#and this time I’ve finished and started the year with a king wizard

[6blackfilin9]

Out of the blue

He was just out of the blue

[1giulia4]

I got no idea if I have to pay or not so I'm just going to ask politely can you draw some more Godzilla X King ghidorah and here's my question how are you so good at drawing

Aaah no you don’t have to pay for this!!(*¯︶¯*) its 100% free, I just like getting requests for art. Helps me out of artblock usually.

Here u go! It’s a small little thing, and not the best. but I’m working on bigger things atm so I cannot spend a lot of time on this. I wish to get my other projects finished during the holidays still. :’)

As for the question : Thank you SO MUCH, it means a lot to me! Though, it’s basically just practice and studying I have no other way to explain it.

trust me I was horrible at drawing godzilla and all that stuff at first. I wasn’t used to drawing ‘animals’, I only drew humans (it still sucked LMAO). But I started drawing more, looking at references and that made my art overal improve. Heavy on the anatomy - I couldn’t draw bodies. So I studied references and tried drawing it in my own style.

Please remember that it did not come naturally to me. I’ve been doing digital art for 4 years and traditional art for longer than 6 years. (May seem like a long time but it’s not).

So I really did nothing special, I’m not a wizard. I took time with improving my art and made sure to actually study the things I wanted to improve with.

I still wish to be better, so will keep on trying to improve my art. But thank you ^^

[tamurilofrivendell]

Sleeping Beauty | Chapter 11

Previous Chapters [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10] Read on AO3 [x]

Pairing: Thranduil/Fem. Reader Summary: A Sleeping Beauty inspired tale with Thranduil the Elvenking, and a female elf living in Mirkwood under the care of Radagast, who is actually the ‘lost’ daughter of the late High King Gil-Galad. Taglist: @hufflepuff1700​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ @jinlizz-dragondrama​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ @firelightinferno​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ @bubbleyukismile @coopsgirl​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ @achromaticerebus​​​​​​​​​​​​​ @sleepyamygdala​​​​​​​​​​​​​   @smalltownbigheart​​​​​​​​​​​​ @qmabailor​​​​​​​​​​​ @genderfluid-anime-goth​​​ a/n: I’ve been a little behind on this one and I’m sorry!! My hyperfixation on another fic (and struggling to try and force myself to edit two first drafts of original novels) has made me blind to everything else which was obviously unintended when I started this, but I still have the outline in my drafts and I will finish it don’t worry.

The forest was quiet as Thranduil and his elk travelled beneath the trees. He was furious. No, he was absolutely livid. Who did Radagast think he was? Stupid wizards, always meddling. Thranduil knew deep down that Radagast did not intend to cause him true pain but, once more, his mind was seriously fixated upon that day in Lindon. The day he had witnessed the princess and the two queens die. However, his fury also stemmed from something else, something that neither had said but was very much present in his mind.

“-help her as your father would have wanted - as your mother would have wanted.”

Thranduil knew very well how his parents would want him to help her, particularly his mother. They would wish him to give the princess sanctuary and aid, which he knew was the correct thing to do and he would do it, but they would also wish him to honour the terms of the marriage they had arranged between the two. To strengthen the bonds between the Noldor and Sindar even further, which had really been one of the only things the two queens had ever wanted.

Thranduil would not, of course, force the princess into anything but... he knew without even having to ask that Radagast was already thinking it and that he could be crafty in getting his way, perhaps he was feeding the princess the story right this moment. Thranduil knew, too, how such a thing could work in everyone’s favour and he knew that it would honour the memory of all four of their parents, and perhaps help this girl who had been secreted away for well over 3,000 years without any titles, her name practically lost to history.

However, the source of his anger was not directed at the poor princess herself, not at the idea of marrying a complete stranger, but at what such an alliance would take from him.

You.

He recalled his thoughts of how he had never taken a queen, when the Enchantress revealed to Radagast her ire at his father’s apparent sin against her by not allowing her to marry his son. He recalled how his mind had conjured up the image of you, singing in the glade while picking berries, and he realised now why the thoughts had come to him - because he had quite obviously developed some sort of feelings towards you.

Thranduil came then to the clearing where he often met you, sliding from the back of his elk with a sigh as he looked around and realised that you weren’t here as he had hoped you would be. He stepped to the side and sat down upon a fallen log, leaning forward with his hands clasped, sitting for a time just staring down at the forest floor.

“You look gloomy.”

Thranduil quickly lifted his head at the sound of your voice, looking up just in time to see you stepping into the clearing. He smiled. “It has been a very long week...”

“Ah, so that’s why you haven’t come to see me.” You trilled, moving to sit next to him. You didn’t mean it in a bad way, you were not hurt by it or anything, but something in you had missed him greatly. You had become quite charmed by him and enjoyed the times you could spend in his company.

Thranduil chuckled. “I do apologise, my lady.” Running a kingdom was busy, he thought ruefully, though he still did not say it. He wasn’t sure why he didn’t just tell you. Truthfully, he didn’t know what you must think of him, but he knew for sure you did not know he was the Elvenking. Perhaps you thought him a guard.

A soft laugh escaped your lips and you shook your head. “You don’t need to be sorry. I have perhaps become too used to your company.”

Since that first day Thranduil had come across you here, singing with the animals, he had probably come a lot more than he would normally otherwise have walked the forest. Something had just continued to pull him to you, and he had been drawn to this clearing of yours a number of times as the weeks had passed you both by. Then it had seemed only natural, it had become routine. He only wished he had not had the stress of the Enchantress and the past clouding the meetings, though he supposed now perhaps he should stop coming... the thought saddened him.

“Besides.” You continued, shooting him an amused glance. “We’ll always have our dreams.”

Thranduil laughed then, the first one since Radagast came to his halls and told him all about his last meeting with the Enchantress. He was pleased you remembered, truthfully, his silly little joke from before. Once upon a dream.

“Yes.” He chuckled, reaching out to take hold of your hand. “So we shall!”

As he took your hand, you were both suddenly struck by a most peculiar feeling that went jolting through the both of you. It felt like a real, tangible thing, a bolt of lightning. You quickly snatched your hand back in surprise and Thranduil frowned down at his own in confusion. “Did you...?”

You nodded, glancing up at him curiously. “What was that?”

“I do not know.” Thranduil muttered, pulling his hand back as he considered. It could not be... could it? He lifted his gaze and found your eyes on him. He smiled softly. “Lothíriel, I... I have come to greatly enjoy your company over these last weeks, and I...”

Here he trailed off and you wanted to push him to continue but all speech seemed to have been taken from you somehow. The clearing was silent for a long few moments then, the birds in the trees above poking their curious beaks down through the leaves to hear the king’s confession.

“I find you absolutely enchanting.” He admitted, looking back up at you. “From the very first day I saw you, I think I just... knew.” It seemed unfathomable to say such a thing, but a lot of elves had felt that way through history. Why, his own father had looked once upon his mother and instantly loved her as if he simply always had. It was as if their souls had known each other before they even met... and Thranduil suddenly came to the realisation that if he married Gil-Galad’s daughter then he would forever regret leaving you in this forest. He would always think of you, he wouldn’t be able to move on. That would not be fair to her, or to you, or to himself.

“Knew... what?” You asked, your voice barely above a whisper, as you blinked back at him. You did not have much experience with others, or feelings like you were beginning to have, other than Thranduil... but you did not need to, really, as it seemed to sort of be a kind of instinctual thing.

Thranduil reached out to take your hand again, brushing his thumb gently over your palm. You shivered slightly and he lifted his gaze, meeting your eyes. “That I... that I am meant to love you.”

You could only stare at him in shock as the words passed his lips. “You... truly?!”

Thranduil nodded. “Truly.”

You were at a loss for what to say, not because you did not feel joyous or warm from the words he spoke, but simply because you were just no good at this. He did not seem to mind, almost as if he read what you were thinking in your eyes.

“Would you allow me the honour of courting you, my lady?” He ventured next.

You blinked at him, thinking that you should pinch yourself because it simply did not feel real. What could this interesting, worldly warrior possibly see in you?! Some random elleth who barely had any social skills the day he met her. You cast your mind over the time since then - every smile and lingering look - and you nodded, practically beaming at him. “Yes! I... I would like that very much.”

His smile grew slightly and you watched as he stood from the fallen log and extended an arm towards you.

“Dance with me.” He said suddenly, taking hold of your hands and pulling you to your feet.

You laughed and let yourself be pulled, and there in the clearing where you first met, you and he danced beneath the swaying blossom trees while the animals watched on.

That evening, you returned to the cottage with the brightest smile on your face. Your cheeks were rosy red and a blackbird was sitting atop your hair as you burst into the little house, causing Radagast to jump in the air and turn around very abruptly from his place at the counter. You were humming as you walked towards him and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

“Good evening!” You smiled brightly as the blackbird jumped from your head down to the table. “Do you need any help?”

“What’s got you in such high spirits?” Radagast wondered. Why, you were practically floating!

A gleeful giggle escaped you as you reached for him, taking hold of his hands and pulling him into a little waltz across the kitchen floor. His steps were clumsy in contrast to your smooth ones but he couldn’t help but chuckle anyway, glad to see you happy... and safe. He had allowed you into the forest, though not without much back and forth in his own mind. However, he knew that soon you would be in Thranduil’s halls and would not have the same freedoms to visit your favourite places in this forest. Not until the Enchantress was gone.

You were humming as you danced with him and then you pulled back, smiling brightly at him as he watched you with curious eyes. “Oh, you’ll never guess!” You said, still a little nervous of his reaction but you knew that now was the time to tell him. “Wait until you meet him!”

“Him?” Radagast’s smile began to fade a little as he tilted his head at you. “What do you mean? Who? You have met some stranger?”

You shook your head, spinning on the spot once and then coming to a stop as you looked back the wizard. “Oh, no! No, he’s not a stranger. I mean... not anymore.” You clasped your hands together, truly hoping that Radagast would come to understand. “I have met him many times now, in the clearing. I should have told you, I’m sorry, but he is honourable. I swear. He wishes to court me, uncle! I promise, you do not have to worry! He’s coming tomorrow night, you can meet him and-”

Radagast, however, looked stricken. “Oh, my dear child...” He said sadly. “Oh, no... no. That can never be.”

You paused, your smile falling away, replaced by a soft frown. “What do you mean? Why not?”

“Well, you... you are already betrothed, my dear.” He said quickly. “From birth. To... to the Elvenking.”

“What?!” You could not understand his words because they quite simply made no sense. “No... h-how can I marry a king? I would have to be...”

“A princess.” Radagast said simply, watching the confusion on your face grow tenfold. “You are a princess.” He continued. “And I am sorry for keeping the truth from you but it was necessary. Please... listen to me.”

Radagast’s brow set into a deep frown as he looked back at you, the crestfallen look on your face, the hurt swimming in your eyes. Still, you didn’t run away and shut yourself in your room like you wished to. You stayed standing firmly before him as you waited for him to continue, to give you some explanation, willing him to make this all make sense.

Radagast sighed, his heart heavy with sorrow, for he knew that the time had now come to tell you everything.

[cursedcola]

Okay hear me out: AU where Crowley names Yuu the successor to NRC.

