#and 3) we know they both have important knowledge but are holding out on telling us for various reasons

[awake-my-oceans]

Out-of-context Genshin lore

We’ve lost at least one moon. But we may have lost at least two moons, and given the sky’s a lie, we may have lost all three moons. Literally no one in-game talks about it.

[melzula]

Could you write a Sokka x firebender reader that has the plot of the secret tunnel episode but instead of aang and katara getting stuck together it’s him and reader? :)

Don’t Let the Cave In Get You Down

a/n: got two requests for this sokka storyline and i was very excited to write it! i couldn’t find a way to seamlessly include the fire bending part of the request but i could definitely build on that in another piece. hope you enjoy <3

you met the Gaang when they were passing through a small trading village on the outskirts of the Earth Kingdom

they were low on supplies and in need of a shopping spree, so they stopped at your little food stand in search of fresh fruit and snacks for their travels

you seemed awfully young to have your own business, especially when compared to the other merchants, but you were kind and your prices were affordable

their shopping spree was cut short by the arrival of fire nation soldiers, but you quickly escorted them through the backstreets of the marketplace and helped them evade the soldiers

“That was a close call,” Aang breathed out in relief, “thanks for your help.”

“Those guys are jerks, I couldn’t live with myself if I had just let them capture you.”

“Who are you?” Katara asked in awe.

“My name is y/n, and I’ve been hiding out in this village for about three years now. I escaped from the Fire Nation when I was 12 and never looked back.”

“Wait a minute, Fire Nation?!” Sokka exclaimed before quickly pushing his sister and Aang behind him. Raising his boomerang in a threatening manor, he narrowed his eyes at you. “Is this some kind of trick?! Did you just lure us out here so you could capture Aang and get the reward for yourself?”

“Sokka, you’re being ridiculous!” Katara had scolded angrily, harshly pushing his boomerang away. “She said herself she came here to get away from the Fire Nation, I’m sure she’s just trying to make a better life for herself here and you’re not making that any easier for her by being a jerk!”

“I don’t trust her, Katara!”

You’re a little disheartened by the disdain in his voice when he speaks about you, and despite Katara vouching for you you can see that you’re out of place

“I’m sorry, I’ve made things awkward,” you apologized sheepishly, “I’ll leave you now.”

“Wait!” Aang called, stopping you from going. “If what you said is true then… then I think you should come with us.”

“Tell me you’re joking,” Sokka scoffed in disbelief

“If she’s from the Fire Nation then she must have knowledge about the ins and outs of that place. Maybe she can even help me find a fire bending master. We need her help, Sokka.”

Though he was reluctant and very distrusting of you, Sokka realized Aang was right, so he begrudgingly allowed the airbender to welcome you to their team

You agreed to help as much as you can, and the rest was history

From there on out you’re officially a member of Team Avatar, but that doesn’t mean Sokka becomes any more trusting of you

He always keeps a suspicious eye on you, never letting you help with tasks he deems too important to avoid having you “sabotage” the group

His lack of trust in you hurts, you can’t lie about that, but you continue to do what you can to aid the Avatar and his friends and earn their trust

Of course, this all changes when you get to the cave of two lovers

Unlike Sokka, you found Chong and his group of Nomads to be great fun. They’d braided your hair beautifully with flowers from the lake and performed wonderful songs, so despite your predicament you were in a cheerful mood

Being stuck in the cave had put a strain on your group’s mission to make it to Omashu, but you tried to remain hopeful and help as best as you can

Surprisingly, Sokka even puts you in charge of holding one of the torches

“I’m only giving this to you because I know you’re at least smart enough not to waste resources while we’re in here.”

It’s a start

And it’s a good thing he gave you that torch, because it comes in handy when you both end up getting separated from the rest of the group

“This is just great,” Sokka utters sarcastically after several failed attempts to dig through the rock and get back to the others.

“Come on, Sokka, lighten up. We have a torch and your map, I’m sure we’ll be able to figure something out,” you try to console. “What did Chong say earlier? ‘Don’t let the cave in get you down, Sokka.’”

He’s not amused by your singing

It’s a bit awkward being stuck with the boy who’s been so adamant that you don’t belong despite your best efforts to prove that you can be trusted

You don’t speak much and try to stay out of his way and follow his lead, but the tunnels keep changing and you keep getting lost and your torch is about to burn out, so things are beginning to seem hopeless

“Maybe we should try changing our strategy,” you offer only for Sokka to immediately dismiss you.

“Right, like I’m going to let you lead us through the cave. You’ll probably make us get lost on purpose.”

“You know, if you stopped being so judgmental for a second you’d probably realize that i want to get out of this cave just as much as you do!” You snap irritably, surprising Sokka. you’ve mostly stayed docile to try and keep the peace whenever Sokka accuses you of being untrustworthy, but at this point you’re finally starting to get fed up

“You’re right, I’m sorry,” he says softly, and this time you’re the one who’s surprised. You never thought he’d actually apologize to you, and it’s a nice feeling. “What do you suggest we do?”

“Well,” you start with a sigh, “maybe the story is right. Maybe if we trust in love, we’ll find our way out of here.”

“You’re joking, right?”

“Do you have any better ideas?”

You simply shrug, prompting Sokka to let out a heavy sigh. Your torch is going to run out soon, and his map isn’t doing anyone any favors. It seems you have no choice

“How exactly do we trust in love?”

“I’m not sure… the only love I know is the love I had from my parents, but I haven’t felt it in so long… I’m not sure I ever will again.”

“…What happened to them?”

“My parents were peasants with nothing but love to give each other. They were poor, but they were happy,” you explain with a faint smile. “My father was a fire bender, but he kept his gift hidden in fear he’d be forced to serve in the Fire Nation army. He didn’t want to leave me or my mother, but our home was attacked, and he had no choice but to bend to protect us. Our lives were saved, but he was taken away.”

Sokka hangs on to your every word, eyes glistening with unshed tears and sympathy. Your story is similar to his own, and he knows what it’s like to lose your family to the Fire Nation. He feels less disdain towards you now, more empathetic. He still isn’t 100% sure how to feel about you, but hearing your story makes you easier to understand now

“My mother knew I’d never be safe or happy if I stayed there, so she arranged for me to be smuggled out of the Fire Nation and brought to the trading village you first met me in. I haven’t seen or heard from her since, and I’m not even sure if she or my father are even alive.”

“I’m sorry,” Sokka utters solemnly. “Katara and I lost our mother to the Fire Nation, and we haven’t seen our father since he left to fight in the war. I know how you feel.”

“I don’t want to be Fire Nation, you know. None of this was a choice, and I understand why you don’t trust me but I’m not like them Sokka. Please believe me.”

“I’m sorry for always giving you such a hard time. It’s just… it’s hard to believe people from the Fire Nation can actually be good. But you’ve proven that you can be trusted over and over again, I was just too blind to see it.”

“Can we start over?” He asks with a sheepish smile, carefully sticking his hand out for you to shake. Instead, you push his hand away and throw your arms around him in a tight embrace.

The force of your hug knocks him back a bit, and though he’s unsure at first, he eventually returns your embrace by carefully wrapping his arms around your figure

The fire of your torch slowly begins to die, but neither of you seem to notice or care as you enjoy your moment together

You expect to be engulfed in darkness when the flame goes out, but instead you’re met with the beautiful shimmers of the crystals that line the roofs of the cave

“It’s so beautiful,” you murmur in awe, your eyes sparkling under the light

“Yeah,” your counterpart utters quietly, but he isn’t looking at the crystals

“Was she always this pretty?” Sokka wondered to himself

Together, you’re eventually able to follow the crystals and make your way out of the cave

And when you leave the cave, hands woven tightly together, you leave as two completely new people

You understand each other now, you trust each other

And your relationship will only continue to grow stronger from then on out

| atla tags: @sirkekselord @chronic-daydreamer @niktwazny303

[daenysx]

any drabbles or hcs about modern dad aemond? <3

thank you for requesting!! i know i'm a bit too optimistic on this but i wanna see aemond in a nice family as a happy dad in this universe!! i hope you enjoy <33333

modern!aemond as a dad headcanons

let's begin with aemond finding out about your pregnancy!!

he doesn't know what to say at first.

i mean maybe it's all been a nice fantasy of his possesiveness, seeing your belly swollen with his child, but once it becomes real, he's a both excited and terrified

excited because what do you mean he's gonna have a baby with the love of his life?? a baby with both of your features, maybe a girl with your eyes or a boy with his hair.

he keeps imagining what would your baby look like during your entire pregnancy

he's also terrified because he has no knowledge on how to raise a child

the best advice he could get from his parents is probably 'don't do anything we did'

alicent would tear up with the news of a baby by the way, it's kinda sweet

i'm not really mentioning viserys

(helaena targaryen putting dream catchers on the walls of baby's room)

(aegon suggesting baby names to annoy aemond)

okay, i'm getting distracted sorry

modern!aemond is the type of guy who tries to learn EVERYTHING about pregnancy

he keeps reading books on it and watching videos or documentaries

because the more he knows, the more he feels comfortable

he keeps talking to the baby with his hands on your belly

it's such a pretty sight

he tells the baby everything, he wants the baby to recognize his voice

you actually feel your baby calming down when aemond rubs your belly gently

he tears up the first time he feels a baby kick (he denies he cried)

he's always been a light sleeper but during the pregnancy he's even more cautious even in sleep (because what if something happens or what if you crave something?)

he sleeps with one hand on your belly

ohhh speaking of cravings

anything you want, you get

literally anything his baby wants

just name it

he's a bit insane about it actually (one time he forced aegon to get you a pineapple in the middle of the night)

now we can get to the part when the baby's born

he's holding your hand the entire time

he is actually freaking out himself (what if something happens to you?) but he knows he has to stay calm

forehead kisses to show you how good you're doing

i like imagining aemond as a girl dad

just imagine him holding a silver haired baby girl in his arms

i don't think i have to say he's crying when he held the baby for the first time

a targaryen name for the pretty girl (it was your idea), he tells you the options and asks for you to choose it

he tries to be as attentive as he can

but sometimes it's hard to deal with, he doesn't have many people to guide him about fatherhood, he's confused most of the time

you try to ease off his worries

at first he's worrying too much about the baby girl

but when everything has a routine, he relaxes a bit

VERY PROTECTIVE

he likes when the baby falls asleep to his voice (she has that in common with her mother)

he likes spotting the resemblances she has with him and you

learns how to give gentle kisses on the baby's chubby cheeks and her soft skin

he always wants you to sleep more, if someone has to be awake at night to look after the baby, it'll be him

reading books to the baby

he tries to be a good dad. he knows how important that is for a child. he just doesn't know how to be that all the time but he looks for new ways every time he feels like he fails

you assure him he's enough.

when your daughter is 3 years old, you find out about a new pregnancy

at first aemond was thinking it was impossible to love someone more than he loves his daughter

but with the news, his mind changes really quickly

another baby with you??

this time he thinks it'll be better for both of you, being more experienced in parenthood

the pregnancy is somehow familiar, aemond realizes he missed talking to his baby through your belly

he makes sure your daughter warms up to the idea of having a sibling

his relationships with his siblings are complicated, and mostly dramatic but his children can be different

you have a son this time

another silver haired baby, he also has aemond's eyes

aemond is the one who introduces his son to his daughter, his cheeks ache from smiling too much that day

he keeps taking care of you

now that he knows more about being a father, it's easier to arrange his routines for a baby and a toddler

mostly you take care of your son as aemond plays with your daughter

he teaches her how to braid hair and i stand by it.

attending the tea parties she has with her dolls

praising her for being so good with her brother

he is amazed by how clever she is

and then you say 'she's yours what were you expecting???'

now, i just wanna say aemond doesn't thinks himself as a perfect father (what is a perfect father?)

but he's most afraid of neglecting his children without meaning to

and putting pressure on them because of his family

i assume, having a relationship with you changed his opinion on many things, he had no idea of a healthy relationship before you

and it's not always rainbows and butterflies but you both learn how to be each other's other half.

it takes time and patience, but especially with the children it becomes easier

sorry if i'm being too optimistic but i just wanna imagine aemond as a happy dad

he also loves how good of a mom you're being to his kids (falling in love with you all over again haha)

he was actually worried about his prosthetic eye at the beginning, mostly thinking of how to explain little kids of losing his eye when he was just a bit older than them

but you help him find a way

everything is easier with you

he tries to be better.

he likes seeing his attitude in his daughter and seeing his eyes on his son

they are parts of him, too pure and too sweet

he'd never thought he'd have a happy family on day

he does anything in his power to keep the peace and happiness.

