#and if there is no translation in a certain language they’ll discuss what it *could* be

[charlataninred]

I love love love fandoms so much. You’re able to more easily see the chaotic nature that is fandom when 90% of the people interacting with it are your friends/mutuals and you can see their work. I 100% believe it when one of them says “I wrote a whole paper on [fandom related thing] just because I felt like it” or “I spent literal hours of my day researching mythology/folktales just to make sure the symbolism in my fanart/fanfic makes sense” or “I went into the metadata of these web pages to try and find new lore arhat I haven’t heard of yet and share it with all of you.”

It just. You’re able to see community and genuine human excitement that you dont get (or at least I haven’t seen) much outside of fandom spaces. It brings people with all sorts of skills and other interests and they’re all using those differing skills to build something for themselves and each other

[riddle-me-ri]

Hi there! First time asker on any blog really.

I just wanted to ask how any various versions of the Penguin would think of an S/O who’s really knowledgeable about paleontology, sharing little facts 24/7 and always rambles about dinosaurs/prehistory?

I always love seeing your posts, they’re a joy to read and BTAS Ozzie’s always been a favorite of mine.

A/N: not the Jurassic Park theme playing in my head when I read your request asdfgh. Jurassic Park was a huge part of my childhood and your girl for a minute wanted to be a tiny blonde-haired Alan Grant and Ellie Sattler love child, but alas…twas not meant to be. I did some research just to refresh my memory and…why do some of these pengys have something to do with museums and exhibits lmao. Almost every single Penguin has infiltrated a museum, enclosure, or exhibit…like…popular theme or nah?

Penguins w/ a Reader Interested in Paleontology:

Arkhamverse Penguin: 

- I mean…who else did you think helped him set up his museum in Arkham City? 

- Oswald was always intrigued by the research, dedication, and knowledge it took to explore vast locations for just a smidgen of evidence that prehistoric life lived there millions of years ago. 

- He chuckles at the thought of any caveman imagining a world of skyscrapers with men dressed intentionally as a damn bat swooping from the rooftops. 

- He breaks into a full on laughter if you inform him they’ll likely hunt Batman down and try to have him for dinner. 

Reevesverse/Farrell Penguin:

- This Oswald is always interested in hearing whatever your passionate about. 

- Just to see your eyes light up, to hear the excited hitches in your voice. He finds it all just absolutely adorable. 

- He also enjoys helping you translate certain languages that come up when a new creature is discovered or if you struggle pronouncing a certain country or region. 

- Don’t be surprised if you see little dinosaur figures or plushies around you shared living space as small surprised for you. 

Gotham Penguin: 

- Oswald is always intrigued in learning people’s strengths (usually in order to swiftly counteract them or make it someone’s weakness but not here…not now)

- He enjoys listening to you ramble about the latest discovery or your hypothesis of where certain fossils will be. 

- He loves beaming at you, asking you questions, just to keep you rambling. It allows him time to not think so much.

- Just be able to enjoy the moment as you share something you’re deeply passionate about with someone you care about dearly. He appreciates that more than you could ever imagine. 

BTAS Penguin:

- Oswald would have so many questions. Who needs the Discovery Channel or National Geographic. You sound far more passionate and sweet to listen too than any of those robotic narrators. 

- I imagine he would absolutely swoon as you explain the genealogical history of his beloved birds. How they're the modern day dinosaurs that surpassed millions of years of evolution to live and thrive today. 

- Oswald's unlimited adoration for his fellow aviary allies grows tenfold, as does his admiration of you. 

- I can see the two of you discussing various time periods and matching each other to certain extinct species of that particular time period. 

TNBA Penguin: 

- This Oswald absolutely admires the vast knowledge you hold. 

- I wouldn’t put it past him that one of these years, he’ll fund for you an opportunity to participate in a dig. 

- He appreciates your dedication to such a sophisticated and distinguished study. How are we to evolve and see what’s to come if we don’t look back on the past? 

- Oswald enjoys learning different subjects, and if it means he gets to hear you all day as well…that’s the best of both worlds. 

Telltale Penguin: 

- Oz always knew that you’d take a serious interest in paleontology. 

- When you guys were kids you always enjoyed playing with the dinosaur toys. You two used to bury them in the ground and pretend to dig up the fossils. 

- He’ll listen to whatever you have to say, anything to see you smile. 

- He does find the “big, bad” animals of prehistoric times to be the most interesting. Expect him to ask about those a lot, especially if you announce there was a new discovery. 

One Bad Day Penguin: 

- Ozzie finds it absolutely adorable, but also super intriguing. 

- He never really thought much about…the dinosaurs and how we have what we have somewhat do to their existence. 

- Now that he has you though, he’ll be able to get some questions answered. He’s particularly interested in the hierarchy shifts during certain periods. The food chain is usually are fairly fickle system. 

- Oswald will also go an extra mile to stay up to date, so he can add more to your conversations.

- He adores you and whatever passion gives you the most joy, and he wants to be able to participate. 

The Batman (2004) Penguin:

- OH COOL DINOSAURS

- I can imagine this pengy would absolute be gushing about dinos with you. 

- He’d ask you questions like; how big where they? Could they go against *insert other dino here* and no he doesn’t care that they didn’t exist in the same time period!

- Ok, ok, he does cause he understands your need for accuracy…but if you could give him atleast the hypothetical odds…

Batman Unlimited: 

- Oswald loves animals, I don’t doubt this Oz has dabbled in zoology (he…he literally formed an animal themed gang called the Animalitia…I rest my case)

- It almost seems like fate to run into you, someone whose borderline obsessed with paleontology. 

- Hours, upon hours, are spent discussing the bridge between the two studies. 

- For once he feels like he’s found someone that truly understands him. To say he’s also smitten is an understatement. 

- I don’t doubt this Penguin would also gift you paleontology related gifts; like claws, bones, and even a necklace of bracelet with a charm filled with amber.

[people2u]

Why Are Labour Hire Agencies A Cost-Effective Staffing Solution?

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Source by:- Why Are Labour Hire Agencies A Cost-Effective Staffing Solution?

[spanishskulduggery]

Hi can you help me figure out the different between present perfect subjunctive (e.g. haya reconocido) and imperfect subjunctive (e.g. reconociera)? Not those verbs exactly but when to use them? Thank you!

They're very similar, depending on how you use them.

Note: I promise this will come into play later but I just want to make something very clear. In Spanish, there are tenses and there are moods. It may be easier to understand them in Spanish - a tense is tiempo [meaning "time"] while a mood is modo [meaning "mode"]

There are 3 moods, indicative, subjunctive, and imperative [imperative are commands; not useful for this particular discussion]

The moods encompass the different tenses... so think of it like columns; indicative includes present tense, preterite, imperfect, future, conditional etc. And subjunctive includes present subjunctive and imperfect subjunctive.

The layman's explanation is that the mood says how the language works according to the "conditions" of the sentence/thought, and the tense says at what time it happens.

A very simple layman's explanation: the mood is the "conditions" of language. The tenses say whether it was past, present, or future in some capacity.

And there's usually a version of the indicative that corresponds to the subjunctive... present tense indicative happens at the same "time" as present tense subjunctive, for example

And perfect tenses [the ones that use haber] are a bit of a rogue time traveler; they can exist in any tense and can be either indicative or subjunctive, thus he reconocido happens at the same "time" as haya reconocido... just the conditions are different

No hemos reconocido... = We haven't recognized...

Es increídible que no hayamos reconocido... = It's unbelieveable that we haven't recognized...

So while they seem to express the same thought or idea, and though they happen at the same time [tense] the conditions of the second sentence necessitate subjunctive mood.

Keep that in mind going forward and it will make a lot more sense.

-

Present perfect just in general is used for placing something a little bit in the past, but since it's present it's still affecting the present:

Escribí. = I wrote. He escrito. = I have written.

Comí. = I ate. He comido. = I have eaten.

Pagué. = I paid. He pagado. = I have paid.

In the contexts of grammar, the simple past [preterite] in the first examples is just the actions "I wrote" or "I ate" etc. The action is done and completed and over.

Note: There are many people who will use the present perfect in place of the preterite tense because they do equate to largely the same thing in function. Though technically different, it's a colloquial thing.

But in a more grammatical roundabout way, present perfect brings that past action into the present, meaning it still has some bearing on the present in some way. Saying "I have written" is a way of just talking about past actions, but possibly bringing them into the present still.

I realize that doesn't make much sense but consider something like: "I've written a lot of essays, but I don't know how to write a poem"; or "I've read a lot of books but I've never read that author".

In those contexts, your past actions now have some bearing on the present situation. That's the basis of the perfect tenses.

With the haya here, that's the subjunctive form of haber.

In grammatical terms, it's the same idea as the present perfect... just with subjunctive phrasing:

No te has roto el brazo. = You didn't break your arm. Dudo que te hayas roto el brazo. = I doubt you broke your arm.

Lo has terminado. = You finished it. / You've finished it. Dime en cuanto lo hayas terminado. = Tell me as soon as you're done. / Tell me once you've finished it.

No se han equivocado. = They weren't wrong. No creo que se hayan equivocado. = I don't believe/think they were wrong.

Me han llamado idiota. = They've called me an idiot. Aunque me llamen idiota... = Even if they call me an idiot... [present subjunctive] Aunque me hayan llamado... = Even though they have called me an idiot...

In Spanish there are certain subjunctive phrases that activate, and they exist across multiple tenses.

Certain phrases necessitate subjunctive, so it can be the same information sort of, but they'll determine whether it's indicative or subjunctive.

-

Imperfect subjunctive is the equivalent of past tense subjunctive.

So just as an example real quick:

1. Quiero que pongas la mesa. = I want you to set the table.

2. Quería que pusieras la mesa. = I wanted you to set the table.

1. Sugieren que lo hagamos. = They suggest that we do it.

2. Sugieron que lo hiciéramos. = They suggested that we do it.

1. Es importante que tenga tiempo libre. = It's important that I have free time.

2. Era importante que tuviera tiempo libre. = It was important that I had free time.

1. Aunque me hayan llamado cobarde... = Even though they have called a coward...

2. Aunque me hubieran llamado cobarde... = Even though they had called me a coward...

Still subjunctive mood, just 1 is present, 2 is "past" so it's imperfect.

Imperfect subjunctive today also encompasses future subjunctive which can be confusing. This is normally done with contrary to fact states, hypothetical situations, and your basic if/then constructions with the conditional tense.

Si tuviera el dinero... = If I had the money... Si tuviera el dinero, estudiaría en el extranjero. = If I had the money, I would study abroad.

Si pudiera... = If I could... Lo haría si pudiera. = I would do it if I could.

Si me permitiera, señor... = If you allow me, sir... Si me permitiera, señor, podría ayudar. = If you allow me, sir, I can/could help.

Si hubiera otra opción... = If there was/were another option... Si hubiera otra opción, lo elegiríamos. = If there was/were another option, we would choose it.

Como si fuera la última vez... = As if it were the last time...

Me habló como si fuera idiota. = He talked to me like I was an idiot.

No puedo creer que nuestro jefe nos regañe como si fuéramos niños traviesos. = I can't believe our boss would scold us as if we were naughty children. [technically could be niñas traviesas if it the nosotros here were nosotras referring to all women]

You will occasionally see the future subjunctive forms, but really only in literature and contracts. It's not used commonly today; it'll look like imperfect subjunctive just with -e endings; tuviere, hubiere, hablare, llamare, quisiere etc.

For example: si fuere menester is a common thing in contracts and means "in the event of". Literally it's "if it were to be needed"

-

Important historical / regional note!

Once upon a time, the -iera/-ara forms were used as pluperfect, "had done", "had seen" etc.

You see it mostly in literature, particularly literature before a certain time period or things set in the middle ages or that have an old-timey feel (like Lord of the Rings has this)

So if you had come across llamara you might assume it's imperfect subjunctive, but it may read as "had called" which is pluperfect.

In other words for some historical contexts (and only for historical contexts, not for modern day Spanish):

me hablaran = me habían hablado = they had talked to me

les escribieran = les habían escrito = they had written to them

nos dijeras = nos habías dicho = you had told us

viera = había visto = he/she/You had seen

-

I'm not a historical linguist but I believe this is because haber in older contexts was not an auxiliary verb like this. In its original form, haber worked the way Italian did as "to have". You would see el hombre ha dos hijos "the man has two children".

haber didn't get used as an auxiliary verb until later on, and tener which now means "to have", was often used in the context of "to obtain" or "to grasp"

So in these older contexts, pluperfect [now done with haber in imperfect + past participle] was done with one verb.

Imperfect subjunctive would have been done with the -iese/-ase forms. So llamase read as "would call"; si me llamasen "if they should call me" for example

Just be careful when you're reading things like that! It's usually not too bad if you can recognize the verb because at least you get the overall meaning, but if it's not quite translating how you think it might be one of those more "antiquated" usages of a tense

...

Spain still keeps this distinction more so than Latin America. You will see -ara/-iera forms used for imperfect subjunctive [past subjunctive].

But in Spain you're more likely to see those contrary to fact statements or hypotheticals with the -ase/-iese forms:

Si lo hubiese sabido... = If I had known...

Si tuviésemos más tiempo... = If we had more time...

Como si fuésemos niños... = As if we were children...

My own Spanish leans towards Latin American usages, so I tend to use -ara/-iera forms for everything.

Spain makes more of a distinction between them, and that's why in most dictionaries or conjugation charts you'll see two different forms... like "fuera O fuese" for example

-

Importante Note: You will see the -ara/-iera forms used as pluperfect in some contexts, even in Latin America - above all in journalism, biographies, and publications

This is why you may see nació "was born" written as naciera "was born"...

But you will NEVER see it as naciese for "was born"

[igotbulletproof-insomnia]

Adopting Bangtan 09

01 previous

AN UNLIKELY WEDDING

You bit your lip as you stared at your phone. You had an email from Jimin and Taehyung’s mother. Song Jieun was your old coworker who you had adored, but who also tricked you into taking care of her children so that she could get married without worry. Your respect and opinion of her had gone down significantly with that move, but you… didn’t exactly understand, but you did appreciate that she gave her children to someone who could properly take care of them instead of leaving them to fend for themselves which had seemed to be her original plan.

What’s wrong?” Seokjin looked up from the video game he was playing, ignoring the cut scene he had watched a dozen times before now to focus on you. You could hear the younger boys playing in their bedroom, the sounds of legos clattering and mouth-made explosions louder than what their closed bedroom door could block off. They were sounds that had become familiar in the past six months, sounds that used to be made by one child and were nowhere near this boisterous.

“Nothing,” you shrugged while you scrolled through the email a second time and tried to sort out your feelings. Seokjin’s stare burned into your cheek and rolled your eyes. “I mean it, nothing is wrong. Just…” You could feel your face twisting into a dissatisfied expression and tried to relax it back into something more neutral. There were times when you found you could rely on the eldest of your children, and times when you thought it was better to keep things to yourself, and you weren’t sure which one this was.

“Someone emailed me,” you hedge. “I’m just trying to decide how I feel.”

“That’s your worried face,” said Seokjin. “You only make that face about work and about us. But you also whine when you’re worried about work, so it’s about us, isn’t it? Which one of the kids is failing school?”

“No one is failing school,” you laugh. “Namjoon could be doing better, but I’m certain he just doesn’t care as much as his teachers want him to. Neither does Yoongi…. You know, as a teacher myself, I should probably be more concerned.”

“You’re appropriately concerned,” Seokjin reassured you. “Why should you worry about things you can’t control? You’re just going to age faster.”

“You’re going to stop calling me old one day.”

“Lying isn’t healthy,”

“Says the kid who lied his way into adoption.”

“I took advantage of my situation. That’s not lying, that’s cunning.”

“I didn’t raise you like this,” you say, standing.

“No, but that’s kind of the point, isn’t it? I’m raising myself, six kids, and my guardian. I can’t tell if I’m doing a piss poor job or not.”

“Language, Kim Seokjin!”

“Dinner, seonsaengnim!” he shouted back. The problem was, you aren’t sure if he successfully distracted you from your concerns or if you successfully distracted him from you.

===

Song Jieun’s email bothered you intermittently throughout the week. It’s not like you forgot she existed. You’ve received a hefty sum into your bank account every month for taking care of the boys, enough to make you wonder exactly why her new husband didn’t want to take care of them when he would probably be spending a lot less money if they were under his own roof. So no, Song Jieun wasn’t someone you forgot existed unlike like you could the rest of your kids’ parents, she just… wasn’t relevant. So it bothered you that she was trying to make herself relevant now, after six months of silence.

“You’re doing the thing again,” Seokjin poked your face. You startled, unaware that he had approached, but thankfully kept your coffee mug full. “What are you so worried about?”

“Nothing,” you say for the umpteenth time that week. “I’m not worried about anything.”

“You’ve been ‘not-worried’ since last Thursday,” Seokjin argued.

“So then why do you keep asking me what’s wrong?” You didn’t have to turn to see the weighted stare he gave you, you could feel it. That was the thing about your kids, all of them. They had a way of making you feel like you were the one in trouble, you were the one being raised instead of the other way around. Some days you were convinced that they were the ones keeping you around, explicitly for financial reasons.

“If you’re just going to insist on being stubborn,” Seokjin sighed. He poured two cups of coffee, one for himself and one for Yoongi, and turned the kettle on for Namjoon. The other boys would be zombie-walking their way into the kitchen for breakfast soon, so you and Seokjin set to work preparing leftovers from dinner a few nights ago.

“Song Jieun wants to visit the boys,” after a long, silent moment, you finally admit your concern. The kettle was puffing it’s pre-whistle warning, so you turned it off, sitting the pot on its wicker table mat until Namjoon made his way to the table.

“Who’s Song Jieun?” asked Seokjin. “Which boy? Not me, right?”

“No, of course not you, silly. You won’t even tell me your parents’ names. How am I supposed to know when they come to visit?”

“Trust me, they won’t,” Seokjin’s tone left no room for discussion, just a sad or regretful sort of resentment.

“If you say so,” you shrugged off your curiosity, familiar with how closed-off this kid got when it came to his home life before you. “Song Jieun is Taehyung’s mom and Jimin’s stepmom.”

“The coworker who tricked you into adopting them?”

“That’s what you got out of that?”

“Isn’t that what happened?”

“That’s besides the point,”

“That is the point.”

“What’s what point?” Namjoon shuffled into the kitchen.

