#WHAT PLOTLINE IM LOST

[princekirijo]

World's most frustrating feeling: having multiple ideas and character designs but despite working on the thing for nearly 5 YEARS still being nowhere close to having a coherent plot 💀

[turtlespancake]

me when i write a character who is prone to dooming themself and then they run off and doom themself. core traits are stubbornness and a willingness to disregard their own humanity gET BACK HERE IM NOT DONE WITH YOU

[anakinstwinklebunny]

if you’re not taking requests totally ignore this. but i was hoping if u could write a short drabble or whatever about the reader being like a bio/chem major and anakin being like a literature major (kinda get those vibes from his role in shattered glass as stephen glass) and their cute differences :D. i lowkey need it as motivation for the ap’s im taking 😔. if thats out of your comfort zone or if you don’t want to write that i understand!! i love your work 💗

Author's note: I do take requests!!! It's my first drabble EVER..and I hope it's good.. really 😭 YOU GO LOVE, YOU CAN DO IT, I BELIEVE IN YOU <3

pairing: literature major!anakin x biochem major!reader

The library was a sanctuary of silence, but the hushed murmur of pages turning and the occasional tapping of keyboards seemed to fade whenever Anakin and you shared a glance. You were huddled over your chemistry notes - the structure of complex molecules sprawling across your laptop screen, while Anakin lounged across from you, lost in the pages of a leather-bound volume of classic literature, just as he loved.

His long fingers traced the spine of his book as if it were a cherished secret. The dim light cast shadows across his chiseled features, highlighting the intense focus in his eyes. You couldn’t help but let your gaze linger on him, captivated by the contrast between his world of words and your realm of scientific formulas.

“Need any help with those compounds?” he asked, finally, as if knowing how many times your gaze fell on his face. His voice was low and smooth, carrying the hint of a smile you knew well. His eyes flickered up from the book, catching yours with a mischievous glint.

You rolled your eyes playfully, though you couldn’t suppress the smile tugging at your lips. “I doubt your poetic musings will be much help with my chemical bonds,” you replied, though the teasing tone in your voice was softened by the affection you felt towards the young man

He leaned in closer, his voice a seductive murmur. “Ah, but you’d be surprised. The beauty of language can often explain the complexities of science.. Imagine, if you will, a molecule as a character in a novel, its bonds and interactions like a plotline that weaves through the narrative.”

You laughed, a soft, melodic sound that made Anakin’s heart race. His gaze dropped to your soft-looking lips for a moment before returning to your eyes, the heat between you palpable. Humanists, who would have known they can be so romantic in their speech? “You and your metaphors,” you teased, your fingers brushing against his hand as you reached for a textbook. "But you know what intrigues me" you made a small pause "how does a literature major end up as my personal distraction?” you teased, lightly flirting with your own boyfriend

Anakin’s fingers traced lightly over the edge of your open notebook, a barely perceptible touch that sent a shiver up your spine when his ocean blue eyes tried to read your writing “I guess I’m just trying to add a little poetry to your periodic table.”

You tilted your head, pretending to think it over. “Poetry and science? That’s like mixing oil and water.”

“Ah,” he grinned, his eyes sparkling with mischief, “but even oil and water have chemistry. You just need the right catalyst.”

You laughed softly, unable to resist the magnetic pull of his charm. The truth was, you never really could “You think you’re the catalyst?”

He leaned in closer, his lips inches from your own, voice a low murmur. “I think I could make you react.”

You felt the blush bloom on your cheeks, your heart skipping a beat at his words. "Careful, you might just cause an exothermic reaction."

Anakin's smile widened, his thumb grazing your jaw as he whispered, “Then let's see how much heat we can handle."

TAG LIST: @kingdomhate @divineani @erosmutt @haydensprettyprincess @mistress-amidala @catnipaddictt @heartscone @haydensbbg @inneedsoffanfics @jediavengers @literally-izzy @anisluvrgirl @slutforfinnickodair @xhunnybeeex @fuckmyskywalker @gallerygourmet

(if you want to be removed or added then don't be shy and let me know 💋)

[starry-bi-sky]

I am absolutely loving your Danyal Al Ghul au. While I have a soft spot for the whole plotline of Danny becoming his canon personality almost right after breaking away from the LOA all because of Jazz, I'm just as much for your take in which he goes through the same character development as Damian.

Now I'm curious. You already tackled his relationship with Dani, will you eventually take a stab at when he, Sam, and Tucker meet Gregor? Given that it's one of my hated episodes as I couldn't stand Sam's infuriatingly hypocritical attitude to Danny's suspicions of him, I'd kill to see your spin on it.

Aw, thank you! Danyal Al Ghul aus are what got me into DPDC first, so I have a major soft spot for them. That being said, uh, its exactly that soft spot that causes me to have Many Opinions about the trope you just mentioned. Like the trope is all fine and dandy, i don't blindly hate it, my main issue with it is that most aus i've seen treat his backstory as an ex-assassin more like a pretty cosmetic accessory rather than something that actually should have had an impact on him. Especially if he remembers being in the league.

Like i cannot stress enough the fact that being in an ecofascist assassin cult (regardless of his standing in it) should've left him, in some way or another, screwed up morally and psychologically because that's just how development works. Nature vs. Nurture is like a game of tug-o-war that never ends, where they are constantly fighting against each other and one side usually has the upper hand or greater influence. Children model the behaviors of the adults around them (ex: bobo the clown doll experiment), and what impacts them in childhood can stick with them permanently.

Like how my psychology professor put it: a baby's brain is like wet cement; if you slap your hand on it, it leaves an imprint, and the cement dries that way. The same rings true for small children.

I could go on, but I frankly have so many thoughts on that alone that I would end up completely derailing from the second half of your ask, and I don't want to be more critical than I already have. Especially since you just mentioned you have a soft spot for the trope.

[Okay, hold onto your hats because this is long. Naturally lmao.]

Gregor! Man, I'll admit I last watched the show back in middle school on a dodgy illegal website (it had surprisingly good audio and visual graphics, and full episodes. But really annoying porn ads.) but I only made it to like season 1 before my hyperfixation faded and I lost interest. So I never actually saw the Gregor episode.

But... it is relatively easy to find free websites that stream Danny Phantom :), so finding the episode took me like. Thirty seconds. Plus the Tv.Tropes recap page because my damn earbuds just died and im out in public as of rn.

I'm not sure if I'll write something for the gregor episode like I did with Dani, since Dani's a bit of a special case in that she's a clone and tends to be a reoccurring presence in DPDC, and I thought the new dynamic with Danyal would be interesting.

Plus, I'm not a big amethyst ocean shipper for the pure reason of I'm just not all that interested in it; its kinda bland to me. I'll admit I've entertained the thought in this au due to the whole balcony scene i wrote, but I would've entertained the thought anyways if it was Tucker in that position instead. Big multishipper, me.

But, if I had to make it official? Danyal is not interested romantically in Sam when the Gregor episode happens, regardless of his relationship with Valerie. Who, speaking of I'm trying to think about how that would go, and I'm torn between including him almost-dating Valerie or not.

Because on one hand it helps point out Sam's hypocrisy (and i love her but i am always happy to point out her flaws and address them in au) in this episode in terms of Danny spying on them, but on the other hand I'll want to include a lot of set up in order to make Gray Ghost work in this au and wow will that take a while.

Especially with the Flirting with Disaster episode because it happens due to Technus' meddling, and Danny is, well, the son of the Batman? A trained assassin? An ex-assassin nonetheless, but still an assassin? A prodigy child in this au? He might not have needed to use most of his skills in the last few years, but like... there's just a bunch of 'what if' and 'well technically...' and 'would he? he could, but would he?' things that is getting in the way of my thought process and making my head spin.

.

Mmm. Okay. Flirting with Disaster occurs relatively the same as canon with a few exceptions; like Danyal noticing the strange coincidences, and he might take the idea into proper consideration because Sam has a point it is strange, especially out of nowhere.

However,,, he really enjoys Valerie's company, and he does really like her. He's been adjusting to civilian life for the last four years and while he's made a lot of progress, he's still. an ex-assassin child living like a wolf amongst sheep. This is normal, typical teenager stuff, and usually his friends like to encourage him doing normal teenager stuff.

So he's stubbornly holding out on the thought that this is normal, that ghost stuff isn't interfering here. He's a little hurt that his friends are discouraging this, he's not bothered by the fact that Valerie is a ghost hunter and he a ghost -- his mother is an assassin, and his father is Batman, and they still had a relationship. (Granted, he's not gonna tell them that)

If anything, being diametrically opposed to each other but still being in love is part of the family! Granted, usually both parties are aware of said opposition to each other, but he'll make a special exception this time around.

(And man now that i'm thinking about gray ghost, im now thinking about various like. scenes i could write between the two of them. maybe in a reblog.)

Anyways uhhh things relatively go the same as canon. Yeah. I think Sam still has a crush on Danny and still spies out of jealousy with Tucker.

.

Now, the Gregor episode! With that out of the way; the TVTropes recap for this episode isn't the best because it doesn't go into detail about the entire episode like it does with Flirting With Disaster and Shades of Gray.

(which i looked at earlier because I made a section of this post talking briefly about what changes I'd make to the Shades of Gray episode to help set up Gray Ghost, but ended up deleting because it was kinda irrelevant for the matter at hand.)

So I'm taking in bits of the episode clips at a time, I'll try not to get too nitpicky about how each scene goes because then it's gonna take me a longer time to write this.

But! First thing's first; since Danny is not romantically interested in Sam, he is also not jealous of Gregor. He is however, a bit eyebrow-raisey at him in their first introduction, but that's because Gregor is coming off as obnoxious.

Danny thinks he's kinda annoying, and it doesn't take a genius to see that Gregor is trying to impress Sam. But since they've only known him for five minutes he takes the good faith assumption and assumes that Gregor is genuinely trying to show interest in Sam's interests too because he likes her, so he keeps mum. The fake hungarian accent is weird, but it's overall harmless, so he doesn't point it out.

He does do the spying thing when he starts suspecting that Gregor might be working for the GIW. The episode only has this happen twice, but for the au this happens a handful of more times over the course of the week, with Danyal's suspicion steadily rising more and more each time.

Hah, when he brings up wanting to spy on Sam and Gregor because of this reason, Tucker still does his "woah! you wanna spy on Sam?" thing.

Danny immediately turns to him, completely unimpressed, and crosses his arms. "Tucker," he says, deadpan, "you and Sam spied on me and Valerie."

He uses a combination of his ghost powers and his regular stealth ability to spy on them. He's hiding in a tree when they're skipping rocks, close enough that he can use his powers to hear them talk but far enough away that he has a good view of their surroundings.

He's invisible in the cinema, but doesn't accidentally get in front of the projector. He checks the inside of the room for the GIW, and then waits outside the actual room itself, keeping an eye on the area and occasionally flying in to watch the movie out of boredom. It reminds him of being back on a recon mission with the League, but it doesn't end with him orchestrating someone's death.

Then when they're at the mall he stays in human form, blending in with the crowd. He runs into the GIW there, but realizes that they're not there because of Gregor; they're just shopping. They didn't show up at either of the last two locations, and he follows them to make sure they're not also trying to blend in. But they're literally just there for shopping.

Danny is rather pleased with this turnout; so far Gregor isn't a spy, he's just annoying. The next day at lunch he asks Sam how her date with Gregor went, and that's how she figures out he spied on them, because well, she didn't tell him that.

"Have you been spying on me?"

Danny messes with his food a little bit, and Tucker is sinking into his seat with embarrassment. He frowns, "Only last night. Those incompetent government dodos--"

His lip curls up; he gets all 'Shakespeare-y' (as Sam and Tucker put it) when he's insulting someone, "--kept appearing whenever Gregor did. I followed you and him last night to make sure he wasn't a spy."

A roundabout way of saying, "I was worried".

Sam is, as canon, furious. Danny understands why, he knows generally speaking that people don't like being spied on. But he's confused on just how angry she is, and is a little irritated by it.

"Why would you do that!" She exclaims, "That's way out of line, Danny."

"How? You spied on me when I was going on dates with Valerie." He narrows his eyes, and points his fork at her, "I'm not blind, I noticed."

"That's different, we told you why we were suspicious. And we don't have ghost powers like you do."

"I don't need ghost powers to sneak around, Sam, you've seen this firsthand. And I just told you why I followed you, I thought he was working with the guys in white--"

"So you think someone can only be interested in me if they're after you?" (this is a paraphrased quote, folks ;D)

"No! If that was the case I would have voiced my concern the moment I thought it. I don't get why you're so angry, you spied too."

Iiits.... a mess. Sam storms off with Gregor, Tucker tags along because okay, yeah, maybe Gregor isn't with the GIW, or maybe last night was a fluke. Either way he ends up tagging along. Danny overhears that conversation between the GIW and Mr. Lancer, and maybe he's right, maybe he's wrong; but something is up.

I've gotten to that scene in the locker room where Gregor tells Danny that he knows he doesn't like him, and I've paused at Danny's reply to say this: Danyal doesn't even bother trying to deny it.

"I know you do not like me."

"You're right; I don't."

"Ah, let me finish. I know you do not like me because you want to protect your friend, Sam, and I respect that."

"...That's correct."

"Good! Because I am going to ask her out."

"I had a feeling you'd say that," he stands up, claps his hand tight on Gregor's shoulder, and leans close to him with a threatening smile, "so you understand me when i say; if you break my best friend's heart, you're as good as dead, right?"

"Ah,, yes. I am so glad we got that cleared out of the way, and now I hope after we can.. how you Americans put it, hang out?"

In the episode he hugs Danny and gives him a la bise (which is that french greeting where you kiss someone on the cheek two or more times) after they end their conversation. But here, when he goes to do that to Danyal, Danny leans away, points an accusatory finger at him, and says; "Absolutely not; we are not close."

The next scene after that is like, end of day. Sam, Tucker, and Gregor walking away. Sam looks over her shoulder to glare at Danny, then gets forlorn. Tucker looks back and just looks forlorn.

(When did I start narrating each scene?? Eh, I'm writing this in brief spurts of time throughout the day. Don't fix what's not broke)

After that there's this whole scene with the two GIW agents that have been chasing Phantom all episode. They're there because they have Tucker's PDA that Skulker took, and it's got the information of their purple backed gorilla assignment on it. They've been going around seeing who Tucker associates with in hopes of catching Phantom.

Uhh ahaha and that is where this gets a little interesting imo, and also allows me to mention that im retconning Danyal's (already) redesigned ghost form. Which I've wanted to retcon even before this moment bc it was just too busy. I'll get to that in a moment.

The GIW suspect Gregor for being the Phantom because of his white hair and green eyes, which is all fine and dandy until you remember: Danyal (and by extension Phantom) has that very noticeable, rather identifiable facial scar that goes across the middle of his fucking face. The GIW could easily suspect that Phantom hides his scar with makeup if he's in disguise, but if they meet a kid with a seemingly identical facial scar and similar disposition? Hoo boy.

