#but the thing is I'm not exactly even secretive about it so there's the enabling factor

[jade-curtiss]

No one solves ethics here, he's just exposing shit and bouncing people out the only way I can.

[oneatlatime]

The Painted Lady

Air Bison, Sea Bison, and now Sludge Bison.

I have no idea how Aang is swimming through a solid. Must be an Avatar thing.

I bet there would be time for more potty breaks if Sokka hadn't spent 100+ hours of their time drawing up the schedule. A very Sokka thing to do though.

Because hills often have horns. Great disguise.

You can't tell me that a factory that close to their town wouldn't also become the town's primary employer.

That is a lot of town.

I sense a return of preachy Katara. This episode is going to suck.

I'm with Sokka on this one. Buy fish, move on, defeat Firelord, return to help with environmental remediation if time permits.

I like Doc. And Shu. Nice people.

Writers: if you have to make one of your characters an entirely different person to set up the episode's lesson of the week, maybe the lesson doesn't fit your chosen characters. This is the Warriors of Kyoshi all over again. Funny how that's happened to Sokka twice.

We are all Sokka.

And where exactly did this mysterious painted lady get the food to deliver to the village, if the reason the Gaang stopped in the village in the first place was because they needed food?

Let the record show: I lost the last of my patience with this episode 8 minutes and 9 seconds in.

Waterbending healing has never thrown off that much light before. Even the spirit oasis water wasn't that bright.

Also where is the water she's healing with? Usually she has a big bubble of it.

Impersonating a religious figure. That won't end badly.

"Well I hope she returns every night otherwise this place would go right back to the way it was." YES!!!!!! THAT'S THE POINT!!!!!

What was Katara's plan? Forget about the eclipse, forget about fighting the Fire Lord, we're going to stay here for the rest of our lives so that the painted lady can put in a nightly appearance. THIS IS WHY SOKKA DOES THE PLANNING.

Spirit magic is more doing the worm than doing the wave. Good to know.

Bold of a kids' show to advocate for ecoterrorism.

Aang's like "Hey spirit lady! Here's my resume! Here's my connections on LinkedIn!" Why did Katara think that faking being a spirit within two feet of the bridge to the spirit world would be consequence free? Actually that presupposes that Katara thought. Which she didn't. Sokka does her thinking.

"I don't get to meet many spirits. But the ones I do meet, not very attractive." I am OFFENDED on Yue's behalf. And Sokka's. I guess Aang doesn't like Water Tribe girls after all.

"I guess I just became her." No. That's an excuse and a deflection. I don't want to hear it.

What was I saying about Aang and Katara enabling each others' bad tendencies?

Sokka is horribly out of character this episode, but Aang is as well. In what universe would Aang be so unbothered by Appa being sick, and then so unbothered by the reveal that Katara had been faking Appa being sick? Like, this is Appa. He nearly skinned a bunch of sandbenders over the guy. And he finds out Katara's been messing with him and calls her 'great' and 'a secret hero.'

So this factory, despite being operational 24/7, has no night staff, not even a night guard? Because if it does (which it absolutely does - automation is a problem for factories in our world, not the ATLA one), Katara and Aang just killed A LOT of people.

And so she follows up one short term solution with another short term solution, which causes a third problem she will no doubt solve with a short term solution. You think there won't be reprisals for the only obvious suspects to this industrial sabotage? You think they won't rebuild the factory?

Sokka was kidding when he said that the Spirit Lady had better blow up the factory, but not in the way Katara thought he was kidding. Katara thought he wasn't being serious. But Sokka was serious, in that blowing up the factory is as short term a solution as appearing every night. He thought the joke - exchanging one bad solution for another - was obvious.

Somebody's enjoying himself a little too much.

Unfortunately, serving as Exhibit A is the most Toph has had to do all episode.

It is cathartic to see someone finally call Katara on her nonsense. But I'll bet everything I own that the narrative is going to side with her anyway.

Welp. I won that bet.

"You need me." Correct! Katara unsupervised needs bailing out after five minutes. "And I will never turn my back on you." A much more realistic goal than never turning your back on anyone who needs you, and also Sokka summarised in one sentence. Impressive for an episode where they had to Flanderise him beyond recognition to make Katara somehow the good guy.

Oh for fuck's sake. It's not about having a heart. This late in the game it's pure damage control.

So that's where the Painted Lady's food came from. I guess Fire Nation factories count as pirates?

I like the jetskis. The seem far more stable than actual jetskis.

It never occurred to Katara to obscure the evidence even a little bit? At least rub some dirt on the emblem. Look at me assuming Katara has thoughts.

Actual reprisals for once. About time.

This kid is annoying.

Toph gets to be a haunted house sound effects machine.

That's awfully waterbendery for a Fire Nation spirit.

I don't buy for a minute that anyone would be able to stay perfectly upright and balanced after an air blast from below without extensive trampoline training.

This won't work. His superiors, or the next shift change, or the first recruit wanting to climb the ranks quickly, will rise to the challenge presented here by the "painted lady." And as soon as one FN attack goes unchallenged by the "painted lady," the village is toast. I give them a week, tops.

Kudos to some clever in-universe bending special effects. Doesn't save the episode though.

Katara's preachy speech here makes absolutely no sense in light of the rest of the episode. Scolding them for not saving themselves, when waiting around for someone to save them appears to have worked perfectly? And having little miss I-must-save-the-whole-world-on-a-weekly-basis-otherwise-my-sense-of-self-implodes deliver that scold?

Who are these people wearing the Gaang's skin?

Yeah, nothing screams undercover in enemy territory like an entire village knowing that you're a waterbender. Good thing the only competent tracker in the Fire Nation is Zuko, otherwise these kids will absolutely be dead long before the eclipse.

Hi Bushi! You're about the only part of this episode that doesn't drive me nuts!

At least the animators had fun with this one.

Is this guy mopping the river?

Exactly how many days did they take out of Sokka's schedule to restore the ecosystem? I don't care how overlevelled these kids are at bending, you cannot mechanically separate an entire river's worth of dirt from water in an afternoon.

Well that's just he piss icing on the shit cake, isn't it? It wasn't enough for Sokka to lose all reason and come around to Katara's very flawed way of thinking, it wasn't enough for Aang to call her a hero, it wasn't enough to have a village worshipping at her feet, Katara needs affirmations of how right and special and correct and perfect and morally justified she is from the spirit world itself. This is Mary Sue stuff.

Final Thoughts

This is the first time an episode of Avatar has felt like a waste of my time.

It's also the first time I've felt like an episode has gone out of its way to insult the audience.

Katara talking about how she knows what she's doing is wrong is worth absolutely nothing when a) she goes right back to doing it; and b) literally every other part of this episode trips over itself to assure Katara that she's in the right.

Katara is downright punchable this episode. Sokka is Flanderised; Toph is non-existent; Aang is just there; poor Appa is an unwitting accessory to crime; and Momo has as much impact as a housefly.

So the execs forgot about the existence of The Spirit World Part One and demanded a save the environment special episode. The writers responded by forgetting that they'd already established that Katara was ride or die for literally anyone with a pulse in Imprisoned, and gave us this to remind us of that fact. They also forgot that they'd already established that Katara has no moral code whatsoever the minute her personal interest is involved in The Waterbending Scroll, so they decided to recycle the "narrative sides with Katara endangering them all over Sokka being reasonable" plot from that episode and hope we wouldn't notice. We did.

At least with Imprisoned, Katara kind of sort of caused the problem that she fixed. She was super tangentially involved in that kid's arrest. Here, she causes problems by trying to fix problems that she didn't really have any business getting involved in.

The more of this I watched, the more I wanted someone to slap Katara. What I wouldn't give for an episode where she is wrong (has happened a lot) and the episode doesn't pretend otherwise (has never happened). For god's sake, LET HER BE WRONG AND FEEL IT. How else is she going to progress past being self-righteously fourteen? Why is she being so consistently insulated from consequences? Aang chooses power over family at the end of season two and gets actually murdered for it. Katara steals, lies, skirts dangerously close to being a false prophet and does a nifty little ecoterrorism (with Aang's help), and she gets villagers being a bit shouty before big brother comes in and fixes it. Then she gets divine sanction for her actions so even the shouty bit is negated.

There's an interesting contrast in Katara's "I will never turn my back on people who need me" and Sokka's "I will never turn my back on you." It shows which of the two doesn't have their head in the clouds, and has actually formulated realistic expectations of how much a single person can do. It also speaks to the fundamental difference in how they operate. Katara acts; Sokka mitigates. Sokka does Katara's thinking for her; Katara outsources her thinking and then gets pissed when rational thoughts don't conform to her emotions' view of the world.

Why haven't the villagers moved away? If the water was poisoning them this much, why are they still here? Was the early 2000s too early to have a theme of climate refugees? Or the pollution equivalent? That would have been more interesting than this.

I hated this. Why isn't this the episode that gets hated on like the Great Divide? Its sins are nothing compared to this.

Doc, Shu, and Bushi were the only good thing in this episode, but they weren't enough to make this one remotely rewatchable.

One out of Three so far on season three episode quality. No other season has had this bad a ratio this early. This does not bode well for the rest of this season.

