#about how his devotion to his duty leaves him without ?? knowledge in a bunch of other areas ! how he's inexperienced in some areas while

[raytm]

at this point i am convinced i could talk about gepard for like 2 hours straight.

[genesisrose74]

Christmas with the Karasuno Boys (HC’s)!!

Part 1: Daichi, Suga, Asahi, Nishinoya, Tanaka, & Ennoshita

Part 2 (Kageyama, Hinata, Tsukishima, Yamaguchi, Kinoshita, & Narita) here!!

A/n: Tumblr said my word count was too much so I’m splitting this bad boi up into two parts :p Enjoy!!

*****

Daichi

A huge romantic during Christmas, 10/10 quality cliche times spent together

You wanna go ice skating? Hell yeah sweetheart, he will make it the most beautifully romantic thing you’ve ever seen

Like straight out of a holiday postcard type beat

Istg the rink he takes you to looks like a more heartwarming version of Rockefeller Center

He’s a big keeper of tradition when it comes to making plans, but doesn’t mind a bit of nonsense fun when everything falls into place

Which is why you love to bring the team along on adventures because they make everything all the more entertaining

At first he’s confused like ??? You don’t have to do that just if they’ve been pestering you about it

But then he realizes you care as much about them as he does (hint: a hell of a lot) and they’re thus invited along for some stuff

Of course y’all also get some quality time together on dates with just you both

Anyways you and Daichi have talked a lot about traveling and how he was really interested in seeing new places

So as his gift you got him a carved map with a roll of red string and thumbtacks, so that he could plan out all the places he wanted to visit

You know how when Kiyoko found the “Fly” banner for Karasuno and all the boys cried?

Yeah

Like that but with lots more hugging and laughing

“You know you’re gonna have to help with mapping this out, right?”

“Is that an invitation I hear?”

“Oh, that’s a promise”

FJSFJDSK ALEXA PLAY AMERICAN BOY BY ESTELLE—

Please I love him; he is so damn sly and sassy I will die with this headcanon

Sugawara

I swear on everything that Christmas with him is equivalent to a Hallmark movie

It smells like joy and warmth wherever he is, and this season only amplifies it

He is such a cheeseball without even having to try

But it’s in the really endearing and heart-melting way,,, just MMM PERFECT

He’ll take you on a walk through those neighborhoods with those crazy light decorations in the front yard and buy you hot chocolate

If he sees a group of little kids gaping at all the lights, he’ll leave them starry-eyed with stories of magic, reindeer, Santa and so-forth

“You know, I’ve heard that Rudolph’s nose is supposed to be brighter than the world’s most powerful Christmas light”

Good heavens, children absolutely adore this man

Anyways he’ll make it a little game as y’all walk around this beautifully lit neighborhood, both of you with a different assortment of bingo squares printed on paper

First one to bingo chooses a movie to watch after getting back to Suga’s house

Will wrap a big fluffy blanket around you both and pull you into his chest while watching the movie

For his gift, you got a star named after him

It’s because y’all alway go stargazing for dates every month, just to sit out, talk and cuddle

Suga gave you the SOFTEST look after opening your gift and this cute little card you made 🥺

“Lets go try to find my new favorite star”

PLEASE HE IS SO SWEET

“Right now? Koushi it’s 11:30 pm”

“Just for ten minutes, and then I’ll get you home”

So y’all spend the rest of Christmas Eve on his roof, sipping warm tea and attempting to locate Star Suga

Asahi

Cuddle bear alert ‼️‼️

It’s basically hibernation time for him, because he’s not the biggest fan of cold

That’s alright with you though 😌 more coziness for you

Lots of quality moments indoors means more creative dates

A whole day devoted to chill present wrapping? Hell fuckin’ yeah

Nice music, pretty wrapping paper, shiny bows, maybe a little Christmas rom-com playing in the back — the whole shebang

You find out pretty quickly that despite how it sounds, it’s actually quite a satisfying and enjoyable pastime

Practically had to drag him out of your living room to secretly wrap his own gift

As much as he’s the king of timidity and soft™, he can be very playfully stubborn when he’s comfortable, hence why he was such an ass to get out of the room

I have no doubt that Asahi would melt for the most adorable, cheesy shit

So you not only bought him some really reliable headbands for volleyball use, but you also made a little coupon booklet

He can basically cash in paper promises for certain things, like getting to choose the next date idea, picking a movie to watch without any objection, having you make his favorite food, etc.

There’s one that he can exchange for a full out spa day trip, because good heavens he’s a sucker for those

Massage and exfoliation and everything — it makes him feel ✨refreshed✨

He was ecstatic fam, I don’t even know what to say

Like a puppy who just got a bunch of toys and a new backyard to play

Mans cashes in one almost immediately, and at first you’re confused

Like it’s Christmas time bubs, what are we gonna be able to do when most places are closed and it’s the holidays?

Then you read the paper

“Free hug (can be used and renewed <3)”

GIVE HIM HIS DAMN HUGS RIGHT NOW

He uses that one a lot throughout the upcoming days, to the point where he just keeps the paper on him for fun

“You realize you can just ask me silly, you don’t need to keep carrying the coupon around”

“Yeah, but it’s entertaining”

Cute little cheeky bastard

Nishinoya

LOVES LOVES LOVES CHRISTMAS

You know the 12 Days of Christmas? The song??

He gets you a small present EVERY DAY for all 12 days

Not to mention he has a big present that he saves for the actual holiday

Y’all are the type of couple to get ice cream in the middle of winter

Nishi loves his cold snacks any time of year, and you’ve thus picked up a similar taste

He will consistently pester you about what kind of present you got him

Gets pouty when you don’t tell him, but in the back of his mind he’s glad because it would ruin the surprise

Anything you get him instantly becomes his most prized gift tho

It could be a literal rock with googly eyes and he’d put it in a protective glass case for preservation

But of course you get him something better than that because he only deserves the best

He’s got this specific assortment of products to maintain his spiky hair and to make sure it’s healthy, but they’re pretty expensive to buy when he runs out

When he tore open your present’s decorative wrapping to discover a huge basket of basically every hair product he ever needed, he got wide-eyed

There was also a booklet of little notes you’d kept throughout the month that listed all the little things you noticed and adored about your precious boyfriend

He nearly CRIED reading them

“Baby, you didn’t have to do all that for me”

“You act like you don’t deserve all of it and more, Nishi”

Refuses to leave your side after that

Holding your hand, hugging you as tight as he can, etc.

He is head over heels idc idc

Tanaka

Another man who is obsessed with the holiday season and everything that comes with it

He is the biggest sap for this shit istg

Will spend hours trying to get you the best present of all time

And he succeeds exceptionally

Mistletoe? He’s got an ABUNDANCE on hand at any time, just to make sure he can get fair share of his kissies 🥰

His signature beanie appears in full force during winter

Sometimes you’ll pull it over his eyes before giving him a peck on the cheek and dashing off in the school halls

“I’ll see you after school, babe!”

Speech = jumbled + incomprehensible

“Uh hUh, you do that~”

He’s: adorable

I just know that he melts for really sweet and thought-out gifts

Like anything you give him he’ll adore, don’t get me wrong, but the ones done with special care and love are just his kryptonite

He brought you into a massive bear hug and spun you around when he opened a photo book of old pictures taken together, complete with lots of cute messages and anecdotes written alongside them

You and Saeko may have also gone in on another present for him without his knowledge

And on Christmas Eve, you dragged a curious Tanaka into his front yard to the sight of a shiny motorbike

It was Saeko’s old one that she’d held onto for a while, and an old schoolmate offered to fix it up nice in time for the holiday at a discount, so y’all decided to divvy up the lowered price and got it done for Ryu

Sweet boy was taken aback, with his hands clapped over his mouth and everything

Saeko patted him on the back as he stood there in shock, giving her baby brother a sweet smile

“All yours, little bro!”