More on what i’m thinking below the cut. This is just me idea dumping so grammar/spelling likely won't be fabulous. Also some spoilers for character background/plot

Yuu becomes headmaster in training- (choosing not to go home bc like, why go home? They literally saved an entire school and opportunities are abundant? Sure they've almost died a few times but ignore that) -after they finish their time as a student.

Like just imagine them being a bridge between magic and non-magic users as the first non-mage to head NRC (assuming Crowley isn’t just some immortal who’s always been the headmaster?). It would change TW immensely and they could do so much.

I can absolutely see people outside the community objecting to this, but inside it is a unanimous vote that Yuu is absolutely perfect to be the next headmaster. They’ve proven their ability as a positive influence on others and have kept the college from falling into shambles on multiple occasions. They have out-of-the-box thinking from growing up somewhere out of TW, and sympathize with all groups. Not to mention that they have the favor of some of the most influential families in all of TW. The al’ asim family is a powerful investor for school funding (do NOT want on their bad side), the Kingscholar royals adore Yuu, and literally one of the most influential figures in the sea-folk business world (with connections and resources like no other) is at their back and call. They have a world-famous model with a large following to market? Hell, they even somehow got he next head of S.T.Y.X (the highly intelligent tech guru that doesn't give anyone the time of day)….DID I MENTION THE BLOODLY NEXT KING OF BRIAR VALLEY??? ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL WIZARDS IN THE WORLD???? THEY SOMEHOW HAVE THIS MAN AS PUTTY IN THEIR HANDS???

Yes. All these people on their side in addition to all of the staff and an overwhelmingly positive vote from the current students. Yuu would make an excellent headmaster and Crowley would love having a reliable assistant to push all his work on train

Like we all can predict, Yuu going home is not going to be pretty for everyone at NRC. This is just the perfect excuse to get them to stay ;) I imagine Riddle doing the NRC equivalent of a kid making a powerpoint to convince their parent of something lolz . (“Ten reasons why you should stay in Twisted Wonderland and become headmaster”). Or like, the Tweels 100% chat Yuu up and spread word of them taking over before they make a choice (whaaat??? Gotta get that peer pressure going). Just IMAGINE Leona sicking Cheka on Yuu, asking them if they’re going to stick around with puppy eyes. Don’t even start me on Lilia being cheeky and talking about how you can be just like him if you stay! (Aka the beloved aunt/uncle of everyone's future kids bc you’ll be their teacher in the future and it’s so much fun messing with multiple generations of one family. You’re like a leech in their bloodline and he knows you’ll love it). And the first years- oh man the first years. Are you really going to do them dirty like this and leave? Grimm will literally fight you tooth and nail.

I could go on about this but I think I'll stop. Just…i don’t know. Seems silly for Yuu to stay in TW for no reason, but them succeeding Crowley makes so much sense to me. I know they want to go home but if they had or wanted to stay??? Imagine the absolute chaos of them becoming the future headmaster.

I hinted to this with Lilia, but imagine them mentoring the next generation (like how Crowley should be). Them just finding their calling in TW, having all their friends (lover? hehe) backing them up and getting into shenanigans while in training. Who knows, maybe Grimm becomes Vice-Headmaster and their story as the "Halved-Student," becomes something like a famous story at NRC.

If you have reached this far in my rambling, thanks lol. I’ve had this in my head for days and I love the idea so much. Feel free to add on to it in the comments etc. if you want!

[stainlesssteellocust]

Ok. Where should I start with the 40K novels?

I tried one like 15 years ago and it was bad, no memory of which. Generic space marine stuff. I like the setting and many games, though much of the fandom can be exhausting.

I trust your tastes!

Hmm. There are unfortunately rather more bad or mediocre ones than good, but let’s see. Hopefully your trust will not be misplaced!

Possibly my favourite is The Infinite and the Divine, by Robert Rath. It’s a tale of two Necrons, mad historian and archaeologist Trazyn the Infinite and his rival, oracle and time-wizard Orikan the Diviner, as they squabble over an artifact that could change the destiny of their people. A tale of petty scheming and Tom & Jerry nonsense that stretches for thousands of years. I’m currently reading Rath’s Siege of Cadia, and while it isn’t quite as good, more grand battles and the like, it’s still a good read so far.

Also about the Necrons is Severed by Nate Crowley, a lovely little novella about a Necron general who thinks he’s still flesh and blood, and his long-suffering assistant. The same author also has a few books out, called The Twice Dead King, and I’ve tried the first one. Found it slow going and got distracted, but maybe I wasn’t in the mood at the time. I’ve heard good things about it from others.

There’s the Cain series, which is considered a classic. It’s framed as the private memoirs of celebrated Imperial hero Ciaphas Cain, with asides from an Inquisitor he had a close relationship with. The joke is that, to hear Cain tell it, his reputation is a lie: He’s an utter coward who somehow manages to come out smelling of roses every time, is rewarded by being sent into ever nastier wars and situations, and ends up having to act like his false heroic persona in order to lever his reputation to survive.

It’s a slightly more comedic take on the setting than most, with an undercurrent of unreliable narration: It’s suggested that while Cain isn’t the square-jawed hero propaganda says he is, he’s a lot more heroic than he gives himself credit for, and the extend to which he’s really a coward as opposed to a brave man riddled with self loathing and imposter syndrome is left up in the air. Been a while but the ones I read tended to be fun, if slightly formulaic after a while.

I remember enjoying the old Sisters of Battle books by James Swallow, but I haven’t read them in many years so I’m not sure if they hold up. Same with the Eisenhorn series; both are due a reread and I’ll get back to you on whether they’re worth it.

Blades of Damocles is bolter porn but it’s relatively fun bolter porn, and watching the culture clash of the Imperium and the Tau is nice.

I originally got into 40k novels via William King’s stuff; his Ragnar stories are the usual Space Marine fare (star Viking flavour) but he’s more skilled with it than most. He also wrote the most iconic books for Warhammer Fantasy: The original run of Gotrek and Felix, about a dwarf who wishes to atone for an unnamed sin via dying in battle and the human poet who drunkenly agreed to write his death saga, and to his horror now finds himself dragged to the ends of the earth as Gotrek seeks a worthy death. According to fannish lore, their books were the most profitable part of the WHF IP when Games Workshop nuked that setting (a decision they appear to be rolling back).

And speaking of Fantasy, I personally liked the story Drachenfels, which begins in media res as a party of adventurers battles a dark lord…then cuts to years later as their leader, now a powerful politician, reunites his old party members. By putting on a play of their victory over the dark lord. In the dark lord’s castle. On the eve of his defeat. Which of course cannot possibly go wrong. No siree.

I’ll also throw in a couple of fanfics if you’re into that: Breaker of Chains and its two sequels (third instalment not finished) feature the Primarch Angron, in canon a servant of the Chaos god Khorne and leader of the berserk World Eater space marines. In canon Angron landed on the planet Nuceria as a child and led a slave rebellion against its masters only for the Emperor to snatch him away at the last moment to serve him, resulting in his comrades dying and Angron’s mind breaking, leading him to Chaos. In this story his Legion finds him first, his rebellion wins and he enters the wider galaxy relatively more well adjusted.

Relatively.

Whereas Suffer Not is the tale of an Inquisitor doing her best to actually make the galaxy a better place. Shockingly. Completed, has a sequel, got some negative fan attention because of its take on the setting but I rather liked it.

(Both of the above make the unusual choice of using second person, because they were interactive works: Readers would vote on the character’s next action, and the author would weave the result into the next update.)

I’m sure there’s a lot more stuff I’m missing, but that should be a good start.

[mclovinishereforsmutty]

The Hobbit: ThorinxBilbo A/B/O 2

The fish was cooked, the potatoes were crisp and Bilbo had just started putting lemon on the dish when there was a slow, hard knock at the door. Bilbo paused, and slowly stood, making his way to the door. He opened it to two rough looking dwarves. 

“Dwalin… and Balin, at your service” they said, as two younger dwarves, who looked to be siblings, came up behind them. 

“Fili, and Kili, at your service” 

The rest of suppertime was a blur of many more dwarves, and of course Gandalf, emptying Bilbos pantry, blunting knifes, and singing loud songs, nearly mocking Bilbos concern for his personal possessions. Shortly after the dishes had been stacked in neat, surprisingly unbroken, piles, a harsh knock rang out, and all grew quiet. 

“He is here” Gandalf announced. 

“Gandalf… who is here?” 

“Thorin. The leader of the company. I must warn you Bilbo, you might be overwhelmed with merely his presence, as he is not only an alpha but he has the blood of kings which means being near him can become intoxicating after awhile. It affects everyone but especially omegas,” Gandalf explained, looking down to Bilbo with a soft concern. 

“Gandalf. I thought you said this place would be easy to find. I lost my way, twice. I would not have found it had it not been for the mark on the door and smell of freshly baked bread and honey tea,” he smirked staring down at Bilbo with assertive satisfaction. “So this is the hobbit. Have you done much fighting? Whats your weapon of choice?” 

“Well, I do have some skill at conkers… if you must know, but I fail to see why thats…” Bilbo trailed off. Thorin had walked a complete circle around him, just to look him up and down, taking in every inch of his body. 

“Looks more like a grocer than a burglar,” Thorin jeered, following the rest of the dwarves to the table for food. Bilbo sat on a stool for a while, letting his head clear from the smell of that tall, strong, dwarf. Trying not to let the pheremones pull his thoughts towards Thorin and his deep eyes, and his rough hands, and his cut jaw. Bilbo could not, however, clear the enveloping musk of raw earth and smoked pine. Almost automatically, he went to pour himself a cup of tea and joined the dwarves at the table. 

“-they say this quest is ours and ours alone,” Thorin finished, releasing exasperated sighs and murmurs of disappointment from the group. 

“You’re going on a quest?” 

“Aye. Oin has read the portents and the portents say it’s time,” Glóin pronounces, slapping the table with impassioned fists. The conversation went back and forth between between dwarves and wizard, about the quest, a dragon and even Biblos employment as the companys burglar. Bilbo only listened as did not know enough about said quest, or said dragon, or even about his being employed as a burglar. 

“Well, how many dragons have you killed? Go on then, give us a number,” Dori pressed at Gandalf, unleashing a wave of disagreements and side conversations. 

“Enough! If we have read these signs do you not think others have read them too? Rumours have begun to spread. The dragon smaug has not been seen for sixty years. Eyes look East to the mountain, assessing, wondering, weighing the risk. Perhaps the vast wealth of our people now lies unprotected. Do we sit back while others claim what is rightfully ours? Or do we seize this chance to take back Erebor?” Thorins voice thundered throughout the cozy room. Along with the break in his stoic and mysterious character his command sheared the rabble. His eyes wandered to everyone around the room landing finally on Bilbo, who looked down at his tea. 

“We must go about it rather carefully, thus requiring the help of a burglar,” Gandalf stated. 

“Well are you?” Óin asked, looking to Bilbo. 

“Am I what?” 

“He says he’s an expert. Hey hey,” 

“No. I’m not a burglar. I’ve never stolen a thing in my life,” 

“I’ll have to agree with Mr. Baggins. The wild is no place for those who can neither fight for fend for themselves,” Dwalin scoffed, earning a smirk from Thorin. 