[storiesbyjes2g]

Hey Jess! I had a question that I figured other people might want to know as well. I'm always amused at how your game matches sims up to marry or have children. I was wondering, what are your MCCC settings that make it happen so well? I have sims sitting in my 'manage households' and none of them have married or moved out with the 'in game' story progression. What's the secret sauce? 🤣

Howdy, partner! 🤭 It's funny you should ask me this because on my seven mile long list of video ideas I have is a short series about MCCC settings, and this is one subject I wanted to cover. But who knows when I'll get it together and actually record those videos lol. As you could imagine, the secret sauce has many ingredients, so I'll put the rest of this under the cut because it's a lot. Here we go!

Even though I said this is a multipart answer--and it is--I'm gonna split this up into two sections because marriages and pregnancies are two separate entities. Many of the settings are the same, and they both fall under the MC Pregnancy module, but they're still separate, and I think of them differently.

Marriages

Marriage Sim Selection

The first thing you should consider is who you want marrying and if your sims should be included in the process. As you've seen, I like seeing the other sims' lives progress, even if it's messy AF LOL. I especially love this happening in the aDOLTing save because I'm technically not allowed to play with anyone else but Luca right now. BUT, I don't want every single sim there is to get married, leaving no single sims for my sims to date. That's what happened in Emmy's generation and why I added Ali into the world because there were exactly TWO eligible males in the entire world, and I knew one of them would definitely not work out. In the Marriage Sim Selection part of MC Pregnancy, you can specify who can and cannot get married. I'm not gonna through each setting, but here are a few that are important enough to note.

Allow homeless marriage: Unless you regularly add your own sims to the world, I would enable this. Otherwise you probably won't have any marriages happening. This is disabled by default. Yes, you run the risk of your unplayable sims marrying someone hideous, but it's better than them dying alone, right? Plus you can always make them over. Your sim doesn't know the difference anyway lol.

Bypass dorm residents: If you don't enable this, your university students will be eligible for marriages!

Bypass played households: IF you want to be the matchmaker for your sims (the playable ones), turn this on! If you're flexible and don't mind surprises, turn it off.

Bypass active sim romances: This one needs to be in red lol. TURN THIS ON! If your sim is dating an NPC, and you don't want that sim to suddenly turn up married (I'm giggling...you know why), you need this on. I think it's on by default though. The only "gotcha" with this setting is that the relationship has to be significant. Lovebirds status isn't strong enough to prevent a marriage. I usually get my sims into an official relationship as soon as possible to prevent this.

Other Marriage

In the Other Marriage section (MC Pregnancy), there are settings for renaming, moving, etc. after marriage. You should definitely check out the settings to tailor it to how you want your world to be, but I want to call out Use Traits for Marriage. This is a newer setting that I enabled as soon as it launched. It doesn't make sense for Don Lothario to get married in every single save. He has the noncommittal trait! Turning this on will take a sim's traits into consideration before determining if they are eligible for random marriages.

Spouse Sim Selection

In this section, you can do things like allow polygamy and inter-family marrying, specify what % of marriages should be same sex, allow teen marriages, etc. Here are just a few settings I want to call out.

Occupancy Preference: It took me some years to figure this out, but this is honestly the key to my entire setup. This determines which group of NPCs are candidates for marriages and pregnancies by where they live. The choices are homeless only, prefer home sims, living in homes only, and none. I have prefer home sims on. I like neighbors dropping by and seeing them walking around, so I tend to put my sims' friends and sims I like into homes. This setting says when it's time for random marriages and pregnancies to occur, sims living in homes get first dibs. If none of them are eligible, then everyone else will have a chance. I used to have this on none, and I was experiencing waaaaaay too many random marriages. Like, good on the homeless sims for having lives lol, but they were snatching up every single eligible sim and I was like this has to stop lol.

Use Same Age-Group: I've gone back and forth about enabling or disabling this one and finally decided to enable it. This will keep your fresh from high school babies from getting married to someone with one foot in the grave! Sims will only marry other sims in the same age group as them. Back in the day I felt sorry for the elders because they're always single when they die. But I also felt sorry for the baby they married lol. True, when they croak, the kid can find new love, but they've wasted so much time being married to the old sim. So with this on, elders aren't completely out of luck. They can just only marry each other.

Pregnancies

Okay! Now that we know how to let sims get married, let's learn how to knock some up! 😂

I would check out the Offspring section of MC Pregnancy on your own just to get familiar with how you can shape your sims' families and even the children to a certain extent, but let's get to the important stuff.

Other Pregnancy

There's really good stuff in here like allow pregnancy aging, pregnancy duration, and random moods, but the only thing I want to call out is Use Traits for Pregnancy. This will take into account sims traits before they are marked as candidates. It won't prevent sims with the hates children trait from getting knocked up, but it will lower the percentage (which you can specify in another section, I think).

Partner Sim Selection

This is similar to marriage sim selection, and in here I also prefer home sims in the occupancy preferences. I also allow a veeeery tiny percentage for allow affairs. I like tea, what can I say? LOL Not everyone is faithful!

Pregnant Sim Selection

This is similar to spouse selection, and I do not allow homeless pregnancies for the same reasons I don't allow homeless marriages. I have all the same settings enabled from spouse selection, so revisit the above. Additionally, I use days until max age. This prevents a sim from getting pregnant X number of days from the end of whatever lifespan you specify is the oldest to be pregnant. I don't allow elder pregnancies, so this stops my adult sims from getting pregnancy X days from their elder birthday. My number is 10, but you pick whatever makes sense for your lifespans. I do this because I've had waaaaaaay too many sims get pregnant and have babies like the day before their elder birthday, and then they die before the kid is a teenager. I don't want orphans in my game! They make me sad. Besides, in real life, at a certain point women can't have children anymore, so I want my game to be the same.

Days to Run Checks: By default, MCCC will go through this process of marrying and knocking up sims 3 nights a week at midnight, but you can change that to whatever you like here. I thought 3 nights a week was WAY too often, so I only have it run once a week on Fridays.

Pregnancy Percentage: Just because the check runs every week doesn't mean I want someone getting pregnant every week. I'm not trying to create a baby boom. I cut the pregnancy percentage for young adults by half and adults by 75% (since IRL it's harder to get pregnant the older you get). I'm not afraid of a teen pregnancy story, so I do have teen pregnancies on and reduced their percentage by 85%. Even though I wouldn't mind telling that story, I don't want a teen pregnancy epidemic lol. I've had this enabled, but I've yet to have MCCC knock up a teen.

I think I skipped over Marriage Percentage but I use the same logic and similar percentages there too.

Valid Target Ages: HA! I see why I've never had a teen pregnancy lol. Even though I have it on, I never marked it as a valid target age. For whatever reason I only have YA selected. Not sure why. Probably for the best. If a teen pregnancy happens, I'd prefer it be my own sims.

Bonus

I love a little risk and challenge and surprise in my game. This is why I love using lumpinou's mods. I not a micromanager and prefer some things be left to chance. I like being able to try for a baby and it maybe not work that time. I don't like how predictable the game is. So, if you're feeling froggy, here are a few more settings for ya!

MC Woohoo - Woohoo Pregnancy

Risky Woohoo Percent: I used to have YA on 3%, but lumpinou has intergrated her mod with MCCC more, so I don't have this enabled anymore here. (it's controlled by her mod now and I think it's at 5% now). 3% might sound low, but MAN I've had so many oopsie babies on that little 3% lol.

Try for Baby Percent: I lowered mine to 65% just to add some variety and give my sims something to work toward. (No, this is not what caused Luca and Sophia's problem LOL).

MCCC Settings - Relationship Settings

I'm highlighting this because, even though I placed it in the bonus section, I highly recommend you check this out. These are the settings that control if/when sims move in together or break up!

Auto-Relationship Settings

Breakup Settings: You can specify which sim will move out and who the children will live with. Couple relationship change percentage applies a modifier that will make a couple's relationship (dating, not married) increase or decrease over time. I increased mine to 20%. Same thing with spouse relationship change except I only did 10% there.

Move-in Settings: I allow homeless romance move in and kept the romance level to the default. (sweethearts) I also increased the romance move-in percent to 25%.

Bypass Played Household: It should go without saying, but just in case it's not clear, I always want my playable households bypassed because I want to maintain control over what happens to them. About this, I have other households that I don't actually play (in the Pierson save) that I have as playable just to preserve them and prevent anything from happening. So to be clear, unless a household is marked as played, they will be subjected to the random marriages, pregnancies, and relationships.

A few months ago, I FINALLY decided to mark Emmy and Ali as unplayed, hoping that Ali would find love again and that Emmy and Dwayne would move in together. Instead, Alessia got knocked up, and Dwayne put his foot down LOL. Sorry dude. Wish I could help! Well, I could just move her in, but it actually doesn't feel right for the story...but that's an entirely different conversation lol.

Anyhoo...I hope you found something in this novel that helps to spice up your game! Thanks for asking!

[windstir]

so i'm currently going through the serge backstory chapters in my re-read, and i got to the young auguste introduction.

↓ warning for mentions of csa / abuse ↓

first of all, he's described by other students in a similar way as gilbert: someone who never listens, who doesn't even wear the school uniform, someone who can do whatever he wants hecause his dad* makes big donations to the school.

