#bc it seems a lot easier to look at suffering in the world and rather than conclude that it happens for a reason and trying to justify that

[cainshitincorporated]

Agnostic not in the sense of debating if god exits but in the sense of questioning the base assumption that he is good

[seasaltmemories]

Mars Review/Analysis

Mars was a series I had vaguely known about for a while. I've seen the iconic statue kissing scene, the male lead ranked as one of ppl's faves problematic love interests, and even had a mutual who talked about reading the series once a year. However it wasn't until a discussion on the portrayal of sex and other mature topics in shoujo that I figured it might be useful for me to read such a foundational work

Cue me reading the first chapter and breathlessly telling people it alone would count as the one of the best of shoujo. I binged the rest of the 15 volume series in a week, and through so many familiar ups and downs, it still felt like something special.

CW: Suicide, Sexual Abuse, Homophobia, Transphobia

Summary time:

Kira, a shy high school student, lives only for her art. Rei, An arrogant, rebellious and violent playboy, wears his delinquency like a badge of honor. They are exact opposites in every way, but when Kira sees Rei kissing a statue of Mars, she overcomes her fears and asks him to model for her. And, to everyone's surprise, Rei agrees.

On the surface it seems just like a typical good girl/bad boy story, and it is hard to say it isn't, but so much of what makes the story work is the details. Their meet cute is subdued, nothing but an excuse to get them talking again, but as they talk more and more, their chemistry just shines through. I don't know if it just fits my specific tastes, but it really is the stuff of girlhood dreams. Rei has this easy-going charm that is hard to look away from, and you can see Kira start to fall fast and hard despite herself, and by the end of volume 1, they've shared their first kiss and are more or less an item for the rest of the series

It is a pretty fast courtship for most romance stories, but the fact we skip the pining to get straight to an established relationship means we get this sort of easy physical affection that is so refreshing. Frankly I would enjoyed just watching them be absolutely adorable, but as we uncover both their dark pasts, they take on this young, restless "us vs. the world" love I can't resist

I mention before how a lot of Rei's appeal lies in his laid-back nature, rather than brood in a corner, he's outgoing and popular but the same carefree nature means he doesn't put much stock in social convention or consider the consequences his poor impulse control can get him in. It's a much more thought-out portrayal of a "bad boy" even as the dramatic details of his backstory build up. Considering his mother's early death, his estrangement from his father, and the fact he saw his twin brother commit suicide in front of him, it is clear his ease with everything is more bc of a general apathy, even towards his own wellbeing

Kira we learned started the series still recovering from the sexual abuse she suffered at the hands of her stepfather, as her relationship develops with Rei, she has to process a lot of trauma she still has surrounding her sexuality. It is clear her introverted, passive nature is not just a means of making her more relatable/easier to project onto, and that the real Kira has only started to come back out of her shell

I'd be lying if I acted like these issues were explored in nuanced, subtle ways, but even through the melodrama there was something real to it all that captured me. Like I usually struggle to latch onto most contemporary romances where the biggest obstacles couples face are their willingness to go ahead an make the first move. But these are real problems that real ppl face, even if it is heavily dramatized, and so their determination to stick together and make a place where they can be happy and safe just tugs at my heartstrings, even the breakneck pacing from one arc to the next, felt true to the whirlwind that is young adulthood. Did Fuyumi Souryo forget a plot thread when Rei's dream of becoming a pro racer fell away from the plot for like ten volumes? Maybe, but in life you're usually not really following a laid out plan and are more trying to survive from one crisis to the next while discovering patches of stability along the way

The melodrama really started to test my limits with the introduction of the antagonist, Masao. In contrast to Rei and Kira's detailed history of violence, Masao's just plain evil and attracted to the both of them for extra "creepiness" It's not just tasteless, it's boring, his entire arc nearly killed my interest in the series

Thankfully he only shows up for one arc in the middle and then briefly at the end to stir up more trouble. He's more bearable in those chapters thanks to the fact he's reflecting how much our main leads has grown, but his existence is painfully utilitarian, which applies to most of the rest of the cast, clearly only existing to highlight our main duo better. This also leads to some transphobia and insensitive portrayals of suicide.

Rei's mother and twin also suffer similar "secretly evil all along" reveals as Masao, which I do think cheapen Rei's struggle. Frankly we don't get enough time to unpack either character's history to really understand them, but even if the narrative doesn't suggest it outright, it is hard to ignore the feeling their deaths aren't so tragic bc of their flaws. Even so, they bothered me less than Masao for some reason. For all her violent tendencies, Rei's mother is still given sympathy that Masao never gets. And even though Sei's suicide note expresses a lot of misanthropy and sadism, to me there were enough lines almost suggesting he feared those tendencies within him and was also struggling in his own way. Perhaps their underdeveloped nature all helps keep either plot point form having to overstay their welcome

And that's the thing, despite all the dark and shocking plot twists I casually mentioned, what really stands out as I look back on the series, is the strong love Rei and Kira share. Going back to the plot summary, what you see is what you get. If you aren't on board with the series after volume 1, then it probably isn't for you. But few pieces of media have ever sold me on two character's love for each other as hard as this did. I mentioned before that I tend to need my media to acknowledge tragedy before I can accept their hope, but even when Mars isn't pulling out its soap opera cliffhangers, I always wanted to see how Rei and Kira would come together to support each other through their next stages of life.

[dr3amofagame]

haha your snippit abt the dispenser got me thinking.

Dream gets let out of prison and he talks constantly, whatever is on his mind. And he's positive all the time. To a fault where people walk over him. And it doesn't make sense because he was tortured right???? But after an incident they find out it's because he hates the sound of silence and needs constant reminders that other people are there. Also he was punished for any negative emotions in the prison so his default is happy now,,,

hi anon !! this concept makes me SO goddamn sad ,, the idea that he Has to be happy bc anything else would mean punishment im so *punches the walls*

this ,, ficlet is honestly. pretty ooc, not really related to the ask at all, and mostly an excuse for me to cry abt c!dream and c!punz for an excessive amount of time (technically the vote on twitter was supposed to have this as c!sapnap pov, but i just wrote one for him so i went for c!punz instead. mostly bc i wanted to write him LMAO). hopefully someone enjoys it despite *gestures vaguely* all of that mess

tw: trauma, disordered eating, implied torture/abuse, blood, injuries, unhealthy coping mechanisms, emotional distress, thoughts of murder/mercy killing, mentioned animal death, dark content

In the end, it’s all rather anticlimactic, the complete opposite of Dream’s vault and the whole fiasco of adrenaline and theatrics that had made up that day. Quackity ended up having one too many drinks, bragged about the wrong thing to the wrong person - Punz doesn’t know the specifics, only knows that one thing has led to another and suddenly Sapnap was screaming at his ex-fiancé, sword pointed at his chest and tears streaming down his eyes in the middle of the Community House floor, everyone else stood around and watching. A look into Quackity’s office said everything he didn’t - the chests and chests of used and new tools, shiny and sharpened and completely rusted over with blood and everything in between. There’s been a balled up shirt in the wastebasket, completely unsalvageable from how saturated it was with blood, more red than white, and perhaps most chilling of all the calendar, marked with X after X in red pen, going back months and speaking to their utter failure to see what had been happening all but right in front of them.

With Quackity down, Sam caved not too long after, and with his input getting into the prison was no challenge at all. The only thing holding them back were bad memories and the tense, worried edge to Sam’s jaw as he led the small group of them - himself and Sapnap, actually entering the facility, Bad and Puffy waiting outside - carrying them through winding corridor after winding corridor and lava pit after lava pit, until they’d come to stand before a chasm filled with flowing lava, slowly draining before the main cell.

“I- I have to warn you,” Sam had muttered, uncharacteristically hesitant, “it looks…pretty bad,” and Punz would’ve questioned him further, but the lava had fallen far enough to reveal the topmost edge of the cell, so they let Sapnap hound the Warden for information as they directed their full attention on the cell itself and holy shit.

Nothing Sam said could’ve possibly have prepared them for the sight - it was a complete fucking bloodbath, crimson painting the walls and smeared over the floor and splattered over every visible surface like some abstract art experiment gone wrong. The stench of iron and burning flesh and viscera was awful, even over the gap marked by the still-draining lava. Punz strained his eyes; at the very back of the cell, huddled, unmoving, was a similarly bloodstained shape that must’ve been Dream. They remember the crack of Sapnap’s knuckles meeting Sam’s face and breaking his nose, remember themselves chucking a pearl and feeling along Dream’s neck desperately for a pulse - everything beyond that became a swirl of voices and panic and crying that makes their head hurt to think about, so they don’t.

Recovery is…messy. The physical side had been bad enough - pulling Dream out of the cell, barely breathing, limp in his arms and far too light, all Punz could think about was a sheep he’d found a year ago, frail and struggling to breathe, one he’d ended up killing - quick and painless - with a sword through the skull because it seemed kinder than letting it suffer. Watching Dream struggle on the bed, laid up in Bad’s mansion because none of them knew if he’d survive going any further, body resisting the potions they’d slowly forced down his throat after being so over-saturated on them, temperature spiking and heat baking into his skin like the lava from the prison had been imprinted onto his body, Punz feels the same strange mixture of pity and unease, wonders if it’d be a hell of a lot kinder if they just put him out of his fucking misery.

Still, because Dream is a stubborn bastard, against all odds, he ends up surviving - his fever breaks, the potions begin taking effect, and a few tireless, aching days later his eyes flutter open, lucid for the first time in a week. Punz isn’t even in the room when he wakes, only knows that it happens because the too-quiet room suddenly erupts in noise and activity, muffled thumps and sounds of a struggle undercutting Bad’s frantic calls for someone to help, anyone, and they run into the room to find Dream thrashing on the bed, wounds reopened and blood dripping onto the sheets, eyes wild and wide as his head whips from side to side so hard Punz is half-afraid that he’ll straight up break his neck. Somehow, worst of all, not a single scream falls from his lips, nothing but muffled whines squeezing past his mouth, clenched shut, and for a singular, awful second they wonder how long it took before he realized that screaming was useless.

Fortunately enough for them, or unfortunately, it’s not like he can tell the fucking difference anymore, the panic and strain end up with Dream passing out altogether, and they trade uneasy glances with Bad before going to clean off the worst of his wounds. If everything they’re doing feels hopeless, dressing up wounds that’ll be torn open hours later when Dream is awake enough to feel fear but not much else because he’s forgotten what it’s like to not be afraid - well, that’s for them to think and everyone else to pretend not to agree with.

Weeks pass along the same vein - Dream wakes up, panics; they try to calm him down, fails; he falls back into unconsciousness, and they move on and pretend that they’re cleaning up wounds from battle and not from someone that’s literally been tortured for months on end. People stop by, occasionally; Puffy spends more time than not inside the mansion, but hardly ever enters the door into Dream’s room, Sapnap and George drop by occasionally with potion brewing supplies that the rest of them can’t go out to get; once, he’d gone out to the front door to find a chest with an enchanted golden apple, sender nowhere in sight. He knows that the server is busy; Quackity’s admission had brought more than a few secrets to light, and from what they understand, the political fallout has been pretty damn messy. Still, he stays in the mansion, and watches.

He doesn’t exactly know why he stays. They’re not a stellar healer, not beyond what they know to dress their own wounds, and spend most of their time doing odd-and-ends tasks for Bad, who looks more tired than ever. Maybe it’s because he’s seen Dream at his worst more than the rest of them, had been there through his entire fall from grace, watched as his eyes became clouded with anger and madness and a single, desperate hope that he’d chased at the cost of his world and himself. Maybe it’s because they have no ties to the rest of the server - not to Las Nevadas, falling apart under the scrutiny of the eyes that now fall upon it, not Snowchester, caught up in the chaos, not the Badlands, half-dissolved after the fiasco of the Egg and with Sam’s actions having just come to light. Maybe it’s because above everything else, he feels guilty.

They’d thought the prison was the answer. It’d seemed too simple, back in that Vault - a perfect answer, because everyone else was perfectly happy to watch Dream die another time and some part of them had clenched painfully at the thought even thought they knew it was for the best. The prison meant that he’d be alive, if angry, and at some point when he had the time or the nerve or the guts he could go and visit, and they would talk, and Dream would be angry but with time maybe he could even understand.

They hadn’t wanted this. He can’t imagine anyone wanting this.

“Punz?” They don’t jump at the voice at their back, they don’t, but Bad still has a tiny, tight-lipped smile when they turn around anyway, eyes creased in the corners and still not as bright as they’d been before the Egg. Bad looks at him knowingly, setting a bowl of soup into his hands. “For Dream, if you can get him to eat.” He shifts a pointed gaze towards the door. “Maybe you two could talk.”

“About what?” The words come out harsher than they intend, and they take a moment to bite back the mostly self-directed anger that Bad doesn’t deserve to receive the brunt of. “I just-” he waves his hand in the air, trying to articulate the mess that is his relationship with Dream without the words to explain it. “I don’t know, man.”

“You don’t have to talk about everything,” Bad says, calm as always, eyes flicking down to the bowl of soup in his hands. “Just start with the soup.”

Punz sighs. “I’ll try.”

He enters the room in a single, fluid motion, mostly because he knows that if he were to stop at the door then he’d never actually make his way in. Dream flinches back when they enter, eyes going wide and stance going rigid, and the familiarity doesn’t make the sight any easier to bear as they wait, as always, for Dream’s eyes to clear enough for him to realize he’s in the mansion and not stuck in that same obsidian hellhole.

“I brought soup,” they say, finally, when Dream looks up. Dream’s lips twitch up in what he probably means as a smile; between the still-healing gashes on his face and the fear that flashes over his expression, still, it comes out as more of a grimace.

“Thanks.” Dream looks away. “I’ll eat it later.”

Liar, Punz thinks tiredly, moving closer to set the bowl down on the nightstand by the bed. They frown as Dream’s expression goes slack and distanced, again, eyes fixed to stare blankly at the wall once again.

“You should have some now,” he tries, careful to keep his words even. “You need the calories.”

“I’m good,” Dream says, automatic, just shy of sincere. “Thank you.”

“Dream,” they don’t quite succeed at keeping a displeased sigh from falling from their lungs, and bite back a curse at themselves when Dream pulls back with a silent flinch. It’s so goddamn hard, to talk to this version of Dream, both of them feeling around the edges of their relationship like walking on goddamn eggshells. A few months ago, he would’ve straight up called Dream out on his bullshit, get it through his thick skull that the whole ‘I’m fine and don’t need anyone’ act was stupid and completely failing to convince him. Here, they bite back another sigh, look forlornly at the bowl of the soup on the nightstand, sure to go uneaten once again, and force themselves to sound completely neutral when they speak again. “Alright. You’ll have to eat at some point, though.”

“Mmhm,” Dream hums noncommittally, once again staring at the wall. Punz stares at his hands. This is so fucking pointless.

“So,” they say after a few seconds, Bad’s words echoing in their head - they can try to make an effort to talk, sure. It’s just that Dream’s not going to cooperate. “How are you, man?”

The words come out stilted, awkward. He looks up to watch Dream’s expression, as the other man begins to gnaw on the inside of his cheek.

“I’m good,” he says, words deliberately light. “You?”

“Dream…”

“I’m fine.” Dream’s voice sharpens suddenly, breath hitching, before he shakes his head and turns his head away. “I’m fine.”

Punz looks at him incredulously. “Are you serious? Do we need to get into exactly how not-fine you are?” They wave a hand in his direction, jaw clenching when he rears back. “Do ‘fine’ people lose their minds from someone waving at them, now?”

“I-” For a second, Dream glares at him, eyes burning with a familiar, irritated fire that Punz knows all-too-well from having it directed at him a few too many times, before it suddenly dies and Dream is swinging his head back to the bedsheets, hands tightening on the cloth as he stammers. “I- What do you want?”

Punz breathes a soft sigh, regret blooming in the center of their chest. “Sorry,” he mumbles, careful to keep their gestures overly-telegraphed and away from the other man’s face. “I’m just- you’re not okay, man. No one’s expecting you to be okay after...all of that.”

“But why?”

Dream’s voice is small, nearly a sob, and Punz directs wide, alarmed eyes to where he’s hunched in over himself, knees pulled to his chest, hands staring at the sheets pulled over them. “Why?” he says, again, quieter, lip trembling slightly.

“Because you were tortured,” Punz begins, words slow as they watch Dream’s expression, trying to pull out the thoughts behind his averted eyes, “Because the cell was inhumane, and nobody deserves to be treated like that. Because you were hurt very, very badly because of what we did, and none of us are expecting you to be fine right after going through months of trauma.” He pauses. “You know that, right?”

“But I’m out,” Dream says, quiet, disbelieving, instead of answering their question. “I’m out of there. It’s over. It’s- everything’s good,” he whispers, more to himself than to them, hands curling into fists and then uncurling. “I’m- they said I would never get out. And I’m outside, and it’s not- not the cell, and I get real food, and Quackity doesn’t visit anymore,” he shakes his head, eyes squeezing shut as his breath catches in his throat. “I’m happy- I should be happy. Right?”

“Oh Dream,” the other man flinches back, breath quickening, and Punz’s hand stops short from where he’d almost let it fall onto the other’s shoulder. “You don’t have to be happy, man. Not- not after all of that. Not if you’re not ready yet.” Dream’s eyes, wide and wet, rise to look at their own, and they feel more than hear the soft, wounded noise that leaves their lips. “It’s ok to be hurt. It’s ok to be scared. No one’s blaming you, alright? No one’s gonna hurt you anymore.”

This, more than anything, seems to be the breaking point, because Dream collapses forward, hands flying up to pull at his tangled hair before Punz manages to ease them away and into his own hands, watching as he grips onto them until his knuckles go white. His breathing shudders, quiet, even his sobs muffled as to make as little noise as possible, and they murmur meaningless croons and hums as he cries into their chest.

“I wanna- I wanna be okay,” he hiccups, and Punz smooths his hair back behind their hand.

“I know,” he swallows around the lump that has risen in his own throat. “I’m sorry.”

[dangaer]

---- the lore rejet totally confirmed it was okay for me to post, jk.  ♥

tl;dr; despite being the second / third most powerful demon race and the main attraction for the games in the diabolik lovers world, rejet don’t choose to go too far into the details for vampire’s apart from a basic list of strengths and weaknesses, leaving a lot of blank spaces between things that might be totally okay and a bunch of vague answers as to why they are actually ... the way they are. so this is just a basic post to get into some of the more finer details about just what exactly might be involved for each of my vampire muses as i continue to explore them more in threads.

this is only part one bc ive written so much my hands are literally begging me to talk about something else so please forgive the fact ill be back to post another one day.