Solution? I've got two: Gregor is canonically a kid from Michigan who faked everything to impress Sam. Considering he knows she's gothic and knows that she's ultra-recyclo vegetarian? He probably watched her from afar or got information on her somehow. His hair is dyed, his eyes might just naturally be green, but if he notices that she's got a crush on either Danyal or Phantom? A little sfx makeup could help him recreate a similar looking scar.

My second solution that's gonna happen anyways bc its that suit redesign; Danyal does hide his face as Phantom. Ghosts are emotional creatures and its a popular headcanon that their interests, ambitions, etc, influence the way they look as a ghost, not just their death. A big reoccurring theme of my au is that Danyal did not leave the League unscathed, and that being an assassin is an important part of his identity.

So i'm discarding the hazmat suit look entirely and leaning into the 'assassin' thing. But the general (stylized) feel is like, white ribbon/cloth vambraces that he has used as a garrote at some point, a hood, a gaiter scarf-type thing. I'm keeping the cape. I did a doodle a few days back that's not the official redesign, but a redesign for Phantom. I may reblog this post with that attached because it's got the general feel down. There's very little white involved, but the inside of his cape flares out and looks like the night sky.

Now, the hood and gaiter scarf gets rid of most of the problem, but Danny's hood doesn't stay on all the time, so the GIW have likely seen the upper half of the scar. :] Gregor's own drawn-on scar doesn't have to be 1:1, but it looks close enough, right? A small scar cutting through the edge of his brow and ends right below the corner of his eye. A 'cool, badass' one opposed to Danny's 'garish' scar.

But! Back to the episode scene. Canon Danny gets written off as being 'too prepubescent' to be Phantom, and honestly it'd be hilarious if Danyal was written off for the same reason (he's calling them idiots in his head if they do). But instead -- leaning into the GIW's incompetence here -- he gets written off as being too mature or too talkative. Or something equally as absurd.

Sam breaks up with Gregor for canon reasons, but when Gregor does his "i really like you, but, come on-!" and gestures to tucker, he adds on "and that scary friend of yours too, seriously!"

Things go relatively the same as canon after that. Danny does end up apologizing for spying, however. Sam does it first. Sorrows, prayers, all that.

.

Things usually end up changed or different when I actually write it down, so I'd likely add more or adjust different scenes according to the flow of the oneshot. This is just like, a general vibe of how things would go, and where some of the more obvious changes would be if I did write this oneshot.

Hope you enjoyed! Thanks for the ask :]

[erinwantstowrite]

Hi!!!! I Love love love your fic, and I have a question! An inquiry if you must lol. I was reading the tags again, and I noticed the skip Westcott tag. Are you going to approach the topic? Like, other than Peter suffering that trauma, when he eventually opens up to the bat family, will he talk about it?? Will dick talk about his own experience with Tarantula? I'm so excited to see your take since you put some hints that skip was maybe his caretaker at some point? Like foster dad or maybe I'm genuinely just tripping and mixing with other fics.

ALSO incredibly excited to see what happened to him with the experiments!!! It's extremely vague but im so needing that angst!!!! I really want to see more of Peter's life before coming to Gotham, before even meeting Tony!

hiii!! ty for the love!! :)

i spent ages looking for an ask i got a while ago about this topic but i can't find it for some reason? so if anyone is able to find it for me, i'd like to link it to this post and i'd appreciate the help!!

EDIT: perpetuallypanicky found the post!

(warning for under the tag: talking about Skip Westcott and Tarantula, which covers the topic of SA. please take care of yourself)

Peter will eventually talk about Skip Westcott. I can't say how much he says because I haven't actually written the conversation yet, but at the moment, it's more alluded to that it is talked about. It's a conversation for way later in another part of the series I have planned for LoF, which actually has an entire plotline about Peter's past and how it connects to his future. But he will open up and talk about it at some point. I think in the road trip arc (chapter 15 I think?) I have it planned for Peter to talk about Skip in some context with Dick (mainly, he tells Dick the most he's ever told anyone about the day he was bit by the spider), but not fully.

(And if that changes, it will 100% be warned in the beginning with the other trigger warnings I put in beginning chapter notes.)

That's mostly because Peter still hasn't processed that yet. He hasn't even told his therapist (I briefly mentioned a few times in Peter's POV's that he has gone to therapy, but I should probably make sure it's known that he doesn't go so often that he's gotten through the biggest parts of his past).

As for Tarantula... I talked about this in the Lost Post (this thing disappeared???) so I should probably mention it again. But Tarantula did NOT happen in this au.

There's a huge reason for it, and that's because I hate Devin Grayson, the writer who put that shit in there. I don't want her attached to LoF in any form, even if I'm writing to bash it.

That's not saying that Dick isn't still a survivor of SA. He's still going to have that be a part of his past as well, with some of the other instances. (There's another instance with Catwoman that's just... no.) So I'm not erasing that part of his history. I just hate Devin Grayson.

Which means that when Dick does find out (and he will), there's gonna be a big reaction. For the most part, when it comes to What Happened, I won't be going into details, nor flashbacks, stuff like that. It'll be about the impact of those times, and how Peter and Dick are recovering, though they do talk about it.

Also, Skip was Peter's last foster parent before Tony, you're right. He's probably just a little older than Dick, I'd say, around mid thirties? He was responsible for Peter for a little while but Peter ended up running away that day he got bit, and Skip hasn't fostered since.

And as for the experiments: I'm excited to write about it more. Peter and Dick also talk about this, and in some more detail than the Westcott talk. It's about time that Dick learned how Tony got Peter's complete trust,,,, a little sneak peak into that,,,, :)

There's actually so much about Peter's backstory that I sometimes wonder if there's things that I wouldn't be able to get to in LoF... It just means that I've been considering writing a prequel one day

[choccy-milky]

A few months back, I asked if it was okay to write using Clora and Seb. Finished the work - thought I'd lost it on my hard drive and a virus scan located it.

Not sure if it's sad or happy, but the basic premise of it is Clora getting frustrated/upset at Sebastian and Sebastian comforting her, Sebastian getting upset at a predicament Clora's in and Clora comforting him, and them both getting frustrated/upset and having to comfort each other.

If you'd rather I didn't post it, that's fine too, but just wanted to test the waters and double check that you'd be okay with it if I gifted it to you via AO3, or see if you wanted a sneak peak of it before posting it.

OMG im so happy you were able to find it and recover the work you did!!😭🙏 AND YES OF COURSE YOU CAN POST IT AAA I CANT WAIT TO READ IT!! you can DM it to me first if you want, but i also dont mind if you post it straight away on ao3!! IM LOOKING FORWARD TO IT SM AAARGHHHA💖💖💖IT SOUNDS ANGSTY WE LOVE THE HURT/COMFORT I HOPE MY HEART CAN HANDLE IT🥺💖💖TY AGAIN FOR USING CLORA AND SEB AND TAKING THE TIME TO WRITE SOMETHING ABOUT THEM😭

@sunshine-goblin AAA THANK YOU!!! im honoured its your fav fanfic AND ALSO THE LONGEST YOUVE READ BAHAHAA fr, when you say its as long as four books in lotr it rly makes me realize how insane i am😃👍 aw IM GLAD I COULD INSPIRE YOU TO DRAW MORE AND WRITE AS WELL😭 I was curious so i creeped you and everyone go look at their HL blog @sunshines-legacy your MC is so cute and so is your art🥹💖 as for tips on writing a longfic and brainstorming and motivation and stuff, my motivation was my brainrot and unhappiness with the canon story/ending LMAOO, and looking at the story of the game and playing around with what i was unhappy with/what i WISHED could have happened instead, was a lot easier than just coming up with plotlines from scratch. but something i highly recommend is just OUTLINING and making a timeline, one of my fav parts of writing was just putting on some cafe ambience in the background and doing stream of conscious type word documents where id just barf ideas and then worry about making it pretty later....like look at how many versions of the same chapter i have BAHAHA or like different renditions bc i couldnt decide if id wanna keep a scene/what order, so id make a timeline and keep smoothing things out until i was happy with it and whatnot

brainstorming is defs my fav part of the process and the most helpful part to me. just getting a blank document and writing stuff you want to happen without worrying about how it connects to the story, and then a lot of the times as i was doing that id just keep going and it would kinda tie itself together/id come up with a solution as i was writing / once the ideas kept flowing. so basically : TIMELINES AND OUTLINES I VERY MUCH RECOMMEND, but very low pressure and barebones ones. for example, this is what my outlines/brainstorming look like

its honestly just me talking to myself LMAO, and a lot of the time ill interject and be like "OH YEAH AND THEN THIS CAN HAPPEN" as the ideas come while im writing BAHAHA. its a super fun process and honestly nothing feels better than just getting hit with that flash of inspo, and since its all very low effort theres no pressure to actually write well and its just a chill fun time AND GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR OWN PROCESS / WRITING💖💖💖it can be difficult but HOPE U HAVE FUN TOO💖💖

@a-little-lysdexic WAIT REALLY?? LMFAOO OMG THATS CRAZY....SAME BRAIN...🤝🤝...that would trip me up so much if i were you omg BAHHAHA but aside from having similar tastes in names, IM GLAD YOU LIKE MY ART AS WELL, TYY💖💖💖

THANK YOUUU im glad you're liking it!!! and that its taking over your life BAHAHA💖💖 the video you're thinking of was by @silverxstardust for chapter 13 of my fic, and you can watch the video here! (AND TY AGAIN TO SILVERXSTARDUST FOR DOING THIS!)

[nanivinsmoke]

❥ 1000 Years Too Late

❥ heian!era sukuna x fem!reader

warnings: TRIGGERING & HEAVY spoils for the recent jjk chapter, if you don’t wanna be spoiled nor triggered, please don’t read.!

❥ trigger warnings & tags: mentions of death, suicidal thoughts & attempt, struggles with grief, reincarnation of sukuna’s deceased lover, unwanted pregnancy, depression, (sukuna inhabited a different body when he was with you) etc...

note: punishment for all my hunnibuns, since yall didn’t submit for the summer event. also i added a lil twist on the jjk plotline to fit this

it was over. they won, but you lost. lost the one thing that mattered to you.

you knew this was going to happen, but nobody can prepare you for death. how could they? especially for this one. they would judge you and shun you away from the academy, if they knew how you felt.

you watched as they rejoiced, reuniting and celebrating the end of sukuna, while you stood there sulking—trying so hard not to wallow in your sorrows.

he was the love of your life and now he is gone.

you stood at the spot where he died, trying so hard to feel his spirit or his energy, but there was nothing. he was truly gone. the two of you had fallen in love by accident, you couldn’t remember how it began, but you could remember how much the two of you loved each other. despite you both being on opposite sides, you couldn’t hate each other.

it was unfortunate how the world turned out for the two of you.

you entered your apartment and you immediately tensed up—immediately being hit with the cologne he used to wear. should you even be here? everything reminded you of him, the last plate in the sink that he used, the smell of the aftershave he used this morning, his crimson red slippers by the bed and his side of the bed that had grew cold.

you were alone, left alone once again. you lied down on his side of the bed, cuddling under the plush blanket, staring up at the ceiling—darkness clouding the room. ‘why’d you have to leave me? how am I supposed to move on?’ a tear trickled out of your eyes and then the flood gates opened.

you spent the whole night crying your eyes out, heart yearning for him once again.

the following days had gotten worse for you, you felt like you were decaying—mentally. you hadn’t left your place, ignoring the calls from your coworkers and your parents, you hadn’t showered, you had no motivation to nor have you eaten anything. his death took everything out of you, all you could do was drink. drink the pain away.

you sat in your bed tossing back the bottle of jack daniels that was sitting inside one of the kitchen’s cabinets. you had been drinking so much that the burn that accompanied the liquor had faded and it started to taste like juice. the vibrating sounds of your phone made you tense up, irritating you by the second while you ignored it; making you pick up—ready to drunkenly curse out the person on the other side.

that is until you heard their voice, the voice of your boyfriend's killer, the only one who knew of your relationship with the king of curses. yuuji itadori.

“hello? y/n–sensei?” you cringed, swallowing back your anger as you answered him back.

“hello yuuji, what’s up?” there was a pause on the other end and you took the opportunity to take another swig of the dark beverage.

“we haven’t seen you in a while….i just wanted to see how you were doing….” you had to stop yourself from chuckling, swallowing more and more of the bronze drink.

“im fine. is that all?” your words came out harsher than you intended, but that would’ve been a problem if you were in the right state of mind. “i'm not buying that. im coming to check on you, sensei. I’ll be there soon.” he said, hanging up on you—making you curse in frustration. you threw the bottle at the nearby wall, the glass shattering into a thousand tiny pieces and staining it with its contents.

you knew you shouldn’t be mad at him, he was a kid after all—being pulled into this mess, having to deal with everything as well. but, you didn’t know what else to do? who else to blame?

you got up from your bed, sulking on the way to the bathroom; stripping off your clothes and stepping to into the shower—turning on the water to boiling hot; the water burning away your thoughts. this was the only time you hadn’t thought about sukuna, the shower freed your mind. all you could think about was the pleasing feeling of the scalding water piercing your thoughts.

after a good ten minutes in the shower, you got out and put on something comfortable, waiting for the teen to come to your place. and a few more minutes, he was there, staring at you—like he could see right through you. “you miss him, don’t you?” the pink haired boy spoke, not wasting anytime. you looked at him and chuckled, before going into your favorite cabinet; the liquor cabinet. opening the strong bottle of vodka, you quick downed some; ignoring yuuji.

“before i killed him—,” he paused, seeing the look on your face after he said that before continued, ignoring your eyes. “he told me to go to this place, must’ve been his castle years ago, and told me to find this crate with your name on it.” he went out into the hallway and grabbed the crate, bringing it in to show you. it was filled with a bunch of letters, all signed to you.

“i never read any of them, y/n–sensei, i figured it was something special for you. help you get closure.”

“closure?” you stifled a laugh, raising any eyebrow at the boy. you burped, picking up the bottle of alcohol and shoving some more of its liquid down your throat. he could see that you were drunk, but you were also hurting.

“how the hell would you know what i need? hm?”

“because it’s not good to carry everything on your shoulders. trust me i know.” he put his hand onto of yours, eyes holding sincerity, but you couldn’t see that; heart wouldnt let you. you pulled away from him and stood a few feet back—face contorted into a scowl. “you should go.” yuuji opened his mouth to protest, but he knew shouldn’t. instead, he turned on his heels and head for the door, before saying one last thing.