(*adoptive father, who is said to enable pale's abuse towards auguste, the entire reason why auguste is the way he is nowadays. he brought auguste into the cocteau home just to satisfy pale's desires.)

he's also said to "always hang out around older students", supposedly for protection. i don't think he got favors from them (unlike gilbert, who slept with older students in exchange for homework) since he was a honor student but who knows ...

my point here is, i just find the way auguste uses the school's corrupted system against gilbert so interesting, because his first thought when sending gilbert away was "send him to laconblade, make donations and it'll be okay"

he was a victim of abuse, so he makes gilbert go through it.

he was a victim of the school's corrupt system, so he takes advantage of it and sets gilbert up for failure.

like, the need to reinforce and reenact that trauma through gilbert is so strong, and i genuinely can't understand why other than "it makes him feel good about himself because at least now he is in control of what happens."

his motives for doing this are so odd, because they can go from simple sexual pleasure (which i doubt because as far as i can remember he said he didn't really feel anything doing this to gilbert, he just did it because he could and because. who will stop him? no one. there are no consequences when you're rich and conventionally attractive.) to a textbook case of Victim becoming the Abuser ...

he knows the authorities won't do anything if the people around him don't do anything (i'm sure he makes this a point when he talks to the butler during the gilbert backstory chapters? but i can't remember exactly) so he's also using that corruption to his advantage, because he was never secretive about the way he treated gilbert (letting him run around drunk, the way he spoke to rebec about it, his whole talk to rosemarine, the "rumors" surrounding both of them when gilbert was little ... probably a lot more we don't know about) and knew they wouldn't give a fuck, and if they did he knew they wouldn't do anything to stop it.

one, because he has money!

two, because he can just push them away and pretend they never knew each other

i wonder if this whole thing has to do in some wat with the fact that anne marie chose to stay with pale instead of him but let's be so fr here he probably would've mistreated gilbert anyway if she stayed.

[dragon-communion]

Normally I would restrain my random commentary to Discord but I got a truly incredible idea to mull over and I am thriving.

Important context: I study anthropology and I'm intensely goth, and I enjoy combining both of these for way-too-serious videogame analysis. Over on my Zelda blog I've got a sporadic little series for when I wake up in a cold sweat to ramble about what culturally/lore accurate goth fashion and hobbies could be. Don't even get me started on music.

Anyway. The Lands Between are not exactly prone to silliness or whimsy, as the setting of a rather grim fantasy, and I've been endlessly fascinated by what it could have looked like before all the rot and ruin set in. Functioning cities, trade, music. What stories did the farmers tell while spinning yarn on the porch? What kind of writing systems did they use? We get a decent idea of the large scale panem et circenses but very little about the life and beliefs of the everyman. Which tends to be the way of things.

The problem with ruins in general is that we see the big bones, typically, not the little ones. I could pull up schematics right now for what an ancient Sumerian temple looked like and how it worked, but it's incredibly hard to figure out how normal people with bills to pay and mouths to feed honored their own gods, because it was just never written down. "Obvious" things are never written down, which is honestly a travesty.

It's the nature of high fantasy and related genres that we get swept up in the Grand Myth Of It All, the legendary battles and the golden empires, ancient magics most profane and unutterable evils. I'm a bit of a greedy bastard though and that's not enough for me. I stay awake asking myself if Onyx Lords eat hematite, or how babies-via-amber actually works in detail and if that has any notable psychological/sociological effects compared to live birth.

This long-winded tangent is to say that I wish I had a better idea of what the Lands Between looked like when purportedly stable, so I could better understand the development of potential countercultures, subcultures, and minorities, particularly religious minorities/"pagan" traditions since the Golden Order is such a core driving force of the story. Rykard's very easy to shoehorn into the sort of Luciferesque figure the eldritch fantasy discount Catholicism naturally invites, and it looks like Messmer is doubling down on that imagery in the trailers, but there's so much more to dig into in terms of countercultures and subcultures.

I've been researching Death and death-related magic and imagery in Elden Ring to try to figure out what it's become and how it has been twisted in the wake of Marika's reign, because magic in Elden Ring is to some extent a direct expression of divine will period, not necessarily just the Greater Will. Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Death in Elden Ring behaves like an odd mix of an infection and a journey, or maybe a journey that has become so twisted it behaves like an infection. Desiring Death, appreciating it, or even just happening to have been in contact with it, seems to run so utterly counter to Marika's very personal design for the world that there MUST be some secret in it. What kind of secret? I don't know. No one likes to die, that's reason enough. But Death is so utterly wrong and broken in the Lands Between that if I read the entrails of it long enough I might find something nobody else has.

And, hey, it'll enable my goth little heart.

That's my entire aimless ramble, scene and cut, but feel free to add on if something struck your fancy.

[lucyav13]

Nastasia

(Credits of the art to @starlitwishes-art all of their art is great! <3 )

Nastasia's past is explained by Carson in one of his histories:

'Once upon a time, a man went to look for the girl he loved, who was missing. As he passed through a forest, he found a bat stuck in a trap. He set the bat free. It promptly thanked him and disappeared.

As he lay down to camp that night, he heard a voice and looked about. He noticed the sky was filled with a huge, round moon. There stood before him a woman he had never seen. The bat had transformed into the species of the one she had fallen for.' Now, I don't know if that's true or not...

The last part of the story was... 'The bat pledged eternal loyalty to the man out of love on that night.' ...

Obviously, we can suppose that the man in the story is Blumiere (before he turns into Count Bleck), the girl who he was looking for is Timpani and the bat who then turns into a woman is Nastasia.

Her name is Greek for "She who shall rise up again", possibly a reference to her only falling unconscious from a deadly attack or the story with the bat and the man Carson tells titled "Of Bats and Men". It is also a portmanteau of "nasty" and "Anastasia".

In the English version, she speaks in a casual manner, using words like "'K" and "gonna" often, although in the Japanese version she speaks much more professionally.

Her abilities enables her to control several people at once and command them to do tasks they would never consider doing in their right mind, such as forcing Luigi to attack his friends. However, her hypnosis is at least possible to resist, as shown by Peach during her wedding with Bowser. Nastasia seems to use her power by lifting her glasses, upon which a white glow flashes and her target is surrounded in square lasers, which puts the victim under Nastasia's (and by extension, Count Bleck's) control. Notably, the hypnosis she uses may sometimes cause physical changes in the victim, such as hypnotized Koopa Troopas donning dark glasses and spikes. (And perhaps that would explain the drastic change in Mr. L outfit)

Another fun fact is that, in the post-game, there's a boy on Flopside who was in love with Nastasia, but she comments to us her feelings for the Count, and decides that even if she could learn to love again, she probably never could have measured up to Timpani anyway.

Card type: Rare

Card Description: Nastasia is Count Bleck's executive assistant. She's in charge of scheduling, organizing, and brain-control. Word is, she's got a secret crush on her boss.

Trivia: Before the game's initial release, artwork of Nastasia and Tiptron together was released despite the fact that the two never interact in the game.

Tippi originally had a tattle for Nastasia in the postgame, though since Tippi would have already been gone by this point, it went unused and remains in the game's files. The tattle reads, "That's Nastasia, the count's executive assistant. She has served him the longest... Without him, she is quite lonely, but she manages to go on in her new life... It is hard for me to see her like this... I think I know exactly how she feels..."

Quotes:

"Yeah, I'll fire off a memo on that...but for now, we have another item on the agenda..."

"Yeah, so some minions in the Bowser organization are still resisting assimilation. So I'm heading out to squash the resistance..."

"So I guess you finished up that report on your own inadequacy that I needed?"

"Um, no, my count. I won't be doing that. My life is already sworn to you."

"If only I could have, y'know, been that girl... Things would have been different..."

"Yeah, I'm afraid your orders mean nothing anymore."

The above text is from the Super Mario Wiki and is available under a Creative Commons license. Attribution must be provided through a list of authors or a link back to the original article. Source: https://www.mariowiki.com/Carson

[starcrossedimps]

Every time I'm writing, I keep finding myself stuck on this question:

What does Fizzarolli do for Ozzie in their relationship?

Don't get me wrong; I don't believe that relationships have to be an equal balance of what one offers another, and I don't believe relationships are meant to "fix" people.

But relationships are still a give and take. So. What exactly is being given here?

It's pretty easy to tell what Ozzie can offer in their relationship (aside from being just. The most lovestruck guy ever): money, security, a solid job, great sex, and (what we saw most importantly) protection (wanting to go with Fizz to Greed, offering bodyguards/escort, facing Mammon) which enables Fizz to do what he likes, to pursue what makes him happy.

But what about Fizz? Like, sure, there's the love and being admirable and keeping up in the bedroom and making Ozzie laugh, but is that enough to trigger the same kind of soul-deep adoration they share?

I think the answer is...partially yes. But I think more it's something that neither of them actively realize is doing the heavy lifting.

Fizz, as absurd as it is, is very protective of Ozzie. And I think it's this absurdity that is really what Fizz offers most and best, even if it probably annoys Ozzie.

I mean. Think about it.

There's a lot of reasons as to why Fizz rejects Ozzie's offer in Oops, but I really think his early excuse is the most accurate: he knows Ozzie hates Mammon. He probably packed Ozzie's schedule on purpose so he *couldn't* go.