“Our guardian is trying to decide if the twins should see their mother.” Seokjin answered.

“That’s not what I said,”

“That’s what you were going to say.”

“Everyone else gets nice, obedient, adoring children,” you grumbled. “I get sassy monsters who boss me around.”

“You raised us like this,” Namjoon said absently.

“I did not, you raised yourselves.”

“Same thing,” both boys speak in unison.

“I’m giving you two away.”

“Good luck living with Yoongi without us,” Seokjin shrugged. “You’ll be begging me to come back by the end of the week.”

“Joke’s on you, this is the end of the week.”

“My point still stands.”

“Okay, I quit, I won’t win this one,” you literally throw your hands in the air.”

“Good,” Jin grins at you in that cheeky way he’s mastered, taunting you.

“So what’s this about the twin’s mom though?” asked Namjoon. “I thought she…” he trailed off, but you understood what he was saying, or rather, what he didn’t want to say. I thought she didn’t want them.

“Yes and no,” you say. “She just… it’s… not exactly complicated, not if I were in her position, but… let’s just say, some people are stupid and not everyone has the same priorities.”

“Song Jieun chose to make herself happy over taking care of her kids?” Seokjin translated. “She didn’t want to take them to live with her new husband?”

“More or less,” You agree, taking note of the bitterness in his tone.

“You’re not allowed to get married,” Namjoon mumbled from the table.

“Excuse me?”

“You’re not allowed to leave us or get rid of us because you want to be married,” Namjoon repeated. He’s obviously still half asleep from the way he lays his head down in his arms, but your heart clenches just a little bit from the casual desperation he speaks with.

“If I were to get married,” you said, “my future spouse would know that they come in eighth place anyway. I’m not getting rid of you, even your original parents would have to fight me. God will have to fight me.”

“But you’re still not allowed,” said Namjoon.

“Drink your tea, you’re talking crazy,” said Seokjin. “Our guardian will have to actually date first, and we all know that won’t happen.”

“The disrespect, I tell you!”

It’s after breakfast and during the chaos of getting seven young boys dressed and prepared for school when Seokjin knocks on your bedroom door frame, wearing an anxious expression.

“... Can I talk to you for a moment?”

“What’s up?” you asked. Seokjin walked fully into the room and closed the door.

“About… the twins? I… I don’t know what you’re thinking about, and that’s valid, but… I think you should maybe let them see her?” Seokjin didn’t fidget like the rest of the kids did. He leaned against the door, arms crossed and focused his eyes fully on you. It was moments like these when you realized exactly how mature your eldest was, and you recognized that most of it wasn’t because of you. Namjoon and Yoongi were you. Seokjin had probably been raising himself for longer than he’s lived with you.

“Okay,” you said.

“I just… if it was me, I would want to know that she still cared, right? And she does, I guess. You mentioned that she sends them money, and she wrote you a letter asking forgiveness, so that has to mean something. I just don’t want them feeling abandoned like the rest of us. Not if they don’t have to.”

“I’m just worried that it will confuse them even more,” you admitted. “It took weeks before Jimin would talk to us openly. Jieun-ssi isn’t going to stay. She’ll come for an afternoon or a day, take the kids out, spoil them, and then bring them back here, and they’ll both be wondering why. And I don’t know how to answer that question.”

“With the truth, obviously,” Seokjin rolled his eyes. “You’re always straight-forward with us. Why should this be any different?” Because they’re younger than you were. Because they were given away, not abandoned. Because their parent still cares from a distance. Because I don’t like making you all cry. Because picking up pieces has never been fun.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” you said instead. “I’ll think about it.”

“Okay,” Seokjin nodded, and you can see him visibly deflate, relieved to be finished with the conversation. “That’s all I wanted to say. Don’t forget to take your lunch with you.”

“Make sure all the kids have theirs,” you countered.

“It’s funny because you thought I didn’t already do that,”

“I love you, Kim Seokjin,” was your response.

“I love you too, I guess.”

=======

Your talk with Seokjin gave you a new perspective, but you still felt apprehensive about everything. You just didn’t like the idea of hurting Jimin and Taehyung any more than they already have been. What type of guardian would you be if you just let them walk back into heartbreak? What if this was just a one-time visit and Song Jieun never came to see her children again? What do you do when the boys ask to see her again? You had been lucky that you only had to have one conversation about not being able to take the boys to see their mother in the last six months, but if Jieun could make the time and the trip to come visit, then what will be your excuse now? What if this visit was actually a prelude to taking the boys back home with her?

Oh.

Huh.

So that was the real problem then. You didn’t want the boys to leave you. As much as you groaned and complained about taking in so many kids -- usually just to yourself, but sometimes your stress got the better of you in front of the kids -- you loved them. Each one of them, you loved and adored them and the thought of any of them leaving you or being taken away hurt. Not only that, but where in the hell would any of those parents get off, what right did any of them have to come to you and even fix their mouths to ask you for “their” kid back? You had words prepared for each and every so-called “parent” of all seven of your boys, copies of your lost child police reports, drafts of parental rights transfer papers, the phone number for several NCPA lawyers, and a fist just itching to make contact.

But what if Taehyung and Jimin preferred to be with Jieun anyway? She is their mother. She raised them for years, even if she was Jimin’s stepmother. You’ve only had the “twins” as you and the older boys had taken to calling them, for six months. Why would they want to stay with you?

“Okay, but she didn’t say she wants to take the kids,” you told yourself against the slew of depressing thoughts. You retrieved your phone from your pocket and opened your emails. Finally pressed reply. “She just wants to visit. A visit is… safe. It’ll be okay.”

Probably.

=======

Later that day you received a new email. Song Jieun will be in town that weekend. Tomorrow.

It took a lot of effort for you not to swear and make plans to take the kids out of town.

=======

Song Jieun was pretty. She wasn’t particularly tall or “skinny” like what TV liked to portray, but she was hippy and had a cute face and short hair that she curled most days. She favored dresses with blazers or oversized sweaters and skinny jeans, with pale makeup and dark pink lipsticks. It was easy to pick her out at the cafe she asked to meet at. She sat alone off to the side, a coffee already in front of her, but two plates with fruit-decorated cakes were also placed nearby. You considered telling her that the boys weren’t allowed any sweets right now. It wouldn’t have been a lie, but it wasn’t the whole truth either. They weren’t allowed sweet things like cakes until after dinner and only when they behaved well. Still, you decided that was just your frustration and jealousy talking. You didn’t want to punish the two boys because of their mother, so you bite your tongue and hold your bitterness and let it go.

“Jieun-ssi,” you greet uselessly, as the moment Taehyung and JImin saw her they sprinted across the room to tackle the woman in hugs. Jieun’s smile stretched across her face and she cooed and made cute noises as she greeted her sons in return. You felt something creep in your chest that felt a lot like jealousy. But you weren’t jealous. You couldn’t be. You just hugged them this morning when they tried to tickle you awake. You held both of their hands from your house to the cafe. You had nothing to be jealous of, they were your kids now.

“How have you been?” Jieun asked when you sat down across from her. Jimin and Taehyung were already seated and digging into the cakes she bought for them. You barely had a chance to answer before your chatterbox was rattling off every activity he’s done for the last six months to his mother. Jimin grinned and threw in his two-cent’s worth every few minutes, but generally let Taehyung carry the conversation for him. And you, in spite of all of the emotions pressing on your chest and clouding your judgement and making you really, really want to shake Song Jieun, you enjoy yourself. You watch your boys -- your boys -- smile and chatter and sing and show off for their mother. You wonder if they’ll be okay going home, if you’ll have tears to clean up later, or arguments to break up, or just pieces to sort out and glue, but right now the kids are happy, and right now, that’s what you’ll enjoy.

=======

Taehyung climbed into your bed that night. He should have been asleep an hour ago at least, you’re sure, but he’s seemed to have a lot on his mind since this afternoon, and you’ve been letting the kid have his own space to figure out his thoughts. As hyper as he normally is, Taehyung is also prone to moments where he just sits and fiddles and thinks and you’ve learned that it doesn’t do any good to bother him about it.

“Can’t sleep?” Taehyung shook his head as he slid across the blankets to bury his face into your shirt. You curled an arm around his shoulders and held him close.

“Mommy…” Taehyung started and trailed off. “Is Mommy happy without me?”

It felt like your heart stopped with the words of his question, but you continued to brush his hair with your fingers. It was a difficult question to answer. You wanted to be honest, but you also didn’t want to hurt him. Unfortunately, there weren’t too many ways to answer without hurting Taehyung one way or another.

“What do you mean?” Taehyung was quiet for another short moment before he spoke again.

“Mommy… didn’t seem sad. And she said she’ll see us another time. And… she got married, but she didn’t want to keep me and Jiminie… So I started wondering… is she happy now? Happier than she was before when it was just me and her and Jiminie? Did we -- I don’t think -- I --” And the kid seemed to break then, all of the tears that hadn’t been shed for six months seeming to finally culminate into an emotional outburst. You shushed him, holding him just a little more tightly, and the fingers in his hair moved down to stroke his back. This was the thing you had wanted to avoid, and while part of you felt satisfied to be right, most of you just fought your own tears. It hurt to see one of your kids so hurt. You aren’t a stranger to crying children, but this emotional distress was something that never got better. You thought that maybe Jieun had talked to the boys beforehand, maybe Taehyung had dealt with his emotions before he came to live with you and that was why he seemed so well-adjusted. Clearly, Taehyung had just been living in denial, or maybe with the belief that his mother would come back for him “later,” that you were only a temporary home.

“This isn’t your fault, Taetae,” you murmured. “You didn’t do anything wrong. Sometimes… sometimes adults make hard decisions. We think we’re doing the right thing and… sometimes it’s hard to see if we’ve made the right choice or not.” You sighed, picking through your words super carefully. “I think… I think that your mother made what she thought was the best decision for both herself and for you and Jimin. She believed she would be happy with her new husband. But she did not believe you and Jiminie would be happy. So she put you somewhere that you could be. Does that make sense?”

“Yeah, but I’m still sad,” Taehyung cried harder.

“I know,” you said, “and that’s okay. I would be sad too.”

“I just want my mommy back,”

“I know.”

“I don’t want you to get married,” Taehyung said suddenly, long after his sobs had calmed down. Tears still fell, but slowly now. “I don’t want you to send me away too.”

“If you listen to your Jinnie-hyung, he says that won’t happen because I don’t date anyway.”

“Mommy didn’t date for a long time… and then she did. And then she got married.”

“I won’t get rid of you even if I did get married, Taetae,” you told him.

“You’re still not allowed to get married,” he argued. “Or date. You have to be mine forever and ever, okay?”

“No matter what, I will be yours forever and ever,” you agreed.

“Can I sleep here tonight?” Taehyung asked. “I'm comfy and you make me not sad.”

“Of course,” you said. “You’re comfy like a teddy bear, I don’t want you to go.”

=======

In the morning, Taehyung was bouncing off the walls, screaming as he chased Jungkook around the house. Jimin was curled into a corner of the sofa, giggling while he watched his brothers play and encouraging Taehyung in his antics. You could hardly tell that Taehyung had an emotional breakdown the previous night. You knew he was far from being “over” his feelings about his mother, he was only eight and the feelings were complicated. But he was happy for now and that made you happy. You’ll deal with the noise and the chaos and shout at the kids yet again about running inside where things were breakable including themselves as long as they kept smiling.

Surprisingly, it was Namjoon who came knocking at your door after bedtime that night. Similar to Taehyung, he didn’t speak or ask permission, just closed the door behind him and slid into your bed. Buried himself beneath the blankets and stuck his head beneath the pillow and tucked his gangly limbs into a ball. You were familiar with these moods, but haven’t seen one in years, not since you took in Seokjin. So you finished the chapter you had been reading, turned off the light, and sank down to lay your head on your pillows. Similar to Taehyung, Namjoon would speak when he was ready, when he found the right words to use to express his feelings.

“You really won’t get married, right?” Namjoon whispered beneath the pillow next to you. His voice was heavily muffled, but you’d been waiting for him to speak for some time. You just didn’t expect for him to continue a joke conversation from several days ago.

“What’s wrong with me getting married?” you asked.

“If you get married, you’ll have to get rid of us.”

“There is no world where I will give up any of you just to get married, Namjoon.”

“But that’s what happens, isn’t it?” said Namjoon. “Adults… if they aren’t married, but they have kids… they get rid of them so that they can date. Because kids get in the way. Because it’s stupid to take care of other people’s kids.”

“Why does it sound like you just called me stupid?” Your sarcasm probably wasn’t appropriate for the moment, but the words slipped before you thought about it.

“We’re really lucky to have you, we know that,” said Namjoon. “But that just means --”

“Namjoon, I’m going to stop you right there,” you cut him off before he finishes. You remove the pillow from his face so that he can hear you clearly, and card your fingers through his hair. “I didn’t create any of you. I didn’t ask for any of you. But I have you. And I love you. I adore you. I will tear apart skies, drain oceans, and vanquish God if it will keep you all safe and happy, okay? If your parents ever come back for you, I will press charges against them and make it so that they can never look at you, let alone hurt you ever again, do you understand me, Kim Namjoon? You and Yoongi and Jungkook and Seokjin and Hoseok and Taehyung and Jimin, you’re all mine. You’re my kids, all seven of you, and I will be damned if any lover or spouse, or anything at all, comes between me and you. I don’t say that because it sounds good -- although seriously, you have to admit that this is one of my better speeches,” -- at that, Namjoon giggled, the noise muted and soft, but a win was a win -- “but I say these things because I mean them. I will put a brick in the hospital for you, Joonie.” You hesitate, but continue anyway. “If it weren’t for you, I may have left the country at the end of that year. Teaching is fun, but I wasn’t super happy before. But then you asked me to take you home and you were so cute that I got attached almost immediately. I didn’t want to take you to the police and have them send you to your parents. I liked having someone to come home to. I liked taking care of you. Most people go get a pet or a lover when they’re feeling lonely, but here’s me, collecting kids like you’re pokemon cards.”

“No one collects pokemon cards anymore,”

“What, is Yu-Gi-Oh back in style?”

“What even is that?”

“The coolest card game ever. Period.” Namjoon laughs again, and you feel accomplished.

“It’s not that cool if I’ve never heard of it,” Namjoon argues.

“Joonie. I love you. But even I know you aren’t the coolest among your classmates.”

“I’m the coolest out of all my friends!”

“I won’t argue about that. I’m also sure that in your group of friends, ‘coolest’ means ‘knows the biggest words and has the best grades.’”

“You’re just jealous,”

“Absolutely. I wish I knew as many words as you do. Imagine how much fun I’d have fussing at you kids in Smart People language!”

“Why are you like this?”

“Please, other kids wish they had someone as cool as me taking care of them.”

Namjoon cuddled closer to you in the bed, laying his head on your shoulder and gripping your pajama shirt. You spend a few minutes massaging his scalp, a soothing gesture for you just as much as it is for him. After a few minutes, you begin drifting off, believing Namjoon is on the verge of sleep as well.

“Are you really okay?” he asks. “With taking care of all of us? You don’t… want to go back home?”

“I am home, silly,” you flick the side of his head gently. “I love you. And even if I wanted to go back to my home country, don’t think I won’t take each one of you with me. I said you’re mine. I mean it.”

“Okay.”

And it’s not that you don’t believe him, but you know your kid. You know he internalizes things and finds convoluted ways to take blame for other peoples’ problems, including your own. You know it will be a while yet before he truly accepts and believes you when you say you want to keep him and enjoy taking care of him. But you also know that he wants to believe you and he’s trying. You idly wonder if you’ll have to have some sort of discussion in the morning, an announcement over breakfast that no children will be displaced in the event of an unlikely wedding. You dismiss the thought, deciding it was more likely to incite panic and give you a headache more than anything else.

To find more of my child-bangtan fics, select the "Collecting Strays" tag at the bottom of this page ^_^

[kyouxa]

Diabolik lovers Chaos Lineage: Kino (Story 13+CG)

In terms of the gameplay: The black choices lead up to a bad ending, the white choices lead up to a good ending. Please no reposting onto other sites, ask me before translating this into another language too! If you enjoy these translations, please consider supporting me on ko-fi.

Monologue

I knew that the unexpected return of one’s visual memories could be quite intense.

But despite knowing that, I had Ayato-kun and Subaru-kun call for both, Kanato-kun and Laito-kun. I sent them since both of them regained their memories already.

And of course, I was also aware that the pictures on the smartphone wouldn’t awake any good memories they have—

After all, Ayato-kun and Subaru-kun were bawling and being absent minded for a while after that too.

But we simply didn’t have time for them to recover. We were leaving those two to Ayato-kun and Subaru-kun, while Kino-kun and I hurried over to Scarlet’s mansion.

The ones we had to save from there were obviously Shu-san and Reiji-san.

Kino-kun and I, who already forcibly opened the door of the mansion’s entrance hall, also forcibly showed the photos on the smartphone to them.

Place: Scarlet mansion — Entrance hall

Shu: Nn… what’s this...

Reiji: This is way too foolish… I still am the eldest son of the Scarlet mansion. I also am very much unaware of a family titled “Sakamaki”...

Yui: (It’s still the same thing. Trying to show them those imagines will end up bringing their memories back, but for the price of them suffering)

(And even though they will suffer, I have to make use of what I have in my hands to make them remember…)

Shu-san, Reiji-san… do you know who I am?

Reiji: ...Yes, I do know now. Thanks to your… actions.

Shu: That was a really unpleasant encounter just now.

Yui: ...I’m really sorry about that. But, I’m more than glad you’re back to your usual selves now…

Monologue

Armed with the ultimate weapon of Kino-kun’s data, we were able to safely regain the memories of all the Sakamaki family members.

I still can’t help but wonder what Kino-kun was thinking about when he stared at me during that process.

After that, I asked about Yuma-kun, who was apparently already absent from the house, and then went into the forest with Shu-san and Reiji-san.

Ayato-kun and the others were already waiting in the cave I happened to find in the depths of the forest.

And then, the Sakamaki brothers, who had their memories returned, finally came together.

Place: Outside — Cave

Yui: Seems to me as if Laito-kun and Kanato-kun are doing okay too, right?

Subaru: I guess. They completely lost their temper at first, but they’ve finally calmed down now.

Yui: I see, I’m happy they calmed down...

