#character stuff lies!!! and it sucks they had to skip it!!!!

[gibbearish]

im thinking too much about the security breach endings now help

[luckydicekirby]

erin hasn’t read jade legacy yet and i have 700 pages worth of Opinions about it and you can’t put stuff under a cut in tweets so i am finally returning to “posting on tumblr”

this book did not fully work for me! and i am really chewing on why. I enjoyed reading it, and it made me cry several times, but it felt structurally disconnected and didn’t really come together for me like, Thematically. the ending was just kind of eh. points for ending on bero and the twice lucky, because i’m a simple woman i love a good bookend, but it feels really weird that the end was basically like “well, we won bc our family likes each other and the mountain all hates each other” guys your family is a nightmare!!!!!!!! 

on some level I think I had expectations the book ultimately wasn’t interested in fulfilling so I’m not a super fair judge--my called shot for this book was that niko was going to kill hilo for murdering his mom, or that at least that was going to be a major point of contention between them. at a certain point it became obvious this was not the direction we were going in, which is fine, but eyni’s murder was SUCH a great momentous “oh shit” moment in jade war and I feel like we never fully followed up on it--it makes perfect sense that hilo would see it as necessary and like it was the right thing to do, because he’s a freak and he sucks (affectionate), but we barely get to see niko react to it as an adult. like I really thought we were going to get a moment in jade legacy that was like, hey hilo, turns out you cannot just kill your nephew’s mom and kidnap him as a toddler without consequences, but I guess......you can? i feel like we missed out on sooo much meaty crunchy stuff in this vein.

also this should have been at least two or three books. I was excited about the time skips, because I wanted to see the kids as adults, but a lot of specific moments had to get skimmed over to fit everything in, and the kids kind of got the shaft as far as characterization--we get the most interesting character stuff with niko, and he barely has any POV! I liked what we got of Ru (and his death made me cry like a baby), but jaya was cool but completely flat. my mind palace ideal structure is like. one book still centered on the adults while the kids are growing up, and then one book centered on the adult kids where we actually get to dig deep into their character stuff/their relationships with each other. 

anyway, stray thoughts:

making anden and lott narrative foils but then not having them get together honestly kind of a power move. i kind of respect it. my read is that lott is gay but decided he would never be able to be out and be the horn, and stuck to that. which WOULD sure make him feel real weird about anden!

shae/ayt mada real and no one can convince me otherwise. they both tried to kill each other they both saved each other’s lives that is romance baybee

i did really enjoy the continuing bero throughline/his ultimate insignificance, and inability to even MAKE himself significant by confessing to lan’s murder to niko. that scene was so good. 

it feels like all the interesting thematic stuff in this book was coming together in the wake of Ru’s death, and then it all had to get dropped bc we were once again at like, “uh oh mountain’s gonna take over”. like no go back i want to talk more about senseless death and about how vital it is to die for a cause as a green bone but ultimately lan’s death was also a senseless accident and hilo HAS ALWAYS KNOWN THAT AND ALWAYS LIED ABOUT IT AND THAT’S THE ROOT CAUSE OF THE WAR!!! CAN WE TALK ABOUT THAT!!

2 black 2 green made me lose it. 

anyway i AM staring at my hands like is it just that i’m a slut for tragedy and wanted a worse ending to this book where like five major characters died....am EYE the problem for wanting this family to be irrevocably broken...am i too successionpilled.....

[chayscribbles]

chayscribbles’ monthly writing update ☆ august/september 2023 double feature

☆ STATISTICS.

words written: 4273 in august; none in september BUT that's because i did a lot of revising

projects worked on: Gemini Heist in august; Andromeda Rogue in september, then procrastinated so hard i ended up writing a few paragraphs on Third, Secret Wip

proudest accomplishment: i compiled all my AR1 beta feedback without giving in to the urge to set the book on fire and also myself

books read: Network Effect (Murderbot Diaries #5) by Martha Wells

☆ GENERAL COMMENTS.

so basically i started off august decently solid, working on gemini heist while andromeda rogue was off being torn apart by the betas. (i'm joking. it didn't get torn apart. i think you guys were being way too nice actually.)

and then all kinds of shit hit the fan in my personal life all at once in mid-august. both good and bad. it was a lot.

anyways the first half of september was spent recovering from all that, BUT i took a week off work mid-september to catch my breath and also get back into writing, and it was really good for me.

on another note! i am very seriously considering making an etsy shop for some of my art, because as much as i loathe the thought of monetizing my hobbies, we are living in a cost of living crisis, and i don't wanna be in my ice water soup era forever, ha. anyways stay tuned. (and if you think it would be a good idea/you think yourself or others would be interested in buying things PLEASE LET ME KNOW. EXPLICITLY. because otherwise i will assume no one cares and the idea will fizzle out.)

more specific wip-related comments + featured excerpt below.

☆ COMMENTS: ANDROMEDA ROGUE (draft 2 editing)

i went through all the beta comments during my week off and while i am glad it doesn't look like i'll have to do any more BIG rewrites, editing sucks and i want to give up.

☆ COMMENTS: THE GEMINI HEIST (draft 0.5. okay fine it's draft 1 but i feel better about myself if i call it draft 0.5 okay)

honestly when i was working on this feels sooo long ago i don't even remember what there is to say?

i hit 20K at some point in august. i think.

OH YEAH i "finished" act 2/7. the quotation marks are because i absolutely did not finish it, i only finished writing all the main plot-relevant scenes and skipped anything else. which means there's like a whole chapter and a half that haven't actually been written bc they're probably gonna be exposition or character building stuff that i haven't figured out yet and i'm hoping will be easier once i know what actually happens in the rest of this story. (reminder that i am a plantser.)

anyways i suspect this wip will be going dormant again for a while as i focus on getting AR ready for publishing. (sidenote it's been over a year since i started the GH draft and i feel like i've done fuck all on it besides come up with useless lore and make extremely specific playlists. world's slowest writer. the playlists slap, though.)

☆ FEATURED EXCERPT.

uh have this random snippet of Euna about to pop off!

Somewhere far, far, away, Leo was shouting, “Just get your ass out of there, Li!” but her voice seemed muffled in Euna’s ears, blocked out by the rage that had been steadily mounting ever since that guard shot her arm and ruined the fight for her. All she could hear was the blood rushing through her own ears, the buzz of the guard’s electrified gauntlets, the crackle of the electricity in her own hand. She reared her good fist back and slammed it into the guard’s face. Their nose made a sickening crunch against Euna’s knuckles. Blood flowed down over their mouth and chin as they staggered back, but Euna wasn't done. Her right arm, still spouting sparks, swung into the side of their head, finally bringing them down. Before they could get up again, Euna dropped on top of them, pinning them to the ground with her knees on their chest. She grabbed their shoulders and yanked their upper body off the floor, preparing to slam them down one last time— Purple light surrounded her. For a frightening second, she couldn’t move. Then she was thrown off the guard and dragged, upside-down, through the air towards the exit.

☆ TAGLISTS. let me know if you want to be added/removed to any of them.

general taglist:

@nicola-writes @dgwriteblr @the-orangeauthor @onomatopiya @quilloftheclouds @ashen-crest @writeblrfantasy @celestepens @stardustspiral @pepperdee @extra-magichours @avi-why @lefttigerobservation @chazzawrites @bardolatrycore @innocentlymacabre

andromeda trilogy taglist:

@bebewrites @nicola-writes @dgwriteblr @the-orangeauthor @onomatopiya @akindofmagictoo @quilloftheclouds @nora-theteawriter @ashen-crest @corpsepng @writeblrfantasy @toboldlywrite @celestepens @stardustspiral @pepperdee @cheerfulmelancholies @extra-magichours @writeouswriter @cilly-the-writer @lefttigerobservation @rose-bookblood @drowsy-quill @chazzawrites @cynic-and-chief @enchanted-lightning-aes @aesa @outpost51

gemini heist taglist:

@florraisons @akindofmagictoo @cream-and-tea @nicola-writes @memento-morri-writes @antique-symbolism @rose-bookblood @afoolandathief @pepperdee @avi-why @zonnemaagd @chazzawrites @analogued @enchanted-lightning-aes @innocentlymacabre @kahvilahuhut @celestepens @cilly-the-writer @extra-magichours @onomatopiya @outpost51

[sparxaf]

So today's eps happened.

Welp. My thoughts are all over the place. Enjoy.

No bits. Not even a kiss. Fuck everything. Also I had to sit through not one but two Finn love confessions. I skipped all the previous ones so I can only imagine how tedious it is for those who have basically seen this same scene with him four times now. Also, I was nice to Gabi while she sat there and daydreamed about how things might play out with Suresh if I'm the one dumped. GABI IS A DICKHEAD.

AND WHY DIDN'T I GET ONE ON ONE TIME WITH MY BELOVED LULU? WHY DO YOU HATE US, FUSEBOX? AND NO SHOWER SEX? I WAS PROMISED SHOWER SEX.