Also, it's interesting that Fizz slides out of the bodyguard offer because--outside of Ozzie's-- he doesn't use the protection Ozzie is willing to readily provide him (I mean, he only seems to have one actually in Ozzie's, and Fizz later even seems incredulous that Ozzie hired a bodyguard for the pageant, let alone that it was Blitz). I think he doesn't want it to be obvious that he's getting special treatment from Ozzie, even if he knows it might put him at risk

In the musical, Fizz basically says he puts up with the whole Mammon bullshit because it gave him the life he has, and it's the only reason he's able to be with Ozzie. Obviously that's fucking insane, but it's what he rationalizes because it's easy. It makes sense. So he tolerates so much abuse and makes excuses for it because the alternative (in his head) is that he loses Ozzie

I'm 99% sure the secret relationship thing is Fizz's idea. I mean they're both bad at it, but Ozzie is a bit slower to come to an excuse, and his covers are...yeah they're bad (Ozzie the clarification of 'business' partner does NOT help your cause. Any sane person would assume business partner by default). Fizz's slip is more easily recoverable, and it's also with a guy who a) is saving his life and b) who he probably gossiped a LOT about crushes with as a kid/teen

Side bar to the secret relationship: Ozzie has WAY more to lose than Fizz does. Fizz gets seen in a negative light, sure, but it would make him look calculating, skilled. Ozzie, though? It gets caught and Ozzie is seen as an inept fool and a hypocrite to his very nature. Fizz keeping the secret is mostly for Ozzie's benefit and, again, is his way of protecting him

The only real thing that Fizz takes advantage of with their relationship is staying at Ozzie's place. He's still working at Ozzies and for Mammon and doing promotional bullshit (which he doesn't need to with 'the worlds best sugar daddy'). He's still out there advertising his bots and likely modeling for new ones. Yes, Fizz *should* be allowed to do things and work if he wants...but I'm pretty sure he's not thrilled about the work he's doing, sugar daddy or no. And I think it's keeping up the facade that's really important to him, so no one can guess.

Another aside, but I can't help but think the gifts Ozzie gives him are small by his request, too. Things he can have plausible deniability for or that can be easily hidden. He could just say he stole the mirror from Ozzie because it's way too big for an imp. He could just hide the quievies leash in his hand to obscure the message. The limo (which I'm not actually sure who it belongs to because both are ridiculous enough to have that plate) could be his indulgence with his own money. Like...Ozzie is obviously rich, but it just doesn't seem like Fizz is indulging in the potential of having a rich boyfriend.

So yeah. I think that's my answer...and unfortunately it's a bitch and a half to actually relay in fic because it's subtle. It lies more in what Fizz doesn't do than what he does. And it probably is more a source of irritation for Ozzie than something sentimental.

[alipeeps]

Episode 37

Ahhahaaaah Wanning has gotten over her confusion from the previous ep and remembered that she specialises in exercising her power over people to humiliate them and make their lives utterly miserable.

And there's fucking nothing Li Jin can do about it. And he does NOT have the temperament and life experience of Shen Yurong... this is a man born with a golden spoon in his mouth who has known nothing but respect and power. The only person who dared chastise him was his father.

Kiss goodbye to that life sunshine, you are now the personal slave of a capricious sociopath. Enjoy!! 😁😁

Oh wait Xiao Heng is confined not just in his residence but in his room??!! He can't come out of the room? He's not just grounded, he's been sent to his room like an unruly teenager?!!

Hahahaaaaa and Xue Li takes back the cakes she has brought to her brother so she can go give them to Xiao Heng instead!! 😂😂

Oh holy fuck Xiao Heng with his hair down, I am dead.

Okay, I am revived. He is sulking in his sleeping robes with his hair down, sharpening weapons. I love this man so much! 😍

Oh gosh, I should have known. I should have seen it. This "fight" with the emperor was staged too. Of course.

I love them. I love them SO much!!

Ha, Xue Li asks about why Xiao Heng and his grandfather don't get on and Lu Ji tells Wen Ji to shut up before he even opens his mouth to speak! 😂 But Wen Ji refutes him, saying Xue Li is not an outsider. LOVE that for her.

Xiao Heng was locked up for FIVE YEARS?!! Oh man, I'm right there with you on hating grandpa Xiao, Xiao Heng.

Dude straight up has a shrine to his lost family. 😭

Oh I love her so much. She straightforwardly states that she and Xiao Heng are "lovers"/love each other (love that they have still not openly expressed this even to each other but like.. it's 100% understood. They are both on the same page here. They know exactly where they are heading). And when grandpa Xiao suggest she speak to someone but not tell Xiao Heng because he'd be upset she shuts that shit down right away. She is not going to be keeping secrets from him. Not about this. She rightly says he should get to decide if it's okay or not.

Oh god I love Wanning toying with Li Jin so much. Yes, she is a terrible terrible person nobody should be treated like this but in the context of this drama, and the things he has done or tried to do, yeah he deserves it.

You are gonna push him too far though Wanning. He is not the same as Yurong. He is used to wielding power and wielding it cruelly. Yurong would tolerate pretty much anything you did to him... Li Jin won't.

Oh look at that. i was proven right not even 20 seconds later!

But why does she keep having stomach pains? Is it.. is she actually pregnant? Is it possible that Jiuyue's drug didn't just mimic the symptoms of pregnancy in Wanning but actually enabled her to become pregnant?

Oh my god, poor Xiao Heng's story is even more fucked up than previously imagined. Both parents dead, locked up by his grandfather for FIVE FREAKING YEARS and the woman who looked after him during that time, and cared for him and loved him, was blackmailed into poisoning him... so that they could blackmail grandpa Xiao to not investigate Xiao Heng's father's death.

Ooooh Li Jin you done fucked up now!!

The way grandpa Xiao just rolls his fucken eyes when he sees Xiao Heng walk in. Yeeeah, this reconciliation if off to a great start. Honestly I don't think leaving them alone to talk is a good idea, Xue Li, I think you need to stay and mediate! 😂

Daddy Xiao was fucking BADASS!!

I was gonna say I understand grandpa Xiao not explaining everything to him when he was a kid, but why hasn't he in all the years since? But then i realised ofc... Xiao Heng has refused to even speak with him in all that time.

Xiao Heng: Come stay at my house. But just so you know, this doesn't mean anything, it's only cos I don't want to have to deal with arranging your funeral... 😂😂

If Wanning finds out the pregnancy was faked... she is going to go feral. She will try and kill Xue Li with her bare hands.

Holy shit, they're all turning on each other! Honestly though, really? Are there guards - even the Li family personal guards - that would risk going against the Princess?

The thing is right...? Shen Yurong had a way out. He'd effectively escaped the princess' clutches. He could have just stayed out of it. He was initially pressured/forced into the plot - killing Xue Li, the gold mine, all of it - by the threat against his family and that's what allowed him to convince himself he was still a good person. He didn't *choose* to do any of this, right? He had to?

But now he doesn't have to. His situation with the princess is nicely stalemated. He can profess to love her and want to be with her but she is married now so nothing can happen until Lord Cheng takes over. He could sit back and wait for that to happen and see which way the cards fall. But he's ACTIVELY choosing to support the treasonous plot of Lord Cheng/Wanning/the Li's. In intervening with the truth about the fake pregnancy, he is actively choosing to be on Wanning and Lord Cheng's side, of his own volition. My dude, you have become everything your father hated.

Oof papa Xiao shoulda just arrested Lord Cheng and tried him for the attempted murder of the emperor way back then and then we wouldn't have had all this trouble! 😂

Ahhh so the drug does have side-effects after all... it's not just the princess having abdominal pains...

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh my heart.....

[papercranesandpride]

Hey, any other aplatonics out there who are extremely social? I feel like whenever I look at aplatonic stuff it's always people talking about how they want having few friends and being alone most of the time to be normalized and accepted. I agree! I have been that person, and discovered that not having friends didn't actually make me feel like I needed any, and that is a lot of how I realized I was aplatonic. These days, though, I'm socializing so much. Weirdly, I don't feel isolated or unrepresented even seeing that from everyone in the community? But I still feel like I should see if anyone else like me is out there.

That said, I get along really well with people and I love socializing. I do not feel like we need to be friends, but I adore interacting with people I do theater with, people I do orchestra/choir with, patients, family, mutuals on here, people in chatrooms, my coworkers who aren't shitty, and yes, friends. I've discovered that I'm apparently charismatic. I am likeable. If I enter a space, a lot of people will just automatically like me. It's something about my vibe. Granted, there's also something about my vibe that will make a certain type of person absolutely loathe me and find that everything about me rubs them the wrong way. But that's not most people. For most people, I've somehow found a way to be the adult equivalent of a teacher's pet.

I'm outgoing. I like to talk. I like to hear other people talk. I like to make connections with people, even if they don't quite hit that secret platonic level. But also sometimes they do and I stumble into that and it's fine too. I have friends as means to the end of socializing. I have friends who I can get in a room with and they will listen to me talk and talk back. I don't have friends because I like who they are as people, but because I like the way they interact with me and enable me to talk about my things or to just feel a vibe I like when I'm in a group with them. I like group gathering more as a place and an environment than for the people in them. It's really nice socializing now that I know I'm apl, because I know exactly what I want out of it. I don't need someone who will text me about things, but I do want people who will invite me to their parties. I have a person who I mostly just like exchanging music with. People who I like for writing ideas. That kind of thing.

