of the season for better or worse, getting some insight into the other characters via the wishes they make, watching Jay get his moments to be the absolute badass and even Nadakhan acknowledging that (just with some horribly misguided but well-meaning intentions of the heart but he's HUMAN), the HUMOR, the Ninja Replacements and Jay getting to show off some leadership FINALLY, Jay whump, Lloyd's pirate impression, Lil Nelson!!!, Jay with an eyepatch, crashing a wedding, Echo Zane!, a commentary on how people perceive us and how we perceive ourselves can lead to great inner and outer conflict, pretty ass animation scenes esp for being in the earlier era, we got the greatest gi to ever grace our unworthy presence despite being folded the wrong way, did I mention Jay— Cons: Literally everything stated previously and probably more I'm sure you already know. But also why did they randomly MAKE DARETH LIKE THAT GOOD LORD WHY this is on par with Ronin in the Island IS2G

Rise of the Snakes- The vintage classic!!! Not ~perfect~ by any means BUT it told a cohesive story while giving everyone (even including Nya!) a little bit of spotlight and some significance and brought it all together so neatly with emotion and FUN that of course it had the power to reshape our childhoods (or teenhoods. Or adulthoods. Or nowhoods). Really its biggest flaw is simply that it was first, thus of course having a little less polish and therefore had to pave the way for better seasons to follow, but it was still a mighty tough act to follow.

Pros: Many establishing moments for the main crew for their adventures to come, antagonists that were funny, threatening, and had some pretty convincing motivations, Lloyd, highly memorable overall, easy to jump back into, gave us the legendary Weekend Whip (unless that was in the credits to the pilots too i don't remember) Cons: A bit dated nowadays, and rough around the edges, but doesn't do anything inherently wrong either. I'd say the pacing is a little quick, but in this season in particular its masked so well that you really only notice if you're looking for it (which I had been)

Master of the Mountain- And now, the truly cream of the crop. NS13 was the thing we've always wanted and always knew we needed and finally the powers that be delivered. I could rave day in and day out about Cole finally getting some much deserved focus, but for as strong and heavy-hitting as his whole arc was, the stories of the other ninja pale a bit in comparison, leaving this season unable to break the top three. Otherwise a masterclass in storytelling. And Cole.

Pros: COLE SEASON, HYPE AF FIGHT SCENES, COLE'S MOMMY, VANIA, THE UPPLY, WU AND COLE DYNAMIC, ZANE THROWING ROCKS AT KAI, THE VOICE DIRECTION (esp Lloyd, Cole, and Kai), THE SUBTLE MYSTERY OF IT ALL, THE MUSIC, THE INTRIGUE, AAAAAAA Cons: NOT ENOUGH COLE, antagonist was a bit bleh (though those fight scenes he had SERVED), could have had a little better utilization of the characters outside of "Cole's crew"

Seabound- MMMMMMM EVERY SINGLE EPISODE HIT SO GOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!!! NYA EATING FOR REAL!!! THE GODDAMN INSANE FIGHT CHOREOGRAPHY!!!! THE PEAK VILLAIN!!! THE MUSIC! THE EMOTIONS! THE PAPERGIRL! THE BENTHO! THE PILLOW MINT! THE CRUMBLING COOKIE! THE JAY ALMOST DYING FOR HIS FRIENDS! THE NYA BASICALLY DYING FOR HER FRIENDS! THE SILENT I LOVE YOU!!! THE UTTERLY GUTTING WAY IT ENDED AND LEFT ME COMATOSE FOR THREE DAYS!!!!! IT WAS SO BEAUTIFULLLLLLLL WHO GAVE THEM PERMISSION TO POP THIS HARD

Pros: *gestures wildly* Cons: It made me sad

Possession- Here we have the other fan favorite season, the bible for all people Morro-obsessed. Essentially the Seabound of the older era but with significantly less emotional devastation snksnksnk. Top-notch characterization—the Core Four have never been better with their dynamics, humor, and teamwork, it's the first real time Nya (and if we wanna be picky, Cole) get some dedicated introspective time, Lloyd is truly put to a very personal test, Ronin is there, and Morro serves as both a fantastic antagonist and a foil for all those he opposes. Simply isn't the top spot strictly because when I think of my favorite season...this ain't it, though it absolutely deserves to be.

Pros: THE CHARACTERIZATION FOR ALL, AMAZING ANTAGONIST, ALSO BEAUTIFUL ANIMATIONS, HUMOR AND HORRORS IN ONE GO, EXTREMELY REWATCHABLE, MOAR MUSIC, ENDED BITTERSWEET BUT WITH HOPE AND A SICKASS QUOTE Cons: Perhaps a touch overhyped but that's not actually the season's fault nor is it actually a con I just needed to put something here this thing is honestly airtight perfect when it comes to seasons gfgsfddfdhfkls

Tournament of Elements- yes. Yes. YEEEEEEES. To be fair this should be #3 or #4 overall quality wise MMMMMBUT I THINK ITS POTENCY CLEARS THE GAP! Season 4 ran so Season 5 could fly!!!! THE RECIPE FOR A PERFECT STORY, just, perhaps a touch undercooked, BUT THE INTENTIONS WERE FELT AND I VIBE WITH THEM H A R D

Pros: IN A SEASON WHERE THE VILLAIN DIVIDES PEOPLE WE LEARN THAT THERE IS STRENGTH IN KEEPING AND MAINTAINING MANY DIFFERENT KIND OF RELATIONSHIPS EVEN IF IT SEEMS HARD AND IMPOSSIBLE AND IN SPITE OF OUR DIFFERENCES AND EVEN IF WE DO FIND OURSELVES DIVIDED, WE SEE WE ARE STRONGER WHEN WE ARE ABLE TO COME TOGETHER AS ONE. THESE THEMES ARE SUPPORTED BY THE CHARACTERS, MUSIC, PLOT, THE ANIMATION OF THE EXPRESSIONS, AND I THINK THIS IMPORTANT OVERARCHING MESSAGE TRIUMPHS OVER EVERYTHING ELSE AS IT TRULY RESTS AT THE HEART OF NINJAGO AS A WHOLE *mic drop* Cons: Wish it delved just a bit more into the other EMs–what in the world have they all been up to??? Also wish the season ran with the tournament theme throughout the whole season rather than suddenly bouncing around in like the last three or so episodes–that kind of killed its momentum when it needed it the most. But, it still definitely stuck the landing!

[deadite-central]

Took me some time cuz I was busy but I’ve finished syrup village so here’s some thoughts

I forgot how good the humour in this arc was actually! I didn’t think much of it in the anime but the manga really delivers on the comedic timing, and the Nami/Usopp duo is genuinely one of my favourites

The arc works very well as an introduction to Usopp, who he is as a person and what his morals are. Usopp is defined by his lying, but also by his willingness to fight for the people dear to him, so despite being beaten and chased by the villagers, he’s ready to put his life on the line for them, and then pretend like all of this was a lie just to let them keep their peace of mind

But there’s one reason I was VERY excited for Syrup Village: KURO

Kuro has been my favorite east blue villain ever since I first watched the anime, and I think most of it boils down to what he stands for and how it parallels the future themes (tho he’s great on his own too)

Kuro stands for the same things (while to a lesser extent) that future villains will, he’s a manipulator first and foremost, pretending he’s doing all he can for Kaya and the village. And he succeeds at being seen as a good person in their eyes.

This is like, manipulation 101

At the same time he’s terrifying once everything boils down to it, putting himself above everyone else, not afraid to hurt or kill his crew, all in favour of his plan working out

Because he believes in the plan more than anything

In the end he looses to Luffy who believes in his crew and will put his life in the line for others, and Kuro’s downfall ultimately ends with his calculated composure lost (hair streaks falling over his face) and his worldview shattered (glasses destroyed)

Which, you know, will also happen to two different villains who manipulated everyone into believing they’re the good guys while they’re actually ready to use anyone and everyone as a means to and end.

Kuro was a warning of what’s to come in the Grandline in a much bigger and more terrifying way

But we’ll get back to that once I get to Alabasta and then Dressrosa

Anyways I love Syrup Village

[mysteli]

THE ANDROMEDA BOOKS

Here's the first story introductions for my complete rewrite of Endless Summer. I've included very rough visualizations of what I would want the covers to look like, more to establish a tone for each book though. Let me know what kind of scenes you'd be interested in me posting. I won't be posting anything that ruins any of the twists though - more to show the change in the characters and the setting.

THE STORY CONCEPT

This rewrite is an exploration into the first timeline. Before Lo became The Endless and the timeline where all of the group presumably died. But what if that wasn't the full story? What if the origin story was more different than anyone ever really imagined? What change had come to the island throughout 1000 timelines? What happened in the five years Lo was in that pod and even more curiously, what happened after? Were the relationships between every character always the same? All these questions will be answered in this book.