“sensei, if you ever need help, im one call away.”

you avoided those letters like the plague. walking past them each time you went to retrieve a new bottle of your liquid medicine. you didn’t have the strength to, you feared that it might push you over the edge.

sukuna was on your mind heavily as you sat on the couch, flipping through the channels on the television—with a bottle in the other hand. you decided on a channel, a romantic movie playing on the big screen. you laughed in disgust at the main character, so helplessly in love—stupidly in love. you cringed when the character experienced her first heart break, rolling your tired eyes at her dramatics, that is until she received a letter. a letter from her lover.

it was like you were watching a movie about yourself. like someone was controlling you life in a way. you looked at the letter’s sitting on the island before looking back at the tv, before you got up and went over to the crate. You swallowed thickly and rummaged through them, pulling out one that had caught your eye. you ran your hand over the black ink, his handwriting thick and neat, envelope smelling just like him.

carefully tearing it open, you stared at the contents, finding a seat at the island.

‘ a thousand years ago, i ruled the world. i was nefarious, everyone bowed down to me—they respected me. i was king and then there was you, my queen. ’ you paused, taking a minute to process what the hell he was talking about. you took another swig from your personal mini bar before looking at the letter once more.

‘ i know you’re confused, i can see your face scrunching up in my mind. cute. ’ you giggled, heart swelling at you imagining him, imagining you.

‘ you were born a thousand years ago. you were everything i was not. you completed me, even though you were just a human, you made me feel more than just a curse. you made me, me. ’ your lips were trembling and you had to bite them to stop yourself from crying. he always had a way with words.

‘ you were fearsome, a little cruel at times (my kind of lady), but you were respected. however, some people didn’t feel the same and they had it out for you. you were cursed, one that would ultimately end up taking your life. after a passionate night of love making between you and i, we shared a kiss and that was the last one we ever shared. you died in my arms that night ’

plip. plip. plip.

your tears stained the letter, heart breaking into a thousand pieces. you knew that he was crying as he wrote this letter, words smudged where he was writing—that was rare for him. he was heartbroken just like you were.

' I watched the light go out of your eyes. i had to bury you. i was filled with emotions, one that i know a bit too well. rage. i killed everything and everyone in sight, trying to find a way to get you back…..it took me forever to find one. until, i met you again. the day that I saw you, i knew i had to keep you safe. you were fighting against me and i had to act like i didn’t know you, it was all part of my plan. i fell for you ten times harder and you slowly did as well. however, i found out that the curse reincarnated with you and how to break it. ’

you sipped the last of the burning booze, wiping your eyes that continuously watered with sadness. you pinched the letter, no longer wanting to read the rest of the letter, but you knew you had to. you had to know why, why the love of your life had to die.

‘ i found out the way to break it about a week ago and by the time you’re reading this, im probably already gone. the only way to break this curse was for me to die and i didn’t, you would die and be reincarnated over and over again if you continued to fall in love me. i couldn’t do it, I couldn’t see you die another thousand years later. i couldn’t lose you. so im doing what i gotta do. im sorry. ’

oh. the paper got wet.

the black ink smudged with your rainfall of tears. you couldn’t stop, your heart aching, breaking into a thousand pieces. why did the universe hate you? what did you ever do to deserve this? why did you have to live?

the bottle of bacardi fell to the floor, as you stumbled getting up—vision blurred with your sadness. you stepped on the clear shards, pricking your feet as you walked, not caring about the stinging sensation coursing through them. you staggered towards the bathroom, gripping the sink’s cool porcelain, & opening the medicine cabinet that lied behind the mirror. you picked up a random pill bottle, whipping the cap off and pouring a small handful into your mouth.

swallowing it with the help of the water from the sink’s faucet, you slid down to the tiled floor—sitting there until the drugs took full affect.

your eyes were getting weaker and weaker by the second, heart beating crazily in your chest and all you could do was lay back and smile. you were finally at peace, ready to be reunited with your love. until you felt a buzzing in your pants pocket. you weakly reached in and pulled out your phone, seeing the missed notification from itadori. oh. you smiled and opened the device, going to your text messages and pushing the little microphone icon.

“goodbye, yuuji.”

the effects of the pills consumed your body, putting you in a comatose state—a white light taking over your mind.

the sounds of medical machinery caused you to stir, eyes lids heavy as you tried to open them. the brightness of the lights above you, made you cringe, until you relaxed and was able to open them completely—taking around your surroundings. you were in fact, still alive.

you noticed there was tube inside of you mouth and you started to panic, that is until who hand came over and unplugged it for you, allowing you to gasp for air. “you’re lucky to be alive, y/n. thank yuuji for that.” shoko’s raspy voice rang in your ears and you met her eyes, tears welling in them.

“and did you know that you’re pregnant?” shoko asked and your eyes widened, there was no fucking way. after all that drinking you did, how can something like that survive in you?

almost like she could hear your thoughts, the brown haired woman spoke once more, “there seems to be some cursed energy in there. i don’t want to or need to know how, but i do need to know what do you plan on doing with it?” your mind was running a million miles per minute, a kid? a fucking fetus? you couldn’t, you couldn’t raise it—not now, not ever. not until you got help.

just as you were about to respond, there was a knock on your door and in came the pink haired teen. he smiled and looked at shoko, whom nodded her head and exited the room—leaving you two to have a mini staring contest. until, he decided to speak first, “I’ve got your text last night…I nearly raced over there—scooping you up and bringing you over here, auntie.” the name he called you made you raise an eyebrow.

“i went back to get a few things for you and I found the letter. it’s not your fault, you couldn’t control the past more can you control the future. it’s not his fault either. my uncle did what anyone would do in his situation, he might’ve dragged it a couple of times, but he lost the love of his life.” yuuji said with a little eye roll, causing you to chuckle.

“i know about your situation too…whatever you decide, im here every step of the way. you don’t need to do this on your own. he broke the curse so you could live, so live. “

you took those words to heart as you laid in the hospital bed, recovering. there was no doubt that you missed him and needed ryomen—but you know that dying now would make his death a waste. he died so you wouldn’t have to suffer, he was man; a cursed man yes—but he was the bravest man ever and you would forever love him.

“i got the last bag yuuji! tell fushiguro to help you with that one!” you shouted to the pink haired boy, grabbing the last bag from your empty apartment. you had recovered fully in shoko’s care a few weeks ago, you also signed up for therapy—to help you understand your feelings and better your mental health. you decided on getting rid of the unborn fetus, you were in no shape to carry such a thing. you weren’t strong enough and you knew sukuna would understand.

you sighed, looking around once more, taking in the memories before you moved to your new place. however, just as you were about to go, a white envelope caught your eye. you thought you shredded them all, but it seems that one was forgotten. setting down the bag of clothes, you leaned against the island and quickly opened it—heart thumping in anticipation.

‘ my love for you will never die. don’t fret my queen, ive might’ve been a thousand years too late, but i will forever love you a thousand years more. until we meet again. — ryomen . ’

you smiled, tears pouring out of your eyes while you kissed the letter, before bringing it over to the stove and lighting it on fire; burning it to a nice crisp.

that was the end of your story, but the beginning of a new one. take care, sukuna. and see you in hell.

[daftmooncretin]

rip to rian johnson but star wars sequels would be way better if ben solo was just kinda cowardly and han solo coded so he defected from the jedi and went to be a fun swashbuckling anarchist space cowboy instead

and finn and poe have to find him and try to convince him to come back to the rebellion but hes afraid who he is and what he could become

also instead of luke trying to kill his nephew for NO REASON (so insanely out of character it boils my blood) he just realises after ben dips thats hes not cut out for teaching. and is living on a mandalorian colony as rebellion liason/ambassador with chewie and sometimes lando i guess (din djarin is there) he aids the rebellion (because of course he would fuck that plotline) but he wont stay on the rebel base because he doesnt like all the chosen one clout and mandalorians are very chill and mind their own business

han and leia are still together and play active parts in the rebellion because fuck that plotline too although they do disagree about the ben situation (leia is annoyed and han is understanding) poe and ben childhood friends and for what.

in this au, rey is raised in the empire and is a sith lord but she has doubts and isnt as abjectly disgusting as kylo ren because of course not. (appears slightly too interested in the rebellion when poe is captured and maybe??? possibly lets finn and poe escape but thats up for debate.) rey gets more evil over course of movies before turning to light for plot drama and a satisfying zuko arc.

force awakens timeline

prophecy that a new jedi will rise and take down the dark side. rey and sith lord (dk who but fuck snoke im writing him out) assume it is the missing ben solo (its finn and rey tho fr) and are intent on finding him. movie opens on rey being evil probably and capturing poe. also finn as a character actully needs no real changes hes great. and then next scene space pirate ben solo doing his thing (but without identity revealed so we dont know who he is yet he may go by kylo because funny)

instead of luke poe has a lead on missing almost-jedi before he dipped ben solo and is searching for him on leias orders.(rebellion also believe the prophecy is about him. but nuh uh) torture scene and escape scene doesnt need to change but show reys nuances and how lost she is.

in the interest of narrative poe and finn still crash on tatooine but finn manages to pull poe out of the crash. (finn still gets the jacket at some point because i say so) poe is too injured to fly so they seek out help and and meet ben solo who saves them from pirates or something idk. (but neither know who the other is)

finn and poe convince ben solo to be their pilot still thinking hes a random smuggler named kylo. they get along very well, especially finn and ben. rey by this point is tracking their whereabouts

they end up on that lightsaber planet and ben gets the weird darth vader nightmare and freaks out, (hes afraid of being evil or something idk) poe is getting suspicious now also finn feels the force and takes up the lightsaber. rey comes and finn trys to hold her off. finn get hurt and drops lightsaber. ben is forced to take it up and his identity is revealed as rebel reeforcements led by han and leia arrive and they see him fighting. rey and ben have a weird charged moment (yes i guess i am still making reylo a thing but its reyben now and its woke so shh) and in a dramatic desperate effort he manages to knock her lightsaber away with the force. poe crawls into a plane at somepoint and blows up reys ship. the rebels destroy the stormtroopers but rey captures finn and escapes in a stolen ship.

ben has a oh-shit-i-said-id-never-use-the-force-again related existential crisis which makes him freak out and leaves. a distraught finn-less poe calls him a coward. poe picks up the discarded lightsaber and the jackettm and sadly packs them up. leia tells him about the starkiller and poe volunteers to go on the starkiller and save finn. han and leia have a sweet moment and han decides to go with poe on the suicide mission, chewie goes too.(chewie arrived at somepoint i guess)

mid hostage situation finn blocks reys force attempt and shes shook up. he sees something in her (finn is a beautiful sweetheart) and he trys to appeal to her. she force chokes him and books it out of there. but it is clear she fears him a little. he escapes with mind tricks and runs into han poe and chewie on the deck. finnpoe moment fr. poe gives him his jacket back in order to get the keep it it looks good on you line.

meanwhile ben is back on his ship(i guess its the falcon?) and he thinks about finn and his mom and luke or something.. a dream maybe?? idk something emotional and motivational for his arc. and he goes to a box under the floor in his ship and pulls out a green lightsaber. he turns the ship around.

on the ship poe finn han and chewie are planting the bombs and escaping when they get stopped by stormtroopers ordered by rey. poe is about to be shot by a big droid thing when it is cut in half by ben wow big reveal hes here oooo ah. rey is shot in the shoulder by chewie and angrily orders more stormtroopers. they cant take them all. han sacrifices himself by blowing up the bridge. he tells finn and poe to find luke in the mandolorian colony ben is distraught him and han have an emotional goodbye he tells him to tell leia he’s sorry and that he loves him and he proud of him then he makes chewy get ben out of there and he blows himself up. leia senses it v sad rip man but he had to die to intensify plot drama

rey chases them onto the ice planet and another weird charged moment. mind link established??? this time ben is too angry and grieving though so its not a good match and she wounds him real bad all over hes v scarred now. poe shoots at rey and throws lightsaber at finn. he gets ben onto the ship and finn and rey have the big force awakens show down. finn uses the force v powerful all that jazz the good guys get away. on the ship finn mentions how he felt a connection with rey to poe and claims he sees good in her

movie ends with meeting luke on mandolore. ben is very traumatised wont really speak to finn or poe and avoiding luke. finn returns lukes lightsaber and rey has doubts movie over. movies ends with ominous rey ben mind link

final notes (on first movie and overarching rewrite plans)

finn

finn is the protagonist of this movie so it would be much more character heavy on him them the original. more in depth on his stormtrooper trauma, how he always chooses the people he loves over the cause and his reluctance to join the rebellion. his friendship with poe and the han/leia parallel’s especially. relationships with han and ben important for his character exposition and he plays a key role in supporting both rey and bens character progression. possesses the strong sense of mercy and kindness at the heart of the star wars franchise.

rey

rey is raised in the first empire and does not know anything different. when she meets finn who was able to rebel and escape from the same system she is trapped in she becomes plagued by doubts and projects all of her hatred and resentment onto finn to compensate, but it is clear she fears him. to escape from her doubts she fixates on finding and capturing ben solo imagining him to be a frightening and terrible adversary. however when she meets him they see eachothers minds, and she sees how plagued by doubt and fear he is, how he runs from everything and he sees her too. they connect and develop a strange mutual fascination/understanding. this is put askew by finns appearance at the end of the movie in defence of ben. reys fear of finn increases when she sees the true extent of his power. she fears and hates equally finns strength of character and easy goodness and by extension hates ben for his alliance with finn. she blames finn for “taking” ben from her.

ben solo

kylo ren is a disgusting blight on the star wars names so ben solo is being completely reclaimed by me into a different character because i fucking hate that stupid pretentious eboy. instead ben solo is an incredibly han solo coded character with a heart of gold and deep love and loyalty to his friends and family. his main weakness as a character in this rewrite is his fear and lack of self belief. ben is terrified of being a jedi and of his own power. he fears his own nature and was so afraid he would become his grandfather that he ran from the jedi altogether. ben solo is a runner that wont face his problems, he runs from the jedi and from his parents to avoid failing or becoming something terrible. finn and ben recognise the need to run in eachother (although important distinction finn runs because he doesn’t want to fight for a cause. and ben runs because hes afraid he will be the reason the cause fails) and ultimately encourage eachother to break the cycle and stand their ground (well finn motivated ben in this movie, finns not fixed yet.) Bens arc in these movies is about learning to live with his own nature and fighting for what he believes in despite his fear. also dealing with mommy issues (ben is kind of jealous of poe and leias relationship the son she wanted or something blah blah blah etc) and being a malewife to his murder girlfriend. his job is kind of to support and fight with finn and later rey and help them save the world

finnpoe (will be a gay couple)

their friendship will be front and centre in these movies because they represent duty vs personal loyalty. poe puts the cause above all else and values his own life and personal relationships little. finn on the other hand is disillusioned with establishment cause of stormtrooper trauma and wants to protect himself and others from it. poe is the first person that finn truly bonds with and loves. he puts poe above everything, including being a jedi and the rebellion. this leads to a lot of fighting and discord between finn and poe as finn doesn’t understand how important the rebellion is to poe and poe doesnt get why finn is trying to protect him from it. ultimately though poe teaches finn faith and belief and finn teaches poe to accept love and value himself. (also many hanleia parallels) the two of them are the harbingers of a new age. poe as future leader of the new republic and finn as the jedi messiah or whatever. in terms of romance, im thinking slowburn. baity first movie, kiss at the end of the second and established relationship by the halfway mark of the third.

also when rey eventually joins the light in the beginning she refuses to talk to ben (cause of romantic drama i havent thought of yet but centres around some sort or betrayal in the second movie) or finn (because hes her narrative foil and slow burn best friend forever) so her first friend is poe and she kind of follows him around in her first few months before she eventually bonds with finn 4eva. her poe shadowing has lots of cute friend moments where they fly together and he tries to talk her down about finn and the ben drama but also more importantly it foreshadows her leadership ability and tactical mind as she gives him advice and aids him with the rebellion behind the scenes (also leads to leia taking rey under her wing probably because poe is her surrogate son and mirror) which will eventually lead to her and poe leading the republic together because in my mind rey is a jedi but actively a member of republic government because ben can’t do politics and finn won’t but shes great at it so she’d be a perfect jedi liason and vice president to poe. meanwhile finn and ben lead the jedi. finn as a knight travelling across the galaxy and ben as a teacher. (luke is happy in retirement rn on mandalore but leia is still probably an advisor in the republic because retirement is definitely not for her) and everyone is happy the end. force ghost han solo is clapping.