It is interesting knowing that most people's definition of a friend is just "a person I like," because it means that a lot of these people see me as friends but I don't necessarily see them that way back. Someone I've hung out in a chatroom with for 8 years but never really talk to one on one isn't a friend. Someone I do a hobby with isn't a friend. A mutual isn't a friend. But I do really like those people and in some ways that makes socializing with them better. They aren't friends, they are people who I like and are there and listen.

Anyway. Just figured I'd see if there are any other extremely social aplatonics.

[darkcircles4lyfe]

the 2nd user is an enigma to everyone...

...including All for One?

It would seem our time spent wondering about 2nd's quirk has come to an end. I guess I should put my old theory to rest? Well, hang on. I noticed something weird.

Please note that as of posting this official translations are not out, so I might easily be mistaken, but I'm under the impression that All for One did not know about 2nd's quirk. There are a few things that set up this implied detail:

It is established at the start of the chapter that AFO is the one in control, at least for the moment. So we know we're getting his POV in narration.

When Izuku uses Blackwhip and Fa Jin, AFO calls them old tricks that won't work on him. He's familiar with these quirks.

When Izuku activates Transmission, AFO is taken aback. He describes the power's appearance as completely different from before, and he doesn't seem to know what's happening right away.

When he describes what the quirk does, he's deducing it, which is odd. From this we can actually infer a couple of things besides him not knowing about it. First of all this must mean that the Search quirk AFO stole from Ragdoll can't see into One for All's additional accumulated quirks, otherwise he would have anticipated 2nd. This also means, dare I say it, that AFO is an unreliable narrator when he describes 2nd's quirk as "a meta ability that enables the user to shift the speed of anything he touches." He's making an observation using the given evidence, not stating a fact. 2nd strikes me as a very secretive person, so it seems possible to me that AFO never met him, or at least never experienced his quirk firsthand. Indeed, maybe no information exists about his quirk because he never told anyone about it. I can see how 2nd’s support items could be designed to conceal the use of his quirk to make projectile weapons move faster. They conceal his whole hand and forearm, so no one could see what he’s doing inside. 

Hell, maybe the way Izuku is currently using Transmission is also a misdirection. Let me once again call attention to the fact that 2nd told Izuku that his quirk evolved into something PARTICULARLY UNIQUE. THAT CANNOT BE WIELDED THE USUAL WAY.  Now I don't know about you, but the power we have been shown does not fit my criteria of unique, and Izuku seems like he wielded it pretty "usually." The previous scene made it seem like he tried and FAILED to use it before, so how come it came to him so easily only minutes later? I really really hope this is because we haven't seen the full reveal yet. Perhaps using this power now comes at some greater cost to the user. Perhaps we are only seeing one of its uses. It should be pointed out here that while the locked door imagery was used in reference to 2nd's quirk in ch 349, it was not used here. So, something hasn't been unlocked yet?

I think now I’ve reached the end of my rope in reasonable theorizing, but I want to mention one more thing. The name of 2nd’s quirk, Transmission. in Japanese it is called トランスミッション which looks to me like it’s borrowed directly from English, and it means exactly the same thing. Two things, actually. It can refer to the transmission of a motor vehicle, but more generally, transmission can of course refer to the action of transmitting something, anything. A message, an emotion, an energy, a thing, an idea...a quirk? I can’t get it out of my head. This feels so suspicious to me given the nature and origin of One for All itself as a power that is transferred.  What if 2nd is actually directly responsible for the transference of OFA? What if his own quirk holds that ability, and once he gave it to Yoichi, it merged with the power stockpiling quirk AFO gave him? The story we were given about Yoichi not actually being quirkless and unknowingly having a power that passes on... the ability to be passed on(???)--it’s rather flimsy, no? Doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. We don’t even know how Yoichi was able to figure out he could give OFA away. Makes me think, if it’s not simply bad writing on Horikoshi’s part, it could be a lie constructed to further keep Transmission a secret. I mean, seriously, what if Transmission created One for All? Of course they’d want to keep that information from AFO. 

So Transmission + power stockpiling quirk = OFA, which in itself also gathers and powers up existing quirks, including the original Transmission quirk. Now imagine, what could Transmission do now that it’s powered up? What could it turn around do to OFA? 

Oh yeah, also, uhhh, this could be super relevant to Izuku and Katsuki finally holding hands? 

[heavensentofficial]

Hello Miss Lettie.

I was wondering if you'd be willing to discuss your religion and the way you feel about the temple itself with me? I know you're a busy person, of course, so I'm happy to work around your schedule.

If not, that's perfectly fine as well.

Thank you in advance,

- @code-dread

Hello there!

Of course! I am busy, but I would consider this exactly the kind of thing I am busy with. By which I guess I mean my job? Hehe... And it is an interesting question... Somehow I'm not sure I've really been asked before...

I did notice you speaking with Jordan, by the way! It's always heartening to see new people take interest in the temple c:

As for your question,

I think I may have a different perspective on the temple than most people here? Mostly in that everyone else here has made vows of their own volition and experienced other things, while I've always been here! And in that I have a lot of information that the others here don't. I even need to keep secrets from Brother Jordan ahaha ^^; I'll have to be careful with that sort of thing when I'm sharing my opinion, come to think of it.

...

You know, I'm not sure where to start! The temple is all I've ever really known, so as much as I'd like to give you helpful, concise information, it is a bit of a case of trying to explain how I feel about my life as a whole ^^; ... I hope you will forgive me if this is a bit all over the place!

Hmmmm... Firstly, I think I have to make the disclaimer that this is an organised religion, right? I'm not sure there really is such a thing as organised religion without flaws or corruption - and because of my position, I tend to see a lot of it quite up close, which makes me really sad. :< I have a lot of affection for this place and the people in it, so seeing certain individuals use it in such a way truly hurts. I often find myself wondering just what it is about the temple that seems to be enabling the sort of exploitation I keep seeing, but I'm not sure it's something I'm brave enough to bring up to anybody. Maybe one day... I do what I can to make things easier for people for the time being. ^^; The safety of our flock is of the utmost concern, after all. (hehe. flock...)

That aside, I think the temple does a lot of good! In my own experience, I was raised here, so I'm naturally thankful for that. I've been kept very safe from the various dangers and corrupting influences in town and had lots of opportunities to learn and to help people because of it. ^^ (Besides, from what little I've heard of the alternative outcome, I'm not certain that someone with my constitution would cope very well at all.)

One of our main rules is obedience to our elders... I choose to take this to mean that we are allowed to privately question them, but to we are expected to only act on this after the fact. (Unless you find someone older still whose age-authority cancels the other person's out! That's why I have learned the exact ages of everyone at the temple, to avoid those with unclean intent ^^) While there are those who would take advantage of this, in theory, the idea is that we should look up to and respect those with experience - and in the same vein, have a responsibility to guide and care for our juniors. And I think if everyone did that, it would be a lovely world. ^^ So in that sense, I'm quite blessed to have so many elders here.

We also place a heavy emphasis on sexual purity... To my understanding, this temptation is a constant plague that humankind suffers from greatly - especially in this town. I've heard frightful things of what happens outside, perpetrated by those overcome by their sin, so perhaps we are onto something. I myself believe that everyone can grow and improve so long as they truly desire it, so I try to be kind even to people that do bad things, but the temple as a whole is uh... Quite firm in their treatment of sinners as a whole. This is probably good, though ^^ To grow and become pure, people need both harsh correction and balm for their wounds. Otherwise my approach would just be coddling, right?

Ummm... I hope this has been helpful? It's hard to know what to include and what not to! This being my whole life and all. If you ever see me, feel free to approach me to talk, if you should so wish! Or to just ask more questions here, I suppose? Whichever you prefer if you need to.

[everythingblackblack]

I agree with you so much. Putting ShinRan aside why can't Ran know the truth when her Dad is 'Sleeping Kogorou' and the Black Organisation is very interested in him, she lives with Edogawa Conan and is friends with Haibara Ai (Apotoxin victims) and is dating Kudou Shinichi (who the BO want dead)? She's only alive because she's Vermouth's Angel, one of only two treasures in this world. She's undeniably involved at this point and considering how many people know by now she should be fully informed of the dangerous situation she's in. It may not be Shinichi's fault exactly that she's involved but it is his responsibility. There's a limit to how useful fooling your allies to fool your enemies is when her ignorance can be taken advantage of by bad people. About the police not being trustworthy at least let her know that Amuro and Okiya can help her. She's nearly figured it out so many times, keeping her in the dark isn't the priority Shinichi! Sera could tell her but considering she has to keep her Mother (an MI6 agent traumatised by Tsutomu's presumed death and distrustful of everyone) hidden maybe not. Ai's a good option as she argued Ran should be told many times and sees her sister in her, plus Ran knows that Agasa could best enable Shinichi to lie to her and he must care about her lots too. Hattori could do it as a tough love approach to Kudou, outsider perspective can see clearer, and his relationship with Conan and Shinichi has always been off to her. I want Ran to be angry at Shinichi for the gaslighting, the lack of trust and puppeteering her Dad and BFF to solve cases (drawing his enemies towards them).

I think at first it made some sense for Shinichi not to tell the truth, he didn't understand what he was dealing with either and was aware of the true danger he got himself into, however, as you say, after so many chapters, having obtained the necessary information, allies and so many suspicions, I think at this point the fact that he doesn't know is ridiculous.