BOOK 1 SYNOPSIS

A last hurrah on the mysterious island of La Huerta for a group of 12 young souls swiftly becomes odd when they arrive and everyone is gone. While some seek to know more, others still want to experience this once in a lifetime opportunity. Conflicting perspectives and an island trapped in multiple stages of time. There may be other unknown forces at play. Meanwhile, Lo is having disturbing visions about elements of the island, the people around her and a constellation that could be her saving grace or her downfall. After an unexpected death rocks their defenses, they will all have no choice but to seek out the truth, while watching out for the shadow of the powerful owner with a plan, Everett Rourke. The real question is, will they be able to trust each other?

Some of the book's elements - Takes place before the five year time jump. The island is plagued by new mythological/technological creatures, as well as familiar ones. Main romance is Jake and Lo so Quinn, Estela and Sean will not be treated as love interests because I literally hate love triangles and would rather write one romance as the focus and explore other side romances and see what I can do with them. More backstory and main plot links for all characters. New lore for Lo (so she's not an alien). New island lore also. Unexpected dynamics and duos; for example, Estela and Michelle. Beware - character deaths.

BOOK 2 SYNOPSIS

As Lo wakes up from five years of being frozen in a pod, she has no memory of where or who she is. The first face she sees is one she recognizes but cannot remember. A man who saved her from her slumber. After escaping Rourke's facility, she's greeted by an island that had succumb to ruin. Her mind is taking her back to the events of the last five years, as she tries to find the people her former self gave everything for. What happened to them and who was still out there, in a world so close to its end?

Some of the book's elements - you get none... yet.

CONCLUSION

Hope these are good introductions to what I have planned. I have a character specific one coming soon but I wanted to outline the concept of the stories before I did anything else. Please feel free to provide any feedback you have. I love knowing how I can make it better <3

[fictional-love-is-my-life]

Hi I see you’re open may I ask for the prime autobots and cons react to meeting evil twin cybertronians one that is a violent and crazy who is the muscle and the other one is a calm but narcissistic who is the brain of the two the two hate each other to dead but are a great team when working together

Autobots:

Optimus plans to keep them away from his Autobots. He trusts his team and knows they can look after themselves. But the twins seem to be a deadly team and he doesn't want them to cause any harm to his bots. If he can keep them away from his team, then he will.

Ratchet is concerned by them. They seem like a nightmare duo and he has no intentions of getting to know them further. They seem bad enough by themselves, but even worse together. He doesn't know if it would be better to try and fight them alone or as a team. What he does know for sure, is he doesn't want to come up against them when he is alone.

Bulkhead views them like any other Decepticon. They are evil, violent, and mean and he has no problem fighting them if they threaten him or his teammates. They are pretty threatening, but he is confident he could put up a good fight against them.

Arcee is not scared of them. They may be a deadly duo, but she can be just as fearsome. It may not be a good idea to fight them alone, but she knows she could take them down if she had support from Bee or Bulkhead. She is even happy to volunteer for the mission if they end up fighting them.

Bumblebee hopes they stay clear away from him and the other Autobots. But if they were to threaten them or try to fight him then he would not hold back. He is disturbed by their vast difference in personalities even though they are twins. He does find it interesting that they hate each other, he hopes that their hate for one another will be a fault towards them in a fight. He wonders if they will be each other's downfall.

Decepticons:

Megatron is glad to have them on his team. They work well together, so he plans to send them out on most of the missions. Especially when it comes to fighting Autobots. Having one for strength and one for making strategic plans, he is confident in them being victorious. He plans to utilize them quite often.

Starscream dislikes how much they bicker. He'd rather keep them apart, but he knows they work better together. Which means he's stuck hearing them argue and fight constantly. He tries to either keep them busy on missions or he will leave just so he can avoid them.

Knockout doesn't understand how they can be twins but hate each other so much. He always assumed twins were close to each other. He's curious to know why they hate one another so much, so he plans to ask them. He thinks they may be useful teammates, as long as their bickering is kept to a minimum.

Breakdown likes having the two of them on board. It gives him and Knockout two more bots to talk to. He likes working with the brawny twin, though he's more than happy to listen to the smart twin. Their hatred for each other doesn't bother him, there are a lot of mechs he doesn't like.

Soundwave only cares about them getting the job done. He doesn't need to know their life story. Though he will keep a close eye on them. He doesn't want their anger toward each other to compromise missions. But after watching them, he's surprised to see just how well they work together.

[thunderblessedhero]

OFFSCREEN POST

———

N could be seen hiking up a steep, narrow mountain trail, pushing past dried shrubbery as he treks across the red, rocky ground. Nyx was trotting at his feet, seeming to have a slightly easier time of navigating the rough terrain thanks to her smaller size. Still, she didn’t exactly seem thrilled about the current situation.

“Are you sure this is where that guy at the Pokémon Center said he saw Reshiram land yesterday?” the Zorua complained, hopping over a boulder. She perches on top of it, her ears drooping as she looks up at N. “What if this one leads nowhere, too?”

“Even if it does, we have to check,” N persists, scooping the little fox into his arms, realizing her tired legs were probably getting to her by now. “If we can turn up even the smallest clue, it’ll be worth it.”

“We’ve hardly turned up anything since that camp and feather we found outside of Castelia,” Nyx grumbled, clambering up onto her trainer’s shoulder. “How long ago was that now- a month? Wherever Blake is, they’re dead set on making sure no one finds them. Shouldn’t we concentrate more on finding big brother Nox?”

N just sighed. It was true- it’d been a concerning amount of time since they’d uncovered anything helpful. Just an abandoned campsite littered with stray Reshiram feathers- at the very least, that confirmed for him that Blake was in the region, but not much else.

He was doing this for his Pokémon, too, though- he’d been hoping to have found Blake by now, and they could go after Nox together, but the chances of that were growing slimmer by the day. It was like his former rival knew he was on their trail, and was purposefully throwing him off. Why, only the gods knew- but it was starting to look like Nox’s rescue would be something he’d have to tackle alone.

“I… I don’t know,” he murmured, grabbing his void cube from his pocket and turning it around in his hand, watching the sunlight reflect off the runic engravings on each square. This object, and Nox- the Zorua that’d been left in the woods with him at birth- for all his life, they were the only two ties he’d ever had to his past. To whoever his family might’ve been. “That means going after Team Plasma by ourselves. If they were to find out I’m here, I don’t know what they’d…”

Nyx frowned a bit as she listened to him trail off. “Are they really that bad? They just seem like a bunch of goons to me.”

“Trust me,” N slipped the artifact back into his pocket, staring straight ahead with a pensiveness behind his eyes. “They’re far more than that. Team Plasma was built upon countless years of manipulation and twisting the minds of the people- including mine. When all that work came crashing down, my loss against Blake being one of the leading causes of it… I have no doubt they’ll do whatever it takes to enact vengeance. Especially on the king that abandoned them.”

“But… what about the ex-Team Plasma members back in Driftveil?” Nyx asked with a shrug. “I went with August to go visit them- they didn’t seem to hate you. They even said they were still waiting for you to come back, or something.”

N fell silent once more, his throat tightening as he remembered how he’d chosen to avoid visiting Sage Rood and his sisters’ new place of residence, out of simply not feeling ready to confront them all yet. It was selfish- he knew. But the thought of seeing the ones who raised him again- after leaving them to deal with Plasma’s downfall two years prior- he’d just… frozen up before he could even reach the door.

He shook his head. That didn’t matter right now. “Those guys were different,” he answered his Pokémon’s question. “The current Team Plasma- they’re made up of the ones who supported my father’s true ambitions, and I’m sure they’d love nothing more than to get back at the one who’d ruined it all.”

Seeming to understand now, Nyx didn’t press it any further, and just continued to rest on her trainer’s shoulder with a thoughtful frown on her face. Before long, the duo reached the top of the small peak they’d been climbing, and were met with a wide clearing surrounded by stray boulders.

N’s eyes focused on what was in the center- an abandoned campfire. Beside it, he could see the faintest outline in the dust of where a tent must have been set up earlier. The subtle scent of smoke still lingered in the air- whoever’d been using it must have only left recently.

Nyx jumped down from his shoulder, trotting over to investigate. He followed behind her, caution in his step as his eyes diligently searched the surrounding space for anything else of interest.

“Another campsite,” he said under his breath, feeling the smallest swell of hope in his heart as he spotted some familiar, snow white feathers dotted across the ground. “They couldn’t have been here that long ago... They might still be nearby.”

His attention was drawn to something that stood out amongst the rest of the scene- a white sheet of paper, that his eyes had previously mistaken for another one of Reshiram’s shed feathers. Squinting, he realized it had something written on it when he crouched to pick it up.

His eyes scanned carefully over the text. Nyx grabbed one of the stray feathers in her maw and came over to sit beside him, her ears perking up curiously at the sight of the strange paper.

“It’s written in old Unovan runes,” he said, tracing a finger along the ancient text. “I recognize some of these letters from my void cube. Zinzolin studied them- he must’ve been the one to write this. I’d remember his handwriting anywhere.”