Onto the positives (sort of). We got to tell off Meera, Nicolas, and Suresh. I told Suresh I'd never forgive him and want no connection with him ever and he said, "It doesn't get any clearer than that." Yep. And I only had to say it half a dozen times for it to become crystal.

Was Alfie cold for what he did to Meera? Yes. Was it hilarious? Also yes. I legit laughed out loud when he went, "Errrrr." GOLD.

I will say for me, this was one of the most fun eps of the season because Nicolas was hysterically funny to me. When he chastised Kat for believing the lies he spread I almost choked to death on my laugh snort. Though it was a little unsatisfying how happy he was to leave. He's all STICK WITH MY PLAN. Sir, your plan didn't work. You're leaving. You suck and you should feel bad about it.

Anyway, I liked it when Kat said this:

Because all I could hear in my head was this 😂😂😂

God I love that movie.

Ahem. Back to complaining. Could we not with Meera's prolonged goodbye scenes and even longer post dumping scenes where everyone kisses her ass for being so great? Soldiers going off to fight a winless war get less heartfelt, tearful farewells than this salty bitch. For as long as I had to sit through her bullshit (twice) I want the same length of time dedicated to everyone telling MC how wonderful she is and apologizing PROFUSELY, groveling really, for ever doubting her awesomeness. "Sorrrrrry," with abashed face ain't cutting it.

Oh also, when Meera found out she was leaving and Dana asked me what I thought, I chose to say that it changed nothing. Her being there or not didn't make any difference to me. And Dana had the nerve...

Yes. Yes I am. Meera has been nasty to me when I literally did nothing to deserve it. I was nice to her. I told Alfie to choose her. Alfie knows I'm not into him and I haven't spoken to him privately once since he came back with her. I've done everything to get out of their way and in return I was treated like trash by her and no one stood up for me. But now I'm supposed to pretend to be sad that Meera won't be around to insult me or call me a liar or a backstabber? Dana, you can fucking take a long walk off a short pier.

THE GALL. I told everyone that I forgive nothing. I don't forgive Meera. I don't forgive Suresh. I don't forgive Nicolas. I don't forgive any of you dicks. I AM PETTY AND ANGRY. I meant to do a self-righteous, above-it-all angel MC route, but I'm too mad 😂 I told off Meera more than once and it was delightful.

Overall, it was a little emotionally satisfying, but the fun stuff was overshadowed by yet another episode of everyone licking Meera's booty hole. Like when did she make this miracle transformation they're going on about? It seems more like she was always a bitch and she just didn't hide it on her return. We didn't get enough character development from anyone to see an actual transformation.

Oh well.

I will say, these eps inspired a fic idea. One that isn't about Suresh getting kicked in the balls, I mean. I have three of those going already. No, this is something else. I want to finish TSIME first, but I think I'm cooking up something special for S5. Mwhahahahahaaaaa.

I should probably put a read more break somewhere in this, because it's super long, but I'm cramping and don't know where to put it. Let's blame Meera.

[lorettapetrichor]

this fic for the commentary because i relate to it a whole bunch!!

cw for discussion of irl bullying. also, marcy harm in the fic.

so ok! the night before i wrote that fic (i actually wrote it at the same time as this one but didnt publish the one you asked abt until much more recently; even that other fic was posted a decent time after i wrote it) i had just sat down and had a conversation with a friend from middle school whose instagram i'd just found.

(this bit gets a bit venty so skip if you want)

they and i were in a small friend group in middle school that group were some of my only friends! however i had lied to them to fit in with the group (im not comfortable sharing what) and eventually was like. ok i dont care if you ditch me and leave me to be bullied by the people at this school who hate me (i was genuinely concerned that some of them might actually kill me based on the seriousness of many of their threats.) i cant lie anymore. and i told them the truth one day at lunch and tried to cling to our friendship but they backed away. basically it sucked!!

anyways one of those friends eventually started talking to me again but the other completely ignored me. i wont get into the rest of that drama actually bc its even more completely irrelevant! so the better friend is the one who i ended up talking to on instagram late one night last year. and they were basically like. yeah that other guy sucks he's messed with a ton of other people like this. he wasnt worth it.

that conversation was rlly important bc it let me realize a lot of things. namely, the reason im so drawn to marcy as a character. i see a ton of myself in her.

the fic you asked about is basically me trying to project the day those friends ditched me. trying to handle those emotions that were coming back all of a sudden from that day.

this? this is pure projection.

and this is in large part, me trying to come to terms with my own mistakes from when i was a kid. sure it's hyperbole, but things get more extreme when translated like this if i want venting to work.

after a last passage of venting lmao, we get back into the more fictional bits. "the bitter wind" is ofc a generic phrase but i was lowkey thinking abt "emmylou" by first aid kit while writing that line.

girls when italicized ohs

me: (is mildly sad) hmmmm. *harms marcy*

it's clear what of this was written after i got what i needed to vent about out. the reason this took over 6 months to get published was that i only wrote a short bit of such intensely personal writing before i switched over to the other fic i used to vent about the same topic. i just tacked on the last few generic, fictional, canon-compliant marcangst stuff in time for the true colors anniversary.

hi basil if you relate to this fic "a whole bunch" i might recommend you a pinch of therapy (<- went to therapy for years following the events that led to me writing this)

[eldritchpluto]

1, 10, 35, and 58 for quinn?

Thanks for the ask Calyx!!!! <3 time for a blorbo rambleeeeee :D

What is the lie your character says most often?- not to get too angsty too fast, but she often lies about her own confidence in her abilities. She has always felt the expectation to be one thing, and she's too afraid to differ from that path, since she sees it as a betrayal to her family and her cause.

What fact do they excitedly tell everyone about at any opportunity?- She LOVES to share facts about nature of all kinds, especially nature in other worlds/dimensions that she has visited. She's fascinated by how different environments produce different things, and how everything still manages to coexist! She especially loves talking about flowers and other flora!

What is the smallest, morally questionable decision they've made?- Quinn makes MANY a morally questionable decision, im not gonna lie. When it comes to the smallest tho? It's hard to gauge what the smallest is, but a choice she ends up making often is omitting small bits of information. This comes up the most when she meets Milo and she pulls him into a lot of magic stuff he had no idea existed. so he's asking a LOT of questions, but for a while she either doesn't answer, or keeps her answers limited. She is doing this to try to "protect" him, but it's ultimately harmful, and she knows its harmful too.

How many hobbies have they attempted to have over their lifetime? Is there a common theme?- Quinn is the queen of started hobbies lol. She spent basically 14 years growing up with her mom and grandmother in the middle of the woods, so that didn't give too much of a chance for social interaction. Instead, she turned to nature and magic. She has basically tried everything she could get her hands on out in the wild. Tree climbing, bird watching, exploration, rock skipping, information cataloguing. You name it, she's likely done it. Also, she has a bit of an artsy streak to her, mostly with illustration due to her grandmother's love of it! Her other hobby is technically magic but...she really really sucks at it (much to her chagrin). So she's spent a lot of her free time trying to figure it out, even if it barely comes to fruition.

THANK YOU FOR THE ASK!! I love talking about my favorite girl :DD

[moononastring]

this year had me getting into mafia books too. and i have read some really great ones, but there's also some seriously unhinged wtf is happening books too lol. the sinners anonymous books have been on my tbr list so i'm glad to see they're good. will definitely be checking them out soon. i was rec'd by my friends to try cora reilly and really enjoyed her books, especially the camorra chronicles series. also loved the made series by danielle lori. one series i was kind of meh about because of how dark it got was the beauty in lies and bellandi crime syndicate books by adelaide forrest. those get pretty intense so if you were interested i would definitely check the trigger warnings. another friend told me to try rina kent the other day and i started with one of her less dark series (empire series) as a introduction - mostly it's cause the royal elite series is like high school age and i'm not here for that tbh - and it was an experience. i will say the empire series is super light on any mafia stuff, like only 2 out of the 4 mention anything mafia related it's mostly following these partners at a law firm. anyway i really loved 3/4 of the books so for that alone i would rec, but book 1 was really not it for me. i'm surprised i continued with the series tbh cause the couple imo was gross. and it's not about the age gap or the fact it was a girl falling for her dad's best friend it was the fact that this man knew her since the day she was born and was called "uncle" for years. that alone just skeeved me out and i wish i had skipped that book cause the rest were really really good.

Mafia romance books are truly a hit or miss because if the characters can pull me in, I can handle terrible writing but if the characters suck AND it's bad writing? Why????

I definitely think Sinners Anonymous is pretty well written and engaging (not to mention pretty hot tbh). I'm excited to continue with it because I heard the next books get even better!

I read the Born in Blood series (1-5) for Cora Reilly and at the time I read them, I kid you not, I was o b s e s s e d even though IMO, they were not well-written haha. But idk what it was! It had a chokehold on me even though I remember nothing now HAHA. I'm interested in maybe reading the Camorra Chronicles. Twisted Emotions gets a lot of hype so if anything, I'd probably read book one to get to it and then see if I like it enough to continue. I enjoyed the Made series too! Books 1 and 2 more than book 3 but interested enough to read the 4th book if it ever comes out lol.