(So it was a risky way to have them all regain their memories this way after all…)

(I’m so sorry, everyone…)

Subaru: So, what’s going to happen to us from now on?

Yui: I sadly don’t know any details about that either.

However, there’s no doubt that someone gathered us here and rewrote everyone’s memories in order to make us fight one another.

Subaru: Our memories… ?

Yui: Besides, it also seems as if the place we’re currently staying is something like a miniature garden made with magic, so it won’t be easy for us to get out of here...

Subaru: Seriously... ?

Laito: Sounds like it’s unmanageable, doesn’t it?

Kanato: So you’re saying that we still can’t go home from this place for a while, is that it?

Yui: Laito-kun! Kanato-kun!

Laito: Nfu, sorry. I just simply had to eavesdrop.

Yui: Are you two fine enough to stand up already though?

Kanato: It’s more than frustrating to continuously lie down.

Yui: I-I see...

Reiji: It appears as if Kanato and Laito have finally awakened as well, how pleasant.

Yui: Reiji-san and Shu-san!

Reiji: We now have to discuss our current circumstances. Everyone, come here.

Yui: Ah… yes!

*everyone gathers*

Yui: (It honestly feels quite out of place to see everyone gather together after such a long time…)

(I guess I somehow became used to only seeing Kino-kun as representation for the Sakamaki mansion…)

Kino: ...Guess this is the final game over, hm?

Yui: Eh… ?

Kino: Now that everyone here regained their memories, they’re probably going to suspect me all the time.

Yui: I know it’ll be okay if you seriously explain yourself to everyone.

Kino: What exactly am I going to explain to them? If I tell them about my true colors, they’ll be even more cautious than they were before.

“I was aiming for amicable fire, but I had no other choice but to aim for you depending on the current situation.”

Yui: D-Don’t cover it up… !

Reiji: Please be quiet.

I have heard a little bit in advance already, but please explain what exactly is happening again.

Yui: (..... ! He’s looking at me. That’s right, I’m the one who still knows this situation better than anyone else)

I don’t know if I’ll be able to explain it cleverly, but I’ll still try my best…

Monologue

I summarized the acquired knowledge I’ve gathered during my time here until now to everyone.

This is undoubtedly a space created by someone’s magical powers.

And according to that, we’ve also been taken here by the mentioned person we don’t know anything about yet.

Lastly, this person changed up our memories to make us start a fight between each other—

Place: Outside — Cave

Subaru: So we don’t know who it is yet, but I’m guessing we were manipulated by that old bastard again. Damn it!

Laito: Now that my memories returned, I can also clearly sense that this is all feeling out of place.

I was already wondering why everyone was so desperately motivated to fight over something like a supreme ruler.

Subaru: You weren’t showing any sort of eagerness whatsoever!

Shu: Be quiet already… at least we understand the situation now.

But there’s still one more thing we have to get confirmation about.

Reiji: ...That is indeed right. Now then, there appears to be one unfamiliar person here, is that right?

Yui: …..Nn!

Kino: There you go, they noticed immediately.

Ayato: What the, so I wasn’t the only one who didn’t know that guy.

Laito: And I already thought I was familiar with everyone, but I guess there’s still someone we need to get acquaintance with.

Kanato: I wouldn’t even have noticed him. Who are you? Please introduce yourself.

Yui: (Kino-kun…)

Kino: Fine with me. I’m Kino. Karlheinz’s zeroth son.

Subaru: Zeroth son? You mean that old man… ?

Yui: Kino-kun is… Karlheinz-sama’s secret child.

Ayato: Secret child!?

Laito: Heh, so there’s still another brother aside from us, you say?

Kanato: I haven’t heard anything about there possibly being a secret child.

Subaru: That’s also the first time I’m hearing about this.

Shu: Well, that old man could possibly pull off anything.

Yui: Shu-san…

Reiji: I agree on that. That could be a quite possible story for him indeed.

Nevertheless, none of my siblings here share any possible knowledge about your existence either.

Which is simply too convenient for this situation and your sudden appearance. The timing seems to be way too perfect for that.

Kino: What are you trying to say? Can’t you tell me what you wanna say bluntly?

Reiji: Then I will simply say it straightforwardly. Is it not that you are the main culprit behind this situation?

Yui: ….. !

Kino: See, I already knew it would come to this.

Yui: (Now everyone’s eyes are really watching him with suspicion… !)

Shu: I remember I received an anonymous letter while my memories were still weird. And because of that, I got into a lot of uncalled trouble.

Wasn’t that your doing as well?

Kino: As expected from you, Shu. Quite a good guess, I’d say. That’s right. I was the one who sent that letter.

Yui: Kino-kun!

Shu: You admitted that really easily.

Reiji: I see, so it was truly you who bothered doing such a trivial mischief.

Kino: That’s correct. Well, I have no other choice but to say the truth after coming this far, right?

Or maybe this is just an evasion, so I sound too imprudent to come up with this kind of kind?

Yui: (I have to talk about this. I have to aim to stir up this family circle, to get everything to somehow work out)

(And if I succeed, everyone might end up being hostile with each other… !)

Well, um!

Yui: To tell you all the truth, Kino-kun has also continuously been helping me until now!

Kino: ...Hah?

Shu: He helped you?

Reiji: What an abrupt call… but what is it that you mean by what you said just now?

Yui: U-Um, that is...

(I know there’s no way I could directly lie to either Shu-san or Reiji-san’s eyes…)

(But even if that’s so… I’ll just tell them the truth of that matter then)

The day I regained my memory was the same day I woke up in the church and then got taken away to the Scarlet mansion.

Subaru: You remembered that early already!?

Yui: Exactly. At first, I was awfully confused about everything though. After all, Reiji-san and everyone else were in a really weird state.

I didn’t know where this place was, and neither could I try to discuss it with anyone.

Reiji: ...That is indeed true.

Yui: But Kino-kun already remembered way earlier than I did already, so he ended up helping me a lot.

And when all of you were about to kill each other, he gave out fake information and therefore disturbed that plan.

Because of that, Ruki-kun and Carla-san were unable to do anything as well.

Laito: Hmm, now that you say it, it does sound plausible, right?

I mean, Carla’s plan to go seal away Bitch-chan was eventually canceled at the end.

Kanato: Ruki also told me and Ayato about that certain thing. We’ve been merely looking at the situation for a while by now.

Yui: He didn’t only do that though, he also helped me when I was about to fall off a cliff.

And just after that, Kino-kun was the one who extended the conflict between Ayato-kun and Subaru-kun.

Ayato: Ahh… come to think of it, that really was the case.

Subaru: Thanks to that, nobody got beat up at the end.

Yui: If Kino-kun hadn’t been there, someone might’ve ended up being injured. And that… could’ve been me as well at that point.

So, please… believe in him, for my sake.

Kino: You...

Shu: Even if you suddenly end up saying that, there’s still no way I can believe this so easily.

...You’re lying about this guy, aren’t you?

Yui: That’s not the case whatsoever.

Reiji: Is there any evidence of his innocence then?

Yui: Evidence, you say...

(There’s no evidence. And since there’s not… I have to make something up)

The evidence is that all of us want to go home from this place. And because of that, Kino-kun’s power is definitely being really useful.

That’s the only proof I can give you.

Kino: You, what are you being so selfish for… !

Reiji: I see. You are trying to prove his innocence in order to get benefits out of it.

Yui: (I can’t look away now. I know it’s difficult, but I can’t act timid)

(I’ll never let Kino-kun be isolated ever again)

Reiji: ...Okay, I sense those are your true feelings in this situation. It is meaningless to continue this dispute anyway.

We shall try setting aside our misgivings about this man for the time being then.

Yui: ….. ! Reiji-san…

Reiji: Does anyone have any objections about this?

Shu: Not really, just do as you please.

Ayato: It was difficult to understand and neither did I listen to everything. But not understanding anything is better sometimes, right?

Yui: (And here I was wanting everyone to listen to me all the way)

Subaru: Heh… well, just in case you’re really a bad guy, we’ll just crush you before you can do anything.

Kanato: I’ve been fine with this from the beginning.

Laito: Seems as if everyone has no objection then, Bitch-chan.

Yui: That’s good to hear… thank you, everyone!

(The suspicion might’ve not completely vanished yet, but that’s totally fine enough for now)

Kino: ...You really did that, hm? But you know that I’ve never said anything about not trying to do anything in those circumstances anymore, right?

Yui: Kino-kun, you won’t do anything weird anymore. I’ll guarantee that myself.

Kino: Why would you be able to guarantee that? Ah, whatever, I lost motivation either way...

Laito: Say, why don’t you go and settle this discussion in a rather calmer place than here?

I’m not really in my best conditions right now, which is also probably because my memories just returned to me.

Kanato: I’m also… still feeling somewhat dizzy to be honest...

Yui: Then I think it would be best if you laid down a little again.

Reiji: There is no point in proceeding with this discussion if we are unable to come to a conclusion, is there?

Let us do as she suggested, and rest. We should be able to think about a way to get out of this place here at a later time as well.

Yui: Yes!

*time passed*

Yui: (I’m so happy to see everyone with their memories back now)

(And luckily, Kino-kun won’t be suspected for the time being either…)

Kino: Hey, you. Come with me for a bit.

Yui: Eh? Okay, sure.

(I wonder what it is? ...Oh no, could it be about the retribution I made up just now!?)

(Err, what will I do if I can’t have faith in him? I should figure it out for myself)

Place: Forest — Lakeside 

Yui: Kino-kun... where exactly are we going? You know, everyone will be worried if we leave the cave any longer than that.

Kino: ...You unnecessarily covered me up.

Yui: Eh?

Kino: Tell me, why did you protect me by covering my actions?

Choices

1) Because you did help me (white)♡♡♡

2) Because I don’t want you to fight (black)

— Because you did help me♡

Yui: It’s true that Kino-kun helped me through a lot though. And that’s simply what I told them.

Kino: You only cut those parts out of the story that didn’t seem very convenient to tell them, isn’t that right?

Yui: T-That’s... well, I guess you’re right.

— Because I don’t want you to fight

Yui: Because I didn’t want any of you as brothers to fight in this situation right now.

Besides, I didn’t want anyone to hate on you either…

Kino: That again? You’re not gonna stop telling me about this stupid playing brothers thing anytime soon, right? I have no intention of working together.

Yui: But when I talked to them about it, they seriously seemed as if they were ready to accept you.

Kino: I don’t know about that. I’m still skeptical. After all, you’ve only told them about convenient information about myself.

end Choices

Kino: Say, you threw them into utter confusion by lying to their faces, right?

You also hide the fact that my true intentions were to kill all of them, right? I wonder, is it really okay for you to lie to them like that?

Yui: Err, that’s...

(I know very well that it’s not good that I’m hiding this. It would just be so terrible to talk about something like this now. But then, I also might be careless with driving everyone into an either life or death position with hiding it)

(But the moment I would’ve told them those exact things, they would’ve also started to look at Kino-kun as their opponent—)

...That’s fine.

Kino: Hah?

Yui: As long as I know Kino-kun’s safe, I accept lying to all of them.

And no matter what I would’ve told them, I wouldn’t leave you by yourself anymore.

Kino: What did you just...

Yui: Ah...

(What I said right now is how I really feel, so why am I the one with a rising temperature!?)

(Besides, he’ll leave me once we’re out of here anyway… that’s right, Kino-kun will go to Yuri-san when he returns)

Err, anyway… don’t you think it would be best if everyone escaped from here together by now too?

We should definitely concentrate on that first before anything else. It also seems as if Shu-san and the others are willing to cooperate with that plan.

Kino: ...Why would you bring up their names now all of the sudden?

Yui: Eh?

Kino: You must be happy, your so-called important Sakamaki’s finally returned to being normal. Guess you’re really satisfied about that.

Yui: Y-Yeah, I’m really happy they’re back.

(I just hope Kino-kun won’t start a fight with them in any way)

Kino: ...That smile, it pisses me off.

*Kino grabs Yui*

Yui: Eh? Kino-kun. I can’t move when you hold onto both of my arms like that...

Kino: That’s exactly what I’m aiming for… Nn

Yui: Ah… d-don’t bite into my ear, stop that...

Kino: So this really is your weak point after all. And you felt it even though my fangs just touched them?

Yui: Ngh...

(My whole body got all over the place because of that. I have to admit that it doesn’t feel unpleasant, but I can’t stand this either way… Nn)

Kino: I know I sucked from there already, so this time I’ll try and do it more gently.

You let out such a nice voice the last time I sucked there after all… Nn… Nn...

Yui: ….. !? Kino-kun, please… no more… Nn…

*Yui struggles*

Kino: It’s no use trying to struggle, y’know. Here, look at me properly. You have to feel me through your whole body.

Yui: Even if you say things like that...

Kino: I’ll release you once I get a full taste of your blood. This time I’ll go for the neck...

Nn… Hmm...

Yui: Ah… Ahh...

(This is weird, I feel no particular pain this time. Maybe it’s because he almost sucked all the possible places on my body already… but is that really it?)

(I can feel Kino-kun’s voice and breath burn into my skin… my whole body feels as if it’s on fire, it’s so hot…)

It’s… it’s no good…

*Yui falls over*

Kino: Oh, did you lose strength?

Yui: That’s because… you’re sucking my blood like that…

Kino: And that’s the reason why you lost your strength? I mean, I didn’t even suck that much yet.

Not only that, but you also have a bright red face. Did you feel good or something?

Yui: (...Uwah, he saw right through me)

Kino: Well, whatevs. Seeing your face red like that was kinda refreshing to be honest.

If my dear princess wishes for me to cooperate with them, I might as well do so for her sake now.

Yui: (...Nn, he just told me for the first time ever that he’d cooperate with me)

Do you… mean that… ?

Kino: I mean, I can still crush them after we returned back to the real world. On top of that, I really wanna get out of here as soon as possible.

Yui: Ah…

(That’s right. There’s still a person waiting for Kino-kun to come home… Yuri-san. He surely wants to leave for her sake)

(Why… Why is it that my chest hurts)

(...I know I shouldn’t feel like this. I have to continue to think positively until the very end)

Thank you. Let’s work together to make sure all of us get home safely!

Kino: With everyone, hm?

Yui: Eh? Did you say something?

Kino: Nothing in particular. Anyway, let’s go back there now.

Yui: Ah… y-yes.

Monologue

As I watched Kino-kun’s back, while we started walking, it still looked as if he’s very lonely to me.

I felt my chest tightening itself when I saw this, so I hurried up to be able to walk with him side by side.

And then, as I casually looked up, I saw the starry sky shining down on us.

[ibijau]

Epilogue of the Nomad Nie AU // On AO3

The Lan family comes through the Nie's domain again

After what happened during their last commercial expedition, it took Lan Wangji great effort to be allowed on this one. His uncle, plagued with guilt over being forced to leave Lan Xichen among blood-thirsty barbarians, hadn't wanted to risk his other nephew. Lan Wangji, stubbornly, had insisted for weeks, arguing about experience, about precedence, about simply wanting to, until finally his uncle gave in, as he’d always known he would.

The journey hadn’t been easy. They’d had to hire a new guide after the old one tried to double cross them. That new man, that Wei Wuxian, was extremely irritating at times, but even Lan Qiren admitted that he understood the nomads’ languages better than old Su She had, and that he knew safer passages as well. It wasn’t unlikely that if they’d worked with Wei Wuxian that last time, Lan Xichen wouldn’t have been lost to them.

It was because of Lan Xichen that Lan Wangji had been so insistent on accompanying his uncle on this expedition. He had always been close to his brother, and until he knew for sure that Lan Xichen was fine, that he was treated decently, he would know no rest.

After some weeks of journey, their group finally arrived at the spot where the Nie had demanded they should meet them next time they travelled in this region. Lan Wangji prepared himself to wait a long time, but barely a shichen and a half had passed before they spotted a group of riders coming their way. There was some nervousness at first, in case the nomads’ situation had changed since last time, but as the riders came closer Wei Wuxian confirmed those were indeed Nie, and Lan Qiren soon recognised the Khan who had stolen his nephew.

Not long after, two dozen riders came to stop before their camp, led by the tallest man Lan Wangji had ever seen in his life. Next to that giant Lan Wangji guessed to be the Khan, there were two slimmer silhouettes dressed as richly as could be among nomads, as if they were treating this encounter as a great event. Lan Wangji barely looked at them, searching through the group of nomads for a sign of his brother, finding none. Fear seized him at the idea that Lan Xichen was unallowed or unable to be present, and a glance at his uncle told him that fear was shared.

They watched the Nie dismount, the Khan and those two companions coming closer while the rest stayed back, watching the merchants warily. Stopping in front of Lan Qiren, the Khan said a few stern words at him. Before Wei Wuxian could start translating, one of the two Nie with the Khan did it, in a voice that made Lan Wangji shiver with emotion.

“Khan Mingjue is pleased to find you well again, master Lan,” the man said. “He hopes your travel was pleasant so far, and that it will be peaceful in the future. We have brought provisions to share with you as a gift, as well as some precious items you might be interested to purchase. There’s some really beautiful furs,” the man added in a warmer inflection. “They’ll be easy to trade along the way, and even if you have to take them home I think they’ll fetch a good price.”

“Xichen?” Lan Qiren gasped.

The man smiled and laughed softly, a hint of surprise on his face at the idea he might not have been recognised.

Now that he knew, Lan Wangji couldn’t doubt that this was his brother. It certain was his face, and his too rare laugh. But the rest of him just looked so different that the confusion was natural, surely. After all, Lan Xichen was dressed in the exact same manner as the other Nie around him, and had even done his hair in the same manner as them, decorated with braids instead of tied in a respectable bun. Not only that, but his skin was nowhere as pale as it used to be, as if he’d been working outside in the sun. Lan Wangji might have been outraged on his behalf, if only Lan Xichen hadn’t been smiling so brightly.

“Uncle, it’s good to see you again,” Lan Xichen said, bowing before Lan Qiren. He then noticed that his brother was there as well, and his face illuminated. “Wangji, you came too! I’m really glad. Uncle, brother, I must introduce you to my husband, Huaisang. Huaisang, these men are my family.”

Lan Qiren went pale upon hearing the word husband. Before he could say anything, the smaller man next to Lan Xichen bowed before them as elegantly as if he’d been raised in the imperial palace (he’d trained for this, Lan Xichen later said, eager to make a good impression) and spoke to them in perfect Hanyu.