[n0tamused]

Can we have some fluff pining with Mortefi? Or just fluff in general pre relationship? Pls?

A/N: Hope you enjoy, anon! <3

-Ah, sweet old Mortefi, that grump is not the most open individual when it comes to his emotions. He doesn't even like bragging about his own genius inventions or ranting about the effort he had to put it, let alone be open about something as trivial as love

-Mortefi wasn't raised in an environment with the luxury of such emotional freedom, and for the biggest part of his childhood he only knew irritation and anger. Had he been younger, his approach to his current predicament would've been more aggressive, if nothing else

-But he is a man grown, and mature way past his years, and he knows the fragility and importance of these feelings he harbors so deep within himself

-So, when he began noticing tell-tale signs of love and longing forming and tying themselves around his heart all because of you, he began to wonder when these feelings began. 

-He softens towards this new wound in his heart that he couldn't complain about..he doesn't remember when he last felt this way and it was certainly new and worthy of his curiosity 

-Mortefi will not approach you for a long time in regards to these feelings, he'd much rather bury his nose in his works and overwork himself with endless projects 

-But ever so slowly you notice his lingering presence. It's not overwhelming, and you get rather comfortable with him around. He is always there if you run into any problems, how convenient.

-He still longs to be close to a person, to share company with someone dear to him, and he tries to make it as comfortable for you both as best as he can and as best as he knows how to. This would often be after work hours, inviting you over for deserts, be it at a restaurant or his own place where he makes dishes for you himself

-He isn’t a fan of the fast food industry so you won’t catch him buying anything of that kind, yet if he knows you like a certain fast food brand he may gift you a packet of your favorite snacks, or even better- he’d create something better than that brand. He has no lack of materials or knowledge on this, so in just a few days he’d present you with a box of your favorite flavors, just don’t press the issue too much, he may become a sassy or snappy

-A simple thanks will do.

-He expresses his care through these gifts and acts of service that aim to make your day better and easier and he is noticeably softer towards you, a bit kinder in his word choice. But he also never falters with guiding you through your problems with a firm but caring hand

-At times he may come to avoid too much eye contact with you, especially if he is too caught up thinking about these growing feelings he has

-It takes a long time until he comes to terms he will either have to fess up or learn to live with these feelings. The latter is more probable, as he doesn’t wish to make you uncomfortable by just admitting his feelings when you may not even return the sentiment

-But if you show the same interest back? And state it clearly without any mixed signals? Well, Mortefi couldn’t be more relieved and happy.

-He does go out of his way to make the confession sweet but not too flashy, he is not a man that likes that much attention in general and that hold up even stronger when it comes to his love life

Ⓒ n0tamused. Do not repost, translate, edit, and/or copy any of my works. Likes, comments, and reblogs are appreciated.

[certifieddilfenjoyer]

Astral Prism, Orpheus & Raphael Theory

So you know how most people in Baldur's Gate 3 fandom make the Raphael joke?

I'm here to tell you that it's extremely hurtful, because his character has a lot more depth than some of you are willing to see.

Behold, my Baldur's Gate 3 theory:

Right before we enter Act 3, we are jumped by githyanki who want to retrieve our Astral Prism. We are summoned to the Dream Visitor - The Emperor, to help him in the fight.

We find out then that our supposed ally is an illithid but there is one more guy, The Gith, the Orpheus, The Prince of the Comet.

You can ask the Emperor what the heck is a githyanki doing there and he will tell you the brief story about the War of The Comet*.

He is going to mention, that he is bound by INFERNAL chains. Hold on? How come?

After we are done with the Royal Guard, we can go to the upper left side from Orpheus's prison and find an ancient Githyanki disc. It will tell us, that Vlaakith had some infernal business conducted with a devil with wry charm. Of course Raphael isn't the only devil capable of being charming, but it feels natural for it to be him when he is already a very important character in game.

Baldur's Gate 3 Wiki says that it is indeed Vlaakith and Raphael.

OK, but why would they exchange the Astral Prism and is it Vlaakith getting it or Raphael receiving the relic?

He is giving it to Vlaakith. But how would he be in possession of such an artifact?

My theory: He is the one who had it created for that trade. (Commissioned from someone else)

Explanation:

If you look at Hope's and Orpheus's prison, you will notice a striking resemblance at the crystals that can be only shattered by the Orphic Hammer. A Hammer, that Raphael is in possession of! How convenient!

(Even Hope's and Orpheus' eyes are glowing in the same way when they are enslaved.**)

The runes and the design of both Astral Prism and Orpheus' shackles are also strikingly similar. It does not look like anything of Githyanki creation, it screams infernal.

But that still doesn't really add up, does it? Who would possibly create such a powerful object which plays such a major role in the plot?

Here, we have to familiarise ourselves with the wonderful post by Bearhugsandshrugs

Em explains above who the people visiting House of Hope are***.

One of them is a crazy, extremely knowledgeable wizard who specialises in creating copies of himself which prevents him from dying in battle.

When we kill Raphael, we kill him in HoH, in his own domain. He should be gone, for good! But yet, upon interacting with the Orb of Infernal Envisioning, we see that he is soon to be devoured by his father. Hells do not split into separate planes - so either Mephisto snatched his soul somehow (which seems impossible because his body is still there and devil's souls are their bodies) or Raphael respawned and his father took one of his clones or something like that. (He's just so cool I had to put it in here, but let me return to my theory now)

Another name on the list points out to Raphael's interest in different planes (even the ones which don't seem to be reachable) but also, magical puzzle boxes capable of holding items inside. As you can see, the name on the list is under the uninvited visitors section, which most likely means that they either fuel his soul pillars or have been turned into a soul coin. So it didn't have to be that particular person helping Raphael with the creation of the Astral Prism, but it points out to his interest in that topic.

Now, when would that even happen?

Karsus Folly took place in -339 DR, BG3 takes place in 1492 DR, around 2000 years later.

The enslavement of Orpheus - so also the Vlaakith trade - happened at around -4000 DR.

It is not impossible that Raphael was already around and scheming at that time. Why? Because Mephistopheles gifted Haarlep to Raphael most likely when Raphael was about to get the Crown before his father snatched it. Comparing their visual age, it seems that Raphael was already a young adult cambion at around the War of The Comet age.

Another thing is the fact that, Kith'rak Voss, the badass Githyanki Red Dragon rider, the sword of Vlaakith, found out about Raphael and contacted him and told us to get our ass inside Sharess Caress. Raphael doesn't mention him having an 'office' there, it's Voss who does it. Only upon entering the place, we can interact with Korrilla who's like, hey girl go upstairs Raphael rented a room hoping you'd drop by. HE KNOWS WE SPOKE TO VOSS, he has to! And also, Voss was around when Orpheus got enslaved! According to Wiki he was inside the Astral Plane when that happened. And Raphael has absolutely 0 interest in trading with Voss, yet the githyanki managed to reach him somehow. In my opinion, when he finally realised the lies of Vlaakith, he was looking for a specific devil, for Raphael, because he might remember him from back then.

(* Justice to my poor Githyanki, the most based and cool race in BG3. Imagine how painful it has to be to realize over centuries of time that you helped the self-proclaimed queen establish her tyranny over your own people because you've been brainwashed to believe that Orpheus is a traitor and Vlaakith the rightful heir of the throne)

(** The eyes, the chains, the crystals. The top of the Orphic Hammer is literally partially built from that same gem/crystal and on top of that, if you use Examine on it, it clearly states that it has been built in Infernal forges.)

(*** headcanon warning: The Amulet of Vigor that is present in the Archive is actually proven to have some... Other invigorating capabilities ☠️☠️☠️ and the old, ancient, crazy wizard has the boudoir privileges. Coincidence? ☠️☠️)

Anyways, to sum up:

• Githyanki disc shows us a deal between Vlaakith and Raphael where the devil gives her the Astral Prism.

• Raphael orders creation of the Orphic Hammer (the name itself, come on, it's such a mockery just like House of Hope) to make sure that he has the means to free him if it will benefit him in any way.

• In exchange for the Hammer, he receives some kind of knowledge of ascension to godhood. (Lae'Zel tells us during the game that ascension is the githyanki's greatest honour but it turns out it is nothing else but ensuring that Vlaakith remains alive and a god, because she just consumes the life force of her greatest warriors)

• Hope's and Orpheus's chains are strikingly similar and the part of the Orphic Hammer is built from the same gem/crystal that seems to be enslaving both of them.

So yea, my humble request is that you start fully appreciating the incredible writing of the game, instead of just focusing on the shallow 'haha bottom' jokes. I could make another post about that itself, but it's pointless. I hope you enjoyed!

[the-sinful-voice-witch]

TIME TO LOVE AMY ROSE part 3:

(another repost of a 2022 post because i miss Amy in the trailer...)

Amy Rose movie Theory time

Ok let's start the theory with why would Amy end up in earth in the first place and how? Well in this theory of mine it will be for similar reasons as Tails and knuckles, few points to remember:

1. The chaos emeralds were conveniently spread out in space by Sonic himself and he and shadow conveniently will need it.

2. Lately the most recent version of Amy in both modern and Classic (that is the perfect version), Amy is someone ready to be a hero and take action and I inspired this theory thanks to this panel over here👇👇👇

You will my girl, you will absolutely prove your are a worthy warrior ( words probably said by Knuckles)

3. Unlike Tails who used his gadgets to know about sonic and about knuckles and how trace him to find him and unlike knuckles who always knew about him and hired people to find him... How would Amy know about sonic in the first place and how will she know how to find him? Are we forgetting something canon that Amy is skilled at besides swinging a hammer?👇👇👇

The fortune cards should be used in the movie your honor, literally Amy knows how to use magic with them cause she always nails it!