I also read the Brutal Birthright series which is very, very light on mafia that I wouldn't really call it that. They're just criminals I GUESS LOL. It was entertaining to an extent but I didn't love it. Books 4 and 6 ruined it for me.

I've heard mixed reviews about Rina Kent books! I can't read anything that has HS ages in anymore so I don't think I'd go near that series just for that. Plus that little tidbit you just shared makes me wanna vomit so PASS lol.

Another series I heard is well-loved and well-written is the Dark Verse by RuNyx! I haven't read it yet but I'm definitely interested and will likely after I finish Sinners Anonymous! If you've read it already, let me know!!

[lazydanni]

HCs of The side characters with a quiet-chaotic MC!

> The brothers

Side characters' reactions with a quiet/calm but chaotic GN!Mc

━━━━━━━ ★ ━━━━━━━

Diavolo

Kinda worries that you aren't comfortable down here at first

Keep asking Barbaros if he had any idea to cheer you up

Huh? So they just built like that? That means they weren't uncomfortable at all right? pheew

Tries his best to get along with you, and turned out you're very fun to hang out with

Would hold your hand and skipping around the Devildom with you, causing troubles of course

Partners in crime, The most powerful couple, you name it 😎

Both of you are made for each other, really

Poor Lucifer, he have to handle these troublesomes

Often invite you for tea party, when I say often, which means nearly everday 👁👄👁

Totally not a simp for you

We all know he lied about it

He's so bright whenever he's with you, please hug him, give him head pat, He loves those 😔❤

Barbatos

He's aware of your personality

Honestly he doesn't mind having another trouble human since he's already got used to it

Still make sure you won't cause any troubles, especially when you're with Lord Diavolo

#CalmDad

Since he's very calm, you always try to tease him alot since pranking him is obviously a terrible idea

One day, you decided to lead a rat into the kitchen where Barb is

On the outside he seems he's doesn't bother at all, but on the inside he's literally screaming for his dear life

"Please MC, don't encourage Beelzebub to eat another castle pillar"

Would treat you sweets or a small tea party after give you a long ass lecture <3

Simeon

#CalmDadnumber2

Really enjoys hanging around with you

He doesn't even plan to stop you from causing troubles, as long as you didn't go over board

In fact, whenever you're pranking someone, he's always there, watching the chaos while enjoying his afternoon tea

"Oh my, MC is messing with Lucifer again hehe"

"Should I stop them? Maybe I'll see how this go"

*SIPPPPPPPPS*

ChaosEnjoyer 🧍‍♀️

Sometimes covers you from the troubles you made too, but will lecture you after that

A very gentleman whenever you guys meet (he's so perfect wtf)

But sometimes tease you back by pinching your cheeks and tells you how fucking adorable you are

SIMEON PLEASE MARRY ME ILY *SOBS*

Solomon

Finds your personality very interesting too (Like Satan)

And yes, you guys are staring at each other awkwardly

Likes to edging, teasing you to see how much does it take to piss you off

Apparently those stuffs don't effect you 😐

100% The first one would encourage you to do more pranks on Lucifer and the others

Your "Run Away" Partner

S.I.M.P but doesn't admit it

Definitely would teach you new spells and ask you to try them on the brothers (He knows it's gonna turn out bad since MC is suck at magic 👁👄👁)

His heart goes doki doki whenever you ask him to cook something

And now both of you are the reason why the kitchen is on fire

This is why everyone in the HoL is trying to not let you two meet so often

And they failed doing that :)

Neither will just watch the chaos happen or join with you to make it worse

Did I mention he's a simp for you?

Luke

Barks at everyone including you whenever you caused troubles

BARK BARK WOOF WOOF GRRR

HE BITES

*Angry chihuahua noises*

Really wants to ask you to help him baking but to scared to do it

Probably because you often cause the kitchen on fire

Or maybe because you keep having that 😐 face while staring at him

Or maybe both-

"MC! STOP ENCOURAGING SOLOMON TO COOK! BOTH OF YOU STAY OUT OF THE KITCHEN!"

"SIMEON! DON'T JUST SIT THERE, DO SOMETHING!"

Probably thinks you behave like this because of the brothers

I wIlL rEpOrT tHiS sTrAiGhT tO MiChAeL

Always keep his eyes on you, to make sure you don't cause more troubles

Definitely gonna give you a whole lecture that even longer than Lucifer's and Barbaros's

Unless you give him Barb's cake before he gets to do anything 😎👌

━━━━━━━ ★ ━━━━━━━

Hope you enjoyed this lol

Thanks for reading it, Really, I very appreciate it <3

-Anna

[yjwhatif]

With the semi/cryptic confirmation of Ed and Barts relationship in the series I have a question:

Do you think everyone knows about them (in world) or do you think they’re keeping it secret from some?

It’s just a thought that’s been in my head recently. It is most likely fuelled by the whole drama of G&B not being able to depict a “specific character” (it’s definitely Bart) as gay. They’ve had to hide the relationship from their audience - because of ridiculous reasons - but there are still moments that bring up the question - Are they? Before the reveals from AskGreg, I kinda thought- well they are clearly not together yet, but perhaps they both have feelings for one another and are just waiting for the other to make the next move because they’re nervous idiots who don’t want to have read the situation wrong — all while their friends are like - seriously guys? just get together already. Kinda like they did in s1 with Wally and Artemis - and I guess early Supermartian as well - which I would have been okay with... though with the likelihood of there being at least another two year time skip you’d probably have missed the getting together moment - which would kinda suck. Anyway. With the information about the chances being they were supposed to clearly be in a relationship throughout S3 — which makes the whole structuring of ILLUSIONS just make sense — it’s got me viewing their moments with a whole new energy. Also, I saw this post by Greg —

And let me just clarify, I have no idea if this is actually referencing the Ed and Bart stuff, it might not be (probably isn't). This is purely me speculating.

My reading of this is they got told they couldn’t depict Bart as gay pretty late on and that specifically affected ILLUSIONS where they likely intended to confirm the relationship with that first shot - the kiss on the cheek moment. Even now that moment is just odd - because it’s there but it’s not - because technically there is no actual kiss… which I think is absolutely the point. It plants the seed without actually breaking any rules - all by keeping the momentum but removing the specific kiss frame. It’s the only moment that I feel is explicit in saying they are in a relationship - everything else you can just read into and imply there’s something - but they technically don’t confirm anything.

The whole thing is actually quite interesting - despite the reasoning for it being totally ridiculous. By keeping/showing what they did... People notice it. People talk about it. People reflect on it. More people talk about it. People writing. Make. Create. Discuss it. An entire audience is formed who want and support it. It’s a whole thing now because people noticed it and generated a positive response to it - and that was before all the AskGreg information. The whole reason YJ got a season 3 is because the fans fought to get it back. Enough people talked about it - and kept talking about it - to convince TPTB that the show should come back. Greg and Brandon know this. They know the power the fans have and maybe they hoped that power would help them again in freeing Bart from these ridiculous restrictions. #letbartoutofthecloset

Obviously, we can't know until S4 is released whether G&B got the permission to confirm Bart's sexuality the way they envisioned - but maybe the responses that came during the release of 3b were enough to convince TPTB that they were fighting a losing battle. But who knows, people in power can be very stubborn at times, so we will just have to see what we get. Fingers crossed they eased up though - and not just because of the Ed/Bart relationship (which I am obviously a fan of -- it's fine if not everyone is) - but because these restrictions on LGBTQ+ content shouldn't be a thing and need to stop -- there is just no validity in them.

Anyhow. despite their not being allowed to officially confirm the relationship, Greg's comment about Ed's having a boyfriend they can't name basically confirms the fact without technically breaking any rules again. Masterfully done Wiesman. With this, it implies the pair are in fact dating during S3 which brings us back to the original question... but who knows??

With the comments of Virgil during ILLUSIONS, it's easy to assume their friends do in fact know. They also seem to have no problem being close and interacting with one another whilst in the presence of others -- that is, except for one moment...

Ever since the first time I saw this episode (ELDER WISDOM) I have always found this moment strange - because Ed seems to get kinda awkward when Barry comes to check on Bart. (Or that's how I see it at least.) He realises Flash is standing there and immediately pulls his head down averting his gaze -- almost like he doesn't want to be seen by the elder. But why? Does Barry not know about the pair -- or maybe he doesn't know about Bart and Ed thinks their current closeness is too revealing -- who's to say Bart's even fully out to the world yet -- who's to say either of them are? We certainly don't since we weren't allowed to be shown. We can't know until we know - so until then we can play the speculation game while we wait.