“Enough! If I say that Bilbo Baggins is a burglar, then a burglar he is. Hobbits are remarkably light on their feet. In fact they can pass unseen by most, if they choose. And, while the dragon is accustomed to the smell of dwarf… the scent of hobbit is all but unknown to him… which gives us a distinct advantage. You must trust me on this,” Gandalf commanded, most of those sitting nearest to him recoiled. Thorin shrugged and handed Bilbo the contract, and after some back and forth regarding the ‘funeral arrangments’ section Bilbo signed the paper pledging his service to the company of Thorin Oakenshield. Now that the remaining paperwork was settled the dwarves settled in the living room to smoke and relax. As Durin folk they of course sing the song of that day, the day their home was taken. Thorin started. 

Far over the Misty Mountains cold. 

To dungeons deep, and caverns old. 

We must away ere break of day. 

To find our long forgotten gold. 

The pines were roaring on the height, 

the winds were moaning in the night. 

The fire was red, it flaming spread

The trees like torches blazed with light. 

[endlessly-cursed]

Bringing Good Tidings, Part Three: New Year Upon Ye

A/N: After 80 years, I finally finished the third part! This one's my second fave, and I hope you guys enjoy it. Bon apetit!

Summary: After today's victory, it's time to party! Let's hope that nobody else comes to rue the day.

Word Count: 1.2k

Rating: T

OCs featured: Lachlann Doherty ( @hphmmatthewluther ) Mathilde Coventry ( @camillejeaneshphm ) Frederick of Kent ( @that-scouse-wizard )

Taglist: @catohphm @gaygryffindorgal @magicallymalted

First Part - Second Part - Third Part - Fourth Part

The moment the foe had been vanquished, the king declared that the party must go on, and everybody, feeling relieved, had no trouble whatsoever on carrying on. A dance started, and everyone’s spirits were over the roof. Henriette smiled, watching her children play tag among them.

Fred appeared behind her, radiating hi usual warmth, kissing her cheek “You were wonderful out there, my love.”

“It was mostly Mr. Doherty.”

“No, it was not.”

She spun around and pecked him “Sneak away with me.”

Henriette blinked “Now?”

“Yes. I’ve missed you, and we won’t have a moment later. Please?”

“But we can’t leave the children unattended!”

Fred was about to concede when a voice she hadn’t heard in a long time reassured them “I’d be happy to watch them for you, my lady.”

The marriage whipped their heads to see a red head that they hadn’t seen in ten years “Go,” she insisted “your children will be in my care. Two hours shall suffice.”

Not taking chances, Fred whisked his wife away to another wing, one reserved for the royal family’s friends and lovers. The moment they were away from earshot, Freddie kissed Henriette fervently, picking her up “Geirmund!” She gasped, giggling like a silly teenager.

Their laughs were muffled after Fred opened the first door he spotted and closed it behind him, throwing his wife to bed, his shirt already on the floor “You heard our friend. We’ve got around two hours. Best to make them count.”

Henriette chuckled “Shut up and take me already.”

They rolled in the sheets, basking into the beautiful, stolen moment between them.

Brunhilda stood watch of Lady Henriette’s children, observing the merry scene in front of her, alongside keeping an eye on her own children. She chuckled, seeing how a clumsy little Louis tried to learn to dance from Dayana, who was already as graceful as herself.

However, the moment she saw a familiar blond hair, she froze “Come on, Sissy!” The little girl who greatly resembled her Mathilde cried “Before Sam spots us!”

Her heart hammered. They were here. She discreetly looked around the ballroom, and spotted Lachlann Doherty chatting with a duke, visibly bored by his hunting habits, perhaps. He looked up, and quickly spotted her. He had gotten taller, had gained muscle, grown his hair and the innocence in his beautiful eyes were gone, now replaced with sage and that fierceness that had beguiled her enough to give herself to him before her wedding. Excusing himself, he approached her, and she bowed “Mr. Doherty.”

“Bruna,” he marvelled “you haven’t aged a day. You look… as beautiful as I remember.”

“You have turned into a handsome man as well.”

He smiled “I’m glad my new look pleases you.”

She bit her lip “You always aimed to please.”

“That I do.”

They stood there, silent and processing the fact that she was here, before his eyes. He cleared his throat, washing away his last memory of her “Where is your husband? Again solving world hunger by himself?”

She bit a chuckle “Unfortunately, my dear husband has a stomachal issue.”

“Ah. How unfortunate.”

“Unfortunate indeed.”

A soft tune started playing, and Lam stretched out his hand “Dance with me.”

“What about your wife?”

“We shall greet her afterwards. She’s been asking about you.”

She gingerly took his hand and started dancing, as if ten years hadn’t gone by. It was a rather intimate tune, and often their hands grazed, their eyes never wavering from the other, as if the world ceased to exist. To finish, he spun her around and gently set her to the floor, their gazes still on one another. She was wearing a beautiful green dress, and her hair was up and visible by her thin veil, which didn’t conceal much of her powerful red.

Both clearing their throats, they abandoned the dancefloor and went towards Lady Mathilde, who had a baby Felix in her arms, cooing. Bruna’s heart melted at the sight. She was a formidable mother.

Mathilde looked up and brightened up “Bruna, Cherie!” She greeted her warmly, beaming. “Look at you, you don’t look a day over five and twenty!”

“You flatter me, dear.”

Just then, Dayana, Matilda and Louis came running, probably finishing playing tag. They stopped at the sight of their mother and quickly came by her side “Lord Lachlann, Lady Mathilde, these are my children; Dayana, Matilda and Louis.”

They all bowed and Mathilde’s gaze rested upon redheaded, little Matilda. Then, she looked at Bruna with fondness in her eyes “Are you the Mathilde I was named after, ma’am?”

“It seems I am.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet my namesake.”

Mathilde beamed and kissed her cheek “And I am happy that such a beauty was named after me.”

Matilda smiled bashfully and hid behind her mother’s skirt.

“You have lovely children, my lady.” Lachlann spoke.

“Thank you, my lord, they are my pride and joy.”

Lachlann beckoned his own children to come and introduced his to Bruna “These are my own; Caitlin, Sam, Simone and Fèlix.”

“Is she the Lady Bruna you always talk about, papa?”

Bruna raised her eyebrows and Lachlann cleared his throat “Yes, Caitlin, she is.” He gave her a look and she quickly took the hint.

“Ahem, well, we should let our children carry on playing! Dayana, darling, do keep your new friends entertained, and include the Dohertys to your playdate?”

“Yay!” Louis cheered “More friends!”

The eight of them ran off to where Henriette’s children had been playing. Lachlann and Mathilde shared a look before she offered “It seems like dinner will be ready soon. Would you like to sit with us and catch up?”

Bruna smiled genuinely “I’d love nothing more. I want to hear all about your adventures!”

Henriette and Frederick were cuddling, relishing on the passionate moment they had just shared. Looking at the direction of the sun, Frederick sighed “We ought to get going. Dinner shall be ready soon, and we’ve been away for a while.”

“As long as you tell me where did you throw off my stockings again.”

Fred smirked “Too focused on kissing you to remember,”

She playfully shoved him “You’re terrible!”

Both got dressed hastily and Henriette saw something move within the trees. She frowned.

“My love? The gong just rang. We have to move now, or else we’ll raise a few eyebrows.”

She shook it off “Right.”

They entered the room a few minutes before the monarchs and sighed in relief, sitting right where they had been assigned. She spotted Lady Brunhilda and smiled at her as a thank you, and saw her cozy in the table with Lord Lachlann and Lady Mathilde. She hoped to repay the favour soon.

The monarchs were announced and the usual protocol was made, and all started to dine and converse, talking about this morning. But Henriette had a feeling. Something was about to happen, she was sure. This day was far from over. Somehow, she knew.

Like clockwork, the doors slammed open, and a figure that they didn’t expect came to greet them, a malicious smile on its face. She looked at Betwixt, who was as shocked.

“Helloooooo, children! Guess who has misbehaved!”

A noble lady pointed at the monster and cried out “The Krampus!” Before fainting with shock.

“Shit.” Said Fred before readying his weapon. 

[impossiblefangirl0632]

Today is the one year anniversary of @optimistic-violinist and I starting to post Take Back the Kingdom.

@lizbert-megafig asked how we came up with the idea in a comment on the last chapter and I figured it would be fun to share on the anniversary.

Once upon a time two friends were talking about their first fanfics which led to talking about fics they wanted to write one day which brought up Ranger’s Apprentice. This led me to saying that the reluctant king is my favorite trope after lost mystical civilizations. Then this conversation happened:

Optimistic: And then you mix the two, king and lost civilization and BAM

Me: Ok but that spawned a very insane encanto au idea

Optimistic: Oh do tell

Me: The encanto is a sort of magic lost kingdom from vague medieval past time frame evil wizard and a curse or something idk the triplets somehow figure out how to send the grandkids to the future to save them plus some prophecy that the grandkids will be the ones to break the spell. I'm saying Bruno just has blanket time based powers in this he also goes to the future to watch over the kids and help them find/save the Encanto when it's time

Me: That's a thought. This is kinda dumb but what if before all the craziness Bruno was technically first in line but he never wanted it and everyone knows that Julieta would be a much better queen and after spending time in the future Bruno is 100% nope it should be you (Julieta) and he's a very long list of reasons why that's a good idea.

Me: Because while yes the modern audience is like duh in any sort of the madrigals actually have hereditary powerful/royal like position everyone agrees it should Julieta who's the heir because she's the one best suited for the job. Buuut historically if you have a male heir it's gonna be him. So I love the idea of Bruno struggling with that and being absolutely ecstatic to be able to back up his insistence that it should be Julieta

And that friends is the original idea for Take Back the Kingdom. 

We plotted for hours that afternoon and at one point threw out the idea of writing it together. We’ve been friends for over a decade and have been each other’s beta readers many many times but had never written something together.

I’ve said many many times over the last year that writing this fic is what brings me joy right now and that’s partially because it’s helped me talk to my best friend pretty much everyday.

It's hard to believe we're so close to the end now. (Percentage of story left wise, I have no idea how long it's going to take us to finish writing) So if you've been along for the ride the whole time or just started reading, thanks for coming along with us on this crazy journey.

So to celebrate, have some deleted scenes :)

[swtsuna]

STRANGER THINGS 5: THEORIES

These theories envolves around Will, Max and Eddie. (I know what is the first stage of grief, thank you very much). Take your time.

Also, this contains spoilers of Stranger Things VOL. 2. If you haven’t watched and don’t want to be aware of what happens, I advice you to stop here.

As we all know, there will be a timeskip from S4-VOL2 to S5. Based on this account (and I’ve seen in other places around Twitter) S5 will take place on 1988, making that a two years timeskip!

If in one week a lot can happen in Hawkins, let alone two years. Based on that, let me start the theories (made by this unhealthy mind of mine).

Max

Our beautiful Kate Bush enthuasiast ended season four in a hospital bed. She died for over a minute but Eleven made her heart beat again. That was really lovely if not for the fact that while in her mind, El couldn’t see a thing. Max is in coma, brain-dead.

On that scene we saw Lucas reading “The Talisman”, book written in 1984 by Stephen King and Peter Straub. Let’s see the plot, shall we?