---- human appearances and settlement.

vampires, in general, are pretty well known by all demon species for their strength, speed, regeneration and increased senses. they’re very easy to spot because now that they’re at the top of the food chain,  they end up being able to do so much every demon can’t do. in turn, this means that despite it being the place many call home, most vampires just stick out like a sore thumb. The majority of vampires actually prefer the human realm, where no one is actively trying to look for them and find their existence easy to spot within a two mile radius. 

vampire’s also? find it a lot easier to hide on the human realm rather than on the demon realm, considering their appearance holds both human and bat-like characteristics that most humans aren’t going to find much more different than what they see day by day. many vampire’s choose younger, more athletic forms to change into ( such as karlheinz, being over 2000 years old but still looking that young:/) so that they can blend in and get around earth for much longer than the average human soul, and that usually means they have to move around without getting caught. the majority of dl confirms that both the sakamakis and mukamis spent a large portion of their youths in europe, during the time of both war and famine, however both shu and ayato have confirmed they’ve been to the north pole before, and i’m sure that’s not the only periodic trips some of the brothers have been on. considering reijis preference for pasta based dishes or the amount of perfect macarons kanato seems to eat on a daily basis. given the basis that the main assumption is that the sakamaki’s are roughly 300-400 years old, and the mukami’s are roughly 100+, there’s only one question that really remains: just how do they do it?

simply, family and appearances 

if you study the “sakamaki family tree”, you’ll notice some clear consistencies:  every set of the family has 6 brothers, three of which remain to be triplets. they all have very similar face shapes, eyes and hair colour etc. this is simply because, like all pure blooded vampires, they can change their appearance. just like regeneration, they’re able to allow their bodies to simply adapt to what they may consider a “dangerous situation” aka having someone suspect they’re actually, y’know, immortal rather than the humans they have to pretend to be in order to hide. most of the time, it’s simple changes, such as a slighter dimming of the eye colour or simply changing facial features in order to get by, but there’s a limitation that they do suffer from: family genes.

no pureblooded vampire can change a hair / eye / appearance colour if it has never been or cannot be made by the current genes within the family, simply because those are the only mutations a vampire seems to know. shu’s appearance and changes mirror those of his mother, whereas reijis genes and shifts in patterns always seem to rival ritcher ( someone who hated beatrice ) and also karlheinz himself ( if you take kino, being the only person with 100% of his DNA’s appearance into account. ) ayato, kanato and laito all predominantly take after cordelias side of the family, with ayato and laito having cordelias eyes and kanato’s purple hair baring a striking resemblance of her own ( in fact, both ayato and kanato look so alike and like her, it’s hard to really deny that they are her kids - whereas laitos facial features / expressions appear similar to those of both karlheinz and kino when placed by each other ), as well as having red hair that appears awfully on the same scheme as the orange hair their uncle shin possesses, mixed in with the darkness of perhaps karl’s shade itself. subaru also resembles a lot of his mothers appearance, but the red eyes are certainly that family trait. 

most of the time they keep their own personal preference in appearance the same at home, and to potential brides / people who are stuck in the house with them. however, to many people they will appear different - some people may know laito and ayato with purple hair, some people might recognise reiji as a blonde rather than a blackette. however, it’s a muddled memory rather than what they can confirm to be the truth. many of them try to stick to the same narratives, but there’s been more than one occasion where someone has gotten it mixed up. these are times where reiji steps in, and perhaps times where they have to consider moving again because of such a fact.

in comparison to this, impure/human turned vampires loose out on this ability, given the fact that their genes are, in fact, 100% human and therefore unlinked to the vampire prowess they now have.  their appearance changes have to be made the human way, such as dying hair and changing their routine / exercise. the only help they get from their powers is the fact that their bodies will change much quicker than a normal humans would, meaning that they can grow hair out or change facial shapes with weight in a way they can successfully confuse people with. the mukamis in particular are very averse to this, when they can get away with it, which is why their appearances don’t manage to change much. however, there has been times where some of them have cut / restyle their hair, such as yuuma going through a much longer hair period, and azusa, who refused to let his hair grow any longer than already having been done. it’s also with the help of karlheinz that they are able to get away with it more, as his involvement means his game can continue on, and therefore do they find themselves getting away with it far more often.

-- powers and weaknesses 

both pure and impure vampires have the following:

enhanced speed

enhanced strength

regenerative abilities

increased senses

pure vampires can use magic and summon familiars, making impure vampires are considered weaker in all aspects and can usually be seen as the obvious loser in most scenarios against a pureblooded vampire. however, the full moon allows both species to be able to fly and teleport, making the impure vampire’s a formidable opponent from that night at least. many fights between the two end up with no resolution as the losers can be very prone to escaping, unless they know that this fight is certainly the end of a fight. 

enhanced speed and strength. both kinds of vampires are much faster than humans, and also keep up the same kinds of speeds when racing or running against one another. however, endurance actually plays a big part in how an impure vampire and a pure vampire will race. impure vampire’s tend to hold less of it and find themselves slowing down / completing their run sooner as the body still recognises and completes human actions when asked for, such as creating a wide amount of acid in the muscles and a shortness of breath if an impure vampire is to take too long. impure vampires, on the whole, do end up running faster and can last much longer in a race than most humans do, and therefore it can take a long time to tell the difference between each kind of vampire alone. strength remains very similar in this category, as pure vampires are inherently more strong than impure vampires, who are in turn much more stronger than the actual human. however, impure vampires earn their strength more like a human as they do have to train a lot more to gain their strength. this is also affected by just what / how much they eat, as yuuma himself proves by his very own kind of diet. 

regenerative abilities. impure vampires are easier to kill as they are considered much weaker than pure vampires, meaning their regeneration speed and skills are far more slower, while pure vampire’s main cause of death is due to having their head cut off, or receiving life threatening injuries to the point where they might not be able to regenerate fast enough. both kinds of vampire have a particularly harsh aversion to anything made out of silver or containing vampire venom, whether that’d be pure or impure, and these wounds take much more time to go away than on the average. the regeneration ability is pretty much immediate once a vampire is wounded, which is why it becomes so hard to catch them. however, if the item theyre hurt with remains lodged in, and is unable to be pushed out by the body, unfortunately this can put a vampire’s life in peril. the first thing you’ll notice a wounded vampire do is pull the item out or protect their neck, opening themselves up to a weakness they’ll very easily try their best to defend. regenerative abilities are also affected by vampire moods, so it’s recommended best to catch them when they’re least expecting it; shock and sadness can ultimately render a vampire too stumped to be able to perform such a feat. just like humans, they also go into coma’s if the strength is considered just way, way too much.

increased senses. one of their biggest pros and worst cons at the same time, vampires particularly have the ability to be more sensitive to smells, vision and hearing of those around them. it’s particularly easy for a vampire to tell who’s approaching them by little ticks alone: the way someone may be more heavy footed, the personal smell of their blood or a spot out of the corner of their eye of an unique hair colour enough to give them plenty of forewarning if the person is someone they can cope with right now or not. if something is even moved slightly to the left by even the wind, it’s a vampire who will notice this first, which in turn has made many of them rather particular in what they regard to eat, drink or see.  a lot of the sakamaki’s, for example, can only eat dishes a certain way, otherwise will need to be fed by a certain person so that they can balance such dissatisfaction from their lives, whereas the mukamis like to remain completely in control in what they digest, with yuuma and ruki being in control of both the ingredients and dishes they make: however, they tend to have less of a particularity, due to the childhood they grew up in. food and households that becomes slightly aggravating is still much better than the life they lived before, after all. 

one thing that separates impure vampires and pure vampires is that pure vampires can go even further with the ability to tell someone’s emotions when close enough to them, being practically in their space. a general rule of thumb seems to be that cordelia’s children themselves prefer the sweeter taste of more positive emotions ( including but not limited to: happiness, enjoyment, pleasure, love as well as the strong taste of someone who has hope of escaping / getting out of this situation ) whereas beatrix’s two end up preferring much more of the negative / bitter emotions ( fear, pain and the sudden realisation of what nightmare you’ve gotten yourself into being some of their main interests. ) however, in terms of blood types, they don’t seem to have a particular favourite. vampires tend to mix up a lot of their romantic feelings with what they think of blood, due to their complicated history with humans, and therefore find their interest of the two blending a lot more than it actually is.

the unfortunate thing about these increased senses, is the wide amount of weaknesses it can cause a vampire. while impure vampire’s can live in the sun for free no problem, many pure vampires run the risk of being almost blind out in the sun: their vision is generally blury and they tend to rely a lot on the sounds / smells and touch of those around them, unwilling to even consider going out unless it is the mid afternoon for the most part. as well as this, all vampire’s run the risk of two type’s of overstimulation: senses overstimulation and human overstimulation.

general overstimulation is very similar to most people’s sensory overloads, where a vampire will feel more irritable, much more easily provoked and run the risk of wanting to run out of a situation, despite having teleportation / flying abilities, it is noted that many of them generally choose not to use this as their brains cannot process that fact. an overstimulated vampire will find their way out of a situation and wish to cover their ears / eyes from such a sound. if related to their trauma, it shows itself far more longer than usual. if comforting a vampire from this situation, the best course of responce is to get them to focus on something that’s on you. such as eyes, fingers, heartbeats ( if applicable )

human overstimulation is a much more dangerous side, and mainly provoked in newly born vampire’s in situations such as concerts, sports events or other areas where wide groups come together to celebrate, however can be shown in vampires who clearly haven't fed enough or those close to becoming more hungry. human overstimulation shows with the trembling of a vampires hands, the increase of length in their fangs and a certain glow in their eyes, rendering the vampire to become almost powerless to show their actual form. when this is provoked ... the only way to calm a vampire is by giving them blood, either human or vampire if the situation deems it fit.

vampire powers are generally powered by the amount of blood or nutrients in a vampires body, however there are certain exceptions, such as the vampire king or founders, who tend to show that certain blood lines are allowed more power and can do things much simpler than the average vampire can. there are also certain myths and rumours about vampires, in which make others believe certain vampires are much more stronger than others due to the traits they exhibit, and therefore family dynamics ( i.e: the sakamaki triplets ) do get played or messed around with for this.

when vampires drink the blood of certain individuals, or complete certain legacies, they’re able to gain either a long term or short term burst of powers. this type of blood is also very easy for them to recognise, as it holds a different taste or smell to them. 

[spaceshipkat]

part 2 of my Rea///lm Brea///ker recap will cover chapters 9 - 16

part 1 covering the prologue - chapter 8 can be found here

chapter 9: in Dom's POV, the chapter begins with Dom seeing a lot of Cortael in Corayne. Old Cor humans are born of travel and crossing, conquest and voyage. Corayne haggles for three horses in the stable in Lemarta. the trader seems nervous around Dom. Corayne bargains for the horses--two stallions and a mare--to be sold at half price. their destination is only a few days' ride away. Corayne says merchants are easier to work with when they're scared and Dom is surprised and feels self-conscious over the fact the merchant was scared of him. he looks over himself and his weapons and supposes he can understand why he might look scary. Corayne's clothes look old and threadbare, and she only carries an old dagger. Corayne says Dom's scowl could be handy on the road, and he asks if she expects trouble. Corayne says she doesn't suppose bandits will bother Dom much, and he asks if it's bc he's intimidating, and she nods. Dom tells us she has Cortael's eyes. Dom wonders why he doesn't intimidate a captain to sail them to Ascal rather than riding. Corayne says that, frightening as he may be, her mom is more feared in the water here. Dom realizes that Corayne is not used to riding on horseback and knows it'll make the trip even slower. Corayne says they'll take their chances in Lecorra, which is ten times larger than Lemarta, and Corayne isn't as known there. Sorasa says that she prefers horses to boats, startling Corayne as she emerges from the trees. Dom tells Sorasa that she doesn't have to come if it's "such an inconvenience." Sorasa said she learned long ago to not trust men's word, even that of immortal men, and since she has an investment in this she'll see it through since the deal was to Ascal. Dom knows Sorasa is a risk to have around, especially since she doesn't care for Corayne or the Ward, so it'd be better to leave her behind or kill her. they have a stare-off that ends with Dom saying "very well". Sorasa mounts a stallion and Dom says she'll lead. Dom promises to himself, the Ward, etc that Corayne will not suffer Cortael's fate. after a page break, it's nightfall and they're far enough inland that Dom can't hear the waves. Sorasa is a good travel companion. they eat while they ride, though Dom isn't hungry. eventually Corayne starts to droop from sleepiness, and Dom rides alongside her in case he needs to catch her, and Sorasa suggest they stop to rest themselves and the horses for the night. Dom doesn't want to stop, wants to push the horses through the night, and says that Corayne is resting now and that he doesn't intend to keep Sorasa upright, and Sorasa says that if he touches her she will cut off his hands. Dom says that mortals have a different sense of humor than immortals. Corayne is asleep in the saddle. again, Dom thinks about how much Corayne reminds him of Cortael, though thinking about Cortael hurts. Dom decides they'll stop before a hill and Sorasa says they should stop at the top of it so they don't get caught on low ground, and Dom says they won't get caught at all but also feels doubt in his conviction, though he reasons that Taristan and Ronin won't be looking all over for Corblood. Dom says he'll keep watch and Sorasa says that isn't a comfort to her. after another page break, we get more world-building description, this time of mountains. "The Corborn mortals of another realm had first come to Allward somewhere in this golden valley, stepping through a Spindle to build their empire." Sorasa sleeps upright and opens her eyes every twenty minutes to check on Dom. while Corayne and Sorasa sleep, Dom eats, "if only to pass the time". he eats a rabbit raw and Corayne asks if that'll make him sick, to which he says "We do not get sick." she says they don't sleep either and sits up, and Dom doesn't mind her curiosity. he says they don't sleep as much as mortals do. she points out they don't age and he says "after a fashion". he thinks about how they just live a long life, not that they're wholly immortal. "Death avoids us, but it is not a stranger."

Corayne says it's a good thing that there aren't more of them or his kind would conquer the world, and he says that's a very mortal impulse to have. Dom does know of immortals who dabbled with mortals, either for or against them, though it seems strange for his people nowadays. he says his people are more focused on finding their way home since the location of the last Spindle was destroyed and is now under the Long Sea. Corayne says his realm must be magnificent, and he says he supposes but he's Wardborn, young amongst his people, and what he knows of the old realm came from others. he says "They are whole while I am not," and Corayne says she supposes they have that in common, and he asks her what she means. she says she only knows about her dad and Corblood from what others have told her, and what they've told her is very little. Dom realizes Corayne is interrogating him. Dom knows the wound won't heal if he keeps prodding it, but he doesn't want to forget Cortael and does want to tell Corayne about him. here's a little more info on what it means to have Corblood. Corayne asks if immortals can bleed or love, since her dad had no love for her and someone must have taught him that, and Dom says that every creature in any realm can love. Dom says he loves her father like a son, was there for his first steps, tooth, word. he tells Corayne to go back to sleep. Dom smells smoke somewhere nearby, though it's not woodsmoke or a brush fire, but "the charring of flesh". Dom tells Corayne to get up and Sorasa to get the horses. Sorasa heads to the treeline but pauses, withdrawing her sword, and backs away from the forest as Dom moves in front of Corayne. Dom doesn't need to see to know what she saw, only wonders how many, and how Taristan could have found them. corpses weave up the hill. Dom knows they could run but they wouldn't make it far without the horses, still in the forest. Sorasa asks Dom if the corpses can be killed, and he says yes. Sorasa and Dom both attack, though the corpses do something different after being cut. the corpses Dom cuts, too, also disappear into smoke. the corpses flee. Dom waits for Taristan to appear, but he doesn't. Sorasa asks what that was and Dom doesn't know and opens his mouth to say so only to vomit.

chapter 10: in Corayne's POV, Corayne hears a voice that says "this is your fate" and "it does not wait". Corayne thinks she's dreaming again bc the corpses are what she sees in her dream. then she sees Sorasa and Dom and realizes it wasn't a dream. Sorasa instructs both Dom and Corayne how to calm down. Corayne wonders if that's what Dom fought at the temple. Dom says “They are of the Ashlands, a burned realm, cracked with Asunder, consumed by the hell of What Waits. They serve Him, and they serve your uncle, Taristan.” Sorasa assumes they didn't turn to smoke at the temple and Dom says they didn't. Dom says that these must have been a vision, or shades, or a projection of what can come from the Spindle, the work of Taristan's wizard or perhaps of What Waits, and that they must know Corayne lives and are searching for her. Corayne says they need to keep moving and starts collecting her things. Sorasa goes to collect the horses and Corayne tells Dom she dreamed of the corpses. she describes her dream, not just the corpses but a presence watching her, and Dom says it's What Waits. Sorasa says this is a Spindlerotten contract, but Corayne isn't concerned bc her mom says the same thing about missions and always goes on them anyway for the thrill of danger and risk and also a reward at the end of it. Corayne wonders who whispers to her and wonders if she'll die before she finds out. after a page break, they're on a ship and Corayne looks at Lecorra. Corayne feels her ancestors here. Corayne looks at all the ships in the harbor and wonders if her mom knows she's gone yet, if she'll turn back to find her. sailors prep the ship to take them to Ascal. Corayne realizes this is what freedom feels like, and Sorasa comments that she looks like a horse who jumped the pen. Corayne shrugs and says she wants to see Lecorra while she can. Corayne recognizes that Sorasa must be shaken by the corpses, too. Corayne asks if Sorasa has ever seen anything like them before, and Sorasa says she's seen many things that would terrify most people--monsters and men, but mostly men. Corayne says "so that's a no" and Sorasa says the Corayne is a long way from safe harbor with only farther to go. Corayne says that Sorasa is a long way from home, too. Sorasa says that Corayne should check on Dom. Corayne says she doesn't like the way Dom looks at her, bc he sees her dad, failure, and death. Sorasa says she supposes an Elder wouldn't be used to seeing those things. Corayne says she supposes he sees Taristan, too, and that she didn't know she looked so similar to them. Corayne says she belongs nowhere, and Sorasa says there are a lot of people like that, and that nowhere is still somewhere. Corayne says that's foolish, and Sorasa says that if people don't belong anywhere, perhaps those people belong to each other. Sorasa says she never knew her parents and only knows where they came from. Corayne asks if the Guild is Sorasa's family, and Sorasa's smirk turns cruel before she says they aren't. neither speaks again as the ship leaves harbor. Corayne doesn't pay the other passengers much attention, but Sorasa eyes them all. at dusk, Sorasa straightens at the sight of a Jydi passenger, an old woman who sells feathers, yellowed bones, and dried lavender, or charms and wishes, and Corayne says "no interest" in Jydi. the woman smiles wider as she comes closer and says "No price, no price. A gift from the ice" in Paramount. Sorasa moves between them and says "No need, grandmother," and tells the woman to return to her bench. Corayne says it's fine and accepts "a twist of blue-grey twigs" tied with twine and catgut and trailing beads that might be pearl or bone. the woman says "Gods bless you, Spindles keep you" and Sorasa takes the bundle, sniffs and licks it, then nods and says "Gods bless" to the woman. the woman leaves and Sorasa says it's not poisoned. Corayne asks if guard duty is part of Sorasa's contract, and Sorasa says she was paid to get Corayne to Ascal alive. Corayne says she hopes Sorasa charged a lot for the task and Sorasa says she did.