Bart is certainly a bit of a secret keeper when it comes to being himself. I'm still convinced the Bart we see onscreen is merely his interpretation of what he thinks people expect from a speedster in this time. We saw 'real' Bart, he was snarky and cynical and nothing like the Bart we've had for the past two seasons. He said it himself - he's playing a character - and I don't think he knows how to break out of it - not while the possibility exists that it might hurt those he's grown to care about. Bart wants to be seen a certain way to avoid acknowledging the truth of the past - if people see him as happy and smiley, then no one will question him on things he doesn't want to talk about. The problem with that is you can't hide yourself forever - cracks begin to form and eventually, the truth comes out whether you want it to or not. So who knows how comfortable Bart is revealing any of his true self to those he cares about. Maybe his relationship with Ed will be the thing that finally helps him find comfort in being himself, whilst also trusting others to still accept him as himself... and maybe getting him that bit of therapy he really needs.

This brings us to Eduardo… First, can I just say it made me so happy to see Greg’s confirmation of Ed being gay - though it is slightly annoying that he was robbed of his explicit onscreen reveal in S3 thanks to the drama with Bart. His whole relationship to his powers in S2 to S3 fits the representation of coming to terms with your sexuality/identity from a very negative point of view. Feeling like it’s something that needs fixing or needs to be “cured” - to then finding the light and freedom in accepting yourself for you. His growth between seasons is brilliant. He understands the hate and insecurity the teens are feeling because he felt it himself. He does all he can to help them because he never felt he got that help when he needed it - and no one deserves to feel worse for being who they are. Obviously, the things he talks about are framed in the context of dealing with/accepting the meta-gene - yet there are certain moments where it seems he’s saying more than that…

All of which got me wondering - why did Ed originally runaway? It certainly wasn’t because of the meta-abilities he did not yet have. All he’s ever said on the subject was he thought he wanted to be with his father - the man it seems he barely had a relationship with. No, I think Ed has been running from himself for a long time and his dad just happened to be an actual direction for him to aim for. The way he speaks about his wanting to be “cured” and “praying to get rid of his powers” suggests an upbringing around religion and traditional ideas of there being a ‘normal/proper’ way to be — while anything that doesn’t fit that way is treated as other or something that needs to be changed or 'fixed'. Maybe he ran to avoid being found out and run the risk of being ostracised by those he loved. Or maybe he was found out and leaving wasn’t entirely his choice*. If this was the case, I can certainly imagine him not wanting to come out to his dad for fear of his reaction and completely losing all chance of that father-son relationship they’re both trying so hard to keep. It can seem easier to live in secret than risk the reality of loss. So while the meta-gene likely wasn’t the main thing he was angry about in S2, it was able to become a physical thing he could blame and focus his anger on - without having to think about where his issues truly lied… Though with a bit of time it also became the thing he was comfortable conveying his feelings through...

“I’ve learned to accept, even love my meta-abilities”

I love this line so much and it’s all because of the delivery by Freddy Rodrigues. There is the slightest hint of a pause before he says “meta-abilities”, which gives the impression he was about to say something else before then remembering himself and who he was talking to. Then there’s the small inflecion he put on “love”, which makes it sound like it’s the first time he’s heard himself say the words out loud. I don’t hear him talking about the gene - I hear him talking about finally accepting himself - all of himself - for the first time in maybe ever and finally feeling happy because of it. I hear growth... From being the angry 14-year-old skater who just wanted to run away and escape any way he could. To the 16-year-old councillor/Outsider jumping straight into the danger to protect and inspire those who need it. Both he and Bart are such strong characters with so much more to be seen - especially when it comes to the insecurities which lie behind their masks. They both compliment each other pretty perfectly - both powers-wise and personality-wise - meaning while they try to hide themself from others, I don't think it'll take long for them to realise they can't hide from each other.

Anywho, that’s all the speculatary nonsense I’ve got for today. This turned into such a patchwork of vaguely linkable thoughts I’ve had which barely relate to the one I started with - but that is usually how it goes. Take it as you will…

Also, completely unrelated to YJ, but Bi Tim Drake now exists in dc canon which is really cool - seeing all of the joy it’s sparked has really given me something to smile about this week… There is hope after all. 🌈

— LB ⚡️☀️

* OK so here’s a little random snapshot into the chaos of my mind— as I was writing the Ed stuff I had a scene pop into my head of Ed finally -for whatever reason- having to tell his dad that he didn’t leave his abuelo’s home - he got kicked out. His dads confused about this and asks Why? What did you do? And Ed’s like Nothing… I didn’t do anything wrong… he just… found out something. So Seniors like Found out what Eduardo? And Ed’s getting really nervous now because he doesn’t want to say it - That I, um… I’m… Senior step a fraction closer as he picks up on Ed’s anxiety but remains an appropriate distance - Son? Then after a tensening silence he finally says it - sounding the most vulnerable he has ever been - I’m gay… The silence is there again, heavy and unnerving, neither saying a word. Ed can’t move as he’s lock in his elders unreadable glare. Expecting the worse his head drops to take in the floor - anything that isn’t the disappointment ahead - he feels the urge to disappear burning up inside him - consuming him. Then just as he’s about to escape he’s suddenly grounded by a steadying hand rooting itself on his shoulder. Tentatively he lifts his gaze to witness his father, there, with nothing but love and support in his eyes - Mijo. The clamping in his chest dissipates as all the tension escapes at once, along with the breath he hadn’t realised he was holding. Ed embraces his dad and the elder embraces his son. Together. A family.

Anyway. That’s probably a load of rubbish but hey my minds full of it… but basically I really want to see a tender moment between Ed and his dad. For whatever reason. Something where Ed’s in a vulnerable state and in need of some emotional support from his father - and without hesitation his father steps up - because that’s what we haven’t seen from them yet. It would perfectly portray the strength of their relationship as father and son - despite their previous struggles - and prove that Senior is willing to support his son no matter the situation as the father - not just the scientist. Its the final step in their healing journey and I wanna see it so bad!!

[yostresswritinggirl]

Childe NSFW Headcanons

May not make sense 100% due to mind still clouded by sickness lmaooo

Count: 699 words

Sex is a drug to Childe that has the same ecstasy as that of a good fight, a less threatening and less deadly alternative. It makes his heart pump in excitement, his muscles strain the same way as reflex, stamina challenged to the max against an opponent.

And honestly, in his eyes, the bed too is a battlefield. There are a lot of things taken into consideration when in the bed with this man:

He likes to wrestle for dominance and his stamina is that of a lion in heat. While he lives in the sensation, he also revels in the pleasure of his partner. It's a two-way battle, and every moment in bed will not be dull when you deal with him.

Clothes are off his back everytime, no skips. Doesn't matter if you're not taking yours off, even if it's much appreciated if it wasn't on you, but he's keeping his back out on the open— yes, back.

He prides himself victorious whenever you dig your nails into his back, the sensation tingling him and the pain edging him with thrill.

With that in mind, Childe pays CLOSE attention to your fingernails before every session. If they're long and sharp, that's cool, spicy. If they're trimmed down and filed tho, hoho, it's gonna be a loooong night.

He will make it his mission, an added challenge, for you to scratch his back DEEP with those dull fingernails and he will pound you into oblivion until you manage that. If not— well oopsie, the sun is shining now.

You may despise the scars on his back but he loves the heck out of it. Able to pleasure you like that, he'll definitely go around the house shirtless just to flex for a bit over the good night you had.

Speaking of being shirtless, he keeps his gloves on for a short period of time during your woohoo. Uh, why? Because the graze of the material when he runs it over your supple skin gives you the slightest yet most delectable shiver he savours watching.

The way you writhe under his grasp just like that, intensified too with how dim the lights are and how unexpected his fleeting touches would be—

Then he'll toss it away because he wants to finally grasp your flesh fully under his touch. Good shit.

Aftercare for child is,,, dependent. This decision lies mostly on you, criterias such as: a) whether you're conscious after sex, and b) whether you're conscious that you're clean after sex.

If you're too lazy or tired for cleaning up, he's uhm he's actually staying in you. Knotting. You're sleeping with a piece of him in you, so too uh totally prevent your juices from spilling hehe.

If you wake up aroused because of your circumstance, he'll happily indulge you. But he's honestly satisfied as is, so you don't have to worry about working so early in the morning.

Frustrated sex/hate sex barely happens, or doesn't happen at all. Tartaglia excels in strength in more ways that exceed your own, a huge chance he can punt you to the ground easily. And this knowledge, although thrilling, scares the man a lot.

Frustration, stress and anger is dealt off by finding someone to fight. He will not risk hurting you beyond what is pleasurable in bed.

Because to him moments together with you should be done out of love and nothing more.

He wants you to sleep in the bed remembering good memories, to dream in a blanket of positive thoughts and no remains of such horrible fragments.

It's always either top, bottom or switch right. So I present to you: all of the above. Childe likes to be on top, and if you try to dominate, he'll gladly be bottom— power bottom. Sorry honey, it's a battlefield, man's not backing down.