Know let's mix all the ingredients, i chose to write this as a prologue back story through Amy's pov:

Hi, nice to meet you my name is Amy Rose😊 and I'm on an important mission to help save a different planet! Isn't it exciting?🤩 Oh yeah you're probably wondering how I ended carrying this mission and how i know where I'm going jeje 🤭cof cof well it's all thanks to this girls over here:- Amy's hands starts shining surrounded by some kind of pink electric light and a deck of cards shows up out of nowhere- impressed? 😏Jiji this are fortune cards and I have mastered the ability to read them and they always tell me things i need to know, oh and these aren't the only thing I can summon, take a look at this: -Amy extended her arm straight with her palm open and again her hand is surrounded by pink electric light, this time the light grows bigger forming a shape and in a blink she is holding a giant hammer- cool isn't it? Your head won't get away uncracked if you fight me fellas😤 😏 I can crack mountains

oh you also wonder where did I get all this stuff? Ok I'll tell you, bring the flashback:

Some years ago i was a little girl who ended up all on her own, i used to help in a food place but I wanted to do more than that and I craved to prove my independence and strength! Cause I was seen as a weak lonely nobody little girl so... I started to do boxing 🥊🥊 and trained to be more athletic but it wasn't enough, i love boxing but I don't actually like to fight using my fists... and one day finishing my training next to a nice valley i found something... There were some kind of ruins hidden and I felt something calling me under some rocks and there were them... I found a bag with a full thick deck of cards surrounded with a shiny aura and I was so hypnotized with them, i remembered some tales and legends about some mysterious powers that came from the energy of chaos and I wondered if there were items with chaos powers too... As I was checking one by one the cards i stopped when I saw one with a big beautiful hammer image on it and I realized that what I was lacking for was a personal weapon and then... How do I describe this... Well the card started to shine and there was some pink electricity and there was an explotion boom 💥🤯 and them poof the hammer of the picture fell on my hands!!! 😶 And I felt connected to it like with the cards and few years of training latter here I am! See? I was a bit more Little back them i guess it grew up with me or maybe Is because I'm stronger 💪💪 Anyway I'm on this mission because... It happened again! I found a chaos item! A lot more powerful than my cards! It was an chaos emerald! I learnt about them thank to the cards knowledge because like I said they always tell me what I need to know and in fact when I tripped with the emerald while training the cards reacted to it and gave me my mission:

"A foreign whole planet is in grave danger, a future legendary hedgehog hero needs the emerald to save that world so you must give it to him"

And that's what I'm doing! Traveling between worlds until I find that hedgehog hero! And I hope he lets me help save that world! I'm so exited to finally have a chance to prove myself!!!😖😤

Next post will be my theory about with who will be living Amy Rose at the end of the movie

He is a hedgehog like me... I wonder how he looks... He must be handsome! 🤔😍I hope I can recognize who he is... I don't want to give the emerald to the wrong person and make a fool of myself... Enough Amy! Be more confident 😣😣 ok ok I'm fine, let's do this! 💪😤 Is going to be fine! Uff I can already feel the upcoming danger... How curious... I feel like someone is following me? (🦇) I have to protect the emerald! Let's go! I'll see you later! Hope you liked my story! 😘😘

[writingwithfolklore]

5 Writing Rules I Like to Break

                Listen, I am firmly of the belief that writing doesn’t have rules. There’s no one way to do it—no one schedule or technique or tip that’s going to work for everyone and produce perfect narratives. Which is a good thing! I think if we all had to write exactly the same way, our stories would end up looking very similar.

                So while in general I tend to say throw out any and all rules (and yes, even including the advice I give on this blog if you so desire), here’s 5 common writing rules I specifically and intentionally break, and why:

1. Write what you know

I already talked all about how I tend to ignore this advice here if you’re interested. The TLDR version of it is that you can absolutely write things beyond your scope of knowledge (in fact, I’d guess that’s where the majority of fiction comes from) as long as you write it genuinely—this rule should be instead ‘write what you feel’.

2. Don’t edit as you write

Booo!! Okay maybe it works for some of you—if so, by all means continue (this applies to all the rules I’m about to mention, so just keep that in mind). Editing as I go is how I get back into the swing of things in a new writing session, and also allows me to try a scene a few different times to get the most I can out of it. I tend to believe that words are words even if they’re edited, rewritten, or even deleted.

If your goal is to finish your project as fast as possible, I imagine going back to edit before you’re finished your draft might slow you down. However, I also imagine editing as you go might save you an entire draft. Whatever works for you here is what you should do, but I personally love to edit as I write.

3. Avoid ‘said’

At least I think a lot of you guys are with me when I say that ‘said’ is sometimes just the best word to use. Using lots of descriptive words like, ‘yelled’, ‘begged’, ‘exclaimed’ can be distracting. When the dialogue speaks for itself, the ‘said’ disappears into the background of the scene, while necessary for grammar, it’s a formality for the actual storytelling. As well, I like to experiment with said by adding a descriptor afterwards. ‘Said quietly’ ‘said through a laugh’ ‘said without taking a breath’ etc.

4. Avoid adverbs

Here’s what I’ll say about word usage in general, as long as you pick your words with thought and care, you may use whatever words you want. Words have different specific connotations, and not always will avoiding the adverb have the same impact. For example, changing “he laughed lightly” to “he giggled.” We may have removed the adverb ‘lightly’, but ‘giggled’ holds a completely different connotation. It evokes a sort of immaturity, not unlike the ‘schoolgirl’ stereotype. If we don’t want that connotation, in this case, laughed lightly may be better.

                So don’t count out adverbs for the sake of it. As long as you’re choosing your words with intention and you understand the meaning behind them, you can experiment with a world of adverbs!

5. Never use passive voice

This one I didn’t realize was important to break until quite recently. We tend to be taught that passive voice automatically equals bad and I’m here to tell you that isn’t true. Passive voice should equal focus on action. Active voice equals focus on character. There may be certain sentences in which focusing on either the character or the action is more beneficial.

For example, “the alarm was pulled by Alice” (passive) kind of sounds clunky and wrong, whereas “Alice pulled the alarm” (active) is much more effective.

BUT “Alice was dragged out of the way” (passive) focuses on the action of Alice being dragged, rather than “Something dragged Alice out of the way” (active) focuses on the something that is doing the dragging, which in a moment of action, may take away from the pacing.

As long as you choose your voice with intention, both passive and active voice can be used to create strong, effective sentences.

                What are some typical writing rules you tend to ignore?

[watchingblsnowandforever]

Hello!!

The crack post saga continues... =D

Warning: long, long post 😊😅

To be very honest though, for today's ep I will be getting serious more than usual, because it was quite significant in the flow of the plot, and also had moments of communication (this emotional constipation is what makes me yearn for Cherry Magic ah) that need to be studied a little closely.

HOWEVER, there will most definitely be crack because this group of friends is (unapologetically) batshit crazy and my brain refuses to not make comments at the most inappropriate times.

Peem: NO ONE SAW ME CUDDLING MY CRUSH TO SLEEP RIGHT?!

The sheer panic in his movements, oh my gods. It should not be as hilarious as it is 😭😂

To be very honest though, I would've panicked a bit in his place too, with friends like those, they'd never let him live it down

Peem is so cute 😭

Nothing to see here, just a guy getting shy over how his prince charming hom-ed him, and they kissed through his hand and cuddled all night hehe

Phum: here he comes again :) *eye twitch*

Peem's expression, how he's still holding his hands as if he has the cup, Kluen's disbelief, and Phum's smug af face-

I'm wheezing 😭🤣

Kluen, I'm kinda starting to like you, but no.

You don't stand half a chance against them and their situationship.

Hope you find another boyfriend to fall in love at first sight with (and leave my boys alone please, they don't need any more complications) <3

Oh, Fang knows too. Of course he does, that's his little brother right there

We all know how protective of his brother he is, there's no way he'd let anybody else take care of him... unless, he knew Phum liked that person

les voila

Poor Tan, his theerak just ignoring him T-T

*looks between them* yeah, pretty much the same pic 👀

And here it is. The root of all his fears.

See, in this camp, almost all of them are paired up in the sense that they usually stick to that person. Even Beer has MIck. But then comes wild card Kluen, who's hogging all of Peem's attention as much as he can and that leaves Phum. Alone.

I will be getting back to this running motif of Phum being alone and how it changes through the ep in later scenes as well

Also, after they went back, both Mick and Beer asked if he really was okay, which made me smile, because maybe, Phum isn't as alone as he thinks himself to be. There are people who care for him, who are concerned, who'll support him, and of course, he always has Fang, his beloved phi

My poor babie Tan 🥺🥺

Also, notice how the shot is taken in such a way that they're the only ones in the frame, and are also standing within one specific part of the wall? (Ignore Kluen's head and hands please). It reflects how they're in their own world with each other, especially Tan

The nosy peeps gang strikes again!

Jokes aside, the synchronised strides, the background music together set the perfect levels of suspense and comedy

Peem, smug: yes! that emotionally constipated dumbass is finally getting out of De Nile

Pun: wait... is my plan actually working? Ah, of course it is

Toey: head empty, no thoughts, but... DOES P'Q ACTUALLY LIKE ME OMG I'LL DIE

Oh gods, FINALLY. I wish them a happily ever after. Sadhu 😌🙏🏼

Pun forgetting all about being quiet when Toey finally confesses is so on character 😭👍🏼

Also... what's even the point of being quiet? Q and Chain have been friends with these idiots since high school, of course they know they're peeking

Toey: *shooketh*

Gays in thai bl and staring off into the distance 😭

This scene was so, so beautiful and also quite important for both Q and Toey

Q knew what was up, more or less, but his confusion stemmed from his knowledge of Toey

Would Toey really go to these lengths? For him?

"Why? Are you the only one who can tease me?" <- Q says this to tell Toey that he might have been angry, but now he understands that Toey didn't really have any bad intentions

Hugs always get bonus points from me, and this was pretty up there

Pun hiding behind Chain is so on point

His friends: you're an idiot so we had no choice but to intervene 😭😭

Matt's (JJ) comedic timing is >>>>>>

Toey and Matt's friendship is also given weight in the series, and I'm happier for it.

Also revenge is sweet ehehe *coughs*

Moving on.

If there's no live singing dedicated to your One True Love, is it even Thai BL??

We Are making generous use of MSP songs 😭👍🏼

This scene.

The apology. It is at this point that they're leaving all the past pain, grief and anger in the past

Q makes sure to tell Toey that yes, he may have loved Milk Frappe Boy, but now, in the present, all his love was for Toey, his lovable annoying mentee

This apology is not only to Toey, or Milk Frappe Boy, but to himself as well, because by causing pain to a person he loves twice, he'd caused himself pain too

The perfect sweet and romantic moment, but also with a teeny bit of teasing, because that's who they are

No joke, I gasped and nearly stopped breathing when he said this

Peem's reply, his soft but kind of hurt voice were just so painful to hear

But it's also this moment that Peem gives Phum a reality check – if he really didn't want to, he wouldn't be doing any of this, and Phum had no business trying to control his life

The conversation outside with Q was significant, but also a diluted reflection of Peem's earlier (in ep. 7) talk with Q

Even a few episodes earlier, Q would have gone ballistic on Phum for treating his bestie like this, but now, he asks Peem how he feels for Phum, tries to understand exactly what their relationship is

It was at this point that he knew, he fucked up

Beer is a godsent. I love him <3

I think Toey says "I asked hia Tan to blow it up for me."