“So it’s from Plasma… does that mean you know what it says?” Nyx questioned, standing on her hind legs and leaning her front paws on her trainer’s knee to get a better look.

“No, but I’m sure the legendary dragons can,” N sighed, folding the paper and tucking it into his pocket. “This language is as old as them, after all. They were probably counting on Reshiram to read it for them- we probably could too, if Zekrom were here…”

“Well, then let’s go find her!” Nyx chirped, her tail swishing a little. “This looks like a really important clue. We’re gonna need her when we take down Plasma, anyways!”

“That is true…” N considered, raising a hand over his mouth as he thought it over. Her disappearance was almost as mysterious as Blake’s. While they might be able to find a historian to translate the letter, it was high time they began working on tracking down his legendary companion, as well. He still hadn’t heard from her since she mysteriously flew off into the night not long after he arrived in Unova, claiming she had something important to attend to. “Whatever plan Plasma is brewing, our chances of stopping them will be significantly higher if we have at least one of the dragons helping us.”

“Exactly!” Nyx yipped, bouncing up in excitement. That enthusiasm suddenly dwindled, however. “Wait… if we go look for Zekrom, does that mean we gotta leave August and Hugh behind?”

N stopped at that, his expression twisting into a conflicted one. “I…” He knew he’d wanted to keep his younger traveling companions out of all this- and he hadn’t exactly done the best job of it so far. Hugh had his own vendetta against Plasma for the Purrloin they’d stolen from his family five years ago, and August had this determination to help him and anyone else that Plasma was hurting. They reminded him of Blake a little, in that aspect.

Even so, as much as he admired their strength as trainers and their tenacity, he feared this was getting to be too much for them. Throughout the span on his journey with the two, Plasma only proved more and more how dangerous they really were- these kids didn’t deserve to be caught up in any of this.

“It… might be for the better if we split ways with them now,” he sighed reluctantly, looking towards the direction of Lentimas- the quaint town he and his little group had landed in via plane only hours prior. “I’m grateful for all the help they lended in stopping Plasma up until now, but they’re just kids. From here forwards… this’ll be something we have to do alone.”

He looked down at Nyx, holding her gaze with remorse in his eyes. He knew Nyx had grown attached to the two- August, especially. And honestly? So had he. What started out as an accidental crossing of paths had flourished into a strong bond between each other during their travels. In some ways, August reminded him of a younger sibling. He’d encourage them whenever they hit a roadblock on their journey, and they’d just a quickly be there for him when he hit a dead end in his mission. Even Hugh- who’d been less than trusting of him at the start- had warmed up to him.

The notion of going their separate ways was bound to be painful… painful for everyone involved. But being the responsible adult of the group, it was up to N to make the hard choice in order to keep the young trainers safe. It was for the best.

Nyx was silent, before her eyes fell to the ground and she hung her head. “Oh… okay.” she murmured, shifting on her paws a little. “We’ll… we’ll see them again after we beat Plasma’s butts though, right?”

N found himself unable to think of a response for a moment. Honestly… he wasn’t sure if there’d be a point to involve himself in August’s life any further after this was all over. He didn’t want to trouble them or Hugh more than he’d already had this last month- they had their own goals, he had his, and he wasn’t sure their paths would ever intersect again.

Still… he wanted to remain optimistic. For Nyx’s sake. Sometimes he forgot she was still only a kit, and this was all a lot on her, too.

“We’ll…” he hesitated, trying to find his words, before letting out an exhale and giving the shiny Zorua a gentle, comforting pat between the ears. “Yeah. We will. I’m sure of it.”

The little Dark-type’s eyes appeared to brighten a little, and N felt a bit of relief seeing his companion’s mood lift. A part of him wanted to believe it himself- that he’d remain in contact with his new friends. Maybe after he found Blake, he could introduce them.

…But for now, that had to wait.

For now, he had an evil team to stop, a Pokémon to save, a friend he had to track down, and… two he had to bid his goodbyes too.

With one last glance towards Blake’s abandoned campsite, he scooped Nyx up off the ground, cradling her in one arm while clutching the left behind letter in his other hand as he began the long trek back to Lentimas.

———

[spikybanana]

what if james regulus lily remus & sirius went looking for horcruxes instead part five of the jegulily mini series. prompt: chase [masterpost here] [prompts here]

It was all about the chase, James reckoned. Running after and grasping at the opportune moments before they disappeared again. The year churned on as they amassed clues, amassed information about the horcruxes— and how to destroy them. 

James was frankly stunned that they were able to do any of this. It’s not like they had any practice slaying a basilisk or a dragon or two, before personally taking on the demolition of Voldemort’s demonic scheme, of ultimate self-objectification into nasty bits of heirloom that should have gone into burial with the gits that owned them. 

But somehow, between the few of them clueless-nearly-young-adults, they were making headway. Regulus and Remus were a formidable duo when put together to research; they’d turned over the whole Restricted Section and the Black’s family library in under a month. Lily begrudgingly took on the burden of chatting up their professors for information (she was the teacher’s pet and the least suspicious one out of them, after all), and they were all floored by what she’d managed to get out of Slughorn. James and Sirius schemed like there’s no tomorrow, because it was no longer some petty prank to one-up some Slytherins, but the Slytherin himself.

To all appearances, Regulus stayed close to his family and the group of them that gleefully gathered at Voldemort’s side, but at the end of the day Regulus would always be there, waiting for them in the Room of Requirement. James found endless joy and pride and satisfaction in seeing Regulus’s mask soften and fall, as he smiled at James and flicked his brother on the forehead and gave Lily a kiss. It was ludicrous to think that plotting for Voldemort’s downfall would be the thing to hold them fast together with unshakable trust. If only Regulus would eventually find it in him to trust Peter, too. It saddened James that Peter was drifting away, responding with no more than an indifferent shrug when the other three so often begged off with purported “Order business”. But then, there were always the full moons when they’d all four come together. Nothing would take that away from the boys… until Moony might need to leave for those missions Dumbledore had been hinting at. 

But while they were still in Hogwarts, wrapped all around each other in the insulated cosiness of the Room, James could let the weight of it all escape him. He was young and really fucking in love with the two most beautiful human beings who somehow loved him back, and it was exciting and dizzying, it made his blood laugh and sing in his veins, especially when they got to kick out Sirius and Remus at the end of their meetings and watch the Room of Requirement transform into a warm intimate space, just for them.

As far as the horcrux hunt went— well. A whole team of five very-smart-people (if James should say so himself) made it almost too easy. Their first break came when they found out that Moaning Myrtle and the Grey Lady are in fact friends (huh), and Remus had befriended Moaning Myrtle back in first year. James desperately wanted to tease him for it, but that’s poor form given how it led them to the diadem. And, as long as he got to vent loudly and profusely about them, Regulus ingratiated himself with Voldy’s lackeys enough, to be considered one of their own. This made him privy to all sorts of “secret” treasures the precious Lord bestowed upon his followers for safekeeping, which they managed to retrieve with switcheroo heists doubly reviewed and approved by Remus and Lily. (Lucius was a fool and a half for being so careless, but Regulus was almost caught by Bellatrix. Luckily, James had gotten so good at forgeries and duplication charms, he could have gotten into the business of professionally pissing off the goblins.) And, before they knew it, they were collecting pieces of Voldemort’s soul in his parents’ backyard. Merlin’s fucking dangly bits. 

It got harder when they left Hogwarts, got flats in London, and each went into their new jobs. They didn’t quite have time to romanticise the London bar-crawling cheap-club-hitting lifestyle, and the few blocks between their flats felt like miles between Auror training and Order business that had picked up in earnest. Remus and Sirius were having a few rocky spells themselves, because Remus kept coming back from missions moody and hurt. Peter went back to live with his mum, and they barely talked at all. He finally joined the Order too, but was confused when he realised none of it was similar to the half-arsed stories the others had been telling last year. Maybe Peter began avoiding them, then, but James hated to think about it. And Regulus— they missed Regulus like a bleeding limb. James and Lily constantly talked about him, about what Regulus would be scowling about again at school, what it would be like to have Regulus with them there, but the distraction was futile. Without Regulus, they got impatient and snappy with each other, and their being irritated with themselves unwittingly made it even harder for the other. 

And the horcrux hunt was going nowhere either, though it seemed to be all they talked about anymore whenever Sirius and Remus were over. Like they were doing now. They’d been arguing for the past hour and all they’ve managed to establish was that Sirius should Shut Up about Moony’s Missions and Remus should Shut Up about His Share of Rent.  

“Stop!” James shouted, chair scraping as he sprung up from the table. He ran his hands roughly under his glasses. “Just— stop.”

James righted his glasses. Three sets of crossed arms glared at him. 

“What are you suggesting, then, wonder boy?” Lily said, pointedly not raising her voice. 