“Jack Sawyer, twelve years old, sets out from Arcadia Beach, New Hampshire, in a bid to save his mother Lily, who is dying from cancer, by finding a crystal called "the Talisman". Jack's journey takes him simultaneously through the American heartland and "the Territories", a strange fantasy land that is set in a universe parallel to that of Jack's United States. Individuals in the Territories have "twinners", or parallel individuals, in our world. Twinners' births, deaths, and (it is intimated) other major life events are usually paralleled. Twinners can also "flip" or migrate to the other world but only share the body of their alternate universe's analogue.”

Tell me this isn’t similar to what’s happening in our beloved fictional city, Hawkins. I dare you. Do you really think I was finished? There’s more.

“In rare instances (such as Jack's), a person may die in one world but not the other, making the survivor "single-natured", with the ability to switch back and forth, body and mind, between the two worlds.”

The “earthquake” in Hawkins happened when Max was “dead”. Vecna was still in her mind and that’s why I believe she is not dead. Remember season one? When Eleven saw Barb dead? El can see dead people. Max is alive, but she is still trapped to Vecna. And as we know, Vecna can manipulate scenarios, so maybe he did that so Eleven wouldn’t know where she was.

And of course, she can’t switch back and forth with her mind and mostly body. But in two years? There’s likely a chance to her bones be back on the road (not literally lmao)

Therefore, there is a chance to, fully, save Max. Hinting the book and making some parallels: to save our favorite red-haired, someone will have to go to Upside Down and search the “Talisman”. I just don’t know what would be this Talisman. And since Lucas was the one reading... (Lumax endgame, they are my parents I can prove.) 

ANOTHER MAX THEORY:

This is Raven Queen, Goddess of Death, from D&D. 

“The Raven Queen is trapped by her fascination with the past. She sits in her fortress, amidst all the memories of the world, looking at the ones that please her most as though they were glittering jewels. Many great wizards have attempted to understand her motives, but like a raven she has always remained cryptic, keeping her cache of secrets just out of their reach.” —  Alustriel Silverhand

“The whole existence of the Raven Queen was focused on collecting memories and strong emotions, typically associated with loss and tragedy.” (click here to see more).

Technically, it’s impossible to Max be Raven Queen (or sorta), since she’s almost as old as Vecna (in D&D world), but I see some similiarities between them, mostly on the “memories” part. Vecna is also her enemy (lmao who isnt) since he wants her power so he can deal, more properly, with the Realm of Death.

She was never mentioned in Stranger Things so this is basically bullshit but that would be hot because Raven Queen is hot.

Eddie

As I said before: yes I know what is the first stage of grief. I will never accept what the Suffer Brothers did to us. They can run away with US Government but not with small-town people? That sounds weak to me, hallowed be Vecna’s name doing the job for us. Yep, hunt the freak (Hawkins people).

Anyways, let me stop pushing my personal agenda and let’s go with the theory.

Did I say Raven Queen wasn’t mentioned in Stranger Things? Well, at least this character was:

But Vecna lives.

Kas is a vampire knight, known as Vecna’s right hand. Kas was a valiant warrior and it was said that he could enter a battlefield at the most complete disadvantage and still emerge, not only victorious, but also without a single dent in his armor. This skill in battle attracted the attention of none other than Vecna, who invited him to be their general. Kas' years of loyalty and efficiency led Vecna to present him with a mighty sword, which would become known as the Sword of Kas (yes, one of the most famous artifacts in D&D). 

Kas and Vecna. (two bros chillin in a hot tub five feet apart cuz theyre not gay lmao i miss vine)

On top of that, there are a lot of explanations on how Kas became vampire, but the 3rd and 4th are most likely on ST universe:

1. Nerull & Battle of Thousand Eyes 

During the Battle of Thousand Eyes, Nerull (God of Death) whispered to Kas to betray his master in exchange for a divine favor. Kas, with his lust for power, accepted and attacked Vecna with the sword he had been gifted from his master. That cost Vecna his left hand and one of his eyes (got that eddie "left eye" scene?)

Nerull nevertheless decided to grant Kas a minor favor: his soul was given strength and speed, but accompanied by an insatiable thirst for blood, which would be known as the Vampiric Curse.

2. Sword of Kas 

The sword itself whispered to Kas, convincing him to slay his master and usurp his power. The battle destroyed Vecna's Rotting Tower, and cost his left hand and eye. Kas himself was flung across the multiverse to Vecna's Citadel Cavitius on the Plane of Ash. The time he spent so close to the Negative Energy Plane changed him into a vampire.

3. The Silver Mask of Kas

Kas became a vampire with the help of Vecna and through a ritual involving The Silver Mask of Kas. Menadora Zarovan (Vistani fortune teller who knows a lot about Vecna and Kas), claims that any other stories regarding the origin of his vampirism are lies spread by The Cult of Vecna.

4. Bats.

Bats? Vampire? Hello, there’s a connection! I would say it’s hard to believe (or happen) that the bats-bite turned him into vampire but Bram Stoker would be hella mad at me. And, literally, everything is possible.

Bats, in the Upside Down, can’t kill, as I saw people say. And I’ve seen people have a theory that Eddie actually fainted (since he lost much blood) and found somewhere safe to hide (jesus arms lmao im joking). That’s why his body wasn’t brought up to Hawkins. And, I mean, since he is a wanted by police, hated by his city who see him as a murderer, wouldn’t be easy to just bring his body back and “finish” that?

Also, see that:

“Presumed dead”. Not dead. Presumed. Okay, I might be surviving on crumbs BUT LISTEN: Dustin couldn’t walk properly but what about the others? Nancy, Steve and Robin could’ve brought is body back to Hawkins. And really, that two-days timejump was ridiculous to say at least.

So, they saw Eddie’s body lying there and did nothing? Knowing it would bring “peace” to Hawkins (since he is wanted even tho by something he didnt do)? They saw his body and were like lmaooooo jokes on you metalhead freak how can you be an ozzy fan and die by bats lmao POSER

Vecna is coming back, and stronger than he ever was. And he’s absolutely coming back with an army. Final season? Epic fight between the most powerful people on that show? They need to gather strenght and our 001 needs his right arm on battle. And what is the better place to search if not the Upside Down?

Still, I think if Eddie becomes Kas, would be by a brainwashing made by Vecna, but Dustin would “free” him. I even have the script:

“You said ‘Never change, Henderson’, but you did”. I can see myself crying again. I just want some like void!stiles on Teen Wolf S3. That was hot.

I don’t see Eddie/Kas with a sword, I’d rather see a guitar (LMAO it suits him better). And then, who knows, he can play “The Final Countdown” since people hyped that song on TikTok. 

Apparently, “When It’s Cold I’d Like to Die”, song that played during Eddie death scene, is the same song that played when Eleven was trapped in the Upside Down on Season 1.

Will

Last but certainly not least: William Byers. You would’ve loved to meet Eddie, two of the greatest brains in D&D campaigns. But I’m not here for that.

Everything started with Will, so shall everything end with him.

I personally would love to see him becoming the “traitor”/villain along with Vecna. I hate seeing gay people suffer, I like seeing them MAKING OTHERS SUFFER!!! YAYYYYYY!!

He is connected to the Upside Down, to Mind Flayer, to Vecna and it all makes me remind of The Serpent

(you nicknamed my baby after the loch ness monster?????? got that? twilight reference? vampire? bats? eddie- ok.)

“The Serpent is a mysterious and powerful entity associated with the lich-god Vecna, who whispered to him the secrets of power and lichdom. It is believed by some to be a deity of overwhelming other, by others the force of magic itself with a will of its own, and by some a fiction of Vecna's madness.”

"An entity known only as the Serpent speaks directly to Vecna. Others—daring to call themselves wizards, magicians, and sorcerers—manipulate the tiniest aspects of the Serpent and call it magic. But Vecna speaks to the Serpent, and the Serpent speaks back."— Vecna Reborn (1998), p.4

We all know he will be the main character on that last season and that he is connected to Vecna

“He’s a sensitive kid” — Joyce Byers & Victor Creel talking about their respective children

In my opinion, he will be possessed by Vecna (if he can EVEN MORE) somehow during season 5, I’m not sure if Vecna’s physical body “died”/”ended” when Robin, Nancy and Steve were shooting at him and setting in on fire but it would be either him or Max, to be his vessel.

And I rather believe it’s Will, because as I said: Everything started with Will, so shall everything end with him.

(note: lmao thats what happens when a tv show kills off one of your comfort characters and favorite white boy of the month. dont be like me kiddos, sleep well and drink water. also that kas part applies to the 3 of them if you analyze i dont know why i wrote that lmao lemme know your theories)

[lyranova]

Children of the Future: Shadows of the Past

Chapter 1: A New Wizard King

Summary: A Prequel to “Children of the Future”!

Asta has finally achieved his dream of becoming the Wizard King, there are celebrations and happiness, it was a long time coming! But the excitement is cut short when he suddenly loses contact with the Spade Kingdom. A darkness is coming for the Clover Kingdom, and many changes along with it, will our heroes and their families be able to weather the darkness? Or will they succumb to it?

Hi guys! I know I know, I shouldn’t be starting another series when I have so many I need to complete but I wanted to write something non-angsty and self indulgent (all my other series are at angsty points rn and I’ve gotten lots of angsty requests lately) so this is what I came up with, also this will be slow to update, but I hope you all enjoy!

Also this was written and finished last night right after the leaks dropped 😭 (if you know you know 👀!)

Hana, Hikari, Einar, and Josslyn do not belong to me they belong to @eme-eleff and @crazyclownthanos !

Word Count: 2,903

Warnings: None

———

It was a bright, sunny, summer day in the Clover Kingdom. The perfect day for a celebration. What kind of celebration do you ask? Why, the coronation of the next Wizard King of course!

After Fuegoleon Vermillion decided to step down and retire so he could spend more time with his family. So the Captain’s all decided who the next one should be; many names came up but they all finally agreed on one.

Asta.

He had been waiting for so long, and had been working so hard, that he was the most qualified and most worthy of the title. Of course they debated on whether a mana-less citizen would be ‘worthy’ of the title, but they all decided that maybe that was a positive instead of a negative.

So after announcing their unanimous decision to the citizens of Clover, and Asta accepted, they began to plan the most extravagant of parties. Everyone who was anyone was welcomed, along with commoners and peasants that Asta had befriended over the years.

Asta walked around the room and greeted everyone shyly. He wasn’t used to all of this positive attention and it was almost overwhelming. He said hello to Fanzelle and his family, Mars and Fana, Rebecca and her siblings, Kahono and Kiato, everyone he had met and helped along his journey was there. And he couldn’t be more happy.

“ Looks like you finally made it Asta, congratulations.” Yuno said as he walked up to his friend and placed a hand on his shoulder. Asta jumped a bit and looked at him and grinned.

“ Thanks Yuno, but I couldn’t have made it here all on my own. If it weren’t for you pushing me, and everyone here helping me out, I don’t think I would have made it here without you all!” Asta said cheerfully and Yuno chuckled.

“ Oh I think you would have made it here either way, you are you after all.” Yuno said with a smile and Asta frowned.

“ Hey what does that mean?”