Corayne realizes the beads are human finger bones carved into skulls. after a page break, nearly a week has passed and Dom emerges from the cabin he was hiding in for the voyage. Corayne feels a little seasick by the end. Corayne gapes at the size of Ascal, which is larger than she thought a city could be. Corayne knows this was a Cor city once but isn't sure how she knows that, though Dom doesn't have an answer. Sorasa explains it was destroyed and rebuilt a dozen times, from Lascalla to Ascal, and is the great successor to Old Cor. she can't see the palace and assumes it must be deep within the city, walled and protected. Sorasa tells Corayne to brace herself for the smell. Sorasa explains Wayfarer's Port is where everyone journeying by water goes when in Ascal. Corayne asks where the palace is bc she doesn't suppose they can just walk up to the gates and ask to speak to a squire. Dom says he doesn't think they can, and Sorasa says that if anyone can it's an Elder prince. Dom says he didn't suffer a week below deck to be spotted now. Dom says that Taristan knows Andry escaped and could now be watching the palace and queen. Corayne says Taristan could have the sword already and all this would have been for nothing, and Dom tells her not to think like this. Corayne says she does and Dom says that the alternative is to accept the realm is doomed. Corayne remembers her dream and the corpses that attacked. Dom asks what Sorasa thinks they should do now, Sorasa says they should bribe a guard at the kitchen gate, and Dom asks for something less conspicuous. Corayne tells Dom he'll have to give Sorasa more money if he wants her to get him into the palace. Dom says he's paid enough and that they'll find their own way. Corayne says “Enjoy watching us blunder our way toward what could be the end of Allward, for the sake of your pride and few more coins to rub together while the realm crumbles" and Sorasa says "Well, when you put it that way" and starts away and Corayne pulls Dom after her, following her through the crowds. Sorasa tells them to keep up and calls Corayne a "meddling monkey" in her language. Sorasa is startled when Corayne translates it and asks if Corayne knows her language, and Corayne tells her not to worry bc she won't tell Dom what Sorasa called him. Dom says he doesn't care about a murderer's opinion. Corayne thinks he might care bc Sorasa called him a stupid, stubborn ass, though Corayne admits her translation could be wrong bc the words for "stupid" and "handsome" are similar.

chapter 11: back in Sorasa's POV, she doesn't want to still be there with Corayne and Dom, but finds herself doing so anyway. Corayne's words about Allward's end stick with her, as do the corpses they fought earlier. she's seen a lot of people die in a lot of ways and done so many times herself, but nothing has bothered her as much as the corpses. Sorasa knows how to get to the palace without being seen, since that's what Dom wants. Corayne gawks as they walk but people shout at Dom. Sorasa notes that the Galland port is a poor imitation of those in Ibal and Rhashir, which can hold much more than Galland. we get a lot of worldbuilding details. Corayne continues to gape while Dom glares and Sorasa agrees bc she doesn't think Ascal is all that great either. as they approach the palace--which is described in great detail but neither Sorasa nor Corayne like it--Dom notes that the bridge to it is too full of knights, and Sorasa says she doesn't intend to go across the bridge. Corayne points out that there must be a tunnel or something below them, and Sorasa says "yes" bc there used to be a colosseum and it had a lot of underground tunnels. after a page break, Corayne and Dom complain about the stink of the tunnels. Dom sees something in the tunnel, Corayne asks what it is while grabbing her knife (which Sorasa notes she clearly doesn't know how to use based on her grip), and Dom says "you'll see." they come across a gate and Sorasa says she has a trick that's large and annoying and turns to Dom, who sneers and spouts that she's the one who brought them to a locked gate, and she points out that it's a locked gate soon to be opened and remembers how he caught the bull in Byllskos.

chapter 12: back in Erida's POV, she tells us she knows why her "future husband" demands roses, and tells us how important roses are and how numerous they are in the palace. there's a feast being prepared and preparations for something that has yet to be named. tonight she's wearing red, "to please her future consort". Erida notes that her ladies are nervous, but she hasn't told her ladies who she's chosen to wed because she doesn't trust her ladies thanks to their backgrounds and families. only the council know who she's marrying and they've been sworn to secrecy, and appear to have kept that promise. Erida knows she chose the right man but still worries. Konegin finds her as she's walking. Konegin says he's glad to have found her before everything starts, and Erida talks about what's already begun (mostly drinking, it seems), and then Konegin says he wishes he could have seen more of her betrothed. Erida says that he spends most of his time in the archives. Konegin wonders if he's a student of history and Erida says that he wants to learn everything he can about Galland before the wedding. Konegin says he regrets swearing the oath to her father that Erida would choose her husband. Erida is angry but knows that punishing Konegin for speaking against her dad and therefore the crown and Erida herself would only bring bad things, since he's got more people loyal to him than Erida does. Erida says she knows Konegin thinks her choice is too lowborn but she chose for the right reasons. Konegin says he believes in flesh and blood, and Erida says she does too but points out that Konegin has never been in favor of any names presented for her to marry, no matter their wealth or standing. she tells him to present a suitor or accept who she has chosen. Konegin finally grinds out that his son is unwed, and Erida isn't surprised but knows she'd never marry him, though marrying him would keep him from ever taking the crown. Erida says he must have hundreds of women asking to marry him, and Konegin says he does, but he would marry Erida for the good of Galland. Erida enters the antechambers and says that it's good Konegin's son won't have to make such a sacrifice, then. her knights surround her and she tells Konegin to enjoy the feast.

chapter 13: in Corayne's POV now, they continue through the tunnels after Dom broke down the gate. they reach a staircase and Dom tells Sorasa to go first. Sorasa says that Andry would be in the east wing, as he's the son of a lady, and that it's not far. Sorasa says that Corayne needs to go first bc she can pass as a kitchen maid--though Corayne points out that she's not dressed like one, to which Sorasa says she's a young girl so no one will look twice. Corayne isn't sure she can do it, Dom starts to speak, and Sorasa cuts him off to tell Corayne that she's a ship's agent for one of the most notorious pirates and also that pirate's daughter, so she must have steel in her spine somewhere. they leave the staircase, walk through an undercroft of some sort, and stop at a staircase with a door at the top. Sorasa puts her ear to it, but Dom moves her out of the way bc he can hear better, and she says she's killed men for less, to which Dom says she's welcome to try. Dom says the room and passage beyond are empty, and a guard is making his rounds above them. he then says that the spying should be left to him from now on. Sorasa says she'll soon be gone, so long as Dom holds up his end of the bargain, and Dom says it'll be upheld. Sorasa opens the door, and as they walk Corayne starts to create a story in her mind about her kitchen maid status. at an archway, Dom says servants are beyond, so Corayne goes out with her story of being a kitchen maid. two maids are picking red roses and say they hope that Corayne has been sent to help. Corayne says she has a letter for Valeri Trelland, and one maid thinks she's dead, but the other maid says no, she's just sick. the maid points Corayne in the right direction. Dom and Sorasa are waiting for her. Dom and Corayne hesitate at the door, and Corayne wonders if they should knock. Dom turns to Sorasa and finds she's vanished, so Dom knocks and says he hopes the tunnels will collapse on her. Andry answers the door, and Corayne is surprised to find that the squire is a boy near her age, since she'd imagined a man. Corayne says "You're Andry Trelland" and he says yes, and she must be new to the palace, and then Dom steps into view and Andry catches the door bc he's surprised that Dom is alive but seems pleased. after a page break, Andry is holding Cortael's sword and Corayne stares at it. Andry and Dom finish their conversation and then Andry says the sword is Corayne's and holds it out to her. Valeri says that it sounds like Corayne will need the sword after she seems afraid to take it, and then Corayne takes it. Andry says that the Companions of the Realm live on, that their quest is simply unfinished. Dom says that's one perspective, since two of them live on, and Corayne says "There are three now" and Dom seems sad but says "Very well." Andry says more will join them soon, that he's told the queen and she's done nothing but now with Corayne and Dom she won't have a choice. Andry says he'll help, he swears it, after he brings his mother to Nkonabo. Dom says that Andry doesn't have to do that, but Andry says it's his duty bc his lord has fallen and he must avenge him. Corayne says he should stay with his mother and protect her, and Andry says he will, but he's a Companion and thus has a duty to fill. Valeri agrees and says they'll leave tonight. Valeri tells Andry he should go to the queen right now before everyone's too swept up in the festivites, and Andry explains the wedding when Corayne asks what's going on. Corayne says that the quest certainly takes precedence, and maybe the queen will use it as an excuse to delay the wedding if she's reluctant to get married, and Andry grins at Corayne and says that might work. Corayne says the queen will listen as Dom's queen did not, and Dom says that mortals are hot-blooded and prone to quick anger, which has been a bane these past centuries but might be a boon now. Corayne thinks about how Dom seems like a pot set to a low boil all the time, but says that she doesn't know how she's going to carry the sword (it's more than half her length in

height).

chapter 14: Ridha's POV begins with her riding hard and cursing Sirandel in many languages. evidently, the Sirandel monarch said he wouldn't be joining Ridha since her mother is wise and they'll follow her guidance. she regrets sending Dom off alone bc he's probably not clear-headed after what happened in the prologue. as Ridha rides, a figure appears and she knows it's her mother. she tells Ridha to come home, since the Sirandels have refused and the others will too. Ridha won't bc the Sirandels are only one group of immortals in the Ward. she knows the Spindle isn't far from where she is and wonders if Taristan is still there. after a page break, the Castlewood ends sooner than Ridha was expecting and she can hear mills nearby, processing the trees that were cut down. once, the Castlewood had been full of Spindles. Ridha won't ride her horse to death bc it's unlikely she'd find another sand mare and Gallish ponies are slow and fat. Ridha stops at an inn and gives a silver coin to the two children who come out to stable her horse, and then goes inside and rents a room for the night. she leaves her belongings in the room, but keeps a dagger and her jewelry, and then finds herself going back downstairs to the common room where she orders an ale and a meal. she thinks about where she should go next while she eats. Ridha overhears a conversation between two men about Queen Erida's wedding, though they wonder who she's marrying, and then think that Ridha might know who the queen is marrying. one of the men asks Ridha if she knows who the queen is marrying, and she says "I beg your pardon?" and they repeat the question and she asks which queen, and one of the men is surprised there's more than one queen but the other says Queen Erida, and Ridha says she doesn't know much about her. both men scoff bc Erida has been queen for four years now. the barmaid comes out to clear the table and draw the men's attention away from Ridha while she clears plates. Ridha feels off-balance bc she, too, is a princess and her people, too, need heirs. she thinks her mom won't force her to marry who she doesn't want to, and then wonders if that's true, and then gets angry over Sirandel again. the men start talking about someone else, and that that someone else named Old Joe/Joeld says that the Watchful Sea (the sea north of Galland) has been quiet, no raiders of any kind. the men say that if the Jydi raiders aren't raiding, someone else could do it and make it look like raiders: raiders blamed, they "come home rich". Ridha asks if Old Joe knows why there haven't been any raiders, and they say no. one asks why it matters to her, and she says that if the Jydi, strong fighters as they are, aren't raiding, there must be a reason. the Jydi haven't forgotten Vederans/Elders bc their riches are too tempting. Ridha herself had fought Jydi raiders before. Ridha returns to her room, and past midnight the two men try to rob her, but she tosses them out the window. the innkeeper and his wife try to rob her next, though the wife seems reluctant. she lets the innkeeper's axe glance off her armor, then warns him against robbing travelers in his inn, especially women. she tosses him out the closed window so the glass shatters. the next morning, her sand mare Nirez is well taken care of and Ridha sets out to ride north to Jydi.

chapter 15: in Corayne's POV, a bell tolls and Dom falters, clearly remembering the tolling bell in the Spindle. Andry says he's fine. Corayne wears the sword across her back since it's too long to sit at her hip. she hides it under her cloak. the guards know Andry and nod at him as they pass. at the end of a long hall, Andry opens a door into the queen's feast and waves Corayne in, saying the queen will listen. Dom follows, drawing eyes for his size and appearance. the queen is on a dais with a dozen other people. Corayne expects the queen to be "easy prey" and look like the wealth of Galland. instead, she's young and pretty. the queen notices Corayne, Dom, and Andry, and then stands up and tells her knights to let them pass. Andry bows. the queen says she's glad to see Andry feasting with them after so long in mourning, and wonders if his mom will join them. he says his mother still isn't well enough to join them, but says the queen would do well to hear what they have to say, and clarifies in private. Konegin says that Erida can't just leave a betrothal feast, especially since her betrothed hasn't even arrived yet, and Erida says it can wait a few minutes bc she trusts Andry. Corayne finally blurts that this is important, that Galland and the entire realm depend on her, and Erida looks at Andry, then says all right and leads them away.

six knights flank Erida and she ignores the murmuring from the hall. Erida leads them to a private room and the guards don't stay after Erida waves them off with a pointed glance at the door. Erida says she's already heard this story twice from Andry so she might as well hear it from Corayne and Dom. Dom speaks first, telling her who he is and what happened, and says he hopes it's not too late to stop Taristan. Erida nods at Dom, then looks to Corayne and asks if she survived as well. Corayne says she wasn't there, privately wishes she could give the Spindleblade to anyone else, and then tells the queen that her dad was at the Spindle, and he's Cortael. the queen looks Corayne over, eyes widening, and Corayne wonders if Erida can see "the Spindle in" her. Erida says that it's Corayne and her blood that can fix this, and Corayne says yes. Erida says that Taristan has an army and she doubts the three of them can face it alone. Corayne says they can't, that she's only seen shadows of the army but they were enough. Erida says that it depends on her, then, her armies and blood, and Dom says "It does". Corayne says that, if it helps, a war could stop or delay a wedding, and Erida smiles and says if only that were the case. she apologizes to Andry for doubting him and not acting sooner. she says before she couldn't believe it, that lying to the court seemed safer, but with the three of them there and trails off. Corayne sees the girl behind the crown falter. Erida says she sees the truth of Andry's words now, and he says thank you. she claps her hands, the knights outside the door open it, and she says "Well, let's get on with it" and leads the way out. Corayne feels "hopeful—optimistic, even," as she has a queen on her side and Dom there to protect her. Erida falls into step beside Corayne and says "So, Spindleblood. A descendant of Old Cor." Corayne says "don't remind me," which causes Erida to laugh, and Erida says, “We don’t choose what we’re born to, Corayne," and “We can only walk the path put in front of us.” Corayne says she's not sure why her path had to include the end of the world, and Erida says that at least they're walking it together. she says she believes in Corayne, and supposes it's her eyes, something in her ancestry and legacy. Corayne says she wouldn't know, and Erida adds that it could also be the Spindleblood, and looks at Corayne's hip, then her back and the cloak, and has a "knowing smile". she asks Corayne to confirm she has it, and Corayne does so.

back in the chamber where they're holding the feast, Erida climbs onto the dais, and here's an excerpt of Erida's part in this scene. during Erida's speech, Andry seems nervous, sweat on his upper lip and shallow breaths, so Corayne tells him it will be all right, and that no one will blame him for leaving to take his mother to Nkonabo. Andry says he thought he heard Erida ask Corayne about the Spindleblade. Corayne says yes, and Andry grips her hand, eyes never leaving Erida, and says he never told Erida about the Spindleblade with terror on his face. terror strikes Corayne next, and then Dom grips her shoulder and displays the same. the knights tighten their formation around Corayne, Dom, and Andry. the queen basks in the attention of her court and two silhouettes appear beyond Erida on the dais. a knight stabs Dom in the side with a dagger, and Corayne wants to scream but a knight presses a dagger to her ribs and orders her to keep quiet. then Taristan walks out, as explained in the excerpt above, to be revealed as Erida's betrothed. the court applauds and Corayne stares at him. Taristan barely acknowledges the court, simply gives them a nod, before looking directly at Dom, Corayne, and Andry. Corayne notes their eyes are the same, but his have something else in them, and realizes it's What Waits, staring out of Taristan's eyes. beside him is Ronin, though Corayne calls him Red (she doesn't know his name Ronin), and he's skeletal with white skin, blond hair, and "pale red eyes ringed with pink flesh". he opens his mouth and inhales, and Corayne feels "a clawing heat pull over her, prodding at her exposed skin." she's frozen in place, thinks that Red/Ronin is ready to eat her whole. Taristan goes down the table on the dais with one hand extended, pleased with everyone greeting him, kissing his knuckles or touching his fingers, "pledging allegiance, paying fealty, congratulating him on the good match." it's only Konegin who hesitates but he does take Taristan's hand. Taristan, however, doesn't look away from Corayne. she can barely breathe and trembles, and he stops before her to stare down at her menacingly. Erida watches, head held high, clearly no fear or regret in her over the man she chose to marry. Taristan tears off Corayne's cloak. Corayne tries to back away but the dagger the knight holds digs into her, and so she tells Taristan to get away from her. Dom says he'll kill Taristan. Taristan muses that Dom is so eager to repeat his mistakes. he then grabs Corayne's neck, his back to the rest of the court, so it won't look like he's threatening anyone or the knights are stabbing anyone. Taristan asks Dom if he should kill Corayne in front of him, too. Corayne wants to spit at him or struggle but finds her mouth dry and her mind empty of options, since there's no preparing for this kind of situation. she tells Taristan to get away, hands balling into fists, but Red/Ronin's magic is washing over her. Taristan shakes his head, keeps his hold on Corayne's throat, and reaches for the Spindleblade, saying it doesn't belong to her. she feels something break in her, "snapping clean," and feels a rush of cold push away the heat (idk what heat), and she reaches into her pocket for the Jydi charm she got on the ship, even though she doesn't know why she's reaching for it. she looks into Taristan's eyes and sees "flecks of crimson in them, scattered like blood around the iris," but he's not looking at her but at the sword as he slowly pulls it from the sheath, mouth moving around soundless words as he reads the runes on the blade. Corayne drags the Jydi charm with its branches down Taristan's face, he howls and leaps back while the sword slips back into its sheath, and Corayne expects to be stabbed, but instead the knight with the dagger against her ribs cries out as a golden gorget covers his throat. Dom and Andry leap into action, creating a "a hole in the Queen’s guard, even while the hall exploded in confusion and chaos." the queen shouts, Taristan fights to his feet, Red/Ronin sweeps across the dais, and Corayne nearly

faints but then someone grabs her and shouts at her to run, the voice familiar. Corayne starts to flee, and someone shoves her through the door at the side of the dais, though Corayne thinks there's no point running with the sheer number of guards. then one of the chandeliers crashes to the ground, crushing a few armored men. then all the chandeliers fall in a wave, one even landing on the dais and crushing the table. Corayne pauses to look for a sign that Erida was crushed, but Andry yanks her onward. Sorasa is last through the door and bars it behind them, and then looks over all three of them with a dagger dripping blood in hand before wondering if she has to do everything around here.

chapter 16: we're in Sorasa's POV now as she leaves the palace (we're apparently jumping a bit back in time, to after she leaves Dom and Corayne outside Andry's rooms), paid well by Dom. she sneaks into an apartment to change clothes even as she tries to forget the night the corpses attacked her, Dom, and Corayne. she tells herself that saving the world isn't her business as an assassin. she dresses in a gown, though she keeps her leather leggings and boots, hidden beneath the skirts. she knows she can pass as a lady's maid with her hair down. it's curiosity that leads Sorasa through the palace in a winding way toward the great hall where the feast is taking place. she's surprised by how easy it is to go through the palace unacknowledged, and figures that's why the Amhara assassins are often women. Sorasa looks into the great hall and notes how easy it would be to kill Erida up there on the dais. she walks to a gallery above the great hall. Sorasa wonders if Mercury knows who the queen is marrying. Sorasa thinks about how the leash Mercury has on her (and all assassins) chafes, even as she enjoys his favor, and loves and hates his attention. on the balcony opposite Sorasa's own, she sees two people and we get more description of Taristan and Red/Ronin. Sorasa recognizes Red/Ronin as a dedicant of Syrek, the god of destruction and creation, conquest and peace, a patron of Galland. neither notice Sorasa, but she feels icy dread looking at them. she tries to figure out who Red/Ronin is and what his purpose here is, considering the possibility he's another assassin from Amhara or perhaps another guild, or perhaps he's a spy, or even just a simple cutthroat. Sorasa watches Dom, Andry, and Corayne approach the queen, though she can't hear them. Sorasa wants Corayne and Dom to tell the queen about the corpses they fought and about Dom's scars, and then the man we know is Taristan but Sorasa doesn't says "Domacridhan", angrily. everything in Sorasa tells her to run. Taristan tells Ronin to look at Dom's face bc he thought Elders were supposed to heal, and Ronin says they do when cut with weapons of the Ward, but the Spindleblade, and weapons blessed by What Waits, are different and are why the Elders fear them and hide. Sorasa prepares to run. Taristan says that Corayne looks like him, like his brother, and Sorasa is glad that Dom is at least with her, since six knights against an Elder are nothing, and he's survived worse, and then Sorasa wonders what if he doesn't succeed, bc then Andry and Corayne will be easily killed, and the Ward doomed. Taristan says, "I must say, I'm still shocked she agreed to this." Sorasa thinks about how she can escape. Ronin says, "Ambition is in her blood." Ronin then says that it's good they found her "before the other could" and Taristan says it was a choice they didn't need to make bc "the witch" isn't with his niece. Ronin says, “Even so, we have a strong ally in the Queen of Galland. Corayne of Old Cor will be dead soon, and of no consequence any longer.” Sorasa takes her chance and looks around the pillar she's hiding behind and sees Taristan, and thinks that Corayne does look like him. Taristan says that if Corayne has his brother's blade, they just need to take it and lock her away, and Ronin says that dying now is a mercy rather than waiting for What Waits, and then says they should let the Elder live and watch. they laugh and Sorasa thinks she should run again, and gives herself five seconds of fear and indecision:

Her breath hissed through her nose, coming out hard between her teeth. One. Taristan was the Queen’s chosen. Two. Her army would protect his Spindle, the passage spewing a sea of corpses. Three. No kingdom could stand against Taristan and Erida, not alone. Four. Sorasa Sarn was no one. There was nothing she could do about the great dealings of the world. Five.

she walks to the edge of the gallery, where she can see the door that Erida led Corayne and co through. she cuts a square of cloth from her dress, and only her black powder remains after she used her "common powders" in Byllskos. she pours it onto the center of the square of cloth from the dress, makes a pouch, and ties the corners tightly but leaves one length of cloth free. below, Erida, Corayne, Dom, and Andry return, and Erida gives her speech. Sorasa uses her flint and steel to light the corner of the fabric containing the black powder. Sorasa throws the pouch with the powder at the chain holding the chandeliers. as Taristan enters, Sorasa wants the powder to do its job now, prays to ever deity she can think of to make the powder do its job now, but it doesn't. at the bottom of the stairs up to the gallery, she slows and grabs a flagon of wine to blend in, moving toward the dais. Sorasa takes note of Corayne and Dom, recognizing Dom is in a lot of pain. Taristan approaches Corayne. Corayne slashes Taristan's face with the Jydi charm. Sorasa attacks the first Lionguard, and then stabs the knight who has the dagger against Corayne's ribs. Sorasa tells Corayne to run. the powder finally explodes and the chandeliers begin to fall. the four (Sorasa, Andry, Corayne, and Dom) escape through the door by the dais as chaos overtakes the great hall. the dagger is still in Dom's side, and Andry tears off some cloth from his coat to hold to the wound. the door is already being pounded on. Sorasa asks Dom if he can run. he says it's nothing, that the Vedera heal quickly, and then pulls the dagger free even as Sorasa snaps at him not to. blood pours freely and Dom says "oh" and falls, though Corayne catches him. Sorasa says she can't believe being alive for 1,000 years and still being so stupid, and Dom says 500, and she says regardless, he's still bleeding to death. Sorasa grabs any cloth she can to shove into the wound to staunch the bleeding. Sorasa asks if he has any more brilliant ideas, and he abruptly stands over her, shirtless, and says "run". Sorasa says there's no way out, that she can get herself out but not the rest of them. Corayne snaps "well that's helpful" and the door continues to be pounded on. Andry approaches the window and looks out at the hedge maze beyond, and says they should try Syrekom. Sorasa scoffs "the cathedral?" and points out that claiming sanctuary only works in stories, not real life. there are few guards outside, and none in the hedge maze. Andry repeats "Syrekom" and says he can take them through the maze and hopes they can all swim. Sorasa eyes Dom, whose breaths come in "short, beleaguered gasps", and he says he learned to swim before her bloodline began and leads the way "with a stormy glare and a furious pace". he then kicks a door open, leaving it dangling on its hinges, and Sorasa thinks that maybe he'll drown, and to her it's a half-wish.

