#also who's fucking enforcing this? is it the shinigami king? is the power of the rules vested in the shinigami king? is he the source of th

[corviiids]

genuinely so sorry to slide into your dm's like this, not sure that this is proper tumblr etiquette, etc., but i just got so excited when i read in your sayu-gets-the-death-note ask that you've been trying to talk yourself out of doing an entire statutory interpretation of the manga death note rules because i've been trying to talk myself out doing an entire metaphysical interpretation of the manga death note rules, so... if you, like me, simply cannot talk yourself out of a stupid idea once it sinks its claws in your brain and would at some point like to share notes about I THINK one of the sexiest and most broken parts of this series, i'd be delighted.

oh my god dont apologise im just excited a single person on earth besides me is interested in a pseudo-legal (very pseudo) perspective on the death note rules. high fives you. for the most part im just incredibly impressed that they manage to retain so much internal consistency especially since so many of them have the vibe of, like, random amendments which were included just for funsies. it's incredible they don't overtly contradict each other. ive been obsessed with them since i first saw them and have already spent way too much time reading over them but yeah i'd honestly love to dig into them more. HTR13 does organise them into something closer to Parts or Divisions which makes the structure a little more coherent. it drives me nuts that sometimes a numbered rule will have sub-provisions that have absolutely nothing to do with each other. drafting that gives me a stress migraine

[tozettastone]

https://www.tumblr.com/tozettastone/756522555391754240/if-nnoitra-had-a-child-the-fic-would-be-so-short?source=share

how bout espada ranked by child rearing skills? >:D >:D >:D

This is with reference (I assume) to this post about the Akatsuki . Here you go:

ESPADA AS RANKED BY PARENTING SKILLS

10. Yammy

Yammy is a simple creature. He sees something small and defenceless, he eats something small and defenceless. Next.

9. Aaroniero Arruruerie

Aaroniero likes to fuck with people. As his child, you will grow up in the dark, where he's at his most powerful. You will also be the person least capable of escaping his cruel games.

He will not kill you, because as yet you have no powers worth taking, but popular games of your childhood include "complete impossible tasks in unlikely time limits or I'll kill the one (1) friend you made," and "the person you've been speaking to for a month was actually Aaroniero in disguise for the last 8 days."

If you live, you will grow up to be so untrusting as to be basically nonfunctional in a normal society.

8. Nnoitra Gilga

You are fucked. Yeah, sure, Nnoitra is a complex character with comprehensible motives and a paper ego propped up by his raging insecurities, but you won't get the opportunity to see any of that. He's not one of these characters who enjoys the thrill of the fight or secretly wants to explore meaningful relationships.

Nnoitra likes to hurt things for the sake of hurting things, and even if he holds off out of curiosity for a while, if you cry too loud, he will punt you into the stratosphere.

Your best chance of survival is that Tesla decides you're a miniature expression of the grand majesty of his master and takes care of you — at least until Nnoitra's raging insecurities make him jealous of a toddler.

Nnoitra is this high on the list because of Tesla. But Tesla will still kill you if he's told to. And Nnoitra will tell him to, if he suspects Tesla has a single positive feeling about you.

7. Baraggan Louisenbairn

The god-king of Hueco Mundo does not have the time or attention for you. A child is, philosophically speaking, just the pupal state of a spirit, already committed to growth and decline and rot and disintegration.

He will get his fraccion to look after you. They're not particularly interested in your wellbeing, either, except in that Baraggan has determined you should survive for now. But survival is a pretty low bar. And Baraggan could change his mind whenever he feels like it.

6. Szayelaporro Granz

Szayelaporro's concept of paternal affection means expanding his self regard to include someone who reminds him of himself. So you'd better work very, very hard at reminding Szayelaporro of the idealised version of himself that exists only in his own head.

This, reader, is a problem.

If you're perfect, he will be jealous, and every effort you make to please him will be met with harsher and harsher criticism as he takes it more and more personally. If you're not perfect — and you will inevitably fall short of his standards eventually — he will be disappointed in you and will remind you that defective children get eaten. Sometimes he will (scalpel in hand) declare that your faultiness needs physical investigation.

You will spend your childhood doing uneasy mental gymnastics and trying to figure out what outcome will hurt less. Go stay with Uncle Yylfordt. He can't (and won't) protect you from Szayel, but sometimes out of sight is out of mind.

5. Zommari Rureaux

Zommari is, in most cases, pretty calm. He's proud and he has a few berserk buttons, but since you're his kid, not some murderous rampaging shinigami, you probably won't push any of them.

He's an extremely strict parent, requiring the same total obedience from a child as he himself gives to Aizen, and he enforces that obedience with casual and disinterested violence. Don't fight your dad. Don't rebel. Don't ask questions. He will kill you and not even blink. He doesn't feel that deeply about you. Anyway, I hope you like meditating in total silence.

4. Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez

You can live with Grimmjow in a state of relatively benign neglect for YEARS. If you beat up the other kids he'll pat you on the head and tell you good job, but he's not really interested in you as a person until and unless you become capable of challenging him in single combat.

Grimmjow is a violent character, but, unlike a lot of the characters on this list, he enjoys the challenge of fighting more than just watching someone weaker than him cry. He wants the chase and the struggle much more than he wants the kill. Grimmjow will not kick a defenceless child around because it makes him feel better about himself. He has enough confidence in his own identity and power that destroying something weak would be pointless to him.

So you should definitely fight your dad so you can get to understand one another... eventually. This is still not an ideal childhood, obviously, but he's my vote for No. 4.

3. Ulquiorra Cifer

As a parent, Ulquiorra offers you a few advantages: he's scarier than 96% of the other arrancar, his temper is rock solid, he is incredibly patient, and he solves problems with violence but does not, strictly speaking, enjoy violence. He's also shown a very deep interest in the concept of interpersonal affection ("the heart") if not in its execution, which suggests that he may be capable of becoming emotionally attached.