“We need to stop talking about this. Just today— we’ll relax and, hang out like normal, can’t we? It’s almost Christmas and—” And Regulus isn’t here. Nor had they heard from him even though Reg promised he’d be here. It’s hard for him to send word, which James understood, but for the love of Merlin he needed a mug of heavily spiked hot drink before Sirius threatened fiendfyre arson on his parent’s house again. 

Lily pinched between her brows, Remus was rubbing his temple, but Sirius was the first to relent. Then one by one, their expressions softened.

“You’re right, James.” Sirius responded, voice quiet. He let out a humourless low chuckle, “We’re really letting it get to us, aren’t we?”

“And who could blame us?” Lily slowly wrung her hands. They were growing dry from the severe cleaning charms at Mungo’s. “Remus?”

“I could do with some hot cider,” Remus muttered, then pushed off towards the kitchen, expertly hiding (from no one present) a wince and a limp from the last full moon. 

Lily watched Remus walk off, waited for Sirius to follow, then turned to James. She opened her mouth to speak, but James hurriedly leaned forward and stole the word with a kiss. He wrapped both his hands around hers and started to murmur rapidly between kisses, “I asked mum to send some of the moisturiser she used back in the day, you should try some of that, the muggle stuff you’ve got don’t really work with charms and—”

“James—”

“My dad might have made it specifically for mum but he sent me the instructions and we can probably tweak it or maybe you can because you’re smarter at those stuff anyway—”

“James—”

“Everything is going to be fine!” He insisted. “I know we’re scared, and tired, and maybe it’s only just the beginning but we’re going to be fine.”

Lily stared at him for a long time, bright green eyes wavering and James’ heart wanted to shrink away. “How do you know?” She asked in a whisper.

James’ throat knotted. He suddenly couldn’t get a word out. He couldn’t answer at all, until—

A doorbell. A knock. A coded knock. 

They gasped simultaneously. It was almost Christmas but Christmas had come. Regulus has found them, Regulus has come. 

“Well, you see?” James looked back to Lily, eyes glittering now. A slow smile was spreading on his own face. “See what I said? This will be just fine.” 

They shared one last fierce kiss, before both rushed for the door.

[flightfoot]

I think people are discounting that the reason Marinette’s speech to Chloe MIGHT sound a bit self righteous is because it’s a campaign speech. She’s trying to convince the class not to let Lila be voted in the last 2 weeks of school on the campaign of “I can reform the school bully”. Mostly because, unlike the class, Marinette knows Lila is a malicious manipulator and liar and no good is going to come of this duo being in charge of the class.

And Marinette is right. The class has gone above and beyond what most classes would do for a school bully who is cruel to them everyday. I feel like people miss the part where the kids have a right to say enough is enough, not because they are being self righteous and shunning someone who won’t change, but because that person has been hurtful to them and those they love over and over again. And they’ve seen what indulging that person does like with Sabrina and Mrs. Bustier. It just makes things worse. It would feel self righteous if Chloe was the least bit remorseful or if Chloe wasn’t terrible to everyone on a daily basis. But because both those things are true, it feels logical. That’s why it’s really hard to blame the characters in this. What Marinette did felt logical because of how the writers have been writing Chloe. Over the top villainous and without a shred of remorse. Narratively, Marinette is right. But outside of the narrative, I can see being critical of the writers choices there.

Also, the attempt she made to link Chloe and Audrey wasn’t the best but… it wasnt actually a terrible idea? If you watch the scene, she starts poking at them both, pointing out their cruel similarities like she was trying to make them angry at her. I didn’t get the sense that she truly meant “you guys are both horrible and you should be horrible together.” It seemed like she was trying to make them irritated at her so that they would have a mutual enemy and agree on something and a relationship might blossom from that common thread. Chloe would be happier she had a relationship with her mom and perhaps a happier Chloe would make a marginally nicer Chloe.

Of course it didn’t work because Audrey is the worst and reform is hard, but that attempt wasn’t the nail in the coffin that damned Chloe forever. Marinette shouldn’t be walking around feeling responsible for Chloe’s downfall after that attempt because it barely made a ripple in the water that is Chloe’s trauma. Chloe already looked up to her mom and tried to emulate her prior. She was already cruel to most people prior. Her father already enabled her behavior. Even without Marinette’s attempt, she likely would have just continued taking her anger over her mother out on everyone. It’s not as though Chloe was on the precipice of making a big change at that moment and Marinette tipped her scale in the wrong direction. What I’m saying is, things were already really screwed up when Marinette attempted to get them to bond and I think people put too much emphasis on that as a factor in Chloe’s behavior.

Yeah looking at what actually happens in-universe with Chloe, Marinette's stance makes sense.

Also the Miracuclass are kind, forgiving, and understanding in the extreme even when people hurt them - probably part of the reason Marinette's pissed off at Lila for manipulating them and taking advantage of them back in Chameleon. Unfortunately, while going for kindness and understanding first is a good thing, it doesn't always work to change those who aren't so kind or understanding.

[alltheselittlethingsxox]

So I've been spending my time making JJ and Pope collage image/backgrounds because they are a real thing, and it was not coerced into being what it is. Because it just WAS. From the start. Think otherwise? Please. Do me a favor, pull up season one's very first episode, and just watch the first five minutes. Afterwards, come back here and try explaining to me how that ain't G A Y? 'Cause...I see absolutely no reasoning of it. I thought I'd share one but also I wanted to reach out because I am genuinely struggling with the fact that Pate is giving the toxic divide of JJ and Kiara to those who have attacked, still attack, and will continue to attack Rudy, Madison, and their girls but because of the amount of backlash that's being given over this very real issue, and how Rudy and Madison are so clearly feeling that they need to take extra-extra precaution to the length that they aren't even comfortable to stand together for even a group photo? Be in the same interview, that he's not going to be able to just ignore that and, ultimately, will decide it's best to not explore the duo furthering out in season four and so forth. In which this be the case, he would have to undo the whole couple thing entirely (if they become official before the end of season three? which honestly realistically I couldn't see cause he said something about it being a slowburn, so? A slowburn to me is a couple seasons. Not eight episodes, and by the tenth, they're together-together....

So, it'd be an easy rewrite, overwrite, whatever-write to make if this is so. The question just is:

WILL HE OR WON'T HE?

Is there anyone out there with their own opinion on this? Do you think he'd continue to force it, or would he cut the idea entirely for the sake of the actors, and the actors REAL lives? Because as much as I want and keep thinking he might, I also know how freakin' selfish and greedy douchebags like him can be. Frankly, it's giving me high school throwback vibes, bad. Like triggering me bad. The fact that it's not being addressed, but is currently being condoned(the bullying will increase by the release of season three, so that's still condoning it should he overlook this)----just takes me back to the days I was bullied. And how those bullies never dealt with consequences. But instead repeatedly given a pass. Most of the time these kids were the highest grade student, football athlete, bitchy cheerleader leader, the one who played teacher's pet just to come across as a decent, wonderful human being. And that hurts. It hurts me, because I know what it's like to be attacked. To be told to kill yourself, your ugly, waste of space and knowing that Elaine and Moriah are getting these very words and way worse in the downfall disgusts the hell out of me. I will not be watching season three solely because of this. I can't. Because I know it's just going to add fuel to gasoline and it's nauseating to simply know what's to come. Let alone what's already coming after it's out there.

THIS IS NOT BECAUSE I SHIP JJ AND POPE.

I swear to god, if someone comes on here claiming I'm just being a petty fan...don't, okay? Just don't.

Because that's not what it is! I can handle it if JJ and Pope aren't going to be the show's "official" endgame. That's the point of fiction, y'all. Don't like the ending? Remake it into your own.

This is BECAUSE people are being bullied in the process of all of this, and more or less rewarded by the show giving them exactly what they were bullying for. This is because it sends the WRONG message. To people. How people should treat other people. How to act and expect to get what you ask even though they don't deserve it. And that's not okay, okay? I would LOVE for there to be actual representation in the show (what is this? a series from the sixties?) if there actually isn't...so be it. Put JJ with another girl, if you must. Why must he be with a n y o n e, though? HE'S A DAMN KID AND NOT EVERY STORY IS GOING TO END IN A LOVER'S TALE. Why is it that every character has to be involved with somebody, if just one main is? Uhm, I'm sorry but that's just not how the world works? How many friend groups are out there where one starts dating, and then a year later the second finds a possible interest, and the third one gets in a relationship three months after that first year, only for that second to also be head over heels for his now definite love interest? LIKE PLEASE EXPLAIN TO ME. Is this an actual friend group experience, or? Why not, maybe just...focus on the platonic friendships you started with? Instead of this whole circle of friends dating friends, friends dating eachother, friends falling in love and living happily ever after as one whole unit? This is a big reason why I don't get into shows much, anymore. The writers always, ALWAYS, gravitate more towards the whole lovers aspect, and like...maybe it's just me but I would kind of love for a series to be centered on a group of friends who are only ever just friends----feelings for none of eachother----and that relationship aside from the rest of the storyline and then gradually add that shit in. Space it out. Don't push it all at once. THAT'S NOT HOW LIFE WORKS. If it was, why would there be so many single, lonely people out there!? It'd be nice to see something like that (sitcoms dont particularly count here) or just a show where the main characters end up with characters OUTSIDE of the original group of characters and all they ever are is friends. Family.