Also, Tiw and his rubber duck floater from MSP anyone? 👀

And, we are back to square one where Phum is left alone again

As I'd said before, this a repeating motif throughout the series, but especially the last two episodes

This is how it has always been in Phum's life: he has been left behind. He does have Fang, but now even Fang has a boyfriend. And while this does not affect his brother's affection towards him in anyway, it does introduce a new strand of lonliness for Phum because 1. no matter what, he loves his brother a lot, and knows how much he loves Tan, so he definitely will try to stay out of their way at least sometimes and 2. he wants a boyfriend too. Further, he wants Peem, but there's a push and pull there, and after what he said, in his mind he had pretty much ruined his chances with his crush

This is the moment Phum starts to hope that maybe, just maybe, his feelings aren't as unrequited as he'd thought.

On the other hand, Peem is the one afraid here. What if the deal is all that's holding them together? What if without it, Phum will have no reason to be as close to him?

Peem, baby, for one, your groups are already merged, and secondly, this guy is head over heels for you, no way he'd stop following you like a lost puppy

(Apparently, it's not Peem's turn with the communal braincell this week 😭)

Here, Phum is technically alone, but he's surrounded with friends, and he's smiling

He isn't left behind here, for once, he's sitting there by choice (to shamelessly ogle his crush, but shh we don't talk about that) with the comforting knowledge that when/if he jumps in, he won't be left out, Kluen be damned

Once the floodgates of affection have been opened to Q, there's no going back <3

(Also, notice how Tan is already asleep on Fang's shoulder? 👀)

FINALLY

I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS MOMENT SINCE PEEM KICKED PHUM'S BALLS

Jokes apart, this moment is so, so beautiful. The kiss, the soft question "are you ready for my answer now?" (maybe Peem isn't, but hell if he denies this man his kissies).

Everything leading up to this point is also so very delightful

Phum helping them out in the cafe, despite probably having never worked a day in his life, discovering how Peem still kept the roses and finally, finally, the completed painting. This sight, above all, is what convinces Phum that Peem might have feelings for him after all; because which fool would lie about not having completed something that would free them from being a slave to someone? A fool in love, that's who

ALSO,

if they don't get together and have the fluffiest moments in the next ep, I swear to god, hands will be thrown *grumbles* they're already making me wait a whole damn week

Anyways, that's all for this week, see you next ep! (I cannot promise I won't be jumping around and screaming, but then again, this is supposed to be a crack post so-)

And if you made it this far, thank you so much for reading! 😊

Here, have a bubble tea and a sandwich 🧋🥪

[If you'd like, here are my previous posts: Ep 8 and Ep 9.]

[thenewausten]

Quackity taking care of his gf who is depressed (like very depressed)

Thanks for the request!

Quackity taking care of a depressed reader HC's!

Quackity would be a very understandable boyfriend, and of course, a very patient one, especially when it was about your depression.

If you didn't have the strength to get out of bed, he would stay with you 'till later, talking, cuddling and kissing, giving you the support you need at that time <3

If you couldn't have the strength to take a shower, he'd hug you and whisper: "Let's take a shower together, amor? I can wash your hair if you want to, and you can wash mine." He smiles to you as you nod. "Let's go, then."

Whispering "Everything's going to be okay, amor. I'm here with you, don't worry. It's okay!"

If you don't want to be alone, you can always find your way on his lap!

Having a crisis means ice cream and long conversations on the couch. Also, he'd hug you, your head on his chest and his hand on your hair, making sure you're comfortable <3

Cooking for you and eating with you so you can be a little motivated!

Always telling you how much he loves you, how much you're important to him. "I love you so much, Y/N. You mean the world to me, we can fight it together, okay? I'm always with you."

Lots of kisses and hugs <3

Taking you to dates at your favourite place, maybe taking you to the beach so you both can watch the sunset together!

Of course he'd encourage you to start or continue treatment, to go to therapy and a psychiatrist (he'd drive you and wait for you there).

Helping you to take your medicine because it's very important!

Giving you gifts to encourage you to keep taking care of yourself even when you don't feel the strength to.

He'd also take you to bike rides because exercises are very good to do!

Defending you if someone judged you or called you lazy, he'd be so angry, man. "Shup up, you don't know what she went through, dude." He'd say.

Always whispering you're worth it <3

Surprising you with trips, taking you to a lot of beautiful places just so you can be in touch with nature.

Making you laugh!!!!!

Alex would have so much love for you, he's worried about you and you're the love of his life. He'd support you all the time, helping with everything he can, showing his care for you in the process!

If you're struggling with depression, anxiety or any other mental illness, seek professional help! Your life is very important and you're very especial to everyone around you. If you don't have conditions (whatever they may be) to seek professional help at the moment, hold on to something. A philosopher I really like said that "The literal meaning of life is whatever you're doing that prevents you from killing yourself." - Albert Camus. And that's very important. Art, love, philosophy or whatever you really enjoy can really helps you to save your life, to see something good in the middle of so much chaos.

I send to everyone who's reading this so much love, peace, self knowledge, light and happiness. My request box is also open in case you want to vent about something that hurts you. You are not alone!

❤️

Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoy the writing! :)

Requests are open!

[rebuilding-the-garg]

The Gargantuan Fossil

This post was from the beginning of my project, thus some information I’ve written here is outdated. Please read my recent posts to see up to date information.

The Gargantuan Fossil is one of the most recognizable parts of the mid-portion of Subnautica’s gameplay. Its sheer size strikes both terror and awe into the hearts of players who stumble upon it. It’s unfortunate that only a third of the creature’s fossilized remains can be seen. Even using the Freecam command to check under the map reveals that the rest of the skeleton remains unmodeled. This is all we have of the Leviathan.

“Gargantuan Fossil” is quite the accurate name, considering just a third of this creature’s skeleton measures 402 meters in length, with the creature’s total size being an estimated 1,100-1,500 meters. Just the skull itself is under 100 meters, and our human player character can nestle comfortably in even its smallest eye socket. I would’ve tried to show our human character’s model for a size comparison, but this thing is so large you wouldn’t even be able to see him.

There have been many different reconstructions of this behemoth of a fossil, the most popular being this commission piece made by Tapwing, for the YouTuber Anthomnia, shown below. And while it’s cool, it’s... not all that accurate.

In the past, I actually helped create a Gargantuan Leviathan mod based off Tapwing’s concept, working alongside other incredibly talented artists (who will remain anonymous, they can talk about their experiences as they please) and some... not so savory individuals. I don’t want to be associated with that old Garg. This reconstruction project is both a way for me to move on and make something better than what I had in the past, and to test my skills and knowledge in the various natural sciences.

Although there is a second specimen, the skull of a younger instance, this fossil holds no significant data outside of showing just how small these creatures start out as. As shown in the image below, despite being a much younger instance, our player character could still fit inside the Leviathan’s smallest eye socket, although it wouldn’t be as spacious as its adult counterpart.

The game’s PDA (Personal Data Assistant) states that the Gargantuan Fossil is approximately 3 million years old, which is INCREDIBLY RECENT. For reference, 3 million years ago we still shared the planet with multiple other hominid species like Australopithecus afarensis back in the mid Pliocene. The Subnautica we know today is a byproduct of a mass-extinction of megafauna, such as Leviathans. My guess as to how the Gargantuan got this big is a combination of deep-sea gigantism and an evolutionary arms race against the other megafauna alive during its time, with prey attempting to become larger than its predator to avoid predation, and the predator growing to continue this cycle. When this ancient ecosystem of leviathan-class super predators collapsed, likely because of the meteor that struck Planet 4546B, the Gargantuan Leviathan was out of a substantial food source and went extinct. It could be possible that these creatures even gave live birth due to their serpentine body and massive size, making them too large for life in the shallows, where laying eggs is easiest.

NOW. LET’S TALK ABOUT THE BONES!! It’s important to figure out if the Gargantuan Leviathan had a cartilaginous skeleton or a bony one, so let’s count the bones!!

There’s TWO WHOLE BONES!!! AND IF YOU LOOK NEXT TO IT!! THOSE RIBS ARE BONES TOO!!!! UWAA!!! SO MANY BONES!!!! How can we tell this is bones? It’s simple! Cartilage is rubbery and flexible, so it doesn't fossilize well, while bone is hard and rigid, perfect fossil material!! Cartilaginous skulls also tend to be made up of many little interlocking bones, with bony skulls being made up of only a small handful! 

Another thing I found interesting about the Gargantuan Skull is that it seems to have a ball and socket joint? This could have just been a similar mishap to the top and bottom jaws being fused in the skull’s model, but I’m trying to keep things as close to the original anatomy as possible. The ball and socket joint probably evolved to help with the burden of such a massive and heavy skull and allowing for greater speed and range of motion. In a world full of Leviathan-class predators, being able to have a wide range of motion would be extremely beneficial in locating both potential predators and prey.

Despite its immense size pushing the claim this Leviathan was an apex predator, it sports a small pair of horns, which is unheard of in large apex predators here on Earth. The darker coloration leads me to believe that these aren’t just horn cores, but the entire horn. These horns were most likely used to assist in defending itself against predators while it’s still small and vulnerable. It could also be a possibility they were used for threat displays and territory fights though it seems unlikely due to their small size. Sexual displays are also unlikely since just about every creature in Subnautica seems capable of asexual reproduction, as noted in the PDA entry for eggs. Asexual reproduction seems to be a very ancient basal trait in Planet 4546B’s evolutionary lineage and was most likely evolved to help species persevere even with low numbers and harsh conditions, preventing the dangers of inbreeding.

Overall, the skull’s shape and tooth structure suggest a piscivorous diet (of course it eats fish, the planet’s 99% water), and its shape specifically is reminiscent of an Orca and Redondasaurus. The lack of nostrils stumps me, there’s no openings in the skull aside from its eye sockets, however there’s also no evidence for a gill apparatus. I’m... going to have to come back to that at a later date. Though I personally believe the Gargantuan Leviathan was an air breather due to the lack of evidence for gills.

OKOK, ENOUGH ABOUT THE SKULL ASRIEL, WHAT ABOUT THE RIBS?

WELL... THE RIBS ARE... SOMETHING.

Behold! My very poor photomash of the same two images to show the total approximate length of the Gargantuan Leviathan, and a bad edit to show off what I believe the whole skeletal system would look like! (skeleton image credit)

Despite the game’s PDA describing the Gargantuan Leviathan’s body as “eel-like,” its skeletal structure is more reminiscent of a snake. The ribs show no indication of limbs, so it probably had a dorsal fin similar to eels or sea kraits.

One thing I’ve noticed about the Gargantuan’s ribcage is the existence of what appear to be bony, avian-like uncinate processes, which help the trunk’s muscles pump in and air out of the body, adding onto the idea that this leviathan breathed air. These uncinate processes in diving birds are especially long, which help reinforce the body and musculature, allowing the animal to stay underwater for longer periods of time.

My hypothesis for the role the Gargantuan Leviathan played in its ecosystem is similar to the Sperm Whales of our world, taking in large amounts of air before diving into the depths to fetch their food.