If you manage to make Ulquiorra attached to you, then your childhood will be emotionally stunted and weird as fuck, but probably not much worse than the childhood of anyone else you know. External factors — like living in proximity to Nnoitra and Yammy — will be much more dangerous to your health than Ulquiorra himself.

On the other hand, he may reject his own emotional attachment and say you need to stand on your own, in which case you are, and this is the technical term, "big fucked."

2. Coyote Starrk

This will go one of three ways. One, you are strong enough to hang out with him. Two, you will die horribly from proximity to Starrk's overwhelming reiatsu. Three, you will have to leave and never return.

Options two and three are not worth dwelling on. They're bad ends. If you are strong enough to survive him, Starrk is an extremely tolerant if negligent parent. He doesn't much care what you do but he wants your company. He is the only character on this list who will give you a hug if you ask for one.

Having someone to talk to who isn't just a psychic manifestation of his own loneliness will make him less depressed, though, so sometimes he will actually be willing to do activities with you. And he's one of the few on this list who really won't hurt you, even when you're annoying him. No, not even when you're a teenager. And that's why he's No. 2.

1. Tier Harribel

If you're allowed to choose your parents, choose Harribel. She takes to child-rearing with a distant but steady attention. Your needs are met, right up until she decides it's time for you to learn how to meet your own needs, at which moment she will show you what to do... once.

She will placidly supervise you doing suicidally stupid shit and pull you out of danger at the last possible second. Did you learn anything? Yes? Good. Don't do it again.

Her fraccion will swing wildly between cooing over you, courting your favour as a way to attract Harribel's attention, and trying to get rid of you as a way to stop her paying attention to you. No matter how many times they try to leave you behind, poison you, suffocate you with their reiatsu or straight-up stab you, Harribel will not permit it to happen.

Don't worry about it. You'll be fine. She's kept her dumb fraccion alive this long, and she'll keep you alive too if it kills her.

[wormboytrav]

death note analysis: shinigami eyes

Let’s talk about the Shinigami eyes: specifically, in regards to Beyond Birthday. 

Theory 1: Beyond Birthday is the child of a Shinigami.

The only reason I’m writing this whole thing is because I went down a rabbit hole today reading Death Note Volume 13, the encyclopedia volume which has interviews with the creators and clarifies a few things. One pretty important thing mentioned is that “There are male and female Shinigami, but it is neither permitted nor possible for them to have sexual relations with humans. They also cannot have sex with each other.” This, and some other further clarification that reproduction specifically is impossible, make it pretty unlikely in my opinion that B is the child of a Shinigami. I do find the wording interesting, though, that Shinigami aren’t “permitted” to have sex with humans. This implies that it’s against the law for them, but it’s never clarified where it is on the one-to-nine scale of severity they use. What I find interesting is that in order for there to be a law against it, it might have happened in the first place. In the a-Kira One Shot, the Shinigami King creates a new rule in response to Minoru Tanaka selling the notebook: “A human who buys or sells the Death Note in the human world will die.” The wording for this law is also very interesting because of the implication that A. the Shinigami King or some other Shinigami watches humans and enforces these laws or B. the Shinigami King can somehow affect how every Death Note works just by making a decision, but that’s a conversation for another day. The point is, we know that the Shinigami King will make something illegal if he doesn’t like it, and that Shinigami having sex with humans is illegal. This doesn’t necessarily mean that it happened, though, and I still don’t think it’s likely that Beyond Birthday is the child of a Shinigami. At the very least, that might imply that the Shinigami King had every Shinigami castrated after he was born, which is pretty fucked up.

Theory 2: A Shinigami dropped/lost their eyes.

In chapter 6 of Another Note, Mello offers his own explanation for B’s eyes: “The closest thing to an explanation I can offer is that, if there are Shinigami stupid enough to drop their notebooks in our world, so there might well be Shinigami stupid enough to drop their eyes.” This is probably a joke, but it’s worth considering. Shinigami are punished when they break the law. The punishment scales from eight, the lowest, to one, the second highest, and an additional extreme level (Volume 13 mentions that a Shinigami killing a human without using the Death Note is punished at this level). Shinigami who have committed crimes from levels three to extreme are punished and killed. The key word there is “and.” Even with how stupid the Shinigami are sometimes portrayed, I don’t think they’d set up a legal system where all criminals die but only the worst ones are punished before death, it makes much more sense to assume that all criminals are punished and only the worst are killed AND punished. So what counts as a punishment? The only Shinigami that we see killed are (spoiler alert) Gelus and Rem, who both die after lengthening the lifespan of a human that they loved. The thing is, we see them die, and it doesn’t seem like they’re punished at all. They just dissolve into Shinigami powder. Is the cause of death itself painful, or is there some sort of pain induced when breaking the law that is indiscernible from an outside point of view? It really depends on how powerful (or motivated) the Shinigami King is, I guess, so we really don’t know. But let’s say, hypothetically, a Shinigami was punished by being blinded. This is also a death penalty in itself, as a Shinigami that can’t find new humans to kill will run out of lifespan eventually, so let’s say this punishment is only something done to Shinigami who break laws from level three to extreme. In order for Beyond Birthday to have gotten the eyes of an executed Shinigami, I suppose they’d have to still be in working condition, meaning not gouged out or anything. Either way, this doesn’t explain HOW he got them. Mello clarifies that he’s had them since birth, and I don’t know how one would go about transferring the powers from some magical eyes you found on the ground to your unborn fetus. The train of logic stops there, so I don’t think it’s likely that B would have gotten the eyes from a Shinigami that didn’t consent on their own. This rules out the Shinigami losing their eyes and dropping it into the human world by accident as well, in my opinion.

Theory 3: A Shinigami gave him the eyes willingly.