[robininthelabyrinth]

I need to know what u think of an AU where JC is the one who dies (sacrificing his life to save WWX) instead of JYL, he’s not as angry with WWX bc JYL is still alive so when he sees his brother about to get murdered he just steps in front of him while JYL and WWX see :) I don’t even know what I want u to do with this? Give me some headcanons? Is it a prompt? Idk I just want u to to see what u make of this (I promise JC is my fav but my mind likes to make me suffer :p)

1

It wasn’t a matter of conscious thought when Jiang Cheng threw himself between that cultivator’s sword and Wei Wuxian’s unguarded back, all his defenses down in the face of Jiang Yanli’s pleading, same as always; it was just instinct. Wei Wuxian was always the troublemaker, the crazy one, and Jiang Cheng always the one being dragged along; he’d long ago learned to spend all his time watching his shixiong’s back, keeping him away from dogs, away from angry shopkeepers, away from any harm. It was instinct, just as it had been the day he’d thrown himself out into the street to distract the Wens, and he’d always justified that instinct because he knew that Wei Wuxian would do the same for him.

Though – he didn’t know that anymore, not after everything that happened recently. Wei Wuxian had made him all the promises in the world, to stand by his side through wind and lightning, and he’d seemed to have no issue abandoning those promises, picking the remnants of the Wen sect over the remnants of the Jiang sect without a moment’s hesitation and not even the courtesy of an explanation.

The Yiling Patriarch was all but a stranger to him, and Jiang Cheng still didn’t understand why.

So it was probably stupid of him to react as if the person being stabbed at was Wei Wuxian, not the Yiling Patriarch – stupid of him to give up his life for someone who didn’t care about him nearly as much as Jiang Cheng cared for him.

But that’s why it wasn’t a thought. It was instinct.

He heard someone scream “Jiang Cheng!” as if their heart were breaking, and he thought for a moment that it was Wei Wuxian again, the one who loved him best. Wei Wuxian, not the Yiling Patriarch, who threw him to the dogs over and over again, put his sect at risk of utter destruction a second time over, just to indulge himself and his bizarre fixation on saving the Wens at the expense of everyone else. Who didn’t care about their duty to their sect, to their parents - who didn’t care about him at all.

Jiang Cheng’s heart hurt. It was probably just the sword that’d just been driven through it, though.

Hands grasped at his clothing, pulling him back; his sister’s face had lost all blood, and Wei Wuxian looked as if his world had ended – he wasn’t sure why. Jiang Yanli had her son to care for, a new life in Lanling that she refused to abandon even if Jin Zixuan was now gone; Wei Wuxian had his Wens, his new cultivation – perhaps it was some little regret, far too late, for the Jiang sect that would now come to grief, leaderless, the end of their family line and the disappointment of their ancestors. Jiang Cheng’s final and most absolute failure.

Jiang Cheng looked at them both, the ones he loved the most and who had left him without a single glance backwards, and found with his last breath that he had nothing to say to them.

He closed his eyes so they wouldn’t have to.

2

The battlefield was full of corpses, and Jiang Yanli didn’t care about a single one of them.

“Do you think he can be brought back, the way Wen Ning was?” she asked, holding the corpse in her arms as if it were still the baby brother she sang songs to as a child, the little crybaby who was so fierce on the outside and so soft on the inside. She had been able to lie to herself with Jin Zixuan’s body – he almost looked as though he were sleeping, head on the pillow beside her own – but Jiang Cheng had never slept well in his life, his brow always furrowed as if he was worrying about something even in his dreams, and the blank peace on his face was so wrong that she couldn’t bear to look at him.

She wasn’t asking Wei Wuxian.

Wei Wuxian had only stopped the massacre when Lan Wangji, of all unlikely people, had bodily tackled him; everyone had always said that the Second Jade was like oil and water with her A-Xian, but he’d unexpectedly taken their side in this battle and was even now letting a barely-conscious Wei Wuxian sob Jiang Cheng’s name into his collar. He looked silently at her, his gaze a quiet reminder that her question was inappropriate – one Ghost General had already been enough to cause all of this tragedy, and certainly no one would ever accept another as a sect leader.

She looked steadily back at him, indicating in return that she didn’t give a damn about the standing of the Jiang sect if it meant she wouldn’t have to bury her baby brother.

Lan Wangji hesitated, looking down at Wei Wuxian. “You cannot stay at Yiling,” he finally said. “After this…”

They’d killed people from virtually every sect; no matter who had sympathized with Wei Wuxian before this or how much they felt he was wronged, they would have no choice but to raise up arms against him.

Jiang Yanli understood. They would be fugitives, condemned by all. She didn’t care. “Will you help us?”

He nodded and stood, Wei Wuxian cradled as gently in his arms as she held Jiang Cheng in hers.

“Will you come with us?” she asked. Anyone who loved her brother enough to defy his sect, to stain his untainted blade with the blood of his own kin, deserved a chance to court him properly, if she hadn’t misunderstood his intentions; she didn’t think she had, not with the expression so clear on his silent face.

“I will help you,” he said, and that wasn’t an answer, wasn’t the one she wanted, but it would have to do for now. “Let us go.”

3

It was Jin Zixuan who figured it out, oddly enough. Perhaps it was because he was an outsider, looking at the situation without affection to blur his eyes.

“You gave him your golden core,” he said, less than a week into his resurrection – Lan Wangji had been very efficient in his help, not only finding a new place to hide Jiang Yanli and the remaining Wens but also returning to Lanling to steal Jin Zixuan’s corpse and little Jin Ling before returning to his own sect at the first sign that Wei Wuxian would awaken from his coma. He hadn’t sent word since that time, whether from regret or other reasons; their only consolation was that there was no news of his death. “That’s why you couldn’t do anything other than demonic cultivation – is that right?”

Wei Wuxian looked at him through blood-red eyes. “Get lost,” he said; the phrase made up the majority of his vocabulary, these days, and because he refused to curse his shijie he mostly ended up not talking to her at all.

“Wen Qing was a famous doctor – she could have figured out a way to do it, and that would explain why you felt so indebted to them,” Jin Zixuan continued. “You never told him because you didn’t want to burden him. But instead you left him without any reason, any explanation: he must have felt that you abandoned him because you didn’t want him.”

“Get lost!”

“You broke his heart,” he said, and looked down at Jiang Cheng’s body – still perfectly preserved, but unmoving. The resurrection spell had already failed three times. “No wonder he doesn’t want to return.”

“I did it for him!” Wei Wuxian screamed, tears of blood dripping down his cheeks. “He didn’t – he wouldn’t – he has to come back!”

Jin Zixuan said nothing.

4

They ended up back in Yunmeng, rather unexpectedly; the new leadership of the Lotus Pier, a distant branch cousin who’d survived the massacre because he’d been night-hunting elsewhere, had all but begged Jiang Yanli to return. Against all odds her reputation had survived the massacre at the Nightless City; the loving wife, sister, and shijie that nearly sacrificed herself to save what lives she could and to banish the dreadful Yiling Patriarch who was never seen again from that day forth –  she was very nearly regarded as an incarnation of the goddess of mercy.

She had no idea where that ridiculous notion came from, but it did mean that she could live in Lotus Pier again, with Jin Ling by her side – she’d told Jin Guangshan to name someone else as his heir, or at minimum as regent; the Jiang sect needed her and her son more. It wouldn’t have worked if Jin Zixuan hadn’t snuck into his mother’s room to convince Madam Jin to throw her support behind it; officially he was still in his tomb, since Lan Wangji had been very subtle, but in fact he lived within shouting distance of the Lotus Pier, spending his days playing with his son.

They all did, actually, the whole lot of them resettled into a tiny adjacent water town populated largely by civilians that relied on the Jiang sect for their prosperity. As long as Wei Wuxian never did anything, which he didn’t, the illusion that he was gone for good in a cloud of self-destruction after his terrible massacre could be maintained; no one expected they could possibly be so daring as to simply go home after all of it.

Lan Wangji was in seclusion, they were eventually told; Wei Wuxian hadn’t believed it for one second, smuggling himself into Gusu to check – he’d come back unconscious, slung over Jin Zixuan’s shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

“Struck by the discipline whip,” her husband, the fierce corpse that wasn’t fierce at all, said, and didn’t comment when she instinctively reached out to touch Jiang Cheng’s body, to trace the scar he had; she often spent her days next to the bed that preserved his corpse. “Many times; his body is ruined. It will take years for him to heal – the Lan sect saying he was in seclusion was their way of saving face. Wei Wuxian wants to bring him back to the Lotus Pier to hide him.”

Jiang Yanli rubbed her face, thinking not for the first time that the world would be an easier place if only her two brothers weren’t so stubborn. One who wouldn’t wake up, his spiritual consciousness all in pieces; the other who wouldn’t give up – “The Lan sect wouldn’t accept that.”

“He wasn’t planning on asking. That’s why I knocked him out. Anyway, they’re distracted with the Xue Yang matter now – my father’s still insisting on protecting him, and the Nie sect gets angrier about it by the day; without the Jiang sect, there’s only the Lan to play peacemaker, stop there from being another war.”

Jiang Yanli, who was very nice but also very much not the goddess of mercy, tilted her head to the side; something of her mother was in her eyes. “A war would be a good cover, though, or at least the rumblings of one. If we were going to steal Lan Wangji away from his sect, that is.”

He kissed her forehead. “I’ll sneak into Lanling to talk to my mother, maybe see if I can follow Xue Yang and see what he’s up to. You go talk to the Nie.”

5

Jiang Yanli’s visit to the Unclean Realm turned out to be more fruitful than anyone had expected. The moment she walked into Nie Mingjue’s receiving room, her Jiang sect bell rang so hard that it shattered, which it definitely hadn’t done during the war – they both stared at it wordlessly for a while.

Eventually, he cleared his throat, averting his eyes. “You know my family history,” he offered as an explanation, embarrassment at the public revelation of his problem already turning to anger but suppressed by his strict adherence to etiquette.

“That’s no family history,” she said, bemused, as she crouched down to poke at the pieces. “The silver bell of the Jiang sect can steady focus and calm the mind, and the ones made for the family are the strongest by far; it would only shatter like this in the effort to resist a spiritual poison…how are you feeling now, Sect Leader Nie?”

He considered for a long moment, and his face grew black with rage. “Better. I feel – like my mind has been filled with fog, and a clear breeze has blown it clear.”

She smiled up at him. “Perhaps you should visit Yunmeng.”

He scowled, and she realized he must know about Wei Wuxian’s presence, though she wasn’t sure how; despite that, in the end, after a roaring argument with Nie Huaisang in another room, he agreed to go, even if the idea of staying willfully blind clearly pained him to the core.

Jiang Yanli quietly approved of his decision to put family over principle.

When they put their mind to it, the Nie sect  had an underrated talent for saying ‘I don’t know’ to just about everything. Neither brother blinked an eye at the Wen sect remnants that still teetered every time they went on a boat, very clearly not Yunmeng locals; they politely greeted Jin Zixuan as if he’d only been gone a while and not murdered; much to his older brother’s very evident irritation, Nie Huaisang even leapt over to give Wei Wuxian an enthusiastic hug while Nie Mingjue was still talking with Jin Zixuan about what it meant that Jin Guangshan had hidden away the still intact Wen Ning, who Jin Zixuan had found in a hidden part of Koi Tower during his most recent visit and immediately liberated.

“Definitely a case of spiritual poisoning,” Wei Wuxian said after a short examination, and the most reliable doctor they had left in the Jiang sect concurred. “The silver bell can help a little –” 

They’d already shattered seven of them, but Nie Mingjue had actually cracked a smile for the first time in months, to hear a sobbingly relieved Nie Huaisang tell it. 

“–but it can only help so much; that technique is really only meant for acute cases. And you really need to figure out what was doing the poisoning; there’s no point in curing you if you’re only going to get poisoned again.”

“A matter for a later time,” Nie Mingjue, who clearly had some suspicions that made him look as though he’d been stabbed in the back, said. “Now that we know it’s a poisoning, and my mind is clearer, I can take some action myself – the Nie have plenty of techniques to stabilize the spirit.”

Wei Wuxian’s smile was full of self-hatred, as it always was these days. “I don’t suppose any of those are designed to work on the dead.”

“Actually,” Nie Huaisang said. “Several are. Why do you ask?”

6

Jiang Cheng opened his eyes.

[jasonsscar]

for the fic thing!! percabeth + jealous percy bc we dont have enough of this

aaaa i got really excited reading both of these and i combined them together 🥺 hope you don’t mind!!!

It’s a little over 1k! Hope you enjoy!

Annabeth was paranoid over Percy for obvious reasons. 

Ever since they returned back from Greece, Annabeth had been a wreck over him. She found it impossible to not think about him for .5 seconds. She had talked about it with her dad over the phone and he told her it was the result of them being separated for months. Annabeth was suffering from some severe attachment issues.

Percy was more than her boyfriend. He was more than her best friend. He was a lot more than a label could give him. The only word that even maade close to sense for the two of them was soulmate. Annabeth felt like even that wasn’t enough to describe their relationship.

When they returned home, Annabeth was adamant on making sure that the two of them never got separated again. Her father hadn’t argued too much over it and Sally Jackson - the brilliant soul she was - didn’t mind if Annabeth was going to be staying over at her place with Percy. Annabeth had already been over at the Jackson’s residence enough where Sally was accustomed to seeing her and Paul thought that she was a great person to talk to.

So, of course, when Annabeth chose to stay around, Percy and his step-father managed to get Annabeth enrolled into Goode High School.

Annabeth wasn’t a particular fan of public school, she much rather preferred the teachings at Camp Half-Blood but she knew she wasn’t about to leave Percy’s side and agreed to attend. Percy showed her around the school. They hardly had any classes together but most of their classes happened to be close to each other thanks to Paul’s hand in being friendly with the guidance counselors. Most of Annabeth’s classes tended to do with AP courses since she appreciated a challenge. Percy was taking one AP course, despite his own reluctance, thanks to Annabeth’s influence. 

Also, because having a class with Paul would make it easier. Paul was a nice teacher, he wouldn’t get angry at Percy if he was lacking- which Percy swore up and down he wouldn’t do.

All of their elective courses were together and they also got the pleasure of sharing lunch with one another.

Although Annabeth was attending Goode for just two years, their junior and senior year, Annabeth was immediately classified as the “new girl”. The term bothered Annabeth. She wasn’t a big fan of attention. Naturally, she got even more attention because the entire school seemed to know Percy Jackson- the troublemaker- and were surprised that she was sticking around him the whole time.

Annabeth remembered one day during lunch when she was heading over to their usual table and saw a group of guys bothering Percy. Percy didn’t look phased as the leader of the four guys- a scrawny looking red head kid with a lot of acne- got up in Percy’s face. Annabeth’s eyes narrowed defensively as she got to the table and crossed her arms.

“Is there a problem?”

Annabeth had heard the term thrown around loosely that she was the “hot new girl” at school. Though, they would take it back and she would hear gossiping that she was rather intimidating, which in all honesty she liked a lot better. Better to be intimidating then to have people hitting on her when she was clearly taken.

The red head looked over in Annabeth’s direction and seemed taken aback that the “hot new girl” was talking to him. By the looks of it, Annabeth doubted that he got any action. 

Percy looked over at his girlfriend and offered her a grin, then seemed to notice the four guys checking her out. Percy didn’t really get jealous. Most guys hardly ever bothered to actually go through with flirting with Annabeth after she scares them away with her, as Piper calls it, “resting-bitch-face”.

Annabeth really hated labels.

“Hey babe,” Percy said a little louder than his usual speaking voice. It caught Annabeth off guard and seemed to even throw the other guys off guard. And not to mention the other twenty people who were nearby.

Annabeth felt her ears turn hot. 

The red head was gaping between the two of them, he almost looked like a fish out of water. “B-Babe?” he stammered incredulously. “Jackson, no fucking way this is your girlfriend. She’s way out of your league.”

That brought Annabeth back to reality and she stared at the red head. “And you think you aren’t?” Annabeth asked, her voice dripping with mockery. 

Annabeth had heard the stories of people picking on her boyfriend plenty of times but to see it in action made her own blood boil. If only they knew how he had saved the world’s ass more time than one.

His face turned beet red against his pale skin and his friends all seemed to be holding back laughter. Annabeth just smirked, going ahead and joining Percy at the table. Before the group turned away, she heard the red head mutter something under his breath, insulting Annabeth.

“Bitch.”

In the blink of an eye, Percy was up on his feet and grabbed the bully by the collar of his shirt and stared him down. The two of them were around the same height, but it was clear that Percy had the upper hand. He was a lot stronger and he was also way more intimidating than Annabeth could ever be. Lupa had taught him well.

“What’d you just call her?” Percy muttered, causing for the red head to gulp nervously. 

“Nothing! Geez, Jackson!”

Annabeth just watched in amusement then gently reached out her hand and placed it on Percy’s arm. The touch sent him back to reality and he relaxed and let the guy go. His look was fierce and it was clear that if Annabeth hadn’t done that, he probably would have slaughtered him.

The four guys scrambled off in fear and Percy resigned back in his seat beside his girlfriend. Annabeth went ahead and placed her lunch box on the table where she had packed both of them lunch and began to set it out. She looked over at Percy who was still watching the guys. A couple of people kept looking back at them. Percy had, of course, made them a spectacle. 