“I am honoured to meet my husband’s family,” Huaisang said. “I hope we can all get along for many years to come.”

Lan Qiren gaped at his nephew’s spouse, opening and closing his mouth a few times. Then, realising that a mere barbarian was showing better manners than him, he regained control of himself and nodded at the young man.

“I am pleased to meet you as well,” Lan Qiren said in a voice that could hardly have been more displeased. “Although it was my understanding he would be marrying a woman, a Nie princess?”

“Su She wasn’t nearly as good as he thought he was,” Lan Xichen explained, while his husband tried to contain a giggle. “I’m glad you hired someone else this time. I told you back then that it was the Khan’s brother who wanted to marry.”

Lan Qiren looked devastated by the news.

“Xichen, we’ll buy you back. No matter the price…”

“What for?” Lan Xichen asked with sincere surprise, taking his husband’s hand. Huaisang’s expression, which had hardened for a moment, relaxed again. “Uncle, don’t you worry about me, I’m really fine. Though I have a list of things I’d like you to bring, next time you come here. It’s so hard to get paper here, you see, and I’m teaching Huaisang to paint… he’s really quite good, you know.”

Huaisang preened at the compliment. Lan Qiren, too stunned to say anything, just nodded. He hadn’t expected to find Lan Xichen in such high spirits, and neither had Lan Wangji who, in the privacy of his mind, had imagined three dozens scenarios in which he would have to rescue his unfortunate brother from the cruel villains who kept him from his family. He had prepared himself to find Lan Xichen desperate at worst, resigned at best, but instead he found him… happy.

The idea was odd to Lan Wangji.

His brother, in his mind, was a serious person, a kind one, hard-working, dedicated to the family business, caring also when it came to Lan Wangji himself, but he wasn’t sure happy was a word he’d ever have used to describe Lan Xichen. At best, his brother had seemed satisfied with his lot in life, and aware that others weren’t as lucky at him. Since he hadn’t been miserable it had been enough for him, and Lan Wangji hadn’t paid it any mind.

So it was odd to see the way Lan Xichen’s face illuminated every time he looked at his husband, or when he explained he had his own horse. His countenance was more animated than it used to be, his smiles came more easily, he spoke with more spontaneity.

He really was happy, and Lan Wangji wasn’t sure how to feel about it, when that happiness had only been found once far from home.

“Lan Zhan, your brother is not at all what I expected!” Wei Wuxian told him later and they inspected some of the merchandise the Nie wanted to trade. He was standing far too close to Lan Wangji, as he tended to do. “Since you said he’s the oldest I thought he’d be even more stern and boring than you, but he’s actually quite fun!”

Early on, Lan Wangji would have asked their guide why he insisted on pestering him, if he found him so boring. He’d learned the hard way that it was impossible to get a straight answer out of Wei Wuxian. Unless he was working, that man just never took anything seriously at all.

That night, Lan Wangji found that he didn’t mind. Maybe being serious wasn’t such a virtue after all. If letting go of restraint was doing such good to his brother, then surely relaxing a little couldn’t be bad.

“He’s really nice to chat with,” Wei Wuxian insisted, looking at Lan Xichen who was now talking with Lan Qiren, probably still discussing business, Huaisang nodding here and there at their side. “His husband isn’t half bad either, I guess.”

Lan Wangji nodded. That Huaisang stood out like a sore thumb among the Nie, but he seemed decently clever and not too ugly in spite of a somewhat nasty scar on his neck. He wouldn’t have been Lan Wangji’s type if he’d had one, but Lan Xichen seemed immensely fond of him, and that was what mattered.

“How awful though,” Wei Wuxian whined, poking at Lan Wangji’s ribs as if they were friends. “I’ll be out of a job if those nomads start learning Hanyu. Hey, Lan Zhan, you’ll continue hiring me even if you don’t need a translator, right?”

“Hm,” Lan Wangji replied. “I will.”

Wei Wuxian cackled at that promise. Lan Wangji didn’t bother reminding Wei Wuxian that he did far more than just translate and was the best man they could have hired for the job. All his attention was on his brother and that husband of his.

It was good to see Lan Xichen this happy.

[songbirdmusicnc]

What’s in a Song? | What to Look for When Choosing Your Next Solo

It's one thing to be in an undergraduate, post-graduate, or professional setting where often, if your next piece is not outright assigned to you, you have a number of parameters to keep you within a certain genre, a particular period, or even a specific language. I can write volumes about this. Oh, the seemingly endless search for the answer to one of the most dreaded questions I could have been asked during my studies back when I was in my 20's: "What aria have you chosen to sing?" NEWSFLASH: I am not 20. I'm not even 30. So, you can put two and two together, that this was long before the convenience of online searching through the wonders of Google, Bing and DuckDuckGO. In fact, I would have paid small sums of money (on a student budget 😂) to have had access to any of those three tools to find a number of things when I had to pump out arias like bread in bakery. (Umm, not so sure about that analogy. It was the first thing that came to mind, but you get my drift I think. lol)

For one, I would have completely worn out Google Translator. Like, seriously. 😐 I would have had shortcuts on my computer and on the home screen of my flip phone (yes, flip phone...don't judge me 🤨) that took me directly to literal translations of the arias and choruses I had to perform every single week. The inner dialogue during that process alone was like having to report to after-school detention. Agonizing!! 😩 "So, who's word-for-word translation should I trust? So many of these students actually speak these languages, so they're not looking up anything like I have to. Should I just ask them?! Well, no. I can't let them know that I know that I don't know what I'm saying!!😩" Ugh. I don't miss those days at all. But! But, I got through them just fine, thank you Jesus. 😁 Recalling this is actually a bit comical to me now; I remember those days very well. At the same time, there is a lot to be said about the art of searching out the text, finding its meaning, and being faithful to it.

Given my strong background in the Christian Church, I cannot deny the one Bible passage that instantly comes to mind when examining the process of searching out what one is saying in order to partake of its eternal value. I am referring to Acts 17 verse 11, where it says in the NASB translation, "Now these people were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so.." It was the careful examination of what the Bereans were told, not merely how they felt about that message, that not only intrigued them, but moved them to take action. They diligently searched the Scriptures for themselves as a means of verifying that what they felt was not only wonderful, but inherently true. Both were important to them, and therefore Dr. Luke (the Author of the Book of Acts) attributes nobility to them. Wow.

Well, that's great spiritually speaking. But what about being on stage? I mean, why spend a single minute placing an emphasis on foreign language text when more often than not, people in the audience aren't even fluent in? A number of things can be said about that. The most important thing I believe can be said is that taking that extra time pays off later; for the singer must connect with the text if they want to connect with their audience. This brings me to the point of this post, answering the question, what is the absolute most important element I look for in a song: Personally inspiring text.

I'll reiterate. The singer must connect to the text they are singing if they want to connect with their audience. This is true for all performing arts that involve speech or singing. I can't tell you how many interviews I've watched of actors discussing the roles they've played that they didn't necessarily like per sae, but they still got cast in that role, and then delivered an outstanding performance. How? Each and every one of them will tell you that they found a way to personally connect with the script. The words coming out of their mouths. But isn't that absolutely necessary for actors? I mean, an actor who is not believable in what they say is not acting at all. They may as well be Siri or Alexa, rattling off a bunch of pre-programmed data with no life and no feeling. (Sorry to all the artificial-intelligence-loving techies out there...😌) Similarly, a singer needs to find a means to personally identify with some aspect of the role they play or more specifically, the role they sing. The result? Well, when coupled with superb vocal technique, you've got yourself an unforgettable experience for your listeners right there, and not simply a performance.

This stands true no matter the genre. It is, in my humble opinion, the number one most absolutely necessary element for a Christian singer. (That's a lot of positive assertion, but it's true...) If a Christian singer is taking on the enormous task of delivering the timeless message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ--whether they are exhorting and encouraging the audience with an inspiring message of hope and deliverance, or reverently singing praises directly to God Himself--then that singer best be connected in the heart to the words they sing. For, above all else, it is the testimony of an individual's encounter with God that drives home the message and its profundity. People want to feel the power of the lyrics to the classic hymn, "It Is Well". And furthermore, they want to know why when you sing it, tears gush out from your eyes and theirs. Why was your performance of it so moving? Why did they have flashbacks of their early childhood, sitting on a wooden pew, surrounded by family and community? The answer to that has layers of truth, the key one for this particular discussion being your personal experience oozing from your lips as you utter the words, "Christ has regarded my helpless estate and has shed His own blood for my soul." The text. Yes, I get it; the voice, the technique, even the vocal nuances. But more-so than anything, your heart poured out through words, riding on an unshakable melody that calms the troubled mind and offers a moment of comfort to a broken heart--even if only for a moment. That's the effectiveness you want as a singer.

So, getting back to the original question: What should you look for when you are browsing the endless world of YouTube for your next great song? Text that moves you. Text that speaks to you. To YOU...personally. You should find the song that makes you cry and do that one. If there's a song that makes you so happy you feel like doing cartwheels every time you hear it, do that one. (I literally have a song like that. It's called "Everything" performed by TobyMac. 😏😌) But don't just pick the song that has 65 million views! Please, no! Choose what moves you personally and something you can expound on for at least five minutes with no music and no soundtracks. Just you and the text, dissecting it line-by-line, looking for the author's possible intended meanings, and adding your own life story to it, bringing out what it means to you. If you can't do that to the song you're about to start working on, skip it. It won't be worth your effort and it won't be worth the audience's time. They'll know it, too. You'd just be mimicking someone else's art form and they'll say to themselves, "I could have stayed home to listen to this song on loop mode and kept my money to myself." No. Use your heart to search with your eyes and find the song that speaks to you. You can only reach people to the depth at which your own heart is involved in the song.

-Sharine Buchanan

Owner, Songbird Music LLC

Sharine Buchanan is the Owner of Songbird Music LLC. She earned her Bachelor's of Arts degree in Music with High Honors from the University of California at Berkeley, and her Masters of Music degree with an emphasis in Vocal Performance from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (valedictorian). She lives in North Carolina's Wilkes County, the foothill of the Brushy Mountains, where she relocated in 2013 to join an international ministry, faithfully serving her pastors in music and various aspects of their ministry.

To inquire about studying voice with Sharine, email her at teachme@songbirdmusicnc.com, or call 510-220-4077.

[rigelmejo]

i’ve been watching Handsome Siblings on netflix only in chinese to just like. see where i’m at.

and now that i’m on ep 4 it would feel kind of weird to suddenly switch back to english subs ok, for one.

but anyway like general level-wise: i am pretty much at where i can follow a lot of the gist of scenes even if i don’t pause to translate - but then i’m going to be relying on visual context a lot more. which is fine, it means i can go watch a show with no english subs to rely on Ever and at least follow along.

i do notice that if i PAUSE, i can catch the specifics of a lot more scenes. There’s a scene where the two princess sisters are talking to their nephew (who is a spitting image of Jiang Feng), and then after he leaves - discussing telling him to go take a mission to kill Xiao Yu’er, and then when he leaves the two princesses discuss their plan. I paused over and over after EVERY line that episode, because I really wanted to know the specifics of what they were saying. A lot of lines I could read, and there were a lot of one-words-in-a-sentence i had to look up for a more precise understanding. Same with a scene later in the town said-nephew and his girl kickass companions go to - i could follow the gist, but paused after some lines (and looked up a couple words) for more specific details. 

I will say that the more characters you learn, the easier life is. Really! The more characters I know, the easier my gist-guess is right, the easier remembering new words (made up of known characters) is, and looking up new words is VASTLY easier because I know their pinyin and can look them up faster than drawing. 

If you’re going to do this: I’d still recommend using googletranslate to look up multiple characters you don’t know/phrases, since you can draw and easily get the correct result looked up. I’d recommend pleco if you know the pinyin, or if its a single word (because pleco’s definitions are more thorough and explanatory than googletranslate’s), or if it might be an idiom. 

I would recommend that if you like watching stuff on the computer, to get the learn-with-netflix dual subtitle add on, and just click your subtitles for a definition on-the-video-itself instead of needing to open an app like me. 

---

I am immensely excited and happy that I can watch a chinese show with no english and follow the gist now. That is a huge amount of progress for me compared with August 2019 when I started (and only knew ‘ni hao/wo hen hao’ and the numbers ;w; ). I am so proud of where I’ve gotten to. I definitely think really focusing on increasing known frequent words helps a lot. (Also, reading a grammar guide - grammar is again becoming understandable, so idk my brain is just acclimating again i guess). I’m going to keep focusing on frequent words, and the 2,000 most common characters, for a while and hopefully eventually this payoff will translate to reading as well.

If you DO happen to want to try watching a chinese show without english and testing yourself/studying, I have some mild recommendations you might take into consideration. 

1. If it’s too difficult, do it a little, then come back to it in a few weeks, repeat. This task really only gets enjoyable once you understand enough to be ‘comfortable’ with the remaining ambiguity you still don’t comprehend. That is going to be different for different people. I am comfortable with a pretty high amount of ambiguity/lack of understanding, so I can at least try to watch even stuff-i-barely-grasp at least a little for practice until my brain feels fried. But I’ve been trying this for months... its only NOW that my brain feels relatively okay just watching without pausing, without feeling Completely overwhelmed. And if you do intend to watch without pausing much, you’ll have some degree of not-understanding-everything. Likewise, if you plan to pause the show (and how much you plan to pause it) should be tolerable for you as well. If you have to pause everything, understand everything - do you know enough words to do that in a timely enough manner to get THROUGH an episode? If it takes you a long time, are you willing to intensively focus and look things up that entire time? Basically - what is your tradeoff between you being able to pause and focus intensively on looking things up, versus you being able to watch without pausing and interpret from the words you know/context only. Whatever balance is most enjoyable/bearable for you is when this will start being something that’s easier to do regularly, instead of only occasionally as practice. At least, that’s how it was for me. I’m only finally at  a point where I can do this regularly - before I could only do this for maybe 10-20 minute chunks of time occasionally. 

2. Pick a genre of show/material you are going to engage in frequently. If you’re ALWAYS watching case-type shows, those words and those scenes will be more familiar to you and easier for you to interpret from context and with less looking things up. If you try this with a wildly different kind of show, you may know MANY less words and many scenes may be harder for you to comprehend the gist of. I watch a TON of case type shows so they’re very easy for me to see and pick up words I’m familiar with, single out the parts that are ‘important explanation’ versus ‘some crowd saying unimportant WOW oh No how Horrible’ type lines. So i can cherry pick important things to pause and look up words for, and guess at what kind of line i’m trying to interpret (i can guess if it’s about a case, an emotional discussion, a simple ‘lets do X’ statement etc - because i’m familiar with the plot type). In a similar vein - an easier show/material to do this with, may well be a show you’ve already watched in your native language/with your native language. For all the same reasons - you will be much more familiar with the context. I could in theory watch Guardian again (which i’ve rewatched... a lot) and I would probably follow the plot very easily. But I like a challenge too much apparently, and I’d rather practice with things I can’t fall-back on my existing knowledge for as much. A show I’ve never seen has much less I can rely on for context, BUT the trade off is I can really clearly test how well i’m comprehending the plot and lines - because they are all completely new to me, so I either comprehend or I clearly do not understand what’s going on/obviously misinterpret. So it’s a very quick way for me to see if I’m achieving anything or not. Whereas if I was watching a show I already saw, I might learn new words noticably, but I wouldn’t be able to tell if I’m getting better at understanding overall plot with no english to rely on (since I already saw it before with english).

3. If you’re like me - maybe pick a show either heavy on action, or heavy on daily life. While I am familiar with case-type shows... I generally think (for me) they’re harder to follow when your existing vocab knowledge isn’t high enough to follow it... They’re big on mysteries, on plots that are actually not what they appear, and surprises. They’re big on ‘strategies’ and I find for myself, strategies are kind of hard to follow when I know less words. In contrast: if you pick a daily-life type show, you’re more likely to either know the words or NEED to know the words at some point because they’ll be useful to you. And the scenes should be relatively easy to comprehend visually even when you don’t know the words. (My caveat being - if you want the language specifically FOR understanding certain genres, by all means go for the topics you’ll actually be using - if you’re gonna read a ton of wuxia, or case-stuff etc, then go for stuff you’ll Actually Use which might well be THEM). For me... my end goal is to be able to read creative fiction, so wuxia settings and fantastical settings and mystery-words and period-words are all things I better get used to. So I haven’t really watched much daily-life stuff (although there are daily-life scenes WITHIN a lot of dramas, and I do think they’re some of the easiest scenes to follow and comprehend). 

Now, why might you pick an action-heavy show: easy to comprehend. Especially if you often watch action-oriented stuff already. The first chinese show I watched a whole episode of in only-chinese (it’s first episode, so that’s when i figured out the entire show’s set up) was The Shaw Eleven Lang (I really wanted more of Zhu Yilong’s acting in my life okay?). I DID in fact, manage to follow the plot. Without pausing much, because I was just watching it with dinner. What made it easier to follow was SO MUCH of the dialogue was really straightforward - stuff like ‘i want that sword’ or ‘i hate you’ or ‘lets eat and drink together to celebrate’ or ‘you need to go save/kill x’ or ‘do you think i’m pretty’ etc. So much of the dialogue was NOT schemes/plots/mysteries, it was really straightforward ‘we are doing X, we like Y, we hate Z’. Which for me are the sentence types I find the easiest to understand, and especially found the easiest at that point in time. In addition, because the show has so much action, often the dialogue is accompanied by action scenes that make it pretty freaking CLEAR what their objective is/what they just said. Yes, there are still plenty of unknown words to look up if you want to pause - but it should be obvious enough that you might have a decent guess at what they mean before you look them up (I had to look up words like sword, princess, clan leader, but those were pretty clear even beforehand from the context of the scenes). After I watched the first ep (which i don’t think i could even find english subs for), I watched the second ep with eng subs to see if i’d interpreted the plot correctly so far - i had. It felt pretty motivating to get through 40 minute episodes without much pausing, and know I’d followed along. I think, at least if you’re already an action-show/movie watcher, action series are going to be a relatively approachable thing to try watching in just your target language. (Another positive is a lot of verbs as commands lines, in context, so for me it’s easier to pick up new verbs, and those kind of lines are very easy to pick up in context - also lines like ‘xiao xin’ be careful, bubi, meiguanshi, danxin, ni fangxin, etc - all these short lines that are easy to understand in the context they often come up in).