Next week, I’ll be doing more research into the skeleton and possibly beginning work on fleshing the Garg out! If there are any sciencey folks out on Tumblr who want to add their own input, feel free!! I want information!! Correct me if I got anything wrong!!

[elysianholly]

The First

So I’m in Season 3 of my Buffy rewatch and just passed Amends, and holy cow, is this ever an informative episode.

We have the first appearance of The First, who will go dormant again for four years until emerging as the Big Bad in Season 7. The entire conceit of this episode is The First understands Angel’s desires and weaknesses and tries to manipulate those to its own end.

And what is Angel’s desire? Buffy, obviously.

The First knows Angel has the capacity to hurt Buffy. He's done so already, after all. More than anyone else has at this point in the series.

And in fairness to Angel—he is trying very hard in this episode. He’s being tormented by visions of his victims, most prominently the visage of Jenny Calendar. These visions weaken him to the point where he shows up in Buffy’s room specifically to tell her to “stay away from him.” But he can’t stay away from her—even Buffy points out that he’s not making any sense.

And there is Jenny Calendar in the background, saying:

“She wants you to touch her. What are you waiting for?” “She wants you to taste her. Think of the peace. You'll never have to see us again.”

Essentially making the “she was asking for it” case to goad Angel into SAing Buffy. This wouldn’t be nearly as telling on its own, without Angel’s admission at the end of the episode:

Angel: It told me to kill you. You were in the dream. You know. It told me to lose my soul in you and become a monster again. Buffy: I know what it told you. What does it matter? Angel: Because I wanted to! Because I want you so badly! I want to take comfort in you, and I know it'll cost me my soul, and a part of me doesn't care.

Now, it’s important to acknowledge that despite this desire, Angel did not give in. He did not SA Buffy. He did not try to touch her. He chose death instead. It is equally important, however, to acknowledge that the reason he was so tormented in this episode is because The First was appealing to an existing desire that he was trying to suppress, specifically the knowledge that:

He could do this

He has done this

Some part of him still wants to do this

The “Because I wanted to” admission is everything. Without it, The First has no hold on Angel. Remove the Buffy of it all and The First could taunt him with victims past, sure, but its goal was very specific: get Angel to go bad. And failing that, get Angel to remove himself from the equation. I’m sure it would have also accepted “get Angel to violate Buffy and spiral even further” because, as we see at the end, the Powers need him to believe in himself. The best way to get Angel to not believe in himself is to make him responsible for harming Buffy.

Anyway, skip ahead. Like four years ahead.

We have almost the exact same situation. Spike is newly souled and tormented by both his past victims and especially what he did to Buffy. We have The First now appearing AS BUFFY to Spike, Spike incapable of discerning what’s real and what’s not, and confirmation that The First definitely has plans for him. Plans that will position him in opposition to Buffy, weaken her, and essentially kill any chance that she will do exactly what she ends up doing.

It’s also important to note that Spike is much less mentally sound than Angel was when The First starts fucking with him.

So what does The First do? It brainwashes him. It notably does not try to convince Spike that Buffy “wants him to touch her.” It does not play on an existing desire to cause Buffy harm. It does not attempt to appeal to the part of Spike that assaulted Buffy in the bathroom the way it appealed to the part of Angel that spent years happily assaulting women before he was cursed.

And this is important because if that desire existed, there would be literally no reason for The First not to use it. Are we expected to believe The First evolved in the years since it attempted to goad Angel into attacking Buffy because “she was asking for it?" That orchestrating another assault wouldn’t further isolate Spike, if not drive him to do what Angel nearly did and remove himself from the equation entirely? We know from later in the season that The First is fine with Spike killing himself. Hell, we're shown that if The First can't use Spike, it wants him dead and is willing to manipulate others to see that realized.

But The First literally had to brainwash Spike to get him to do anything it wants, and the second it unleashes him on Buffy, he snaps out of it. She brings him back to the light. She says she'll help him.

And The First is noticeably pissed off. This was not what it wanted. Spike under Buffy's care was dangerous to its goal.

So why didn’t it try to manipulate Spike into assaulting Buffy again? Make sure she'd never invite him back inside her home? Why didn't it appeal to his worst urges the way it did Angel?

Angel: Because I wanted to!

Like I said, Amends is an informative episode. It shows us how The First operates (doubled down in S7 with its manipulation of Robin Wood). Even more, how The First interacts with Angel compared to how it interacts with Spike tells us a lot about who these characters are as men, as vampires, and specifically men who have hurt Buffy.

[kepnerandavery]

My favourite quotes from When He Was Wicked..

1. “Francesca turned to Michael, her eyes startlingly blue, even in the candlelight. Or maybe it was just that he knew how blue they were. He seemed to dream in blue these days. Francesca blue, the colour ought to be called.”

This is the first moment that makes you realize just how deep Michael’s love for Francesca is ❤️

2. “When she smiled at him he couldn’t say no. And he certainly wasn’t strong enough to deny himself an hour in her presence. Because her presence was all he was ever going to get. There would never be a kiss, never a meaningful glance or touch. There would be no whispered words of love, no moans of passion. All he could have was her smile and her company, and path. All he could have was her smile and her company, and pathetic idiot that he was, he was willing to take it.”

Sigh.. My poor child. I wish I could give him a hug and tell him he’s going to get everything he deserves (soon-ish) 😅

3. “He turned and looked at her, his strange, silvery eyes catching hers with an intensity she knew he didn’t often allow to rise to the fore. “And then it was gone, and he was himself again”

Little does she know, that the Michael that she thought she saw here for a second is his real self. It’s just that he’s pretending to be someone else in front of her to mask his feelings 😢

4. “Francesca?” he gasped. “Frannie, Frannie, what is—”

When he called her “Frannie” for the first time, my heart exploded ❤️ I also noticed that he only calls her that in "somewhat" serious situations 😭

5. “She was still there, and she was still the Countess of Kilmartin, and even if he was the earl, with no questions attached to the title, she wouldn’t be his countess, and he just didn’t know if he could take the irony of it.”

My man really had to go through all seven stages of grief about three times over before she fell for him huh? 😢

6. “He didn’t try to finish the sentence for her. She wished he had; for years she wished he had, because maybe then he would have said the wrong thing, and maybe then she wouldn’t have leaned into him, and maybe then she wouldn’t have allowed him to hold her.”

I feel like this moment is so important for them both. It’s the first time where they stepped out of the familiarity of their relationship, and failed to figure out who they were to each other. And that’s pretty good news, for Michael. Down the road, I mean, cause right now, it really sucks 😂

7. “He was a brave man; he’d proven that countless times, on and off the battlefield. But he was an honest man, too, honest enough to admit that the prospect of facing Francesca was terrifying in a way that no French battlefield or toothy tiger could ever be.”

Ahhhaa 😭

8. “Do you have any idea how long it takes for mail to reach London from India?” “Five months,” she answered promptly. “Four, if the winds are kind.”

Are we really gonna gloss over the fact that she knows this? 😏 Frannie, you’re not coming across as indifferent as you’d like to seem 😂

9. “He’d needed her to step away, to move out of his reach. She was going to have to set the boundaries. Because he wasn’t sure he’d prove up to the task.”

Sighh.. I can’t understand how he kept all of his feelings to himself for six years 😢

10. “There was something different about her, something entirely unexpected. Something that shook him down to his very soul. It was a sense about her—all in his mind, really, but no less devastating. There was an air of availability, a horrible, torturous knowledge that John was gone, really, truly gone, and the only thing stopping Michael from reaching out and touching her was his own conscience. It was almost funny. Almost.”

God, Micheal really is an angel when it comes to her. The fact that he doesn’t even ponder the possibility of a relationship with her is just so.. 😭

11. “You, my lord, need a wife. Immediately.” “Oh, really? And why is that?” “Because in your present state, you are clearly a danger to unmarried women everywhere.”

Is he a danger to other woman, or to you Francesca? I’m pretty sure it’s the latter 😋

12. “She had remembered how he took it—milk, no sugar. For some reason this pleased him immensely.”

Gahhhh 🥰 Small victories for him 😊

13. “But soon. You’re not getting any younger. Michael just stared at her in shock. “I can’t imagine permitting anyone else to speak to me in such a manner.”

Haha 😂 He’s such a sweetheart, and no one can convince me otherwise

14. “And then of course there was the small matter of his skin crawling, which was his general reaction to the thought of Francesca with another man.”

How much more could he take? 💔

15. “He was Michael. He was… well, it seemed difficult precisely to define what he was to her, but they had an unbreakable bond, they two, and it seemed that four years and thousands of miles had done little to diminish it.”

YES!!! 🙌

16. “And even in those early days following John’s death, when she’d hated him for leaving her, even when she’d been so angry with him that she wanted to cry—she had taken some comfort in the knowledge that he was alive and well, and would return to her in an instant, if ever she asked it of him.”

Micheal was living with a broken heart in India, but little does he know that half the work to make her fall for him has already been put in by his past self 😋 All he had to do was be himself 🥰

17. “She reached out and took his hand. “We will get through this,” she said. He nodded, and then he closed his eyes. But just when she thought he was asleep, he whispered, “It’s better with you here.”

Sighhh ❤️

18. “He had never seen her wake up, he realised. He wasn’t certain why he found that so strange; it wasn’t as if he’d been privy to many of her private moments before. Maybe it was because in all of his daydreams, in all of his fantasies, he’d never quite pictured this—the low rumbling from deep in her throat as she shifted position, the small sigh of sound when she yawned, or even the delicate ballet of her eyelids as they fluttered open. She was beautiful. He’d known that, of course, had known that for years, but never before had he felt it quite so profoundly, quite so deeply in his bones.”

Michael Stirling deserves the entire world, and this is precisely why. No one could ever love her as much as he does 😭😭

19. “It was something in the way she moved. Something in the way she breathed. Something in the way she merely was. And he didn’t think he was ever going to get over it.”

And I will never get over how he feels about her 😫

20. “I have no wish to hear about your amorous exploits,” Francesca said stiffly. “Funny, you used to ask about them all the time.” He paused, watching her squirm. “What was it you always asked me?” “I don’t—” “Tell me something wicked” he said, using his best trying-to-sound-as-if-he’d-just-thought-of-it voice, when of course he never forgot anything she said to him.”

The fact that he tries so hard to pretend like he doesn’t care about her too much 😭 Also I love that he’s slowly starting his to let down his guard and use his charm on her 😏

21. “I knew there was a reason I loved you so well,” he said dryly. “One really needn’t worry about falling into the sin of vanity with you about.”

Look at him, casually throwing in the world “love” concealed in a joke. I see you Michael 🥺

22. “Where’s that new earl of yours?” My, she was blunt. “He’s not my earl,” Francesca pointed out. “Well, he’s more yours than anyone else’s.”

Lady Danbury knows best. Come on, Francesca! We know this!! It’s best not to argue with her, and go along with whatever she says 😂

23. “It was like a sickness with him, a sixth sense. He couldn’t be in a room with Francesca and not know where she was. It had been like this since the moment they’d met, and the only thing that made it bearable was that she hadn’t a clue.”

I just.. 😭😭

24. “A man would have to be a fool not to want to marry you.”

Oh my god. My child, I can’t even be mad at him for not telling her how he feels because of how respectful he is 😢

25. “Michael snorted with disgust. Anyone who took the time to really look at Francesca’s eyes would have realised that they were quite their own colour. As if the sky could even compare.”