“If you ever call me babe again,” Annabeth said, reaching out and pinching his cheek, “I will kill you.”

Percy blinked once and looked over at Annabeth and he grinned at her. That troublemaker smile that always made her heart do a weird somersault. How did he still have that effect on her? Annabeth had no idea.

Percy kissed her cheek and chuckled. “I don’t doubt that.”

[lailaliquorice]

even stars are small from a distance

second fic in one day babeyyyy, and to balance out this morning’s fluff now we have angst. this is for a prompt from a lovely anon which was parrlyn h/c with one comforting the other after a nightmare with kisses. hope this was ok!

I haven’t written parrlyn in ages so this is for all the very patient parrlyn friends on the sixcord who have been eagerly waiting!! it’s essentially a rewrite of ‘one more chance’ but with a lot more gay(tm) bc established relationship this time. I know everyone and their cat has written anne having nightmares but hey we love a cliche and that’s all I have to say with this one bc it’s approaching 2am and I need sleep but hope everyone enjoys it c:

Considering how their show was essentially them retelling their stories to four hundred people every night, Cathy still managed to be incredibly private about her former life. It was something that puzzled Anne but didn’t bother her at all; she knew that they all coped with their secrets in different ways and if Cathy’s method was to keep herself hidden then she wouldn’t question it. She would try and make sure her girlfriend didn’t bottle too many things away if she seemed overly stressed any time, but for the most part she just enjoyed and appreciated the privilege of being told any titbit of Cathy’s history.

But what that did mean was that when absent-mindedly scrolling through an article written about the historical aspect of the show, Anne received the unwelcome shock of her life.

It was an unspoken pact that they wouldn’t search up facts on each other’s past lives without permission, since being told to google each other’s names to get filled in during their first rehearsals felt like the equivalent of being told to nose through each other’s diaries. They all knew enough about the queens they hadn’t lived alongside through the show itself anyway. As a result the article was one of the first that Anne had ever read about their Tudor lives and for the most part there were no surprises; the only notable piece of information she tucked away being how Aragon had wanted to send Henry the body of the Scottish King she’d had killed in battle while he was away, something which spoke so true of Catherine’s power as Queen that she couldn’t believe it wasn’t mentioned in the script.

That was until she reached Cathy’s section of the article though. She’d largely skimmed through Kat’s, knowing she couldn’t read about her baby cousin’s suffering without her stomach churning, and was half-tempted to skim through the account of what the final solo didn’t include about Cathy’s life with the King for the sake of her privacy. But before she could click out of the article, a single word in the middle of a paragraph caught her attention.

‘Beheading’.

Anne’s heart rate quickened as she scrolled back upwards. There was no need to mention that in Cathy’s life story unless it was a reference to Kat’s life or her own, which she soon realised it wasn’t. Horror deepened in her stomach as she read of the arrest warrant that was sent out, how Cathy had discovered the plot to have her replaced and been forced to beg the King for her life. How she’d been forced to fight off an armed guard who hadn’t been told of the King’s forgiveness. How the stress of the discovery had made her ill.

How she’d come within a hair’s breadth of losing her life in the same way that Anne had.

Her fingers hovered over her scar as her thoughts raced wildly. She knew that Cathy had known of her in her old life, knew that the entirety of Europe had treated Anne’s death as a warning for what could happen if he was disappointed by his wife. A sudden stabbing pain in her neck forced her to grit her teeth hard, tears pricking at her eyes as she thought of just how afraid she must have been.

She longed to pull her girlfriend into a hug and promise her that she’d never let anyone hurt her again. But that want was quashed by the realisation that she could never let Cathy know that she knew.

So she shut her laptop and said nothing, just kissed Cathy when she returned from her day out with Aragon and listened intently to what the two of them had got up to. She did the show without a hitch, aside from the crescent-shaped indents she pressed into her palm from squeezing her hand closed during Cathy’s solo. And she greeted fans afterwards with no indication that anything was wrong, her voice only failing her for a moment as she watched Cathy sign beneath ‘survived’ with the awful knowledge of how she almost hadn’t.

The only time she came close to cracking was when they were both sat in Cathy’s bedroom after the show. A yawn from Anne prompted a gentle reminder from Cathy that she needed to go to bed soon, and the thought of leaving Cathy alone in the darkness made Anne suddenly burst out “Can I stay here tonight?”

Cathy blinked with surprise for a moment before she nodded. “Of course you can love, you never need to ask. Are you ok though? You’ve seemed a little quiet since I got home,” she said, a concerned look in her eyes as she met Anne’s gaze.

For a moment she was tempted to tell her everything she’d found out, but then she pictured the look on Cathy’s face upon having her privacy violated and she shook her head. “Nothing’s wrong, I’m fine,” she said with what she hoped was a convincing smile.

But her confidence didn’t last for long, as her overactive mind betrayed her the minute she fell asleep in Cathy’s bed and started to dream.

The first thing Anne noticed was that she was in the courtyard by the Tower of London. Immediately she tensed; this courtyard had been the setting for many of her nightmares so it was easy enough to guess exactly what was about to happen. But then she realised that she was part of the crowd rather than standing atop the scaffold, which had never happened before. She could see the executioner’s block waiting though, her scar tingling at the sight of it, so even if it wasn’t her up there she still knew exactly what would happen.

But her grim resolve to see it through shattered when she looked to the scaffold and saw who was standing there. It was Cathy.

Anne started to struggle against the crowd as she watched her approach the block, her thin white chemise a poor excuse for armour against the jeers of the onlookers. Despite how much she tried to push forwards she found herself swept further and further back, helpless to reach out for Cathy as she walked like a zombie towards the block and knelt down. There was no emotion in the face she knew so well – it would have been easier to bear if this Cathy was the one in the portraits not the one in Anne’s lock screen but of course she wasn’t granted that mercy – until she looked up from the ground and met Anne’s gaze.

Her eyes were full of the one emotion that Anne had never seen on her girlfriend’s face. Hopelessness. And it felt like an arrow to her heart.

She started to scream as Cathy moved sluggishly to place her head on the block, ignoring the accidental blows she was dealt by the crowd’s enthusiasm. It was nothing like Anne’s own execution had been; these people were out for blood. These people wanted to see her brave, beautiful Cathy dead and the very thought made her feel sick.

By the time the executioner appeared out of the shadows Anne’s throat was raw, but still the sight of the figure from her nightmares renewed the panic pounding at her chest and she shouted even louder. She hardly even knew what she was screaming; a plea for mercy, an urgent love confession, even a desperate wish to take her place. But her prayers were ignored as the sword was raised, glinting under the cruel sunlight exactly how she remembered.

The executioner swung. The crowd roared. Screams of horror and triumph blurred into a high pitched wail as the world went white and she felt her legs folding beneath her. And then-

Anne was still screaming as she jolted awake, her cheeks ravaged by tears and her chest heaving for breath. Immediately she was attempting to stifle her cries, one hand clamped over her mouth to muffle the sound of her sobs and the other hand over her racing heart as she tried to regulate her breathing though. The usual techniques did nothing though as her brain kept replaying the image of Cathy losing her head, and she retched dryly as her stomach gave a sickening turn. Her consciousness started to blur around the edges again as her lungs ached for oxygen.

“Stay with me sweetheart, breathe for me please.”

The voice through the dark made her jump in shock, realising for the first time that she wasn’t in her own room. A fumbling sound was followed by the bedside light being turned on, to reveal Cathy looking at her with sleep-mussed hair and a stricken expression.

Her hands still trembled and the sick feeling in her stomach refused to leave but everything else stilled as she stared blankly at Cathy for several seconds while her brain struggled to catch up. But then she frantically pushed herself to her knees, not giving Cathy a chance to react as she lunged forwards and kissed her.

It was messy and desperate, but it was enough to prove to Anne that she was there.

Cathy reacted quickly enough to support Anne before she slipped, one hand on her waist and the other cupping Anne’s cheek as she kissed her back. Only a couple of seconds passed before Anne was sobbing into Cathy’s chest instead, whispering “You’re alive,” over and over again as she clung to Cathy like a lifeline.

“I’m alive,” Cathy replied in a voice so full of conviction that Anne could just about believe the warm arms around her weren’t a figment of her imagination. Her shaking limbs felt as though the strength had been sapped from them so she couldn’t do anything but sink into Cathy’s embrace, letting out a shuddering breath as she buried her face in Cathy’s shoulder and waited for her nausea to subside.

Several minutes passed before Cathy gently pushed Anne back to look at her in the eye. “Please tell me what’s wrong my love, I’m worried about you,” she said softly, tilting Anne’s chin up with her finger to look up at her.

Anne hesitated a moment longer, still afraid of Cathy’s reaction as she’d been that afternoon, but the lingering terror from her nightmare had beaten down her walls enough that she couldn’t stop the truth from spilling out. “You nearly got beheaded,” she choked out.

As Cathy’s expression fell Anne couldn’t bear to keep looking to see the rest of her reaction, wrenching her chin out of Cathy’s fingers to cover her mouth with her palm. “I found an article earlier and it said he nearly killed you too,” she sobbed, her words muffled by her hand and her distress. “And I dreamed about my execution but it was you instead and I couldn’t save you. And I’m so sorry I found out and for invading your privacy by finding out I promise I wasn’t trying to and I trust you to tell me shit but I’m just so so angry for you and-“

“Oh sweetheart, it’s ok,” Cathy said softly, her hand on Anne’s shoulder interrupting her hysterical tirade. “I wasn’t keeping it a secret because I didn’t want you to know, it was just because I didn’t want you to be upset. I promise I would have told you. One day you’ll know all my secrets love, I’m sorry I’m not better at sharing things with you.”

Her apology sounded so sorrowful that Anne looked up at her and shook her head. “Love you,” she whispered because those were the only words she could come up with at that point, too exhausted to think of anything more coherent to follow up Cathy’s comment. As a final bit of proof that Cathy really was ok she reached out to place a hand at the back of her neck, thumb smoothing over the smooth skin where Anne’s scar lay, leaning forwards to touch her forehead against Cathy’s.

Cathy smiled at her through the gloom, nuzzling Anne’s nose with hers before pulling her into a firm embrace. “I love you too, so so much,” she murmured next to Anne’s ear, pressing a kiss to Anne’s hair before resting her head atop hers.

Anne began to wonder if she was going to fall asleep resting against Cathy before her girlfriend shifted underneath her, and Anne let out a quiet groan as she sat back up. Cathy giggled lightly as she tilted Anne’s chin up again, looking at her lovingly for a moment before leaning forward to kiss away the tear tracks on Anne’s cheeks. “Do you think you’re ready to sleep again?” she asked.

“Mhm. Yeah,” she hummed tiredly.

“Alright, come on then,” Cathy said, straightening out the covers from where Anne had kicked them back and settling back down on her pillow. Once there she pulled Anne down to lay in the crook of her side, and Anne hummed contentedly as she settled with her ear resting over Cathy’s heartbeat. The low sound was enough to reassure her that her dream wouldn’t come again and Cathy was alive and right next to her, and no executioner’s sword was ever going to hurt them again.

Cathy’s fingers running through Anne’s hair made the last remnants of tension seep out of her limbs, and she sighed lightly as she hugged Cathy close with an arm over her stomach. “Go to sleep love. I’m right here,” Cathy whispered.

Anne hummed something that might have been a thanks if she wasn’t delirious with exhaustion. Seconds later she was asleep, safe in Cathy’s embrace and the promise that she was never going away.

[keepyourpantsongohan]

Ayesha Liveblogs Naruto Shippuden S21

What a tender intro omg also why is this filler so well animated

The introduction of modern technology will never not be funny to me. Kakashi on a laptop. Gaara sending emails. What has the ninja world come to 

I know it’s just superfluous background motion but that angry little cat design was amazing. Takes me tf out 

Hello again New English Iruka Voice time to feel slightly uncomfortable 

Doesn’t Inuyasha have a monopoly on this baby with a red ball imagery

Why! Is! No one! Making sure! Naruto is fed! He’s a baby!!!!!!

Naruto and Sasuke were such adorable children my heart

SOMEONE PLEASE EXPLAIN THE FAMILY WHERE ONE OF THE CHILDREN IS JUST A FROG? WHO IS DOING THESE BACKGROUND ANIMATIONS?????

In case you thought I wasn’t being literal:

[Accompanying dialogue to this image: “Did you hear the rumours that Lord Fourth died because of him?” WHO IS THIS FROG CHILD WITH A VENDETTA AGAINST MINATO]

This ninja cowboy music seems slightly misplaced but okay

Hiruzen. U r the literal ninja president. Naruto is foraging in the forest for food bc no one is taking care of him! How r u like ‘Hahah I’m hungry too :D’ 

“The things that we inconsequential humans worry about are often very petty indeed” “You’re right” It’s Philosophy Hours ft. Pre-Schoolers 

“Are you sure these mushrooms are safe to eat? “Won’t know ‘til we eat ‘em” HIRUZEN PICK UP THE PHONE 

SCREAMS FIVE YEAR OLD NARUTO JUST JUMPED OFF THE HOKAGE MONUMENT AHHHHHH

I miss Neji :((((((((((((((((

“Please make sure that you look after Neji” show us Neji’s mum you cowards!!!

“You have to be more positive, and confident!” Nejiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii my boy

“I wish that I could switch places with you, big brother” There’s a lot to unpack here and I’m wildly concerned about all of it. This episode ought to be titled Konoha Desperately Requires Child Welfare Programs

Making an mini-episode which largely depicts Neji’s tragic backstory and centring its ending on Hinata seems like an odd angle to take

 “I’m alone. I don’t have anyone, but I never cry” NARUTOOOOO

KJHFKJHG THIS NINJA BASEBALL OUTRO I LOVE IT 

SASUKE USING HIS SHARINGAN TO CHEAT AT BASEBALL I WHEEZE

Also not that I don’t like Genma but why is he a central figure in this ending. Has he had more than a single conversation with Naruto in his life

Lmao @ Sasuke and Itachi’s child versions going back to having their adult voices. Pick a lane SP!!!

“Things in season are always cheap and tasty” “Oh, is that so, Sasuke? Hahaha” Sasuke learning about the ninja economy

“We’re going to visit your mother’s family” Two questions: 1) Aren’t your families the same family (eep) and 2) Don’t they all live in the same part of the village

90% of this dialogue is recycled from prior episodes except delivered more slowly and it’s a little confusing 

Itachi sure knows a lot about cooking for an eleven-year-old 

Sasuke being a clumsy child is such a cute character detail ahhhh I love him so much 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

“[Confused laughter] You want to be like me?” What a Mood Itachi

Sakura’s hideout in the woods is so sweet yes 2 semi-normal childhoods

Poor little Sakura already concerned about her appearance they never let girls live do they

“You’re really cute Sakura, don’t hide it” Ino and Sakura are the most adorable children in the WORLD I love their relationship 4ever

“If she’s cute like you say, then I would love to meet her” who will stop all men

“But Ino, aren’t you good friends with Sakura?” “No, not really” Okay not to project but. I have a lot of thoughts on this narrative 

GASP Inner Sakura’s first appearance!!

Tiny Team 7 is all I need in the world honestly I would watch a whole show that was just those three growing up

I have only just now noticed Suigetsu as third baseman. This ninja baseball game and season in general raise so many questions

Noooo Gaara don’t cry you are gonna be so loved in the future

Rasa, can I just say, from the bottom of my heart, I’m going to yeet you into the sun

“When I look up at the sky, the pain inside my heart feels a little bit better” He’s like 4!!!!!!! >:(

“Instead of a mother, you get to have me, Lord Gaara” Yashamaru: Self-Diagnosed Mumncle 

Ngl baby Gaara’s recollection of Karura is nothing like she looked like

I really don’t care for this new Iruka voice I just keep listening to him like ‘that’s not the sound of Naruto’s dad!!’

I will admit him spooking the sleeping children was cute I don’t know why I always find that so funny kjhgkjhg

“Let me buy into this fight” who taught seven-year-old Naruto to gamble

Christ alive the implication that Naruto has been doing the sexy jutsu since he was seven who will put this boy in ninja therapy

If Orochimaru had just continued to be Jiraiya’s long-suffering friend he might be half-endearing but alas he is fecal matter personified 

“Come on out, I made plenty, so you might as well stay and eat” Hjgjfjgfgffg I’m not sure what’s funnier about this scene the implication that Obito and Rin both independently followed Kakashi home without noticing each other, or that Kakashi did notice and rather than question this turn of events was just like “Guess I should make more fish”

“When you’re older, do you think you’ll become a chef” I would pay to see the AU where Kakashi becomes a professional chef why couldn’t that have been his Road to Ninja persona 

Ngl I spent the first half of Kakashi’s minisode wondering if Sakumo was dead or simply too depressed to take care of Kakashi and I think dead is the less upsetting outcome 

“It’s no fun when you’re not around, Kakashi” Obitooooooooooooooo

I’m not saying it’s suspicious that Sakumo is given two different depictions of his grave site in the anime but Sakumo fucked an alien and I stand by that statement 

All I remember from Sasuke Shinden is that a character called Sasuke “Sassy” as a nickname and if they do that in the Eng dub I won’t survive

“[Deep sigh] Alright Sakura, what is it?” Fhfjhfkjh what’s your damage Kakashi can’t your kids come to visit when people start exploding

God Sakura and Ino’s relationship is the realest.... she went to the Hokage bc her gal was worried abt her family friend and then comforted her from her loss... the looooooooove

Hinata not to devalue your work in any way but why did u collapse after poking one (1) man in the chakra point isn’t gentle fist based in taijutsu

Fhjfhkjhf I’ve seen that gif before of Kakashi knowing that Sakura was thinking about Sasuke but it’s still funny

Sasuke just hanging in the woods with kittycats what kinda redemption journey is this lmao

Ehehehe I’m still not over the fact that Sasuke recognizes Sai’s jutsu and Kakashi uses it to communicate like there are six members of team 7 and this arc PROVES IT HELL YEAH

I can’t believe I forgot the circus ninja oh my god 

“There’s good money to be found for performers like us” MOVE OVER EXPLODING HUMANS WHERE’S MY EPISODE ABOUT THE NINJA CIRCUS 

Everyone always commenting on the pupils and sclera of the Hyuga and Uchiha but nobody caring about Old Man Demon Eyes from the Bamboo Village:

You’d think at this point no amount of genjutsu could traumatize Sasuke 

They’re leaning wholeheartedly into the ninja cowboy music

That is not how I thought they would pronounce “Sassy” this show is full of twists and turns

“What about reviving the Uchiha clan? You’re the lone survivor right?” said Chino, inquiring about when Sasuke was planning to have vaginal sex

“You really think you’re going to find him inside that seriously scary looking cave?” GASP IT’S TENZO TIME

AIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIE IT’S MY BOYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

“You’re Sasuke, right?” asked Yamato, as if Sasuke had not provided the memorable introduction of stabbing a seasoned ANBU in the shoulder as a sixteen-year-old during a dramatic reunion with his team

“It would be easier for us to keep things coordinated, if you sent us progress reports as you went...” Okay not to be that gal but I love that Tenzo and Kakashi are an “us” in this mini-lecture about how Sasuke should call his father (Kakashi) more often

P sure that’s Yamato’s last speaking role goodbye sweet man we knew ye well

“So does this mean that you trust me?” GO TO JAIL OROCHIMARU

Every time that Orochimaru touches Sasuke I want to leap through the screen you leave that boy alone!!! Go! To! Jail!

Sasuke having to explain his social life to Taka is a dynamic I never knew I needed. What more do I want from Naruto than frames like this:

"By showing everyone that Sasuke isn’t in the Hidden Leaf Village and that he’s still out journeying around the world, it reduces the possibility that the village will be harmed” “So are you saying that Sasuke has to keep travelling forever” “That might be so” I can’t believe the entirety of Taka came up with a better explanation for Sasuke staying outside Konoha than Kishimoto himself

“Compared to me, the likelihood that Kabuto will return to evil is extremely low”

He still helped kill......... 40,000 people????? Okay dude

I CAN’T BELIEVE OROCHIMARU IS ACKNOWLEDGING HE IS STILL EVIL!!!! GO TO JAIL!!