I won't be bitter, nor will I attack anyone to make a point, and feel justified when I get exactly what they shouldn't of. Trust me, in an alternate universe, where JJPope shippers are the cruel ones, I would be just as against the idea as I am JJ and Kiara.

Maybe because I'm human, I guess? Personally I would be too disgusted to know that even if I wasn't part of it, those who were are getting what you hoped for just as much as they did, but in such opposite extremes? It would of ruined my love for them entirely.

This is entirely coming from the bullying issue. Everybody says it's not tolerated. Yet. Do you see a damn one doing a damn thing about it!? A damn thing that tells these people that it's not right?

I needed to vent. Sorry y'all.

Anyone else out there who is also hopeful but just as doubtful, too?

[maglors-anion-gap]

Maglor and Maedhros platonically for the duobingo?

Hmm so this is the hand in unlovable hand of sibling relationships, but like they're fixing each other and making each other worse at the same time. It's love, not loathing, but it's not healthy and they are going down together.

It's not true that I only enjoy watching them fight, I like the potential positive aspects of their relationship too. But there's something interesting about how every duo has ended, diverged, or unravelled by the end of the silm; people are dead in ones or twos, and the ones that aren't dead are alone. It's about going through a meatgrinder together and coming out the other side like "I can't bear to be around you anymore but neither can I bear to be without you, nor be with anyone else"

inanimate objects: these are the blorbos I talk about like i'm microwaving them and shit.

Discourse: People disagree with me, but I think the oath holds a sort of magical compulsion. No I don't think this excuses the behavior of this duo. However I think it's hideously boring for the magic story where luthien puts on the skin of the minor god she killed to be like, nah this is the spot without magic/fate/doom. I think it undermines the thesis of the first age as well as the doom of the noldor to go "yeah every good character makes bad/unavoidable choices that lead to their downfall and that's why the silm characters are tragic, but these ones specifically are just evil". idk

[5sosfanfictioncatalogue]

Sad Ending Masterlist

Deathbeds (ao3) - orphan_account Luke/Ashton NR, 9k

Summary: Luke runs away from his abusive dad and meets Ashton. Ashton is just a sad kid who can't say no to the incredibly attractive blonde haired, blue eyed beauty. Luke is very depressed and homophobic and he starts to fall for Ashton, but he goes into denial and both boys are led down a very dark path upon meeting the other.

I'll Always Love You (ao3) - orphan_account Luke/Ashton T, 1k

Summary: "I want you forever, forever and always. Through the good and the bad and the ugly. We'll grow old together, forever and always."

Or that one really sad fic where Ashton gets in a car accident, and Luke remembers what was supposed to happen.

I Like You Better When I'm Wasted (ao3) - HPFangirl71 Luke/Calum E, 5k

Summary: If you're drunk when you have sex with your best friend it doesn't make you gay does it?

But maybe the exchange of sober kisses the next morning are a telltale sign…

i've been cold since you left (ao3) - youranimalside Michael/Luke T, 1k

Summary: “Here’s what we’re going to do. We are going to go to Universal Studios; we are going to get sorted. If I am not a Gryffindor, I will fight the Sorting Hat. Then we will get wands, and be nerdy little shits, and then we are going to get smashed, watch a movie of your choice, Mean Girls will be vetoed, and tomorrow, we are going to get on a plane back to Los Angeles because you are better than this. Screw Luke, okay?”

Or Michael's heartbroken and Calum's trying to fix it.

Last Night (ao3) - orphan_account Michael/Luke, Calum/Ashton M, 5k

Summary: On July 16th, 2011, Life as everyone knew it, changed. Luke Hemmings birthday became an accursed day for him. Surviving as a 15 year old teenager wasn't easy, especially when you are trying not to be killed. Life has its upsides and downfalls, the apocalypse is definitely a downfall in Luke's book. At least there is no school.

Remembering the summer, it takes me back (ao3) - zephyrusnico Luke/Ashton NR, 995

Summary: 'Luke looks at the picture of them and he remembers the day it was taken, remembers the days and the memories before and after that day. He thinks about how he remembers the day that has long since been erased from Ashton's mind, never to be remembered by him again.'

Room 93 (ao3) - princessmikey Michael/Luke NR, 5k

Summary: Luke and Michael are dating, but Michael's not ready to come out of the closet, so the only times they can be together are behind the walls of room 93.

What I see is heaven on Earth (ao3) - beendreaminglikeafool Michael/Luke M, 11k

Summary: Luke was too innocent for this world. Too naïve to handle the harshness of the outside. He’s never dealt with being one of the most famous singers of his generation, no experience dealing with the press, so Michael couldn’t imagine him in a similar situation that wouldn’t leave him mentally or physically damaged.

Wired Love (ao3) - gloomywilbur Luke/Ashton T, 20k

Summary: Ashton's stepdad has a strange occupation. He's a mad scientist to be specific, though he kept it secret, making sure to lock his lab all the time. Ashton couldn't help but get curious, and his curiosity only grew when he found the extremely realistic looking cyborg in his lab, its blue eyes and blonde hair had him breatheless. The robot glanced at him, "Hi, I'm Luke."

Woman (ao3) - mtvluke Michael/Luke NR, 861

Summary: The morning sun began to rise, shining through the window that had allowed an orange toned light to saturate the room and light the skin of the duo reminding them that they didn’t have much longer before their night together ended finally.

[ggsworldstory]

Chapter 2 act 4: all's fair

Since the newest revelation of Terry’s past had come to light, GG was thinking constantly, how exactly would he go about figuring out the truth behind Terry’s framing and clear his name to his old crew? The cowboy himself had only so much information on the subject and it wasn’t like he could just ask the blood-thirsty, money-hungry bounty hunters himself… or could he?

And it was this thought process that led him to decide the latest destination for the duo’s travels

“A theme park?” Terry asked

“It makes perfect sense!” GG snapped back “if we wanna find a bounty hunter, we gotta think like one and if one’s looking for me they’d have to think like me, where would someone like me wanna go?”

Terry just stared, confused

“Exactly!”

“GG, if you wanted to go to a theme park, you could have just said so”

“Did you not hear that very straightforward thought process of mine?!”

“Look, I know the rogues and I’m pretty sure they’re smart enough not to actively pursue a bounty in a largely populated place like this!” 

“Oh…” GG said as his head began drooping down to the ground

Feeling bad for the boy, Terry then said, “Then again, can never be too sure and we did come all this way”

Immediately, GG picked himself back up, “Great!” he yelped, “Now, look alive, we got pages to fill!”

“Pages?” 

“I’m thinking of writing a journal or maybe a blog…”

As the Delinquent duo walked off they remained oblivious to the discreet, camouflage-clad seeker, watching, strategizing their downfall…. From the trash can

“Hmmm… The Toppat boy is onto me! Smarter than I thought it seems… but being a step ahead won’t mean much as he steps on a landmine!” Wally Warlock announced as he flipped through his spellbook and with a wave of his hand, a peculiar creature with a mushroom on its head resembling a soldier’s helmet appeared on the ground beside him

“Glug…” the creature groaned 

“Hey, over here!” Wally commanded, prompting the creature to turn around, “You see those two?” he continued, pointing at the delinquent duo, “keep an eye on them but stay out of their sights, and when the time is right…” Wally once more waved his hand, making a gun locked and loaded with sleeping powder appear in the creature’s hands

“Glug!” the creature responded affirmatively, as it began to waddle off, dragging the gun behind

For about 20 seconds before it walked into a no entry zone of the park and was launched into the sky by an oncoming coaster

Wally, facepalmed as he saw this, “I spent the last of my cash on this third rate spellbook?! Urghh, well if these things are lacking in quality, they’ll have to make up for it in quantity…”

Meanwhile, the Delinquent duo were simply meandering about the park, with GG practically rotating with each step, “the hell are you doing?” asked Terry

“Well, those hunters could be anywhere, right?”

“Well I don’t think they’re gonna strike if they can tell your ready”

“Ah, you’re right, gotta act natural, hmmm…”

At that moment, a Bottle toss stand crossed his sights and immediately he dashed towards it, dragging Terry in tow

“Ah, nothing like some nice rigged carnival games to relax while we’re most certainly NOT on the lookout for bounty hunters, eh, Terry?!” GG loudly announced, much to Terry’s un-amusement

“2 games please” GG said as he plopped 2 bucks on the booths counter and the operator handed the duo 3 balls each

“You first, Terry” GG said “I’ll be on look-out” he then whispered as he stood and tried to maintain subtlety

As this was happening, two of Wally’s shroom-soldiers as one of them walked about a corner, Spotting GG and Terry, immediately the other dragged them back as to remain out of their field of vision, Back in the trash can, Wally was using a communication spell to keep tabs on his fungal forces, when he got a signal from the duo, “You’ve got them in your sights? Perfect! Just get a clear shot and bring those maggots to me!”