Haha, what an adorable lovesick puppy 🥰

26. “How did you know I was in the garden?” she inquired. He didn’t say anything. Or maybe he would have done, just not quickly enough to suit her. “Were you watching me?” she asked.His lips curved, not quite into a smile, not even into the beginnings of a smile. “I’m always watching you,” he said grimly.”

Damnn 😏 This, right here is the moment that we all knew it was about to go down. There will be no more facades from this point forward. We’re about to witness the charming, smooth-talking Michael Stirling in all of his glory 😍

27. “Good God, he was staring at her toes. Her toes. What had his life come to?”

*screams internally* 🤣

28. “Now that it had finally happened, now that he had tasted perfection, he was in more agony than ever before. Now he knew exactly what he was missing; he understood with painful clarity just what it was that would never be his.”

Oh god. Someone get this man a whiskey, or a hug, and maybe a therapist 😢

29. “You do realize, Kilmartin,” Colin said, his voice so soft it was almost chilling, “that there is no reason you can’t marry her. None at all. Except, of course,” he added, almost as an afterthought, “the reasons you manufacture for yourself.” Michael felt something tearing in his chest. His heart, probably, but he was growing so used to the feeling it was a wonder he still noticed it.”

Colin Bridgerton, what a godsend. I honestly don’t know why he bothered with becoming a writer when we all know that matchmaking/counseling is what he was born to do 💁‍♀️😂

30. “He might not ever have all of her—her heart, he knew, would never be his—but he’d have most of her, and that would be enough.” “It was certainly more than he had now. And even half of Francesca—Well, that would be ecstasy. Wouldn’t it?”

He’s waaaay too good for this world. Am I biased? Maybe. Do I care? Not one bit 😋

31. “I will give you children,” he said softly. “Or at least, I will try.”

Ohhh GOD 😭❤️

32. “Who would have thought, after all his years of bad behavior, that he’d emerge such a hopeless romantic?”

Pstttt. As if he hasn’t been a hopeless romantic since the day he met her 😂

33. “There was nothing she valued more than a cool and clear head, and Michael had managed to steal that from her with a single kiss. And then he’d done more. So much more. She was never going to be the same. She was never going to be sane.

“You look distressed,” he said. She wanted to strangle him. He cocked his head and smiled. She wanted to kiss him.”

Haha. Cuties 🥰🥰

34. “Dream of me,” he said softly.”

Aww ❤️ I’d be very surprised if she was able to dream of anyone else 😋

35. “He told her about India, and she told him of her childhood. She gave him her opinions about political matters, and he actually listened. And he told her devilish jokes that men were never supposed to tell women, and women certainly weren’t supposed to enjoy. And then, once the bed had stopped shaking with her mirth, his mouth would find hers, a smile embedded on his lips. “I love your laughter,” he would murmur, and his hands would curl her to him. She’d sigh, still giggling, and they’d begin their passion anew.”

This is my favorite part of the book. It sums up their relationship to a single paragraph, and it’s just so beautiful ❤️❤️

36. “Why? It’s because I love you, damn me to hell. Because I’ve always loved you. Because I loved you when you were with John, and I loved you when I was in India, and God only knows I don’t deserve you, but I love you, anyway.”

Oh god, finally! I can’t get over how he told himself that he was never going to tell her any of this, but he just absolutely had to do it when he thought he was going to lose her forever. It’s so tragic 💔

37. “If this is to end, you will have to do it. You will have to walk away, Francesca. Because now… after everything… I’m just not strong enough to say goodbye.”

If my future boyfriend isn’t even remotely anything like him, I don’t want him. Who cares if it’s irrational? From now on, Michael Stirling is the gold standard of men 😭

38. “Six bloody years, all lost in a single moment. All because he’d thought he might actually have the right to feel happy.”

*screams* You do deserve to be happy!! 😫

39. “I don’t care if you’re barren,” he said, his voice hot against her ear. “I don’t care if you deliver a litter of puppies.”

I can’t. How can he be this.... perfect? 😭

40. “His heart had always skipped a beat when he saw her across a crowded room. Anything more, and he didn’t think the organ could take the strain.”

Sighhhh 🥺 I swear, the number of times I sighed while reading this book is striking 😅

41. “It’s not nothing,” he murmured. “When it’s you, and when it’s me, it’s never nothing.”

Oh my god ❤️

42. “This thing between them, this bond—it wasn’t just passion, and it wasn’t wicked. It was love, and it was divine.”

Hallelujah!!! 🥳

43. “She didn’t have to love him. But she did have to feel free. Free to be happy. Because if she wasn’t happy… Well, that would kill him. He could live without her love, but not without her happiness.”

He’s so damn perfect. It’s almost infuriating. Almost! Does Julia Quinn actually think that we won’t be stupid enough to look for this in the real world? Because I will. I am certainly just that dumb 😅

44. “You have to say it,” he said. “If you feel it, then you have to say it. I’m a greedy bastard, and I want it all.”

YESS ❤️

45. “For the rest of my life,” he vowed, “I will love you. For the rest of my life. I promise you. I will lay down my life for you. I will honor and cherish you.”

What a perfect ending to a beautiful book. I was rooting for him since the first chapter. He finally got his happy ending 😇 And Francesca deserves every bit of his love 🥰

[taki118]

IruClarAzz Master Post Part 9

Just collecting all of the cuteness of the Love Trio and adding my commentary. Spoilers ahead very current with the manga but with ch 308 I just HAD to post. (Also warning I may make jabs at the IruAmeri ship here and there just small comparisons showing why I don’t like it as much, no hate but if you don’t like your ship being talked about even slightly negatively probably look away.)

If you didn’t see it Part 1 is here, Part 2 is here, Part 3 here Part 4 here  Part 5 here Part 6 here Part 7 here Part 8 here Bonus here

So Iruma wants to go to super important demon ball but Opera says no after heartbreaker incident so he asked for outside help in persuading them and his choice says a lot

SO he asks Azz, but the thing is Iruma’s mind when he hits this Opera sized wall and thinks about who can rely on. Thing is you gotta wonder why it wasn’t his super capable upperclassman who invited him in the first place, Ameri? put a pin in that

Opera acknowledges Azz abilities and his short comings

Which is why his mom is also watching over them. Now to the question I asked earlier you could say this is the reason however Ameri’s dad is also one of the 13 crowns and if you think from a purely practical standpoint you’d consider the guy who’s basically in charge of the police first wouldn’t you? 

But Iruma asks Azz for help because time and time again Azz has been a consistent place of knowledge and support when he’s in need of help this is where he looks to. You could say “well Ameri’s dad hates Iruma of course he wouldn’t seek him for help” however Iruma never considered Amu that was Azz’s thought he swallowed his pride and asked him mom to help them out. (and if that ain’t love I don’t know what is) So again I ask why Azz? Why did Iruma’s mind immediately go to Azz when it could have just as easily been Ameri? and this is more so if Ameri is the intended love interest wouldn’t you want more reason for the two to interact? Just some food for thought.

Why does this look like boyfriend telling girlfriend he can’t make date night? cause it does

Clara asks to go with them but they know she can’t (side bar I am actually sad we didn’t get a training montage of Clara maybe another time)

Iruma describes the difficulty he had to go through and I just adore how Clara offers comfort

Iruma says that even though its tough he doesnt regret his choice and wants to see things through and aww look at Clara I love how they just let her do this and move to support her.

I hate that we don’t get love trio but of my god the softness of this yeah its totally drawn like a platonic scene yup what are you talking about there’s no romantic implication here.

But they both say how they have been thinking of Clara all this time making her captain of the magitools club for the work of the festival since they can’t be there.

Iruma compliments Clara on how easily she’s able to connect with others, and our girl sure haas come far like cause her development isn’t as flashy people tend to ignore it.

Azz even agrees that she really is the most suitable for this even though he teases her. 

Once more the trio are front and center

Side thing Iruma has a dream of those close to him becoming like kalego but whats interesting is that an Ameri fluff isnt here

Hes actually a little disappointed

So at the ball while Iruma does escort Ameri in the two only dance briefly before being pulled apart by the other grandsons in fact Iruma spends more time dancing with him than her. I think he’s also implying here that Iruma goes both ways which facts dude

Making small talk Iruma is asked about demons he’s close with and he once more first goes to Azz and Clara their descriptions top tier.

It almost looks like Azz is holding his hand

Shit goes down and these two just insync working together

I just find this spreads placement interesting 

And again gotta question why just Iruma and Azz like Iruma I get but once more I need to question if Ameri is usppose to be the love interest why is she not here?

So Kirrio shows up separates Azz from Iruma and as he’s taunting Iruma with the knowledge he has Azz looses it enough to break through the barrier just saying very much a romantic lead move

And thats a hell of a statement (not sure Ameri could handle that if she were to date Iruma just sayin)

Azz asks a very.....normal question again I wonder why it wasn’t Clara along with Azz, also I don’t tend to sniff my friends and notice how they smell.

Kirrio threatens to reveal Iruma’s humanity to Azz and he’s so desperate to keep his secret and tell him and clara (Specifically he wants to tell them) on his terms he’s ready to kill Kirrio

And oh my god you don’t know how happy this made me cause I knew I just knew

It was Clara, and oh I was missing her, to me at least there was Clara sized hole that couldnt be filled when Iruma is just with Azz. But also I’ve noticed this trend of Clara seems to pop up just when she’s needed.

She fills Iruma in on whats happening with the club cause she thought the ball was over and her small words set Iruma back to normal.

She brought him back to normal so much that Kirrio is now disappointed. 

I like the thought that she tells her siblings stories about Iruma and Azz Coughfuturebrotherscough

So after returning and recovering We get our trio back together and oh my god this chapter healed my heart

I like that Clara went to get Azz first before Iruma you can either see this as A: Azzs house is on the way to Irumas from hers, B: she talked to iruma already and wanted to see Azz or C: she wants to keep things even so she got Azz first. No matter what its cute

So this is something I’ve noticed for a while, I’ve seen people question what CLara brings to the trio and this is it. 

Clara out of all of them has the best empathy she sees Iruma and instantly knows something is wrong and so she figures out a way to help him deal with it and Opera understands that

This is what Clara brings to the trio Azz and Iruma are not good at expressing themselves but Clara is 

She turns them into kids and puts them in a place all alone so they can say the things that are bothering them and not feel bad about it. Like both Azz and Ameri either can’t read people the way Clara does or can’t push like she does and Iruma (and Azz) need that. 

Like had she been at the ball the other crown wouldn’t have needed to step up and while she did help its obvious Clara wouldve helped better

Not only does Iruma let it all out Azz does too. 

And Clara gets angry for them and its all so sweet

Iruma confesses that he has a secret he wants to tell them but isn’t ready

Not only do they tell him its ok they both confess they have something their keeping too. (my guesses Azz its his bloodline magic and Claras is something with her wings)

Awwww they proceed to play to their hearts content 

Opera does as asked and sees the bond the three share, and again yeah this is a totally platonic scene. yup just friends snuggling each other and hold hands in a not at all intimate way yup. Anyway I’m dead I needed to do this as soon as I saw it but once more we gotta wait.