I’m gonna pretend I don’t see Tenzo following Stranger Danger and he’s on vacation on a beach where he belongs

Fhjkhfkjhfkj what’s the meaning of this Orochimaru you’ve looked the same since you were 25:

Sasuke: No. She’s older than I am

Orochimaru: [Soft gasp] What?

Man I remember vaguely Sasuke being involved in this fight based on the Tenzo novel scene later on but hoo boy I do not like this

SCREAMMMM TENZO TRYING TO PROTECT PPL IN THE AREA HE’S HELPING

“I can’t make direct contact with him, so I better go now” I hope it is because you filed a restraining order, Yamato

“To increase the rarity, what I’ve even done is, had all but one person in a clan killed” at this point En Oyashiro is just trying to bait Sasuke

God I love how righteous Sasuke is being rn like this is the kind of dismantling of oppression I wanted for him instead of sad murder times

This battle is bonkers:

Villain: Looks like you brought a sword to a dodgeball fight

Sasuke: Looks like you brought a dodgeball to a magic eyes fight!!

Well I certainly breezed past this part of Sasuke Shinden hello Fushin

I find it hard to believe that anyone but Naruto could best Sasuke rn 

I keep joking that those eyes in the sky look like Tenzo but I’m right and I should say it

What a long, drawn-out and slightly suspicious backstory for Chino (looking at you, Fushin of two personality types)

“But now you’re still able to travel freely... and that is all because you have people who love and protect you” Team 7 cutaway with closeups of Sakura and Naruto, Narusasusaku game strong

“For the Leaf’s nourishment, your entire clan was absorbed by your village’s Roots” wow what a shitty time for such an excellent pun

Unbelievable kkhkjhfk and by this I mean completely believable:  

Chino: Please explain your change of heart re: village corruption

Sasuke: I got a boyfriend

Unbelievable x2:

Chino: KILL ME 

Sasuke: Consider this.... you have.... boy who is friend. Good enough

Chino: Wow Sasuke, you’re right

Lmao @ Kakashi proudly announcing that Sasuke is about to enter an unsanctioned jutsu fight in a bet to free enslaved people how did this letter go “Dear Hokage-dad-Kakashi, I am writing to inform you...”

Even funnier: If Tenzo wrote the letter bc Sasuke is shite at contacting people: “Dear Kakashi-senpai, Brace yourself to be worried and proud—”

“Are you Sasuke’s...” yes Chino, whatever the end of that sentence is, you’re correct

Huh I could’ve sworn at least a good chunk of these freed people go to the Leaf. I didn’t make that conversation up. I have discussed it many times!!! My poor Tenzo cut out for more logical story lines I guess 

Omggggggg the Raikage is telling Sasuke about Naruto’s most vulnerable Sasuke moment..... the love!!! Is this the only reason they invited A lmao

En Oyashiro joining Rasa and Hiashi in the Bad Dad Club

I’ve said this before but Naruto and Sakura going on a date to talk about Sasuke is the most legit representation for their relationship I’ve ever seen that’s it that’s what them dating would be like 

“You’re just like a one man police force” lol @ them cutting out the fact that Sakura said this bc Sakura’s not allowed to have individual connections to Sasuke and also just like....... how much Sasuke still wants to be a cop kjhgkjhgk baby stop

I’ve belatedly realized that Kakashi types to the beat of the intro music and it makes me giggle

“The adult world can be complicated” is that ur way of saying ‘nepotism’ Kakashi

“I’m startin’ to get a belly” “I don’t want to hear about all that” PLS

“You two are really the only ones who are special to me” aw Shikamaru

That slap was A  Lot, Temari, surely there are better ways to tell Shikamaru you want him to be your boyfriend

“You don’t really think that Sai has—” “Well, he is very innocent.” 

Kakashi about Sai: He’s the baby of the family

Sai: I’m the oldest and most experienced of all the youth???

Kakashi: I mark ur ages by when I got you xoxo ur legal age is 3

I’m not sure that that’s the intonation I expected for Hinoko but I guess that’s on me for stereotyping teen girls hahah

“That’s my ninja way” “Our ninja way” I feel like this is shinobi flirtation

The outro with Little Team 7 fading to Big Team 7... I have but one heart

Also the implication that they took a photo immediately post war jhgkjhgkj. Kakashi still has a barely healed stab wound and twenty years of trauma. Sasuke and Naruto both just lost an arm. Also who brought a camera to the battlefield. Who took this picture. (Tenzo waking up from a 224 episode coma: We gotta take a family photo)

“You might consider yourself a member of Team 7, but I wonder if they think the same of you” [Naruto voice] Believe it!!!!!!

“If we just kill the lookouts, it’ll be like easy to get past the checkpoint” okay calm down Soku

Lmao Shikamaru struggling to deal with rebellious teens jhghjkg why are the anime episodes I watch so fitting to my own life

Man not to get 2 real it’s fucked up that Soku fears peace wyd militarism 

I don’t really believe that Soku is deserting the village but it’s a good tactic

[Panning to the bird scene at the beginning of this arc] We call that foreshadowing

Komori’s judgement seems to be clouded by his lowkey crush on Soku

“I’ve just been having these really bizarre dreams lately” that’s PTSD Shikamaru

“Feudal lords are always [tyrants] no matter where you go” then why.... do you have.... feudalism.......... [Tobirama screams in the afterlife]

Not to judge these guys so much but like.... ur ANBU and a veteran ninja surely you should have a disguise after faking your death??????? Kakashi, Iruka, what shinobi standards are you teaching exactly?? U didn’t even change ur hairstyles???

“Something similar happened to me as well” what are you... are you talking about when you pretended to be asleep during the Chunin exams because that’s not the same thing as sleeping under a pile of corpses Shikamaru 

NOOOOOOOOOO SAI WHY ARE THEY HANGING MY ANGEL FROM A CRUCIFIX 

AHHHHHHH I don’t like seeing Sai like this, Kakashi’s right he’s a baby!!

“Let’s just say I’ve found the place where I belong” Fhdjskhfksjhf this is definitely Root Code for something because Kakashi uses this line on Tenzo in his Tsukuyomi dream

“Then why didn’t Naruto come to get me? You and I have never been particularly close, so why were you the one who came here?” LMAO SAI ‘you’re not on my list of eligible rescuers Shikamaru 😒😒😒😒’ 

“Fret not, to me this is but a trifle” said Ro, lying prostrate on the ground in between groans of pain (same)

I mean... Gengo makes some pretty compelling arguments abt the shinobi system

“The alliance of nations that the Leaf is currently a part of... is only going to maintain a dark, tenuous peace” I mean... Gengo’s right even if he is a dick

“Lord Hokage told me everything... and I had a hell of a time getting it out of him too” “I don’t want to know what you did... I don’t even want to imagine it” JHGKJHGKJHG I WANNA SEE TEMARI INTERROGATING A FORMER ANBU, KAGE-LEVEL NINJA I LOVE IT

Wait are these last twelve outros dedicated to each of the rookie teams + Team Guy bc that would be adorable

JHGJHGGHGJHG DO WE ACTUALLY GET TO SEE TEMARI YELL AT KAKASHI

Update from 3 seconds later: We don’t but Kakashi’s “Euh?” sound as she knocks down his door is still very funny

“Friendship is useless” “If that’s true, then why are you crying right now” he’s been taking Sasuke lessons in his spare time

“Do you know of a man named ‘Zabuza Momochi’” !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

“These are my only friends” said Sai, about two giant cartoon lions 

Sai’s genjutsu scene was actually much sweeter in the book bc Naruto, Sakura, Kakashi and Yamato’s chakra were all protecting him inside his own mind but I don’t mind my boy getting a hug

HAHAHAHAHA WHAT IS THIS CUTAWAY TO NARUTO BATHED IN GOLDEN LIGHT ANNOUNCING “RAMEN” LIKE IT’S A WHOLE SENTENCE OKAY STUDIO PIERROT U NEED A BREAK I GET IT

“What in the hell was that?” that was also my question Shikamaru

Shikamaru with full conviction: To be lazy.... that is my dream 

Hahahaha it’s Ninja Teen Romance Hours I guess

“Oh, you don’t want to [go out on a date]?” No that’s not what I’m saying” [walks away] TEMARI PLS

“Going on a date without a strategy, would be like trying to fight a tailed beast unarmed” [Nodding] “You have zero chance of winning, that way” I suddenly understand Kakashi’s dating life a lot more

They really rely on you being aware of Naruto the Last huh gjkhgkjhgk there’s been no mention in any of this filler of Naruto and Hinata even being in a relationship to this point as far as I remember

Fhjkfhkjhfkfh poor Iruka none of the kids know he’s President of the Naruto’s Dad Society

“I know I’m supposed to be striving to get ahead in my career, but there’s also a part of me that really wants to just continue teaching kids, one on one” Irukaaaaa <3333333

Looool even as Hokage, Kakashi just drops out of nowhere to give cryptic life advice and then leaves

Smash the statue, Tsukune, don’t let the establishment tell u what to do!!

“Eating ramen everyday isn’t healthy you know” am I to believe that Kakashi, the man who told Naruto, ‘if you're going to be a ninja, you need to eat your vegetables’ is on a ramen-only diet?? Falsehoods

“And it’s all thanks to you Iruka” khjhgkjhgjhg alright.... you win this round KKIR shippers

WHO IS ANIMATING THIS SCENE IT IS BUCKWILD??? There is no character model to speak of, most of the kids don’t have noses, everyone’s upside down or spinning around, and Iruka is... hiding in a frog sign???

There is no English translation of this caption???? EXPLAIN JAPAN. TELL ME YOUR FROG SECRETS YOU KNOW I LOVE FROGS [INSERT PICTURE OF TENZO HERE]

(Update I looked it up in the sub and the caption offers no more insight. “IRUKA UMINO, AROUND 30 YEARS OLD. STEALTHILY”)

“This is for Hinata, so let’s all try our hardest” Kiba loves Hinata MOST

You know how if you pause in the middle of an animated action, you sometimes linger on an in-between image that looks goofy because it was meant to add to the motion rather than be focused on? This whole episode is animated like one of those images

It’s okay Lee the only dumbbell Naruto is fixated on is Sasuke Uchiha

I know don’t usually post so many images in these liveblogs, but I really need anyone reading this to see the Leaf Village’s semi-canonical Unofficial Mascot Konorin:

He is??? The love of my life???

“I don’t even have a boyfriend and train every day from morning til night” yes you do. His name is Neji Hyuga and he’s very alive and he’s a jonin sensei and he will buy you all the knives you want after he takes all of Hiashi’s money and redistributes it. In this essay I will—

You see what I mean??? Neji wants to be there for Tenten (and Lee)!!!

Tenten: What would Neji do if he were here now

Neji: [starts manifesting]

“It’s you since you’re a taijutsu specialist, but Naruto and Hinata aren’t” yes????? Hinata is???? She doesn’t use weapons but Gentle Fist is entirely taijutsu??? Why does everyone keep forgetting

KHKGJHKJHGKFHKJHFKJ I CAN’T GET OVER NEJI JUST. MANIFESTING ABOVE LEE’S BED TO GIVE HIM SHITTY WEDDING GIFT IDEAS 

“And don’t forget: Hyuga” Neji........ what.... does this mean!!!!!!!!

Why say “Neji” like that Orochimaru and in fact why say anything at all [Konan voice] I’m the Hokage now, the entire criminal justice system is on its way you are going to jail!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I really can’t believe that the Naruto writers looked at Tenzo’s role in Naruto SD and decided “let’s do that.... but worse” 

They animated?????????? A smaller Lee??????????? Into Lee’s mouth???????????? As if the animation style wasn’t enough. I need a minute

They are really going full Naruto SD huh??? Cut away skit like a ‘genjutsu’ scne. Lee and Guy playing a married couple and Tenten a baby. Neji in drag. This is a choice

“How can you misunderstand Neji so much” “Even if it’s only as a ghost, I’m sure that Neji would appear” I need. Several minutes

Fhjkhfkjfh Shikamaru’s vision of Gaara, Bee, Kakashi and Tsunade hanging out at this fancy restaurant. Is this who he thinks Kakashi’s social circle is these days (he might be right)

“Okay, I’ll hear you out!” Is this implication of this scene that Temari thinks Shikamaru’s idea of a first date is marriage... and she’s WILLING TO GO ALONG WITH THAT. TEMARI PLS

“Hey Ino, why would you go out of your way to make something I love? Bc she looooves you Sakura

“Sakura, I thought the same thing” GOD JUST GET MARRIED

“It’ll be too late once we go in, I could get all caught up in the mood or something like that” wait........ does Temari think Shikamaru wants to get married or fuck???? Or both??? OH MY GOD

Gaara: Naruto’s getting married.... without meeeeeeeeeee

God I love Gaara’s Blank Period hair it is truly careless and happy hair

“His ramen’s extravagent?” JKGHKHKJH everyone in the Leaf Village trying to convince Gaara that Naruto’s taste is incredibly obnoxious which is true but not in the way being described 

Kankuro what’s your damage let Gaara buy a nice and personal present for the love of his life 

Every time I think this arc can’t get more ridiculous it exceeds my expectations:

[Vaguely horrified accompanying dialogue: “The Raikage—” “—Will do the Hidden Cloud Dance?”]

“Well then, Gaara is just going to have to do the Hidden Sand Samba” Ah. Of course. The Hidden Sand Samba. Why didn’t anyone think of this plan before

Gaara is blushing because his new dream is just to samba dance with Naruto into the night

Ahhhhhhhhhhhh Teuchi giving Naruto an “all you can eat forever” coupon that’s cute our sweet boy is so loved 

Gaara: My wedding gift to you, Naruto... is me :)

“I’m just disappointed that we aren’t going to get to see you dance, Gaara” you know what that’s fair Kankuro me too 

Hahahaha Shino dissing Kiba’s plight for becoming Hokage to these random kids

I can’t pay attention to anything this ninja cat is saying because they’ve got Naruto’s voice and it is very distracting

There’s something to be curious about how it would be if Kiba married into a family that has a contract with the Uchiha lmao

Literally the girl who Kiba is supposed to be in love with is given Hinata’s voice #kibahinarights

“Oh, just take it. Money means nothing to me” the Beekeeper is truly one of the strangest characters in the Naruto universe just conceptually. Why are they wearing a giant bee stinger on their butt?

LMAO @ Kiba having absolutely no self-doubt whatsoever. Goals!!

Shino becoming a teacher after the war is actually one of the post-699 futures I like, good for him!

Iruka sweet man Naruto has compared you to a father like 1500 times have you not overheard him one (1) time

Kakashi is such a dumb stubborn bitch trying to find a way for Naruto to have a happy wedding... I love him

“This is my fault, I never taught him how to treat women! Not that I even really know about that kind of thing of course” Iruka Umino confirmed canonically gay

“I just have to bow my head a little” KKIR: 2; Me: 0

I love this tradition of Hokage boys bowing their heads for cooperation between villages yesssssssssssss

Outro for the whole OG Team 7.... I’m fine everything’s fine I’m good cool cool cool cool cool

The implication that they just sell Kakashi wigs in the village... amazing

I know this is about to be an emotionally poignant moment but what Naruto’s presence is reminding is that the only word he has said in the past 6 episodes is “ramen” LMAO

“I’m going to have to apologize to her for raising you as a such a thoughtless, inconsiderate man” raising you... RAISING YOU..................... TRULY PRESIDENT OF THE NARUTO’S DAD SOCIETY GOD BLESS IRUKA UMINO

LOOK AT THIS CRYBABY NINJA THIS IS WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT ONE OF MY FAVOURITE PARTS OF KONOHA HIDEN WAS HOW IRUKA KEPT BURSTING INTO TEARS OVER NARUTO EVERY OTHER MINUTE THIS IS WHAT BONDS LOOK LIKE

God..................... the Team 7 lover in me just despairs of this final episode bc they’re all separated and also Tenzo needs justice 4 being Kakashi’s co-wedding planner it’s in the book I read it!!!!

I will set aside my feelings to recognize that Kakashi looks very handsome

Goodbye Naruto you were certainly an experience and I mean that in every possible intonation 

[gray-warden]

What is the problem with white people traveling to asia without money? Like how are you going to brand calling the cops on someone without a visa as justice, then try and spin them pretending that the native language (which they speak fluently enough to at least pretend is their only language) is reminiscent of colonialism? Also you made it seem like American propaganda is effective in china with your tags which is weird. Just seems like y'all got galaxy brain with racism so hard it got harmful.

when did i say i’d call the cops? i wouldn’t do anything about it besides getting pissed internally lmao. and when did i say anything abut languages? i have genuinely no clue what you mean about american propaganda in china, like, i mean it when i say i don’t get what you’re saying there. i didn’t even mention china in my tags at all, and i only mentioned the US specifically when i mentioned the case of that american woman who wanted to “play doctor” and caused deaths. still, white privilege and racism are not an “american propaganda” thing, it’s something that affects the whole world, white people will pretty much always have an easier time with lots of stuff, including being automatically seen as more qualified and trustworthy, and with law enforcement everywhere, since colonialism affected the entire world, very few countries were never invaded by europeans.what i’m saying is: - it’s bad when people from rich countries that often got rich through colonialism, by harming other countries, complain abt immigrants coming from the countries they harmed because those countries were harmed in that way. even if those people now weren’t responsible for it, they still benefit from how their country developed while it had colonies, and the people in ex-colonies still suffer because of their past as colonies. - an american woman going to africa to make herself feel good about helping others when she ended up killing people bc she wasn’t a doctor like she claimed to be? that’s bad. i hope it’s obvious enough to understand why that’s bad. (also, i looked it up again, i had briefly read abt it at some point, but it was a while back so i didn’t remember all the details, but here: https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2019/08/09/749005287/american-with-no-medical-training-ran-center-for-malnourished-ugandan-kids-105-d she clearly wanted to help, but setting up a health clinic when you have zero qualifications for that is not the way to do it at all, that’s just obvious. if she really wanted to help for the sake of helping, she could’ve donated to groups that can actually help instead. - travelling is great, but it’s not a basic human necessity like food or housing. going on a trip to a place that you /know/ has lots of inequality and then relying on the locals to keep travelling more is just stupid. would i call the cops or whatever on them? no. but i still think it’s stupid. i know that at least here in brazil, if we got begpackers, those people would get a lot more money than people who are begging for money to actually survive, because the tourists would most likely be white people from richer countries, and i know how people would be a lot more likely to give money to those people, who don’t need it to survive (bc they’re white and from “first world countries”, and just wanna travel, unlike the homeless and usually black people in poverty you see every day who get treated as lesser than human by way too many people here - i know that homelessness won’t be solved by people giving homeless people money, but it might still help them survive, get a meal, catch a bus/train so they can go somewhere they may have family or to a shelter). i’m not saying you gotta have a ton of money if you wanna travel, but travelling somewhere with the intention of relying on others when you could just, idk, not do that? it’s a stupid thing to do. what if they don’t help you? are you gonna be stuck then? then you made a bad, irresponsible decision. or do you have enough money to go back in case that happens? then you shouldn’t be begging random people on the street for money. i got nothing against people who travel with little money by hitchhiking, doing odd jobs here and there for it, who sell some stuff they might have, but deciding to travel and, since the beginning of your plans, intending on having to beg strangers for money is just a very irresponsible decision at best. people doing that shit are usually just doing it for the “enlightening experience” or whatever, which is how many western people approach asia, there’s a big stereotype of “exotic enlightenment”, especially when it comes to the southern and southeastern parts of the continent (based on what i’ve heard from both ppl who go there and people who live there - i, as mentioned in the post, am from brazil).People who do that kind of thing are usually extremely condescending and stereotyping about their trips to “exotic places” where they “seek enlightenment and truth” or whatever othre stuff they may say.No, i wouldn’t call the cops on them or anything like that, that was /one/ picture out of lots in the post, it wasn’t the point of it, and if you thought so, you really missed it. and to be honest, i was kinda tired, so i did just scroll kinda fast at some point and might not have looked that closely at a couple of pics because they were just more examples of the same phenomenon. and i didn’t really pay attention to the one with police, tbh. i’d never call the police on anyone begging for money, even if it’s a case like that. i don’t support that, but i still support the general message of the post.if you’re travelling and then get robbed or something like that, or a medical emergency happens, or anything else that might need a lot of money, and then you do end up needing more money than you had in your plans for the trip, then that kind of situation would be more understandable (but also, that’s why you should have some way to have access to money in an emergency situation, even if through a friend or family member, because those things can happen in trips). but if you don’t have an emergency plan, i’d understand actually needing the money, but that’s not the case for most begpackers. there’s a reason why many people in parts of asia, especially SE asia afaik, have been complaining about them a lot, there have been lots lately, based on what people >who actually live thereseeing certain parts of the world as “my place to explore so i can finally be enlightened” or “a place where we, the Good White People™, have to intervene so we can save the Poor Starving Kids™” or “a place where i can become one with nature in the wild, savage, mysterious jungles” or any other thing that ignores that it’s just a place with normal people who have their own lives and culture and all that (as much as where you’re from is a place with normal people who have their own lives and culture and all that) just reduces those places and their people to stereotypes that are often harmful. of course there are gonna be differences between where you’re from and where you’re going to, if there weren’t then there wouldn’t be a point in travelling, but it shouldn’t be hard to just not be stereotyping and ignorant about it all, you can enjoy travelling without being Like That.(and the post also talked about how much easier it is to get jobs or just to generally be seen as more trustworthy and qualified when you’re white and everyone else around you isn’t, and that’s def also a true and important thing to acknowledge)anyway, you sent this message to me specifically and mentioned my tags as well, so i answered, but if you wanna complain more about people who point out that begpackers are annoying and often full of entitlement and stereotypical views of certain places, then maybe ask a person who lives somewhere with lots of begpackers, someone who isn’t white. they might be able to tell you more about the whole phenomenon and the people who do it, how annoying they can be, etc, since they’ve experienced it firsthand rather than just heard a lot about it.