Ya, Saeko fucking loves you 😌 and so does Tanaka

Overall very lovely, would cry to be loved by the Tanaka siblings

Ennoshita

After spending past Decembers with his fellow second year classmates (namely, the very enthusiastic Noya and Tanaka), he’s grown to know quite a bit about the different holiday events that go on around town

Still, Ennoshita is a pretty simplistic guy and is content with simply spending time with you

So when you recommended going to pick a Christmas tree out for your place together, he’s totally down

As long as he gets to help decorate too ☺️

Y’all end up picking a beauty of a tree ngl

It’s SO TALL

And a super stronk friend — fit for the most heavy duty of ornaments

It takes some damn work to get that bad boi inside and upright after driving back to your house

But like hell did that stop you

Now that it was all set up, sturdy, and given plenty of water, decorations were brought into the equation that same night

No rest until it’s all set up and looking mighty beautiful

Okay maybe some coffee breaks in between, but other than that the grind don’t stop ✋😤

Ennoshita is an expert at making Christmas trees look absolutely immaculate

Idk if it’s because he’s had to deal with cleaning up disorder for a while now?

Looking at you, ya second year loons

He just has the touch, fam

He’ll of course let you have input on which light colors, what type of ornaments, and so on

But honestly it’s really fun seeing him fully concentrated on making your tree the best it can be

He lets you on his shoulders to put on the tree topper 🥺

For his gift, Ennoshita really loves books, so you decided to get him 12 different (hardcover!!) stories — one for each month in a year

Along with a small sticky-note blurb on the covers of each to explain why you chose it, and to give similar title recommendations if he ends up enjoying

He was so surprised with how thoughtful and extensive it was

Loved it so much that he immediately started to read the first one, with you sat in his lap

“Chikara, you realize you’re meant to start this one in January?”

“Shh, I’m getting a head start”

[wherearemyglassesbro]

i saw that you play genshin impact, so i’m kind of curious... what’d be the axis and allies’ vision and weapons?

Uh oh...now you got me started. Be warned, it’s a long one cause I have no self control

Some key terms for those who don’t play genshin impact and want to be included!!

Cryo -> ice, Hydro -> water, Dendro -> nature, Geo -> rock, Pyro -> fire, Electro -> lightning

Hilichurls: a common enemy found in the wild. Despite looking like hairy trolls, they have a district language as well as texts, art and song that they share together making them an advanced species!

Ruin guards: another enemy. Giant, scary robot...they scare me...

Knights of Favonious: an organization of knights within Mondstat that keep order and peace :) very nice guys and gals over there!!

Mondstat: modeled after Germany

Liyue: modeled after China

Alfred: pyro, claymore, Springvale Mondstat

Alfred would be a super heavy hitter in battle but his drawbacks are that despite his energetic nature, he’s slower because of the weight of his weapon

He blows stuff up a lot and sets all of the grass around you on fire so if you fight with him...His teammates will take damage from him Jeez Louise!!!

Since we don’t have all of the nations of Teyvay unlocked, I don’t know where he’d be from! I’d have to explore to get a sense for it so for characters that don’t have a place on the map yet, I’ll mark them with an asterisk from now on! :)

Idk where he lives but I do know that he’d be a devoted member of the adventurers guild! He’s always willing to offer a helping hand to anyone in need! Wether it be helping Granny Ann make hash browns or taking comissions to go kill a huge ruin guard who’s terrorizing the town!! He’s always leaping into new jobs! He isn’t even in it for the money or rewards! He just loves helping out!

Arthur: Dendro, archer, Mondstat

Artie is a beast in battle! Shooting vine Aries at enemies to tie them up or temporarily blind them??? Sick as fuck. Keep in mind, Genshin doesn’t have any Dendro characters that are playable yet so idk how they’d fight but I think I can guess :)

Artie is technically part of the knights of favonious because he works in their library. He translates books written in ancient texts into the standard language so historians and others can read what the old civilizations had to say

Instead of having normal eyes, they’re slit like snake eyes. And he has leaves instead of hair :)

He has a little seelie that floats around at his side. He talks to it but it doesn’t really do anything but provide company to a lonely guy :’) he needs more friends

Matthew: Anemo, catalyst, *

It’s always good to have a catalyst on your team! Ningguang is a great example of an underestimated catalyst cause she can do INSANE damage man!! So I think Mattie would be the same way

Matt isn’t violent and doesn’t enjoy fighting so his in-game voice lines would say that lol

Mattie is an alchemist! Well...A student alchemist. He didn’t take up an interest in alchemy until like, 3 years ago so he’s got a lot to catch up on still! He’s doing his best!

He gets very annoyed with Alfred since Mattie is detail oriented and gentle...Alfred is not any of those things. But he still loves his brother and on rare occasions, he’ll assist him with his commissions

Ivan: Cryo, catalyst, Liyue(temporary)

Ivan would be a support character for sure but he’d do a damn good job of doing it

He’s buff but he doesn’t do hand to hand combat, he’s mastered magic for a reason

Ivan spends most of his time studying hilichurls. He writes books about them, translates their texts and acts as a peace keeper when he can. He gets information from them about the Abyss Order in return for free reign of small portions of protected land where they can live without fear of being killed

Because he’s from Schneznya(spelling?) he’s kinda expected to be a bad guy but he left a long time ago. But he still sounds like he’s from there and...He’s super pale too so there really is no mistaking where he’s from

Ivan can’t stand how ignorant humans are towards hilichurls so he does everything he can to advocate for them. He’s covered in scars from when he first started engaging with the beasts. A huge scar runs down his face but he doesn’t mind it

He’s got big, sharp teeth!! So he doesn’t often smile cause he thinks he looks weird

Francis: Hyrdo, long sword, *

Fran is underestimated when it comes to combat (like Kaeya...I see you slandering this man) but he has so much potential!

Since he’s a hydro, he is so useful for elemental reactions! If he’s paired with a cryo or pyro user, he’d totally boost them!!

Fran is a traveling entertainer, he goes between the 7 nations as a singer and actor for small stage plays. He has a crew of friends who travel with him, they’re one jolly bunch!

He always acts all nonchalant and stuff but once he’s in a battle, he’s wild. Especially if the abyss order holds up his crew on their way to their next tour destination “We need to be in Liyue Harbor in four hours you are NOT holding us back!” *tidal wave*

He’s a regular tavern hopper! A very recognizable face since he’s been banned from a handful for getting too rowdy

He can make not one, but 2 special dishes :0

Yao: Dendro, polearm, Liyue

I just imagine him as a shorter, richer and cooler version of Zhongli

He’d do that kick move that Zhongli does with his polearm oh man that looks SICK dude!!!

Yao would shoot vines out and they’d strangle enemies for a few seconds before disintegrating but if he’s leveled up enough, they’ll totally strangle those stupid hillichurls lol

Yao sells rare gems and other miscellaneous items for very high prices in Liyue where he grew up. His shop is upstairs by the Fatui bank. Rich people enjoy looking at what his shop has to fifer and will argue prices with him. They’re getting scammed for sure. He’ll list a set of cor lapis earrings as $50,000 and the rich will be like ‘I’ll pay $25,000, no more than that’ and he’ll take it!!....Cause thise earrings are worth $5000 at most >:)

Hes close with a lot of the higher ups in Liyue and is often invited to fancy lunches or dinners where they discuss policy, contracts and vendor permits. He doesn’t really get a say in any of that but he benefits from listening

Kiku: Electro, claymore, *

Kiku would be SUCH an awesome electo user are you KIDDING me??? I can see it now, him swinging that huge sword around, purple lightning bolts flying all around and he looks like a total badass? Amazing vibes

When paired with cryos???? He’d do an insane amount of damage fr

Kiku runs a small restaurant where he...runs the place...but doesn’t cook. His restaurant is extremely exclusive and people often throw fits when they can’t get in cause the wait list is over 5 years long. He’ll rest his hand on their shoulder and smile ‘is something wrong? I’d love to take a complaint if you have one’...No one has even dared to complain to his face lol

Behind the restaurant front he deals with the Fatui, buying and selling minerals or artifacts. That’s where his knowledge is at, not with food. He pays his staff to ignore what goes on behind the scenes and the locals are too busy enjoying the restaurant to question what goes on after dark

Gilbert: Pyro, long sword, Mondstat

Gil would be one of the free characters given to you at the beginning of the game but hey, I’m not complaining

He’s highly destructive and very chaotic in battle, he can do that spin move even though that’s meant for claymore users

He’s Mondstat’s biggest trouble maker. He runs an underground gambling room that sits underneath a tavern. He isn’t really into gambling but he makes a lot of money by running it

The only knight who knows is Ludwig which is not good cause...Gil pretty much bribes his brother into not telling the knights of favonious (peace keepers of Mondstat)

Gil never got his gliding certificate cause he kept flying into buildings. He broke his nose doing that lol

Lovino: Pyro, catalyst, *

I can’t add anymore images so imagine a floating, red and black orb. Lovi doesn’t get a book catalyst cause he doesn’t read :) That’s the catalyst thing I’m talking about 😅😅

My guy has the angriest in game voice lines, he’s inconvenienced by every battle, every enemy is ugly and a fuckin disaster. He’s just. Angry.