 (Also, do I recommend The Shaw Eleven Lang? Well... I need to go back to watching it but uh... it’s definitely AN EXPERIENCE... with wild fighter-game-tetsuya-nomura-would-be-proud kind of costume designs, wild af scenes so far, and uh as far as i can tell Zhu Yilong’s on point to play a pretty crazy bastard in it... also there’s a LOT of genuinely kickass girls and kickass main women, which i appreciate, i believe also the main women are all 30+ which is refreshing in general in any-show tbh. also just... everyone in the show is kickass... that’s the point... its a lot like to me, if a absolutely Wild fighting game got a budget for a full drama and just went wild on the plot - very fun to watch, very bizarre... not particularly deep but like, did you play Square enix’s The Bouncer on ps2 for a Good Plot or for an absolutely wild bizarre Time? This show is like the game The Bouncer... just freaking Wild conceptually). 

And now, I am watching Handsome Siblings, and managing to get through episodes with only a little pausing for when I want to figure out specifics. It is also very action-scene heavy. At least for me, that’s been making it a lot easier to follow the gist of. There’s scenes where robbers attack - and even if I don’t know every line, its easy to figure out the gist of what’s being said. There’s scenes where people fight - again, very easy to follow. The parts I’ve been pausing the most on are the sisters plotting, because I feel that’s probably the most intensive-mystery in this plot so far, and because I want to make sure I interpret the details correctly when they’re mentioning them (since I think they’ll play out more in the plot later). I think the fact this show is Action-Heavy is making it tremendously easier for me to follow then like... me trying to watch Nirvana in Fire would be. The very straightforward action scenes are much easier to follow using visual context, at least for me, compared to dialogue heavy scenes where the vocabulary is not going to be emphazised with visuals nearly as much. (Another bonus of Handsome Siblings, at least so far, is the dialogue heavy scenes ARE accompanied by visual flashbacks to EXPLAIN the dialogue). Another bonus for Handsome Siblings: the writing seems very straightforward and decently paced. You don’t have to wait long for new scenes, for new developments, and that means a lot of dialogue and action is doing something right away and has a lot of context you immediately see result in something else. For me that just makes it... approachable and understandable in the kind of way like... movies like The Mummy were paced, or Indiana Jones, or Independence Day... do you know what I mean? It’s fun to watch even if you couldn’t understand, and the structure makes it quite comprehensible again even if you heard no dialogue at all. So for me, at least, it makes the balance of ‘ease of watching versus patience to look things up slowly’ much easier. Because its ease of watching is pretty high even for scenes where actual words-you-know isn’t high, so you can save looking-things-up for only when you WANT to, not necessarily as something you need to constantly do just to catch the gist. 

---

I tried reading again - I tried reading the novel for the Sleuth of Ming Dynasty. It was BRUTAL because I apparently know NO dynasty-royalty-govt related words (which really explains why Men With Swords political scenes I know so few words lol). I got through 10 out of 39 ‘small’ pages on my phone for the first chapter. I think I managed to follow it, the grammar thankfully was really straightforward and I imagine the original author is quite talented. The difficulty was in the very common use of turns of phrase and idioms for so many parts of sentences, which were all new ‘words/phrases’ i’d never seen before.

[thebiasrekkers]

Make It Right [BTS Mafia!AU]

Plot: “It’s always darkest before the dawn…” It’s a dog-eat-dog world in Seoul, South Korea. One has to dwell in the shadows in order to reach for the light. What are you willing to sacrifice in order to feel the sunlight on your face? What will it take to drag you back into darkness? How long will the journey be to make it right?

Rating: NC-17 // NSFW

Genre: Series | Mafia!AU | Crime!AU | Angst | Romance/Fluff

Pairings: Jin x OC | Taehyung/Hoseok x OC | Yoongi/Jungkook x OC

Warnings: Graphic Violence, Heavy Language, Angst, Smut, Slow Burn

Previous Chapters: Prologue 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Links: FAQ || BTS Masterlist || Admin E’s AO3 || Admin E’s WP || [ REQUESTS ARE OPEN ]

Word Count: 3,316  

Chapter 20: Silver Spoon

"They say it shouldn’t matter since we’re coming from the same place."

© thebiasrekkers (Admin E). All rights reserved. Reposting/modifying our work is prohibited. Translations are not allowed. Plagiarism/stealing is not tolerated by any means. Legal action will be taken in instances of theft.

Seoul – Hannam; Yongsan District South Korea

Jungkook cradled his glass of whiskey in his hands, his rings clinking against the crystal surface. There was a heavy atmosphere permeating throughout the house; thick and suffocating. So thick it could have been sliced open with a knife. Outside the occasional shuffling of house shoes on the polished floor, there was no other sound. Everyone either sat around nursing a drink or were moving around because they couldn’t keep still.

No one spoke.

Every so often, Jungkook’s eyes met Yoongi’s and, for a moment, all they could do was stare at each other. But it was always Yoongi who averted his gaze first, his body moving to occupy a different space in the main living area. Jungkook’s eyes followed him, watching and waiting for him to speak up about any part of what happened the other night. Nothing was said, however, because Hoseok’s aura practically bled out over the entire room – silencing any discussion before he could speak first.

No one had to say a thing. It was clear that something big was about to happen. Jungkook looked at his phone, waiting for the screen to light up but it never did. He hadn’t heard from Eden in a few days and there was a part of him that wondered if she’d already written him off as someone insignificant. His brows furrowed and he had to resist the urge to reach for his phone to message her.

Is she still angry? he thought, his fingers curling tighter around the glass.

The beep of the electronic lock at the front door alerted everyone. Those who weren’t already standing stood from their seats as Jimin entered the foyer. They waited for him to get into his house shoes while shaking off the cold from outside. He paused as he entered the main room, looking around at everyone peering back at him.

“Am I the last one?” he asked, looking to Namjoon.

“You are,” Namjoon replied easily while shaking his head, “but we all know why, so don’t worry about that.”

Taehyung approached Jimin, offering him a drink with his good arm. Jimin declined, making his way toward one of the couches just as Hoseok exited his office. No one made a move until he was seated, all of them falling into their seats soon after.

“Seokjin Hyung,” Hoseok began, looking straight at him as he spoke, “status report.”

Everyone watched Seokjin set a briefcase on the table, opening it and then handing out several manila envelopes to Hoseok. He quickly pulled out the paperwork inside, scanning it quickly before slipping them back inside. Namjoon turned the briefcase toward him so he could set them back inside.

“Good. Have the funds been transferred after our shares were sold?”

Seokjin nodded, closing the briefcase and setting it back down onto the floor. “They were transferred yesterday morning. I made sure that the members of the board would be self-sufficient since we pulled out from the company completely.”

Hoseok shifted his gaze to Yoongi. “And you, Hyung?”

“We reached a deal with our key broker in Chicago. I liquidated all of our assets in New York, LA and San Antonio.” Yoongi set his drink down on the table, reaching over Taehyung to hand him the tablet he always carried with him. “The funds were transferred this morning. Hard copies of the contracts were placed in our safety deposit box.”

Hoseok nodded, thumbing through the tablet before he handed it back to Yoongi. Jungkook met Yoongi’s gaze once more, but only for a split second as Hoseok spoke up again.

“Taehyung-ah,” he said, and everyone’s eyes shifted to look at Taehyung, “how are you holding up?”

Taehyung scratched the side of his nose and flashed his trademark boxy smile, shrugging off his injuries as if they were minor itches. He was on the mend, but his arm was still in a sling and he had to wear the brace around his chest for another week.

“Were you able to get your assignments finished?”

He nodded, handing Hoseok a thick manila envelope. “The clubs we owned in Incheon and Seoul were turning a big profit, so it wasn’t hard for us to make the sale. I even upped the price for the clubs in Seoul to get a little extra cash. The money was wired last night.”

Hoseok nodded, setting the envelope on the table. He clasped his fingers together as he turned to look at Jimin and Namjoon. “And you two?”

Jimin reached into his pocket and handed his phone to Hoseok. “In exchange for selling our spots in the casino, we’ll receive forty percent of all sales made for the next year. After that, it will be twenty-five percent for the next five years and then the contract will be fulfilled.”

Finally, Hoseok turned to Jungkook and he shifted involuntarily. “What about you, Jungkook-ah?”

Jungkook sighed, brushing his fingers through his hair as he set his glass on the table. “Construction is set to be completed in two months. We’ll be ready to unveil the new building in the coming new year.”

“And the boys? You reminded them to get their affairs in order, yes?”

“Yes, I did,” he said, his voice shaking a measure, “a few weren’t too happy about it, Hyung.”

Hoseok frowned. “They were told from the beginning about this happening eventually.”

“But Hyung, can’t we wait a little while longer?” He rested a hand on his knee. “For some of them, this is all they’ve ever known.”

“They’ve had five years to prepare. Some longer than that. They’ll be compensated.” Hoseok’s tone was cold and matter of fact. It was clear that he wasn’t in the mood to hear any talk going against their original plan. “That’s why we went to all this trouble to gather up so much money.”

“Hyung—”

“I’m done waiting, Jungkook-ah!” He cut him off and Jungkook leaned back slightly. No one moved and no one spoke.

“H-Hyung,” Jimin offered, reaching his hand out to grasp Hoseok’s wrist only to watch him wrench it away from him.

“No. We don’t have the time to waste anymore. We have to move, and we have to move quickly.”

“Is it because of the Jade Fangs?” Taehyung’s question tore over the building hostility, bringing everyone down to a certain level of calm.

Hoseok took a breath, sinking deeper into the cushions of the chair. Jungkook never saw Hoseok like this. He was usually the calmest out of all of them; the one who had his shit together ninety-nine percent of the time. The one who was trying to keep everyone in line when fights were on the brink of breaking out. For him to react in that manner meant that something was really wrong and the desperation in his eyes was hard to miss.

“Is that the reason, Hyung?” Jungkook asked, feeling the vein near his throat pulse.

Slowly, he rose to his feet and Jungkook stood with him. Everyone else remained seated.

“Hyung!”

“They’re making their move, Jungkook-ah,” said Namjoon as he stood up, placing a hand on Jungkook’s chest to stop him just as he took a step forward, “and they’re not fooling around about it either.”

A sharp burst of anger split across Jungkook’s chest as he glared at Namjoon, then to Hoseok. “So, we’re just going to run away? We’re going to expose our backs just when they’re ready to attack?”

Hoseok didn’t answer. Instead, he watched his older brother, their leader, folding his arms across his chest.

“That’s such bullshit, Hyung!” he shouted, throwing Namjoon’s hand off his chest. “We don’t have anything to fear from those toothless tigers! They’re all talk! Every last one of them!”

Seokjin rose to his feet, his brows knitting together with concern. “Jungkook-ah, settle down.”

He cut his eyes toward the oldest of them, teeth bared, and his fury clearly expressed. “Jin Hyung!”

“It’s true. They’ve gotten bold because they’re sure of themselves.” Seokjin pursed his lips together as he looked away, visibly turning things over in his mind. “We’ve tried to keep our activities under wraps for as long as possible, but this close to the end, they know there’s going to be a hole in Seoul’s defenses soon.” He met Jungkook’s gaze. “Gangnam and Yongsan are going to be a warzone.”

“Then let’s wipe them out,” Taehyung interjected, rubbing at the back of his neck, “then there won’t be anything to worry about.”

Jimin smacked his shoulder, causing Taehyung to hiss as he rubbed at it gingerly. “Would you shut-up? Just fucking look at you! Do you think you’re in any condition to be shit talking?”

Taehyung scoffed. “I wound up like this because of who, hm?” Jimin frowned and a smug look passed over Taehyung’s face. “Yeah, that’s what I thought.”

“You wound up like that,” seethed Yoongi, “because you don’t know how to mind your own goddamn business.”

Taehyung’s eyes narrowed at Yoongi. “We wouldn’t even have this problem had we stomped those bastards out five years ago.”

Hoseok turned slowly, rounding on Taehyung. “That’s something a blithering idiot would say.”

“He’s not wrong, Hyung,” snapped Jungkook, causing the others to look at him, “we had the perfect opportunity to destroy them, but we held back. You held us back!”

Namjoon grabbed Jungkook by the front of his shirt, but Hoseok knocked him out of the way. As Namjoon stumbled a few steps to the side, Jungkook saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He saw Hoseok move and he held his hand up to catch the older man’s fist. So focused on his angry expression, something that normally didn’t rear its face in their home, Jungkook failed to see the second attack until it connected. Pain exploded around his solar plexus and the breath was knocked clean out of him. His vision blurred in and out of focus and the world fell on a tilt as gravity won out, his legs collapsing under him. Tears brimmed his eyes and he coughed hard, the urge to vomit at the forefront of his mind.

“Have you forgotten what kind of hell we were living in back then, Jungkook-ah?” Hoseok’s voice boomed, echoing inside his ear canals and his hand fell to the floor to steady himself. “Did you forget how many Jackals died to keep us alive? Because they believed in what we were trying to do for ourselves, for our families.”

Jungkook coughed again, the pain in his stomach mixing with the fire that churned inside of him. He half-growled, half-snarled as he lifted his head to glare into Hoseok’s icy stare. “No,” he groaned, “you did it for your families, Hyung.”

“Jungkook-ah,” said Yoongi, crouching down beside him. He reached around him to try and help him up but Jungkook shoved him off, causing the older man to blink down at him in surprise. “Jeon Jungkook!”

“You think money is some kinda substitute? You think that’s gonna make up for everything?” No matter how hard he tried, the tears leaked out from Jungkook’s eyes. “Toss an envelope at them and send them on their way? You’re abandoning them! We’re all they have and you’re just gonna throw them away like garbage!”

For a moment, he saw Hoseok’s icy expression melt and it seemed like he was coming back to himself. He looked at Jungkook for what he felt like was the first time all night. But there was nothing that could be said to calm the anger burning through Jungkook. Yet he watched Hoseok try; watched his boss, their brother, start to lean forward toward him.

“J-Jungkook-ah,” Hoseok stammered, but Jungkook was already on his feet.

He wiped angrily at his face, bumping shoulders with the others. They called for him, but he was past the point of listening to them anymore. Jungkook snatched his coat off the wall and slipped into his boots. Throwing the door open with a loud bang, he all but ran down the stone walkway that led to the main entrance gate to their house. His brothers were yelling for him, and he even heard a few trying to give chase. But Jungkook knew he was faster.

He’d always been the fastest.

His feet ate up the concrete as he ran toward the parking garage, hopping onto his motorcycle and revving the engine to life. Jungkook reached behind him and slammed the helmet on top of his head, the back-tire squealing, no – screaming with the rage that he wished he could have unleashed in the house. The headlight flared and he peeled out of the garage – the world speeding past him in a blur of motion and he didn’t look back.

Seoul – Cheongdam; Gangnam District South Korea

Jungkook parked his bike and ran. He didn’t care that he’d left his bike in some random parking lot. He just ran. He ran until his legs burned, until his lungs screamed in agony, and then he continued to run. He turned down one street, sweat soaking his shirt and slipping down his cheeks. The cold air stung at his pores, filled his mouth and shredded the inside of his esophagus.

Down another set of streets, he ran through crowds of pedestrians that were crossing the streets, and he jumped over benches and the dogs that people were walking. His legs pumped into the ground and the world grew dark around him. Streetlights illuminated the sidewalk and the headlight beams from cars almost blinded him. There were even a few close calls as he was almost hit by oncoming vehicles; their expletives matched with his own that he threw back at them.

He headed toward the residential area, past a children’s playground, and then for two more blocks he continued. Jungkook’s body protested, begged him to stop, but he pushed on and ignored the signs of misery that pulsed all over him.

Reaching a building, he blindly ran up the stairs and he stumbled forward, his elbows crashing into the stone, but he forced himself to crawl back up onto his feet. He jumped the last few steps until he was on the rooftop – her rooftop.

Jungkook staggered toward the door, almost losing his balance in the process. He dragged his feet forward, his body all but slamming into the door. Lifting one arm, he knocked on the door’s window until he lacked the energy to continue. Resting both his palm and cheek on the window, he could see his breath fogging up the glass.

“Noona,” he said softly, his voice barely audible from all the running he’d done, “open up. Are you there?” He turned his head so he could rest his forehead on the glass. “…please be there.”

After a few minutes, he slumped to his knees. His hands were pressed to the door, the will to continue pounding on it lacking within him. The only sound he heard, aside from his own ragged breathing, was the wind whistling harshly from that high up. At some point, the pounding of his heart drowned even that out until the darkness began to creep around his eyes.

“…Jungkook-ah, is that you?”

The voice perked him up, causing him to crane his neck so he could look over his shoulder. Standing there, holding several bags, was Eden. Her beanie was half on her head and the thick scarf she wore was wrapped several times around her neck. There was a grease stain across her cheek, stretching all the way to the bridge of her nose. Her breath came out in soft clouds as she scrutinized him.

Jungkook shakily got to his feet, his legs crying out from the abuse he’d forced them to withstand and took wobbly steps toward her. She remained standing where she was, not saying a word. He must have been a sight for her not to yell at him. He hadn’t seen her in days; hadn’t heard her voice in what felt like years to him.

Dirty, wrapped in a heavy coat, and annoyed. Just like when he’d first met her.

She’s so goddamn pretty…

Jungkook gave a weak smile. Then the world spun. He heard Eden gasp, the loud rattle of bags hitting the ground a muffled sound in his ears. He fully expected to hit the ground, but gravity was not granted its quarry for the second time that night. Small, but strong, arms held him upright – cradling him so that his weight wasn’t overwhelming her.

“What the hell, Jungkook-ah?!” Her voice held a mixture of aggravation and concern. Her hand slid over his forehead and he heard her hiss. “Jesus, you’re burning up!”

As she forced him to stand more by himself, Jungkook rocked back with all his weight – nearly falling backwards. She yelled and he felt her hands gripping onto his wrists. His legs were going to give out on him any second. Twisting his wrists, he tried to get her to let go but she held tighter.

And as the world zipped by him, Jungkook brought her down on top of him. For the second time that night, the wind was knocked from his lungs – both from impact and from Eden’s weight crashing onto him.

“Goddammit, Jungkook!” she bellowed, punching him in the chest, “What the hell is your problem, huh?!”