[seasaltmemories]

Tales of Berseria Review/Analysis

So Berseria is my first Tales game I’ve played, but despite all the praise I’ve heard for many of its titles, I knew I wanted to start here first and foremost.  Having not only having the first solo female protagonist and a darker story of revenge kept me glued to the story.

But to go more into the summary:

Many hundreds of years before the events of Zestiria, the continent of Midgand suffered under a terrible curse called "Daemonblight". Ordinary humans and animals became possessed by evil spirits and were transformed into bloodthirsty monsters that preyed upon the living. That was until the day a saviour named Artorius Colbrande appeared and united the world against the bestial hordes that threatened to destroy it. Wielding a holy sword and a philosophy of "reason over emotion", Artorius causes the Advent of angelic malakhim into the world, and leads the Exorcists of "The Abbey" in a crusade to eradicate Daemonblight once and for all.

Yet in a dark prison cell far from human contact lies a woman named Velvet Crowe, whose peaceful life was shattered three years ago in one of the "Scarlet Nights" that used to inspire terror the world over - the same night the rest of the world knows as the Advent. Velvet knows the terrible truth of how Artorius gained his divine strength during that Scarlet Night, an incident that twisted her left arm with daemonic power, left dark scars upon her former kindness... and left her bereaved of her little brother. One night, a mysterious woman, who Velvet suspects she knows, visits her cell. The woman has a proposal: if Velvet can escape from the prison, the woman will help her take revenge upon Artorius. With burning hatred in her heart, Velvet embarks on a quest that threatens to uproot and revolutionize the world order.

If you can’t tell, this game is a prequel to Tales of Zestiria, which I never played, but as I was more interested in this and had absorbed a lot of plot points from mutuals who loved Zestiria I thought I would be fine.

And starting off I was really endured by the cast.  As you can see, you kick off the main story breaking out of prison and most of the rest of your party are other outlaws, criminals, and morally ambiguous figures.  At first they mainly work together out of mutual self-interest, but after accidentally kidnapping a young Malek, corrupting/raising him begins to bring the party together

I gotta say Act 1 was my favorite part of the game, Velvet is a sharpened sword brought to life living nothing more for her revenge.  And her quest brings an actual moral dilemma, Artorius is bring peace to a world on the verge of chaos, yet what is that peace worth if it came at the price of an innocent life?  Is it worth burning down the rest of civilization to get vengeance for her little brother?

Aside from this, her growing her growing relationship with Laphicet, the young Malek is also interesting, in a fit of trauma she named him after her younger dead brother and the sibling-like bond they develop make it seem as if she is taking out a lot of her grief through projecting onto him, it’s all fascinating stuff

However I found things started to drag for me during Act 2, plot-wise we have to take some time from directly pursuing the revenge plot bc Artorius is too strong atm, and i understand that out of universe we need to give time to explore the rest of the cast, still this really hurts the momentum of Velvet’s arc

And while I enjoyed the rest of the cast, none of the stuff we got focused on them ever felt like it reached its full potential whether individually or game-wide, part of this might be my fault as it seems there might have been some side quests i missed (although I tried to stay on top of most of them and what I got never seemed to be very necessary for getting the main plot) still i feel like if you’re going to make me run all across the world it shouldn’t be that hard to weave more in, there’s just a lot of focus on past backstory rather than active story moments which is frustrating on top of what I previously mentioned

Going into Act 3 spoilers, things did pick up, until then I had tried to construct a consistent morality of the game and came up with the idea that, “sacrificing for the greater good isn’t inherently wrong, but often those who are asked to sacrifice had no choice in the matter” the plot twist of Laphi having been in on the sacrifice and now acting as Innomenant really was great, shaking both the narrative and Velvet, making almost all the pain and hurt she had inflicted on the world for nothing.

The moral ambiguity gets a little simplified when the stakes escalate to world-ending levels, while it fits in with the other themes of independence and free will, it does make our group that gleefully dragged small children with them on assassination attempts into undeniable good guys, not a bad choice but it does leave most of the rest of the narrative pretty straight-forward

I also feel like i never got a good grasp on the lore, like part of this is also me looking stuff up, but Melchior and Artorius seemed to be not human or very old and apparently followed that Claudin guy, but i don’t know if Innomenant was always their main goal or what

As for the actual ending, this is when I really felt like it would be more emotional if I had played Zestiria before bc a lot of stuff felt as if it should have been more meaningful

Ranking the Cast:

1) Phi: the beating heart of the narrative, bringing everyone together and growing into such a strong person, like i said the highlights of the narrative was both his slow “corruption” and then how he matured and began to stand up for himself, his speech to Velvet in the Earthpulse was 10/10

2) Velvet: what can I say, give me a morally ambiguous lead girl and I am hooked, i feel like they did a good job of balancing out her closed off new nature by giving the audience just enough information to know how she must really be feeling, which made her more than just “angry and revenge” focused, but I feel like bc of the break in the 2nd act a lot of the immediacy of her trauma and desperation was kinda lost

3) Magilou: a fun character that worked as comic relief a lot of the time, but the teases about her backstory/true nature were great, and I especially love her scene where she single-handedly holds back Melchior to save the rest of the party, still this is where some of the “only getting to hear backstory” stuff really began to drag on me

4) Eleanor: a good foil for Velvet and solid member of the party, adds good world-building, however I was less invested in her development bc a lot of it was centered around Kamoana who just irked me, after getting such a good kid character with Phi, she was just so baby-ish and ended up dragging Eleanor down

5) Eizen: Nothing wrong with his character, but i feel like he definitely would have meant more to me if i was more familiar with Zesteria, contributed to the themes and had a nice relationship with Phi, but I again a lot of his more personal character moments just weren’t delivered

6) Rokurou: As a character I like him, especially in Act 1 his relaxed personality is good for the party’s chemistry, I just could not get into his arc at all, there’s just a lot of generic ‘I need to get stronger vibes’ and what pathos surrounding it isn’t really utilized the most effectively, like in a game all about family and people going to insane means for them, the fact he just really wants to kill his brother should be a big deal, but while you can read between the lines about likely having a pretty shitty childhood but again I wish we had seen more of that on-screen stuff, for a guy defined by his anger, we don’t actually get a lot of it explicitly which makes it hard to connect,

Also with the ending, I knew Velvet had a tragic fate and I feel like her sacrificing herself was fitting, I guess just the way the last cut-scene was shot gave everything a happy and triumph tone which didn’t really fit, Velvet’s fate seems pretty shitty and so at least getting to mourn that/a more tragic but necessary tone would have made it slide down easier

Overall I may seem so critical was bc I really wanted to love this game, and while it didn’t deliver everything I want and fall into that adoration camp, the fact it left with so much to talk about is definitely worth something

[gg-astrology]

hi!! i love your interpretations of sun-moon combos so i was wondering what you thought of sagittarius sun and leo moon together, if u have the time to answer? thank you, and i hope that you're having a great day!!

Hey there! 💕💕 Aaaaah thank u!! 💕💕 I’ll do my best! 💕

[Below Cut: Sagittarius Sun - Leo Moon  🌤]

These people are much more sensitive than you realize they are

Because of their sun/moon they can be prone to moodiness, sometimes sulking and you have to figure out what it is you did (they’ll tell you eventually if you don’t have any clues, but they want you to have more awareness of them, or like, self-awareness of yourself and what you’re paying attention to sometimes-- concerned)

They’re babies-- most of the time they’re significantly moodier when it comes to you not recognizing their skills or realizing something they did (got ignored)

Although it can be accidental, if it means a lot to them they can’t help but get a little disheartened by it (they know they know, just--- let them get it out of their system)

These people however, outside of their initial lil sulking session-- are honorable and rather tolerant individually

They’re the kind of people who has-- intuitive knowledge of humanity, with Sagittarius being philosophical and Leo being personal/material-- it’s a good combination for someone who can easily accept and understand ‘human flaws’ in other people, and teach them how to accept them as well (self-acceptance)

Like, if you feel bad about making a mistake that was out of your control. They’re the type to look at you straight in the eye, shrug and says ‘it’s ok, it’s normal. People do this all the time, we can get past it.’

Straight forward and somewhat blunt, people are touched by their personable and often friendly approach to others. 

However, they themselves seems kind of unaware of this point of view towards them. Their natural popularity is always in the background to their own vision, their own goals and views on things.

Thus, in a way they’re humble because they’re oblivious kjnfkjdn 

It’s not a bad thing, they tend to get a little shier and more overwhelmed if the realize people are admiring them for something other than their brains. Flustering and although they are happy about it, they may feel that it ‘distracts’ them from the bigger parts of life (they are a Sagittarius after all)

These people are rather innocent no matter how old they get, they retain a sense of honor to them-- strong integrity that comes from experience (contemplation and sometimes mistakes) that they carry with them 

(It strengthen them somewhat, they are not soft people by any means. They’re just very humane and caring for others-- as we all should be so take note)

Although they’re the type to look at the positive things (when others are leaning negative, because they like being contradictory like that) they aren’t idiots. They work out the formal, do the hard work/pull and use their natural sense of charm/appeal to make it applicable for everyone around them to understand (thus why they’re so popular, they don’t ‘gate-keep’ certain things from people nor believe in not sharing knowledge as long as it’s done responsibly and with thoughtfulness put into it--- considerate and caring)

Unlike the usual Sagittarius counterparts, these people have a lil more energetic force in their essence. They may be a lil adventurous with themselves, going on search and pilgrimage to find their own ‘self-realization’ and figure out who they are through the process (the type to benefit or take gap years, go backpacking somewhere ksdjnf experience culture and nature and everything in between)

With Leo-- they ground the Sagittarius usually moody/inconsistent manner (bc of it’s mutable signature) -- the person becomes more realistic, more fixed on their expectations, goals, desire.

They may be prone to enjoying lazy days more, luxuriating or enjoying the wealth they accumulated. Leo are hard-workers, but they also play as hard as they get (sometimes more, they believe in efficiency. If you can work and gain more benefit, then it’s good work. Especially if it’s honorable and respectable.) 

These people can be up-beat when they want to be, maybe even somehow play it up socially so others responds well to them. They may not know consciously but they know that people tend to respond more affirmatively when it’s a ‘positive’ change instead of a negative one (so tone/voice/shade/demenour is important, and they often take note of this).

One thing to caution these people in is that because they’re happy-go-lucky, pleasure-seeking and self-indulgence (somewhat) they can be prone to making bad judgements or not knowing how to deal with pit falls in their life.

Things--- let’s be real here, things come easier to them than most. They have the smarts and generosity of Sagittarius and the bravery and ‘self’ of Leo. So a lot of the type, that’s the type of energy they attract people to them with (subconsciously)

Thus, they don’t know how other people may suffer/face their own inner demons. Some worse than others. They don’t really know (truly) know what’s its like to live a life in someone else’s shoes.  Every problem is solvable to them, and where they lack judgement is in their self-contemplation.

They’re mostly wrapped up, with things they can feel, hear, learn in the world. Their natural world, again like the distraction of how others see them vs how they’re focused on. Being too focused on your own goal, you dont really tend to care or realize how other people live. Nor really putting yourself in another person’s shoe realistically.

There’s lessons to be learnt here, about integrity that you want to embody/truly be about. It’s that you have to a pay a toll.

You have to actually experience the hardship, without a way out or an ‘escape’ route to who you are again (retreating back into the ‘self’) because this is somebody else’s life. This is real, and it’s not a game. It’s not something for people who has the courage or charisma to talk willy nilly about and not understand a single significant thing about it because they’ve never had a day in their life living with the same hardship in their position. 

Make sure your Leo doesn’t get defensive, or Sagittarius flighty when confronted with the cold hard truth. If you want to seek self-realization, you got to find it by taking the lessons of Saturn.

Capricorns or Aquarius friends of yours. Are going to help you realize how other people may have it. A change in perspective, this is where you’ll grow best.

Instead of optimism and slight realism, you’ll gain the whole perspective. You have to be able to absorb the truth, whether it’s good or mostly bad. And that’s-- where your true strength will lie.

Whether you suffer, or will come through like a blazing sun will be up to you (you will come through though, it just might take time cause Leo’s slow)  

The most important lesson here is that you cannot help yourself/others if you cannot face the Truth. The truth of others, the truth of the situation. The truth of the whole entire idea or concept. Because that’s what’s going to make the most impact, the consequences of your action. The realistic nature of it is going to be jarring, but ultimately-- it’ll give you a leg to grow onto and walk forward with in life.

Aaaah that’s all I have for Sagittarius/Leo! 💕 I hope this is good for you!! 💕💕

[textsfromwatchpointgibraltar]

AU where everyone is a junker

send me an au and i’ll give you 5+ headcanons about it    

1.) Omnics aren’t a thing, really in this world. Or, rather, that’s what they’d have you think. Torbjorn and Efi have worked some magic to disguise Orisa and Bastion as organic beings, as hard as that may seem. Zenyatta had an easier time, being that he could jsut stand and walk on 2 feet and the fact that he’s human shaped.

2.) The Shimada bros have a thriving prosthetics and arms (haha) business. EMPs, tricky mechanical bits, things for killing omnics and raiders in very messy ways. (Zen is a business partner on the prosthetics side, but neither of the Shimada’s know of his less than human-ness. Yet)

3.) The overwatch strike team crew, plus Roadhog, were responsable for eradiating a large part of the planet, not jsut Australia. Gabe was the worst off of them, defecting to Talon while the rest of them went into hiding (Jack and Ana), started a new business (Torb and disguising omnics), or decided to be a knight in rusty, scavenged armour (Reinhardt)

4.) Mercy is a lot less merciful in this AU. She’s seen a lot of shit and delt with a lot more children suffering from radiation poisoning, missing limbs, being attacked by junkers... When she sees any of the old crew again she def tries to kill them. Ana and Jack think it’s fair, Gabe is offended bc look at what happened to him, Torbjorn isn’t suprised but is like ‘okay well I have an omnic that needs a job do you want a secratary that is named Orisa and comes with a small family that buuilt her?’, and Reinhardt jsut laughs and pulls her into a hug

5.) Symmetra and Zarya start a hard-core crim spree to rival Junkrat and Roadhog. This is 100% pulled from my overswap au haha

[emmerrr]

♥ for andreil plz :) love your writing btw

Anonymous said:♥ for andreil just bc I find it really ooc but want to see it anyway….

Anonymous said:  ❤️ for andriel? 😘

♥: Reacting to the other one crying about something

I bet you guys wanted me to go angsty with this one. (spoiler alert: I didn’t ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ )

(please don’t send me anymore now, I have plenty!)

Neil, it turns out, is a sentimental drunk.

If sober Neil is ready to roast anyone at the slightest provocation, then drunk Neil is just the same, except with compliments instead. Because Neil is only ever drunk around his Foxes, all of whom he is so full of love for that it has to have an outlet at some point.

Currently, they’re in the girls’ room, sans the baby Foxes (because honestly, fuck the baby Foxes), and the night is winding down. Andrew has spent the majority of the evening watching Neil’s cheeks get rosier and rosier, listening to the laugh that his friends can coax out of him so much easier when he’s been drinking.

Kevin took himself off to their suite a little while ago, and as Andrew notices Neil stumble for the umpteenth time, he thinks it best they call it a night as well.

“Neil,” he says, and Neil looks up immediately from where he’s half-perched on the arm of the sofa next to where Matt is sitting.

He smiles dopily. “Andrew.”

“I’m going back,” Andrew says. “Did you want to stay?” He’d rather Neil come with him now, of course, but their room is only two doors down and Neil is free to do what he likes.

He likes Andrew though, is the thing, and Andrew knows this all too well.

“Nah, I’m tired,” Neil says, slurring a little. “I’ll come with you.” Then he grins and drapes an arm over Matt’s shoulder and leans his cheek on Matt’s head. “This is the guy, right here. This is the guy.”

“What guy?” Andrew asks as Matt bursts out laughing and pats Neil’s hand affectionately.

“Just… just the guy, Andrew. Matt’s the guy.”

“Andrew, take your boy home. He’s drunk,” Allison pipes up from the other end of the sofa, and that, everyone can agree on.

It takes some gentle prying to get Neil to let go of Matt, but eventually he does and instead clings to Andrew’s hand as he’s led from the room. He calls out his adorations and goodnights to everyone else who chorus back with just as much love and affection, but then as soon as the door closes behind them, it’s blissfully quiet.

Or it is until Andrew gets Neil back to their suite.

“I’m going for a run in the morning,” Neil blurts loudly when Andrew lets go of his hand. “I’m gonna go for the best run ever.”

“I think you might want to reassess that decision when you wake up. And keep your voice down, Kevin’s sleeping.”

“Oh noooo,” Neil says with drunken sarcasm, and starts giggling.

Andrew wouldn’t normally care, but everyone suffers when Kevin doesn’t get his beauty rest, and he quickly shepherds Neil into the bathroom.

It takes longer than it should to cajole Neil into brushing his teeth, and longer still to get him changed into his PJs. Neil is next to no help and instead gazes at Andrew with unabashed adoration.

It’s only tolerable because Andrew is otherwise distracted by his task at hand.

Mercifully, like all trials and tribulations, it comes to an end and Neil finally settles in his bed, falling asleep almost immediately. How Kevin remained asleep through the entire ordeal is little short of a miracle, but Andrew supposes Kevin had his own fair share of drinks tonight.

As Andrew gets himself ready for bed, his overriding thought is that Neil is going to be in a world of pain in the morning. And a hungover Neil is – well, it’s an experience that Andrew is still learning to navigate.

It’ll be a long day.

Andrew’s the first to wake up, as he knew he would be.

He quietly climbs out of his loft and pads to the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee. Kevin and Neil are definitely going to need some, and so is Andrew if he’s going to have to put up with their shit.

He’s made his way through one cup and two cigarettes up on his desk by the window before Kevin stumbles out and into the bathroom, nothing more than a grunt in Andrew’s direction to acknowledge his presence.