He’d be a super weak character if he needed to rely on hand to hand combat but he learned magic for a reason babey

He owns a flower stand in his country and makes all kinds of beautiful flower arrangements. He even picks his own flowers in the fields when he can (but usually pays the town’s children to do it for him to ‘teach them the value of hard work’).

Everyone knows he’s a total hothead and will piss him off on purpose just cause it’s funny lmao. But then somehow...Their hair or clothes will just...catch on fire. So is it really worth it to tease him? :/

Feliciano: Hydro, archer, Mondstat(temporary)

I feel like Feli would also be a free character, not cause he isn’t good or anything! But you always need an archer on your team!

Feli has healing properties for his team and doesn’t do an insane amount of damage but when given the right resources, he’d be a pretty sick healer

He moved to Mondstat to join the church there. He leads prayers in front of the church and sings in the choir inside.

He is the sweetest and has never committed a crime in his LIFE but he’s afraid of the knights lol he’s terrified that he’ll get in trouble and be kicked out of Mondstat forever! That would never happen but he’s a worry wart cause of his brother

Ludwig: Geo, long sword, Mondstat

Lud is the only one that I could really think of as a Geo but Geos are awesome :)

He’s a hard hitter but has like...No shield so he’ll take damage fast if you don’t give him those artifacts with shield in them or whatever lol uhhhh I wouldn’t know anything about that cause I suck at building my teams ;-;

He’d totally be in with the knights of favonious! (I think that’s spelled right lol) but he’d take his duty as a knight very seriously!! He’s a familiar face around Mondstat, the elderly absolutely adore him and the local teenage girls swoon over him which he finds super embarrassing lol

He has to work hard to keep Gilbert in check cause even though Gil isn’t a knight, his actions reflect negatively back on Lud very often... :(

Please ignore the spelling errors and terrible photo cropping on my part lol this was so fun!!

By the time you’re seeing this, ive already made full outfit red sheets for everyone mentioned above!!!! :D

[rockshortage]

Could we get 💖, 🍏, 🥝, 💧, 💗, and 🌺?

Absolutely, you can even get a bonus 🌷 because I copy pasted the wrong question and I already wrote out the answer before noticing

💖 Has your OC ever been in love, be it romantic or platonic or otherwise? Who with and did they ever express their feelings or keep it private? How long did these feelings persist / do they still feel this way?

Hector’s not really a romantic love kinda guy so I’m tempted to say no, but at the same time it’s pretty hard to imagine that he’s lived this long and never felt anything like it, despite how distanced he keeps himself from people. So while I leave this open as an option, I’m gonna go into a bit of psychoanalysis and say it’s more of that he doesn’t actually know what the hell romantic love (and love in general?) is supposed to feel like in the first place. Maybe he’s felt it, maybe not, how would he know?

Platonically though, yeah sure. It’s pretty safe to say that is platonically in love with Gage, bestest friend, who feels like his first best friend ever due to his memory issues, regardless of whether that’s actually true or not. The feeling is likely to extend to Butch (and possibly others he bonds with as well), because when Hector does make meaningful connections with people, he goes pretty hard on the attachment and devotion part of things.

🍏 Does your OC have any triggers? What is the history behind these triggers and are they related to any disorders or mental illnesses? In what ways does your OC react to being triggered?

Hmm… a general uneasiness around religious themes and places doesn’t really qualify since he doesn’t exactly know why they make him feel that way. Though if someone were to aggressively preach at him – and at him specifically, and with intent to banish some kind of evil? That could very well send him into a flashback and dig up all those repressed memories. Thankfully that kind of thing doesn’t usually happen. unless, say, the playing pretend is so successful that he does get a vampire hunter after him, and suddenly there’s a guy waving a crucifix in his face and splashing holy water and yelling latin phrases at him and maybe trying to get him exposed to the sun… no fun bad time

🥝 What does a bad mental health day look like for your OC? Walk us through it with them. What kind of things can help them out of this slump and what kinds of things comfort them when they start to feel like this?

Has a hard time getting out of bed and won’t if he can get away with it, but usually there’s some kind of Overboss Duty™ he has to get up for. If it involves going outside and interacting with people, he’ll try to postpone it, and if it absolutely can’t wait, he’ll be irritable, not communicative or helpful and just try to get it over with as quickly as possible. On such days he can’t really get enthusiastic about anything, so not even a fun project can really catch his interest.

To cope, he’ll often just sit on the floor with MAAK (if he can peel himself out of bed), lean against him or just kinda slump himself over him, pat him a little. A fluffy warm animal would also do wonders, but he’d have to go to the zoo for that and usually that’s not a viable option for multiple reasons. Drowning himself in work would be an alternative option, but that’s less of a ‘feel better’ thing than it is a distraction.

💧 What is the earliest memory your OC can recall? Do they know what their first words were or remember where they took their first steps? Do they have any mementos of their childhood they’ve kept such as a stuffed toy or tiny baby clothes?

Since he’s repressed his childhood memories to such a degree that he genuinely can’t remember them – absolutely no memory of first words, steps, or mementos. His first memory would be something uneventful or uninteresting, one image taken out of context. Watching a horse-drawn carriage pass by on the street. A sign in front of a bakery. Observing a Fasnacht parade. Something like that.

💗 What would your OC say is their best feature? Why? What do their friends / family / lover(s) / people they know think is their best feature and why?

Physically, he’s kind of indifferent about himself – nothing extraordinary, nothing bad, it is what it is. He does take some pride in the fact that he’s got a full head of hair, despite his physical age. Mentally, his intelligence and ability to pick up new knowledge pretty quickly.

Others would likely point out things related to his intelligence as well, like his tech proficiency. Diplomatic thinking might also be one - sure as hell isn’t the raider way of going about things, but it has helped with keeping the bosses happy.

🌺 Does your OC have any tattoos or other body art? Does their body art have any specific meaning behind it? Do they have any scars? How did they get those scars? Any birthmarks?

No tattoos, but the thought has crossed his mind every now and then. Scars – yeah, he’s got a bunch. I haven’t really decided what and where past that… but with his habit of getting himself into trouble, he’d actually have quite a lot. And then a lot more that have long since disappeared. One of the most striking ones would be a ‘ring’ around a limb where it was reattached (perhaps the one he lost at the power plant confrontation? so it’s extra fresh and gnarly). Same thing around a finger or two because shit happens right

🌷 In what ways would your OC alter their body if they could? How would they do it using mundane means (hair dye, surgery, make-up?). What is their ideal look for themself?

Like I said, he’s generally ok with how he looks, but he wouldn’t mind being a little taller. And perhaps more muscular, to be more intimidating. Also maybe not be quite as grossly pale because whenever someone sees his face they immediately think he’s feeling ill

For height: big boots with big soles. Not platform, because at that point it becomes inconvenient and glaringly obvious that he’s trying to be taller, but there’s definitely more on those puppies than some tennis shoes.