Personally, this is the theory I find most plausible, which is funny, because it’s also the one with the least explanation. There’s the old adage from Sherlock: once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth. Meaning, if a Shinigami can’t pass down it’s eyes genetically and a human can’t recover the lost eyes of a Shinigami for personal use, then the only way for a human to gain a Shinigami’s eyes (bar the deal) is for the Shinigami to willingly grant them the power (Of course, this is assuming there is no secret option that I just haven’t come up with, but bear with me here). So let’s assume that it’s the truth. The question becomes: how does a Shinigami grant a human its eyes without making the deal, and why? Also, who? A lot of people mention Armonia Justin Beyondormason when talking about Beyond Birthday because of the similarity in their names, and Nu because she’s literally all eyes. I think it would be interesting if Justin did it, because he’s basically the Shinigami that knows the rules the best. It would be interesting if he had been testing the rules, seeing what was and wasn’t against the law. The thing is, he doesn’t really have the eyes to spare. Nu does, and she’s also the Shinigami numbered 13 (which doesn’t really mean much, but then again, neither does Justin’s name including the word beyond). One interesting thing about Nu is that she’s the second most powerful recorded Shinigami. It could simply be that her combination of extra eyes and esoteric power allowed her to, for some reason, grant an unborn child the eyesight of a Shinigami. So, because I don’t really have an explanation why this can’t be possible, I think it’s the most probable solution. I have no idea how Nu hypothetically gave B her eyes, or why, though.

Theory 4 (Bonus!): B doesn’t have the Shinigami eyes

I’ll be honest, I didn’t even consider this until I came across this post by casuistor, which is really interesting and you should definitely read it because anything I have to say on the matter is already said there. In short, Mello is an unreliable narrator, and the murders B committed wouldn’t technically be impossible without the Shinigami eyes.

And that’s it! If you’re satisfied you can stop reading here, but I still have a little more to say on the matter. If we run with the theory that Nu gave B two of her eyes on purpose, what kind of connection does that make between them? Namely, does that count as Nu possessing B as other Shinigami possess their respective Death Note owners?

The technical answer is no, because humans that are possessed by a Shinigami cannot be killed by a Death Note. This is a rule mentioned in the Volume 13 section on the Shinigami eyes, funnily enough. “By gaining ownership of a Death Note, an individual not only gains the ability to kill but also cannot be killed by a Death Note.” This is basically there to explain why Death Note users can’t see their own (or other Death Note users’) lifespans. The book also clarifies that other Shinigami cannot kill a human with a Shinigami attached to them (this makes Rem threatening Light very funny, I wonder if she knew). So I thought, that doesn’t sound right, and I looked up which owners of the Death Note had actually been killed by the notebook itself, and not by their respective Shinigami. Only two of them: Kyosuke Higuchi and Kal Snyder. There’s another rule about thieves gaining ownership of a notebook by killing the owner, presumably with their own notebook. Light kills both Higuchi and Snyder, who both owned the notebook that Ryuk got from Sidoh. Light was the original human owner of this notebook, and the clipping he used to kill Higuchi was most likely from that notebook. In Snyder’s case, Light killed him when he had easier access to both Rem and Gelus’ notebooks, but it isn’t impossible for him to have had a page of Sidoh’s notebook to use considering he’d had it around for the past five years. There’s also Mikami, who might have been killed by Near or one of his employees, but we know the only notebook they had access to was the one that he owned, so the rule would hold up there too. So, theoretically, the rule that humans possessed by a Shinigami are immune to the notebook unless it’s a thief using their own notebook against them is plausible. This is just barely relevant, because B is killed by the notebook (or a really poorly-timed natural heart attack), so that means Nu couldn’t have been possessing him in any way. That doesn’t necessarily mean she didn’t give him his eyes, I guess, it just means she dropped them and dipped. 

I am so normal about Death Note and all of its affiliated materials

[diepower]

THE BIG BLEACH HC MEME centering around politics, repost & fill out! For anyone who wanted to explore those aspects more, considering it played a big role in the story. Some things may be unknown to your Muse, just think in WHAT IF then & well, have fun and take your time!

BASICS

Name:   Meninas McAllon    / / /    Age:   1000+ years    / / /    Gender:   nonbinary woman Race:   Shinigami / Quincy / Hollow / Fullbringer / Visored / Human / Other Currently lives: (verse dependent) Soul Society / Hueco Mundo / Silbern / Living World / Hell Exact Location: again, verse dependent, but Silbern in general and then Squad 12th’s basement in her CFYOW verse... haven’t quite ironed out all the details of her post-canon AU beyond that it’s set in the Living World, though Group(s): Wandenreich, Shinigami (specifically Squad 12 and not by choice)

QUESTIONS

- Would your muse consider themselves more: GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL ? - Would your muse consider their group more: GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL ? - How does your muse think others see them: GOOD / EVIL / NEUTRAL ? - How does your muse think others see their race: GOOD / EVIL / NEUTRAL ? - How does your muse think others see their group: GOOD / EVIL / NEUTRAL ?

- Is your muse considered a threat: YES / NO ?   By whom?:  Soul Society - Is your muse powerful: YES / NO ?  Could they be considered OP:  YES / NO ? - Did your muse any crimes: YES / NO ? - Does your muse think they are doing mostly the right thing: YES / NO ? - Would society think the same: YES / NO / MIXED OPINIONS ?

- Does your muse think they are treated unfairly: YES / NO ? - Does your muse feel understood from others: YES / NO ? - Is it important for them what others think of them as a person: YES / NO ? - Would they welcome death:  YES / NO ? - Will they ever find peace:  YES / NO ?