[peawinkls]

why jfabe is NOT!!!! boring and lifeless and proving that wrong, an informational thread discussing their relationship and dynamic, because honestly im getting tired of ppl saying their boring

contains s3 spoilers!

The relationship between JFK and abe from Clone High is something alot of people within the community discussed, especially before s3, being talked about more after s2's finale. Many speculated that the two would remain friends or even become more than that.

Now with season 3 out, we have a lot more things to work out with, specifically episode 3. It's something a lot of people are too afraid to admit, but jfabe/abefk would make the show a lot more interesting, rather than its repeatable joanabe plotline.

So, I'm here to talk about the inner workings of this pair, why their so interesting, and why they work out so much, whether platonic or not. If ur not a fan of jfabe/abefk, or heavily dislike the ship, I'd recommend turning away from this post.

Introduction, the who, the when, the why, the how...and their differences n similarities

So, we all know these two characters. JFK the beloved, Abe the hated. Something that many people picked out of the 2020 clone high fandom. But what if i told you that the beloved and the hated were truly meant to be together from the start?

What we already know is that they are the complete opposite of each other in many ways. JFK is meant to be a parody on 90s jocks from highschool movies and tv shows. Abe is the weak nerd who desperately wants to be cool.

JFK is buff and shorter, Abe is tall and lanky. JFK is a douchebag, Abe is the nicer guy. The list goes on and on. And they even have stuff in common, such as the fear of abandonment and the fear of ruining things.

But one difference i can note is that Abe is way more naive than JFK, JFK is portrayed as empty-headed, but not empty-headed enough to not realize whats going on. Of course, despite the differences, both characters make a really good team.

And this was even evident in s2 ep10, aka the finale, where they both realize that they make a great "duo of bros who'll remain friends for the rest of their lives". Jfabe shippers were FEEDING on this shit back then you have no idea

So with this stuff out of the way, it's time to talk about my favorite episode out of season 3.

Bible Humpers: A Much Needed Praycation

This episode revolves around JFK getting tired of having meaningless sex with girls and partying hard, and decides to seek out a new life when he and Abe discovers the prayer pals club, hosted by Lady Godiva. And at first, Abe is happy to see that JFK is taking on new opportunities.

"Where the slut goes, the wing slut follows."

But eventually, JFK starts straying away from Abe and his friendship, to the point of even FORGETTING about the broniversary that Abe had planned for the both of them (he literally baked a giant cake for him, look at me and tell me thats straight cmon now).

Seeing how Abe had already lost Joan and Gandhi, he didn't wanna lose JFK either, and does everything he can to make him happy and thats so clear. And even at the end of the episode, it's revealed that Abe even respected his choice on ultimately choosing celibacy.

He really does care a bunch for JFK, liking him for who he truly was (compared to JFK's other dates) and respecting his choices. And despite choosing celibacy over Abe, the two still remain close, which really tells you how great their bond is.

So something HAS definitely changed throughout the years, from them hating each others guts to potentially becoming clone highs next couple...which didn't happen, and I'm still petty about it i will admit.

But even if they didn't become canon at the end, you could really tell that some people who worked on this episode wanted them to be a thing, and that's a good enough sign for me that they could hopefully become canon in the next season if we ever get one (still petty though).

Let's circle back to season 1 again. I'm not making a jfabe thread without mentioning Litter Kills: Literally, which is another episode that jfabe shippers fed on. In this episode, JFK's close friend Ponce dies, and he's left to grieve over him.

And in this episode, we see a side of JFK that we never saw before. He starts wondering why the hell he's feeling all of these emotions, because he's a Kennedy, and he's not used to them. But Abe helps him realize that emotions like this are normal.

And even if the two hated each other, Abe apologized to him in the end and finally realized his mistakes. It seemed like Abe disliked him, yet he cares about him. Abe never knew what if felt like, because he hasn't lost a friend close to him.

So he starts berating Cleo for comforting JFK and was even aggressive towards JFK as well, believing that he was only doing all of this just to take Cleo away from him. That was all because he NEVER knew what it was like. But he finally understood.

He was sorry, but he felt like he couldn't do much to help because he didn't experience the same thing. So he just hugged JFK and held him...for a really long time.

But that was just enough for JFK, all he needed was comfort, and Abe chose to do that. So even at the episode, he couldn't help but ask JFK if he was alright. And by the next episode, JFK was already feeling better. All it takes is someone to tell you that its gonna be okay.

So what I'm trying to say is despite their own anxieties, flaws, characteristics, whatever, their PERFECT for each other. I don't like how people label them as "boring", when their so much more deeper than that.

Jfabe/AbeFK is one of my comfort ships for this exact reason. Their lore, dynamic and relationship goes beyond that, i don't ship them just because i think their cute, but because their interesting, and it may seem like im going insane over a white boy ship, but i truly, truly, from the bottom of my heart, love this ship to pieces, and hopefully people can see that through me. Thank you, clone high.

[just-some-random-blogger]

Hello there 🙋🏻‍♀️! I am a woman in desperate need of fresh Daemon fics, for his tags are running dry ♨️

Maybe something about her being insecure for being younger and inexperienced, him getting jealous of a guard's attention on her, a wedding night piece, I don't know, let your imagination run wild 🃏

Thanks in advance!

Why Do We Sleep Where We Want To Hide

Daemon Targaryen x Reader

Summary: He was the thorns around your heart, your lover, who made your heart bleed. They say love is blind because of those like you, who selflessly did anything for your selfish lover. Mayhap tis fitting love will be your doom.

Word Count: 2k+

Warnings: fem!reader, undertones of suicidal ideation, Sleeping Beauty AU, casually toxic!daemon, angst, typos, etc.

A/N: Cause im so bad at titles, i just used a line in an all time low song 'monster' (which i suggest you listen to) because besides the sleeping beauty-esque plotline, the song also inspired me. I hope you like it nyctophilic0vitnir <3 <3 Tagging: @pinksirensong @aralezinspace @deniixlovezelda @targaryenmoony

"You're to be married?" I shuddered, breath hitching, lips trembling.

Daemon, who looked up at me as I shot up from my bed where we were sat on, does not even show me a glint of remorse, "it is not out of mine own want to be married to that bronze bitch."

"Then what of me?!," I shake my head, feeling hot tears streak my face, "what of us?!" I heave, "you do not even care about what-"

"Well, I'm here, aren't I?!" he cuts, raising his voice, "telling you of what will become of me!" he narrows his eyes, "does that not count for something?!"

I scoff, feeling my chest tighten as my fists do. I mutter softly, as if in disbelief, "you care only for yourself, Daemon."

Like a theatre play being acted out before my eyes, I recall all of my fondest memories with him. How we met as children and bonded over our joint agenda to steal desserts from the banquet table, how he unabashedly played with me and my dolls, though his brother made fun of him, how he would braid flowers into my hair, how he would return from his travels each time with a souvenir for me, how he held my hand, how he played with my locks, how he kissed me, how he made me moan out his name in ecstasy.

He was my Daemon, my beloved prince, not a hard, miscreant the court makes him out to be.

And yet in this moment, it was pinching me in the gut. The whispers and the warnings I gave no attentions to were all darkening my memories of him.

Perhaps in fact he had been lost to me for long, and I had only been fooling myself otherwise.

He stands before me, calling out my name.

I recoil when he reaches out to me. I mumble, "if it wasn't so, you'd fight for me."

"You want me to go against my brother?" he scoffs out a dry chuckle.

The sight of his incredulous face rips at my heart. My jaw slacks as my lips pull upward, "you've done so for less."

I shake my head where he clenches his jaw.

"Tell him about us," I urge, but mutter as though it was a horrible crime, our love, "tell him, then ask my father for my hand."

His nostrils flare. He turns away, "your father would never give you to me."

I growl, shoving him away, "and you don't even want to try!?"

Daemon looks at me, shocked by my sudden aggression.

I shove him again, harder, "you cannot even agree that you care for me! And now you scorn even the notion of asking for my hand."

He calls out my name. I all but give him time to poison me with his meaningless harks. My hand that meets his cheek is enough to silence him. I shove him away one last time before storming past him, "get out."

I head to my chamber doors as he calls out my name tightly.

He says, "I did not come here to argue."

"I do not understand why you came here at all," I snip, opening the door for him. I turn, feeling my throat tighten and my eyes water at the looks of him, "get out, Daemon."

He licks his lips in annoyance, shifting on his leg as he calls my name again. He places his hands on his hips, "your childish behavior is beginning to annoy me."

I laugh, motioning to the door, "then leave!"

He huffs, "you don't think I will?!"

"I WANT YOU TO!"

"THEN I'LL FUCKING LEAVE, CUNT!"

And so he did. He stormed out and ripped the door from my grip, banging it closed on his way out.

There was an inexplicable relief when he left, relief that I got my point across, that I did not allow myself to be folly under his duress. But of course, there was a bitter tinge at the center of it all, for yes, he was this conceited man playing me, yet I did not really believe it. I still wanted to think he was mine, my sweet lover.

So seeing him in the courts, smiling at ladies, brushing the back of his hand against their necks was a repulsive sight. Watching him drink with soldiers, talking about hunting and war like it was the most exciting thing in the world was absolute ridicule. And now, beholding him win in tourneys with favors from other women was most heart-piercing.

"Daughter!" my father mutters sharply as he nudges me back into reality.

"Yes, father?" I say under my breath, rather ditzy as I turn to my left.

"Lord Westerling has asked for your favor," my mother to my right responds quickly, pulling her lips in a forced smile.

I turn front, finding the man clad in armor, holding his lance out to me. I pull a smile, grabbing a wreath, throwing it out to him, "may the Warrior grant you victory."

"Thank you, my lady," he nods, "mayhap, if I win, you will allow me a moment of your time."

I nod, without much thought.

I idlily watch as the man goes to his place and readies for the match. I only turn to his opponent when I hear the burst of High Valyrian along with the huffs of a restless steed.

When the word is given, all at once, the two ride towards each other and the Westerling fellow shoots off his horse, falling to the ground, a swift conclusion to the match. That was, until his opponent, with his avidly flashy headpiece, jumps off his horse and marches toward the felled man, as if the emissary of The Stanger herself.

I shoot up from my seat, turning to my parents, "I will relieve myself."

I do not wait for their response as I walk off, hearing the screams of a man being butchered.

Truly, it was a shock that I was caught by a bloody handed man on my way off to the privy.

I gasp when I turn back, feeling my skin crawl at the fresh stain on my sleeve and the sight of the prince, removing the helm off his head, "I nigh killed your man."

"Am I supposed to applaud you, prince?"

"Why are you making this so difficult?!" Daemon seethes, hurling his metal headpiece to the ground.

I recoil at his show of violence, feeling tears threaten to spill from my eyes, "tis I that makes things difficult?" I scoff, "your depravity knows no bounds."

"It is your haughtiness that burns us both!" he bursts.

"MY HAUGHTINE-"

I cut myself off when Daemon reaches out to for my cheeks, hands covered in grime and blood, leaning in to kiss me. I am delivered when I dodge his assault and manage to shove him away. I heave, kicking his shin, groaning at the pain in my toe that comes after.

"DO NOT TOUCH ME, MONSTER!"

He calls out my name.

"Even now," I call, "you do all you can to disgrace me!"

"You think so little of me?"

"YES!" I step forward, "because you think even littler of me!"

"That is not true and you know it."

I turn away, ready to leave him. He calls out my name angrily.

I only stop in my thundering exit when I hear him say, "if you leave me now, I will never come to you again!"

I clench my jaw tightly, "good," then continue to walk away.

For once, he is true to his words.

It is laughable, that in stubborn pettiness and spite, he is capable of doing exactly as he says he would. Yet in the warmth of our love, all the musings of his promises to me were left in hell.

He called out to me with such desperation, but now, I am nothing, no one to him. In court events, he does not even regard me, he does not even grant me the courtesy of treating me like a stranger, and merely ignores my presence altogether.

I wish so badly I could pretend to have the heart to care for the men who could finally flocked to me, now that the prince was no longer my shadow. I wish so badly I could muster even the most counterfeit of smiles, to throw back even a speck of disrespect Daemon had been throwing at me constantly.

But I was not as cold as he, and I could not even smile amongst the ladies I could have called my friends, had I cultivated more time with them, rather than the Targaryen I wasted my youth on.

When my family received invitation to his wedding, that was when I decided enough was enough.

"It's you," she calls as I enter the small, dingy room I was directed to by the woman downstairs, "the gods' wills are surely planned and timed."

I push away the curtain separating the shaman and I, brows knitting deeper at the next words she says, "I heard whispers in my dreams that I would meet a child of the Warrior and the Maiden today, lovers that cannot be."

I freeze at her words.

"Come child," she beckons, "if you want what he wanted of me, I think there need not be a spell cast for you both."

"What are you talking about?" I shake my head rapidly.

"Your lover," she whispers, "of alabaster hair and mighty wealth," she motions to the pouches of gold before her.

Daemon was here? "What did he ask of you?"

"A binding spell," she says, "it is meant to bring doom to those not he who would fall in love with you find a miserable death."

I whine, "and have you cast it?!"

"You arrived before I could finish," she says, tilting her head, "but I must say, even if I do not properly end the incantation, remnants of it would still come to pass."

"Then please undo it," I say, falling to my knees in front of the woman. I drop my satchel before her feet, heavy with all the coin I could carry.

The sound of my object catches her attentions, I suppose as well the sound of strangled breathing.

She sighs, leaning towards me, "it is nary possible to undo what has been done," she sighs, "but I can transform it to something else," she reaches out for my cheek, wiping my tear away, "what is it that you want from me, my dear?"

"I..." I shudder, feeling a shiver run down my spine. What do I want?"

"I want him," I weakly admit, "I want him to love me," I sigh, "I want him so badly. I want him to love me even though did not ask for us to be together with your magic," I chew my lip roughly, "and for that I want you to take this from me."