–Wait fuck hold on, the boots got me thinking again because when I said his height I was thinking of him in his full getup, since honestly his clothes might as well be glued to him, but like without big boot? He’s gonna lose an inch or so

[itsclydebitches]

The Needs of the Many: A Garashir Reading of “Broken Link”

What’s the current definition of stupidity? It might be trying to write meta for a twenty-six year old show. But you know what? I’m doing it anyway. I make questionable fandom choices and regret mostly nothing.

So. I’m still watching Deep Space Nine—about halfway through season five, but with pretty much every spoiler under my belt considering I have no patience and dove straight into the fic—and I am, without a doubt, absolute garashir trash. Now this is important because as I watch I’ve been on the lookout for all the major scenes and episodes that the fans like to talk about, those that catch our attention for obvious reasons: “Past Prologue,” “The Wire,” “Our Man Bashir,” and the like. However, through my (admittedly cursory) browsing these last few months, I’ve been surprised to find no one talking about season four’s finale “Broken Link.”

On the surface it makes sense. Though Garak gets one of his all too rare episodes, we’ve past the point of no return with Berman’s homophobia and our two lovesick faves aren’t interacting as much as they once did. RIP. 

Thus, it’s easy to pass over Garak doing another Bad Thing in the name of his Cardassian devotion, especially when the Bad Thing is circumvented thanks to Worf instead of Julian. However, what’s nagged at me since watching that scene is one simple, yet significant detail.

Julian was down on that planet.

Quick re-cap for those of us who haven’t watched in a while: the Defiant is taking Odo back to the Great Link in order to cure him of the disease they saddled him with in the first place (nice, huh?). Garak realizes that this may be the one and only time they have all the Founders together and potentially vulnerable. He tries to gain control of the Defiant’s weaponry, but is ultimately discovered and stopped by Worf. Sorry, Garak. You might be surprisingly fit for just a plain, simple tailor, but you’ve got nothing on a battle-obsessed Klingon.

All caught up? Fantastic. Now, all around it’s not a terrible plan. There are just two potential issues. The first is the whole, you know, genocide thing. Some of us tend to frown at that, no matter how much good eliminating the Founders might do moving forward. Beyond that pesky little moral issue, we have the problem that Odo, Sisko, and Julian are all down on the planet’s surface, their deaths a surety if Garak manages to succeed in his plan. This is acknowledged too, so we can’t live with the happy assumption that Garak just wasn’t informed about who was accompanying Odo on this particular mission:

Worf: And what about Odo, and Captain Sisko and Doctor Bashir?

Garak: They'll die. And once the Jem'Hadar ships realize what we're doing, so will we. But what are our lives compared to saving the entire Alpha Quadrant?

From a shipping perspective it doesn’t look too good. After all, how loving is your duo if one can so easily sacrifice the other, without a moment’s hesitation or—dare we imagine it—a single tear in sight? It’s a rather grim picture, the sort of scene that jars shippers out of their lovely little pockets, carefully crafted worlds where suspension of disbelief runs wild. The show-runners may not have had the balls to make anything canon until 2017 (good god), but provided the characters in question don’t actively sabotage the relationship, thereby leaving room for imagining something more, you’re good to go. No such luck with this scene.

At least, it appears that way at first glance. It occurs to me that there are a couple of potential readings if we feel inclined to reach for them. I find it notable that Garak is already thinking to the next logical consequence. That is, Jem’Hadar ships bearing down on them, him meeting his own demise soon after Julian. There’s admittedly something romantic in that. The willingness to let your loved one go, safe in the knowledge that you’ll be quick to join them. We could even argue that Garak isn’t thinking straight in this moment. We know he’s a proud man devoted to his people, exile aside, and right before this he has a rather gutting conversation with the primary Founder:

Founder: They're dead. You're dead. Cardassia is dead. Your people were doomed the moment they attacked us. I believe that answers your question.

So, as far as Garak knows, entire fleets of his people were killed in their last battle, including his father—quite the emotional blow, even if Tain was an absolute shit dad. He’s also received confirmation of what the Federation has long suspected, that the Dominion isn’t content to keep the Alpha Quadrant out of their business, but has every intention of seizing control and, given their history, eliminating rather than assimilating it, to quote the Borg. You’re dead. Your entire species is dead. Everyone else you associate with, even those insidious humans, are dead. It’s only a matter of time. As Garak has pointed out seasons earlier, he knows when to cut his losses and that was one hell of a “resistance if futile” speech. If the rest of the quadrant has any hope of survival, now is the time to cut those losses—including Julian. 

Which I actually really love. 

Because it’s true to Garak’s character. He’s a complicated, morally gray guy, just the sort to blow himself and his shop up in the hopes of saving his life. Or justify killing the entirety of one species to ensure the survival of many. As much as we (or at least I) would have loved a dramatic declaration of love, the realization that he can’t target the Founders no matter how necessary it may seem because his Julian would be caught in the crossfire… that’s just not Garak. Just as importantly, it’s not Julian either. See, I think this scene pairs rather well with “Our Man Bashir.” We can come up with the same sort of potential readings for why Julian was willing to shoot someone he—from the shipper’s perspective—is already head over heels in love with: he’s a doctor and had every confidence in his ability to keep Garak alive until they get out of the holosuite. He’s genetically enhanced and has superb aim, knowing he’ll only create a flesh wound. He was really trying to hit the wall and fucked that one up badly whoops, etc. Regardless of those headcanons though, canonically speaking Julian did shoot him and that’s all there is to it. More specifically, he shot Garak to make sure that Sisko, Kira, Worf, O’Brien, and Jadzia survived, a sacrificing the one to save the many situation, much like Garak’s plan. Or, to put it another way: 

Spirk is the ultimate standard for all other Star Trek ships, if not, for many, shipping in general. Lots of fans have already pointed out the similarities between the sickbay hand clasp in Star Trek: The Motion Picture and Julian’s moment of forgiveness in “The Wire,” 

but there’s another parallel between Spock’s iconic sacrifice and the choices made in DS9. “Logic clearly dictates that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few” to which Kirk answers, “Or the one.” This is the same logic that our new duo is abiding by. 

Though a notorious liar, we’re left with nothing else that challenges Garak’s words—he truly seems to believe that the Alpha Quadrant’s safety is worth sacrificing those on the Defiant for. Though a doctor through and through, we’re left with Julian’s steady hand and blood on Garak’s neck—he truly seems to believe that potentially losing one friend is worth assuredly saving five. Neither one is willing to compromise their morals for the other and I personally think that speaks to a healthy amount of respect, both for themselves and each other. In the same way that Garak embraces Julian’s Federation-style optimism and Julian comes to understand that lies are how Garak communicates, they simply and completely accept one another. That includes saying through actions if not words, “I love you, but I’m not going to let that love compromise my core beliefs.” Neither is the type to let love interfere with what they perceive as their duty, but that doesn’t mean the love doesn’t exist. 

Of course, if we follow the spirk parallel, that devotion to the many is later challenged. In The Search for Spock Kirk reverses the logic and justifies his journey with, “Because the needs of the one outweigh the needs of the many.” Anyone who reads any of my metas knows that Context Is a Thing and in this case the context for both films is personal sacrifice. Spock chooses to sacrifice himself to save the Enterprise. Kirk and the others choose to risk their lives and their careers to get Spock back. These are markedly different situations from what Julian and Garak shoulder: sacrificing one another for the many. If you love someone, then giving up your life for them is easy. Having that action save a whole bunch of other people along the way? Icing on the cake. You die knowing that you’ve done the heroic deed and your better half lives on. But can you harm your other half to uphold your oath as a doctor? Can you kill them to save millions of others? I’d argue that Julian and Garak have the far more difficult choice and both of them managed to answer, “Yes.” It’s a testament to their characterization and, given their strong ethics, precisely how well they fit together. They know where the other stands, what they mean to one another…and when they can’t afford to prioritize that love over everyone else. 