01.0.  Do they fully stand behind the group they are part of? YES / NO. Why is that? Explain: To Meninas, the Wandenreich are a means to an end; a way for her to be placed in a position where she might exact her revenge on Soul Society for the deaths of her parents during the original Quincy genocide 1000 years prior. In addition, being recruited into the Wandenreich also puts her in a closer position to Yhwach himself, whom she firmly believes is equally responsible for the deaths of her parents due to his ineptitude as a leader and “god”. She has no loyalty to Quincy as a race, and only greater purpose is to become the Strongest of all Quincy (not even particularly the “Strongest Quincy”, as she prefers her fists over traditional Quincy techniques). She is exclusively motivated by her own personal sense of justice, and will do whatever she must to attain it.

02.0.  Do they like as things are in Soul Society? YES / NO. 02.1.  Is there anything they would change? Explain here: Soul Society is a corrupt government body that uses methods of fear, torture, and suppression to uphold their very self-serving ideals of justice. Already armed with this perception, Meninas also sees this firsthand while captive to Mayuri Kurotsuchi and must personally carry out such tactics firsthand. While she doesn’t in the fullest capacity know how to change Soul Society because the root of evil is much deeper than anyone would think, she believes that a number of practices and traditions and captains ought to be destroyed; torn out, root and stem. She also hates the nobility that control many of the policies and buy their way into the Gotei ranks. Those who fight and do the work have earned their place at the top, those who do nothing and hoard their wealth while watching those at the bottom suffer have no place in policy making, regulation, or enforcement.

03.0. Would they ever actively try to bring change (in general)? YES / NO. 03.1. Is your muse more: passive / active ?  Introverted / Extroverted ? 03.2. Does your muse care more about: others / themselves ? 03.3. Do they trouble their mind over a lot of problems, others? YES / NO. 03.4. Do they mostly involve: the world / everyone / themselves / comrades / friends / family / elderly / kids / teenagers / home / workplace / strangers / souls / humans / quincy / shinigami / nobles / fullbringer / visored / hollows / espada / arrancar / (former) boss(es) / pets / animals / zanpakuto spirit / enemies / partner / lover(s) / soul king / god / other…(add more) 03.5. Name (up to) three which are the most on their mind (optional, adding names): - her parents in that her original goal was to get revenge against yhwach and soul society for their roles in the Quincy genocide; she cannot remember their faces anymore, but its her memory that they existed at all that drives her actions - bazz-b in that she and him have an established partnership and plot to commit deicide together, and have been keeping this partnership going for the better part of the last 1000 years under the guise that they’re a very messy and very stupid pair of lovers with a loud and destructive relationship. a long time ago, she swore to help bring about the future of the world he envisioned, and her loyalty has not shaken. - the other femritters- giselle in particular being as young as she is, and meninas harbors a strong guilt for recruiting her into the wandenreich (despite being under orders from yhwach). though on the surface their relationship is rife with bickering and light-hearted contempt, she specifically tries to watch out for giselle. - the nobility (not for any particular race, just in general) as she despises those who claim dominion over the others due to circumstances of wealth or fortunate circumstance without actually doing anything to aid the suffering of those below

04.0. Do they think frequently about politics? YES / NO / SOMETIMES. Why is that? Explain: Most of Meninas’ thoughts are politic-focused, although this perhaps isn’t something she herself is aware of, if that makes sense. Most of her thoughts are “it seems to me that this is the way the world is, where it ought to be this other way and I will help to shape it in that image with my own two hands”. 

05.0. How do they feel in their current location, more: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ? 05.1. Why is that?:  This goes for pretty much all locations/bases in her life after leaving her childhood home at the age of 12- she doesn’t regard anywhere as home as much as shelter. She doesn’t like Silbern, but grows used to it over time (hence the neutrality), but is miserable while trapped in Soul Society.

06.0. Does your muse have any goal: YES / NO ?  BIG / SMALL ? 06.1. Does it involve anything world-changing: YES / NO ? 06.2. If goal or not, any future plans? Share here:  She despises the class differences between the weird racist blood purity and nobility schemes of the Quincy to Nobility in any of its forms and greatly begrudges those of high noble status. While she does a good job at hiding this disdain while residing in Silbern and around large numbers of Quincy elite (in wealth and breeding), she resents most of them for what they are. Her young life was shaped by the perception of a person’s worth in the world ruled by pedigree and wealth, and she as a result that a person’s worth is dependent on how useful they are as a tool or object to others. She wants to live in a world where those currently at the bottom stand at the top, and those in power are beneath their feet. As far as plans, she’s spent her entire life living with the purpose of revenge, and acting as a tool or an object. Meninas struggles to reconcile this way of life with any dreams for living in any normal capacity.

07.0. Does your muse know about the original sin of soul society*: YES / NO ? * curious? Read about it here. 07.1. If they knew, would it change their views on Soul Society: YES / NO ? 07.2. More: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ?

08.0. Who is the worst person in their eyes?:  Yhwach, Yamamoto, all of Soul Society 08.1. What should happen to them?  Execution (quick / slow death) / Imprisonment / Stripped of their powers / Torture / Repay for their sins / Pay a Fine / Social Work / lose their loved ones / Exile / other… (add more). 08.2. Explanation:  Frustrating as it is that she can’t force Yhwach to watch his loved ones die because she believes he lacks the capacity for feeling in that regard, she wants him to die quickly and without much thought. No power-stripping, no long drawn out torture, just something to end it all. Soul Society should be stripped of its powers to recognize the cruelty of their dominion and ideals imposed upon all realms.

09.0. Thoughts on the Quincy Massacre if they knew: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ? 09.1. Would they be alright with such thing happening again: YES / NO / INDIFFERENT ? 09.2. Would they try to prevent it: YES / NO / DEPENDS ? 09.3. Explanation: Regardless of how self-focused her goals may appear, she doesn’t want to create a world where more children have to go through what she did.

10.0. Would they ever switch sides: YES / NO ?  10.1. If yes, What could bring them to do so?:    - 10.2. Would they create a new one: YES / NO ?  or join a current one? If so, which: Meninas is now and forever on Meninas’ side.