[hamausagi]

HELLO AND WELCOME to this episode of JAKES SOAPBOX !!! where i yap on and on abt things i care abt, but likely no one else does. todays episode i will be ranting and raving abt the highly anticipated (at least for me) OMORI official manga first chapter release !! below is my highly opinionated review <3 there are spoilers for the manga, and i do discuss the prologue and day one of the OMORI game so read this with caution. i added screenshots from the manga itself as well.

this is simply a critique from the point of view of a superfan who was hoping the manga would be suitable for both old fans, new fans, and people reading the manga with no prior knowledge of the game at all. this is simply my opinion. while i compare this manga to the game repeatedly, i want to make it clear upfront that i wasn't expecting this to be a cookie-cutter remake in manga form of the game. i believe that it's lacking some important story beats and pacing that makes the story as impactful as it is. enjoy

first of all, i was ECSTATIC when i saw the promo for this. i am OMORI's biggest fan forever and ever, so god knows i was sitting and (im)patiently waiting for this to come out. however, upon reading the first chapter, i can't say i'm a huge fan. i will say that i am the type of person to view content regarding my favorite things with the most insanely rose tinted glasses, however that wasn't going to save my first impressions of the manga from scrutiny. tl'dr, i was really disappointed.

now my first complaint: pacing. to start with the beginning, i do really like how it starts off with the same dialogue as the game does. the art is simple, yet extremely effective when it comes to portraying the overall "vibe" of OMORI, which is something that carries on throughout the first chapter and i'll talk about it more later. however, i'm really not a fan of how the story begins. the first three pages are showing this dream sunny is having, a contorted memory of a christmas spent with his friends, ending with a horrifying and distorted image of mari begging sunny to "tell her why".

now, my issue with this, is that the story is now lacking a very important aspect that made the original so much more impactful: a foundation. in the game prologue, we are introduced primarily to the whole group, all of the fun-loving and sweet characters all living happily in headspace- INCLUDING mari. it was meant to establish two very important things about sunny: A) headspace is a safe, fun place where all of his friends are, but something isnt right and B) the real world is NOT where he wants to be, it's scary and reminds him of something he doesn't want to remember. yet the way the manga is paced, it skips all of that. we are immediately thrust into the real world as sunny wakes up to get himself the steak from the fridge, where again, we are robbed of another crucial detail: sunny does NOT want to go down the stairs in the dark. in game, when sunny tries to leave his room, he doesn't allow himself down more than one step of the stairs. before i get ahead of myself, the artist did include this panel (right to left)

which i think wonderfully portrays sunny's fear of going down the stairs. the wobbly lines and darkness coming out of the piano room is great. however, this comes after sunny has already come down the stairs and eaten the steak, and seems to be more centered around him being afraid of who was at the door. which, in my opinion, also holds even less weight as the original mari door jumpscare wasn't included either (which is a whole other can of worms), which was an actual deterrent from the player opening the door for kel in game.

(this leads me to another, much more nit-picky complaint: but that is the specific pacing of this page specifically:

which occurs after sunny goes back upstairs to throw up the steak he ate in the bathroom. the panels, while aesthetically pleasing and visually descriptive towards sunny's paranoid thoughts, aren't really showing me what's going on. he slams the bathroom door shut, seemingly does nothing, and is suddenly back in the kitchen cleaning his knife. but for some reason, the kitchen is upstairs, rather than downstairs, which is where we get the panels of him being afraid of descending the stairs. i feel that this was an unnecessary change, and could have been avoided by sticking to the original planning of this segment. but again, this is just a small nitpick that doesn't really mean anything.)

speaking of kel at the door, this is another reason why the lack of a headspace prologue in the very beginning is frustrating. as of now, the reader has no idea who kel is, or what he really means to sunny. sure, we saw him briefly in the dream sunny has, but he says one thing, and that dream lasted 3 pages. two, of which, didn't show anyone besides mari or sunny at all. in the prologue, kel is shown to be very protective and caring towards sunny, notably staying by his side and making sure sunny isn't alone for too long when being "it" during the hide and seek minigame, and overall establishing that he (and the rest of the friendgroup, might i add) was an important person in sunny's life. knowing this, then hearing mom's voicemail about how kel has been trying to reach sunny all this time, and THEN hearing him call out to sunny at the door, makes seeing kel in the real world for the first time a meaningful experience. we understand why kel is so excited to see sunny come outside. but in the manga, to me, it feels so rushed. when playing through the story, you're in headspace for a good 3-5 hours before you even enter the real world, or have the chance to open the door for kel. in the manga, it feels lackluster.

this leads to the faraway town scenes. kel and omori make their way to faraway town, which is full of the typical headspace cameos that the reader won't understand due to the lack of the headspace storyline. when in hobeez, kel mentions how the store is the same, featuring "captain spaceboy games" and "sweetheart movies", which would mean a lot more to the reader if they saw the group dig through spaceboy's junkyard and battle him at the end, or sneak through sweetheart's castle and confront her on stage. these are small nitpicks, but the biggest issue for me is that during this segment, kei and sunny are going to hobeez to buy hero a gift. but yet, the reader doesn't know who hero is. there isn't that moment of realization that hero, alongside kel, is a real person in sunny's life, not just a figment of sunny's imagination, and he's old enough to be in college. there's no emotion there. they pick out the same cookbook, but the reader has no idea why this holds significance. in the game, we all know hero as the chef, the cook that heals the team with his snacks and his frying pan fighting skills- but the reader doesn't know why hero, mentioned as a pre-med student, would even want a cookbook. these details lose all meaning without being backed up by important scenes in the original prologue.

this leads to my personal least favorite moment of the whole chapter: the confrontation between basil and aubrey. i was so incredibly disappointed by the absolute assassination of her character, which is simply because there's more missing context left behind in the game prologue. aubrey is introduced as a sweet, silly girl in the game, who cares deeply for omori and her friends, which is supposed to shock the player when meeting her in the real world for the first time. aubrey's change is supposed to make the player really question what happened to these friends, what made these kids who clearly cared so deeply for one another behave this way, and wonder why sunny (and mari's death, along with why no one wants to talk about it) seems to be at the center of it all. there is none of this extremely necessary context here. what makes things worse is that the reader also has zero idea who aubrey or basil are. while yes, they too were mentioned in the 3-page dream at the beginning of the chapter, it was for one single page with one piece of dialogue each. these characters hold no meaning here. aubrey then hits basil with her nail-covered bat, which is NOT something that happens in game. its actually kim who pushes him away, NOT aubrey, which is an important detail as aubrey never meant to lay a hand on any of them originally. the manga just paints her out to be violent, angry, and in a rush to hurt people she used to care about. while her character is extremely detailed and nuanced, i won't get too into it here as the player wouldn't know at this point, and neither would the reader.

the altercation in the manga between sunny and aubrey continues as she mocks him for locking himself away after they supposedly "couldn't save mari". this sends sunny into a spiral, aubrey swings her bat at kel, and poises to hurt sunny as well when he swings his knife at her, slicing her shoulder. the choices the artist make here are astounding, in the most negative way possible. while yes, there is a fight scene with kel and sunny vs aubrey in game, it portrayed a lot differently. its made very clear in game that sunny is very seriously impacted by his inner world to the point where he sees apparitions of space bunnies or other creatures while walking down the streets, or even the "fight" between himself and the poster inside of hobeez. this is important to note, because the player can also see the RPG fighting menu, which is extremely important to display just how out of touch with reality sunny is. he can't grasp that there's a difference between reality and his dream world. inside headspace, fighting is extremely normal. combat is a huge part of the game and the story, where the player fights bosses, smaller enemies, and gathers weapons and even toys to use in battle. that normalization where the player is USED to battle in the dreamworld, where there are no real consequences, if a character dies they can be healed or revived, comes to a screeching halt when we realize that we, as sunny, just actually slashed aubrey. the battle comes to a screeching halt, aubrey collapses after just one hit, which again, the player AND sunny isn't used to after fighting so many hard battles, and displays real pain. this is a far contrast to the manga, where we just see sunny lash out at aubrey. while it can be argued that yes, the manga is a completely different medium of storytelling than the game where we have that fighting and battle UI aspect, there are a myriad of ways the creator could have given the same effect- which could have easily been achieved by including the headspace prologue instead of jumping immediately into the real world this way.

the creator then chooses this moment to send sunny back into white space, which completely removes the interaction sunny has with basil and kel after the scuffle with aubrey. there's no walking with basil home, theres no learning about the photo album- in fact, there's no mention of basil's album at ALL, which is incredibly strange not only due to its immense importance to showing the bond between the friends, but the fact that it's a huge plot point and storytelling device.

in conclusion, i sincerely believe that this manga is a poor presentation of OMORI's story, and an incredible disappointment. leaving out the hours and hours of content before the real world is even introduced robs the manga of any substance, as the whole point of the prologue being so incredibly long was to establish a baseline for the player to become comfortable with, to allow us to get to know the characters and see how they interact, and then have that all be contorted and changed when brought into the real world. there is no established connection to the characters, the plot is ridiculously rushed, and the story feels empty and disconnected. it truly feels like the author barely knew what the game was about. i also don't feel that the artstyle in general works either, as the characters look extremely young, while the real world characters are 15-16 and the way they are drawn makes them look 12. but, i will rest my case there. i completely disagree with the flip-flopping of the story, and my expectations for the rest of this manga have plummeted to insane depths.

[minaramen]

Momo - 16 Idol Album - Part 3:  If I am with my loved one

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

[Disclaimer: I’m NOT a professional translator. I’m using my knowledge from 4 years of university. Please, feel free to let me know if you notice  mistranslation/typo/error of any kind]    

***

Momo: Once I entered elementary school I started having football training very early in the morning, so I couldn’t go to radio calisthenics with my sister anymore

Momo: That must be the reason why, whenever I try to think about the past, all that comes to mind is about those days

Momo: Also, if we were so good to attend everyday, my dad would reward us with delicious juice!

Momo: While rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, I used to hold my sister’s hand and go to the calisthenics exercise together

Yuki:... You have a good sister, don’t you? Despite being little children, you really sympathised with each other

Yuki:...however…

Momo: W-what…?

Yuki: You’re always the same. You never really changed

Momo: Uh…because I always wanted to handle the situation by myself?

Yuki: Correct. But, well…I can’t say I don’t like this side of you as well

Yuki: Because not everyone can do it. There are millions of people out here who say they’re the loveliest in the world and it’s just fine-sounding talk

Yuki: However you, Momo, spring right into action for other people’s sake. And you do it in a wonderful, cool, proud way.

Momo: …Yuki….

Yuki: That said, I can’t forgive the fact you never talk to me

Momo: Yes… 

Yuki: I don’t want to be misunderstood, so I’m going to say it properly. I mean that I want you to share your pain and your struggles with me. That’s what a partner does, isn’t it?

Momo:...! Yes…! Yuki…! Your handsomeness level increased lately…! 

Momo: You even talked properly in order to avoid misunderstandings…

Yuki: Yes. I’m learning a lot

Momo: Ahah… well, I think I’m getting to like myself more lately

Momo: I caused you a lot of trouble, but I could protect people who are important to me and I’m having an optimistic talk with you, my special person, while sharing that*

Momo: Back then even if I could protect people, I couldn’t share anything with them

Yuki: …not even with your sister?