In the end, neither even knew that their sacrifice would pay off. If Garak had succeeded in gaining control of the Defiant’s weaponry he might have found that the Founders had another trick up their sleeve to ensure their survival, leaving him with a dead Julian and an unharmed foe. Julian doesn’t know if he and Garak will be able to survive the holosuite program—or what might happen to the others if they perish. He might end up losing everyone, himself included. Neither has any assurances when they make their decision and that to me makes it that much more meaningful. They’re both acts of determination and faith. And from a narrative standpoint (with help from a healthy dose of Plot Armor) they’re both rewarded for that faith. Garak isn’t forced to kill Julian. Julian’s shot harmlessly skims Garak’s neck. They made the hard call, lost little, and in the case of “Our Man Bashir,” gained a healthy dose of respect for what the other was capable of. 

I think that’s pretty damn neat. 

Right. Thank you for coming to my decades late TED Talk. Peace ✌️

Image Credit

#1: https://boldly-yo.tumblr.com/post/183708405938

GIF: http://kuma-la-la.tumblr.com/post/36694488334/the-needs-of-the-many-outweigh-the-needs-of

#2: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirk/Spock

#3: https://edosianorchids901.tumblr.com/post/181806580405/garak-and-julian-in-222-the-wire

[silyabeeodess]

FusionFall Writing Prompts: Oct. 2019, Prompt #2: Part 3

Part 2: https://silyabeeodess.tumblr.com/post/188177587074/fusionfall-writing-prompts-oct-2019-prompt-2 

The first week of tests had gone by swiftly.  Each day, the research participants would wake up to report at Dexlabs or Mandark Industries, stop for lunch, and devote their afternoons either to more testing or filing a personal report to their overseers.  Much of their free time was split between fitness training and watch duty around the borders of Tech Square, but it was still nothing compared to the duties most of them shared on the warfront.  Not even the handful of fusion monsters that managed to get past their first lines of defense were able to break the relative calm.

And now everyone officially had their Spinal-ARCHs back.  Staring in the mirror, Silya smiled.  Due to the extremes of the update, they’d been required to had over the devices at the end of each set of experiments as a cautionary measure and to make small adjustments when needed.  Now that they seemed to be working at full capacity, all of the participants were free to use them in their own time with the condition that they would submit additional reports in turn.

It was a tight squeeze in the half-bath, but Silya had the Big Chill wings extended as far as they could go—with the door slid all the way open to help make room.  She hadn’t taken her Spinal-ARCH off for the day yet.  She didn’t plan to.  She’d use it as much as she was allowed.  Hands on the sloping path of the wings’ outer edges, the young woman continued to admire them—every twitch, every nerve.  It really was like a dream…

She wasn’t the only one taking advantage of things.  Most of the research participants had signed on for independent use of their Spinal-ARCHs, and the few that hadn’t probably only didn’t just because they were feeling ill. Whatever it was—overexcitement, overworking, or just plain bad dreams—a lot of them were having difficulty getting any proper sleep.  Well, they would get a day off soon enough.  She could rest up all she wanted then.  

It was already well past lights out, but a Fusion Fighter’s schedule didn’t necessarily align with anyone in Tech Squares.  Both of the girls sharing her room were up: One reclining on an upper bunk with a pair of headphones over her ears and the other finishing up her report for the day. Eventually though, the latter rose with a yawn, stretched her arms, and walked toward the door.  “I’m getting a drink.  You guys want anything?”

Silya shook her head, following the other’s gaze to their third roommate.  She had to repeat the question when the latter finally took notice, but only received a casual thumb’s up in answer before leaving.  Silya watched them both carefully, then looked back in the mirror again.  Each of their eyes were dark from lack of sleep.  Yes, a day off was just the thing all of them needed: Nothing to do but patrol the borders of Tech Square for a couple hours, final a single report, and then relax.  She had taken a late watch, so she could even sleep in.  

Dexter probably wouldn’t allow it yet, but she couldn’t wait to use her Spinal-ARCH in the field.  Complete flight still seemed like an impossibility as things were now, but the wings were stronger.  She could hover.  She could command them just as well as any other body part.  If they were already an advantage before, simply by being made from Imaginary Energy, who knew what it meant now.  She huffed… It was so tempting; she’d almost give up the day off just for that early chance.

She had deactivated the device and was just about to get ready for bed when, suddenly, the lights went out.  A dull thrum echoed through the walls as both the electricity and air conditioning units shut down.  The building didn’t have emergency lights, so only the faint glow of her roommate’s phone shown against the metal walls.  Both girls looked up with surprise.

A power outage? Both tech companies had their own back-up generators.  She thought for sure that the barracks were connected to at least one of them.  Out of habit, Silya walked over to her bunk and grabbed her belt, all three nanochips securely locked onto it.  She grimaced, forcing herself to calm down.  Her nanos were probably asleep: She wouldn’t wake them up over a small thing like this.  It didn’t stop her from clipping the belt around her hips though.  

The water would still work. Walking back to the half-bath, Silya began to brush her teeth.  She combed and braided her hair for the night.  She moved back to her bunk and sat down.  She waited.

The lights didn’t come back on.  More importantly, an off feeling that she just couldn’t ignore had begun to gnaw at her gut. Tech Square ran like clockwork and, with so many people there, there was no way an outage like this would go unnoticed for long.  In minutes, you could count on someone to check what was wrong and if the problem wasn’t solved by then, then you could expect an android to roll to your door and alert you about the situation.

A few more minutes passed. Their roommate didn’t come back. Except for the muffled music coming from the other girl’s headphones, everything was quiet.  And Silya soon had enough.

“I’m going to see what’s going on,” she said, pushing herself off the bed and over to the door.  She might as well have been talking to herself, but she still continued, “Some idiot probably messed with the power box.”  

That’s what she told herself anyway.  There were some clowns among the research participants: Something like this was just the sort of thing that happened when you mixed them with a bunch of scientists who were too smart for their own good, who could overthink to the point of losing common sense.  It’d be just like them…

Just like their quarters, the hall outside was dark and empty.  There was a window at the far end, but nightfall kept the atmosphere bleak nonetheless.  Looks like all of Tech Square’s gone dark, she noted, as what little light seeped through the window wasn’t even bright enough to illuminate the stairs next to it.  She’d have to find her way around by feel.  A hand pressed against the wall, she began her careful exploration.

Everything was quiet. Most of the others should’ve been asleep, but still… She expected more.  No one stayed on the warfront for long without developing a cautionary nature. For some, the comforts of everyday life became an illusion, because after a while your mind never really left the battlefield.  She didn’t personally think she was that far, but Silya knew a handful of others that were.  So, where were they?

Whether she liked it or not, she got her answer.  Turning the corner to the first half of the first flight of stairs, her foot nudged against a solid mass in the dark.  She squinted down at the form, her muscles stiffening in shock immediately after.  It was a young man with dark hair, sprawled along the stairs.  Without missing a beat, she reached down and checked him over. There were no visible signs that he had fallen, but she didn’t know that: He might’ve hit his head and sustained a brain injury.  

She shook his unconscious form, “Hey!  Hey, you need to get up!”  If he did have brain damage, she would need to get him medical attention immediately –there was no telling how long he’d been lying there!  For a while though, he didn’t stir.

It was when he did finally open his eyes though that was most concerning.  They were solid black with darkened streaks bulging out of them, the irises a disturbing shade of fuchsia.  His mouth pulled back into a leering grin, a twisted chuckle reverberating from his throat, and he grabbed her wrist in a painful hold before she could pull away.  

Stunned, Silya was barely able to keep herself from being thrust down the stairs—grabbing the nearby railing with her free hand, she wrestled against him.  She reactivated her Spinal-ARCH, summoning her wings again and beating them harshly to draw herself further back all while pressing a foot against his chest to launch him away from her.  The boy fell the rest of the way down, hitting his back against the wall.

What was happening?  Is this why there was no one else around? Was this happening to everyone?! She stared down at him as he just picked himself back up with another distorted laugh, as if the fall had meant nothing.  And the terrifying familiarity of those eyes mocked her.  They reminded her of a—!