11.0. Does your muse follow a certain moral code*?:  YES / NO / GRAY AREA ? * (ethics) A written, formal, and consistent set of rules prescribing righteous behavior, accepted by a person or by a group of people. 11.1. What does it involve?: discrimination based on real world (not manga world) issues like racism, homophobia, transphobia, etc shes not a good person but shes not a piece of shit 11.2. What does it NOT involve?: shes cool with murder, torture, manipulation, plotting to kill god. very much “the end justifies the means” for the sake of her ideals  

YOUR MUSE’S VIEWS / OPINIONS ON THESE GROUPS ?

Central 46:   positive / negative / neutral.   ━   because: corrupt government that doesnt actually go out on the front lines and have no fucking idea what theyre talking about

Four Great Noble Clans:   positive / negative / neutral.   ━   because: she hates rich people and also its their fault the world is the way it is

Royal Guards / Gotei 13:   positive / negative / neutral .   ━   because: corrupt military upholding their own self serving ideals of justice and righteousness. its hubris that makes them call themselves “shinigami- death gods”. theyre not gods, theyre pathetic people in places of power

Fullbringer:   positive / negative / neutral.   ━   because:  truly doesnt care

Visored:   positive / negative / neutral.   ━   because:  theyre shinigami AND hollows so extra disgusting

Espada:   positive / negative / neutral.   ━   because:  hollows are poisonous. she is not a fan

Quincy:   positive / negative / neutral.   ━   because:  the mission is cool, the culture and weird blood purity bullshit with noble lineage is fucked up. she only isn’t completely spiteful because being a quincy herself affords her more power to become stronger, and she loves her parents. overall, she doesnt feel the same loyalty to her kind that others do

YOUR MUSE’S VIEWS / OPINIONS ON THESE (IMPORTANT) PEOPLE ?

Aizen:   positive / negative / neutral.   ━   because:  cool that he wanted to revolutionize SS, lame that he relied on hollow power, lamer still that he lost. also, she doesnt like men who talk too much.

Yhwach:   positive / negative / neutral.   ━   because:  she sees his ineptitude as a leader and failed god figure just as responsible for her parents’ deaths as soul society. his hubris as a god is just as deplorable as soul society’s itself, it just so happens hes the one who gave her more ability to get her revenge

Mayuri:   positive / negative / neutral.   ━   because:  the daten already described him as disgusting, esp detailing his torture on subjects he found to be particularly interesting. Meninas especially hates him after becoming his prisoner in CFYOW following the war. he performed surgery on both her and candice, claiming to have filled their bodies with bombs in order to force them to comply. he took a special interest in the unique state of meninas’ body and muscle density, and as such, there are a number of other “experiments” she underwent at his hands. on top of her being forced to execute soul society’s “dirty work” at his behest in exchange for her life... she hates mayuri

Kurosaki:   positive / negative / neutral.   ━   because:  she thinks its disgusting that soul society relies so heavily on a child’s power to be a strong military force, even worse that the wandenreich and yhwach himself sought to take control of that power. despite this, she doesnt hesitate to attack him with the intent to kill for the sake of acheiving her own ideals, and shes also bothered by ichigos apparent blind faith in soul society (from her pov)

Soul King:   positive / negative / neutral.   ━   because: she thinks the soul king is a testament to soul society and the nobility being disgusting and cruel. and thats all i got bc i still have to do 3 more of these for wildly different viewpoints and my brain is running low on juice

CONGRATS, you managed till to the end, now tag your fellow bleach partners!

TAGGED BY: @zombiequincy thank u hela TAGGING: idk anyone whos wearing socks i tag u

[kawaiipsycho101]

Righteous Side of Hell--Ch.2

2. Something There

Nearly three hours passed before a small group of men left the hideout and gathered at the trunk of my tree.

“Hey! Hey, shinigami!”

‘Bout time.

I let myself slip off the branch and floated down towards them.

“Yes?”

“Mello wants to talk to you,” a man with dreadlocks said nervously. “If you would please come with us.”

I could tell that they were still apprehensive of me, for their eyes held the same fear from before, and they made sure to keep their distance. I silently chuckled at the poor bastards.

“Very well.” I followed them inside, where Mello was waiting, seated on a plush leather chair, munching on another chocolate bar. “You wanted to see me?”

“Yes. I think we may have gotten off on the wrong foot earlier.”

“Agreed.”

“I’d like to ask again for your assistance.”

“You didn’t exactly ‘ask’ the first time.”

“Well, I’m asking now.” He leaned forward and eyed me intently. “A, we would deeply appreciate it if you would keep watch outside and let us know if you see anything or anyone out of the ordinary. We’d be willing to give you a bar of chocolate for every other hour of your service.”

Again, I felt the uncomfortable sensation in the pit of my stomach as my mouth started to dry up.

Damn it, cut that shit out!

“What kind of chocolate?” Mello blinked, surprised that I hadn’t accepted the offer right away, and perhaps slightly confused at my question. “I mean, is it good chocolate?”

“Oh, yes,” he nodded. “It’s very good. Here, let me show you.” He motioned to one of his men, who presented me with a moderately-sized bar of Godiva. “One of those, every other hour.”

“Um-hmm…” I paused, as if considering, when in reality, I’d already made up my mind. The thought of having chocolate again, especially exquisite chocolate such as Godiva, was far too tempting.

“So, what do you think?” Mello asked.

“Deal.”

“Great. Now, before you start, would you mind if we asked you some more questions about the Death Note?”

“Not at all.” I sat cross-legged in the air to get myself comfortable. “Fire away.”