“Glug!” the two responded affirmatively

On of them then proceeded to rather clumsily get a grip on their gun

As the creatures began to take aim, Terry ran out of balls and switched positions with GG, “All yours” he said as GG stepped up to the plate

“Alrighty, just gonna wind this one up…” GG said as he reeled his arm back in a circular motion that grew faster and faster, Flames began to fester on the ball and he eventually chucked it with all that built up force!

Completely missing the bottles as the ball tore through the back of the booth, ricocheting off a hard concrete wall, tearing another hole, whizzing past GG, Terry and the booth operator before Smacking right in the Shroom soldier’s face, right as it was about to shoot! Causing the other to promptly flee the scene

“Huh” GG said, “Might’ve packed a bit too much into that one, oh well, I still got two more-” 

The operator didn’t hesitate for a second as they smacked the bottles off the table themselves “Look at that, a winner!” they said frantically as they shoved the largest plush amongst the booth’s prizes in the boy’s hands 

“Soldiers, what’s your read?” Wally asked, trying to reach the duo’s signal, the survivor grumbled its response, “A fireball? Of course you realize, Toppat, this means war!” He then proceeded to signal all of his troops, “all units, I’m being told our foe is wielding some sort of fire magic, but this means nothing, we’ll just have to fight fire… with ice!” Wally announced as he looked through his spells and clapped his hands, suddenly the hues of the shrooms shifted from sickly greens to lighter blues as they were all given ice magic

Meanwhile, the Delinquent duo were wandering around when abruptly, GG came to a stop, turning around with wide, awe-struck eyes, “What is it?” Terry asked, confused until the boy pointed up at the attraction that caught his eyes

“bumper cars!” GG cried out with glee! Reminiscing of the few, yet very fond memories he had attached to the attraction

“Getting distracted, are you?” Terry teased

“Wha- how DARE you accuse me?!” GG yelled, taking the joke rather personally, “I said I’d find one of your old friends here and I meant it! And I can do it while taking in all the frantic swerving, the tires squealing, the…” he was in a trance before quickly snapping out of it “agh, let’s just get in line!” the duo proceeded to the attraction as GG resumed his observation

Despite GG’s vigilant lookout, a horde of Wally’s shrooms remained undetected as they peered from the corner of a stand, they needed to get close, but how?

At that moment, one of them grabbed an unattended box of the Park’s novelty hats, they donned the disguises, hiding their grotesque spore-ridden mugs with more cartoonish, foam fungi as they proceeded to get into line with the delinquent duo, the line moved and the horde along with the delinquents got into their cars as the ride’s operator came on the speaker to rather unenthusiastically announce “ready, set… go!” as he activated the ride’s music and the car’s ignitions 

Now, while GG had ultimately arranged this day-trip in order to lure any of Terry’s old friends and help clear his name, that didn’t change the fact that he was sitting in one of his all time favorite attractions to any theme park, the adrenaline had begun to kick in as the music blared in ears his eyes widened along with a worryingly big smile, he slammed his foot to the gas and he was off! Rushing to the horde and slamming them at full force like a bunch-a bowling pins! He swerved and turned as the horde tried to retaliate, rubber squealed, dust flew, it was utter madness!

“Well that’s… worrying,” Terry muttered to himself as he watched this unfold, until GG’s car inevitably turned his direction, before promptly giving him the same treatment as everyone else in that arena, Terry of course, wouldn’t take this lying down, following the crash, he adjusted his hat and put the pedal to the metal, as the duo chased each other about the area, with GG’s intense, almost maniacal enthusiasm and Terry’s focus and vehicular prowess (jetpack, bumper car, potato, po-tah-to) it was truly an heart- pounding spectacle as they bumped one another to and fro!

Meanwhile, as the horde were recovering from their crashes and attempting to take advantage of their distraction, one of them attempted to fire shots of frost at them, but given the speed of their chase and that they weren’t exactly stellar aimers to begin with, they missed every one, until they got a call from Wally

“What are you doing?! I can see them in your sights, so listen up!” he commanded the soldier as he relayed his strategy, they gave an affirmative “glug!” before shouting at their comrades, waking them up as they all collectively set their arms to drag behind as they all charged forward, creating a layer of ice on the arena, catching the duo off guard as their carts were sent sliding across the stage like billiard balls, they could barely control their cars, just as planned

Trying to capitalize on this disorientation the horde once more tried to subdue the duo with their guns, of course, they only now realized that their ice only made their targets even more erratic than before, but they were in too deep and decided to press onwards to get a closer shot, before getting caught in the storm themselves

At this time GG would try to take back control, he grabbed on to the steering wheel as hard as he could, jolting it left, right, up and down and all around, desperately trying to get any input through as he continually spun out of control, soon enough, he began eliciting his electricity, giving extra power for both himself and the car, finally getting him to veer off, though still at the mercy of the icy terrain

Eventually, the momentum carried him to the edge of the area, where he’d orbit about in spiraling vortex, catching the horde in his grasp

At this moment, the ride’s operator finally woke from their nap, seeing this scene, immediately they pulled the override, causing every car to abruptly stop

Since GG and Terry were the only who bothered to put their seatbelts, the horde ended up being sent flying far off, “they’ll be fine” GG remarked as he grabbed his plush and the duo walked off

After the horde landed, Wally buzzed in “You… lost them again, didn’t you?”

“Glug…”

“Of all the…”

“Glug”

“You what?”

“Glug!”

“Oh-ho, I underestimated you soldier!” Wally hollered as he checked his tracking spell, lo and behold, true to the shrooms word a single spore had been planted on GG’s plushie, now with a direct location wally radioed in every last soldier to tell the good news

After everything, the duo had decided to take a break and eat some snacks, all the while GG lamented the lack of success he was having

“Ugh, what am I doing wrong?” He asked sadly

“Hey, don’t beat yourself up so much, look at the bigger picture, they're bound to show up soon enough”

“Bigger picture…” At that moment, GG noticed the Massive ferris wheel that stood in the center of the park “Jackpot!” he said, as he headed for it, with Terry reluctantly following 

Just as the duo hopped on one of the wheel’s carts, just as the shrooms had begun to pursue, catching rides in the carts behind, soon enough, they were all sitting at the highest point of the wheel’s rotation as it came to a stop

“Alrighty, hand me the binoculars” GG said, holding his hand out

“What? I don’t have any” 

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON’T HAVE ANY?!”

“Do you just expect me to have a solution to all your problems in my jetpack?”

“Eugh, alright, it’s fine, maybe if I just look a little closer…” 

As GG tried to stick his head out for a better view of the park’s patrons far below, just then Terry noticed someone aiming a gun at the boy

“Get down!” he yelled as it attempted to shoot

“Haha! So someone is here! You know that mushroom-head?” GG exclaimed

“No,but I recognize that kinda magical weaponry anywhere” Terry began to rev his jetpack “fun day, but we’re outta here”

“What? But this is our chance! If their weapons are there, the guy is probably close by”

“You don’t know what you’re dealing with!”

“Which is why I’ve gotta learn somehow!”

“This isn’t your problem to face!”

“It’s ours, we’re a team, remember?!”

“It’s too risky!” Terry grabbed GG’s arms and attempted to fly and flee the scene

GG meanwhile, wasn’t having it, as he broke out of the cowboy’s grasp with a rocket boost and latched himself onto the ferris wheel, he swung and climbed to and fro as the shrooms tried to shoot at him

“What are you doing!?” Terry screamed as he flew back for him

Soon enough the ferris wheel had begun moving as GG reached the top, prompting him to start running to avoid falling

“The things I do for this guy…” he muttered as he felt the wheel gaining speed from his electric steps, eventually getting to the point he could only hold on for dear life as it spun out of control, shrooms flew until the wheel finally came to a steady stop, luckily as GG was a safe distance from the ground, he released his grip as Terry flew down for him

“Jeez! Can you get any more reckless!?”

Watching closely by the scene, Wally was delighted, “it’s all coming together! Now hold still…” he remarked as he began to slowly aim his own gun”

“Urgh… I don’t feel so good…” GG got up, disoriented before he ran off, holding his hand to his mouth

“What’s he doing?” Wally wondered, before noticing the boy fast approaching “Shit! Where’s the teleportation spell?!” he frantically flipped through as GG came closer and closer before he reached wally’s trash can…

Running right past it and vomiting in a nearby porta-potty, walking out, still dizzy

“Ugh, what were you thinking?” 

“I was thinking of making good on my promise”

“By throwing yourself head-long into danger!?”

“Huh, when you say it like that…”

Terry sighed, “Look, this isn’t something to take lightly, and I’ll admit I haven't exactly been handling this as well as I should, I’ll give more information on the rogues, but could you not do something like that again?”