“Ghostfreak…” she whispered, a cold dread following that realization.

“Well, it seems somebody remembered their homework…” a jeering, masculine voice said.  Not from the boy.  Not from herself—but it was coming from her head!  She backed away.  Without her control, the wings on her back evaporated only to morph into the Ghostfreak tendrils she had been practicing with all week.  “Not that ‘Ghostfreak,’ mind you,” the voice seemed to spit out the nickname, “but you’ve got the right idea.”

Ectonurite DNA… there was Ectonurite DNA in the Spinal-ARCHs!  Albedo must have done it… It didn’t matter how much he injected within the devices, just a shred of it was all it took and now they were probably worming their way into every research participants’ subconscious!  Worse than that though, one more thought entered her mind, a piece of knowledge Vilgax had muttered the last time she had been stationed at Offworld Plaza:

The Ectonurites were allied with Fuse.

As if on cue, a startled, strangled cry echoed in a haunting muffle through the halls.  It was happening to everyone…  She had to get the Spinal-ARCH off!  It was dangerous to remove the device prior to deactivating it, but she didn’t care!  If it addled her brain or left her paralyzed, she wouldn’t allow herself to be used like this!

But it was already too late. Silya’s hands trembled as she and Ectonurite contained within the device fought for control over her body until her arms eventually went limp at her sides.  She opened her mouth to call for help—there had to be at least one person within earshot who wasn’t going through this—but the cry was immediately stifled as her mouth sealed shut for her.

“Shhh… We don’t want to wake anyone, do we?” Twitching, her fingers gingerly traced the edge of her belt, noticeably gliding across her nanochips.  The threat was clear.  They wouldn’t attack her, she knew that, but he wouldn’t hold back: She’d have to play along—for the moment—or her nanos would suffer.  “Normally, I’d take full control of your wretched body, but we must have you looking presentable, don’t we, puppet?  Can’t tip anyone off!”  As if to clarify, her eyes began to sting.  She grimaced.

The young man in front of them wobbled, closing his eyes with a pained groan as the Ectonurite controlling him released some of its own influence.  When he opened them again, the disturbing black and pink had been replaced by an earthy brown.  He stared up at her in confusion, then fear—opening his mouth to speak, but just as quickly silenced.  His body was ridged, twitching as he fought to regain power over himself before he too went limp.

The tendrils on her back coiled in the air for a second, as if stretching, then vanished as her imaginary energy was reabsorbed.  She found herself walking down the stairs to face the other research participant, the two sharing a horrified look before her mouth forcibly pulled back into a cruel grin and her own voice spoke the Ectonurite’s words:

“Get with your unit. Finish this job and you can you do whatever you’d like with your puppet later.”

END OF PART THREE

Part 4: https://silyabeeodess.tumblr.com/post/188659341724/fusionfall-writing-prompts-oct-2019-prompt-2

[sublimegentlemanalpaca]

How many Kings and Queens of Faerie and Elfland to have?

So..in a story I’m writing there are these guys. They’re known as ‘the Eldritch Fellows’(might call them something else) and are...beings that have existed prior to existence. Once existence started they became very interested in things. One devoted himself to abstract and Eldritch Knowledge, one to Items cursed, blessed, and so on, one devoted himself to storms, the Eldritch things in the Ocean and the Undead on top of everything, One made friends with Primordial Darkness...and a bunch of others besides. One of these Fellows, became fascinated with Elves and Fae. So much so that he took the name Alberich and made himself high King of all Fae and Elves. Ruled well, and ruled long. Had his own Court, a Fool, a Knight, and several children...all around very happy. Then one of his Fellows, named Alaric (duller of All) got killed by his subjects. Alberich and his Fellows destroyed Alaric’s kingdoms in retribution (though there were some survivors). After the slaying of Alaric the other Eldritch Fellows decided they would not take on such responsibilities, and never be so involved in things as to be Kings. The closest any since then have gotten to Rulership are Alfr and Aldread who took the roles of a Merlinesque advisor and a John Dee sort of advisor respectively. Back to Alberich, by the consensus of his Fellows he was made to abdicate his role and take on the name Alwin. And here’s where we come to the topic of the title of this post. Alberich decided to pull a King Lear(successfully and without the bs asking how much his kids loved him). Dividing his kingdom among his Children leaving them with the royal duties and running everything, while he gets to move about his old realms as he likes, accompanied by his Corruptor of Words Rosemary, his Best Knight Bertalik, and some 30 knights of Elf and Fae making up the Wild Hunt.. The problem I’m at is the division. So far, I have the idea of splitting it in two (Faerie and Elfland). Faerie being divided among five Daughters. Titania (and her Consort Oberon..who I’m thinking will be a Dark Elf noble. Neither Alwin or any of his Fellows like Oberon). Gloriana (if the Faerie Queen Fame, with her Consort King Arthur (yes that one) Queen Mab. Diana (going by James’ Demonologie) who holds a wandering court. And Queen Nicnevin and her Consort Christonday (a Light Elf?) What I’m stuck on is the rulers of Elfland? Like...I’ll probably have a separation of light and dark...taking influence from Norse Mythology? Might take names from Lord Dunsany’s King of Elfland’s Daughter... Or might just have Diana and Nicnevin be the Queens of Elfland (Diana Light, Nicnevin Dark?)? Might have five Elvin rulers to match the five Fae rulers... And I’m just realizing there’s a bunch of Welsh Mythology and Folklore to draw from with The Welsh Otherworld and stuff... If anyone has any thoughts. Or knows where I could look for info on Elves and stuff... Make of this what you will. Al, the Chronographing Cottager and Prince of Naming

[ladyofthecastleproject]

[Angel of Miracle] 304 - Get into ACTION!!

“It won’t?!” - The Chosen Children and the digimon exclaimed petrified, they didn’t know how to react to Dai saying that.

“No, because without Fiorella, Mimi-san’s self from this world, we cannot get the Core of Purity” - he explained - “I completely forgot I killed her back in time, when I got corrupted…!”

“It’s okay,” - Ken looked at at him - “I’m a murderer too. I killed innocent digimon when I was the Kaiser. I… I understand the pain.”

“We’re aware that this place lost its light and is now doomed by the darkness” - Miyako sighed - “Even with you saying it’s not possible to corrupt us…”

“Excuse me,” - Warlock coughed - “Whatever Lance said about the corruption on you six… Is not certain or true. We never had outsiders before, so we’re not sure what will happen to you.”

“N-now I’m panicked” - Wormmon hid behind Ken’s legs - “Kenchan, let’s go home!!”

“I thought--” - Dai babbled.

“You may be a great mastermind, Lance, but you lack knowledge” - Warlock started to close the manuscripts - “It was my duty to teach you wizardry so you could use it to fight Pandora and seal the darkness.”

“Wow, nice friend you got here, Lance” - Dai said sarcastically.

“If this girl who was Mimi-san’s counterpart is dead, what should we do?” - Hikari seemed concerned - “Aren’t we able to save Lia-san’s world?”

“No, we’re definitely saving this world!” - And here was the goggle boy working at full speed - “There must be some way that exist to make it work…!!”

“You lack knowledge, but you don’t lack willpower” - the mage smiled.

“Warlock, please look at your books and everywhere. Lia, go with Miyako and try to gather Helios and Jason, please. The rest help me to find Sora-san and Koushiro-san from this world.”

“Right!” - everyone replied.

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“Taichi? Taichi!” - Yamato kept asking but the other wasn’t answering anymore - “Did he hang up? No… I still hear their voices…”

Suddenly, the Chosen Child felt something around, but ignored it. No, he needs to talk to Taichi. He heard something ‘she’s gone’. He wasn’t sure what it meant so…

“Taichi! Are you still there?! What happened? Did Koushiro discover something new about the kids? TAICHI! ANSWER ME, YOU--”

“YAMATO-SAN~♥”

Some hands grabbed Yamato’s shoulders by his back and he screamed. That scream echoed for the entire place. When Yamato looked behind him, he saw…

“M-Mimi-chan?!”