And so it went, for the next few weeks. Whenever I wasn’t keeping watch outside, I was in the hideout, munching on my reward while answering Mello’s many questions. (“If you give up ownership of the Death Note, you will lose all memory of it and the shinigami possessing you, which would be me.” “No, you can’t make someone kill a large group of people without writing all of their names down too.” “You can’t kill anyone under seven-hundred-and-eighty days of age, that is, a little under two-and-a-half years old, and why would you, ya sick fuck?” etc. etc.) As time passed, my calls inside became less and less frequent, going from nearly every couple of hours, to once or twice a day, then maybe once every few days, then none at all, until I would just pop in to eat my chocolate and go back to what I was doing with barely even a word spoken between me and the others; not that I really minded. I didn’t care about them anyway. They were just worthless, mindless, disgusting human beings. I had no sympathy for what fate would most likely befall them, and I wished it would come soon. The sooner those assholes died, the sooner I could get my notebook back.

While I kept guard outside, I would pass the time the way I did back in the Shinigami Realm: I sang. Using a variety of different voices, I would sing to myself, sometimes softly, sometimes loud enough that a mobster or two taking a smoke break might hear me, but no one ever spoke up about it. I figured that they were probably too scared.

Often times I would fly around the perimeter of the hideout, doing various spins and loop-de-loops. There were few things that were desirable about being a shinigami, but in my opinion, the invulnerability and the eyes had nothing on the ability of flight. It was the only thing aside from my voice trick that made me genuinely glad to be what I was. Every time I flew, it felt like the first time. There would be this sense of wonder and excitement blossoming in my chest, and I’d always think, “Holy fucking shit, I can’t believe I’m actually flying!” It never got old.

But when I wasn’t singing, or flying, or fantasizing about slowly and brutally killing the pigs I worked for, I would sit and meditate. I’d think about Mello.

Mello was a fascinating creature. I would often watch him out of the corner of my eye when I took my chocolate-breaks. He was just as I’d imagined he’d be, but also the exact opposite of what I’d pictured. He was bold, confident, tough, and didn’t take shit from anybody, as to be expected; but he was also ruthless, sadistic, cocky, and vain.

Simply put, he was an asshole, albeit a very smart asshole, but an asshole nonetheless.

Although to be fair, he seemed to hate his cohorts just as much as I did. I could tell by the way he interacted with them, the way he’d look at them; they were nothing more than pawns to him, and while normally I hated that kind of mentality (and I still do), I couldn’t blame him that much. I’d use those schmucks as pawns too.

I began to wonder if I should tell Mello what I knew, or if he even deserved to know. Would my information do any harm? I knew it would provide nothing useful to his Kira investigation, but it would definitely be interesting to see his reaction. And, as much as I hated to admit it, I really wanted a chance to talk to him alone, without any of the other thugs listening. Maybe it was just wishful thinking on my part, or perhaps it was a genuine feeling, but I had a hunch that there was more to him than just the ingenious douchebag he appeared to be.

  Eh, what the Hell. What’s the worst that could happen?

So, on a night shortly after the beginning of the fourth week, I waited until most of the mobsters had gone to sleep, and positioned myself on the roof of the base over what I hoped to be Mello’s room. I already knew the layout of the outside of the building by heart, but I hadn’t seen much of the inside aside from the main room. I’d taken little peeks here and there during my last few chocolate-breaks, but I didn’t want to raise any suspicion.  

Here goes nothin’.

I sunk through the ceilings and floors before landing in a medium-sized bedroom. There was a bed with black silk sheets and a comforter with a zebra striped pattern, a desk and wall covered with computer monitors, a door leading into a large closet filled with many different styles of clothing (mostly leather), and another door that opened into a rather nice washroom. My eyes found a rosary dangling from the doorknob and I knew I was in the right place.

I sat in a corner of the room, facing the door, and waited.

It took him a while, nearly an hour or so, but Mello finally showed up.

“Hey.”

“What the-!?” His eyes widened in obvious surprise, and I knew that very soon that surprise would quickly turn into anger, which it did. Before he was able to cuss me out at the top of his lungs, I pressed a finger to my lips and shook my head slightly.

Not a good idea.

Getting the message, he lowered his voice to a menacing hiss.

“What are you doing here?”

“I was wondering if I could have a word with you in private.” I nodded to the door behind him, and after a slight hesitation, he closed it. “Are there any bugs or cameras in here? If so, I’d like you to turn them off. I want this conversation to remain strictly between us.”

“Very well, but I’m only doing this because I too have some questions for you that I don’t want the others to hear.” He went to the desk of computers and sat in the leather rolling chair. I stood up and watched him closely as his fingers danced across the keyboard. Once he was done, he spun around and faced me. “There. We’re completely alone. Now, could you please tell me what’s so damn important?”

I gently nibbled on my lower lip. Even though I’d rehearsed what I was going to say a thousand times over in my head, I was still a little nervous, a fact which detested me to no end.

“Before I do, let me ask you something.” His eyes narrowed slightly, but he motioned for me to continue. “Do you believe that human beings have souls?”

He thought about it for a second.

“Yes.”

“Alright. I figured you did since, unless that rosary is for show, you appear to be Catholic.”

“I am.”

“So, you believe that after people die, their souls pass on into another place, like Heaven or Hell?”

“Yes. And before you ask, yes, I know where I’m going, and I’ve made peace with that.”

“I wasn’t going to, although from what I hear, people who use a Death Note cannot go to Heaven or Hell.”

“Really?” He opened a desk-drawer, revealing many chocolate bars. He grabbed one and began to open it. “Then where do they go?”

“No idea. Perhaps nowhere. Maybe humans aren’t meant to go anywhere after they die; they’re just supposed to rot. There’s no way to know.” As I began to stare off into space, I noticed the impatience growing on Mello’s features and quickly brought myself back to reality. “Sorry, I got off-topic. Anyway, in the Shinigami Realm, where I’m from, there is said to be a special breed of shinigami, one radically different from the rest of shinigami kind. One so rare that some believe it to be a myth; these are shinigami supposedly created from the soul of a deceased human. They don’t usually live very long, whether because they don’t write enough names in their Death Notes, or they do something to piss off the King.”