As if Shinichi was making fun of Ran's intelligence, it's cruel.

Gosho didn't intend to do it like that, but that's what it seems.

In my opinion, it wasn't Shinichi's fault at the beginning, but it became his fault by continuing to live with them. He's hurting her a lot and not only that, but now he's putting her in serious danger, the worst thing is that she could be manipulated for not knowing the truth.

Honestly, Shinichi's argument of wanting to protect Ran is quite weak, in my opinion, he's the one who should be protected, he has the body of a child.

Ran knows Karate and has shown that she can fight against armed people, it would be dangerous if she were reckless or a violent person in dangerous situations, but she is not.

Honestly, something I think about a lot is how everyone around her (most of them) knows Shinichi's secret, but she doesn't. It's pretty strong, as if to say that not only Shinichi doesn't trust her, but that no one does.

Imagine, a random guy (hattori) found out about it before you, a thief she doesn't even see often, her neighbor, Shinichi's parents, a grad student, a classmate, an fbi agent, and god, the list is so ridiculous… But not her? The person she supposedly trusts and loves the most?

I imagine it as a horrible blow to her confidence, like "Everyone I've ever met thinks I'm useless, I was friends, acquaintances with all of them."

It's not even the bad thing that Shinichi didn't tell her, the bad thing is how horrible everyone around her seems more trustworthy than her.

I hate him so much.

That's why I say, it would be so therapeutic if Ran beat up Shinichi.

[infinitethree]

Like most Tommys, Daz doesn't easily let go of his spite.

Unlike most of his cosmic brethren, however, he's both positioned and skilled enough to forge his bitterness into reality.

It took him a while to decide exactly how best to cut that damn traitor off at the knees. After a while of slogging through all the new bullshit he has to deal with, though, he realized he had the perfect bargaining chip with which to strike a deal.

As he teleports into the Council HQ, Innit tells him, you realize you're the bad guy here, right? This is low, even for you.

Funny how quickly it turned into a simpering sycophant for Aster, of all people.

He's a good person who realized I deserve better than you.

Whatever; he doesn't have time for this.

Grabbing the 8-ball from its new hiding place, Daz says out loud, “I want to make a deal, Showrunner. I think you'll be interested in my terms.”

If I'm not, I'll make you miserable, the god warns.

He sets the holy object back in place and then gives a small bow. “I'm sure you're busy, so I won't beat around the bush. I want the same ability Aster has– the other half, if you will. He sees my secrets, I see his. In exchange…”

Uhg, he hates making this offer, but the alternative is worse. He taps his temple. “I'll contribute to freeing Innit– which means Innit can work on that, too.”

There's a peal of laughter. Oh my GOD, you're so fucking petty! Why should I enable you when Innit’ll get free anyway?

He huffs softly. “Because that’s much more boring.”

…Oh?

“It might take them years to figure it out on their own. Aster could use the wish, sure…but that's such a lame use of it.”

Daz circles his finger a little. “And wouldn't it be poetic– cathartic, even– if the two of us came together one final time before splitting apart? Not to mention the meaning behind Innit having a hand in making its own body!”

His smile is friendly, technically. In practice, it looks more like a threat display. “And you'd get a far more interesting show if I see inside his head. What do you think you and your audience would find more enjoyable; Aster one-sidedly seeing things and wasting the wish on something so obvious…or Innit freed, the wish still in play, and me getting visions as well?”

There's silence for several long moments, and then the laughter comes back.

Loud, booming, manic, the edges of it warping in a way that makes Daz shudder.

Hah! Haha, holy SHIT! You're such a piece of garbage! You're so goddamned petty that you'll make a deal like this with someone who doesn't like you!

“I never claimed to be a good person. I'll ruin myself as long as I can bring others down with me,” Daz replies.

He cocks his head to the side and adds, “The game stays fresh for longer like this, too. The more entertained you are, the less likely you are to demand things change at a bad time. It's better to try and set my own terms than be left in check again.”

The Showrunner giggles. Alright, sure! I'll humor you this time.

The room suddenly floods with power and pressure as the god growls, But if you fail to hold up your end, you'll regret it.  He's left gasping for air as their presence fades and they murmur, So don't be stupid about this, yeah? I’d hate to lose such an interesting game piece.

[jeidafei]

Komui's Lounge: Vol.28 (Part 3/4)

>> Part 1

>> Part 2

Q11: Lavi was of the impression that Kanda’s case file reads suspicious from the start. What was the thing that hit you as odd?

Lavi: Hm? Well, you only had to keep an eye on Yu and you’d know. You know the face of a man carrying something heavy when you see one. Besides, those records are pretty detailed alright, but they still give off this air like something fabricated by the government.

Reever: Guess you can’t pull wool over the eyes of those from the Bookman Clan when they devour such vast amounts of books.

Kanda: Who the hell cares.

Lenalee: But, ever since I was small, I’ve always felt that Kanda definitely has a secret as well. And at the same time, I felt it was probably beyond someone like me to do anything about it, too.

Allen: So, you both had your suspicions? Looks like I was the only one without a clue, huh…

Lavi: ……(Well, to tell the truth, I’m suspicious about Lenalee’s records as well).

Allen: What’s the matter, Lavi?

Lavi: Hm? Nah, nuffink (offhanded).

Q12: Miss Anita had said that General Cross loves the rain. Is there an anecdote behind this?

Lenalee: Really? I had no idea.

Allen: Aaaah. Yes, he really did seem to like it. I vaguely remember him musing about it back in my apprentice days.

Lavi: What about it, exactly?

Allen: Hmm. What was it again? Pretty sure it was something about the sound of the rain…

(T/N: Allen's brain prolly too filled with memories of running from Judgment to remember lmao)

Kanda: Isn’t that the rhythm of the rain? Heard it from General Tiedoll. Said it’s like the rhythm of the heartbeat of living things and it calms him.

Reever: Whoa, really? So, you do remember General Tiedoll’s every word, eh, Kanda? (pat pat)

Kanda: Don’t touch my head!

Allen: I’m getting this feeling, like I’ve stumbled upon an unexpected side to my master. And now, I’m feeling somewhat sick……

Lavi: How come?

Q13: How does everyone in the Science Division even keep themselves awake?

Reever: With all the coffee and tea Lenalee brought us, obviously.

Lenalee: Liar. I know full well you guys spike your drinks with some mysterious liquid, so don’t bother.

Reever: *jolts*

Allen: Mr. Reever, let’s come clean about this, shall we?

Lavi: We’ve witnessed it countless times, you know…? The truth will set you free, brother.

Reever: M-my bad! Truth is, we occasionally slip in a drop or two of these energy drinks for fighting off drowsiness. We each have our own recipe…but we created them to be tasteless and odorless so they won’t affect the taste of your tea, so…!

Lenalee: That’s not the thing here, Section Chief. I’m not worried about how my tea tastes; I’m worried about you guys overdosing on drugs…! What if the side-effects land you in some trouble again? You don’t want that, do you?

Allen: I for one don’t ever want to relive that Zombie Incident ever again.

Reever: Yeah, nah, that one's definitely a whole ‘nother level. Like, no-one but the Supervisor could’ve pulled off something of that caliber, I’d say.

Lavi: And I'm telling you, you Science Division folks aren’t that far behind on the screwed-up meter yourselves. Have you forgotten Bunny Gramps?

Kanda: Hire more people, dammit. You got the money, don’t you?

Reever: We are hiring more. It’s just that they rarely stay…(sobs)

Q14: What has enabled Lenalee, who has been traumatized by Central, to warm up to Link, an Inspector from Central, to the point where she enthusiastically discusses tea-brewing with him?

Lenalee: Hmmm, you’re right...Yeah, I was super uncomfortable at first. But then, day after day, I watched the Inspector bravely taking care of Allen-kun’s every need, and I kinda…should I say wound down?

Lavi: He’s a mom personality, that one.

Allen: Yeah, Link does make heavenly sweets, after all. Wish he’d tone down the nagging a bit, though.

Reever: At first, I was worried, too. Then I realized, huh, so there are folks like this even among Central officials, too. And I’m a bit more relieved.

Kanda: Tch. What a bunch of Pollyannas...

Q15: Who has the best penmanship between Allen, Kanda, Lavi and Lenalee? I also would like to know whose mission report is the easiest to read?

Allen: I don’t like this question…(sullen).

Lenalee: You’re getting better and better studying with Inspector Link and Krory, aren’t you? Gotta keep your spirits up, Allen-kun!

Reever: She’s right, Allen. Your reports are much easier to read now!

Kanda: Learn to write a goddamn report at the least, Beansprout. Aren’t you ashamed of yourself?

Allen: Oh, bother!! I apologize for not being well-bred!!!

Reever: Alright, alright, enough! Back to the question. Lavi has the best handwriting. And his report is also the easiest to read.

Lavi: Huh, really? I’m actually half-arsing it, you know.

Allen: Grr!!! (rage)

Lavi: Mr. Allen, your eyes—your eyes are freaking me out. I actually like a good old scribble with a unique style like yours, you know~?

Lenalee: Lavi’s handwriting is just beautiful. Like, straight out of a textbook. Don’t tell me you’ve even memorized all the lettering styles?

Lavi: Yup. Gramps’ handwriting is the same, too, right Reever?