And finally, hands. He likes to either have your hands joined together during sex or your hands ALWAYS on him. Your squeezes and grips can ground him and he uses it to look out for his strength a lot: he uses your grip and noises to measure whether he's going too strong or too slow and will adjust accordingly.

Scaramouche NSFW Headcanons

Didn't see this one coming, did you? owo

Count: 684 words

Scaramouche is into show and tell a lot, and even before the game itself, he's making things slow and sensual in the rare moments that he has all the time in the world tonight.

He'll slowly take off his pieces of clothing one by one while maintaining solid eye contact, making sure you watch. And after his, it is his obligation to the same to you, hand gliding over the buttons and undoing them with slow yet precise movements.

He acts like a predator seducing his prey before pouncing. Urging. Manipulating. Soon enough while your senses are overwhelmed with the tingles of his hands brushing against your skin ever so slightly, you'd already found yourself on your back on the bed, fully undressed.

No, Scaramouche does not wear his fuckin hat in bed, don't ruin the mood-

Sex is like therapy to him especially with you. He uses it to get away from the world's heavy burdens and cruel machinations by drowning himself in pleasure enough to pull him away. And with this he brings you the gentleness he only ever uses when he muses or ploys under the enemy's nose.

He will divulge himself in all the details, run his hand over your ecstatic flesh: how your blood flows through your body, the bumps appearing as he passes by it, how your pulse quickens during such moments. If you look at his eyes, he looks distracted and far away, but he'll notice you staring and you'd know he's still there.

As one of his moments of relaxation, just like Childe he doesn't get violent or abusive during it. But it's not entirely impossible either, for he has moments where the frustration comes with him and he just needs a better, more brash distraction. Hot, steamy woohoo comes around when his idiot workmates do him under like the usual fuck-ups they are, lol.

Scaramouche... finds the most pleasure in overstimulation, from both sides. Short darling does not like to choose sides but he is very easy to flip over and top especially when he's still coming down from a high—

So while you top him and pound him while he's still sensitive, he's a writhing, begging mess. He's sputtering because of overstimulation, and you can do this over and over again until you know he's satisfied. How do you know he's done?

Ah, well, he flips you over and topping you for one last time with such a violent pace and a dangerous glint in his eyes. You dare make him putty, he'll do it ten times worse to you.

Scara likes bite marks on the first phase, the foreplay, or the slow and sensual phase. He doesn't like going to your neck, biting while on the peak of the sex, because it's both distracting and hard to crane so damn low like that.

The way he bites is like this: he'll first softly nuzzle his lips to your neck (his go-to spot for chomping), plant a lingering kiss, give a tentative lick then bite down. He will suck on it depending on how long he wants that hickey to stay, but there will always be ONE that stays for days. Sorry, citizen, standard procedure.

Another thing, Scaramouche is awfully quiet during sex. He doesn't hold back his noises but he ends up paying attention to yours more, aaaand he barely talks, whether it be sweet nothings or bitey remarks.

When you ask him about this the first time, the Harbinger would be pleasantly surprised because he himself didn't notice. But he could only offer a shrug and brush away the talk with a blush, stating something along the lines of 'pillow talk shouldn't be done in broad daylight.'

And so you made a hypothesis: he could be silent because he usually can't shut up like what the others said, right? Whether he quiets down from exhaustion or from guilt, you'll never find out.

After sex, he rests by leaning his ear on your chest, burying his face between your breasts. The sound is a nice lullaby enough to send him to sleep peacefully.

We all have our own interpretation of NSFW headcanons and this is just a personal thought upon breaking down their character deeper in a more psychological way lololol. May or may not be experienced on lewd stuff kek-

[braindeadmaggot]

Yaay I get to ask you stuff!

2. Most hated character?

3. Favorite romantic ship with Shachi? And with Bonney?

16. If you could change one thing in One Piece (the story or the world), what would it be?

ask away sensei~ I am prepared to answer all.

BUT BEWARE ALL WHO ENTER!!

This will end up long winded and preachy just like my tags and fic comments.

YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!

2. Most hated character?

believe it or not it’s not Blackbeard lol. I’m actually kind glad he exists and while I wish we had seen more of Thatch (it’s crazy he literally has like TWO panels in the manga and he’s super duper popular throughout the fandom, it’s so great). I hate quite a few characters, mostly because they suck or they pissed me off, but my top two are Nami and Bartholomew Kuma.

Why Nami? She’s kinda.... meh to me. Don’t get me wrong, I like that there are some normies in the plot that aren’t just naturally superhuman like Zoro and Sanji (but then we learn it’s haki and biological experimentation). Usopp’s a normie (his ammo is not), Tashigi and Kuina seem pretty normal to me (just very skilled with swords). Bartolomeo is pretty normal (he just has a janky devil fruit). I’m not really sure what it is, I had already disliked her before I discovered them diehard Nami haters (are they even still around, I never followed any of that). She was cool at first but I think the timeskip ruined her for me. Hard to explain. Hatred for Nami 7/10.

Bartholomew Kuma........ Kuma Kuma Kuma. Where the fuck do I start with this? I’ve had blow ups with Cyriusli about this a few times whenever his ass popped back up in the story line or in rando memes. I didn’t mind him in Thriller Bark, thought he was a good add-in to the whole ‘fuck around and find out’ bits. I love the memes of Zoro figuring out that his sacrifice was pointless because Kuma wasn’t really going to kill his boss’ son. Those are hilarious! It was during the time skip when we learned about Kuma, about him being a Revolutionary, when Ivankov got mad in the flashback, when we saw him guarding the Sunny, when he was a slave to the Celestials. It actually took me a couple of years and some talks with Cyriusli until I realized that Kuma planned all of this. How I didn’t notice before I have no clue, but everything he did, he did just full intention. He made deals with Vegapunk to experiment on him (consent), he sent the Straw Hats to islands that were perfect for their growth (you think he knew Sanji hated okama or was he just thinking “oh this boy is a cook, Iva-chan has all these amazing recipes he made for us before, this young cook will benefit from this” and just sent Sanji’s homophobic ass off to Twirling Heart Island. I also think he knew full well about Zoro’s plans to fight Mihawk so that must have been a last attempt at being a troll before becoming a mindless drone). And his last wish before losing all control was to protect the Sunny. What the serious fuck Kuma? How are you benefiting from this?? This is where I get mad. Why didn’t you tell Ivankov and Inazuma (oh btw I ship KumaZuma)? Why the lies? Why the deceit? Who are you trying to protect? I asked all these questions and thought of something.

NEW THEORY: He sent Franky to one of Vegapunk’s abandoned labs... He sent Franky to learn ALL ABOUT Vegapunk’s experiments. Bastard is banking on Franky being able to turn him back. That’s what it is. At first maybe he didn’t see a way out, but then he saw Franky and the Sunny at Thriller Bark, and of course he follows the news and learned about the new crewmate, he knows what Franky’s capable of. He finally agreed to Vegapunk’s terms and gave up, hoping the Straw Hats might save him. Now that’s a huge gamble but we all know Franky is a man of honor and might volunteer to do it. My hatred for Kuma went from 10/10 to 8/10, but I still don’t like him.

3. Favorite romantic ship with Shachi, or Bonney?

ho ho ho, before I got into KilGuin I was shipping Penguin with Shachi, and Killer with Bonney. I think the whole KilBon came from some old fanart when we were first introduced to the Supernova and also the fact that his fave food is pasta, and her fave food is pizza. I just imagined them owning an Italian resto together and said that’s the ship, done. Not the case anymore because I see Bonney as more of a lesbian or bisexual, but cares more about food than sex so it is was it is with her. I shipped Penchi because I liked the idea of them being childhood friends and they share a room in the sub and while they might not be exclusive to one another, they do often do dirty stuff together as a mutual “I scratch your back you scratch mine” kinda thing but they’re too close and too stupid to admit any real romantic feelings to the other. But they’re fine, they go to brothels together and dabble in the occasion threesome. [These are very old ideas, not sure if I’ll continue this when I write my monster fic.]

16. If you could change one thing in One Piece (the story or the world), what would it be?

As mentioned earlier I would have liked to see more of Thatch and who he was as a person. It’s confirmed that he’s a chef but I think we all deserve to see his talents showcased. Also how he interacted with the crew. Lot’s of fics and art depict him being super childish and playing pranks with Ace, making fun of Marco (aka Whitebeard’s parrot lol), and dancing with Izou. I love how the fandom made him into a real person but I crave to see him in official work.

I’d also like to see passed villains come back to the main plot. We see Foxy come back twice in fillers and in some movies, Crocodile came back in Impel down, Buggy is always around the lovable idiot. But I want to know more about Morgan and Klahadore, where did they go? What about Don Krieg? Did Mihawk chop him up and dump his body? What about Gin? We see Gin so much in fanfic, even in new released fics but he’s not been back since in the manga. What will happen if Morgan and Helmeppo meet again? Jango became a marine and I bet Morgan became a pirate lol.