“The King?”

“The Shinigami King. He rules over the Shinigami Realm, makes and enforces the laws, and punishes those that break them. His power is greater than that of any other shinigami and then some. I believe your religion would call him ‘The Devil’.”

I watched Mello’s expression very carefully. His eyes widened a bit and he stopped chewing the chocolate in his mouth.  

“You’re serious.” His voice was the softest I’d heard.  

“Yes. Supposedly, every human’s soul has a chance of transforming into a shinigami upon death. It’s an extremely slim chance though, say, one in a million, no, one in a billion shot, maybe more.”

“A shinigami king…shinigami born from dead humans…” Mello leaned back in his chair and ran a hand through his hair. “Incredible…Absolutely incredible…”

  “They don’t appear very often, these human-shinigami hybrids,” I continued as he processed the information. “Up until recently, there hadn’t been one for over a thousand years, and the last couple before that were spread out over several centuries.”

“How many are there now?”

“Two, as far as I know, one of whom I’ve met. He claimed to have grown up in a place that specialized in mass-producing geniuses, in the hopes of creating a successor to a very well-regarded human known as L. The institute was an orphanage, he said, named after its founder, called Wammy’s Hou-oh shit, you okay?”

Mello had inhaled his chocolate and was currently coughing it back up. He threw up a hand when I went over to help him.

“I-I’m fine.” The morsel of cocoa soon melted in his throat and he swallowed it. “There’s no way…it’s impossible…” He stood up and faced me, trying to take control of the situation. “How do I know you’re telling the truth?”

“Why would I lie? It’s not like I have anything to gain from this, other than the look on your face, which I’ll admit is pretty priceless,” I smirked.

“I still can’t be sure. You’ll have to tell me something else, something only people from Wammy’s House would know.”

“Isn’t the fact that I know of the House’s existence and its purpose proof enough?”

“Almost, but not quite.” He crossed his arms, quirking a hairless brow. “Did this ‘human-shinigami hybrid’ give you his name?”

I think you already know, Pretty Boy.

“Yes, he did. When I first met him, he said it was Rue Ryuzaki, but eventually he told me to call him Beyond-”

“Birthday.” Mello looked like he’d seen a ghost.

“You knew him?”

“No…no, I was just a kid when he left. I don’t think we ever had a one-on-one conversation, we were just aware of the other’s existence. But I heard about him, years later. Only the people who had been at Wammy’s long enough even knew he existed, and even fewer knew just who exactly he was and what he did.” He clutched his rosary tightly and slumped back into his chair. “Holy shit…holy shit, son of a bitch…”

“You gonna be okay?”

“Yes!” he snapped, getting a hold of himself rather quickly. “Did Beyond really tell you this?”

“Again, why would I lie?”

“Then that settles it. I had a feeling from the start, but I just had to be sure…” He looked up at me with triumphant eyes and spoke without a trace of doubt. “You’re the other hybrid.”

There was silence for a few seconds, then I smiled.

“You really are as good as he said.” I went over to the other side of the room and leaned against the wall casually. “Out of curiosity, what gave me away?”

“It wasn’t that hard. The first clue was that you knew there were different kinds and brands of chocolate, plus the fact that you knew what it was without me telling you. How would you know the name of a substance that probably doesn’t exist in the Shinigami Realm? And the more I thought about it, the way you ate that first chocolate bar back then, there was a look on your face; that was the face of someone eating a treat they hadn’t had in a long time.”

“Yes,” I sighed, remembering that first bite. “I’d forgotten how wonderful chocolate was. It was…amazing. Thank you for that, by the way. Really, thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” For the first time since I’d met him, Mello sounded genuinely sincere. I appreciated that.

“What else was there?”

“The Beyond I’ve heard about would never give away personal information like that unless it was for an important reason, or if whomever he was telling was important to him…He would have wanted to share his story with another human.”

“Serial killers get lonely too, Pretty Boy. Since we’re the only shinigami to truly understand humans, it was only natural for us to become…acquaintances.”

“So he told you everything?”

“Just the basics; Wammy’s, L, the murders, his suicide, you and the others-”

“What do you mean, ‘others’?”

“Oh, he’s been watching over the children of Wammy’s ever since he died, especially L’s new successors. He once told me about a pale kid who was really good with puzzles and wasn’t much of a talker…”

“Near.” Mello said the name as if it were a curse-word that befouled his tongue.

“Right, Near. Then there was this hot-headed boy with a serious chocolate addiction, which was you, and a computer genius that was able to hack into a Swiss bank account when he was only ten years old.”

“Matt.”

“Yes. He said you two were thick as thieves. I’m actually a little surprised that he’s not here.”

“I don’t really need him for this, so I figured it’d be better not to get him involved.”

“Ah.” I could tell that he wasn’t telling the whole truth, and was at least a little bit uncomfortable discussing the matter, so I let it drop. “But anyway, you said you had a feeling from the beginning?”

“Yeah. At first, I had this wild notion that you might be the A, but it didn’t take me long to figure out that you weren’t.”

“Heh, my memory of human life may be pretty hazy, but I think I’d remember growing up in a place like Wammy’s House. Nah, it’s just coincidence that A and I share the same first initial.”

“‘Hazy’?”

“Some of the hybrids, like Beyond, can remember with absolute clarity what they were like as a human; how they lived, how they died. While some hybrids, like me…” I sighed. “Have a little trouble with it.”  

“Oh…” For just a split-second, I could have sworn I saw a little bit of sympathy in his eyes. I was surprised at the gratitude I felt then.

“Anyway, you said you had some questions for me?” I really wanted to change the subject.

“Well, I was going to ask if you were once human, but seeing as you already confirmed my theory, there’s no need to. Although, there is one thing I’m curious about…”

“What?”