“Hello, Yamato-san!” - She smirked - “Did I scare you? Hee hee!”

“I’m on the phone, and… What are you doing here?! Weren’t you--”

“I decided to come visit you eleven!” - she said with excitement - “Where’s the others? Are they doing a party? Didn’t Sora-san tell you I was coming to make a visit? Summer is the best way to have fun with friends, there’s the beach, camping, shopping, and the city too. But I was planning to make a party for the digimon too, maybe we should go to the Digital World and enjoy the day?”

“Mimi-chan, I… We…” - how to tell Mimi that they’re having a little issue regarding the younger ones? - “Let’s talk about it later. I’m trying to talk with Taichi. Something strange happened and he’s not responding me.”

“... What’s wrong?” - she dropped that smile.

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“We can use a gate to go back to Duskstella” – Lia said it to Miyako, as they were walking on the dirt road that leads to the village - “I remember there’s one in the shore.”

“I’m fascinated with this world, Lia-san” - Hawkmon commented - “I wonder how it was before the corruption.”

“It was a nice place” - she started talking about her childhood, before Lance opening Pandora’s box. Miyako was in silence, just watching her partner and Lia interacting lively.

Actually, Miyako was overthinking. Lia Duskstella looks like Hikari, has powers, she can do anything by herself. Why would Dai tell her to go with a person who she didn’t know that well?! Wouldn’t have been better to send Hikari, since they were together before?

“He’s still Daisuke, right?” - Miyako muttered to herself, a bit uncomfortable with the whole situation - “He… He won’t be like this forever, will he? Will he become this ‘past life’ now?”

“Miyako-san?” - Hawkmon gave her a worried gaze - “Are you okay?”

“I… I am…”

“You don’t seem fine to me” - Lia frowned - “Is there something bothering you?”

“I can’t tell them I’m afraid that Daisuke won’t be the same anymore”

“It’s everything perfectly fine!” - She grinned, and saluted - “Haha! Let’s go! Can I offer you a ride? Holsmon is the best horse you can find!”

“Though I’m not a horse...” - Hawkmon felt a sweatdrop running down his head.

“I appreciate your offer, lady Miyako” - Lia giggled.

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“How will we find Sora-san and Koushiro-san from this world?” - Takeru asked - “And is there any other way to use the spell without the Core of Purity?”

“We’re going to make it work. No matter what happens, we gonna make it work!” - Dai was focused and determined - “I have to fix my mistakes, I didn’t want to involve your all… This is my problem.”

“You’re our friend, Dai-san” - Iori responded - “We wouldn’t leave you behind!”

“You did a lot for us” - Ken put his hand on Dai’s shoulder - “You did a lot for me. I’m in debt with you, and this is my time to return the favor.”

“Maybe we should ask Warlock-san and the others” - Iori suggested - “They must know someone who looks like Koushiro-san and Sora-san.”

“But redheads are not uncommon here like in Japan, Iori” - Dai replied - “They can know a lot of people who look like them. It’s not like Helios and Taichi-san, who have that… big natural crown.”

“Crown...?” - Vee tilted his head.

“I meant the hair. It’s unique, it’s like Goku’s hairstyle.”

“Ah…”

“We don’t need go with appearance though” - Ken interrupted - “Warlock-san and I have a few things in common, and I believe Lia-san and Hikari-san have too. What if… We give them exact information about quirks and behaviors that might help with the description?”

“Ken, you’re definitely the boy genius…!”

“I… I prefer to not hear those words anymore. It makes me remind how arrogant and lonely I was...”

“I’m sorry…” - Dai bowed his head, which made the others a bit confused until they remembered that Daisuke wasn’t acting normally at all.

“Okay… this wasn’t Motomiya-kun but Lance-san, right?” - Ken blinked.

“A-anyway, let’s ask! We know a lot about Sora-san and Koushiro-san.”

 “A person who’s… curious?” - Flannery and Amis looked at each other - “There’s a bunch of people in this reign like this” - then they answered.

“He’s a redhead,” - Dai repeated - “always working hard, too curious… Saved our butts several times… Are you sure there’s no one like him in this kingdom?”

“I dunno anyone like this either” - Boniface responded. He was chained to the pillar of the castle, being watched by the wolf and the guardian - “H-hey, don’t you think they exaggerated a little… Why chaining me?!” - he was glancing at the five Chosen Child.

“Because you’re dangerous, inmate!” - Flannery gritted her teeth.

“Don’t you think they went too far?” - Ken whispered to Dai - “Since we captured him, his behavior and mood changed drastically.”

“I don’t trust him” - Dai looked away - “I don’t trust a blond guy like him.”

“Daisuke-kun!” - Hikari snorted.

“A-ah, I’m sorry-- I mean, I trust Takeru but not HIM. He tried to kill me! And you!”

“Warlock-san” - Iori was too busy seeing a few photos in the library. One of them caught the little kid’s attention - “This person looks like a friend of ours” - then he pointed at it - “Who’s he?”

“Who?” - the other Chosen frowned, then looked to the picture Iori was asking about - “Koushiro-san?!”

“Ah?” - Warlock stopped reading and adjusted his glasses, then he replied - “That’s my big brother, Diomedes. He’s the prince of Scientia Terra. Our family has this branch where a few of us are wizards… And some are devoted to the knowledge. Don’t you remember of him, Lance? You met him once.”

“Koushiro-san from this world is Warlock-san’s big brother?!” - Ken was completely lost.

“Did I?” - Dai blinked - “Oh wait… Hmm… Was that time you had to give me a name and you used ‘Dai’ because Lance Duskstella could’ve given you troubles to keep me in Scientia Terra? Ah yes, as far as I remember… He’s very Koushiro-ish.”

“Can we call him, Warlock-san?” - Hikari asked.

“We don’t talk that much… Like I said, he’s obsessed with learning about the world and how it works. I’m the one who decided to follow the wizardry path of our family. I meet him only when is needed, because I prefer to stay studying and learning spells.”

“This is an emergency!” - Dai said - “What if I go there? I can try to call him so he could come help us.”

“I’m…”

“If you don’t try, then our world will be forever doomed! And I didn’t get this second chance for nothing!”

“Fine…” - Warlock sighed - “You convinced me. I will call Diomedes, it won’t take that much time” - he left the Library. During that time, Ken decided to talk to Boniface again.

“You are not an enemy at all” - Ken began - “I can make them free you if you cooperate with us. Do we have a deal?”

“I’m not sure if I have other option” - Boniface sighed - “Sure, I will help. I’m willing to help to compensate for all the grief and sorrow I caused.”

“Why would he help us?” - Dai stopped behind Ken - “I don’t think he knows something--”

“You said a person named Sienna sent you to kill Lia-san” - Ken said seriously - “Could you describe her?”

“What do you plan to do, outsider?” - Boniface bit his lips.

“Sienna…” - Dai repeated - “You must be kidding…!! Sienna wouldn’t do that! She was like a big sister to me! She wouldn’t-- No she--”

“She never liked Lia Duskstella for all the suffering she caused to the country and especially for your death. I lived with her once Purezza got destroyed. Since we shared the same pain I… Promised to revenge her and Purezza.”

“... I’m sorry. This is all my fault. Because I opened the box and released this evil in this world…” - Dai clenched his fist again - “Sienna… I don’t have too many memories of her at the moment…”

“Okay,” - Ken interrupted him - “Could you please describe her?”

“She’s a brave woman who loves everyone and the life” - Boniface started to describe that ‘Sienna’ - “short red hair, a skin a bit tan, a lovely gaze…”

“Wow, his description is like Sora-san’s” - Hikari commented.

“SORA-SAN!” - Dai screamed - “The strange dreams…!! I’ve seen a woman who looked like Sora-san and she was with Taichi-san in a dream… I remember…!! Those were Sienna and Helios! It was a memory!”