I look up to her. She wholly pitied me. How pathetic of myself.

"You want me to destroy the love you feel for him?"

I clench my jaw, nodding once.

She sighs, "even magic is not immune to the power of love."

"Then what can you do?!" I desperately reach out to her, "please."

"I can make him come to you."

I close my mouth. I do no think I want him to.

"It is not as simple as it sounds though, child," she explains, "I would be putting you into a deep sleep, one that would make all around you concerned for your wellbeing, him, hopefully, especially. The only thing that will awaken you is a sentiment to your lover's love."

I chuckle dryly, "he would not go to me even if his life depended on it."

"I am aghast to say that there is no other way to find out than by trying, milady," she offers, "but again, I must warn you. It is truly only he that can save you."

I knit my brows, "so... I will die if I do not wake up?"

She presses her lips, nodding slowly.

"Do it then."

"Are you cert-"

"I am the most certain I have been in a while."

And so I watched her finish her spell in front of me. She bid me farewell with a kiss on the forehead.

Later than night, when I returned, I bathed, dressed myself, and kissed both my parents goodnight the way the woman did with me.

It took a week, and visits from a dozen different maesters for the news to finally reach the king. And when it reached Viserys, it took him three days to debate whether or not he should tell his little brother. When he did, all hell broke lose.

Daemon nearly destroyed the palace in his anger, in the betrayal of only knowing the information now.

And yet, in all his ire, he did not come still. He instead moped, and rioted, and wasted away in taverns, in brothels, until his feet took him to the shrine of the Seven, praying to whomever would listen, to save his love, begging on his knees like he never did, never have, never will, ever again.

Then finally, finally he caved. He could not bear the voices in his head that were murmuring the worst.

Daemon asked to see his... his love, banging on the gates, a man at the brink, distraught, disheveled. The servants that were told to allow no one in did not know what to do. When the grief struck parents finally came, they could not turn him away upon recognizing the grief on his face.

And as Daemon went into the chambers, once blooming with shared love, now left rigid, cold, and uninviting, he took one look at the shell before him, turned away, unable to stomach the sight, unwilling to believe that this was the truth, denying this memory to stain his mind.

"It has been weeks, prince Daemon," the weeping mother says, "can you not send for someone to save my beloved girl," she turns to him, "you were once friends. You should do that much."

"We were never friends!" the prince barks, cheeks wet with tears he did not want to spill, "she was-"

And yet he still could not say it.

"Even now, you do all you can to disgrace me!"

Daemon shakes his head, turning to the floor, mumbling mostly to himself, "I will not disgrace her." He turns to the bed one last time, unable to look longer than three seconds, then to the parents, nodding his head, "I will take my leave now."

When he exits the chamber, he hears an angered man scream out profanities to him. He clenches his jaw, releasing a jagged breath, "wake up soon, my love."

[hysteriaww]

You get kai and bonnie so much together and individually everything you say fits them in canon so well it's too bad the writers really fumbled with them because when kai showed up he was a breath of fresh air and the best part about him is he's all about bonnie that was new and realistic bonkai was their last shot at getting the vampire diaries interest back up again

AH thank you so much for this lovely message, you're so sweet!! Yes, it really is such a shame the writers fumbled Bonkai bc it rly did seem like they had some great ideas there in the beginning, but the execution fell flat :( I feel like Kai was a breath of fresh air not just for us fans but also the cast & crew! U could rly feel their spark of new excitement for a dying show when kai showed up bc i think they all sensed that he was unique and different from the tired, recycled plotlines they'd had since S4.

Ian in particular seemed much more interested in his scenes when Kai was around (and much more lifeless when he wasn't) and Bonnie ofc was *given* much more interesting scenes when Kai was around, compared to prior seasons. Even Alaric & Jo, who started S6 as rick's new boring romance of the season, became relevant, layered and interesting bc of their links to Kai. Like rick loved to play the hero & act like damon was morally beneath him in S6 but his need to protect Jo from Kai brought out a selfish streak that made him go behind Jo & her fam's back to make shady deals w Damon & Kai as long as it kept Jo safe! Even Jo was revealed to be quite crafty considering her backstory of how she tricked & betrayed Kai in 1994, which made her much more interesting than her early role as rick's bland gf.

Even Liv & Luke were (im sorry) SO BORING in S5 but 1000x more interesting in S6 once their story got linked to Kai. His existence single-handedly linked so many disjointed characters & plotlines from previous seasons (like why'd they even bring Rick back after dying in S3? His relationship w Jo (and by extension, Kai) was the only thing that made him relevant for the rest of the goddamn show)! Even the Heretics were introduced to the show through KAI & the gemini/siphoner lore and fully lost steam as soon as Kai wasn't there to make 'em interesting!

As for Kai's links to Bonnie, ya i agree she rly was their last chance to make things interesting bc they'd already given Elena & Caroline "dark" romances that fans were too attached to to accept anything else (see: Delena being forced to stay together; Steroline forever being overshadowed in most fans' minds by Klaroline) so giving Elena & Caroline new pairings would've disappointed fans, whereas Bonnie was a blank slate they could've gone WILD with bc none of her canon pairings had strongly attached fans... yet they gave Elena & Caroline new romances anyway and scrapped Bon's romance with Kai :)))

That is what felt malicious. In S6 alone, they gave Elena who ALREADY HAD DAMON the new guy Liam, then gave Caroline the same guy Liam, Enzo (briefly) AND Stefan, whereas Bon *almost* got Kai & *fully* lost Jeremy in S6. ??? Any writer who paid half as much attention to her fans as Plague did (considering how much ott fan-service she wrote into tvd & how many twitter fights she got into w fans whose ships she disapproved of) HAD to have known her fans wouldn't accept Caroline/Enzo, Care/Stef, Care/Liam or Elena/Liam as much as they loved Care/Klaus & Elena/Damon. Yet she did it anyway bc she preferred LOSING FANS to giving Bonnie someone interesting!

She even planned Kai to be Bon's love interest in S6 bc she thought he wouldn't be popular w fans & instantly torpedoed that once she noticed fans' love for him bc, as I said before, Plague PAID ATTENTION to her fans' reactions. So fans having lukewarm feelings about Steroline was enough to get 'em married, but fans LIKING Kai was enough to get Bonkai axed. It's a common joke that Plague saw Caroline as her self-insert (neurotic, hyper-organized blonde control-freak) which is why she dated more men than even Elena. But I think a large chunk of tvd's white teen girl fans saw Care as a self-insert too (bc w each subsequent season, Caroline was increasingly written & designed that way, which is why fans turned on tvd's original self-insert, Elena, & worshipped Care instead).

Her "im never the one, im not perfect like elena" insecurities made her a blank canvas for (white) girls to see themselves in, which is why she wins Miss Mystic Falls, why she's a privileged Founding Fam member, why she gets to dress fancy & go to Mikaelson balls that have nothing to do w her, why she gets ALL the men, why she becomes the 1st vampire to be pregnant, why she gets to marry Stefan (then instantly lose him so she can go kiss Klaus in the spin-off), why she gets to be tvd's last vampire standing, why she repeatedly gets to have her cake and eat it too. By presenting Elena as "perfect/ideal" & Caroline as an "underdog," fans naturally sympathized more with Care's "struggle" (even tho she repeatedly got EVERYTHING!) Based on this, Plague refused to let ppl like Klaus date Bonnie (which would've made sense) but shoved him w Caroline (which didn't make narrative sense) bc that gave her & white fans the chance to see themselves in Care & feel like THEY were dating Klaus.

(Btw I wanna add that I actually do like & enjoy Caroline! This is a critique of the shadiness that went into *writing* Caroline, not a critique of Caroline herself)

Similarly, Kai was allowed to want Bonnie as long as fans didn't like him, but once he got popular, Plague killed Bonkai bc she believed that she & her (white) fans wouldn't be able to see themselves in Bonnie and feel like THEY were the ones dating Kai. But Kai was not Klaus, Stefan, Damon, Enzo or Kol. His character was CONCEIVED w Bonnie in mind to the point that erasing his obsession w her would make him not even feel like KAI anymore. And that wouldn't work bc fans wanted gucci kai, not walmart kai. Also, his general personality quirks were just not the type that would vibe w Caroline. Chris Wood said it himself, "Kai likes to be the one who talks, he doesn't like to listen, so I think Caroline might make him wanna snap her neck & move on" bc Caroline ALSO likes to talk. So writing him w Care would change Kai too much & writing him w Elena was not an option bc Delena was set in stone & Nina was leaving. So, how'd plague have her cake & eat it too? She refused to let Bon have Kai, and bc there was no other white girl who made sense for him, she kept Kai eternally single so white fans could eternally imagine themselves w him.

And uk what's the worst part? I don't believe all white fans would've necessarily struggled to see themselves in Bonnie if she'd dated Kai. I think Bonnie being the ACTUAL underdog struggler of the show made her very relatable to people, regardless of what your race is (esp bc tvd rarely addressed her race or centered any plotlines on it). I think Plague's own subconscious biases just made it impossible for her to fathom seeing herself in a PoC character, which is why she wrongly assumed all her majority white fans worked the same way & letting Bonkai happen would've disappointed them & made them stop watching. (But that being said, even if it was just a "business decision" to her... isn't it funny how disappointing masses of white klaroline fans didn't stop her from tossing Care at stef, enzo, whoever she wanted, but ONLY stopped her when it came to Bonnie's ships (bc she was looking for excuses to scrap 'em anyway)? Oh plagueee ur biases are showing, girlieee)

[runningfrom2am]

hiii bestieee! I wasn't planning to send you a request this quick but I HAD to get this idea across!

A drew fic based on 'lost in japan' by shawn mendes! (Yes, a song fic request 🤭)

PLOTLINE IDEA: so the reader is far away from drew, and one night, impulsively, drew gets on a flight and comes to the reader because he was missing the reader a little too much than usual

LYRICS TO INSPIRE YOU:

All i'd take is one flight, we'd be in the same time zone

Do you got plans tonight, I'm a couple hundred miles from Japan and I, I was thinking I could fly to your hotel tonight, cause I can't get you off my mind

Do I gotta convince you, that you shouldn't fall asleep, it will only been a couple hours, I'm about to leave

BECAUSE COME ON THIS IS SOMETHING DREW WOULD DEFINITELY DO

anyways please please take as much time as you need! I already know the fic will be SO GOOD!! love youuu <3

AHHH FINALLY HERE IT IS!! im so obsessed you have no idea, thank you SO much for requesting this one i love it!! i hope it’s everything you imagined!!

lost in japan (d.s)

you're getting ready for bed in your small apartment, which for you, meant going back and forth between cleaning, working on lesson plans, and watching TV for hours on a friday night since you didn't have to be up early the next morning. typically, you'd be up quite late after a long week of teaching english to japanese students every day.

you love your job, truly, teaching and travel were your passion, and this opportunity has been amazing- but that didn't necessarily mean you couldn't get a little burnt out. you're homesick, more than anything. you miss your family and friends back home in north carolina, not to mention the beaches, and the sort of small town vibe that was nowhere to be found in tokyo.

you're just finishing up doing some dishes when your phone rings, and you're quick to dry off your hands and pick it up, furrowing your brow in confusion at the contact that's popped up. drew was busy, he was always busy, but you had been missing him, too. "hey, drew." you answer with a smile, quickly turning down the volume on the tv.

"hey! y/n, how's it going?" he asks, unbeknownst to you, chewing on his nails as he sits in an airport in another country.

"i'm well..." you answer, tilting your head a little bit. you're happy to hear his voice, of course, but still surprised. "what about you? how's filming?"

"it's good! i've got a bit of a break for the next couple weeks." drew answers, bouncing his leg and looking around the crowded room.

"that's good! you deserve a break." you smile, sitting down on your bed now. "what did i do to warrant the pleasure of a call?"

you talk to drew often, of course, being good friends since you met in university. you both had overlapping english classes and instantly clicked, and were luckily able to maintain contact even after he "made it big". he insists he would never forget about you, despite you joking about it regularly.

"well i was thinking, since i've got this break, maybe i could come visit you for a week or so." drew answers nervously. "i did want to surprise you, but i realize i don't know where exactly you live and tokyo is a big city so you might be hard to find." he rambles on a bit, waiting anxiously on your response.

"oh! uhm.." you reply, completely caught off-guard by his suggestion. you'd love to have him, but as you look around your small studio apartment, you're not sure there's room for company. not to mention, it would be a little embarrassing. you try to stay on top of cleaning, but it's hard to organize with little space.

"it's okay if you don't want me to come! god, i- i'm sorry, y/n, i shouldn't have thrown this on you so suddenly-" drew quickly backtracks, shaking his head at his own stupidity. of course he should have given you a bigger heads up.

"no! of course i want you to come!" you're quick to ease his mind as you sit up in excitement. "my apartment is just a little... tight, that's all. i was just thinking of where you would sleep. but of course, you're always welcome. when were you thinking of coming? i just need to organize a bit."

"well..." drew chuckles a little nervously. "do you have any plans tonight? i'm kind of already at the airport. i just couldn't get you off my mind today, decided to just go for it and hope you're okay with a guest."

you freeze up a little, in a bit of shock as you blush. he was thinking about you?  "oh! uh, yeah! i can meet you at the airport. what time do you leave? what time do you land?" you ask, standing up and looking towards your closet. you're getting ahead of yourself- it will obviously be a long flight, but now you're nervous. you've always had a bit of a crush on him, which was kind of an understatement.

"you don't have to do that." drew instantly protests. "i think i'll land around two-thirty tokyo time. i'll just take a cab, if you can send me your address and be up to let me in?"

"nonsense, drew, of course i'll come meet you." you giggle, already shuffling through your clothes as you look at your alarm clock. it's only eight, so you can try and get some sleep before you have to go. "i've got no classes until monday, i'll have a quick nap and meet you at the airport at two-thirty."

"sweet! that'd be awesome." drew replies, smiling to himself. he's so excited to see you, more and more recently he's been thinking about you. truly missing you, and he figured he'd take a leap of faith and come visit- especially since he knows you've been lonely. maybe, he thinks, he'll even be able to tell you how he feels. how he's always felt, and he'll be leaving japan finally able to call you his girlfriend. "so, uh, i guess i'll see you tonight, then?"

"see you tonight." you agree, absolutely giddy with excitement. "have a safe flight!" you quickly add in, almost forgetting your manners with the flood of adrenaline in your system.