“Why are you telling me this? You said so yourself, you have nothing to gain from it. So, why?”

“Honestly,” I shrugged. “I’m not quite sure. Part of it was just so I could see your reaction, and I guess I thought you deserved to know. But looking back on it, I don’t know…I thought…maybe…” I struggled for the right words. “It might make you…feel better?”

“Feel better?”

“I don’t know how to explain it, but I think there’s more to you than meets the eye. It’s like I can sense it.”

“Okay…” There was an awkward silence and I inwardly smacked myself for saying something so incredibly stupid. Then a small smirk slowly crawled onto Mello’s face.

“What?”

“Ever since it occurred to me that you might be human, I’ve been trying to figure out what your age and gender might have been when you died.”

“Oh? What was I?” I was secretly glad that he’d been thinking about me.

Fuck, I may be seriously starting to like him. If that’s the case, then he must never know. Ever.

“The age was pretty easy. At first I thought you might have been a guy in his early to mid-twenties, but after your immature teasing and name-calling, I became almost certain that you were a teenager, possibly in your mid-to-late teens. But then again, you seemed very okay with murdering a bunch of innocent people, something I wouldn’t think a young person would be very comfortable with.”

“Shinigami can only survive by taking the remaining years off a human’s lifespan and adding them to their own; it was either them or me. And for what little it’s worth, I made sure their deaths were quick and relatively painless. Besides, I’ve been doing this a long time, Pretty Boy,” I smirked as he glowered at the nickname. “You get used to it. And you’re one to talk; you’re only what, eighteen?”

“Nineteen,” he corrected.

“Exactly, and they say you‘ve been with the mob for a year and a half.”

“Good point.” He crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair, thinking. “Still, for your age, I’d be willing to bet that you were anywhere between your late teens to early twenties when you died.”

“Alright,” I nodded, urging him to continue.

“The gender on the other hand…It’s hard to tell. I constantly switch back and forth between boy or girl, seeing as you don’t seem to have any distinguishable male or female traits. Then there’s your voice; it’s very androgynous. It sounds too high to be a male’s voice, but too low to be female. Was it like that back when you were alive?”

“No. I lost my original voice when I turned, so the King gave me a new one, along with the power to mimic any other voice I hear.”

“Interesting.” He pondered for a second. “Then there was all that talk about my feelings…something only a woman would bring up.”

“I guess…but men can be sentimental too, ya know.”

“True. But there is one other thing…”

“What?”

“You seem to have taken a liking for me.”

Shit!

“Beg pardon?” For a second, I thought I could feel heat rise in my cheeks, but there was no way; shinigami are physically incapable of blushing.

“They say that when someone picks on someone else, it means that they like them. And you act differently around me than with the others. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you have a crush on me.” He watched me carefully as he spoke, hoping to gauge my reaction.

“I see.” I tried to look as calm and collected as possible. He wasn’t entirely right, but he wasn’t entirely wrong either. “I’ll admit that you are a very attractive person, Mello, and your intelligence is a trait that most people would find desirable. But mostly, you’re just fun to watch.” I slowly started to grin, a mischievous thought entering my mind. “And I can’t help but wonder, the way you mentioned that other successor, Near; I think it’s safe to say that you don’t like him very much.”

“Yes.” His voice dripped with the same venom he’d used when mentioning the name before.

“Back when I was alive, I always thought that when someone held a strong dislike for someone else, it sometimes meant that that person was in denial, because they didn’t want to admit they had feelings for-”

“Oh, Hell no!” He stood up, disgusted by what I was implying. I couldn’t help but giggle.

“See? Fun to watch.” This only served to make him angrier, and for a second I thought he was going to throw me out and/or shoot me. But then he quickly simmered down and smirked with triumph.

“I was right, wasn’t I? You were just trying to distract me so you wouldn’t have to admit it.”

Damn it!

“You little shit.” I clenched my hands into fists as an alarming amount of anger surged through me. But as quickly as it came, it was gone, and I was left feeling worn and depressed, slumping against the wall in defeat. “What does it matter if you can figure out my age and gender anyways? It’s not important.”

“No, it probably isn’t.” He sounded a little surprised at my sudden changes in mood. “It was just something to get my mind off of Kira.”

“Ah.” I straightened up and stretched, even though I hadn’t been still for that long. “Anyway, I’ve said what I wanted to say. Goodnight.”

“Wait.” Mello stood up. “You didn’t confirm whether or not I was right about your age and gender.” I stared at him in puzzlement. I didn’t know if he really cared, or if he just had an issue with closure.

“What was your guess again?”

“Teenaged girl, somewhere between sixteen and nineteen.”

He’s figured me out. The son of a bitch figured me out.

After a brief silence, I sighed and muttered,

“I prefer the term ‘young woman’ rather than ‘teenaged girl’. And sadly, I cannot remember exactly how old I was when I died, but I’m pretty sure I was somewhere between eighteen or twenty, maybe older.”

I suddenly felt a deep wave of sadness seep into my heart.

Wow…Saying it out loud…I never knew how much it hurt.

I turned to go, my wings slowly unfurling.

“A.” I glanced back and what I saw shocked me to my core. Mello looked at me with eyes filled with empathy, as if I was seeing my own despair reflected back at me. I hadn’t thought that he was capable of seeing me or anyone else as more than just a tool in his master plan, but there it was, staring into me; pain, understanding, and maybe, just maybe, the tiniest bit of care. “I’m sorry.”

It took me a minute, and after a few stuttered attempts, I was able to reply.

“Alixandria. You may call me Alixandria. Goodnight, Mello.”

“Goodnight.”

As I returned to my regular branch, it occurred to me that even after being warped and twisted into something I barely even recognized, some people could still read me like an open book. It almost made me smile.

The next night, everything changed.

Alternative Title for this chapter: Shameless Godiva Plug/Exposition Dump