SPOILERS: I think Eneru should make an appearance again with the happenings in the latest chapters.

In the world? Not sure... I theorize gravity is lower on OP Earth than ours, just by a little bit. Just enough to make us jump higher and fall slower but not affect our health too much, as the atmosphere will thin out a bit and it will be more difficult to breathe. (I imagine someone from our world would die if they go to Skypiea). (I was really excited to see this visualized in the new film Bubble, it’s on Netflix if you want to watch it~) so if this isn’t the case then i would change it to this.

My SO theorizes that the Void Century is like the missing history here in the Philippines. When the Spaniards came, they stayed for 333 years and they destroyed a lot of indigenous landmarks, tribes and nearly erased our mythology. There’s a lot that has been lost but luckily the Spanish didn’t go everywhere (we got over 7000 islands). It’d be cool if this was the inspiration (also Gray Terminal’s pollution is based on Manila).

[thestarrynightslover]

So Many Times Before

Pairing: Jay Halstead x Reader

Word count: 3,190

Warnings: Discussion, yelling, some angst.

Summary: (y/n) and Jay used to be best friends who had always, secretly, wanted more. Now, after years of not seeing each other, what happened to all those feelings? 

Disclaimer: I don’t own any of the One Chicago shows, or its characters, also not associated with it in any way or know anyone involved with it.

A/N: So, this is my first actual fanfic and I’m quite unsure about it (especially since English isn’t my first language), but I really wanted/needed to give some use to my obsession with Jay Halstead, lol. Anyways, I hope it doesn’t suck too bad and, please, feel free to give me feedback, cause I’m also here to learn!!

(y/n) = (your name) (y/l/n) = (your last name) (y/n/n) = (your nickname)

| masterlist |

"So, honey, you are never gonna believe who I saw the other day at the district..." You remember your dad saying, in a conversation that made your heart skip a few beats, weeks ago.

"Oh yeah? Who?" You asked with a soft smile on your lips, not paying much attention at the moment.

"Jay Halstead." He said simply as if just waiting for you to freak out. God, your dad really knew how to make you drop your cool-girl act.

"Oh, that's nice... Wait. What??? Did you say Jay? What was he even doing there? Is he okay? Did he get into some sort of trouble? How can we help?" And there it was, you were totally losing it and your dad just stood there with that smug smirk of his, that says: I knew this was coming.

"Relax, (y/n/n), he’s okay. He was just there to get some files from a case my unit was handing over to them." That would've been a completely acceptable statement if Jay Halstead wasn't still in the army for all you knew.

"Sorry, handing a case over to them?"

"Yeah, sweetheart, apparently that scrawny kid — who's not so scrawny anymore — is, now, a detective working with CPD's Intelligence Unit."

"What? But when did he leave the army?" By then you were drifting off the conversation with your dad and he knew it, so he did you the favor of leaving you alone with your thoughts and memories. 

Now, with the very same (well, not the same, he really wasn't scrawny anymore) Jay Halstead standing right in front of you, that moment with your dad inevitably came back to mind.

"Wow, (y/n) (y/l/n)!" He said with a huge bright smile that made you wanna go back to your high school days, yep the smile was that awesome.

"Jay Halstead. Wows are definitely in order." You said between giggles. "Oh my Gosh, it's been forever! How are you doing?"

"I'm- I'm- I'm good, thank you. How are you?" He looked absolutely shocked as he scanned you upside-down.

"I'm good too. You look great, by the way."

"Thanks," he smiled again. Wasn't he ever gonna stop doing that? "you look, hum, you look great too!" He said that, while looking at you in a way that was, for sure, making your cheeks heat up. "So hum-" Your phone just had to start ringing at that moment, didn't it?

"I'm so sorry, but I gotta take this. Work." You said, waving your phone in front of his face.

"Oh, okay, no problems, go ahead!" Jesus, he was acting like a teenager. After all these years how was it even possible that you still had so much effect on him? He started thinking, as he watched you take a few steps away and confidently boss someone around over the phone, was that really you? His high school best friend? Because who could tell? You were generally so quiet and shy with everyone. You would never lead any groups, almost choked on your words every time you had a presentation... Remembering that made Jay think of a moment in particular, when he first knew he loved you as more than just a friend. 

You were 16 and he was 17, a year ahead of you in school too, as he was already a senior. But you guys never really minded that. How could you, anyway? Jay was your best friend in the world (okay, your only real friend after Will left for college).

The two of you were walking back home from school, as you always did, him dropping you off at your doorstep – even if that meant he had to go back a few blocks every day, all he cared about was making sure you got home safe.

That day was different, though. He stopped you at your house's fence and said he needed to tell you something important. God, your heart literally stopped, as you thought you knew exactly what he was gonna say. "Oh, jay-"

"No, please, (y/n/n). Just let me tell you, otherwise, I'll lose my courage." He stopped for a second, breathing hard and watching your expression attentively. "I, I, um, I need to tell you that… That I, um… That I enlisted the army." He said like he was ripping off a band-aid.

"What???" You were shocked, to say the least, "You did what, Jay?" You asked again, whilst trying to calm your nerves.

"Look, don't be mad at me, just let me explain, please." He pleaded with you. "I just need to get away from here and you know it, (y/n), you know why" You did know why, just, God, the army, seriously?

"Jay, you don't need to do that." You tried reasoning with him.

"Of course I need to, (y/n/n)!" He said and you could see him beginning to get upset. Or was it desperation? "I can't stand him any longer! I just can’t.” Geez, you didn’t want him to go. You definitely didn’t want him to go, but you could see the sadness in his eyes when he said that. Still, you tried a little more: 

“But what about your mom? Your brother? What about me?” You felt yourself blush after that last part, but continued: “Jay you’re really important to me… my best friend, my… my… my only friend! I can’t lose you.”

“And you think that that doesn’t kill me? Will and my mom will be just fine, they’ll miss me, sure, but they’ll be fine. You on the other hand? I don’t wanna leave you! Especially knowing that you’ll have to go through the rest of high school alone…” He looked genuinely apologetic and concerned “That’s why I told you before anyone else.”

“I don’t… I don’t understand.” You stated simply.

“Tell me you don’t want me to go, and I won’t.”

“What? You’d… You’d really do that for me?” 

“Of course, (y/n/n)! You mean the world to me and you’ve gotten me through so much already…” He sounded sincere, but you also knew what led him to make such a drastic move and you couldn’t just let him throw away what was probably his best shot at getting out of Chicago for you. You wouldn’t.

“Jay… I could never ask you something like that. You’re right. I know why you’re making this choice.” You said and tried to smile a little so that he’d stop worrying about you. Your life was better and easier, in many ways, because of him, so you couldn’t or wouldn’t make his any harder than it already was.

“Are you, are you sure? Because I came here ready to argue with you about this. To try hard to make you understand my decision, but now that I’m actually here, talking to you about it…” He looked so confused and you only wish you could pull him close to you and say that everything was gonna be okay as long as you two were together. Just like he did with you on the hard days, but you couldn’t. He deserved better from you.

“I’m sure! Look, I know what I said before, but… But I promise you I’ll survive this without you! It’s gonna be harder and a lot more boring… But I’ll be okay, you don’t need to worry.” At that moment you looked down to your feet, unsure if you really had it in you to let him go like that. But of course you did because you loved him. So you went on, “You said this is how you get outta Chicago, so you should do it. You’re my best friend and I love you. And I really just want you to do what’s best for you. What’ll make you happy.” You said with a small smile, even though the tears were already in your eyes. 

And that was when he knew he loved you, for the first time, as more than just a friend. The way you supported him – like no one else had ever done –, even though it pained you… That really stuck with him. In Jay Halstead’s opinion, time and distance and other people all sucked. Because they had pushed you away from him. Well, he was to blame for that too, but now you were standing right there. At his District. That’s gotta count for something.

As you came back, he noticed you looked upset. “Everything okay?”

“What? Ah, yeah, sure. Just work stuff. Anyways it is a huge surprise to see you, Jay.” That made his heart drop, you were surprised to see him?

“Oh, yeah? I thought the reason you were here was that your dad told you this is where I work. I mean, because we ran into each other the other day…” Now it made sense. Of course your dad would wanna play matchmaker between you Jay! Even more, now that he was a cop.

“Oh, God, he did mention something about you the other day. But you’re telling me that he isn’t here?” At that, Jay just looked at you like you were crazy.

“Today? I haven’t seen him… He works at the 26, no?”

“Yeah, I know he does. It’s just... He told me to meet him here for lunch today. Something about a joint op. Anyways now I know why he said that.” 

“What? He lied to you, then?” Jay asked, laughing his ass off at your cost. Unbelievable, you being played by your cupid father and Jay Halstead laughing at you. He stopped when he realized just how angry you were getting. But the stupid smile was still there.

“Forget it, this was a waste of time.”