"thanks, y/n/n. see you in a bit!" drew smiles, hanging up. perfect timing, too, they're about to start boarding.

you stand at the almost empty arrivals area of the tokyo international airport, anxiously watching the escalator and waiting to see drew after months apart. you had put on some of your nicest casual clothes, not wanting to look overdressed, but not like a mess either. after all, you had six hours to plan the outfit, considering you couldn't sleep for even a minute.

you look down at your phone again, checking the time for what must be the hundredth time since you left the apartment. two fifty-three. his flight landed on time, according to the screen on the wall, so he should be walking out any minute. you get a pit in your stomach, you're so nervous.

drew has the same feeling as he tries to blindly follow the other people who got off his flight, unable to read any of the signs directing passengers to arrivals and baggage claim. it's a long walk in a big airport, but it feels a million times longer since he's anxious to get to you. he comes to the escalator, seeing a few people waiting at the bottom, his eyes scanning for you, who he quickly finds. he feels his heart rate increase and he smiles, adjusting his bag in his grip, already feeling his hands getting sweaty. that's when you notice him too.

you smile wide, giving him an excited wave. you're practically shaking with excitement, or nerves, but you're just happy to not be so alone anymore. he gets to the bottom and gets off, quickly making his way over to you, you cringe a little when he drops his bags and opens his arms for a hug, you really wanted to hug him, of course, but culturally you know you'll get stares and disapproving looks. "hey!" you grin, immediately reaching out and blocking his arms. he furrows his brows in confusion, his eyes flashing with disappointment.

"sorry." you chuckle, awkwardly moving his arms back to his sides. "it's kind of rude to hug in public." you explain, looking around and hoping no one is offended. luckily only a couple people noticed, and they avert their eyes when they see you correcting him.

"oh, uh, i didn't know that. sorry.." drew blushes, avoiding your eyes for a moment.

"you're fine." you insist, trying to cheer him up. "i missed you, i'm glad you're here."

"i missed you too." drew replies, smile returning to his cheeks now. he doubts it will leave the whole time he's here.

"uh, do you have bags?" you ask him, gesturing toward the baggage carousel.

"nope, carry on only." he says proudly, lifting his bag off the ground and throwing his backpack over his shoulder.

"oh, perfect! then we get first dibs on a cab. follow me." you smile, turning and walking towards the exit. god, you hate making small talk, but the silence in the quiet airport is killing you.

"so, how's work?" drew asks, trying to hide the nervousness in his tone. he hasn't seen you in person in close to a year, and even then you were both so busy you had to squeeze in coffee on a lunch break when he happened to be filming close to home.

"it's good! i really love it." you nod, glancing back at him as you guys step outside. "the kids are all so sweet. it's a great opportunity."

"that's awesome. it sounds like fun." drew nods, looking around to try and get a bearing on his surroundings. it's humid out, but not hot.

"it is, yeah." you say. "one sec, i think this one is free-" he watches as you wrap your sweater tighter around yourself, walking up to a cab and waving to the driver as he unlocks the doors. you turn and wave for him to join you, and he walks up and opens the door for you, letting you in first.

you say something to the driver in japanese, drew assumes you're telling him your address, and quickly after that you guys are moving.

you don't talk much on the drive, again, it's polite to stay quiet, so when you do you only whisper. it's about a half hour drive to your apartment, and you get out, looking up at the familiar building quickly before thanking the driver and paying him.

"i can pay you back, how much was it?" drew says as you fumble with your keys.

"seven-thousand yen." you answer, giggling and looking up at him as you push the door open, knowing that means absolutely nothing to him.

"uh, in usd?" drew chuckles, following you in.

"don't worry about it." you giggle and lead him up the stairs to the third floor where your room is.

"it's really small-" you pause before you open the door. "and a bit of a mess so i'm sorry, we can find you a hotel tomorrow it was just a bit short notice."

"i don't care." drew shakes his head, smiling down at you. "we just get to spend more quality time together, hey? it's fine."

"okay bigshot, suit yourself." you chuckle, shaking your head as you open the door. you both shuffle in and you try to get out of his way so he can put his stuff down, and the second he drops it on the floor his arms are around you.

you freeze for a moment before hugging him back, leaning your head on his chest. "i've been thinking about this for months.." he mutters, taking in the scent of your hair, your skin, just you.

"me too." you whisper back, gently rubbing his back.

"no, like- you don't understand." he says, pulling away only a little to look down at you. "i- shit." he chuckles, shaking his head slightly in embarrassment. "i've really missed you. i think about you all the time, the best part of my week is when i get the chance to call you."

“me too.” you repeat yourself, blushing a little as you don’t know what else to say.

“well, come on, no, you’re living your dream out here.” drew laughs, gesturing around you only to return his hand to your back.

“so are you.” you raise your eyebrow at him and he shrugs.

“yeah, well, not really. my dream isn’t complete without you.” he bites the bullet, hoping you’ll understand what he’s saying. he chews a little on his bottom lip as he locks eyes with you, scanning them to get some kind of grasp on what you were thinking, or feeling.

your cheeks burn furiously as you briefly look down, unsure really what to say. “well… me too.” you giggle, laughing at having to say the same thing again.

a small smile flickers on drew’s lips and he reaches his hand up, hesitating to place it on your cheek and gently lifting your jaw to meet his eyes again. he hears his heart beating in his chest, and so do you, as he very slowly at first leans in. his lips meet yours so gently it’s like he’s scared he’ll break you, making you smile against his lips as you kiss him back. almost so much that it makes the task at hand impossible.

“i’ve been wanting you to do that for years.” you admit, staring into his blue eyes as you pull away only about an inch.

his forehead stays pressed against yours as he smiles, his breath tickling your lips as he speaks. “that sucks, because i’ve wanted to do that for years. you should’ve said something, y/n/n.”

it’s safe to assume now that you won’t be needing the bed you made for yourself on the floor.

taglist: @bookishbabyyy @madelynie, @mutual-mendes, @slut4drudy, @winterrrnight, @totalswag, @sadfury @fullfledgedemo @rafemotherfuckingcameron

[mihai-florescu]

Putting a message i sent earlier under a read more, it has some thoughts ive expressed before tho. ES, of course

My thoughts as an EichiP... i view ! and !! as different stories in the way they're approached tbh, what i fell in love with enstars for was the character driven storytelling of one event seen through different perspectives, where you see the antagonist in one perspective become a protagonist in another story and can empathize with the entire cast like this. I fell in love with eichi's story of second chances, getting what you want and regretting your actions in the process, redemption, desperation, overcoming fate and asserting one's self into the story, saving a school in a dying industry that saved your life by giving you a dream; i consider it an arc fulfilling to the reader at the end of ! era. But we still had to continue... and it's not like we didnt get inklings of eichi's dreams of idol utopia, the idol soldier idea goes back to main story 1, but !! loses the charm of the original series through expanding the worldbuilding so much and shifting to a plot driven story that opens 10 cans of worms instead of offering resolutions. There's not really room to breathe if the stakes just keep getting higher and higher...

As for the colonisation plotline, it's been here since the beginning of ES2. The SS arc makes it obvious, but i remember even before, the talks about ES taking over from local businesses, trying to be seen as the standard, it was always the direction ensemble square as an institution would take. But the "antagonist in one story, protagonist in another" approach doesnt work anymore with such subjects. The guys responsible for this are your coworkers you share dorms with. I read the stories but cant empathize anymore, so i've been feeling disconnected from eichi for a while. I see enstars with eichi at its core but i didnt care for his center event, i read it, didnt like the ending, and overall felt off. Eichi becoming the villain of ! to attone for the war kind of loses significance if a year later he is a cartoon villain idol colonialist you can't even sympathize with anymore because of the magnitude of events. However i do think !! has done good things for some characters pushing them further or developing them in a way ! didnt. But for others...

I also have my issues with sci fi elements becoming the norm, even taken metaphorically or as hyperboles, when one of the central themes i love about enstars is humanity. Then again, i am a war era fan that relied on manipulating human desires and perceptions, and the fact that there were no monsters or gods, just humans framed as such, playing on people's fears and beliefs, it's a bit jarring to me to have them introduce AIs forming from escaped comatose brains (im minimizing the switch climax rn, i didnt even hate it as a whole, just this resolution im unhappy with)

It also feels like we've lost some of the meta aspects of the writing i liked, a certain awareness of being characters in a story and there being an audience. But im still struggling to word my thoughts on this matter. I felt it present in main story 2, even if it annoyed me at parts in its obviousness ("good thing we're not protagonists, no one would want to read about us" youre right aira you are not interesting to me. And yet i'll read your story to try and empathize nevertheless. I have other thoughts on aira too, perhaps for another time). I wish we explored a bit more what it means to no longer be the central protagonist, from trickstar's perspective...and brought back the successors topic. But i havent read every ts story yet so i'd be foolish to complain before really making sure i've checked everything. To me ! ended satisfyingly with room left for elaborations and imagination, but i dont feel like !!'s ending is really ending anything at all. Not necessarily bad since it's not like the game is shutting down, but overwhelming worldbuilding wise while underwhelming character wise...

Let's see... im not sure how to end this. Just a bit of a stream of consciousness as a ! fan who still loves enstars despite my critiques. Mainly, well, no one's gonna take away the stories that already exist that i do love and impacted my life greatly. And i do think !! had some really good things too it brought, or at least stories i hold dear too. Change is scary and i don't think it's always for the best, but it's also fun to see where it goes next...

[bobbile-blog]

Arknights Lore Recap - August 2024

Sorry I'm late on this one - it ended up being way longer than I expected, and rounded out at over six thousand words. PLEASE do skip around and just read what's important to you, I know I certainly couldn't stomach reading all this in one sitting. Also, this isn't gonna include a lot of IS4 stuff, not even because it isn't important but because I haven't actually gotten most of the endings yet :(

Anyway, regardless of all that, here's your biannual Arknights lore recap! The usual disclaimers apply - while this will technically be spoilers for everything up to the current state of the Global server (Post-Here a People Sows, Pre-Lucent Arrowhead and Babel), I've done my best to avoid individual spoilers whenever possible. The idea is to summarize the game's current plotlines in a way that can get new players up to speed and refresh the memory for folks who've just lost track of all the nonsense going on at the moment. All this and more, under the cut!

Side Plots:

Okay first of all, I'm changing the way I organize things. I've realized it's somewhat silly to have the big spoilers right at the top, so the main story is now at the bottom.

In addition, to just quickly define what I consider an "active plotline", I'm including plots that have had more than one continuous event and haven't had a major resolution to its story.

Sui Siblings

Ancient Forge(?) / Who is Real / Invitation to Wine / Where Vernal Winds will Never Blow / A Death in Chunfen(?) / Here a People Sows

Nian / Dusk / Ling / Chongyue / Shu / Ji / Wang / Lava / Zou Le / Lee / Lin Yusha / Waai Fu / Basically every major Yanese government figure

Long ago, in the pre-history of Yan, the land was ruled by ancient gods called Feranmuts. In the founding myth of of the country, a leader named Yan united the disparate tribes of humans and then waged war on them. Despite the god-like powers of these Feranmuts, Yan was able to subdue them with the aid of a traitor - a young and haughty Feranmut named Sui who sought to be the only one with the powers of a god. In the "Great Hunt", all of the old Yanese Feranmuts were killed or subjugated, and then Yan turned on Sui, binding and sealing It forever. With the Feranmuts gone, the nation of Yan lived in peace and prosperity, free from their shadow forevermore.

At least, that's what was supposed to happen, but Feranmuts aren't quite so easy to contain. Over time, Sui's consciousness began to slip out of its bonds piece by piece. These fragments each wandered the world without real form until they were able to answer the question "Who am I", at which point they gained personality and ego distinct from Sui. The Yanese government isn't exactly happy about these fragments wandering around, but there isn't really a whole lot they can do about it - the Sui fragments have godlike powers, after all. They've established a secret branch of the government called the "Sui Regulator" to keep an eye on them, and have mostly left them alone.

The events featuring the Sui Siblings actually take place a few years after where we are in the main story - Zwillingstürme im Herbst takes place around the fall of 1100, while Who is Real takes place in the fall of 1101 and Here a People Sows is in the early Summer of 1102. These events follow a series of plots surrounding the revival of Sui - that is, if all of the Sui siblings gather together in one place, they will re-combine into Sui again and It will be freed from its prison. This is promoted by some factions of the government, who presumably want to take advantage of the Feranmut's power once more, as well as some of the Sui siblings - to our current knowledge, these are Wang and Ji. Most of the Yanese government opposes this for obvious reasons, and has instead taken a stance hostile to the Sui siblings. We've even run into other Feranmuts who have gotten involved with the conflict - Ya, an ancient peer of Sui, is roaming Yan seeking retribution from Sui, and wants to reform It so It may finally answer for its betrayal. Finally, a growing portion of the Sui siblings are gathering to try to figure out a way to escape their fate. The exact details of this plan aren't totally clear yet, but it seems to involve using some sort of magical proxy of Sui to grant them independence.

A last note should be given to the subject of Jie, the Sui Sibling with the domain of writing. She's been alluded to in previous events, but we only really got details in Here a People Sows, and it's implied she'll be important going forwards. Jie was a kind and benevolent figure who wanted to spread literacy and writing among the people of Yan. She was successful - she appears to have birthed the modern Yanese education system - but in doing so, she gave up herself. Around 60 years ago, she either disappeared or was murdered. Whatever the case, she appears to have disappeared from the memories of everyone but her siblings (without spoiling Here a People Sows, that's an important clue). Her disappearance seems to have affected all the siblings, but Wang most of all, and he cites her as a major reason behind his actions to reform Sui.

Seaborn Struggles

Grani and the Knight's Treasure / Under Tides / Stultifera Navis / Mizuki and Caerula Arbor

Skadi / Specter / Gladiia / Kal'tsit / Irene / Lumen / Ulpanius / Mizuki / The Last Knight / I guess we can count Ishar'mla as a character here too.

Of the many dangers facing modern Terra, none are quite as terrifying as the Seaborn. Armies can be reasoned with, superweapons can be commanded, Originium can be cleaned, but the Seaborn alone present a constantly growing and evolving threat to all life on Terra. The Seaborn are probably best described as an organized group of convergently evolved sea creatures working together under a single will, with an animalistic drive to absorb and assimilate all life into itself. It spreads and consumes across the ocean floor, becoming more powerful with each new creature it eats.

The nations of Terra are no strangers to the seaborn. Iberia used to be one of the most prosperous nations on Terra. During the nation's golden age, they quite literally spanned the continent and established colonies across Terra. Their navies spread their power across the world and made them almost unarguably the most powerful nation on Terra - but all that fell apart when the seaborn finally set their sights on Iberia in a period known as the First Great Silence. Iberia's international empire collapsed, their grand ships fell into ruin, and the people became insular and distrustful of outsiders, guided by an inquisition tasked with burning out the alien with the little fire they had left.

Besides Iberia, the Seaborn are also an enemy of the isolated underwater nation of Aegir. Aegir is much more technologically advanced than the rest of Terra, but they've also been alone against the Seaborn for decades if not centuries. While we haven't been there yet, they're apparently not doing very well. They've struggled to match the Seaborn's strength, adaptability, or unending numbers - which led them to some desperate places. In a last bid for survival, they created a small group of super-soldiers by putting Seaborn blood into a select group of Aegir people who would be able to resist its call. This elite force of soldiers struck back against the Seaborn and, in a desperate final battle, slew the "god" of the Seaborn, Ishar'mla, a single entity that commanded the collective Seaborn will.