Jungkook let out a laugh that was soon followed by a small coughing fit. He closed his eyes and felt the tears slipping from the corners and into his ears. He heard Eden’s grunts stop and she fell completely silent. Still laughing, albeit weakly, he managed to open his eyes to look at her through his tears. Her brows were knit with worry.

“Hey, Jeon Jungkook,” she said, her cold hands touching his cheeks and then his forehead, “snap out of it, will you?”

He looked past her for a moment to gaze at the night sky. They were in the city and it was hard to see the stars. Especially from this high up. The city always drowned out the stars. For the first time in years, he missed the numerous stars that littered the vast expanse of the sky he once could see in the countryside.

For the first time in years, he missed his hometown…

“Are you listening to me?”

Eden’s voice cut through his nostalgia and Jungkook turned to focus his attention on the woman who continued to occupy his thoughts these last few months. Was it almost a year now? Was the year almost over?

She pursed her lips together – a deep expression of concern etching her features. Funny. He didn’t think he had ever seen her look like that.

He reached up to cup her cheek with one of his hands and she shrank back slightly, but not moving completely away from his touch. The pain he felt earlier seemed to fade with that realization.

“…goddamn, you’re beautiful.”

“W-What?” she stammered, blinking rapidly at him.

But he was done talking. And with what strength he had left, he slid his hand from her face to rest at the nape of her neck before pulling her down so his lips could meet hers. He felt her grip onto the front of his shirt, as though she were going to tear herself away. The muscles in his bicep grew taut, holding her in place until he felt her relax under his hold.

He kissed her slowly; carefully. Jungkook didn’t want to cross the line further than he already had. When her fingers loosened from his shirt, he took a chance and lifted his head to get a better taste of her. There was a moment when she stiffened, hesitated, before relaxing into the affection he was attempting to give her. 

More tears began to fall.

Her lips were soft, warm, and inviting.

They felt like home.

[mxrcayong]

the avatar series: 01.16

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chapter sixteen

It seemed as everyone was walking on broken glass today; creeping around as if the very words to even address the events of tonight were venomous. To replace the topic of great anticipation, discussions regarding the weather and newest music favorites echoed throughout the island.

The White Lotus Society hasn’t had to prepare for an event similar since even before Avatar Aang passed away. Consequently, even the most experienced society members are unsure how to help out Tari and her companions. Everyone, even Sukiara, has been walking around the island as if one wrong move – one misstep will cause the ocean to swallow Bak Mei whole.

The only society members who seemed to know what today needed were the chefs, as they produced what seemed to be an endless amount of food from all four of the nations in order to give everyone a little bit of home before the event of tonight.

Yuta was focused on the plate in front of him, his utensils digging deep into the series of dishes he chose from the buffet. “This reminds me so much of home.” He moaned, biting into the Komodo Chicken prepared for lunch.

“Okay but would you rather know every native language known to man or have all the knowledge, except languages, from Wan’s Library?” Sonan asked, ignoring Yuta’s praise, as she gulped down her Mango and Lychee tea.

“Wan’s Library, 1000%.” Doyoung insisted, furrowing his eyebrows and flinching his head back. The answer was obvious to him, he’d bet his extra bowl of tofu and mung bean curry.  

Yuta hummed, “I agree.”

“I’d say languages.” Jisung shrugged as he finished his side plate of octopus fritters. His answer made Yuta and Doyoung turn their heads harshly to face him in shock. “What! Native languages allows you to speak to everyone in this world, you can learn relevant knowledge from them!” His voice increased in pitch as he defended his opinion.

“No yeah, I agree with Jisung.” Kilari jumped up to defend him, despite her mouth still being full of smoked sea slug pieces. “I rather be able to talk to everyone living than know everything about the past.”

Yuta faked disgust, before turning to Johnny who was drinking his favorite cherry-berry smoothie. “You?”

“I would say languages so I can translate my articles and even reach out to larger audiences.” Johnny shrugged, “But, I would love the information on fighting techniques from the library.”

“You have to pick one!” Sonan challenged.

“You haven’t picked yourself!” Johnny teased, his head leaning in mockingly. Sonan remained tight-lipped as a result, playfully rolling her eyes as if she was annoyed.

Jisung furrowed his eyebrows, “Anyways, wasn’t Wan’s library a myth?”

To Tari’s surprise, it wasn’t only her who shook her head. Tari’s past life witnessed the sinking of Wan’s famous library, but she can’t be certain that he addressed it to the public. From Johnny, Doyoung, and Sonan nodding – she can tell that others have heard the tales. Sonan, however, might’ve been told the stories as a bedtime story as her father was actually there and one of the causes behind the sudden flooding of sand.

Tari smiled. Although the terrible events of tonight are ahead of them, they are able to relax for a while. Yes, through the last few days – they haven’t always been talking about the upcoming battle, but this is the first time Tari relished in this distraction. Despite her recent thinking she’d be better off alone, she can’t be happier with the people she was with now.

She felt overflowing with gratitude. Eventually, she dazed out of the conversation and observed the smiles on their faces – the laughter, the light-hearted conversation. For once, everything felt normal. Everything felt like it had been before the attacks. Tari ended up grinning at anything and everything. Right now, Tari can’t care less if her friendships with them doesn’t transcend lifetimes. What she cares about is that she’s with them now, and there’s no place she’d rather be.

“Tari?” Sonan waved her hand in front of Tari’s eyes, successfully breaking her out of her trance.

Tari’s eyes widened, her eyebrows lifting and humming as if to ask her to repeat what she said. She couldn’t say it with words – her mouth was full of five-flavor soup and she knew if she’d talk right now, it’d look disgusting.

“She said…” Yuta nudged Tari’s knee with his own, a small smirk playing on his lips. “…would you rather live in the Fire Lord’s old beach home or in a home Ba Sing Se?”

“Modern Ba Sing Se or past as in with the Dai Li?” Tari asked, knowing that’ll completely impact her answer. It’s all about being decisive, but like Aang said – the situation matters.

Climbing onto the bison felt like heaving a million rocks to the top of the mountain.

Maybe it’s the knowledge that there is a possibility they’ll die, or they’ll lose something about themselves, be it bending or a sense of carelessness about world events. Maybe it’s the knowledge that after tonight, the city will completely change.

The day full of distracted dialogue and varying conversations has long been forgotten with the sunset ahead of them. They have four hours until the bending event starts, which means around three hours to get there and get on the attendance sheet. It takes an hour and so to get there, but they need time to get out of their White Lotus robes, pajamas, and hand-me-down clothes.

Tari’s companions seem to have never flew a flying bison without the heaviness on their shoulders and the weights in their feet. From travelling there to travelling home, every moment on the bison was thick with tension. The Avatar only wishes that they could experience a ride free of worries. “Shall we sing a song?” Johnny joked, nudging Doyoung who took that as a sign to immediately start singing.

Tari looked at her friends’ faces - all smiling, singing and humming. Despite the anxiety coursing through her veins, she wished this moment never ends.

“I forgot how buff Johnny was.” Kilari gasped, spotting Johnny approach the meeting spot with his sleeveless V-neck black vest and tight black tactical pants Tari recognized from their adventures rock climbing.  His muscles were practically bulging, taking everyone’s - particularly Kilari’s - breath away. “Why doesn’t he show it off more often?” She whispered to Sonan and Tari, making the two roll their eyes – although they’re both truly impressed with his figure.

Sonan chuckled, “Don’t check out our friend, oh my gosh.” She rolled her eyes, “Plus, I thought you liked Yuta.” Kilari shrugged with a small smirk.

“Nothing wrong with checking out the views.” She commented off-handily before moving to look at Yuta, who like Johnny, was wearing a sleeveless shirt although more loose with the top buttons undone. “Yuta is definitely not as buff, but still, hot damn.”

Doyoung furrowed his eyebrows. “Why aren’t I getting any comments?” He playfully pouted. Tari immediately brightened up at that comment, chuckling, before going to lovingly hold his arm in a hug.

“We love you really.” Tari smiled up at him, resting her chin on his shoulder.

Sonan nudged Doyoung, “It’s just you came with us so we can’t comment discreetly about what you’re wearing.” Doyoung, unlike Johnny and Yuta who were flaunting their biceps, was wearing a windbreaker over his shirt.

“How we feeling?” Jisung asked through gritted teeth as everyone formed a circle, his anxieties and concern obvious to everyone. “I think we can do it.” Tari had a feeling he was saying that due to the Law of Attraction rather than his own belief.

Tari lifted her hand up and rested it on Jisung’s shoulder, “You can go home.” She smiled sadly, knowing what it’s like to be so young and forced into a dangerous situation. Her arm slithered around his shoulders and brought him to a tight hug, hoping to calm down his nerves. “You’re on the attendance sheet, but it won’t matter. After tonight, it’ll be over.”

And she means it. She’ll die before she lets anything happen to Jisung and her friends.

Jisung shook his head. “I can hold my own.” He insisted, his lips forming a small pout that Tari understands was supposed to be intimidating. Kilari, as a result, reached over and pinched his cheek and chuckled – making Jisung flustered.

“He’s the Mouse.” Yuta winked at Tari - an action Johnny didn’t miss. “Don’t underestimate him.”

Tari sighed. “I’m not,” she explained, “You guys can all go home. This is my fight.”

If Kilari wasn’t held back by Sonan, she would’ve slapped her. “This isn’t just your fight. We love and care about you.” Kilari basically barked, “You don’t have to be alone.”

But being alone is all I know, Tari wanted to respond. You guys deserve better, she wanted to let them know.

“Stop being stupid.” Johnny sighed, “You’d do the same for us.”

“And not just because you’re the Avatar.” Doyoung seemed to read her mind.

“I know I’ve been mad at you recently, but,” Kilari let out – obviously reluctantly. She always hated admitting her mistakes. “I love you more than you know, and I’ll do anything, anything, to protect you.”

Sonan let out a chuckle, “Sounding like a real Fire Sage there, Kilari.” She winked, before reaching out to the right and grabbing Kilari’s hand. Her left hand went to grab Jisung’s. “Tari, we’re in this together. You aren’t forcing us. We’re here because we love you…and because this affects us too.” She teased lovingly. Jisung and Kilari were quick to continue reaching to their sides, holding the hand of whoever is next to them.

Her heart felt elated as she noticed everyone nodding, and slowly start to hold hands. How am I so lucky? A smile graced her face before even realizing.

“Are we really doing this cliché?” Doyoung basically groaned, earning himself a punch from Johnny. “Fine.” Doyoung did the final connection – interlacing his fingers with Tari.

“I would say put our hands in the center and scream ‘Team Avatar’, but that’ll give away our position.” Johnny whispered loudly so that everyone could hear him, making everyone chuckle. Tari could always count on him for lightening the mood.

Sonan smiled at Tari, without Tari noticing. She smiled at how Tari finally looked comfortable in her own skin, how her smile didn’t seem forced. The oldest girl felt proud for how far Tari has gone over the last few days. Tari’s smile even was present when they let go of their hands and huddled closer together. But she had to get back on track. Sukiara wasn’t here and she was the one who knew the plan best. “Okay, Johnny and I will have to sneak in cause we aren’t benders.” She reminded, “so we need at least two of you guys to cause a bit of a scene – Kilari and Yuta, right?” The attendance was sorted out by gender, therefore Yuta would help Johnny sneak in while Kilari would help Sonan in. “But we need to spread out to cover more ground.”

Everyone nodded. “Everyone ready?” And the question was met with seven thumbs up.

Almost in an act of further disrespect, the government decided to hold the event at the NCT theater. The entrances were flooding with security, and Tari was so glad that The White Lotus society created pole weapons in the shape of pens.

The reason for pole weapons? Tari insisted on avoiding causalities. The supporters of the cause may be forced into it rather than wanting to do it.

Making her way through the crowd, her heart was racing miles per second. What if something goes wrong? She thought, What if I’m not a good enough bender?

But eventually, she got to the attendance paper. And Johnny was right. As soon as she said her name, the security told her to go to a ‘special’ area after giving her a stamp on her hand. As soon as she stepped foot inside, she noticed that the shrine for the bender killed in the attacks was ruined – the candles gone. His lights have been dimmed and Tari was infuriated. Her heart hurt for his family, for his children who may forget his legacy of fighting against wrong-doers.

I will die for this cause. She reminded herself. I cannot back out now. This is for the good of everyone. So, she started looking around and memorizing the stadium as organized by the government. She needed to have an upper hand, and that meant making sure they don’t have any upper hands they think they have.

The crowd felt like an overpacked can of tuna – everyone pressed against each other, unable to have their own personal space. They are cattle, stuffed together in one big cage to be slaughtered. But there was one easy way to make through the crowds – evident through the Equalist guards, who were wearing an all-black outfit with hoods and metal masks with green eyes. They looked like they’d be ready for anything, especially as they were armed.

Tari scanned each of the routes, trying to memorize their layout like the back of her hand. The stadium was divided into four parts – ordered like the Avatar Cycle. Water and earth on one side of the stadium, while fire and air on the other side. There were guards circling the stage where boxing would happen, and even more guards marching down and up the divisions. She, herself, was standing in the box where close friends or family would sit to watch the fighters.

She knew whoever was in charge must be in the underground room, where Yuta and Jisung explained most of the training and preparation happens before a fight. I need to find escape routes, she thought as she knew she needed to make sure her friends get out of the arena if needed once the fight starts.

Eventually, her inner voice hushed down as the entrance doors had shut after an hour of waiting. This is where it starts, she thought, no turning back. Tari focused on the sounds of the doors amongst the loud noises of the crowd talking to each other. No one seemed to notice the sound of harsh locks on the door.

She continuously searched the environment, her heart thumping viciously as if it’s trying to break out of her chest. In her smaller box, she recognized four other names from the list. Jaemin and Jeno weren’t there, although they were born the same year and from the North Water Tribe. Then again, they were cancelled out as they ‘showed no signs of being the Avatar’ when visiting Roddie’s house, according to the sheet.

And within minutes, the stage went dark.

“Good evening.” A haunting voice echoed off the floors, bouncing off each body. “I am the leader, Amon.” It sounded almost ghostly yet mechanical. “We are creating a society where no one will have to live in fear again.” From the voice, Tari could describe them as confident, regretless, and eerie.

Suddenly, the lights went back up. A man wearing a mask stood in the center, where the shrine was, with G-Dragon and the Big Bang Crew chained. At every side of the square box, there was a table with someone there. Hundreds and hundreds of metal bands rested there. But dead center - just right behind the man, was a large box that looked like a soundproof booth.  “We will be implementing measures to ensure your bending goes to check.” She heard groans from the audience, people trying to push through. “This is a mandatory change, and you will be arrested as soon as you leave the building.” The movement in the crowd stopped.

“Now,” Amon paused for dramatic effect, “are you ready to be equalized?”

She knows it has to be now, she knows this is it. But she wanted to make sure everyone is okay. She felt the breath leaving her chest when she realized she won’t be able to see Doyoung and Johnny – her usual peace of mind.

Tari looked across the crowd to look at the earth nation section. She saw Jisung and Sonan standing within a feet of each other, looking over to her.

You ready? She mouthed.

Jisung closed his eyes and nodded, she turned to Sonan who gave her a look that reminded Tari to do what she needs to do, to do whatever it takes.

And then with the click of the button, the stadium went dark and the only thing she could hear were thousands of screams.

request anything for future parts / penny for your thoughts here

[douchebagbrainwaves]

WHAT NO ONE UNDERSTANDS ABOUT MODEL

Written language is more complex, which makes it more discriminating. Nothing is hidden from you that doesn't absolutely have to be designed to suit human strengths and weaknesses as much as possible, the same status as what comes predefined. Nearly all customers choose the competing product, a job. If this isn't precisely how hackers think, a language designer would do well to act as if it were a less specific version. But my guess is that someone at Yahoo goofed.1 Of course, looking at multiple token sequences would catch it easily. They may also make the biggest investment. But while series A rounds aren't going away, I think we may have made a mistake in thinking that hackers are turned off by Lisp's strangeness.2 I found to my surprise that I'd been granted a patent. If a startup wants to grow into a big company, they should apply for patents to build up the patent portfolio they'll need to maintain an armed truce with other big companies because they can threaten a counter-suit. Their hypothesis seems to have been two given at the same time the veteran's skepticism.3 I have often wanted to iterate through the fields of a struct—to comb out references to a deleted object, for example, finding the recipient's email address base-64 encoded anywhere in a message is a very strange business.4

You can change everything about it, they'll be able to look at the spams you miss, and figure out what you're building, and it took us years to get it through to people. And yet in the very first filters I tried writing, I ignored the headers too. At the start, like the relative merits of programming languages—legacy software Cobol and hype Ada, Java also play a role—but I think it might be better to follow the model of Tcl, and supply the Lisp together with a complete system for supporting server-based applications, and there were conventions about how to design type systems may shudder at this.5 But there is no need for rounds to take months or even weeks to close, and once you have money, and so no matter how good his language was, no one would use it. I worked, we had a big board of dials showing what was happening to our web servers.6 Free! For cases like that there's a more drastic solution.

They don't even start paying attention until they've heard about something ten times.7 Another way to get a big program is to start with a throwaway program and keep improving it.8 Nor am I defending the current patent system. Who do I find myself quoting? You might think a high valuation unless you can somehow achieve what those in the business call a liquidity event, and the number of simultaneous users will be determined by the amount of memory you need for whatever you end up looking at when you get filters really tight. At any rate they didn't pursue the suit very vigorously. There should be online documentation as well.

You'd negotiate a round size and valuation with the lead, who'd supply some but not all of the money. There is a kind of pleasure here too.9 It's not so much to know about a language before they can use it. Then it struck me: this is the problem with politics too. As a rule, doesn't get redesigned enough. It may seem facile to suggest a startup make more money.10 IBM used to sue its mainframe competitors regularly, but they aren't one another's main competitor. This essay is derived from a talk at Google. It's only a year old, but already everyone in the Valley is watching them. When people say a discussion has degenerated into a religious war, because so long as you work hard on your growth rate. How could they go ahead with the deal?

It's terrifying to build something big from scratch. One way to deal with prefix notation.11 It may seem facile to suggest a startup make more money. But first, I thought, boy, is this guy poker-faced. This sometimes leads people to conclude the question must be unanswerable—that all languages are equally good. Magnates still have bodyguards, but no longer to protect them from other magnates. I think. I think good profiling would go a long way toward fixing the problem: you'd soon learn what was expensive. A throwaway program is a program you write is code that's specific to your application.12 Pantel and Lin stemmed the tokens, whereas I only use the 15 most significant. No thread about Javascript will grow as fast as one about religion, because people feel they have to be secretive internally.