“No! Wait, why don’t I take you to lunch instead?” He shot you such a charming smile that you could have said yes to marrying him at that moment. “C’mon, at least you don’t end up with an empty stomach.”

“I gue-” You almost said yes, but, thank God, your brain went back to working properly and you remembered how you promised to never let yourself fall for Jay’s “ways” another time. “Actually, I already spent most of my free hour here chatting with you, so now the only way I won’t be late is if I just grab something on the way back to the office.” You saw him opening his mouth and said: “And I can do that by myself.” You added so that he wouldn’t have a chance at convincing you.

How can Jay Halstead make you feel like this after all this time? It's absolutely ridiculous because the man hurt you the way he did, he left you behind (for a good reason, but still), and you just spent the rest of the day torturing yourself for being too rude with him?

You have no self-love. That has to be it, because, now that you left work, you're calling your dad just to embarrass yourself and make him feel like the achieved cupid. Oh, right. And to beg him for Jay's address. This was the wrong move in so many ways, but you just had to go there.

Or at least that’s what you’re telling yourself as you reach his building entrance. There it was: 3B - J. Halstead. You pressed the button hoping he would be home. He was; he answered. Okay, why did you do this again?

“Hello?” You hear him calling out.

“He- hey! Hum, hi it’s (y/n)...” He doesn’t even let you finish your rambling.

“(y/n/n)! I mean, hum, (y/n). Hey, let me buzz you up!” With that, the door opens and you get inside, you’re so unsure about this that the next thing you know you’re standing at his door about to knock, but being met with a grinny Jay instead. “Hey, I was pretty surprised when I heard your voice…” He states while running a hand through his perfect hair. “I honestly thought that I had somehow managed to order food and forget about it!” Gosh, he really wasn’t gonna stop smiling like that, was he? “Hey, you okay? What happened?”

“Hum, no, no, no! Everything is fine, really! Thank you for asking though, it’s very sweet of yours.” After hearing that, his concerned expression started softening until he started smiling again, damn Jay! “Actually, I’m here precisely because, hum, after I left the District, I ended up doing some thinking and got to the conclusion that I was a bit rude with you… Maybe even more than just a bit and I’m sorry. It’s no excuse, but I guess I just got upset because of how my dad played me and took it out on you! Anyway, it wasn’t right and I’m sorry.” Instead of just saying it was okay, or agreeing with you, he just gave you a funny look and silence. “So, huh, what do you think about that? Say something, please?” Still nothing, unbelievable. “Seriously? You’re giving me the silent treatment? What are we, ten?” Hearing that, he bursted into laughter, leaving you very confused, to say the least. Once he caught his breath, he finally started talking:

“Jesus, (y/n)! Of course, I’m not giving you a silent treatment!” He said while shaking his head and still laughing. “You say you were rude, but I was trying to remember exactly when, during our less than five minutes talk, that happened. I kinda asked you out and you declined, I’m not gonna think you’re a bad person because of that! Especially after all of our history…” That kinda surprised you, but, then again, Jay was never the kind of guy to get upset over some mild rudeness.

“Ah…” Was all you managed to say before he spoke again:

“But, since you’re already here, let me pry on your guilt a little and ask you to come inside for a beer, maybe?” You nodded your head giggling and followed him inside. “So, um, your dad mentioned you were moving back here…” He half asked, handing you a bottle.

“Thanks. Ah, yeah, the company I work for decided it was time for a transfer.” You answered with a shrug of shoulders.

“Oh I see, you’re an engineer, right?” The conversation was beginning to get awkward, and both of you could feel it.

“Yeah,” you said while calculating how fast you could make it to the door after standing up from the couch, “chemical engineer, listen, it’s getting late, and I have an early morning tomorrow, so-” 

“Wait, please don’t leave just yet.” He breathed out, softly grabbing you by the arm. “Ever since our fight that day I’ve been hoping for a chance to make things right between us, (y/n/n)...” At that, you just close your eyes and rub your fingers against your temples. “I never meant to hurt you, I swear!” Really? That was what he was going with?

“You never meant to hurt me? I crossed the Atlantic just to be by your side, leaving a lot of important stuff behind, and you didn’t wait a single moment to trade me for the first cover girl you could find, but you didn’t mean to hurt me?” You always thought you’d start crying if you had to confront him like that, but instead, you were just angry.

“(y/n/n), I’m so sorry! It’s just that I couldn’t be with you at that moment... I-”

“You couldn’t be with me? Right, because I wasn’t half of what they were… It’s not like you’re telling me anything new, really.” You tried to make it sound like nothing but, damn, that hurt deep.

“What? No, of course, not! You got it all wrong, baby!” Baby. He used the pet name you two sometimes used with each other to mock all those popular couples in school… “I couldn’t be with you because I was so messed up! I’m not proud to say it, but none of those girls ever meant anything to me! They were just a distraction from everything that was happening, from everything that had happened… You, on the other hand… (y/n/n), you were there at my mom’s funeral when I wasn’t! Don’t think I forgot about it!” His eyes softened a little. “You were my best friend in the world!”

“Oh my God! You still don’t get it? I didn’t want to be just your best friend, Jay! I spent most of my high school days just wondering when you were gonna trade me, your mere friend, for one of those pretty girls, who would happily be more than that to you… But you never did… Until that time! I was expecting to find you messed up! Because I knew that I wasn’t gonna give up until you got better! But, that?” Now there was just no stopping the tears that were rolling down your cheeks. He was on the verge of crying as well, so the two of you just stayed there in silence until he decided to speak again:

“I’m a complete idiot. That’s all I can say for myself. I’m so sorry I never realized it, (y/n)!” He seemed sincerely sorry, but you weren’t sure you could forgive him just yet. “You know,” he started, while laughing bitterly, “I made a real fool of myself with you, cause I used to dream about having a shot with you, romantically, I mean.” After hearing that, your jaw literally dropped, while Jay just kept laughing lightly. “Will even used to bug me about it, he’d say that you were just as fallen for me as I was for you,” he said, chuckling, and shaking his head, “and I never believed him, I’d actually beg him to stop saying those things whenever you were around because I thought it could make you uncomfortable…” You didn’t even know how to respond to that.

“Jay, I…” You began, but he interrupted you:

“You, um, you don’t need to say anything, if you don’t want to. Now I see that I hurt you a lot more than I thought I did, and I am so sorry! I wish I could take it all back, but I can’t, so if you ever feel like you can give me another chance, even if just at our friendship, I’ll be so thankful! The happiest man! But if not, well, I’ll just stay out of your life,” you could see how hurt he was, “because I don’t ever wanna make you cry again.” He said that but it looked like he was the one about to break into tears, so you did the one thing you could think about doing; you threw your arms around his neck and kissed him. Just like you had thought about doing so many times before. It took him a while to correspond since he was sort of stunned, but when he did… Oh boy, it was everything that books always told you about, there were butterflies and fireworks, and you knew that your transfer back home couldn’t have come at a better time.

[saby-chan]

Why the ATLA comics fail when it comes to Zuko and his family

To whom ever took their time to actually stop and read this post, thank you in advance for not skipping my post and willing to stay and read my humble opinion! I hope I won’t disappoint you!

As a relatively newcomer to the ATLA fanbase since 2020, I’ve come across a lot of interesting debates, comments and rants about the show, characters and fandom in general, but nothing has captivated me as much as the dumpster-on-fire that are the ATLA comics, more specifically: The Promise and The Search. 

On one hand we have the hardcore fans who want them to be animated or serialized into the Netflix live action, praising the comics for the new views and subject matters they’ve brought into the show’s lore, while on the other hand we have the furious Azula fandom who is really angry for the fact that best girl didn’t get the redemption arc she rightfully deserved so much after the painful event that was the Last Agni Kai and the even more angry fans of the Urzai ship (yeah, the people who actually ship Zuko’s parents unironically) who hated the retconning of the show’s cannon since the comics basically took a huge fat dump on what was previously established as official cannon, when the Search entered the scene, but between these two sides, who has the more valid point? In the end, are the comics good cannon or bad written fanfiction?

Well... Here are my two cents on this matter since I myself happen to be an Azula and Zuko fan and had huge expectations from these comics (since I wanted more from my fave hot-headed fiery siblings duo) but ended up disappointed: the comics are indeed a huge mess and actually bad written fanfiction when it comes to Zuko and his family! Don’t click off yet, because I actually documented the reasons why exactly the comics fail in this area:

1. The author of these comics is not part of the BryKe duo

Yes, I would like to start with the fact that if you actually take a second to look up who in the heck took the time to write these two books, you won’t find Bryan, nor Mike, but a fellow man named Gene Yang. This is important because while the wiki of both The Promise and The Search state BryKe as the creators, that doesn’t mean that they were the actual minds behind these comics, but rather because ATLA is their “baby” and these comics involve their characters, over which they have copyright. Mr. Yang here is the actual brain behind the plot, as the main writer, which explains why we find huuuuge inconsistencies between the show lore and the comics, especially Zuko wise.