Meanwhile, Wally eavesdropped right under the duo’s noses, gasping at what he was hearing “He’s plotting to take us out!” Wally didn’t hesitate to jump out his hiding place with his gun pointed right at Terry, “Not today, weed!” 

Just before he could shoot, GG tackled Terry outta the way, Wally proceeded to raise another horde of shroom soldiers

GG proceeded to grab his plush by the leg, before setting it aflame and charging his horde, swatting at the horde like he was in a third-degree burning pillow fight! Rushing straight for Wally himself

Realizing this, Wally quickly used a wind spell to propel himself away and summoned even more shrooms to slow the duo down, even still GG chased him down with Terry close behind, mowing down the decomposers one bullet at a time

Soon, Wally placed himself atop a roller coaster’s tracks, using another spell to summon a small, yet quick tank he’d use to make his getaway, GG followed, Rocket jumping to the tracks, Terry stayed behind, keeping the horde at bay and preventing them from attempting to climb on

On the tracks, GG and Wally’s chase raged on through every turn, slope and even loop-de-loop, even with his speed, GG slowly grew tired, Wally saw this, thinking he was in the clear until he saw something ahead that made him stop in his tracks! An “under construction sign” and piles of sharp debris below

GG began to approach, Wally flipped through his book one more time, looking for any last gambit, before simply deciding to throw the book at the boy, he merely swatted it away as he stopped, huffing and puffing

“I don’t wanna hurt ya,Wizard, just tell me everything you know about Terry”

“Weed? He’s a maggot, always poked into places he shouldn’t and worst of all, he’s a traitor!”

“That’s a lie! He never killed that leader of yours!”

“Is that what this is about? Hehe, well how about you send weed my regards, he can tell all the lies he wants, he was NEVER a part of us and after what he’s done, the only thing he’ll be a part of is the dirt under my boot!”

With rage in his eyes, GG charged a flame in his fist and tried to sucker punch the warlock!

“insidias armis!” Wally called as he clapped his hands, disappearing into the smoke

At this moment, Terry arrived, still wiping off pieces of shroom from his arms, “you good?” he asked

“Yeah, I’m fine, say, the park’s still open, you think we could stay here a bit longer? Could certainly use a moment to take a load off my mind”

“Heh, sounds great!”

And so the duo enjoyed the rest of their day at the theme park, but even still, Wally’s words dwelled in GG’s mind, Terry claimed them to be friends yet it seemed they never cared for him at all,this task was gonna be tougher than he thought…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~[End of act 4]~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Previous Next

[ticoryblues]

Okaeri BkDk Week Day 4

Photographs/ Day Off/ Cooking

Katsuki squinted. “What are you doing?”

Izuku looked like a cartoon, balanced on the tip of his toes to reach the back of the kitchen cabinet.

“I was going to cook! For tomorrow’s picnic.” He held up the multi-layer bento Katsuki had laid out for tomorrow.

The Bakugous and Midoriyas had decided to go on a picnic for Hanami. Flower Viewing. The two families used to often go when Katsuki and Izuku were young and the tradition continued.

It wasn’t a day off per say, the two heroes were still on call but not on active duty. Even the Wonder Duo needed time off now and then for their family.

“And give everyone food poisoning?” Katsuki deadpanned. “Don’t you dare touch my stove!”

Izuku grabbed Katsuki by the shoulders before he could snatch the spatula from him and pushed him out of the kitchen. “You always cook, let me do it for once.”

“There’s a reason I cook nerd.”

Izuku was going to ruin his kitchen and turn it upside down, Katsuki’s gut screamed at him to stop.

But his husband’s optimistic, radiant, freckled smile had always been Katsuki’s downfall, bending to his ridiculous requests and every whim and fancy.

“Let me pamper you once in a while.” Izuku kissed him sweetly and promptly threw him out of the kitchen.

“Pampering doesn’t mean doubling my work.” Katsuki sweatdropped. Sighing, he made himself comfortable on the armchair, Cracker curled up in his lap with a book in his hand.

It wasn’t all that bad to put his legs up for a while and take it easy. A quiet, relaxing evening—

A loud booming voice jolted Cracker right off his lap.

“Deku! Don’t use your damn phone while cooking!” Katsuki hollered from the living room.

“I need it for the recipe!” He yelled back.

“I’m coming in!”

“Nooooo! Kacchan!” Izuku shooed him out, threatening to chuck the spatula at him.

Katsuki is mildly offended. “You’re going to set of the fire alarm.”

“That was one time.”

“I’ll only watch over!”

“Nah!”

At this rate, tomorrow’s Hanami lunch was going to be Oreos and Instant Ramen.

“Deku—“

“Kacchan! No means no!”

—

Katsuki left him alone when Izuku was half a mind away from depositing him in the living room by BlackWhip.

The Symbol of Victory paced along the length of their couch and around their coffee table, constantly disturbing Cracker from her cat-nap.

He kept glancing back towards the kitchen, jumping when he heard a crash or a clatter.

“Hey Kacchan? Should I use the pans from the top cabinet?”

Katsuki’s eyes widened but knew it was too late. “No, no, no, no! Don’t ruin my non-stick.” He groaned when he heard the scratching noises, slumping with his head in his hands. “It was new.”

—

“Tada!”

Izuku made jazz hands as he placed a plate before Katsuki. “Taste it!”

Katsuki eyed the food suspiciously. It looked cooked enough but—

“Is this your way of killing me to get the insurance?”

Izuku smacked the back of Katsuki’s head.

Katsuki hesitantly picked up a spoonful. It was Omurice. How hard could he fuck this up? It was simple enough.

If Katsuki’s hand trembled as he brought the spoon towards his mouth, then you’re highly mistaken.

“So…? How is it?” Izuku waited eagerly for the verdict.

Katsuki’s face contorted, rushing to the sink to spit it out. “Are you trying to widow yourself?”

He guzzled down a bottle of water, getting that foul taste out of his mouth. “Just how much salt did you put in dumbass?”

“I followed the recipe exactly Kacchan! It said two spoons of salt and a pinch of olive oil.”

“Deku…” Katsuki’s voice was that of exasperated silence. “It says a pinch of salt and two spoons of olive oil.”

“Oh.”

Katsuki picked up his precious pan full of scratch marks. “You ruined my non-stick for this disaster.”

“It’s just a scratch.”

“I’ll throw this on you!” Katsuki raised the pan like he would a baseball bat.

“Sorry Kacchan! I’ll buy you another one. Promise.”

“The same brand.”

“Yes Kacchan, the same brand.”

“Now move, I’ll make the rest of the bento. Stupid Deku!”

“Noooooo!”

“Wha— you want to kill our parents?”

“Kacchan!” Izuku whined. “I just misread two or three lines. Besides the salt, the food is cooked perfectly right?”

Katsuki paused. Well…..that was true. The egg was fluffy and the rice was not raw. The sauces were perfectly balanced too. It was only the salt.

“Ok then!” Izuku chirped pushing Katsuki into their bedroom. “It’s past your bedtime, go on! I’ll make the bento!”

Katsuki accepted his defeat. Izuku was about as stubborn as a mountain. Unbudging.

Eh! It’ll be like a break for him. He scooped up Cracker and went to bed, trying to drown out the noises form the kitchen, resisting the urge to run in with a fire extinguisher every time Izuku yelped.

—

“Mom, smile!”

Inko looked up just in time as the flash went off, Izuku grinning behind his polaroid camera. Inko was right below a sakura tree, petals falling perfectly in frame.

Katsuki had gotten it for him for his birthday and Izuku had found a new hobby. In a matter of few months he had collected albums (yes, plural) worth of photos of his favourite thing in the whole world— his husband.

Polaroids of Katsuki drooling in his sleep, cooking in the cute yellow apron Izuku had gotten for him, shooing Cracker off the counter with a spatula when he cooked fish.

“Deku! Stop fooling around and get the food out of the car!” Katsuki barked, spreading out the picnic blanket. “Sit down, Auntie.” He grunted and cracked open a soda can for his mother-in-law.

Cracker jumped and curled up in Mitsuki’s lap, stretching her paws. She cooed, scratching the back off the kitten’s ears. Cracker had grown in the past few months, no longer underweight.

Cracker jumped and curled up in Mitsuki’s lap, stretching her paws. She cooed, scratching the back off the kitten’s ears. Cracker had grown in the past few months, no longer underweight.

Izuku picked up his camera, clicking an embarrassing picture of Katsuki.

Katsuki noticed, red eyes turning murderous and chucked the first thing that came to his hand at Izuku’s head. Mitsuki’s straw hat.

“Brat, give it back!”

“Ask your fucking son-in-law!”

Izuku had to admit, he looked good in his mother-in-law’s hat with the big pink bow.

“Kacchan, you look so cute!” He held up the polaroid, Katsuki’s mouth opened wide enough to gobble the onigiri in one bite, a grain of rice sticking to his chin.