“ My husband means that you would have gotten here all on your own even without everyone's help. Because you’re a strong and determined person.” Neva, Yuno’s wife, said with a soft smile as she walked up to them and looped her arm through her husbands. Asta shook his head.

“ I don’t think so, if it hadn’t been for all of you I think I would have given up a long time ago.” Asta admitted with a laugh before he felt someone shove his shoulder, he turned to look and saw his wife.

“ So you were lying when you said never giving up was your power? Or are you just trying to avoid taking Yuno’s compliment?” Noelle Silva asked as she crossed her arms, Asta quickly shook his head.

“ No, of course not! Never giving up is my power, why would you think I was lying about that?!” Asta shouted loudly, causing everyone to laugh.

“ Then I guess you just didn’t want to accept my compliment, don’t worry it’ll never happen again.” Yuno said with a teasing tone to his voice, causing Asta to turn towards him.

“ Hey-!” He began but was quickly cut off by a group of girls running towards him.

“ Daddy! Papa! Dad!” All three girls shouted in unison as they jumped into Asta’s arms. He grinned brightly before he scooped them all up, hugged them tightly, and swung them from side to side.

“ There’s my girls! Are you guys having fun?” Asta asked brightly, and all three girls nodded and smiled back.

“ Of course we are! But more importantly we’re proud of you daddy! You worked hard!” Brielle, Asta and Noelle’s oldest daughter, said brightly as she kissed his cheek and wrapped her arms around his neck.

“ Yeah you worked hard dad, good job!” Mizuki, their middle daughter, said more calmly as she wrapped her small arms around his neck, but on the opposite side of Brielle.

“ Good job papa! I hope you stay the Wizard King forever!” Kaiyo, their youngest, said with a giggle as she wrapped her smaller arms around him too.

“ Geez I don’t know who’s more excited, them or Asta.” Noelle said with a laugh and shake of her head.

“ Definitely Uncle Asta, Brielle and the others are just excited about the free food and perks of being the Wizard Kings kids.” A little girl's voice suddenly said calmly as it came closer to the group, the others looked up and smiled.

It was Miku Grinberryall, oldest daughter of Yuno and Neva, and following quietly behind her were her siblings Kito and Kya.

“ That’s not true! We’re really happy for our daddy!” Brielle said with a pout as she moved out of her fathers arms, Miku suddenly smirked at her cousin.

“ Really? Then why is the entire dessert table cleared of food?” Miku asked, her voice sounded teasing, but there was a hint of irritation in it as well. Meanwhile Kya was openly glaring at the other girls.

Much like their mother Neva, the Grinberryall girls loved their desserts, sweets, and bread. So the table being completely empty was akin to the highest of offenses.

“ Uh maybe because there are other people here besides us that’s eating it!” Brielle shouted, and Mizuki stepped forward with her arms crossed.

“ Do you have any evidence to prove it was just us?” She asked with a confident look in her eyes, one similar to Noelle’s. Kito suddenly stepped forward, with a serious and annoyed look on his face, one that looked identical to his fathers.

“ The icing on Kaiyo’s cheek, the powdered sugar on your sleeves, and the cream puff that Brielle is currently trying to sneak into her fathers pants pocket is more than enough evidence.” Kito said as he pointed at all three girls. They all looked as Brielle froze, her hand holding her fathers pocket open, and in the other was a cream puff.

“ That still doesn’t mean we took all the desserts!” Mizuki pointed out and soon all the kids were arguing back and forth. Much to their parents dismay.

Their children were all very close despite them all living in separate countries, so close in fact that they all felt comfortable to bicker like this.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the ballroom stood the various Black Bulls families. They were all partying, laughing, and having a good time. It wasn’t everyday that your squadmate and best friend became the Wizard King, so they were going to party it up tonight!

Well, all but a few.

Aloys Adlai, oldest son of Grey and Gauche Adlai, sat in the corner by himself. He wasn’t really in the partying mood since he and his father fought earlier that morning, and if he were being honest, being in this room with all these people made his anxiety flare up. He sipped on his glass of water as he watched his father and little sister Maelie dance and laugh. He nearly scoffed, when was the last time he and his father laughed like that?

“ Aloys,” he suddenly heard someone say beside him and he turned to see his mother standing there with a small smile on her face.

“ If you’re here to ask me to apologize to him you can save your breath.” Aloys said quickly and he watched Grey’s cheeks turn a bright red.

“ You two can’t stay mad at each other forever you know, so why don’t you try to-?” She began quietly but Aloys jumped up out of his seat and looked at his mother.

“ Why am I always the one who has to take the high road?! Why do I always have to be the one to apologize first?! He’s the one that started it!” Aloys said loudly and angrily, causing Grey to wince. As much as Aloys was like his mother, he was also very much his father.

“ Why don’t you make him apologize first? Why don’t you ask him to extend the olive branch? Why do you always take his side over mine?!” Aloys shouted, hurt evident in his voice. Grey had a sadness in her eyes as she reached out towards her son.

“ I don’t always take his side-.”

“ But you do! By making me apologize first you’re automatically taking his side!” Aloys shouted and he felt someone grip his shoulder tightly, and when he turned to look he saw his father Gauche standing there with a fiery anger in his eyes.

“ Stop shouting you brat! Especially at your mother!” Gauche growled and Aloys glared right back.

“ So it’s okay for you to shout whenever you feel like it, and to whoever you feel like, but it’s not okay for me to do it? You’re such a hypocrite Old Man.” Aloys growled as he moved out of his fathers grasp and walked towards the exit.

“ Aloys wait!” Maelie said softly as she chased after her older brother, Gauche sighed and rubbed the back of his neck.

“ You alright?” He asked Grey, and she nodded.

“ I’m fine,” She said softly as she sat down in the chair Aloys previously occupied, Gauche crouched down beside her and held her hand. “ but you two need to talk and work out your differences.”

Gauche looked away as a pink appeared on his cheeks. He and Aloys have never gotten along, they were just too…similar. Gauche didn’t know how to talk to him, to connect with him, or even how to tell him he was proud of him. It just…was hard for him.

“ Maelie and I can’t keep playing referee with you two. So you two need to sit down and talk, and I mean talk, not argue. Otherwise…I might have to see if Captain Yami will transfer Aloys to a different squad.” Grey said seriously. She gave her husband's hand a gentle squeeze before she stood up and walked away. Gauche felt his heart sink.

That was the last thing he wanted, he couldn’t imagine his son being in a different squad, and he refused to allow that to happen.

Meanwhile in another area of the ballroom stood Hikari Yami, daughter of Yami Sukehiro and Charlotte Roselei. She stood with her back against the wall and watched as everyone talked and danced, ate and drank, and just had a good time. Ezio Roulacase was following Josslyn Silva around as usual, Aloys had disappeared with Maelie, the Faust children were standing around talking with the Vermillion children, and the other Black Bull kids were being themselves along with their parents. As she looked around though she noticed a key person was missing.

The Captain, and Vice-Captain, of the Golden Dawn.

All the other squads and their Captains were here, but those two were oddly missing. That wasn’t normal. Not only were they punctual on normal days, but they were never absent or late for formal events like this.

As she continued to ponder she sensed a familiar Ki behind her, she smirked a bit.

“ You’re late Vice-Captain Vangeance,” She said with a playful tone as the person behind her sighed in defeat before moving to stand beside her.

“ And here I was hoping that you would call me Pretty Boy instead of my formal title,” Alistar said playfully and with a shake of his head, Hikari chuckled as she took a sip of her drink.

“ I didn’t feel like rewarding you for being late,” she joked, causing him to chuckle. “ If I did then you’ll continue being late just so I’ll call you ‘Pretty Boy’.”

“ Ah drats, you caught onto my evil plan!” Alistar said dramatically as he placed a hand over his heart, Hikari snorted before playfully shoving his shoulder.

“ Why are you late anyway? That isn’t like you.” Hikari pointed out seriously as she looked over at her white haired friend. The boy smiled his usual smile and shrugged.

“ My father wasn’t feeling well this morning, so we ran late. Sorry!” Alistar explained with a chuckle and Hikari nodded, it wasn’t normal for Captain William Vangeance to get sick, but she decided to let it go for now.

“ Everyones having a good time,” Alistar admitted softly as the two fell quiet after a moment. Hikari just nodded in agreement. “ Especially the Black Bulls.”

“ Well of course we are! You other squads are all too stiff and serious during these things, so someone’s gotta make it fun, and it might as well be us!” Hikari said proudly and with a grin. Alistar chuckled and opened his mouth to reply but suddenly he felt someone grip the top of his head tightly. He swallowed a lump in his throat and turned slowly to face the person that had his head in a vice.

“ I thought I told you to stay away from my daughter Pretty Boy,” Captain Yami Sukehiro said, his voice low and dangerous. Alistar felt the color drain from his face.

“ Geez dad put him down!” Hikari said as she walked over and tried to get her father to let her friend go. At the same time she heard heels click rush behind them and begin to do the same.

“ Sukehiro let the poor boy go! He was only talking to her!” Former Captain Charlotte Roselei said as she grabbed her husband's arm, everyone knew she meant business when she called him ‘Sukehiro’ instead of Yami.

“ Yeah papa please let big brother Alistar go! You’ll hurt him!” Einar, Charlotte and Yami’s youngest and only son, said with a sniffle as he tried to pull his fathers middle.

“ I say let dad squeeze his head a little more, then maybe he’ll get it through his thick head so as not to bother my sister anymore.” Hana said as she crossed her arms, but had a smirk on her face, and Yami nodded.

“ See Hana understands! And that’s why she’s my favorite!” He gave his middle child a thumbs up, and she gave him one back.

“ C’mon you two that’s enough! Geez you two act like Alistar wants to date me or something.” She muttered as she continued to try and remove her fathers hand from Alistar’s head.

This continued for another minute, with the Yami family arguing and bickering amongst each other, and poor Alistar was stuck in the middle just hoping to make it out alive.

“ May I ask that you not kill my only son?” A voice asked with a chuckle, everyone stopped to look and saw William Vangeance standing there. Hikari, Yami, and everyone else moved away from Alistar and watched as the Captain of the Golden Dawn walked towards them.

Hikari looked the older man up and down for a moment. His Ki was normal, and he was acting as he usually did, but something was off. His face was pale, his eyes held a tired look in them, and apparently Hikari wasn’t the only one who noticed because Yami stepped forward with a frown on his face.

“ What’s wrong with you Goldie Guts? You ain’t looking so good.” Yami asked, his voice sounded rough but everyone could tell he was worried about one of his oldest friends.

“ I’m just feeling a little under the weather today, please don’t worry.” William said, waving away his concern. But Yami didn’t look convinced, and neither did Charlotte or Hikari. Yami walked up to him and jerked his thumb towards the balcony.

“ Let’s go outside and talk for a minute,” Yami said seriously, and William shook his head but still followed after Yami. Charlotte excused herself and told the children to behave before following behind them.

“ What’s up? First you’re late, and now you show up looking like hell.” Yami said as he turned to look at William, who only smiled in response.

“ I already told you, I’m just under the weather.” William repeated and Yami scoffed.

“ Yeah and I’m the Easter Bunny.” He responded back sarcastically, when Charlotte suddenly cleared her throat which caused the men to look at her.