“This means we discovered who has the Core of Love?” - Armadimon asked. “Most likely” – Tailmon commented. “So now we have to find her, right?” - Patamon questioned.

“Look, Sienna will kill Lia if you put them in the same place” - Boniface explained - “She hates her. For losing a fianceé, for losing Lance, for having her country ruled by a monster--”

“Lia is NOT a monster!” - Dai roared - “If you have someone to hate, put the blame on me! All those shouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t opened that box!”

“We can protect everyone from Sienna” - Amis pointed at him with his thumb - “We have another pair of chains too.”

“Chaining her won’t solve anything!!” - Boniface screamed.

“Can’t we tell her it’s not Lia-san’s fault at all?” - Takeru suggested - “B-But I don’t think Lance-san was the one to blame. The darkness used him as well.”

“I dunno how would Sienna react when she sees me” - Dai confessed - “She might… not believe me.”

“I’m sorry for the wait” - Warlock returned - “I contacted Diomedes, but he’s with king Helios at this moment.”

“... I will help you to find something about the spell” - Dai announced - “the others free Boniface and try to bring Sienna here.”

“I… want to stay” - Hikari looked down - “If Sienna-san hates Lia-san so much, she will mistake me with Lia-san.”

“Takeru cannot go either” - Dai added - “Maybe you two could go get Zuzen with Flannery. Ken, Amis and Boniface go get Sienna. Iori, Warlock and I stay here and keep looking for another way to complete the enchant.”

“Right…!!” - they all agreed.

“Daisuke-san is acting like a true leader” - Iori smiled.

“Lance was a natural leader as well,” - commented Warlock - “I assume sir Daisuke is the leader in your group?”

“Most likely” - he responded - “Taichi-san and him lead the group, without them we could’ve been lost.”

[the-hunters-rebel-heart]

Those who do not learn from history are bound to repeat it. Those who do not preserve history are bound to repeat it. Those who do not examine history are bound to repeat it. We are heading toward a repeat. Neither side remembers what the Civil War was about. White Supremacists claim it was white Supremacy and Slavery. African Americans believe it was freedom for them. We need to remember. We need to study. For the North, it was about Reunification. For the South, it was states rights. People think the Civil War was based on race and freedom from the institutions of racism and slavery? We’re heading toward a Race War because we’ve all forgotten. This will be the mother of all Civil Wars. It’ll be white against black, husband against wife, brother against brother, father against son, mother against daughter, brother against sister, cousin against cousin, father against daughter, mother against son. Do some research. Educate yourselves, because it seems no one remembers what any of it was about. Yes slavery was made illegal. I am proud of this. Yes, the Civil Rights Movement was a wonderful thing that happened that we should all be proud of. Yes, White Supremacists are a bunch of animals that need their heads examined. Yes White Supremacy should be considered a psychiatric disorder in my opinion with mandatory psychotherapy. But please, do some research. Stop taking down the monuments. The problem is, people today have no understanding of the Civil War and it is ruining America, not making it great again.

To quote Abraham Lincoln (there are more quotes, many of them talking about ending slavery, but these ones go to the heart of his campaign and his frame of mind when he started his presidency and the war broke out - I’m not out to demonize a good man. I just want the record straight. I’m glad he did the emancipation proclamation... but that declaration was NOT what feed the slaves... it was an amendment to the constitution.. an amendment that he was paramount in getting created and passed and I thank him for that - we all should.)....

“My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that. What I do about slavery, and the colored race, I do because I believe it helps to save the Union; and what I forbear, I forbear because I do not believe it would help to save the Union. I shall do less whenever I shall believe what I am doing hurts the cause, and I shall do more whenever I shall believe doing more will help the cause." The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln edited by Roy P. Basler, Volume V, "Letter to Horace Greeley" (August 22, 1862), p. 388. 

http://rogerjnorton.com/Lincoln95.html

I am a little uneasy about the abolishment of slavery in this District, not but I would be glad to see it abolished, but as to the time and manner of doing it. --March 24, 1862 Letter to Horace Greeley  http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/slavery.htm

Lincoln may have been against slavery, but he had no intentions of freeing slaves at the start of the war! He decided to free them after all out war broke out, and that was in the weeks leading up to the emancipation proclamation. It weighed on his heart. I am glad he ended slavery, but please, look at history a little more closely.

I am glad slavery is over. I am glad for equal rights. I want to see tolerance and love and brotherhood... but we must also consider the other side, the generals who fought for the south....

these are quotes by Robert E Lee which shows his memory is getting unnecessary flack and hate, and people should be ashamed of themselves! on both sides. http://www.azquotes.com/author/8660-Robert_E_Lee

So far from engaging in a war to perpetuate slavery, I am rejoiced that Slavery is abolished. I believe it will be greatly for the interest of the South. So fully am I satisfied of this that I would have cheerfully lost all that I have lost by the war, and have suffered all that I have suffered to have this object attained. 

There is a terrible war coming, and these young men who have never seen war cannot wait for it to happen, but I tell you, I wish that I owned every slave in the South, for I would free them all to avoid this war. 

There are few, I believe, in this enlightened age, who will not acknowledge that slavery as an institution is a moral and political evil. 

With all my devotion to the Union, and the feeling of loyalty and duty of an American citizen, I have not been able to make up my mind to raise my hand against my relative, my children, my home. I have, therefore, resigned my commission in the Army... 

Do these seem like the words of a man who was evil? Do these sound like the words of a white supremacist? Lee did not care for slavery and wanted it ended. he fought for the south simply because that was where he was from!

This is what I mean by the war has been convoluted by both sides. Until we come together as a nation and learn from history, learn about brotherhood, learn about freedom... both sides of this racial fight can kiss my ass.

Robert E. Lee’s beliefs are why I like and fly the southern flag - because it did not start out as a symbol of hate. I fly it in memory of a man who rebelled and bucked convention at the time and stood up for his friends and family. I FLY IT IN MEMORY OF A MAN WHO WAS ANTISLAVERY.

Everyone forgets that most of the Southern Generals shared Lee’s views, and yet people are demonizing them, because they have forgotten.

Lincoln was a good president. Lincoln did a lot of good. Lincoln was amazing. He was antislavery, yes, during his entire life... but he understood the economics of the south.

Lee was happy to say good riddance to slavery.

These men were almost all against slavery... but we forget that simply because the south had slavery.

White supremacists have turned the flag into a symbol of hate, which is not what it is to me, and is not what it is to the majority of southerners and those who understand what the war was about.

Did slavery play a roll in the war? Yes. Was it mostly about slavery? No. it was a piece of a larger puzzle, and both sides have forgotten this, and that is what is going to bring us to blows, and is going to bring us to another Civil War. This time, it will be a free for all, and it will not matter which side you take, you will be targeted based on the color of your skin. This scares me and is not a future I want to see.

This is a warning. Remember the past, or you are doomed to repeat it on a larger, more horrible scale.

Educate yourselves. Knowledge is power. Quote Robert E. Lee to those white supremacists. You’ll piss them off royally, and it’ll embarrass the hell out of them.

Fight them by educating them about their so called white supremacist heroes... it’ll embarrass the hell out of them.

That flag was not born on hate, it is an original symbol of of standing up for your rights.

Dicks like white supremacists screwed it up. You want to get rid of the hatred associated with the flag? Then if you aren’t white, and even if you are, fly the damned thing with pride. and quote Robert E. Lee.. because several of the main men who flew that flag were glad to see slavery gone. Slavery was on its way out either way you looked at it. Slavery was ending, and would have ended if the succession was successful or not. it was a matter of time.

Show those white supremacists that their so called hero was on your side, not theirs.

Educate yourselves, and then educate those damned pale pigs... actually, they give a bad name to pigs and pigs don't even deserve that... they [white supremacists] are a flesh eating virus on the Human Race.

Sorry this is so long... but I didn’t know how to mince the words.

God Bless America, Death to Racism, Death to White Supremacy! Let equality be a child born between brothers and sisters of the human race... but we cannot do that until we remember the past.