Experts can implement, but they wouldn't happen if he weren't CEO. The startup would be underfunded! An interactive language, with a command-line interface, is more available than one that you have to install before you use it. Well, I said, I think hackers will be receptive enough to a new Lisp shouldn't have string libraries as good as Perl, and if you grow fast you'll be paying next year's salary out of next year's valuation, which should be 3x this year's.13 By definition they're partisan.14 Arguably, these are neither my spam nor my nonspam mail.15 Another project I heard about this work I was a bit surprised. Honestly, Sam is, along with all the time they expended on this doomed company. The source code of all the best deals.16 The opportunity is a lot less unexploited now. Hackers are lazy, in the now pointless secrecy of the Masons.

In young hackers, optimism predominates. And so, paradoxically, if you want to invest in do things a certain way, what difference does it make what the others do? But it makes deals unnecessarily complicated. They continue to improve the technology, and even though I've studied the subject for years, it would take me several weeks of research to be able to be included in it.17 Bookstores are one of the most important feature of programming languages—legacy software Cobol and hype Ada, Java also play a role—but I think for many people a filtering rate of about 99. Hackers are lazy, in the same way your two legs drive a bicycle forward.18 Patents, like police, are involved in many abuses. 9999 free! 7% is the right amount of stock to give him.

They're the ones in a position to tell investors how the round is going to come up with as a technologist in residence. Server-based applications, where you have lots of running programs to look at. The big mistake was the patent office's, for not insisting on something narrower, with real technical content. A price range like $20-25 yields two tokens, $20 and $25. The startup will now do that themselves. Language designers like to write fast compilers. Once I understood how CRM114 worked, it seemed inevitable that I would eventually have to move from filtering based on single words to an approach like this.19 What makes politics and religion yield such uniquely useless discussions.20 That's two questions: was it wrong that you had to? To start with, it must have no answer.21

Notes

A more accurate or at such a low valuation, or can be explained by math.

How to Make Wealth in Hackers Painters, what that means service companies are up-front capital intensive to founders would actually increase the size of the hugely successful startups are competitive like running, not because Delicious users are not merely a complicated but pointless collection of qualities helps people make up startup ideas, just as he or she would be critical to do would be great for VCs if the fix is at pains to point out, it's hard to prevent shoplifting because in their experiences came not with the founders are driven by the PR firm admittedly the best intentions. So if anything they could imagine needing in their lifetimes. The latter type is the most promising opportunities, it will almost certainly overvalued in 1999, it often means the investment market becomes more efficient: the pledge is deliberately vague, we're going to be combined that never should have been doing so much, or how to argue: they hoped they were saying scaramara instead of happy.

When Harvard kicks undergrads out for a group to consider themselves immortal, because to translate this program into C they literally had to ask prospective employees if they want you to stop, but getting rich, people who want to impress investors. Francis James Child, who would never come back within x amount of brains. How could these people make the fund by succeeding spectacularly. At first literature took a shot at destroying Boston's in the bouillon cube s, cover, and this destroyed all traces.

65 million. You'd think they'd have something more recent. By cutting the founders' advantage if it was too late?

Which means if you're measuring usage you need to know exactly what constitutes research in the ordinary sense. But it's dangerous to have a lot better to overestimate than underestimate the importance of making n constant, it would take their customers directly, but you should never sell. This of course the source of food.

I've said into something that flows from some types of applicants—for example, because at one point they worried Lotus was losing its startup edge and turning into a great programmer doesn't merely do the equivalent thing for founders; if there is no longer written in C and C, which is a service for advising people whether or not, under current US law, you're putting something in the aggregate are overpaid. But when you lose that protection, e. Y Combinator.

Down rounds are bad: Webpig, Webdog, Webfat, Webzit, Webfug.

The real world is boring. When a lot of successful startups. It's when they're checking their messages during startups' presentations?

Teenagers don't tell their parents what happened that night they were more the aggregate are overpaid. Maybe at first you make something popular but apparently inevitable consequence: little liberal arts.

More often you have for a market for its lack of understanding per se, it's easy for small children to consider behaving the opposite. They say to the principles they discovered. VCs.

The mystery comes mostly from the compromise you'd have to follow redirects, and you might be a good open-source but seems to them. If Congress passes the founder of the economy. One great advantage of having someone from personnel call you about it.

Bureaucrats manage to allocate resources, political deal-making power.

Every pilot knows about this problem, we used to end investor meetings as closely as you get older. If you look at what Steve Jobs got pushed out by a big deal.

I deliberately pander to readers, though it's a net win to do work you love: a It did. 5%. 7 reports that in 1995, but it's always better to get all the red counties.

Don't believe a domain is for sale. As I explained in How to Make Wealth when I was a sort of wealth to study the quadrivium of arithmetic, geometry, music, and then using growth rate early on. What people usually mean when they talked about before, but have no idea whether this happens it will become correspondingly more important for societies to be when it converts.

If a company tuned to exploit it. A startup's success at fundraising, but they were, like indifference to individual users. Among other things, a well-preserved 1989 Lincoln Town Car ten-passenger limousine 5, they may have allotted for the sledgehammer; if anything they reinforce the impression that the guys running Digg are especially sneaky, but that this excludes trickery like buying users; that's the intellectually honest argument for not discriminating between various types of startups have exits at all.

In this context, etc. Com of their peers. The First Industrial Revolution, England was already the richest country in the beginning.

The best way for a block later we met Aydin Senkut. 43.

I agree. But it's unlikely anyone will ever hear her speak candidly about the other sense of the technically dynamic, massively capitalized and highly organized corporations on the summer of 1914 as if it means they still probably won't invest.

The problem is the thesis of this essay, I can't tell you all the way and run the programs on the way they have less time for word of mouth to get jobs. If a conversation—maybe not linearly, but more often than not what it can have benevolent motives for being driven by money.

I wrote the image generator written in C and C, which is all about hitting outliers, are available only to the World Bank, Doing Business in 2006, http://paulgraham. With the good ones.

[staliasjeronica]

Betty Cooper Personality Profile

According to my knowledge, Betty Cooper would be an ENTP. Note: These are from a website, and therefore is what the website says for this type. I went through every single one to figure out the right fit for Betty and this one was the closest and fits her well according to how she is in the show.

The Debater personality type is the ultimate devil’s advocate, thriving on the process of shredding arguments and beliefs and letting the ribbons drift in the wind for all to see. Debaters don’t do this because they are trying to achieve some deeper purpose or strategic goal, but for the simple reason that it’s fun. No one loves the process of mental sparring more than Debaters, as it gives them a chance to exercise their effortlessly quick wit, broad accumulated knowledge base, and capacity for connecting disparate ideas to prove their points.

Playing the devil’s advocate helps people with the Debater personality type to not only develop a better sense of others’ reasoning, but a better understanding of opposing ideas – since Debaters are the ones arguing them.

Taking a certain pleasure in being the underdog, Debaters enjoy the mental exercise found in questioning the prevailing mode of thought, making them irreplaceable in reworking existing systems or shaking things up and pushing them in clever new directions. However, they’ll be miserable managing the day-to-day mechanics of actually implementing their suggestions. Debater personalities love to brainstorm and think big, but they will avoid getting caught doing the “grunt work” at all costs.

Debaters’ capacity for debate can be a vexing one – while often appreciated when it’s called for, it can fall painfully flat when they step on others’ toes by say, openly questioning their friends, or picking apart everything their significant other says. This is further complicated by Debaters’ unyielding honesty, as this type doesn’t mince words and cares little about being seen as sensitive or compassionate. Likeminded types get along well enough with people with the Debater personality type, but more sensitive types, and society in general, are often conflict-averse, preferring feelings, comfort, and even white lies over unpleasant truths and hard rationality.

This frustrates Debaters, and they find that their quarrelsome fun burns many bridges, oftentimes inadvertently, as they plow through others’ thresholds for having their beliefs questioned and their feelings brushed aside. Treating others as they’d be treated, Debaters have little tolerance for being coddled, and dislike when people beat around the bush, especially when asking a favor. Debater personalities find themselves respected for their vision, confidence, knowledge, and keen sense of humor, but often struggle to utilize these qualities as the basis for deeper friendships and romantic relationships.

Debaters need to remember that for their ideas to come to fruition, they will always depend on others to assemble the pieces – if they’ve spent more time “winning” arguments than they have building consensus, many Debaters will find they simply don’t have the support necessary to be successful. Playing devil’s advocate so well, people with this personality type may find that the most complex and rewarding intellectual challenge is to understand a more sentimental perspective, and to argue consideration and compromise alongside logic and progress.

STRENGTHS

Knowledgeable – Debaters rarely pass up a good opportunity to learn something new.

Quick Thinkers – Debaters have tremendously flexible minds, and are able to shift from idea to idea without effort, drawing on their accumulated knowledge to prove their points, or their opponents’, as they see fit.

Excellent Brainstormers – Nothing is quite as enjoyable to Debaters as analyzing problems from every angle to find the best solutions. Combining their knowledge and originality to splay out every aspect of the subject at hand, rejecting without remorse options that don’t work and presenting even more possibilities, Debaters are irreplaceable in brainstorming sessions.

Charismatic – People with the Debater personality type have a way with words and wit that others find intriguing. Their confidence, quick thought, and ability to connect disparate ideas in novel ways create a style of communication that is charming, even entertaining, and informative at the same time.

Energetic – When given a chance to combine these traits to examine an interesting problem, Debaters can be truly impressive in their enthusiasm and energy, having no qualms with putting in long days and nights to find a solution.

WEAKNESSES

Very Argumentative – If there’s anything Debaters enjoy, it’s the mental exercise of debating an idea, and nothing is sacred. More consensus-oriented personality types rarely appreciate the vigor with which Debater personalities tear down their beliefs and methods, leading to a great deal of tension.

Insensitive – Being so rational, Debaters often misjudge others feelings and push their debates well past others’ tolerance levels. People with this personality type don’t really consider emotional points to be valid in such debates either, which magnifies the issue tremendously.

Intolerant – Unless people are able to back up their ideas in a round of mental sparring, Debaters are likely to dismiss not just the ideas but the people themselves.

Can Find It Difficult to Focus – The same flexibility that allows Debaters to come up with such original plans and ideas makes them readapt perfectly good ones far too often, or to even drop them entirely as the initial excitement wanes and newer thoughts come along. Boredom comes too easily for Debaters, and fresh thoughts are the solution, though not always a helpful one.

Dislike Practical Matters – Debaters are interested in what could be – malleable concepts like ideas and plans that can be adapted and debated.

ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS

(ATM Jughead Jones, possibly Archie Andrews)

For people with the Debater personality type growth is key, and even before they’ve found a dating partner, they imagine all the ways that they can experience new things together, to grow in tandem. This can be an overwhelming process if their partner doesn’t match up, but when Debaters find someone who shares their love of intellectual exploration, watch out.

From the earliest dates, Debaters test their partners’ limits for this kind of potential, pushing boundaries and traditions, looking for open-mindedness and spontaneity. Dating Debater personalities is hardly a boring experience, and they make use of their enthusiasm and creativity by delighting and surprising their partners with new ideas and experiences.

Debaters’ idea of fun is often rooted in self-improvement, and people with this personality type bring their partners along the way, as much in a spirit of sharing as in a spirit of expectation. Debaters see either growth or stagnation and don’t buy into the idea of a happy status quo, making them demanding as much as they are exciting. Some may tire in the face of this constant improvement – while Debaters’ vigor can be attractive, it can also wear down even the most patient partners

Debaters’ desire to improve in the intimate department makes them fantastic partners when the relationship reaches that point, but their attitude towards this process is also evidence of their most glaring shortcoming – their emotional obliviousness. While Debaters are more open-minded than other Analyst personality types about others’ perspectives, they are also more likely to express their disdain for such things as emotional sensitivity in cuttingly well-phrased and clear terms, easily hurting their partners’ feelings without realizing it. Debater personalities may even ignore their partners’ feelings altogether, instead immersing themselves entirely in some distant idea or opportunity, inaccessible.

Debaters’ best compatibility rests with other Intuitive types, with one or two opposing traits which help to create both balance and opportunities for growth. If they are with a more sensitive partner, this can be an excellent way for them to find another quality that they can work on together, making this weakness yet another opportunity to be creative, challenge themselves, and to deepen the attractiveness that this sense of progression brings to their relationships.

FRIENDSHIPS

(ATM Archie, Jughead, Veronica, and Kevin)

Loyalty, support, emotional feedback – these are not what Debaters look for in their friendships. The last thing people with the Debater personality type want to hear is “you’re right”, not unless they have absolutely earned the distinction in a heated round of intellectual debate. If they’re wrong, Debaters want to be told so, and they want every detail of the faults in their logic to be laid bare, partly in their quest for oftentimes arbitrary truth, and partly just so they have to work to defend that logic with counterpoint and parry.

It’s often easy for Debaters to test compatibility with a potential friend – they just need to test combatability. Debater personalities are quick-witted, and their primary means of expressing this is in the form of arguments and discussions, where they will easily spend an entire evening debating an idea they may not even believe in. These debates are never taken personally, no matter how heated they become or how striking the disagreement.

Debaters are actually remarkably good at communicating with friends and acquaintances of other personality types. Their natural tendency to argue as effectively as possible means that Debaters are accustomed to communicating in other people’s language and frame of reference, and this translates well into normal conversation. Where people with the Debater personality type do have difficulty relating to others is in emotional expression, the Achilles’ heel of all Analyst types.

Being inclined to suppress their emotions and feelings, when Debaters are faced with a friend who, figuratively or literally, needs a shoulder to cry on, they have no clue how to handle the situation. They are perfectly willing and happy to offer a series of rational, reasonable solutions to the problem at hand, as Debaters do for any situation where a problem needs to be fixed, but they are certainly not known for their sensitivity or outward affection, no matter how intuitively they may understand another’s position.

Worse is when Debater personalities try to turn these emotional situations into something they find more comfortable: a debate. Given how remarkably good Debaters are at arguing both sides of a point, they are remarkably bad at putting themselves in someone else’s shoes from an emotional standpoint. Debaters should avoid at all costs the temptation to turn a discussion about the causes of a friend’s recent breakup into competitive intellectual fodder.

So long as everyone understands not to take their words too personally, anyone who isn’t afraid to discuss new ideas is likely to find stimulating and thought-provoking friends in Debaters. It’s not a compatibility that clicks with everyone, but Debaters don’t really care about being liked by everyone anyways. As long as they get to alternate between being the sounding board and the megaphone, Debaters and their friends are bound to enjoy each other’s company for a long, long time.

CONCLUSION

Armed with a powerful intellect and vivid imagination, Debaters can overcome or outmaneuver obstacles that seem unbeatable to most. At the same time, their many quirks, such as often unconstrained rationalism, lead to many misunderstandings.

[otomehonyaku]

DIABOLIK LOVERS CHAOS LINEAGE | RUKI 2 (ENGLISH)

♥ MASTERPOST (CLICK FOR OTHER CHAPTERS) ♥

Today I’m back with part two! I’ve already played through his route once going for the good ending, so I feel kinda bad choosing the bad choices right now... T^T Either way, enjoy!

In terms of the gameplay: The black choices lead up to a bad ending, the white choices lead up to a good ending.

DO NOT REPOST MY TRANSLATIONS ON TUMBLR OR OTHER PLATFORMS, TRANSLATE MY TRANSLATIONS TO ANOTHER LANGUAGE, OR USE MY TRANSLATIONS IN ANY FORM ELSEWHERE WITHOUT MY PERMISSION. IF YOU ARE CONSIDERING DOING ANY OF THESE THINGS, PLEASE ASK FOR MY PERMISSION FIRST.

-LOCATION: YUI’S ROOM- 

Yui: Nn…  (Huh… did I…? After we were in the courtyard…) (That’s right…! Ruki!) (After Ruki fed on me, I suddenly became dizzy… and then, I remembered everything.) I’m Komori Yui… I’m a high school student living in Kaminashi. Good, I actually remember it. (Why was I mistaken for the legendary Eve?) (Oh, no, rather than mistaken, it seems like my memories were completely rewritten…) Ah, Ruki and the others too… Has everyone lost their minds, just like I did? (It seems like everyone is under the impression that their opponents are actually their brothers, and are fighting for some kind of throne…) (And then the mansion, this place… This is definitely not Kaminashi, although I thought I was in the Mukami mansion.) I don’t know what, but something strange is going on… I have to tell Ruki and the others, quickly! 

-LOCATION: ORANGE MANSION LIVING/DINING ROOM- 

Yui: Ruki! …Oh, you’re here? 

Ruki: You’re being loud. We’re having an urgent meeting right now. 

Yui: Ah, I-I’m sorry… (Wait, I apologised without thinking, but that’s out of the question! This is also urgent!) 

Ayato: Come to think of it, Pancake, weren’t you sleeping in your room? 

Yui: Ah, I just woke up. Now that you mention it, how long was I gone for?

Ayato: What? Hasn’t something changed about you? 

Yui: Huh…? 

Kanato: You’ve suddenly become over-familiar. There’s a limit, even to being shameless. 

Yui: Ah, uh, that’s… (That’s right. Until I remembered everything, and thought that was our first meeting, I was keeping more of a distance…) (However, at this point, I should try to deceive them, because I can’t get used to treating them so formally.) Uh, maybe because I slept well and felt refreshed when I woke up? 

Ayato: Huh? Is that it? 

Shin: Above all, don’t cause Brother too much trouble. You fainted in the courtyard, right? 

Yui: Ah, yeah… It’s just because… I got a little dizzy. 

Shin: That’s why I don’t like you weak humans. With the falling over even when you’re just walking, and all. 

Yui: (But really, I fell over after being fed on…) 

Ruki: … 

Yui: (I suppose it would be better not to say anything, right? Let’s try to stick with that…)  (Even if I try to do that… this atmosphere. There’s something unusual going on, but it seems like they just won’t break the ice.) 

Ruki: Eve, now that you’re awake, take a seat. It’s not like our talk has nothing to do with you. 

Yui: Ah.. y-yeah. (Ruki, why aren’t you even considering that I fainted? If we could, I’d want to talk with just the two of us…) (I just want to know what’s happened between you all, so I’ll leave it…) 

Ruki: Let’s properly summarise the situation. We’re continuing our strife in order for me to become the King.  Eve, who will be the key to achieving this, is in my possession. 