“ Is it serious? Your illness I mean.” Charlotte asked as she crossed her arms, suddenly the Golden Dawn Captain sighed and walked towards the balcony railing.

“ Well, I’m thinking about retiring from the Golden Dawn and taking a job here in the castle. If that tells you anything.” William said softly as Charlotte and Yami’s eyes widened. He was thinking of retiring? They looked at each other before looking at William again.

“ Are you dying?” Yami asked as he took a cigarette out of his pack and put it in his mouth. William quickly shook his head.

“ No, I'm not dying. This decision has nothing to do with me being sick. It’s just…time. Time to step back and hand the reins off to the younger generation.” William said with a soft smile before he turned to face his friends.

“ Don’t worry. I’ll still be at the new Wizard King’s first Captain’s meeting tomorrow. That’s where I’ll announce my decision.” William said before he walked past his friends. “ Speaking of, I must give Asta my congratulations. Have fun you two.” He added kindly as he went back into the ballroom.

Charlotte and Yami looked at each other with worry and concern in their eyes. They knew one day William would retire, but they didn’t think it would be so suddenly like this.

But the couple weren’t allowed to dwell on their worries for very long as they had to get back to their children and to the party itself.

———

Thank you all for reading and I hope you all have a good day~!

[evilmageclub]

15, 17, and 28 for ao3 wrapped!

15. What WIP are you taking into next year with you?

glad you asked!!! i have many >:) all are about the sams. we have:

the boy-king's penance. you may recall this extremely nsfw illustration of the same name. if you want to know what this wip is about thats it . but i did literally just 4 days ago post 6k of samot getting tied up so i must restrain myself from doing so again lest i seem too specifically horny about it (although i am)

at arm's length. samothes/hadrian sad dad bonding in aubade

But Samothes can only defy ancient habits so far, so he sets the wine aside on the desk and picks up one of the lures. It leaves a thin film of sawdust where his skin is damp with the bottle’s condensation. He lets himself watch Hadrian while he savours each imperfect plane of knifework under the pad of his thumb. “I have a lathe in my workshop that could save you some time.” “Thank you.” Hadrian’s smile, though nervous, seems genuine. “But I’m not really short on time here. I do it for the process, you know,” he says, gesturing vaguely towards the small pile of completed lures. “Used to paint these a lot in Velas, with my son.”

an excerpt from the journals of the king-god samothes. i don't write first person generally, not my favourite, but i gravitated towards this as a framing device for writing about red jack's time in aubade. ymmv.

That night he was with me as I knelt oiling his blade, but his eyes stayed on the roiling storms at the sea’s edge. “My son,” he said. “He’ll be here by dawn.” I didn’t ask how he knew. I looked up and laid a hand on his broad forearm. "Don't..." it felt wrong to say don't worry, so I settled for the factual. “You can’t die here unless I allow it.” “Then I trust you’ll allow it, my friend." By that time I had finished applying the oil, so he sheathed his odachi and used it to stand. I was struck silent. It was not that I didn’t understand his resignation, but I had thought after everything I shared with him... Then again, we are stubborn, we creatures of myth. I recall the shine of blood on the blade I had repaired as Red Jack withdrew it from his victim, his maker; a younger man’s fire in that same striking face. He nodded to me, and then he urged Ace around and rode out across the sandbar, kicking up surf in his wake.

samot/arrell part 2 doomed wizard boogaloo. well the first part was samot/fantasmo mostly but in my head this is a sequel

An unveiled barb, sharp enough to make Arrell start towards Samot—not knowing exactly what he means to do, only that he's being provoked. Before he can complete the movement Samot catches him by the chin, thumb tracing his shadow-stricken jaw. “It's not your undeath that concerns me, Tutor.” To hear that name from a self-styled god’s lips is jarring. More unbalancing still is the touch of Samot’s slender fingers; light, precise, as though poised on the edge of a page. It reminds Arrell of—oh, he doesn’t finish the thought. Any similarity is superficial. Samot’s fingertips are cold, his nails long and biting as the arcs of starlight out northwest beyond the balcony.

to remake ourselves. young samsam gender symposium; also, samothes discovers bottoming

Samot leaned back to consider him like a prince holding court from his throne of cushions. “It’s very sweet how coy you act about this. You’re not weaker for wanting me inside you once in a while.” “No, but I want...” “Want what?” “To feel weak,” Samothes admitted, in a low and sultry timbre that belied how dry his throat was. “To feel like this body has things in it I can’t control, hidden mechanisms beholden to my lover. I’ve never wanted that with anyone but you.”

as well as one wip full of melancholy samsam trying to have a sexy romantic evening when they both know theyre about to go to war. some of this material ended up in false rings and my secsam from last year so who knows if it'll get posted, but theres an entire unused sex scene in there i wrote a full two years ago that i still like and want to find a place to put it at some point. and also i have an as-yet-unnamed sam(sam)/hadrian selkie au. theres no excerpt polished enough to post but i just think samots wolf pelt situation-

17. Your favorite character to write this year?

i answered this here! tldr its samothes but also both of them

28. Favorite work you wrote this year?

i would be betraying myself if i didn't say false rings. structurally and scene to scene i know i have written things that are better. but it is so long it contains multitudes many of which im very happy with

[megaboy335]

Anime and Manga Log [06/18/23]

This was a fairly busy week. There was a new series out of Weekly Shonen Jump, Black Clover movie, and the spring anime season is starting to finish up. Additionally a new JoJo chapter dropped. Plenty to talk about as always. Discussion and Spoilers for the following series below: Martial Master Asumi 1 [NEW] Do Retry 7 Cipher Academy 28 Tenmaku Cinema 10 365 Days to the Wedding 110 [END] Black Clover: Sword of the Wizard King Dr. Stone New World (Season 3) 11 [Cour 1 END] Demon Slayer Swordsmith Village Arc 11 [END]

Martial Master Asumi 1 [NEW] Kawada from Hinomaru Sumo returns with a series about mixed material arts. I didn’t read his previous series and I didn’t get into the anime either, but I thought it was cool that he survived for 5 years in Jump in the shadows of bigger hits. The first chapter was more dense than usual since they wanted to set up the MC and his family along with giving the audience some background to the sport in case they don’t know. Its a solid first chapter overall. My only nitpick is the bullies coming back over and over again was slightly annoying. Rather than the first chapter being a single string of events, it felt like a 2 act story with the school at the start then the Dojo in the back half. The art is great as expected for a Jump veteran. The opening color spread in particular is much more striking than you typically see. I’ll be looking forward to more.  Do Retry 7 From the mangaka behind Bone Collection comes a boxing series that takes place during World War 2. He has improved substantially since his previous serialization in drawing, character writing, and clearly picked up techniques while working for Yusei Matsui. The first arc is a boxing match against someone who is in a similar situation to our protagonist where they’re in the sport to protect someone precious to them. However, he’s fallen off the path and became more and more obsessed with strength to prove his worth. The intensity of the match was crazy with Aozora taking punch after punch. I love how it culminates in finally closing the distance and delivering the finishing punch in return. That caps off the first volume with a W for our main character. Its hard to say if this series can stick around, but for the time being I’m enjoying it. Cipher Academy 28 This week we began the 3rd match of this class vs. class code battle. The theme is determining your ally from your enemy, or are they perhaps the same person, maybe neither? This question is presented to us in 2 different ways. Firstly, in the form of Yukako’s backstory. This is a 6 star puzzle because there can be no definitive solution to whether her actions were good or bad. The answer will depend on who you ask. Its a similar reason given for the previous 6 star puzzle from earlier in the series. Secondly, we get the question in a more literal form. Toshusai is presented with two projections of Yukako and has to determine who is the real one based on pure instinct. Its a question about how well can you know and trust someone. If she guesses correct that means our class got a clean 3-0 victory. That seems unlikely since Iroha still needs a turn. We shall see next week. Tenmaku Cinema 10 Unfortunately Tenmaku Cinema doesn’t appear to be catching on with Japanese readers. Could it be the abundance of movie themed stories like Sakamoto Days and Oshi no Ko? maybe readers aren’t fond of the mc using someone’s else work (similar to Time Paradox Ghost Writer)? or perhaps it just isn’t interesting enough? Personally I’ve been enjoying it quite a lot.  This week’s chapter continues Shinichi’s tour and observation of Hinaki’s time on a professional movie set. Up to this point, I was thinking Hinaki resonated with the character in Tenmaku’s script. At least that’s how I made sense of why a top level actor would take on an amatuer project. But this chapter completely changed my perspective. Maybe there is some level of resonating with the character, but I think its a feeling of rivalry. She’s been isolated in the world of acting and suddenly a fellow student who is the same age comes along with a masterful script. Of course she is going to jump on that. I think Hinaki saw this is a personal challenge to bring the character to life in the best way possible. Its like she found someone who might be able to understand her. Lets hope the popularity can recover before its too late. 365 Days to the Wedding 110 [END] I’ve been a fan of Tamaki Wakai since The World God Only Knows days and I always believed it was a matter of time before they landed another hit. There was a bakery series that has some loose TWGOK references. Then came King of Idol about a crossdressing male idol trying to get in the industry. Both of those were cancelled after about a year of serialization. Wakaki then moved to the Seinin magazine Big Comic Spirts where he published 365 Days to the Wedding. The story is about a pair of introverts who dread the idea of potentially being transferred to another company branch in a foreign country, so they create a plan to pretend date. Over the course of the story, they come to realize how compatible they are. I had a good time reading the series. It was generally pretty funny and heartfelt from start to finish. Also refreshing to have a romance with a pair of working adults. I would say it ended maybe too soon, but I can’t complain about Wakai finally landing another hit finally after all this time. It will be getting an anime soon. I recommend it! [Final Score: 8/10] Black Clover: Sword of the Wizard King After being delayed 3 months from its initial release date, the Black Clover movie was finally released on Netflix this past Friday. Shonen Jump movies often come in 2 different varieties. The most common is a 90 minute self contained story with heavy exposition to make it work in the short run times. They feel like a mini arc out of the manga. However, ever since Strong World a lot of Jump movies add to the existing canon. Black Clover belongs to the later category. The movie has very minimal exposition and quite honestly its all action from start to finish with only a small regroup period in the middle. The story is about the previous Wizard Kings coming back Edo Tensei style and wrecking havoc. They want to hard reset the world because each of them was wronged in some way during their time. Instead of providing extensive backstory for each one, the movie would rather show you the sheer speculate of their power. I thought that allowed the movie to progress at a brisk pace (just as the manga frequently does). A movie medium is a good choice to experience the power of the best in the Black Clover world. At the climax of the film each Wizard King comes to realize that the world is changing for the better, even if incrementally. It heavily reinforces the theme of Asta’s unwavering spirit and how he inspires those around him. This film is very much what a Black Clover movie should be like. I enjoyed it a lot and consider it above average for the Shonen Jump movie genre. Dr. Stone New World (Season 3) 11 [Cour 1 END] I don’t have much to say about this season, but just wanted to put down some quick thoughts. The animation is the same old stiff style, but at least the reaction faces are good. The manga story of this cour is very solid. Senku and the gang are finally on the move thanks to having a ship. First stop is the island where the the space shuttle originally landed. The goal is to confirm the existence of and recover the platinum left behind so they can make an unlimited amount of nitric acid. There is even the promise of learning something about how people turned to stone. Great arc and looking forward to the action packed second cour in October. [Final Score: 7/10] Demon Slayer Swordsmith Village Arc 11 [END] I’ve always had mixed feelings on the Demon Slayer anime. First, I am probably in the minority for not being a fan of Ufotable. I find their heavy computer CG style to be off-putting and boring. Its always flashy for the sake of flashy with minimal personality. However given that, I can still appreciate the work they put into the animation. Secondly, I don’t like how Aniplex splits up a story into its individual arcs as season labels. Demon Slater is particularly formulaic and that’s all the more obvious in this format. I think it loses all momentum when there’s only 11 or so episodes every year. Now for this arc, I remember liking it in the manga. Cool setting, another pair of Hashira to learn about it, and the usual backstories along the way. The arc concludes with Nezuko being able to stand outside in the sun without harmful effects. The anime version was such a slog. They pad out scenes and everything is muddled with Ufotable’s CG flair. In isolation from the rest of the story it offers very little to push the story forward until the very end. Demon Slayer works best when you get in the groove of the series over a long period. Next is the brief next training arc before everyone raids Muzan’s infinity castle. Just give me 4 cour please Ufotable, I’ll even take it split. [Final Score: 6/10]

[procrastinatorrex]

VII.