Momo: I just couldn’t. Maybe because she was family

Yuki: How are things going, lately? Are you in contact with her?

Momo: Ah, yes! We have a good relationship. But we both work, so there aren’t many chances we can meet

Momo: She sent me her feedback on what she watches on TV and opinions on Re:vale new songs

Momo: She even tells me the exact second of a scene from an anime she enjoyed the most

Yuki: I see. I’d like to meet her again, it’s been a while

Momo: Ahah! So you want to meet my sister on a regular basis!

Yuki: I just want to see your face when you're together with your sister. Sometime I want to taste your little brother’s face, and the Momose aura you had when we first met

Momo: S-so that’s what you think about when you look at us! It’s pretty embarrassing…!

Yuki: I don’t think I’d have the chance to see you being taken by the hand with a sleepy face, unless you’re with Ruri san

Momo: I’m not that much of a sleepyhead anymore! My name isn’t  “Yuki”...

Yuki: I was not like that years ago. I was the kind of child who would have gone to the radio calisthenics with a high spirit

Momo: What? You’re kidding 

Yuki:  I am

Momo: You scared me…! It’s heartbreaking when a handsome man lies as soon as he opens his mouth…

Momo: You’ve never done anything like radio calisthenics in your life, right?

Yuki: I haven’t. I don’t think I even knew there were something like that in the neighborhood

Momo: Well, if you’d have gone to the radio calisthenics you would have been just like you are when you’re on the stage, and everybody would be instantly thrown into an uproar

Momo: The old men who were playing gateball would have focused all their attention on you, and the old women as well, and all the children in the nearabouts too! And it wouldn’t have been radio calisthenics anymore. Definitely too dangerous…

Yuki: Radio calisthenics has such performance-oriented movements?

Momo: Uhm, well… actually, the way your arms go from around the waist to above may be considered a little scenographic…?

Yuki: Like this…?

Momo: Yeah! You’re good!

Momo: Fufu… ahahah! Ah, if only I was a Yuki… a Yukito kun’s neighbor, I would have taken you by hand and walked to the radio calisthenics together

Yuki: Is it okay to sleep on the park bench?

Momo: N-not at all…! We’re supposed to do it together! And then we could have a tasty juice once we’re done

Yuki: Isn’t radio calisthenics a children's activity?

Momo: It’s not only for children! There were also old men doing it

Yuki:.... then, when we’re old men, you’ll take me by hand and bring me to radio calisthenics

Yuki: You couldn’t do it in the past, but if you  get challenged in the future you can do it

Momo: I see… you’re right..!

Momo: I can do everything I couldn’t in the past, if I don’t give up and think I can succeed

Momo: Thank you, Yuki. If you’re by my side, I’ll get to like myself and become stronger

The end

* I’ve found this sentence really hard to translate into English, so if you find a better way to translate it  please let me know 

[valle-de-sombra-de-muerte]

Homestuck Reread: Act 3, Part 2/3 (p. 892-1026)

Read the previous post here.

The second third of Act 3 introduces yet another new character: the Peregrine Mendicant.

PM is obsessed with the sanctity of the postal service in the same way WV is obsessed with democracy. The exiles hold dear symbols of their lost civilization while they're stranded in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. They cling to the desperate hope that society can one day be rebuilt as long as the memory of these institutions are kept alive.

Also, "brave soldiers of God in this righteous crusade"? I didn't realize these chess people were so Christian.

The fact that Mom Lalonde has her own secret littlespace in the lab is something that I never see anyone talk about. Can we please talk more about this grown woman who knows the world is going to end in her lifetime, who drinks every day to distract herself from that cursed knowledge, and also has this whole secret setup where she can hide away and pretend to be a little kid with no responsibilities?

This was probably all beyond Hussie's capabilities as a writer, so of course this is never elaborated on. What a hack. Maybe I'll write a fanfic about this myself one of these days.

Jade falls asleep in the foyer where Grandpa Harley's remains are and we get this unnecessary "psycheout" where instead of transitioning to Dave's POV, the next page immediately follows with Jade's "strife" with her dead grandpa. It's another lame interactive page like the one where she plays the flute (which I didn't mention last post because it's a waste of time).

Hussie "trolling" the reader is a character trait that he unfortunately leans into more and more as time passes.

It also would've been nice if it were better acknowledged that Jade has essentially raised herself for most of her life. What kind of strain would that put on a child's development? Obviously a lot if she's having imaginary arguments with her dead grandfather.

If Jade had been written as someone who was socially stunted from being raised without an adult human presence (she was raised by a fucking dog, remember?), and uses excessive positivity both because she literally doesn't know how to interact with others, and also as a mask to hide the stress she's under from experiencing constant visions of doomsday, perhaps she would've been a good character.

But, oh no, this is just another silly flash, you guys! Grandpa Harley is just a lifeless prop that Jade pretends is still alive because she's a manic pixie silly girl! No deeper meaning here.

Ah yeah, the cat's characteristic recalcitrance. I can't dunk on Rose too much here because I'm sure a lot of us tried to incorporate our pets in make-believe scenarios when we were kids.

I love the kitten playing with Rose's scarf off to the side.

The reason Rose wants to play Sburb is to resurrect Jaspers so he can follow up on his "secret." But... it's not like he can actually speak. You're telling me the whole reason she wants to bring back Jaspers is so he can follow up on the time he meowed in her ear nine years ago? And people really want to frame Rose as the most "serious" out of the kids.

Again, none of this seems worth ending the world for. Rose, you were like four years old here. It's time to move on. I know that "meow" actually ends up being somewhat important later, but Rose isn't aware of it at this point so it comes across as her being obsessed with something really silly.

Rose mentioned before that the funeral was held because of her request. So was it Rose who wanted a funeral for Jaspers, or was it Mom? Maybe both. I think it's very in-character for Mom to be torn up about the cat's death, so she wanted the funeral to have all the pomp and circumstance she believed he deserved.

The fact that the appearifier was already programmed to the moment before Jaspers's death means that Mom was trying to clone him through ectobiology. She really loved that cat. Rose is unable to realize this because she still views her mother as a callous and passive-aggressive bitch.

In what is perhaps the eeriest flash in the whole comic, we see a time lapse of Jaspers's body being recovered, his funeral, and the sequence of events leading to his body's reappearance on the transportalizer platform. "Chorale for Jaspers" is a strange track. The combination of the dreary organ and those sad, ethereal meows makes for an disquieting tune.

Coming off the heels of that somber flash is this overly dramatic flash where John has a mental breakdown after finding out how boring his dad really is. This so-called "reveal" that Dad Egbert is just a normal guy and not an undercover clown is like... no shit? Who in their right mind actually thought that he was a clown before this point? John's misconceptions made no sense to begin with and this payoff is equally underwhelming. At least this running gag is finally put to rest now.

I'd love to write this off as just another lame joke if not for the narrative weight attached to it. Yes, this load of shit is actually a pivotal moment for John's development.

Okay, I stand corrected. Dad Egbert is definitely not "just a normal guy" if he's able to hold that safe over his head.

He's also able to overpower the strongest Derse goon who was carrying a much larger safe. This dude is jacked.

Every panel we've seen so far suggests that everything related to the sylladex is flat like a card (especially with such terminology like captchalogue "card" and strife "deck"). Blowing into them suggests there's some kind of exterior housing and a hollow space inside where dust collects.

I get that Hussie is using this as an excuse to make this old video game joke, but if they're completely flat like say a TurboGrafx-16 game card, you wouldn't blow on those at all.

Trust me, I'm like one of the 10 people who grew up with a TG-16 instead of a Nintendo.

The admission that John's freakout over the Gushers is "stupid" suggests that his earlier mental breakdown was not "stupid." Uh huh...

Jade has a robot that her consciousness inhabits while she's dreaming on Prospit. Because at this point, why the fuck not? It's not like she builds anything else later on so might as well make this invention really complex. This is one last gasp at reminding the reader that, hey, remember this girl likes to invent stuff???

"guys'es"? That's a weird typo. John's username is "ghostyTrickster" in the past. According to the Formspring, Hussie noticed that the kids' usernames except John's all share the letters of DNA nucleobases, so this is him to backtrack and say "oh, his username used to fit the pattern until he changed it."

And like... it's stupid because TT, TG, and GG only correspond to two of the four nucleobases: thymine and guanine. That's hardly even notable, so why try to establish that pattern anyway?

The trolls came about later to complete the full set of nucleobase combinations. He created twelve whole new characters to complete a pattern that was half-formed and wasn't even intentional to begin with. Incredible.

John doesn't seem terribly concerned that the fire has reached Rose's house. This can be read as either a bumbling attempt at matching her sarcasm, or him taking her statement at face value and thinking she really is pleased that her house is on fire. Knowing John, the latter is more likely.

John refers to Bro beating up Dave in a very flippant manner. We can take this as evidence that Dave and Bro's strifes aren't actually that concerning. But if we're meant to take Dave's domestic situation seriously, then holy shit what the fuck is John's problem??

You know, for all the people who say John and Dave have such a strong friendship, John's been acting like a real dick to Dave so far. He insults him in his chats with Rose, ignores his messages, throws shade at him in his portion of the GameFAQs guide, and makes light of his distress. The only nice thing he's done for Dave so far is give him the Ben Stiller sunglasses for his birthday, and even that was an admittedly shitty gift that he assumed Dave would only appreciate "ironically."

Okay, this is what I've been waiting for. Rose says she knew about John's defaced posters all along.

But in this page, from Rose's own viewport, the posters are fine.

Rose also says that she can "see only [...] what John can see, or has seen already" which is why she can't see into his dad's room. Taking the above page into account, it's also reasonable to assume that since John was unable to see the damaged posters until now, Rose couldn't see them either.

Basically, this whole "twist" doesn't make sense and was poorly executed.

Not content with telling us himself how amazing Jade is, Hussie has characters in the comic say it too.

Aw yeah, there he is. My boy gets his first appearance. <3

Rose spouts a bunch of psychobabble about how John has been repressed all his life and it's only by learning the truth about his father that he's able to see what was once invisible to him. Not only is this event being framed as a pivotal moment where John grows from boy to man (further represented by John earning his suit after entering his dad's room), it's also supposed to be an enlightening moment for him. All because he solved a "mystery" that any reader with a brain would've figured out from the get-go.

As seen before in instances where she's either dismissive or totally ignorant of the motives behind others' behavior, Rose only possesses a superficial knowledge of psychoanalysis. Everything points to her being a massive pseud, so her theory here should've been called out as bogus. Except this isn't actually Rose positing a theory. This is Hussie literally spelling out the explanation for John's actions. We're meant to take Rose's words here at face value, so it means that Hussie somehow thinks any of this makes sense. This is what happens when dumb writers try to write smart characters.

It's funny that Rose correctly states the reason for Dad Egbert's eccentric nature, but fails to make the same connection to her own situation, instead continuing to insist that Mom Lalonde is just being passive-aggressive. Cruel irony. You don't know your mom that well either, Rose.

The further we go into this Act, the more elements Hussie seems to throw at the wall to further bog down the plot and create the illusion of depth. Let's see how things wrap up in the final third.

Read the next post here.