Reever: Yeah. You both have this beautiful, textbook-like handwriting, it’s impossible to tell who wrote it between Lavi and Bookman.

Allen: No fair…

Lavi: Well, on the flipside, you could say it has no interesting feature at all, so stop scowling at me, Allen!

Lenalee: Section Chief, so who’s up next in both?

Reever: Hmmm. Handwriting goes to Lenalee, easy-to-read’s probably Kanda. Wait...Crap! We’re fast approaching the word count limit!! (sweats profusely)

>> Part 4

[scruffyssketchbook]

Why didn't dusk just make another house? Also didn't he make the house why did they draw strings? 😭

Sorry for the constant questions, i'm just very curious on the house's history and was a firm villain dusk enabler... didn't realize he had a reason behind it so i wanna know more

He did make a new house technically, the basement floors is basically a whole new space.

Because that was the house he made for his brotherhood in his territory. Like. Why should he leave it? If he did make a new house, would they say it’s unfair that his brotherhood has a whole house to himself and demand one as well? If he made a new one, a BETTER one, they won’t be happy because the house he gave them was pretty bare bones. Why even TELL them about the house he made? If he did, they’d think it’s unfair, they’d want their eevees to be able to stay in it and use the facilities in it too! The secret basement floors were made as a compromise. If they don’t know about it, they won’t take it from him again. If they REALLY wanted to get something similar, the programs to make a new house and buy things for their eevees are on the computer in the common area. It has basically almost never been touched.

As of why they drew straws, shenanigans! Like, idk what happened exactly to lead up to the straw draw, but these guys were literal babies at this point, so that was what was decided was the most fair way to split up the house after a LOT of other silly things and events to see who could get what floor.

Dusk has an immense fear of others hating him, so that’s why he agreed to split up the house in the first place and didn’t think of angering them more. Like, despite EVERYTHING, this man is a people pleaser. So he felt like if he said no and stood his ground, everyone would hate him and he’ll loose his friends. So he was basically manipulated to agree to splitting the house evenly by floor, and was LITERALLY given the short end of the stick. Like. The reason why he left the series was because he is having a SERIOUS mental breakdown over everyone hating him and him being alone because he never thought of the things Harmony told him before.

[juiceinpanties]

10 Things You Hate About Eddie Munson, pt 4

Pairing: Eddie Munson/afab!reader

Rating(s): Chapter: E; Fic: E

Tags: eventual smut, penetrative sex, oral sex (both m and f receiving), fingering, subbie!Eddie, masturbation (m and f), fake dating, van sex, secret relationship, antagonistic relationship to friendship to lovers, casual sex, not-so-casual sex, phone sex, drunk reader

Summary: Your best friend, Nancy Wheeler, is absolutely dying to date Steve Harrington, but her parents have the weirdest rule: Nancy can't date until her friends (e.g., you) do. Nancy begs you to date someone, anyone, and eventually you agree. Meanwhile Steve offers to pay Eddie "the freak" Munson to ask you out. What could possibly go wrong??

Notes: This is, quite obviously, a 10 Things I Hate About You au, with a slight twist. Throw in some fake dating, a 90s setting, and here we are. Thanks to @tonybourdain​ for dragging me in and continuing to enable me. She helped me entirely rewrite the pone scene because it WAS NOT WORKING as it was.

Please note the tags. Smut ahoy!!

Feedback is always welcome and appreciated and PLEASE reblog! Completely blank blogs that just like will be blocked because I'm gonna assume you're a bot. I've been here a long time.

In case you wanna read on Ao3 instead

part 1 | part 2 | part 3 | part 4

You can’t stop thinking about Eddie.

It’s nearly 10pm. Homework is done, dinner is eaten, excuse is made to parents about why you left school after lunch. And you can’t stop thinking about Eddie Munson and his wide cow eyes and his soft, yummy lips and his big, gentle hands.

It’s like freshman year all over again. At least this time you’re not scribbling his name in your notebook with little hearts everywhere.

You change into your usual sleep uniform of panties and a t shirt and fall back into bed. Maybe you can read for a while, get him off your mind so that you can sleep.

That lasts about 20 minutes. Ugh. This is exactly why you don’t date! You’re far too busy to worry about dumb boys! You toss your book aside and run downstairs for a snack.

You’re on your way back to your room, granola bar in one hand and glass of milk in the other, when you head your private line ringing. You mutter a curse and run to catch it.

“Hello!” you say, breathlessly.

“Hello, did I interrupt something?” It’s Eddie.

You roll your eyes. “Me, running away from you.”

“Haha. Geez you’re so mean.”

“Uh huh. Hang on.” You put the phone down and shut your bedroom door, then climb back into bed and grab the phone again. “Okay, hi. What’s up?”

He grins and plops down on his bed. “I wanted to ask about tomorrow.”

“Hm?” You unwrap your granola bar, but then realize you can’t eat it while talking to him, so you set it aside and sip your milk instead.

“Tutoring? Did you forget?”

“Of course not. I’m just wondering what questions you have.”

He fiddles with the blanket. Maybe this was a mistake. He doesn’t actually have any questions about tomorrow; he just couldn’t stop thinking about you and wanted to hear your voice.

“Uhhh oh! What should I bring?”

You make a face. “Your chem book. Pens and paper. Your brain.”

“Cool, glad you mentioned the last one. Probably woulda forgot.”

You giggle just a little. “Blood flow issues again?”

“Ha,” he says on a breath. “Not right this second, but it’s definitely possible.” He pauses and drums his fingers against his thigh. “So, uh. How’s your evening been?”

“Fine,” you say. “My parents got a call from the school, but I think I calmed them down.”

“Oh shit that’s good. Can’t believe you ruined your perfect attendance record for me.”

“Uh huh, I’m turning into a juvenile delinquent. Cutting class to make out with Eddie Munson in the back of his van.”

"Hey, I just invited you for fries! You kissed me first."

"So I did," you say. "I guess I'm a sucker for pouty lips and big brown eyes."

"My lips are not pouty!"

"Mhmm, sure they are."

"Hmmph," he snorts. "If mine are yours are too. Big, soft, pretty lips. Big, bright eyes." He lets out a long breath. “I can’t stop thinking about you, pretty girl.”

You blush and shift in your seat. Pull the sheet up over your bare legs. His voice is a little low and rougher than usual and it makes you go warm all over. “I was—struggling with something similar,” you admit.

“Oh yeah?” He glances down as a bulge starts to grow in his boxers. Oh geez. Just your voice is doing this! He’s in trouble. He gives it the tiniest stroke with his fingertips.

"Eddie? What was that?" you say as he makes a soft, breathy noise.

"Huh? Oh, uh, nothing." Shit. He's gotta be more careful.

"Hmm." Your bed creaks as you finish off your milk and set the glass aside.

"What was that?" he says with a grin.

"Nothing! I was putting my empty glass on the nightstand."

"Ohhh, I see. Just being a good girl, all tucked in to your bed with your little snack," he says, his voice going rough as he talks. The image is Too Much. He bites off a groan as he rubs his bulge again.

"You okay?" you say. You maybe sort of suspect what that noise was, but surely you're wrong.

"Yeah, yup. I'm good. You?"

You lick your lips. “I want—to kiss you again,” you say. "I mean, if you—would like that. You seemed to like it."

“I’d love that,” he murmurs. “I’d love to be kissing you right now.”

You muffle another giggle. “You could sneak in. You were so good at it last time.”

"That's true! Sneak up to your room, crawl in your bed with you, and...study for chem!"

You laugh and grab your favorite bear from the pile by your bed. Rub your cheek against its soft fur. "Study, huh? What a responsible young man!"

"That's me! Eddie Munson, responsible—young—man." His voice stutters a little as he grips his erection and squeezes.

"Eddie Munson, clearly up to something. What are you doing?"

"I'm—shit. You're suspicious, huh?"

"Mhmm." You run your hand over your chest, across your pebbled nipples. The cotton of your shirt rubs the sensitive skin and you let out a tiny breath.

"Havin' another drink?" he says with a smirk.

"Oh, shut up."

He laughs and pulls his shorts down enough to free his cock. He grips the shaft and runs his thumb over the swollen head. This time he openly lets out a rough breath. "I'll just be quiet," he mumbles. "Just listen to you talk."

"Uh huh," you say. You tug one of your nipples, and then shove your shirt up with an impatient little growl. "As you do what?"

"Nothing. Why, what're you doing?"

"Nothing." You bite your lip around a breath as you continue to play with your extra-sensitive nipples. "What are you working on in chem right now?" you say, trying to keep your voice steady.

"Mmmm." He rubs his thumb up and down against the vein on the underside of his cock. Presses against the spot where the head meets the shaft and circles. "Covalent bonds," he manages.

"Oh good." You give up and press a hand between your thighs. You can feel how wet you are through your cotton panties. "I'm fantastic at covalent bonds."

"Uh huh. I just bet you are." He grinds his palm against the tip of his cock and grips it again to stroke the entire length. "What else are you good at, princess?"

You shiver at his tone, the roughness of it. "Lots of things," you breathe.

"God I bet you are."

You give the tiniest moan and shove your panties aside. You run your fingers up and down your dripping slit, over your slick labia. Then you push your fingers into your mouth and suck the taste of yourself off of them.