In the final weeks of July, the team under Dr. Chevalier grew very accustomed to being muddy, mosquito-bitten, and sore. “I swear,” Eli said cheerfully as he packaged up yet another round of soil samples, “I’ve never seen anybody so depressed while he’s making his whole career. Well, except for Ambrose, I suppose.”

“I might be ‘making my whole career’,” Professor Sur grumbled, sitting up with a groan. Kneeling at the bottom of the king’s grave, carefully clearing dirt from tiny royal finger bones as delicate and strenuous work. He leaned back, pushed on the sides of the grave and twisted his torso around. Eli winced as several loud cracks sounded from the other man’s back.

Gwaine’s shoulders sagged with relief, “Ahhh— that’s much better. I might be making my career, but I’m also going to make my chiropractor's whole career at this rate. And possibly contracting malaria.”

“Hey, this bloke could be King Uther. A little malaria’s not so bad.” Eli objected as Gwaine settled back to his work.

“Spoken like someone who’s never had malaria.” Guy Asclepius said from his position by the jeep where he was cataloging the remains that were ready for transport to the lab.

“Are you saying you have had malaria?” Gwaine’s head popped up over the edge of the grave again. Guy only raised an eyebrow in response.

Eli shrugged. “Yeah, OK, bad disease bad, sure… but I’ve also never discovered King Uther before.” He hefted his black plastic box of samples like it weighed nothing. “Hey, Doc, can I put this on the Jeep? They need to go back to Morry and the team.”

Guy sighed and waved a hand, “Ah, but to be young again, the world is so simple. Help yourself, my boy. Although I hope you don’t expect me to haul that lot up the stairs when we get there.”

Eli laughed, “Nah, just call Morry, he’ll do it.”

Morry, along with about twenty others, had been called in from various contacts at the university to speed up the work. They’d had no other choice; upon discovery of the island site, it had become clear that there was more work there than could be done in a whole season, much less two weeks. In addition to the added help, they’d taken up round-the clock shifts to both protect the site and get as much work done as possible before the end of the season.

“Be much easier to get this done if the damn rain would just leave off for a few weeks.” Gwaine grumbled as Eli loaded his samples in with the finds. “It’s been a deluge ever since we found these burials. Turns everything to mud. Can’t hardly see what I’m doing, and there’s no detector for teeth.”

“Just be glad it’s clear at the moment.” Eli advised, shutting the Jeep and waving to Guy to head off. Gwaine was unimpressed; “Rain and shift work. Can’t even get a pint, going at this pace.” his grumbling continued unabated as the Jeep rolled off. “No time to even think about the finds. Going to be a right old mess, sorting all these bones out at the lab.”

“Ah Professor Sur,” Lee said, approaching from the knight cemetery with his shovel on his shoulder. “I see you’re a contender for ‘Miss Congeniality’ again this year.”

“Did Lance and the kids finish up?” Eli asked. Gwaine popped up like a groundhog, tossing his brush out of the grave and carefully standing. “Now there’s some good news. I need to go check their boxes if they’re done.”

Lee nodded, “The patron saint of endless patience is helping the students pack up the last bones as we speak. All that’s left is for Professor Sur to sign off on their logs and they can send the bones to the lab and start helping you here.”

“Excellent.” The professor levered himself out of the grave with sudden energy. “I love the smell of minimum-wage student labor in the morning.”

“Have you seen Percy, by the way?” Lee called, as Gwaine made to head off to the other site. “He’s not still talking his wizard off the ledge, is he?”

“Dunno.” Gwaine called back, waving a hand. “Ambrose won’t hardly speak to me. I think he’s still moping about uncovering the greatest find in British archaeology for the last thirty years.”

Eli snorted. “Well now, I’d love to have his problems.”

Gwaine laughed and jogged off to see to his students. Lee shook his head at the pair of them, leaning carefully at the edge of the royal burial to survey the work Gwaine had gotten done so far. “Well, you know what they say.”

“What, ‘one man’s career-defining discovery is another man’s—‘ what? Honestly, how bad can discovering the best archaeological site ever possibly be?”

“Maybe there’s something going on with him we don’t realize.”

At that moment, the sky opened and rain began to pour on the site, gently at first, then quickly turning into a downpour. The two men ran for the plastic tarps, scrambling to keep water out of the excavated graves. Gwaine could hardly be heard over the rain, swearing prolifically as he scrambled to help his students move their cardboard boxes to better cover. No one noticed the lone figure standing on the end of the excavation, motionless in the deluge.

[curestardust]

Dust Watched: Black Clover

Genres: Shounen, Fantasy (Magic), Comedy, Action // 170 episodes

Jesus Christ. It’s over. I’m free.

So... if y’all were here in the crisp old year of 2017, you’d remember “Black Clover” being a huge meme, mainly because of Asta’s VA, who was a rookie and this was his first main role and his performance was hilariously bad. So then, why did I decide to watch BC anyway? Well, I was kinda craving some traditional Shounen and it was only 50 episodes long. Quite short for a Shounen! I’ll finish it quickly and it’ll be just a nice time waster haha, right? ....Right?

I don’t know if BC garnered much more popularity than initially thought but one day, the number 50 disappeared from its episode listing and now 5 years (for me) and 170 episodes later I’m left as a husk of a human being. Worst part? It was ACTUALLY starting to get good!

✧  story  ✧

The story is your usual Shounen affair. Asta and Yuno are orphans who are found in front of a church. They grow up together in a small little village in the Forsaken Realm of Clover Kingdom. Yuno starts using his Wind magic at an early age while Asta looks like the Liver King at the age of 10 because he believes that intensely working out will “awaken” his magic. They make a vow to become the “Wizard King” and at the age of 15 they both attend the ceremony to recieve their grimoires which are spell books that help enchance ones magic abilites. You could see this as a sort of “coming-of-age” ceremony.

Grimoires have leaves on them, with 3 leaf ones being the most common. Of course, Yuno is too special for that, and he recieves a 4-leaf grimoire (meaning he has insane magical potential). Meanwhile Asta gets umm, nothing. This is when he finds out that his magic has not manifested as he has none. He gets ridiculed, falls into depression for one episode, then comes into possession of a 5-leaf grimoire. These grimoires are extremely rare and are said to contain a Devil inside them. Nevertheless Asta takes what he can get, as the grimoire also gives him the power to negate magic.

The two of them then set off for the Noble Realm to take part in the Magic Knights Entrance Exam. The Magic Knights serve under the Wizard King and getting into a squad is a feat in and of itself. Of course, Yuno joins the Golden Dawn, the most prestigious one while Asta barely gets accepted into the Black Bulls, the one everyone considers the loser/weirdo squad. This is where their story splits and we spend most of our time with Asta and the Black Bulls as they go on missions.

I don’t have any problems with the set-up itself. It’s full of Shounen cliché’s but that’s fine! Doesn’t mean you can’t make the story your own! But that’s where the problems come in. The cliché’s don’t stop. 

I went back to rewatch the OP’s as it really has been quite some time since I’ve first seen the first arcs and that’s where I realized what the problem was with this anime. Around the first 130-140 episodes are ONE story building up to an honestly pretty mid climax. There’s a big enemy but actually he has a boss who is an even stronger enemy but actually they also have a boss who is an even stronger enemy but ACTUALLY THERE’S- repeat until the end of the arc. That, plus collecting some stones are the entire plot for 75% of the runtime. It’s boring! In a bubble the fights are great; all of them need a different tactic which keeps them exciting. The fillers are absolute boredom. I know they’re a Shounen staple but just because they’re fillers doesn’t mean you can get away with no effort put into them.

Worse, the next big arc after this one is GOOD! It’s REALLY good! And I have no idea why they stopped the anime at 170 episodes because it actually ends while this arc is still very much going on. So now I’m mad. I sat through the mediocre 140 episodes of this anime to finally get something good only for them to end it right when things were starting to get exciting. I don’t know if they caught up with the manga or whatever, and I know there’s at least a movie coming out but argghhhh.

I was also going to include a VERYYY long rant of all the problems I have with the world-building but it’s not worth it. One thing I’ll mention is the class divide. Peasants are seen as worthless by not only the nobles but also the commoners as they usually have the least powerful magic. That in itself is an okay set-up. What is NOT okay is that in flashbacks we’re shown that the 1st Wizard King was trying to fight this class divide. The current Wizard King is the 28th. NOTHING changed in that amount of time. Literally, how?? What?? Let’s see, if we say each King’s rule comes out to ~30 years on average that’s almost 900 years. It’s baffling. And there are multiple other times where the worldbuilding just makes no sense similar to what I just mentioned and it ruins immersion. Worldbuilding can make or break a Fantasy story and BC’s is very much surface level. It truly comes off as the mangaka just putting out the first thing he thought of but not believing that it’ll succeed long enough to need a well established ground to stand on.

✧  characters  ✧

Ast and Yuno’s friendship/rivalry, the mainstay of all Shounen protags, is the weakest I’ve probably ever seen. Due to them being selected to different Squads and the story mainly following Asta, Yuno barely gets any character development for the majority of the series. Their only interactions is also just them fist bumping when they meet, insulting each other in a bro way, then declaring that “I’ll become the Wizard King, you’ll see!” and they go on their seperate ways until another random chance encounter 30 episodes later where the same thing happens. I have nothing else to add. It’s just underwhelming.

But you’d think the Black Bull members would be interesting enough to help carry the show as they have the most screentime after Asta but they have the same problem as the worldbuilding. They’re all 1-dimensional characters whose entire personality usually revolves around one joke that gets repeated every single damn time they’re on screen. During the fights, they basically turn into different characters. There’s a sense of character growth and introspection that allows them to bring out more of their strength; but the second we’re back into filler territory, it’s back to square 1. The writer seemingly had no idea how to make these characters interesting without their gags so their growth are a complete roller coaster. It’s very dissapointing to see a character revert back to their old behaviour after a huge fight where their characters really shined. It’s also difficult to really see the true comradery between the squad members when they’re so one note. 