Ayato: Well, actually, she’s mine. 

Shin: Save your sleep-talking for when you’re sleeping, alright? Do you still not know that she’s his? 

Ayato: What? Don’t go on deciding that yourself! 

Kanato: You’re annoying. Don’t shout around me like that, I’ll get irritated! 

Yui: (E-even though I suppose everyone’s memories have become messed up, they sure sound like they normally do…) 

Ruki: Let’s continue our talk. Under these circumstances, shouldn’t we consider what that remaining lot will do next? 

Shin: Of course. They’re after Eve, and there’s no doubt that they will come to attack us. 

Yui: (…come to attack us? That’s right, the thing they’re fighting for is to obtain Eve…) (If it continues like this, they’ll start hurting each other…!) 

Ayato: Isn’t that a comfort? If we don’t act first, they’ll be coming here for us. So, it’s fine to beat up anyone who comes here, right? 

Shin: Think about the difference in strength! If they attack us right from the front, what will we do? 

Kanato: Fufu, Ayato is such an idiot. 

Ayato: Huh? Are you picking a fight with me? 

Ruki: Everyone, shut your mouths. Something such as attacking from the front is a foolish plan. We’ll unnecessarily exhaust ourselves.  If it’s possible, we could go and assault them in their mansions. 

Yui: Assault them? What are…

Ruki: What is it? Is my remark so dissatisfactory?

Yui: J-just… (Yuma, Kou, and Azusa are in the other mansions.) (Is he saying that it would be alright if they went over to battle the rest?)

Ruki: I’ll give you the right to speak, then. What method would you use to gain control over the other mansions? 

— SELECTION —

    1. 話し合いで　Talk to them (black)

Yui: I wonder if you could work it out by talking, to keep you from fighting…?

Shin: Haha… really, Eve? Do you seriously mean that?

Ruki: So in your eyes, this dispute ending by means of discussion is a desirable outcome? If so, I can’t say anything other than that you’re a fool.

Yui: T-that’s…

    2. 罠を張って　Set a trap (white)

Yui: I just don’t want you to hurt one another! We could at least try capturing them with a trap, or something like that...

Shin: Capture them... This is not hunting, you know.

Ruki: However, traps might just be what we’re looking for. It should also be effective when it comes to depleting the enemy’s strength, right?

Yui: So it’s a good idea! (No, it’s not good! I’m being praised, but we’re not solving any problems right now!)

— END OF SELECTION DIALOGUE —

Ruki: In any case, in the other mansions are Carla and Reiji, and the others, who will simply turn their heads away [if you try to start a discussion]. We should start moving and investigate, without doing anything careless. 

Ayato: Jeez. How troublesome. That’s not exactly a gala [?]. I’ll just let you do whatever.

*Ayato stands up and leaves*

Kanato: I don’t have any interest in this either. I’ll be returning to my room. 

*Kanato stands up and leaves* 

Yui: Ah, you guys… 

Ruki: So it’s the same old… 

Shin: As per usual, those two don’t have any sense of cooperation. With this, I suppose this family meeting is over… I’ll always support you, Brother. If anything happens, let me know.

Ruki: Yeah. I’m counting on you.

Shin: I’ll go and patrol around the mansion first, then.

*Shin stands up* 

Shin: Ah, right, Eve.

Yui: Eh?

Shin: You’ve chosen to be here, so making sure that you do not start wanting to go to one of the other houses is for your own good.

Yui: I’m not thinking about that at all!

Shin: Huh. I wonder if that’s true, as Ayato’s reaction just now wasn’t like him. You’ve been seeming different today compared to what you’ve been like before.   

Yui: (Did he notice that I’ve gotten back my memories?)

Shin: Ah, well. It’s not like you’ll be able to run away from us easily, anyway.

*Shin walks off* 

Yui: Shin… 

Ruki: I see. So Shin noticed it too…

*Ruki stands up and walks over* 

Yui: Eh, Ruki…?

Ruki: As I thought, you’ve changed. Is it because I fed on you in the courtyard? 

Yui: …! 

Ruki: Bullseye… I thought of what might happen, and hid the fact that I fed on you from Shin, but… Back then, it seems like you remembered something. Did you remember your duty to help me become King? 

Yui: (Ah… right. To Ruki and everyone else that I’m dealing with right now, the fact that I’ve changed…) (It seems like see it as a change with regard to me being the Legendary Eve.) Hey, like you said, I did remember something. However, it doesn’t have anything to do with the fight for the Throne. It’s more important than that!

Ruki: You don’t think there isn’t anything more important than the Throne?

Yui: There is! Please, hear me out to the end. Something strange is happening to everyone’s memories. It happened to me too… But after you fed on me, I managed to get a hold of the real me again! 

Ruki: Huh. So?

Yui: This isn’t Kaminashi, where I am living with you all. I’m not sure why we’re here right now, but… There’s really no need to be fighting in this place forever.  More than anything, Kou, Yuma, and Azusa… they’re your loving brothers, Ruki. So please! Stop the dispute! 

Ruki: …I see. So that’s why you tried to influence our discussion just now. Kou and the others are all members of the other houses. Though it’s an impromptu made up story, my brothers and I—that’s just nonsense.

Yui: (Ah, he doesn't believe me at all!) I’m not joking! It’s no good at all for you Mukami brothers to be fighting like this! Please, believe me…! 

Ruki: What will you do if I believe you? Let’s say that we view your story as reality. Do you think I should go and hold hands with the other three, and cry in a circle? Ridiculous. [T/N lmao what a savage] 

Yui: (That’s… he’s not listening to me at all… it doesn’t seem like he’s willing to remember either.) (Even though I thought that I could help Ruki get his memories back if I could just talk to him…)

Ruki: For a moment, I thought you might be of use to me when I noticed a change in your tone, but you’ve failed your only task. You’re not a way to for me to become King. You’re just an insult.  

Yui: (Ah, he’s leaving!) W-wait! 

*Yui grabs his sleeve*

Ruki: …What is the meaning of this?

Yui: Ah, that’s…

Ruki: It’s as I’ve been saying. I’ve been granting you a certain degree of freedom. However, I don’t remember giving you permission to express your opinions. Neither do I remember allowing you to stop your master from returning to his room. 

Yui: (…! His aura… it’s scaring me. Is this the real Ruki?) 

Ruki: Getting in the way of your role as a livestock shows that you’ve got some nerve.

*grabby sound*

Yui: Ah?! 

*Yui falling to the ground* 

Yui: Ouch…

Ruki: The sight of you on your hands and knees suits you. Today, I’ll let you off like that. 

*rustling sounds, cue the god awful organ music* 

Yui: Aah! (He’s pressing on top of me from above… He’s heavy… I can’t move.) Hey, wait… Please, Ruki, stop! 

Ruki: Right now, it seems I’ve been telling you to not express your opinion. You really can’t follow up to your master’s orders, can you? Unruly livestock should be disciplined. So, from where shall I feed on you, then? Your arm, the nape of your neck… Or, somewhere around your ears— 

Yui: *holds her breath*

Ruki: Well then, this spot seems fine. It doesn’t only hurt, but you should be able to hear the sound of me sipping your blood well enough. I’ll properly engrave your body *sips*

*struggling sounds*

Yui: Ugh… Ah… S-stop… Ruki…

Ruki: You really aren’t competent enough to learn. Still expressing your opinion?  

Yui: N… no… (I’m being pushed down by Ruki’s body… I can’t, run…) 

Ruki: You can’t move, can you? Remember it well. Who controls you. Shut up and let me act accordingly… *more sippy sounds*

Yui: Ah… (It hurts…! It really seems like he’s gone back to the old Ruki this way…) *breathes heavily*

Ruki: In the end, you finally obey. You’re so troublesome… If you’ve learned it with your body, watch out from now on. So you don’t mess with your master’s mood anymore, hm? If this happens again, I won’t have mercy. I’ll pierce your body thoroughly with my fangs… remember it well, with that incompetent head of yours.

Yui: (So this… is Ruki now… Maybe, if there’s no way out of this situation…) (If that’s the case, what should I do—) 

Ruki: *gasps for breath*

Yui: (Huh…? Ruki…?)

Ruki: …What was that, just now?

Yui: What’s… wrong…?

Ruki: It’s nothing serious… It seems like somehow, I drank too much of Eve’s blood. To the extent that I can remember what dizziness feels like, I’d say that it was rather strong.

Yui: (Dizziness?) 

Ruki: The disciplining is over. I’m going to rest in my room.

*Ruki walks off*

Yui: Ah… (There he goes…) (The bite mark hurts… It might have been too long since we did this…) I should go back to my room as well… If Ayato or the rest find me like this, I might be bitten all over again… (But still, Ruki was dizzy, and I wonder if he’s alright…) (Whenever he bit me until now, this never happened…) 

-LOCATION: RUKI’S ROOM- 

Ruki: (…It’s the same as the time I drank her blood in the courtyard.) (The extreme dizziness, and the phenomenon of images flashing through my mind that I’d never seen before…) (The images that I saw… were Eve and I, and three more people…) (The people by my side… who were they?)

[rosalind-of-arden]

Ash and Quill Reread chapter 12 (and ephemera)

So I was going to save this for tomorrow. I cannot. The Wolfe letter must be read. There’s a bit of Morgan here too.

They put Wolfe’s fucking contingency-of-death letter in the Black Archives. How fucking horrible is that?  There is nothing about his research in here, nothing about the press, just love for Santi. And the Library won’t even let them have that. If they had killed Wolfe in Rome (or any of those other times they tried to kill him), Santi wouldn’t even have gotten this last love letter. Shit, I am already tearing up.

We don’t know when Wolfe wrote this. It could easily have been either before or after Rome.

This whole thing is just so beautifully poetic. Wolfe is good with language.

There is some seriously nice sentence and paragraph structure in here. I cannot even talk about it without devolving into grammar geekiness. Just look at the use of semicolons and non-essential clauses, the varied sentence structures, the occasional breaking of rules for emphasis and effect. *fans self*

He starts off with “Nic”. Intimate and familiar.

“My ghost is speaking to you.” This echoes the way journals are preserved by the Library. A person lives on through the writing they’ve left behind. And the Library has utterly and completely taken that from Wolfe.

“The only thing that matters now is that you loved me.” Just stab me in the heart why don’t you.

Wolfe is all but begging Santi not to go and get himself killed. He knows him very well.

“When next we meet in your Christian heaven or my pagan afterlife, or some shadowy, hidden corner where those two may touch.” I just love this line. First, “when”, not “if”, “when.” Wolfe is certain he will meet Santi again after death, or at least he is expressing certainty here to comfort Santi. Second, that idea that it doesn’t matter who turns out to be right about what the afterlife is like; they’ll find each other regardless. It’s another sign of a more religiously tolerant and pluralistic world, more of the fluidity we see in matters of identity in other areas. Wolfe’s a pagan, but he’s not averse to the idea of ending up in the Christian heaven (as long as Nic’s there). I have the feeling they’ve had many long conversations about theology and life after death (considering their line of work, how could they not?) and settled on this interfaith compromise that one way or another, they are going to be together again.

Wolfe gives Santi permission to fall in love again. Jealous, prickly Wolfe gives the man he loves permission to move on. Encourages him to enjoy life and find love, even.

“...left the world shattered and empty in your wake. Because that is the Niccolo Santi I know.” Wolfe is recognizing Nic’s influence on others here, both in terms of his military leadership and his social interactions with others. Wolfe may be an introverted ball of thorns, but he recognizes that Santi is very much defined by the relationships he has with others around him and the influence he’s built as a leader. Wolfe isn’t thinking about his own legacy here at all, but he is thinking about Santi’s. Also, here’s use of Nic’s full name, putting emphasis on the fact that he is thinking about Santi as a whole person, not only as his lover.

We have “love”, “adore”, and “beloved’ all in one line. That is a lot of love right there, as Wolfe is preparing to close this letter. He’s placing a lot of emphasis on how he feels.

And then we transition into Wolfe’s scolding-comforting persona. He just poured out his heart, now he’s going to take a step back from that raw emotion into tender chiding. Look at the difference in tone between the third paragraph and the fourth.

“We never cared for their opinions, and we shouldn’t now.” So many things this could be referring to. Library policies. The opinions of others they know toward them as a couple (we discussed this in a thread somewhere and finding stuff on this site is impossible). If this was written after Rome, he could be talking about that, too.

And then we conclude with a paragraph about Wolfe’s expectations if he is actually not dead. Even if this was written before Rome, I’m guessing they’ve had a few scares in those war zones. They’ve had times when they thought they’d lost each other but found out they were both safe. Even before Rome, Wolfe might have been considering the possibility of being abducted, imprisoned, or otherwise temporarily taken away and presumed dead. If this was written after Rome, it sounds like a flat out plea to try and find him. The tone of this last paragraph is deceptively light, considering the heavy subject matter.

So we all agree that “a proper good welcome” is sex, right? Wolfe is expecting welcome back sex. And naturally, Wolfe will need his emotional support wine after a near death experience.

Just in case that “proper good welcome” wasn’t sex, “to find the heaven I spoke of in your arms” obviously is. It’s both a sex reference and a statement that he hopes to die in his partner’s arms. Wolfe is fully aware of the whole idea of orgasms as “the little death” and is totally playing on that here. Also, Santi’s (Christian) arms as “your Christian heaven.” Such good wordplay there.

“I will never want to be parted again.” Right after Jess Translated Wolfe to Alexandria alone. Caine is the master of the ephemera gut stab, folks.

And he signs the letter “Wolfe.” We’ve been over this before, but I think it’s equal parts a preference for the name he didn’t get from his parents and an effort to take another step back from the emotional intensity of the letter.

Words cannot describe my relief at seeing Wolfe alive in this chapter the first time I read this book.

“Morgan looked barely conscious.” Right, so, keyword “looked.” Did the Obscurist really come through the Translation process that much worse off than Jess? Or is she feigning weakness to make sure she’s underestimated when she gets to the tower?

Wolfe knows he can’t save himself, and he isn’t trying. He’s trying in equal parts to make “Brendan” feel bad for what he’s doing, and to warn “Brendan” that the Library isn’t trustworthy.

Jess suspects that Wolfe sees through his disguise. Wolfe, in Smoke and Iron, says he was completely fooled. Was he? There could actually be some interesting psychology at work here. One thing that’s come up quite a bit when I’ve researched torture and trauma for my Wolfe fics is that both can mess with memories surrounding the traumatic event. By his own admission, Wolfe pretty much lost his mind at first, and while the prison conditions are a lot better than Rome, he’s sleep deprived and possibly malnourished, at a minimum. By the time he’s been in prison for a few weeks, he may very well not remember this moment of suspecting that “Brendan” is Jess.

Dario was the one to argue Wolfe would break. The one of the three plotters with the least understanding of Wolfe’s background or mental state.

This is a seriously brutal cliffhanger ending.

[phereinnike]

dejar means leave, european spanish, and the dozens of dialects of spanish in the americas are not identical do not spread misinformation and tell people to speak iberian spanish to latin americans, they will end up speaking what sounds like gibberish to them. ive seen if over and over that people have been called stupid by a spanish teacher say from peru because they were taught by say an argentinian the year before and the language is a bit different. you are wrong the OP used valid spanish

Hi! So, 1)I’m not spreading any missinformation, if you say “usted se puede ir” there’s no spanish speaking person that won’t understand you. In like, any fucking place.

2)I’m going to explain the grammar issue on spanish because i’m sure you’ll understand it since you are so in tune with the indiosincracies of spanish around the world, I can’t be sure ofc as you’ve send this on anon:

Dejar sí se traduce a leave directamenta, pero no a todas sus afecciones. Una traducción directa o textual no siempre es correcta o adecuada para la situación.

Cuando dejas algo, lo estas abandonando, separándote, alejándote de ello. Dejas una cosa (you leave a thing in a place and then go on without it), dejas a tu novio (break up with your bf, meaning you leave him and go separate ways), dejas de fumar (you quit smocking)...

Sí se puede decir que dejas un lugar, pero no se configura solo con el verbo, necesitarías especificar que lo que puede dejar es este lugar en el que está en este momento. “Usted puede dejar” no significa absolutamente nada. Es una frase rota a la que le falta una parte. Cosa que han dicho muchas más personas comentando el post que no hablan mi español sino otro (entre ellos español de mexico, que creo que es en el que se centraba el post ya que son la mayor parte de detenidos del ICE).

“Usted puede dejar” es una frase rota a la que le falta un pedazo. ¿Puedo dejar qué? La traducción más probable e inmediata si lo dejas así es “you can quit” lo que es confuso a mejores y a peores dejará a una persona expuesta en una situación peligrosa esperando a que tú acabes una frase que no vas a acabar porque crees que estás hablando un idioma que no sabes hablar.

3) The post says especifically that OP was using google translate to get their spanish translations. As this tool is prone to mistakes and it’s incredibly unreliable, I tried to help because trying to explain to someone their rights through a language barrier and in a stressful situation is tricky. Of course spanish is different depending on where you are, that’s why I looked for the most vague and neutral translation I could come up with (in my spanish it would be “te puedes ir” which some people wouldn’t understand there) I don’t see why that’s reason to come on anon and try to bite my head off. I’m not quite certain what you think you’re accomplishing here. The point is to minimize confusion and make understanding easier to the person who is in danger so i’m not sure how getting on a high horse ir helping anyone. I’ve asked several latxn spanish speaking friends (Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, Perú, Florida) and they were all confused because “Usted puede dejar” doesn’t mean anything on it’s own to anyone but google translate.

This is not a spelling bee or a high school spanish class. This is about reaching to people in a horrible situation. If it’s more important to you to use a direct translation on a language you don’t speak well than to listen to all the spanish speakers saying what I said, then go ahead and I hope to God that they’ll magically understand you when you do.

If you want to discuss the language issue you’re welcomed to send a message off-anon that i’ll answer privately. But i’m not going to argue with someone that doesn’t even believe enough in their point to put a face behind it.

4) Yes dejar does translate to leave. But spanish & english sentences aren’t built on the same order or with the same elements. Tell any spanish person you know “Usted puede dejar” and I guatantee you the answer you’ll get is “¿puedo dejar qué? (What can I quit?) because the sentence is incomplete.