"What's in your mouth, baby?" he murmurs. "Don't lie."

"My fingers," you whisper.

"Oh? They get all sticky? Something nice and sweet on them?"

"Uh huh!" You feel drunk, dizzy, and if you don't come soon you're going to lose your mind.

He licks his hand and grips his cock again. Gives it several rough tugs before settling in for a slow, easy stroke. "I'd love to taste something sticky and sweet," he says. "Something soft and pink."

He smirks at the sound of your little whimper. Fuckin A he wants you. "Bet you have somethin' like that," he murmurs. "Bet it's just for me."

"Uh huh. A nice yummy snack." You circle your fingers around your clit and bite hard on your lip. "You have anything for me?"

"Oh yeah," he breathes. He strokes faster. "God do I have somethin' for you."

"Good," you say as you wiggle your hips and thrust two fingers into your cunt. "I want it, Eddie. Want to—want—to help you with your—bonds."

"Yeah," he grunts. "Molecules and shit."

"Periodic table!" you gasp as you fuck yourself. You squeeze the phone between your shoulder and chin so you can use your other hand on your clit.

"Gonna study so hard," he says. He's bucking his hips, fucking up into his hand, squeezing his shaft and stroking over the head in desperation. "So fuckin' hard, princess."

"Good! That's so good, so good, Eddie! Love it when you study hard, love it when you're such a good student for me!" You can't hold back a whine as you circle your clit. You're close, so fucking close.

"Gonna ace that test just for you. Make a big fat A just for my pretty little tutor." He's gonna explode any second. "Gonna—fuck—you're so fuckin' good!"

"Eddie! Love that, so proud, so good!!" You come hard, nearly drop the phone, moaning and whimpering with shaking thighs and throbbing cunt.

"Fuck!" he gasps and can't hold back another second. He makes a mess, painting his tummy with hot, thick come and whimpering your name over and over.

You're both quiet except for your rough panting. You lick your fingers clean and clear your throat. He grabs a towel and dabs at his stomach.

"So," you finally say. "See you at school tomorrow?"

"Yep. You want a ride?"

"No, Nancy'll take me. But if I could get a ride to your place?"

"Sure, no prob. Then I'll run you home in time for dinner. After the tutoring."

"Such a nice boy. Goodnight, Eddie."

"Night, princess. Sweet dreams."

"You too," you say, then hang up. You fall back against your pillows with a soft groan. Okay well THAT was a thing. An incredibly hot, delicious, amazing thing. You get up to grab fresh panties and head to the bathroom. You think maybe now you'll be able to sleep like a baby.

You only see Eddie in passing until school's over the next day. You're standing outside talking to Nancy when he cruises up. He stubs out his cigarette and grins. "Hey, Nancy. Hey, you ready to go?" he says to you.

"Yep. Got your chem book?"

He pulls his book bag around and pats it. "Plus a notebook and THREE pens. I'm as prepared as a goddamn Boy Scout!"

You can't help but giggle. "Come on, Foz. Let's see how much covalent bond info we can shove into that brain of yours before the clock strikes 6:30." You wave at Nancy, who's grinning like the cat who ate the canary, and follow Eddie to his van.

He opens the door for you, as always, then hurries around to his side and jumps in. "I picked up some Diet Coke," he says. "I know that's your drink."

"Yeah, it is. Thanks."

"Sure. I also, uh. Cleaned up a little. Wayne and I aren't the neatest pair."

He seems nervous. You reach over and give his skinny thigh a little squeeze. "It's okay, Grove. I'm sure you did great. I'll be there to tutor you, not critique your interior decor."

"Right!" he says. He gives you a quick grin. "And I really do need to pass this test."

"You will," you say. You pat his leg and pull your hand back. "It's next week, right? We can study today and maybe sometime over the weekend. I know you've got Hellfire tomorrow."

"You know I wasn't bullshitting when I asked you to join. You can, if you want. We'd love another member."

"Seriously?"

"Seriously."

Your mouth quirks. "Do I get a shirt?"

"I've got one at my place I can give you. It's clean and everything!"

"Oooo, you spoil me!" You grin at each other before his eyes flick back to the road. "Sure, I'll come check it out," you say. "I play a high elf healer. Rhiannon. After the Fleetwood Mac song."

You wait for some judgmental or snide comment, but he just nods. "Pretty good band," he finally says.

"Wow. How much did that cost you?"

He lets out a rusty breath. "A lot, babe. Not gonna lie. That one was hard. Though it coulda been worse."

You giggle and settle back in your seat. "I'm proud of you."

You chat casually the rest of the ride, almost like friends. Neither of you mentions last night. It's like it never happened. Part of you wonders if he regrets it, but you decide that no, he's just waiting for you to bring it up first. He doesn't want to pressure you since you made "no touching, no kissing, no bullshit" your very clear rule for this thing you two have going.

Last night definitely counts as "bullshit."

You get to his place and he grabs a can of root beer and a can of Diet Coke from the fridge before leading you back to his room. You take a moment to study his posters (it's only fair; he's seen yours) and notice the fact that there are clean sheets on his bed. Wow, he really did clean up.

"Have a seat," he says. "Sorry I don't have a desk or anything."

"It's okay," you say and drop down onto his bed. "I think I can handle it." You kick off your shoes and scoot back, dragging your backpack with you.

He hesitates a moment before climbing up next to you so that you're sitting side by side against the headboard. "Okay, um. Chapter 3," he says as he pulls out his textbook.

You grab your book and notebook and flip open to the relevant chemistry notes. "Okay, first you explain to me what covalent bonds are."

His forehead creases and he haltingly explains the concept. He actually has it down pretty well.

You get through bonds quickly and move on to other topics on the test, and before you know it two hours have passed.

"Shit," he says with a glance at his watch. He scrubs his face with both hands. "My brain hurts."

You pat his head, grinning. "Poor brain. Needs a break, I think."

"Uh huh. Want a snack? I can make some popcorn."

"Yeah, that'd be good. We can quit for the day, if you want. Put a movie on for our last few hours. There's a point of diminishing returns with all this."

His eyes crinkle as he smiles at you. "You were readin' my mind, princess. Movies are stored under there," he says, pointing. "Pick one out while I go make the popcorn."

He hops up and you crawl off the bed to check out his movie collection. Slashers and porn. Porn and slashers. Hm. Nothing super surprising, except maybe The Never-Ending Story. But that's a classic.

Since it's only a few weeks away, you decide on Halloween and push the tape into the VCR. You pause it and put your books away before settling back on his bed.

He comes back with a huge bowl of popcorn and two fresh sodas. "Hey," he says. "What'd you pick?"

"Debbie Does Dallas," you say, straight-faced.

"What? That's not even—" He scowls as he catches on. "Very funny. Jerk."

"That's a lot of porn, Munson."

He shrugs and plops down beside you. "I'm a growing boy. I have needs."

"Uh huh. For tits and serial killers, apparently."

"Nothin' wrong with tits. And serial killers are built into the fabric of American society. Did you know there's something like 50 serial killers active in the US at any given time?"

You look at him, wide-eyed. "Are you serious?"

"Yep. And, I mean, Hawkins is...well."

"Weird," you say.

"To put it mildly. Anyway, the horror movies are kind of an escape. They're so ridiculous." He hits play on the remote. "Take this one, for instance," he says, recognizing the opening credits. "How many different ways does Michael Myers die in just this one movie? But he always comes back."

You reach for some popcorn and munch on it thoughtfully. "The futility of fighting against the inevitable existential pull of 20th-century ennui?" you say.

"Yeah, that, and also you can't trust in institutions. The cops are rarely helpful in slasher movies. The government or anyone like that never is."

"Adults aren't usually at all. Kids and teenagers have to fight the monster."

"Exactly. Kids at summer camp, kids having nightmares, kids babysitting. At the end of the day you can only trust your friends to have your back, and even then they might get stabbed," he says. His expression is intense, his eyes big and bright, and you realize you could sit here and talk movies with him all afternoon.

You lean over, grab his shirt, and pull him in for a kiss. He sits back in surprise. "What was that for?"

"Nothing. Continue."

His mouth opens. Closes. Opens again. "I lost my train of thought."

"Oh," you say. You take the bowl of popcorn and set it aside. "Oops." You crawl into his lap and push him back against the headboard with one hand and grip his hair with the other. He stares up at you, astounded, and his big eyes flutter closed as you lean down to kiss him again.

"So," you murmur between kisses. "Do anything fun last night?"

His hands run up and down your back and he nips at your lips with his. "Chatted on the phone with this hot girl I know."

"Lucky girl." You pull his chin up and kiss him hungrily, your tongue sliding into his mouth. He moans and moves his to meet it. His hands go still as he hangs onto you and you slowly start to rock against him.

"Don't get hard," you breathe against his mouth.

He lets out a stuttering laugh. "I'm only human, babe. You doing—that—is gonna lead to a hard dick every time."

"Mmmm I should stop, then. We have a movie to watch."

He bites your lower lip. Tugs. "Whatever you want, princess. I am at your service."

Oh. You like that. "Hm," you say as you slide off his lap. "Maybe if you're a good boy I'll suck your cock during the movie."

He sits up. "I'll be good! I swear! So good! The best!"

You giggle and kiss his cheek. "Watch the movie, sweet boy. I guarantee you'll enjoy it."