The randomly appearing and disappearing characters is another big complaint of mine. Villains turned good guys not turning up again is something I can let the anime get away with as most of them aren’t from the Clover Kingdom and so have no reason to stay in the vicinity. But the Black Bulls seem to have a weirldly high number of members who literally turn up out of nowhere with no foreshadowing just to help with the plot. Most egregious case of such a character is Zora; dude basically gets an entire mini arc for himself. Gets to show off his magic, we get his backstory, character growth, how he would work well within the Black Bulls and after he joins the squad the dude basically vanishes off the face of the Earth. Bring him back! What the hell is he doing while the others are on the verge of being killed off by the new villains! What was even the point of giving him so much screentime?? 

✧  art  ✧

Honestly, BC’s general art style is just kind of unappealing to me but that’s nor here or there as I’m more interested in the quality and animation. And that is... a mixed bag. Fight scenes obviously go hard. 99% of effort went into those, as it usually does for Shounens. Filler episodes can get quite ugly though, like hilariously so. The section of the anime that doesn’t exactly keep up with these rules is the episodes right after EP50. It’s quite obvious that additional episodes were requested quite late into the runtime and so you can see a significant drop in quality just overall for every episode for quite a bit. I don’t even want to imagine the crunch the staff had to do.

On a sidenote: they should’ve hired whoever was doing the OP’s as the art director. I couldn’t figure out for the longest time why the OP’s look so good, yet when we see the same scenes in the actual anime they’re underwhelming. Then it clicked; the colour pallette! BC’s colours are very washed out which just makes it boring to look at. But the OP’s are the exact opposite. Stark colours, interesting compositions... I’m honestly on the verge of tears just thinking about how good BC would’ve looked with that style.

✧  sound ✧

So what of Asta’s VA, Kajiwara Gakuto, whose performance propelled BC into memedom with just one episode? Since then he has banked himself a few roles here and there, most impressive of which is Shinra, the MC of “Enen no Shouboutai”. His improvement cannot be understated. I didn’t even realize it was him for quite a while. And that’s all well and good but I still don’t think he should’ve been thrust into the limelight with such a difficult role as Asta. We can admire his improvement but it’s still a fact that at least the first 30 episodes of this anime still has his rookie scream-talking before he managed to find a good balance between the two. 

One thing I absolutely have no complaints of is the OP/ED songs. Shounen OP’s always go really hard and it’s no exception for BC. 

✧  overview ✧

Despite its rocky start, “Black Clover” has managed to amass a small but rabid fanbase. Or rather, for that reason. As fans’ most often cited reason for why they like BC is its Grand Improvement that it showed during its runtime. However, if I look at the big picture, while BC’s improvement is definitely worthy of praise, the anime started 10 steps behind other Shounens and, in my opinion, it only managed to claw its way up to the starting zone. An anime needing ~140 episodes to get to the level that most other Shounens START at isn’t that impressive in my eyes. Due to that, I could never find myself recommending BC to anyone. There’s just too much garbage you need to ignore til you get to the actually good part.

My Rating: 4.3/10

[portablecity]

recent watches and listens and reads

Movies: The Pale Blue Eye - not bad, but by halfway through i had a strong “i bet the book is real good” feeling despite not knowing at that point that there was a book. Extreme problem of Charming Young Men In Uniform who all looked identical.

Point Break - a cultural moment I am glad to have caught up on. Incredible steady escalation of the tone and stakes. Bodie was a terrifyingly accurate depiction of the self-absorbed new age older dudes that hung around art school student scenes. Has anyone adapted this movie into a Descended From the Queen hack yet?

Woman King - hey i waited way too long to watch this, i super recommend it, it did not pull any punches on the action, the script, the themes, the emotional arc, the everything. It turned out that watching the trailer had told me almost nothing about it. Still a bit stunned. And despite the uniforms every character was easy to id and learn about and love.

The Hexer - the polish tv movie adaptations of The Witcher from like 20 years ago. It’s on youtube for free. No budget but all the enthusiasm. Pretty sure Henry Cavill based his geralt on this one, down to quite a few of the gestures and poses.

Audiobooks:

I’m working my way through the discworld books for the nth time, this time via my library’s audiobook collection. I have unconditional love for the series, but if you are coming from outside and want a place to start, I think I’d recommend Going Postal as your intro.

Most recently I just finished The Monstrous Regiment, and it is everything i remember and more. Some authors move the goalposts, or the finish line; Pratchett keeps moving the punchline, building on the joke until it’s non longer a joke and instead a core theme with big beautiful emotional payoff. I cried A Normal Amount.

Favourite character moments so far:

Sybil: in The Fifth Elephant, climbing out the window.

Vimes: any of his conversations with Willikins in Snuff.

Willikins: every time he is on screen, as it were.

Carrot: honest to god the addition of age and experience has really changed how i see Carrot and frankly I find him pretty terrifying. By the end of Men at Arms he is Legit Scary, and the shit he pulls in The Fifth Elephant is not cool. The only Carrot I particularly like is the one you hear in his letters home.

The Wizards: everything in Unseen Academicals.

The Librarian: how could i choose, honestly

Moist: the shit he pulls at the end of Going Postal; it’s such a bastard move for a good cause, which is i think the core of his appeal.

Death: dancing with Miss Flitworth

Vetinari: every conversation with Moist. Especially the one with the signet ring.

Gaspode: never not a fav but especially love his cameo in The Truth.

Angua: again, i feel like i read her very differently now; I don’t know if I really get her anymore. Further rereading needed.

I have been on the holds list for the witches books for a While, and the library doesn’t even HAVE Lord & Ladies, but I will update as I get to them. I do appreciate every moment Magrat gets her own out of a scene. But how to pick a fav moment with any of the others?

The only books I haven’t reread MANY times before this reread are Unseen Academicals, and Raising Steam; relistening to Unseen Academicals was a delight and left me very sad Pratchett didn’t get to continue those thoughts and themes further. Maybe the sweetest romances in the whole series. And somehow I just didn’t register Pepe and Madame on my first readthrough? Anyways I’m excited for Raising Steam, but not sure where to find an audobook version at this time.

Listening:

I discovered accordion players performing music like Vivaldi sonatas and Bach fugues and that certainly lives rent free in my brain now:

Otherwise I think I’ve listened to Devin Townsend’s Terria album at least twice a week sonce november. It’s harder to track down nowadays but remains a favourite.

Also we watched Andor slowly and carefully and I am still extremely immersed; can’t believe they got me back into the s’wars after boba and kenobi, honestly, but i am real glad I watched it.

Also, I read Ducks by Kate Beaton in a single sitting. Recommended.

[8bitsupervillain]

End of the Year 2022! Honorable video game mentions

Here is the honorable mentions for the video games of 2022. I’m separating them somewhat in the list, but you’ll find both the pre-2022 and the 2022 lists here. They’re all generally fine games, just I quit playing them for various reasons.

Pre-2022

HM: Baldur's Gate Dark Alliance

A fun little Action RPG, but also ball grindingly hard. Perhaps it's because I went with the Wizard character but this is astonishingly difficult. I'll probably go back and finish it.

HM: Divinity: Dragon Commander

I like this game even though I'm not particularly great at strategy games. I enjoy the story quite a bit, but I'm undecided if I'll go back to it.

HM: Undernauts

A good dungeon RPG but I sort of just fell off of it. I played it for twelve hours or so, but I just kind of moved on to other games. I love the art style.

HM: Shining Song Starnova

I got a few hours into the game when my computer decided I didn't make any progress into the story and deleted my save. Idol Manager made me think about giving this game a go.

HM: Daggerfall: Unity

I am trying desperately to figure out why people like the Elder Scrolls games so much. This one is pretty good, but I didn't play it for any great length of time.

HM: Elder Scrolls Battlespire

I decided I wanted to try an Elder Scrolls that is a more straight forward game compared to the more open world options. I didn't get far in it, but I do intend on giving it a more fair shake.

HM: Titan Quest

I wanted to play an Action RPG, and I was drawn to the more Greek inspired look than the typical dark fantasy games in the genre. Really I just want to play the expansion set in China.  

HM: Torment: Tides of Numenera

I watched the opening movie and I thought it was pretty cool. Sadly I didn't play beyond the opening because I decided to play Pillars of Eternity and Tyranny instead.

HM: Open X-COM

I finally decided to take a real shot at trying to play "classic" X-COM, every other time I just sort of bounced off it. This time however I seemed to actually get a nice handle on how the game actually plays, so who knows maybe in the future I'll actually go through the entirety of original X-COM.

2022 Propa

HM: Evil West

Started this one just a smidge too late for it to be eligible for proper best of the year consideration. A fun hack and slash to be sure, kind of a cowboy pastiche of a Devil May Cry. It's a hoot.

HM: Steelrising

A soulsborne-esque yarn where you play as the robot bodyguard of Marie Antoinette during the robo-French Revolution. Sadly I didn't get particularly far before my attentions were drawn elsewhere.

HM: Conan Chop Chop

Decent little roguelite game.

HM: Card Shark

An interesting game with a unique selling point, being a game set in France's past and with the main gimmick being you're not trying to win the card games legitimately but by cheating better than your opponents. I should finish it some day.

HM: Pentiment

I love a good murder mystery. Sadly I had to let this one slide unplayed.

HM: Lunacid

You're spoiled for choice these days with Dark Souls derivatives, so it's nice to see someone go back and make a King's Field-like.

HM: River City Saga: Three Kingdoms

I enjoy beat-em ups and I thought a Kunio game set in the historical period of the Three Kingdoms sounds like a fun idea. I'm not sure I've played it enough to really pass judgment on it.

HM: Moonscars

One of approximately a hundred Soulsy Metroidvania dark fantasy games that came out this year. I liked what I played though.

HM: Tarnishing of Juxtia

See above, also it reminds me a lot of Blasphemous more than any other game.

HM: Souldiers

Unfortunately all these Metroidvania games came out too close in my mind so I kind of had to let some of them fall to the wayside.

HM: Weird West

Yeehaw.

HM: Salt and Sacrifice

I don't care for the character art, but the gameplay is generally solid. I don't know if I'd recommend it over any other of these Metroidvania types, but I thought it was pretty good from what I've played.

HM: Soulash

A fun pixel-graphics roguelike that I wish I spent more time with.

HM: The Last Hero of Nostalgaia

Allegedly a satire of Dark Souls and all those types, but I found it to just be a generally fun game to play. Maybe it really goes down hill, but from the demo I played it seemed pretty decent.

HM: Undecember

It's like if Diablo Immortal was a slightly better roguelite phone game. That sounds mean, but I actually quite like this.

HM: Thymesia

Bloodborne inspired game this time. Unfortunately I didn't play much of it because of all the other games vying for my attention.

HM: SD Gundam Battle Alliance

2022 was just positively cram packed with games that were generally pretty good and did what they set out to do quite well. This is a decent little Action RPG, and one day I hope to finish it.

HM: Valkyrie Elysium

One of the dozen or so games Square Enix released with practically no advertisement. I like what I’ve played so far, it just fell onto the back burner and out of my priorities list.