However, as is often the case in Arknights, gods don't die all in one go. The will of Ishar'mla was preserved in the mind of one of the Abyssal hunters that killed it, a young woman named Skadi. She and the scattered remnants of the Hunters were cast ashore and eventually gathered in Rhodes Island. Now, the Abyssal hunters fight a twofold battle against the Seaborn and themselves. They must use the strength in their blood to push back the Seaborn and protect the land, but they must also keep an understanding of who they are, or else Ishar'mla will awaken and all will be lost once more.

A special addendum should be added here to explain Integrated Strategies 3, which is (kind of) canon. Ending 1, in which Mizuki meets Highmore and brings her to Rhodes Island, did actually happen. On that mission, though, they find the Stele featured in the "Wander into Wonderland" node and the furniture rewards. Through a mixture of ancient technology and Seaborn-ness, this object allows Mizuki to read the memories of the Seaborn in alternate timelines, and play those potential futures out for the Doctor. We as the Doctor have seen pieces of these futures, but they do not exist as of yet.

Angels and Apostates

Guide Ahead / Hortus de Escapismo / Zwillingstürme im Herbst

Mostima / Fiametta / Executor / Enforcer / Cecelia / Andoain / Pope Yvangelista XI / Oren / Arturia / lots more people but I think those are the important ones

The city of Laterano is something that should not exist on the face of Terra - a paradise. The city of the angelic Sankta people is peaceful, calm, and harmonious - a rare oasis set apart from the suffering of the rest of Terra. The Sankta share an innate ability called "empathy" which allows them to share their emotions with each other, allowing for a uniquely peaceful society almost alien to Terra. Laterano is a city without conflict and without pain, and yet it is still wrong.

As much as I would love to get deep into the philosophy of the Laterano plotline, the first draft of this section ended up being like a thousand words on its own and I'm not going to put you through that. To be extremely brief, the plotline centers around the exceptions that are made to the supposedly absolute Law of Laterano. The first event follows a mixed-race Sankta and Sarkaz child, who shouldn't be able to exist according to the scriptures. Sankta and Sarkaz are ancient enemies and considered to be anathema to each other, and Sarkaz are not allowed into Laterano. Her very existence raises questions about the nature of the Sankta and the faith's rules, and not everyone is eager to have these questions answered.

This is followed up by Hortus de Escapismo, which is one of the most dense and critically complex events in the game. In short, Federico Giallo, known to Rhodes Island as Operator Executor, is canonized as a Saint of Laterano and given all the authority that comes along with it. He is then sent out on a mission to a lost monastery that was stranded for the last ten years, in order to return it to Laterano. Over this time the Sankta in the monastery have built a settlement with other people of Terra in order to survive, and that includes Sarkaz - who cannot be allowed in the city of Laterano. Bringing the monastery back and helping the people there will require breaking the community and leaving the Sarkaz behind. As a Saint, it is now thrust on Federico to navigate this conflict between the doctrines of the Lateran faith and the real, practical world before him.

Moving forward, though, it looks like this storyline will become part of the next big act of the main story, particularly in its role in fighting the coming calamity. Pulling back the curtain a bit, Laterano is secretly ruled by a god-like supercomputer called The Law. This computer gives the Sankta their abilities and writes the laws that they must follow. In observing all of the disasters occurring across Terra, notably the Collapsals and the Seaborn, It predicts an even greater calamity on the horizon that It is now acting to stop. Because of this, It is canonizing a group of new Saints of Laterano, something that hasn't happened since the founding of the holy city itself. Supposedly, it's calculated that this is best chance Terra has at success - but judging by the people it's choosing, things look desperate indeed.

Colonial Kjerag

Break the Ice / The Ride to Lake Silberneherze

Silverash / Pramanix / Kjera / Cliffheart / Gnosis / Degenbrecher / Ratatos / Sicurius / Monch / Arctosz / Harold

Nestled in a valley surrounding Mount Karlan is a rare sanctuary. Kjerag, though harsh and cold, is a land that has never known Catastrophes. For all of Kjerag's history it has been protected by the hand of the goddess Kjeragandr and has thus developed in relative safety compared to the rest of Terra. However, in part because of this, Kjerag is an insular nation which comes across as more of a pre-industrial nation than the rest of Terra. They're still very much an agrarian society, and despite recent modernization projects like railroads and mining operations the country remains small and isolated.

These modernization projects are the brainchild of Enciodes Silverash, CEO of Kjerag's largest international corporation and patriarch of the Silverash clan. Enciodes grew up in Kjerag but left to pursue higher education in Victoria, and had a front-row seat to not only their modern industrial world but also to their aggressive colonial ambitions. He came to the understanding that for Kjerag to survive, it would need to become a modern nation like its neighbors, and he resolved to see this happen by any means necessary.

Not everyone agrees with him, though. Kjerag's government has traditionally been formed of the leaders of the three largest clans - the Silverashes, the Browntails, and the Paleroches. Unfortunately for Enciodes, the leaders of both the Browntails and the Paleroches are just short of hostile. Ratatos Browntail is interested in the economic benefits but trusts Enciodes about as far as she could throw him, and Arctosz Paleroche is a staunch traditionalist and trusts Enciodes significantly less than he could throw him - both totally fair opinions considering his sizeable private army and the attempted coup he did a few years back. However, after said coup, all three of these figures ceded most of their authority to the Saintess Enya Silverash, Enciodes' estranged sister and the voice of the goddess Kjeragandr. While she acknowledges that Enciodes has a point, she seeks to modernize Kjerag in unity with its people rather than in opposition to them - rather than making a modern nation, she wants to make a modern Kjerag. It's a small distinction, but an important one, and her popular support and religious authority is one of the few things that can actually keep Enciodes in check.

At the moment, Kjerag is in the process of exiting their centuries of international isolation. It's a slow process but they've made significant steps forward - the country has entered scientific collaborations with Rhine Lab and signed important trade agreements with their neighbors that will ensure the country can keep developing. They've even fought off some intimidation from the Victorian army, stating firmly that they are an equal nation and not a subordinate. Despite this, though, there's a great deal of work still to be done if Kjerag wants to step onto the world stage with its identity intact.

Contemporary Columbia

Mansfield Break / Dorothy's Vision / Come Catastrophes or Wakes of Vultures

Mountain / Robin / Domma / Astigenne / Dorothy / Jessica / Coldshot / Woodrow / Clip Cliff / Liskarm / Franka / Tila

This one isn't really a cohesive plotline per se, but we can be reasonably sure that the game is going to keep going down this road, so it's worth a mention. In the background of the Rhine Lab plotline, we've gotten lots of backstory on what life is like in Columbia. Now that that story is finished, Arknights seems interested in exploring more lower-class Columbian experiences and stories, and putting the people we've seen in the B-plots of the Rhine Lab events in the spotlight.

Life in Columbia might seem glamorous and high-tech from the top, but for most people in the country it isn't nearly as pleasant. Arknights is heavily inspired by the world of the early 20th century, and if you know anything about American history in that period, you'll know that it was kind of a terrible time. Columbia takes a lot of the worst of it, everything from loan sharks to company stores to price gouging on vital goods like medicine. Life in Columbia tends to mean being trapped in a cycle of debts, keeping you just afloat enough to keep working while maximizing the boss' bottom line. But despite all that, Columbia doggedly looks forward instead of inward, spurred onward by a myth of the frontier that promises a brighter future ahead, no matter how you get there.

This plotline has been in the shadow of the Rhine Lab storyline for a while, but has since developed into its own storyline. The roots of this story were laid in Mansfield Break, our first event in Columbia proper. The background world-building told us a fair bit about life in Columbia and especially the outsize impact corporations have on Columbian society. We wouldn't see the full picture, though, until Dorothy's Vision. The DV B-plot showed us the vicious downward spiral of infection in Columbia - Oripathy medication is both prohibitively expensive and practically ineffective, and the debt they take on usually puts them out of house and home. Without the money to keep themselves from going under or the means to change the system beating them down, most infected are forced into brutal frontier work as pioneers, treated little better than beasts of burden. Finally, Come Catastrophes or Wakes of Vultures showed a similar process happening to the people of Davistown even without any infection - the exploitative cycle works no matter who it's working on. Anything is permissible as long as it serves a larger bottom line, no matter how many people it crushes underfoot. In the future, we're likely to follow the mercenary organization Blacksteel as Columbia contracts them to support its growth, but it's hard to say more than that. We really don't know much about where this story is going, just inferences from the rest of the game's stories.

In addition to these plots, we have a few honorable mentions which don't really have enough plot to be included in the main list but I want to throw in anyway:

Slumbering Sami

The Black Forest Wills a Dream / Expeditioner's Joklumarkar / I would argue Fire within the Sand and Zwillingstürme im Herbst belong here too.

Typhon / Magellan / Santalla / Muelsyse?

Life on Terra doesn't suck enough, so you know what we need? Eldritch horrors! The Collapsals are extraterrestrial entities that we're barely able to understand, let alone fight. They appear to exert some sort of corrupting power on reality around them, and are heavily implied to come from outside our reality somehow. We don't know what they are, what they want, or what to do about them. We barely even know where they come from or how to fight them.

The good news is that for the moment the Collapsals are mostly contained. They've only shown up in very remote regions of Terra - namely in the Sami Icefields in the far north and the Foehn Hotlands in the far south - I think? I know the portal was supposedly closed during the Khaganquest but I remember seeing somewhere that they've started to show up again and I can't put a source to it. Someone back me up in the notes if you remember where that's from. Anyway, a lot of very hard work is put in by the Sami people and the Empire of Ursus to make sure that the average person on Terra doesn't even know what a Collapsal is. If you've gotten far enough to know what the Emperor's Blades are, know that we've only seen two or three throughout the main story because all the rest are up North fighting off the Collapsals. Let's kindly thank them for their service, and the fact that we're not going to have to worry about them at all. Definitely. Don't watch PV-4 just trust me.

Fangs of the Feraerus

Main Story excerpts / Il Siracusano

Texas / Lapland / Don Bernardo / Vigil / Crownslayer / Projekt Red / Lunacub I guess

The Feraerus, also known as the Beast Lords, have been hinted at with a couple of characters for a while now. They are powerful creatures similar to but distinct from the Feranmuts who look like animals from our world, instead of the new creatures Terra has in their stead. Some examples are Emperor, the High Priest from Acahualla, or Siege's lions. They are powerful creatures with inherent magic and some apparent responsibility to protect their associated creatures, though the relationship between the beast lords and the races of Terra, human or otherwise, is still unclear.

Regardless, a particular group of Beast Lords is notable for their threat - the Signori Dei Lupi. These are a pack of wolves that live in what is now Siracusa. Because they're wolves in a fictional work, they go by debunked wolf science rules, and are in a power struggle to determine the pack's alpha. Unfortunately, fighting amongst themselves isn't very effective when every member of the pack is an immortal being, so they've instead chosen to settle things by a competition. Every wolf in the pack has picked a human to serve as their champion, teaching them to hunt the others and letting them loose in a sort of battle-royale-style death game. As far as we're aware, Don Bernardo was a fang but has been replaced by Lappland, Projekt Red and Lunacub are both fangs of different wolves, and Crownslayer's mentor, killed by Red in between Chapter 6 and Il Siracusano, was not just a fang but "the first true wolf". We don't know much else about this competition, but we're definitely going back to Siracusa in the future, so this competition is only just getting started.

I don't have an alliteration for Team Rainbow :(

Originium Dust

Ash / Blitz / Frost / Tachanka

Team Rainbow isn't remotely plot-relevant, but with a sequel event coming up I thought I'd quickly recap the original event for those who couldn't read it. Team Rainbow is a special forces from our Earth, or if not something very close to it. A segment of Team Rainbow is sent on an operation to capture the rogue Russian scientist Levi Klitschko. Klitschko has, unbeknownst to everyone, been experimenting with Originium, and right before he's captured he activates a device that sends the entire bunker to Terra.

The team arrives in Sargon and is quickly drawn into a local power struggle. The local lord made a deal with Klitschko, giving him protection and resources in exchange for the scientist creating him an army of Originium-infused mutants. Team Rainbow, on the other hand, ends up helping the local infected when the lord's men come to push them around. Things go south pretty quickly, but Team Rainbow runs into a Rhodes Island squad and they're able to mount a unified assault on the Lord. They break through his mercenaries and reach Klitschko just in time to watch him sacrifice himself to unleash a massive mutant creature, which they eventually bury in the rubble of the bunker.

In the aftermath, Team Rainbow is rescued by Rhodes Island reinforcements and brought to the landship. They don't have a way to return home, but Terra can always find room for another squad of mercenaries, so they decide to make the most of things and set off to explore this new world.

Finished Plotlines:

These are mostly copy/pasted from my last post, because they haven't really changed much. Same deal as before - these plots have basically wrapped up, so I'll give as spoiler-free a review as possible. They're good plots, go back and read them, but until you can this is just a quick summary of where the world stands now that they're completed.

Fear Neither Hardship Nor Darkness

Maria Nearl / Pinus Sylvesteis / Near Light / An Obscure Wanderer

Maria Nearl / Zofia Nearl / Margret Nearl / Młynar Nearl / Dikaiopolis / All of Pinus Sylvestris / Platinum / Roy and Monica / The Doctor / Gravel / basically all the major political figures of Kazimierz

Kazimierz, and the infected living within it, lived without hope. They lived in a dark world, where an oppressive hyper-capitalist system suffocated them, leaving them not just without the means to survive but without any chance of changing the system or fighting the world around them. Pinus Sylvestris knew how to fight the Chamber of Commerce, Dikaiopolis knew how to open up paths for the infected, and Rhodes Island knew how to get medicine to people in need - but none of that could save Kazimierz, because Kazimierz lived in a world without the hope that the system could be changed. Kazimierz needed a Knight - a Knight of honor and virtue, a Knight taken directly from the pages of the storybooks, a Knight that could be the noble light that illuminates the land. They needed brilliant, blinding hope, hope that could not be hidden and could not be denied, to descend from the heavens in their hour of need. The only person who could have saved Kazimierz was Margaret Nearl.

Margaret Nearl won the 24th Major and became the Grand Knight, and has since stayed in Kazimierz to improve living conditions for the infected and push back against the General Chamber of Commerce. The Armorless Union has mostly been decapitated - the Platinum defected, the Lazurites have disappeared and taken on new identities, and the Darksteel has promised to stay away from Margaret and Rhodes Island. Finally, Pinus Sylvestris and most of the rest of the Nearls are now on the landship, working for Rhodes Island.