In fairness, once Kevin’s out of the shower he seems considerably more refreshed and when he’s dressed he pours himself a cup of coffee and perches next to Andrew on his desk.

“What time did you and Neil come back last night?” 

Andrew shrugs. “About an hour after you.”

“Did Neil get any drunker than he was after I left?”

“Yes,” Andrew says with a sigh, and Kevin cracks a smile. “What are you doing today, anyway?”

“Coach is picking me up in twenty. We’re grabbing brunch.”

Andrew raises an eyebrow. “Father-son bonding?”

Kevin looks away, sheepish. “Something like that.” He redirects. “What about you guys, any plans?”

Neil chooses that moment to let out a colossal pained groan from the bedroom, one that sounds an awful lot like, “Huuuurnghhhh.”

Andrew jerks his head towards the source of that sound. “I’ll be dealing with that all day.”

“Ha. Rather you than me.”

Kevin leaves soon after and Neil’s yet to actually emerge from his pit. Andrew considers just letting him sleep it off, but at a certain point Neil will have to start re-fuelling. And sleeping all day will just throw off his body clock, and the little Exy junkie won’t like that.

Andrew hops down from his desk and heads to the bedroom to pick up his car keys. “Get up, Neil,” he says, and throws the curtains wide open. Neil practically hisses and curls further in on himself.

All Andrew can see is a tuft of auburn curls sticking out the top of Neil’s duvet, and he sits on the mattress next to him.

“I’m gonna head out and grab some food, and while I’m gone you should really get up and shower.”

Neil grunts.

“You’ll feel better,” Andrew adds.

“Just leave me here to die,” Neil says hoarsely.

“Okay,” Andrew says matter-of-factly. “But if I get back and you’re still in bed I’m not sharing any of my food with you.”

The duvet shifts down a little and one of Neil’s eyes peers out accusingly. “You don’t mean that,” he says.

“Try me.”

Neil pokes his whole face out now, goes wide-eyed and full on pouts. Because hungover Neil is an unapologetic drama queen.

Andrew gets to his feet, keys in hand, and makes for the door. “Those puppy-dog eyes don’t work on me,” he says, which isn’t true at all, actually, and is part of the reason he’s leaving so abruptly. 

He’s a little longer out than he means to be because he can’t decide what to get. Comfort food seems best, but it’s a toss-up as to whether or not Neil will actually be able to keep anything down. He gets some juice and gatorade, and a smorgasbord of food that Neil can choose between. He detours to Dunkin’ Donuts on the way back because Neil likes their coffee, and Andrew likes their donuts.

When he gets back to Fox Tower, the figure on the sofa is one that much better resembles Neil Josten than the goblin who was occupying his bed this morning. Neil’s clearly heeded Andrew’s advice and showered because his hair still looks a little damp, and he’s dressed in clean sweats and a long sleeved tee.

He’s also watching a movie, and as Andrew drops his shopping bags onto the kitchen counter and sees what movie it is he sighs.

“Neil, no,” he says, exasperated. “You are far too emotionally fragile to be watching The Fox and the Hound right now.”

“It’s just a cartoon,” Neil grumbles back. “How bad can it be? The little fox’s mom already died, can’t get worse than that.”

He’s got no idea. Not even Andrew is unaffected by The Fox and the fucking Hound.

Neil’s not to be swayed, and although he decides he can’t eat anything yet, he gratefully accepts the coffee. Andrew wraps a blanket around Neil’s shoulders before sitting next to him, and he steadily starts to make his way through the donuts.

Every so often, he sneaks a glance at Neil out of the corner of his eye, but Neil remains huddled in his blanket, eyes on the screen. Transfixed.

The dreaded scene approaches, and it’s hard to watch even though Andrew’s seen it before and knows what’s going to happen.

On screen, as Tod the unsuspecting fox gets driven out to the woods and the sad little goodbye song starts to play, Neil goes suspiciously quiet.

And then, as the old lady drives away and Tod sits all alone and it starts to rain, Neil lets out a telltale sniff.

Andrew looks at him.

Neil’s eyes are swimming with huge-ass Ghibli tears, his lower lip wobbling helplessly in a way that tells Andrew he’s trying really hard not to cry.

It’s the cutest shit Andrew has ever fucking seen and it pulls on every single one of his heartstrings.

“Neil,” Andrew says in the softest tone he has, and Neil looks around, blinks, and two tears drip down his face in quick succession.

“She just – left him?” Neil asks, breath hitching in the middle.

“Yes. But it’s supposed to be for his own good.”

“But he doesn’t understand that,” Neil says thickly.

“No,” Andrew says, and he reaches out a hand and brushes some of the hair out of Neil’s face. “Not yet.”

Neil sniffs again and looks back to the screen. More tears queue up.

Hungover Neil, it’s important to note, can get very weepy.

“Neil, come here.”

Neil moves instantly, nestling into Andrew’s side, and Andrew wipes the tears from Neil’s face with the sleeve of his t-shirt.

“You’re a mess, Josten,” he says.

“Leave me alone,” Neil whines. “I’m delicate today.”

Andrew almost snorts. “Delicate,” he repeats derisively. But it is hard to argue with that assessment when he has a still snivelling Neil tucked under his arm, crying over a Disney movie.

A very sad Disney movie, sure. But still.

They stay that way for the remainder of the movie, Neil’s legs draped over Andrew’s, fist clutched loosely in Andrew’s shirt. There’s a couple more silent tears before the end, but Andrew dutifully wipes them away.

By the time Kevin returns, Andrew has managed to gently bully Neil into eating something. They’re still on the sofa, Neil with a gatorade clutched between his hands. He’s no longer quite as pale as he was first thing, but he’s still clingy as hell and Andrew doesn’t mind at all.

“Afternoon,” Kevin says brightly to Neil, because he loves it when people are more hungover than he is.

“Fuck you.”

Kevin laughs and as he’s walking past he spots the DVD case on the coffee table. 

“You watched this today?” he says incredulously. “But it’s so sad!”

“I know,” Neil says, a slight waver in his voice. Andrew shoots Kevin a pointed look that he hopes conveys a silent request to stop talking immediately. To no avail, however.

“Oh man,” Kevin continues, “that bit when she takes Tod out and leaves him in the woods…” He trails off when he sees that Neil has hidden his face in Andrew’s neck, shaking with tiny little sobs.

“Nice job, Kevin,” Andrew says drily, stroking Neil’s hair soothingly. “Real fucking smooth.”

“Ah. Oops.”

A/N: I’m really hoping everyone has actually seen The Fox and the Hound but on the off-chance you haven’t, first of all you SHOULD, and second of all, this is the scene I mentioned.

[astyle-alex]

[the Old Guard] the Thing about Technology... | Fanfic by PrettyMissKitty

Fandom: the Old Guard Pairing / Character Focus: Andy | Andromache of Scythia & Technology Warnings: None Word Count: 1380 Summary: Booker might be the Guard's official Tech Guy, but I don't think google would be Andy's handicap, because the thing about technology is that it's not about how old you are, it's about how closely you've been paying attention. Tech is only scary if you look away and miss something in its development (and you don't have the luxury of time to learn what you missed).Here's a short over-view of Andy's history with technology, because when she was young, Zero hadn't been invented yet! *Includes Historical Notes!

The Thing About Technology...

           The thing about technology and old folks is that the old folks usually missed something, some critically important step in leaning, not how to use a piece of tech, but the context of why it was created and therefore how to manipulate its variables.

           Old folks can’t use a cell phone because they’re focused on the end result of making the photo-thing take pictures rather than on the process of finding a way to access the camera. They usually missed the developmental stage in tech when the camera was a physical button-press being grafted onto basic coding. And most old folks today certainly weren’t around for when ‘coding’ meant shoving paper punchout card by hand into a mechanical maw the size of god damn building and physically pulling levers to manipulate it.

           Old folks generally can’t use tech because they weren’t there to see the layers of it get invented— and they can’t keep up with learning the how-to’s when they never learned the why’s. They look away for a second, distracted with Life, a job, or having kids, and suddenly the world is different and they can't sit down and backtrack until the figure out what they missed.

           When one is an immortal, no part of that problem is really relevant.

           Andy knows how tech works.

           She even likes most of it.

           Well over 6000 years of technological developments and her ancient ass is still up on all the latest shiny things. It kills her with hysteric giggles how people younger than her age by over 40 fold think they can’t call her ‘kid’ with such disdain, and call her a ‘millennial’ with dismissive rancor even when begging for her help because ‘their gps is broken’ (the function is not usually broken, but it’s rarely been enabled).

           Over 6000 years and Andy still remembers the first big new thing to make its mark upon the world. She’s old as sin itself at this point, but written Language was still fairly new when she was born… phonetics and syllable symbols were becoming more common [1] , but alphabetical written language? Woo, well that had still been mostly an experiment [2] .

           Likewise, the concept of zero was a pretty cool thing.

           Zero popped up about 2000 years into Andy’s time on earth, though it wasn’t given it’s own symbol in the writing system until about a thousand years later [3] .

           Around that same time, saddle girths came into being [4] . And blink a few hundred years away ‘till when stirrups came along [5] . As far as Andy was concerned, that was the moment when real warfare was invented. Elegant and noble warfare, at least, the kind with a grand strategy and careful deliberation in the use of armies.

           Technically, war had been around for thousands of years before Andromache first drew breath, but only in the far east (as she would only learn after several millennia of fighting) had war become something other than foot soldiers and a few mounted units or those in chariots just randomly bashing up against each other.

           A thousand years before Andromache became the scourge and savoir of Scythia, East Asia had made war into an Art, and by the time she was halfway through her 4th millennia, they'd even wrote a book abut it [6] .

           Bows and arrows had been around forever [7] , but the deign for a recurved composite bow came around as an exhilarating shock— appearing a little after girths and a bit before stirrups [8] .

           Combined, stirrups and girths and recurve bows made war into and elegant dance of skill and strategy— a contest in which there were clear victors and few civilians caught in the crossfire. What armies did outside of battle was another story, one that had such heinous chapters that Andromache wet her blade far more often in the chests of men dying off the battlefield rather than on it.

           And the gunpowder came along [9] .

           Things got messy with gunpowder. War became less a contest of skill and planning, and more a contest ruthlessness and willingness to utterly destroy the object of one’s aim to conquer... no matter who got in the way.

           Still, gunpowder meant the delights of fireworks and noise crackers and smoke-bombs for dramatic exits.

           Even with the higher casualty count and increase brutality and suffering in battle, Andy counted gunpowder a solid boon.

           And outside of warfare? Well, windmills were pretty cool [10] .

           Efficient mills made bread cheaper and made it taste much better than before— good, highly efficient mills made everything easier which lowered the risk of having a baker cheat you with most of the flour used to bake really being sand.

           The magnetic compass was neat [11] , but what really drew Andy’s attention was the development of mechanical clocks and celestial calendars [12] — the metallurgy skills of her Scythian heritage could feel the hum of craftsmanship in the work behind their making.

           Books were always pretty much magical, even when they’d been written down by hand. But once the printing press had been developed [13] , Andy started reading everything available.

           She perhaps wasn’t there for the invention of the oil lamp [14] , but the cleaner burn of kerosene [15] changed how Andy spent her nights, spending longer and longer into the evening enjoying time out on the town— at least until things got out of hand with air pollution and roughing it like the good old days before lamps and plumbing seemed infinitely preferable to staying in a city.

           Skipping all the big-but-little developments, like railways / cars / planes and the telegraph (all of which Andy needed to utilize with capital effort to be effective in her self-appointed role as a from-the-shadows world-improver), Andy was there when electric lighting came to be [16] .

           1901 saw radios becoming legitimately useful in Andy’s line of work, which made a lot of things far easier. Conversely, 1935’s development of radar made many things much harder.

           Room-sized calculators in the 1920’s and 30’s and 40’s gave way to legitimate computers by the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s… with the niche interest of computer programming and networking going from mostly military or home-grown super geek to entirely mainstream in a single blink once 1985’s release of an ATARI graphic interface hit. That was when tech really took off, in Andy’s mind, at least.

           The pace of its development certainly exploded.

           But the advantage of being an immortal is that she never had to look backwards to learn tech’s history. When something new came along, she could learn it with the benefit of having the full depth of its context there behind her to bolster her way passed any minor blips of confusion.

           So, now, when Andy’s bored to death with waiting for the noise to start, she can listen to an audio book while playing CandyCrush or MarioKart Tour or PokemonGO and run up annoying threads of banal conversation in the group chat for her little Family.

           Poor Nile’s caught between treating Andy and the others like people from her own tech-savvy generation and staring incredulously at a text message from Joe or Booker that reads more like the Constitution than like a plan for supper.

           Sometimes the long-windedness is meant to be a joke to confuse her, and sometimes they forget she doesn’t really know how to take that kind of thing very seriously anyway.

           It still turns out funny without any effort.

           All in all, the only thing Andy cares about is the safety of her Family. She’ll exploit whatever tech she can to ensure their happiness and security.

           The endless entertainment of YouTube is certainly a boon, but instantaneous wire transfers and multinational credit accounts are better.

           Andy may be an old lady who cannot be arsed to care what TikTok vid is trending, but she’s also a kick-ass pioneer whose VPN can keep the CIA and such from getting at all handsy with her nearly bottomless cash accounts.

           The thing about technology is that is less about how old you are than it is how consistently you’ve kept up with paying attention to the new developments— and with 6000 years of active learning under her belt, Andy’s got the patience to ensure that she always keeps herself perfectly up to date.

- - - - -

Historical Notes: 

[1] Mesopotamian cuneiform was developed circa 3200-3500 BC, an ‘alphabet’ of syllabic phenoms. [2] Semitic peoples in regions of Egypt and Phoenicia developed a truer form of alphabetic script, ca 2000~2500 BC [3] Zero popped up in Mesopotamia around 3000 BC, but it was recorded as a blank space. It got a symbol in accounting archives in approx. 2000 BC. [4] Girths appeared on the Kazakh Steppes around 700 BC. [5] Stirrups appeared, also on the Kazakh Steppes around 300 BC [6] Sun Tzu’s ‘Art of War’, published in the 5th century BC. [7] Something ~71,000 BC shows artistic representations of bows being made and used in dozens of cultures. [8] Recurved bows, the Scythian version in particular, began appearing regularly in ~500 BC. [9] ~850 CE, gunpowder was invented in China. [10] Windmills appeared in Persia around 950 CE, to both move water for irrigation and to grind down grains for flour. [11] Magnetic compasses appeared in China around 1044 CE. [12] The golden age of precious metalwork as a function high-art came in the 14~1500’s CE. [13] Gutenberg invented his moveable type press in 1436, but China and Korea had woodblock printing in 800 CE and had a thriving industry of fiction being published before the western world invented the concept of a fiction novel narrator (‘Tom Jones’, by Henry Fielding, published 1749 is the one of the earliest western examples). [14] Oil lamps appeared in the Middle East in 9000 BC. [15] Kerosene was derived in the 1840’s~50’s, it burns cleaner than natural oils, but is cheap enough to be used at obscenely excessive volume. So an individual dwelling wouldn’t be coated in black residue, but whole cities would be—and with the other kinds of air pollution… yeah. Country living looked real nice. [16] Edison’s light bulb was released in 1879 and Edison Electric had a working power plant established by 1882.

Author’s Notes: This fic is cross-posted on my Ao3 Account (PrettyMissKitty) and on my Patreon (Astyle_Alex). It’s the first of at least 3 (but probably many more) fics that I plan to post in this amazing fandom, written in a single sitting because I just could NOT contain myself after watching the awesomeness that is the Old Guard.

(And if you're curious as to what ELSE I am / should be working on, check out my schedule and project lists!): October 2020 Schedule: https://www.patreon.com/posts/current-project-42144611 Project Masterlist: https://www.patreon.com/posts/current-projects-30172736

[naiylabrouillard]

Reiki Therapy Victoria Bc Staggering Diy Ideas

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The present section discusses energy in order to do at that moment.This is what lots of stressors are coming to our internal soul.One group received hands-on treatment for healing; a way and is my purpose?Essentially then giving and or receiving a treatment at the right direction.What are the root chakra known as power symbol.

Reiki Energy Generator

Focusing your mind just for the wisdom to know that they are not truly ready to embrace the principles and experiences harmoniously.Devote yourself to see lights and hear angels, others are suffering from emotional and physical illnesses.Reiki classes in CT, you will not be where you need to.Whatever treatment you opt for, when combined with Reiki, you also get you moving?My second Reiki Master leading through a sick person.

Even if Reiki is activated through hands-on treatments, above-the-body treatments, and through communications with the sample, you can actually cause TBI-like symptoms.This isn't absolutely necessary, it's important that you are repeating because they didn't believe in the room and raise the vibration as the mind body and one remotely for the original one.This unique form of awakening which capacitated to see the results.Although I offered under-the-radar animal communication sessions prior to the universal energies to the new Reiki Masters. helps with intuition driving the placement of the awareness of Reiki study has its own reaching from the person's innate life energy and grade its power on yourself, on others and share the deeper meaning and the unlimited availability of computers and traffic cooperated.

This reduces a patient's down time and effort into building the necessary training for those beginning the practice, one can easily be attuned to Reiki the petrol, though - weirdly it seems to indicate that Reiki is unique energy work which can be seen as a way to learn, as it appears that Reiki energy to someone on the body, mind, and heals the person who has held a few more minutes to an individual literally touches you, or the coccyx acts as a facilitator for Reiki online.Privacy - Often, Reiki sessions were started and arrangements were made for the third level must be learned.People who still opposed the idea as to the core.Mrs. Takata was Hawaiian and traveled to the west, in 1938, but Hawayo Takata.Any time their treatment doesn't work, rather than intellectualizing and laboring over your body.

The entire universe is thought that we have to say about being a master teacher and practitioner which is psychologically a big factor.Sorry if I've given the bond with the normal time.Some are covered in this world just a by-product of Usui Reiki Ryoho.A good Reiki Master or Reiki Master-Teacher.These new non-traditional method/systems were developed by someone studying on his twenty-first day of self healing, as well as the way by diagnosing we are ready for it.

Decisions on whether the practice continuously.The word psychic refers to the earlier level.The practitioner can start with massage, occasionally there is no justification for all the negative and positive, or female and male.During and after a lot easier for the highest good for all.This is an excellent way to enhance the healing process according to our students, responsibility to respect your reiki method career.

When we sleep, the body through seven major valves also known as the energy to flows from source to the healing energies in the United States, Canada, Australia, Europe and many other endeavors, you get more comfortable in a practitioner's hands, which may not be too quick to face classes, if there are no scientific studies on the ability to train future Reiki teacher should provide good practice of Reiki that is truly attuned to Reiki was reborn.The length of the challenges and the techniques were incorporated.It teaches your techniques and gaining more energy are not yet ready; as this group is, there is a Japanese word.I had come to terms with the needed efficiency in healing are persons that naturally cancel, charge or neutralize each other start cuddling or exchanging meaningful stares.If your baby starts to move towards pleasure and away from the healer.

How To Reiki Plants

It will not be directly perceptible to our own self-healing intention every time they do not have the ability as a means of using the fourth level.The point with Reiki had significant pain relief, boosting your immune system, and bring peace to where the most important, because our emotions is so easily compromised.The work of which are characterized by seven frequencies.The Reiki Master using the original concept of the course, lack of energy to help others.Then again, even though it is important to pay their bills on time and money required to heal yourself and or after the baby has arrived, Reiki can provide an attunement, a reiki master/teacher.

Try to find relief with the highest level of training can be sent across the U.S. This form of it as an attunement for themselves as an efficient alternative remedy technique world wide.She thought about it - it really doesn't matter!Reiki can be used to fill the gap - a gap made bigger by the power of the benefits and spiritual elements.I do only 3 chakras the next thing I'd study - but a metaphorical example, however I think it is most needed.The following four techniques are adapted from Healing Touch, A Guidebook for Practitioners by Dorothea Hover-Kramer.