“Tear it up.”

“Hell no!” Izuku had better plans. He finally found a picture good enough to place it in the photo frame in his office. He told Katsuki as much.

“Fucking no!” Katsuki didn’t need his co-workers and interns seeing that picture. He had a reputation to maintain dammit! He was Great Explosion Murder God fucking DynaMight.

Izuku yelped, swiftly pulling the photograph out of his reach. Mitsuki and Inko sighed at their grown children, still shoving and wrestling like toddlers. One would think marriage would tame their rivalry down but no…..

Their mothers still held onto a wistful hope.

“Alright you two.” Masaru, ever the peace-maker interjected. “Let’s have lunch.”

”Mhmm, Katsuki-kun this is delicious.” Inko praised, digging in.

“I didn’t make that.” Katsuki didn’t offer any explanation, idly cocking his head in Izuku’s direction. He was too busy enjoying his husband’s cooking.

“I-Izuku made this?”

Izuku scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

“It’s really tasty.” Masaru had moe-moe flowers all around him, proud of his son-in-law.

—

Izuku and Katsuki sat under the sakura tree, legs stretched out as they watched the petals waft in the air.

“From now on, you’re cooking everyday.” Katsuki ordered.

Izuku chuckled, wrapping his arm around Katsuki’s waist. “As you wish.” He winked, the two laughing quietly, as though careful to not disturb the tranquil atmosphere around them.

Katsuki took Izuku’s hands in his, running his thumb over his bandaged knuckles. Izuku had stayed up all night cooking. “You could have let me help you a little.”

“Eh, I need to show off my husband skills every now and then.” Katsuki snorted shaking his head, Izuku pressed his lips against his temple.

Katsuki’s eyes fluttered shut with a soft rare smile.

—

Izuku smiled at the photo frame on his desk. The one picture that powered him through his dreadful day of paperwork. Which was also counter-effective on somedays, reminding him of what’s waiting at home for him, tempting him to shove all the work on the sidekicks and run home.

Speaking off which— he wanted to go home now.

The final picture chosen for the frame was clicked by Masaru— Izuku asleep on Katsuki’s lap, the blond threading his fingers through his hair.

[anryuuepic]

Winterkill Works: Basic Character Intros (Part 5)

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4]

RANK: Assistant

Foxglove Kovalenko

Ghiasuli

Silverbell's assistant. Along with Nightshade, she's there to watch her boss inevitably crash and burn. Her origins are entirely unclear, and she seemingly exists only to revel in whatever chaos goes down around her. Despite their similar appearance, she's not at all related to Nightshade— they're merely coincidental friends.

Chipper, carefree, and seemingly unbothered by the dangerous world around her, Foxglove hovers somewhere between an enigma and the ultimate annoyance. She's stuck with Silverbell for quite a while out of a desire to see when his schemes come crashing down, but she makes it very clear that she has no loyalty toward him. Her borderline sadistic tendencies are all too apparent.

Nightshade Kovachev

Ghiasuli

Silverbell's assistant. Along with Foxglove, he's there to watch his boss inevitably crash and burn. Like Foxglove, his origins are a total mystery, and all he seems to care about is observing the greatest amount of chaos possible. While the two look like they could be twins, he's not related to Foxglove in the slightest.

Like Foxglove, he's an upbeat, carefree person who doesn't invest himself in anything but the best sources of chaos and suffering he can find. He's less intense than her, however, and his sadism is far more subtle and contained. The two of them have been a duo for years, and have followed Silverbell recently because they want to watch his downfall when his lies eventually catch up to him.

Biological Hazard

Daryan

Korose's assistant. A former experimental weapon of a particular insurgent group, she's the oldest of the triplets. Despite being siblings, they view themselves as one person spread across three bodies. Biological takes the most assertive role among them and tends to speak, act, and think in the other two's place.

Being raised as child soldiers-slash-living experiments did massive damage to all three's mental states, and Biological lives their beliefs the deepest. She takes refuge in the bizarre things they were forced to believe, intentionally dehumanizing herself so she doesn't have to face the reality of how broken she is. While she acts the boldest of the three of them, she's in a perpetual state of fear.

Chemical Hazard

Daryan

Korose's assistant. A former experimental weapon of a particular insurgent group, she's the middle of the triplets. She has the most doubt about their so-called single-person identity— not that she voices it for fear of upsetting her siblings' worldview. Highly submissive, she goes along with whatever Biological wants.

Being raised as child soldiers-slash-living experiments did massive damage to all three's mental states, and Chemical developed a fear of thinking for herself from it. While she rationally knows the truth of their existence, she's too afraid of her siblings' reactions to ever try to fight what they've been taught. She blocks out what she knows is real so she doesn't upset the fragile balance they have.

Physical Hazard

Daryan

Korose's assistant. A former experimental weapon of a particular insurgent group, he's the youngest of the triplets. Eerily quiet, he never seems to think for himself, instead simply accepting whatever his older siblings decide. No one quite knows what he's thinking... or if there's anything at all going on inside his head.

Being raised as child soldiers-slash-living experiments did massive damage to all three's mental states, and Physical seems to have fully shut down from it. He doesn't talk, doesn't make his own choices, and barely responds to anything or anyone. It's safer for him to keep his thoughts and feelings to himself, so he makes himself be nothing but a silent shadow of his siblings.

Kayori

Dzlethian

Cindarosa's assitant. A mutated Dzlethian who's caught between his human and dragon forms, he's kept by his boss as one of her "children". While she cares for him, Kayori is also a captive being placed under intense study by the rest of Winterkill Works. He lacks any personal autonomy and is treated like a freak show attraction.

For the most part, Kayori has given up on ever being his own person. He's known little but being kept in a cage and studied, and he's rationally aware that he wouldn't be able to live normally even if he wasn't no better than someone's pet. He's defeated and hopeless, but not particularly resentful of his situation; there's nothing he can do about it, so hating it would be pointless.

Kitana

Daryan

Cindarosa's assistant. While she started out as a normal Daryan, an incident in which she was brutally tortured broke her mind and left her body horribly disfigured. Cindarosa took her in after that and cares for her as one of her own "children", since by now, Kitana has a near-feral mentality where she's incapable of fending for herself.

While only Cindarosa knows her exact history, Kitana used to be part of a bandit gang. She was captured by their enemies and tortured past the point of sanity, and regressed to her current mindset to protect herself. Some level of consciousness remains, but she doesn't behave much like a person anymore, partially due to the perpetual levels of pain she's in from her old injuries.

Lux Dunn

Dzlethian (Giant)

Ethereal's assistant. Part of a virtually unknown race of (so-called) mutated Dzlethians known as Giants, her background is unclear, as is when she left her kindred and entered Daryan society. Because of her unusual appearance, she's forced to be somewhat reclusive and perform her duties to Ethereal from the shadows.

A stoic, serious person with a negative outlook, Lux believes that Ethereal and her power are the only true good in the world. She has a worshipper-like relationship with the girl, and somewhat tensely cooperates with Whimsy for Ethereal's sake alone. She's aware that she's an outcast from the rest of the world— and refuses to give away any specific details about her race and where she came from.

Whimsy Del Rayo

Daryan

Ethereal's assistant. He grew up as part of a "backwoods cult" that had him thoroughly indoctrinated. After it disbanded, he was alone and confused by the real world... until he met Ethereal. Currently, she fills a deity-like role in his mind and worldview, where his life revolves around serving her and fulfilling her goals.

An eccentric man by all standards, the strange beliefs he developed while growing up still deeply linger. Whimsy is the type who needs something to cling to— if he doesn't have some kind of authority figure to see as a near-god, he doesn't know how to function on his own. He's easygoing and generally peaceful, but can turn violent when he believes it's "justified" in some way.

Verne Laska

Dzlethian

Ymir's assistant. The younger sister of Blaine and Ymir's former gang leader, she was taken in by the two of them after her brother was killed. Soon after, she developed an illness of her blood that turned terminal, and the three of them wound up with Winterkill Works in an attempt to find a cure that could save her.

Despite growing up around violent and morally dubious people, Verne is surprisingly pleasant. She's a good-natured young woman who's trying to live her life to the fullest since deep down, she doesn't have a lot of hope that Blaine and Ymir will be able to cure her. She loves the two of them dearly, though— despite their many bad traits, they've been by her side for most of her life.

Avya Sobol

Daryan

Ardemis's assistant. Originally a child slave from the White Slums, Winterkill indirectly purchased him for use in her organization. While he seems more pathetic than anything, he has unusual magical capabilities that make him valuable for her to study— not that she's told him anything about what he's really worth.

Shy, skittish, and highly pessimistic, Avya has been through horrible things for most of his life so far. He doesn't remember his family or where he's from; all he knows is being mistreated and kept as property. Despite being terrified of anyone with the slightest power over him, he's also a highly resentful person who'd love to take revenge on those who have hurt him for so long.