A New Age is Upon Us

Rhine Lab Manhua / Mansfield Break / Dorothy's Vision / Lonetrail

Silence / Saria / Ifrit / Muelsyse / Ptilopsis / Ahrens Parvis / Kristen Wright / Dorothy / Ferdinand Clooney / Ho'olheyak / Tin Man / Trevor Friston / Mark Max

6,152 meters above sea level, there exists a mysterious barrier called the Starpod. It disrupts arts, tears apart solid matter, and even warps the light that travels through it, rendering space travel or even any sort of medium-altitude flight impossible. It has not always existed, but has covered Terra for almost all recorded memory, and was a simple fact of the world - until Kristen Wright tore it open and flung a spacecraft through.

On November 21, 1099, the world of Terra fundamentally changed. It didn't change in a particularly perceptible way - everyone still got up and went about their day the same day afterwards, and you'll be hard-pressed to actually link anything that will follow to the actions of Kristen Wright. But despite that seeming insignificance, Kristen Wright has left her mark on every living being in Terra, from the magistrates of Yan to the farmers of Sargon to the seaborn crawling amidst the oceans. There is a little something that never existed before - a little fragment of possibility that comes from seeing the world behind the curtain, even if for just a moment. It's impossible to tell where that spark will go. But one thing is for sure - "if, in a century or a millennium, our descendants walk among the stars, the masses will sing her praises."

In more concrete effects, Saria is now the Control of Rhine Lab. She heads the company, and Silence now serves as a senior ethical consultant and head of a burgeoning movement for scientific ethics in Columbia - using the sudden momentum generated by the Trimounts project to push for greater oversight and consideration in the scientific world. Both her and Saria now split their time between Trimounts and Rhodes Island, and Ifrit once again has two moms to spend her time with :)

Finally, Ho'olheyak has joined Rhodes Island with the piece(?) of Trevor Friston that she captured with her arts. The Tin Man and the Maylander Society now have their eyes on Rhodes Island, but more importantly, The Doctor is coming to understand more and more about their past. They're starting to understand their identity, and like Kal'tsit has said, they may not be able to stop.

A Tune, Lingering in my Head

Lingering Echoes / Zwillingstürme im Herbst

Ebonholz / Kreide / The Witch-King / Czerny / Hibiscus / Lessing / Fremont / Hildegarde and Grimmacht

The Witch-King of Leithanien was one of the most powerful casters in Terran History, and even after his death, ripples of his presence still echo through Leithanien and beyond. The events of the Stimmverlust had two main consequences - the Güldensgesatz being weakened, and the Sarkaz Liches departing from Leithanien, as well as the longer-term effect of making Leithanien aware of the presence of the oncoming collapsal crisis.

All of these are significant in their own way - these events were extraordinary important for world-building and writing magic lore and setting up later plots, but none of that really lends itself particularly well to a brief summary, about the closest I can get is "powerful magic leaves ripples, and fundamentally changes the world around it in a way that can be difficult or impossible to undo". It's the sort of plot which can either be explained in bare bones or in extreme detail, but it's too tightly wound around other plots and world-building that there's nothing in between the two. This storyline is likely going to get wound into the Laterano plotlines in the future, so where necessary I'll include explanations with them.

The Main Story:

Main story chapters / Vigilo / What the Firelight Casts

Not a whole lot has changed since our last plot recap, which feels a little weird because of how big chapter 13 was. It's hard to list everything that happened, so I think I'll keep to a shorthand list of all the factions at play in Victoria and what each of them wants, as of the end of Chapter 13.

Rhodes Island

Amiya / Kal'tsit / Doctor / Logos / Ascalon / Closure / Dazmati / etc.

Rhodes Island's goals aren't really set in stone, but they are generally interested in pushing the Sarkaz out of Victoria and ending the suffering caused by the occupation. Amiya has embraced her role as the lord of fiends - she understands that to bring peace to the Sarkaz, she must first shoulder all of the pain they feel, and she pushes on regardless. Towards that goal, Kal'tsit has started to reveal more of the history of the Sarkaz, and Logos and Ascalon are becoming more important. As Amiya becomes more powerful and more sure of herself, the Sarkaz courts are finding her harder and harder to deny.

Darknights+

W / Innes / Hoderer / Paprika / Ulšulah / Ermengarde? I guess?

The Darknights trio has finally made friends! I'm so proud of them. You could make the argument that these folks belong in the Rhodes Island section, but their aims are different enough that I think they ought to get their own brief. This group, but mostly Hoderer and W, are exploring the idea of a new Kazdel - that is, what does Kazdel without the constant cycle of hatred even look like? This has mostly taken the form of rebellion from inside Kazdel's military forces, and actually communicating with people on the other side to ask questions like "Hey do we have a plan beyond constant occupation" and "This kinda sucks, are we sure this is how we want to live". They're the other half of Rhodes Island's philosophical strategy - Amiya can free the Sarkaz of the cycle of hatred, and W and Hoderer can find a way for them to live afterwards.

The Exemplars

Siege / Glasgow Gang / Delphine / Self-Salvation Corps / Horn / Misery

The Exemplars were, originally, an elite unit within the Victorian Military. They were considered heroes, renowned for legendary deeds in service of Victoria. But, in one of their many wars with Gaul, the Exemplars were sacrificed in a political move by the Dukes - the unit was wiped out, the name wasn't revived, and what was left of the unit eventually became the Tempest Platoon we met in chapter 9.

It wasn't Siege's intention to fight a war. Her intent was always to protect its people - the real people, like her gang and the people of Norport. As they've travelled through a war-torn Victoria, though, she's realized that she will not be able to bring peace to her people without the power to end the war. And so, she brings together the people she has saved under the banner of the Exemplars, revived once more - an army free from the Dukes and the Sarkaz, who can bring peace to the people, if Siege can live up to the symbol she represents.

Reunion

Nine / Talulah / Guard / Redblade / Percival / Norwell

I nearly forgot Reunion was here too. Reunion has been going through an identity crisis ever since capturing Talulah. Not only have they lost faith in their strong figurehead, but that figurehead has lost a lot of her own spark, leaving the identity and direction of the movement in question.

That's not quite a bad thing, though - Nine is a much more thoughtful leader than Kashchey/Talulah ever was, Red has always been more of a good guy than a villain, and Guard brought a lot of the philosophy of Rhodes Island with him when he joined up. They now have a chance to not just rebuild Reunion, but to remake it into something better. The trick will be getting it right, because in war-torn Victoria, they'll find plenty of lost infected with nothing to lose.

The Dukes

Caster / Windmere / Wellington / Gododdin / Probably more that I'm forgetting / Eblana and Dublinn

The Dukes of Victoria have been the ruling power in the country for the last few decades or so, and they aren't interested in leaving the country to the Sarkaz. While they've been too busy with their power plays and politicking to oust the Sarkaz before now, they've finally come together enough to begin a united offensive against the Sarkaz, putting the whole of Victoria's might on the field against the invaders.

However, it hasn't been going great for them. The Sarkaz fight differently from the formal armies that Victoria is used to fighting. They field massive revenant constructs, use strange witchcraft, and wield oripathy as a weapon like any other against the Victorian army, and the Dukes have been slow to adapt. The exact state of the war is unknown, but it doesn't seem likely the Dukes will be able to win the war on their own, especially while the Sarkaz control Londinum's catastrophe-causing superweapon.

Even if the Dukes don't win the war, though, they'll still be a threat to everyone else in Victoria. No matter how the Sarkaz are removed, the moment they're gone the Dukes will hold a near-monopoly on military force in the country and will probably try to seize power again, to say nothing of potential retaliation against Kazdel or the Sarkaz diaspora. The Dukes aren't an immediate problem, but they also aren't going away any time soon.

The Confessarius

Shining / Nightingale / Amiya arguably / Qui'sartuštaj / Salus

To be totally honest, I barely understand the Confessarius plotline. As far as I understand it, they want the power of the Lord of Fiends. This is possible because the first Confessarius, thousands of years ago, was a Lord of Fiends and they've kept his soul alive through magic eugenics? I think? Qui'sartuštaj currently holds that soul, but when he dies, it'll go to Shining and she'll be taken over by it. Nightingale was also artificially designed as a vessel for that soul, and because of that, Qui'sartuštaj wants to recover her and use her to reincarnate(?) the original Confessarius Lord of Fiends. I think. If someone else knows this plot better than I do, please correct me and I'll update this because I haven't been paying enough attention and I'm kinda lost.

The Sarkaz Court/ Kazdel Military Commission

Theresis / Theresa / Sanguinarch / Qui'sartuštaj / Dazmati / Manfred / Lettou

The Kazdel Military Comission, acting under the supervision of King Theresis, is the current ruling power of the Sarkaz and the acting government in control of Londinum. A few years ago, a group of nobles called for the help of the KMC in restoring order in Londinum, and once they occupied it they chose not to leave and instead took over both the city and the catastrophe-causing superweapon, The Shard, located within it. Ever since, they've been carefully trying to preserve their control over both Kazdel and Victoria.

With the introduction of Rhodes Island and the Dukes closing in, this has gotten a lot harder. Theresis now needs to pacify and manage every individual subgroup of Sarkaz, keeping them satisfied enough to stay under the banner. While doing this, he needs to fight both a war outside the walls, against the Dukes, and inside, against Rhodes Island and various rebellious Sarkaz elements like the Darknights trio and whatever is going on with the Dazmati.

The one reason he's been able to hold on this long is the authority of his sister, Theresa. I'm not gonna go over the entire Theresis/Theresa plotline, because it's difficult to summarize and tied into nearly every other plot in the game, but the really short version is that Theresis represents the traditional Sarkaz rule by fear and Theresa represents a new future, a hope for a future without conflict. When taking Londinum, Theresis ceded to the strong suggestions of the Confessarius and used some unknown ritual to return the late Theresa to life, and presumably render her somehow compliant to him. She now serves as a figurehead of the KMC, and the hope she sparks in the Sarkaz is a big reason why Theresis' ambitions haven't collapsed around him.

And, I think that's most everything! Sweet sassy molassey, that took a while. I may skip the next anniversary's recap, since it'll only be main story stuff anyway. Anyway, as usual, if there's something relevant I've missed, let me know, and if not, I hope this helped! Enjoy your life and practice your art, Doctors!

[lazaruspiss]

sladedicktalia??????? i am LISTENING

there's like. 5 fics. im so starved. i think theyre so hot and funny together!! im obsessed. also this got long so im adding a readmore. whoops.

SlaDick: classic enemies to lovers. they may try to kill each other half the time but they respect each other more than anyone else. OBSESSED with each other, Slade knows he's weird about Dick and couldn't care less but Dick is so in denial about it. they could both give explicit consent but be so antagonistic about it that it becomes unclear if "yes i want to have sex with you" is actually code for "die right now" and i think that's beautiful.

SladeTalia: they fucked! in canon! there was some bullshit plotline where Talia tried to give Slade Damian and pretend he was his son instead! ex fuck buddies who show up just to make each other's lives harder bc they wanna fuck so bad it makes them have stupid brain. also they're both hot as hell. i'm weak for big strong milf/dilf idk idk.

DickTalia: LISTEN TO ME. TALIA WOULD TREAT HIM RIGHT. THEY BOTH KNOW HOW EMOTIONALLY DEVASTATING IT IS TO LOVE BRUCE. LISTEN TO M- ok aside from that. Talia is someone who tried so hard to be good, to choose to be kind. She loved Bruce because she saw how hard he tried to do good in the world. Her character has gotten considerably colder over time, in huge part due to a certain writer writing about her despite knowing nothing about her, but in universe i try and rationalize it as a growing cynicism stemming from both her father's gradually increasing cruelty and Bruce's failure to support her or commit to her or to even just respect her. She hasn't been shown to have very many people in her life who she can really trust and be close to. She used to have a good relationship with Ra's, she used to have Bruce, she's even lost Damian at this point. She feels like such a lonely character to me. And I think Dick would be able to see that, be able to understand it better than most. He's always had people who loved him, people he could turn to, but he's also ended up perpetually isolated for one reason or another. Dick and Talia both feel to me like characters who are so lonely the further they get in their lives. I could see a silent understanding there. The kind of people who would be able to find solace in simply sharing a space with each other. Neither of them like to talk about what they've been through, I think they'd like to have someone who just gets it. Trauma for trauma, you know?

SlaDickTalia: several angles available here.

1) Dick deserves some sexy older lovers who would wine and dine him and also rail him within an inch of his life and also kill for him. i am not immune to the aesthetics!! to the allure of a hot older duo double teaming their young spitfire partner!!!

2) corruption arc. u know u wanna.

3) Dick's fear of abandonment x the 2 most devoted people on the planet. if they were dating nothing bad would happen to Dick again, Slade and Talia just wouldn't allow that. smth smth, couldn't get rid of them if he tried <3

4) Bruce would hate it and that's always fun :3 not that that's hard tho, Babs is like the only one of Dick's partners that Bruce liked and that's bc he wants to keep it in the family.

5) healing.... sobs...... esp when it comes to feelings around parenthood. Those three have shit to work out and i think having some company would help.

6) They all need more people time but 2/3 of them don't get along with anybody so they're kinda stuck with Dick. that kid will forgive anybody if u bat ur eyelashes and behave well enough. He's also more likely to still see them as people despite everything they've been through, and when you're a military experiment and a semi immortal daughter of an immortal terrorist... It can be hard to find someone who looks at you like you still have a chance at humanity.

7) Slade and Talia playing a Cat Vs Dog type game with Dick in the middle. I think it's funny.

[paula123la]

Umbrella Academy S4 take from me (Klaus obsessed

-lol Klaus is so cute now, I'm so glad he's clean

-okay he's the only one not taking the marigold

-damn he had to get it, sad

-yay Ben has a big role, maybe we'll see Umbrella Ben?

-O my god wait what maybe it was Reggie who killed Ben? Naaaah no way

-WAIT WHAT

-okay but why tf is Lila so Five obsessed and mean to her fucking husband, I was watching with my boyfriend and that whole plotline is whack, they gave her three kids and suddenly she doesn't love Diego anymore

-WAIT she got lost with Five, that's funny

-NO NO NO NO AIDAN NO NO NO

-FUCKKKK THIS SHIT I CAN'T, I HAD TO TURN OFF THE FUCKING EPISODE FUCKITY FUCK NO WAY THE WRITERS DID SOMETHING SO HORRIBLE FUKKKK

-NO NO NO I WAS SO IN LOVE WITH THIS SEASON UNTIL THIS FIVELA BULLSHIT, IM LITERALLY DISGUSTED

-Of course they ruined Klaus, he did fucking nothing useful, he was there as a mascot. Thank you for not giving my character any depth asshole writers (although Luther's was even more botched), at least they made Diego do something.

-Me, trying to forget the stupid thing ykyk, got moved by the fact that they had to cease to exist. I never watch alternate universe movies or shows and I heard it's a common thing to end them like this, but for me it was a first, and it's like... All the previous seasons plots didn't exist cause like... The main characters never existed :'))) I cried a lil BUT NOT A LOT CAUSE THE FUCKING FIVE THING ORNFNFNJSJFJFJFNF

Thank u, I'm 22 btw. Watched season 1 in HS :')