My main issue with Mr. Yang isn’t that he isn’t BryKe specifically, but because he did an unforgivable mistake in his writing process: He projected himself into Zuko’s character, based on the relationship Zuko had with his father. This is a documented fact from an interview in which he explains that he sees himself and his dad’s relationship into Zuko and Ozai and used that when writing their interactions and built Zuko’s character in the comics. And this is wrong because when you have an already very developed and complex character such as Zuko, you can’t just come in and be like “Oh, I was an angsty teen just like him in my teenage years, fighting with my dad and whatnot, so he must have the same thought process as me!”. NO! This is bad fanfiction writer behavior! Zuko has his own personality and philosophy, which he developed over the course of 3 seasons and is not defined by only 1 unfortunate aspect of his past, so you can’t just base his whole mindset and actions off of your own personal experience just because you had the same daddy issues he had!

2. The whole “Promise that you will kill me if I turn out like my dad!” nonsense in The Promise

Reason number 2 why these comics fail and go under the category of “bad fanfiction” is because they fail to convey the core essence of the source material. The whole point of Zuko’s redemption was that he realized the wrongdoings of his ancestors and his own mistakes. He outgrew his desire of gaining his father’s acknowledgement in favor of choosing his own destiny. Having him worry that he’ll turn into his father is utter nonsense and feels like poor angsty drama material for the sake of angst. At this point in time, Zuko has overcame that obstacle in his life a long time ago and should be at the level where he himself is the “Uncle Iroh” for other people and in no way someone concerned of becoming their own worst enemy!

Not only that, but the whole point of Aang’s journey and the story of the show as a whole was to teach us, the viewers, the importance of forgiveness, empathy and love in life. Aang didn’t spare Ozai, aka “the ultimate evil” just to flex in front of his pals or because he is a “ 12 y/o vegan pacifist monk kid”, but because he knew that killing someone, no matter of what they did or wanted to do, wouldn’t restore balance into the Universe, on the contrary, him killing the villain would have meant perpetuating the “endless cycle of hate” that plagued the world. So having Aang promise to kill his best friend in case “they turned into an evil maniac like their dad” contradicts Aang’s whole character and it’s a nonsense that throws into the trash what we’ve learnt throughout the entire TV series.

3. Azula deserved (and was supposed) to have a redemption ark

This might still be pure speculation, but I count it as a documented reason because I’ve heard quite a few people saying that there should’ve been a book 4 in the show, aka “Book 4: Air”, and no, it wasn’t The Search, but actually Zuko and Azula’s journey as Zuko helps his younger sister heal her broken mind by being her very own “Uncle Iroh”. Sure, they prolly were going to end up looking for Ursa, but the journey should’ve ended with them actually being happy and a family again and not the bs we got in The Search where a still very unstable Azula runs away and becomes the “Next Joker”! The only problem is that M. Night had to pop up and curse the world with his movie, which forced BryKe to delay the project (and eventually abandoned it in favor of Korra).

All in all, either if BryKe had this preplanned or not, it made sense for Azula to get a redemption ark, she deserved it because she was just a broken 14 y/o child! If Katara’s mom’s murderer deserved to be forgiven, so did this poor child who had no fault for what happened to her since she had a dysfunctional family! What Gene Yang did in his poorly written fanfiction was to just antagonize a broken child, turning her into a monster for the sake of friggin angst!

4. The Search is the worst of the two, being flat af character wise

And finally, getting to the point that I personally find the most annoying about these comics: The Search. This one... This one is a mess on a hella lot many levels, and just to list a few: characters are flat as fudge, being either black as vanta black (like Ozai and Azula) or pure white like Gene’s Gary Stue OC, Mr Ikem (or how I like to call him, IKEA man) and his ‘victim’ rendition of Ursa, Azula gets to suffer more for no reason (see reason number 3 to why I find this as a no no), Ursa’s whole character sucks ass (man, I could write a whole thesis on why Yang’s version of her is terrible and doesn’t match the strong woman we got in the show) and Zuko does morally wrong stuff (my man literally used his unstable sister to bribe their dad into spitting info about Ursa... Show Zuko would never do that!;-;)

Oh boy, as a person who’s seen a ton of anime and other media and read many books, I can’t begin on how much I despise this type of writing: flat characters are the worst!

 ATLA characters in the show are nothing close to being flat! What I mean by that is that none of them fall perfectly into pure white (aka goodest of good characters with no imperfections) or vanta black (aka lowest and darkest twisted monsters out there), each of them are various shades of grey (like Aang who is a very light grey because despite being a very kind and nice character, he still isn’t a “perfect hero” since he ran away from his duties, practiced tax fraud with Toph, had insecurities and even threatened to kill people on ocassions like with the sand benders who took Appa) and this is a good choice because that prevents them from becoming what’s globally known as Mary Sues and Gary Stues (aka those either “perfect” characters with no flaws and/or unlimited power, or the twisted monsters full of flaws).

And the other reason why many other people hate The Search: it literally negates previously established cannon. And here comes my short essay on why this comic fails Zuko’s family (since we’ve already talked enough about Zuko himself).

In cannon and even interviews with BryKe, it was clearly stated that Zuko’s family was “once happy”. Where is this “once happy” family in The Search? All I see is pain, deception, lies and betrayal, nothing close to anything that resembles happiness. Okay, some of you might come in and say that “It’s because it was never the case! It was only lies and Zuko trying to convince himself that he didn’t live in hell forever!” and here is WHERE YOU WERE ALL WRONG! And why? Because, my dear fella, where were depicted the flashbacks of Zuko’s “happy family” in The Beach? Ember Island. And what do we know and had been even quoted in the show?  "Like waves washing away the footprints on the sand, Ember Island gives everyone a clean slate. Ember Island reveals the true you." (direct quote from the show). Exactly, no matter who you are or how hard you try, you can’t hide your true self when you are on the Ember Island, best example being Azula, who’s impenetrable though shell cracked and revealed the true vulnerable child that was underneath. If Azula couldn’t resist the “spell of the island”, no one can. So this means that Zuko’s family was indeed happy once and yes, Ozai wasn’t always the douchebag we got to know in Season 3 (I have a whole nother essay on my theories regarding what could be his real past story and why he’s actually the “Zuko” of his generation, based on stuff I gathered from old wiki entries and character analyses I made, but that’s for another time, lemme know if ya’ll are interested).

And what I guess is the biggest proof why The Search did this family’s past trash is comics Ursa herself. My dude, if this woman were indeed the victim of years of endless abuse and never loved her husband, I guarantee you that she would’ve been closer to what we saw in Todoroki’s mom from BNHA and Zuko would’ve gotten that scar or even worse long before the Agni Kai, not from his “daddy dearest”, but from “mommy dearest” herself, because no sane woman would be soo affectionate and attached to a child that’s the perfect copy of their abuser, sepecially appearance wise (again see Todoroki’s mom’s case from BNHA because the stories are really similar) and in no way would’ve she been willing to sacrifice her life for said child’s sake. With this ocassion, I remind ya’ll folks that according to the ancient ATLA cannon wikis on Nick’s site, Ozai was designed with Zuko’s appearance in mind, being meant to be like a “grown up scarless version” of Zuko. So yeah, remember this with a grain of salt that whenever you simp over grown up Zuko, you involuntary simp for Ozai too.

So yeah, I guess this kinda concludes my “not so short” rant about why the comics fail and are bad fanfiction. Lemme hear your thoughts in the comments and if you agree, feel free to leave a like and even reblog.

Bye bye and remember that Momo is the true strongest character of the show!

 Saby out.

[grimmywrites]

So, about Infinite Darkness...

I’m gonna try to be as succinct as I can (I failed) about all the problems I had with it, but my list is pretty long... Yes, this has spoilers. Let me state upfront: if you’re not a hardcore RE fan, you can skip the show. Below I’ll tell you why.

Story: What a mess. Honestly, they turned me off right at the beginning with all the military stuff. It’s the same reason people didn’t like Chris’ campaign in 6; didn’t they learn anything from that? So, the story wasn’t the best thing I’ve ever seen. Honestly, it had more plot holes than anything and so many points where I went: “I don’t care about this.” Again, it was a jumbled mess. Capcom, hire me and I’ll do better, I swear. Let’s just sum it up by saying it’s a rehash of things we’ve seen SEVERAL times in the series before. If you’re gonna do it AGAIN let’s make the story unique and interesting. Oh, there are shady people in the military that want to use bioweapons in war? Okay, we’ve known that since the first game. We’ve seen it time and time again. Look to re8′s ending for example: the BSAA are now starting to use engineered soldiers - THAT was a reveal that was far more interesting. The way it was addressed and overcome in this show was just... so lackluster. Ultimately, it just felt like this entire thing didn’t need to happen. It changed nothing, it impacted nothing, and I’m aware that it really couldn’t since it was after re4 and before re5. There was just no lasting point and all the ‘themes’ (if you can call them that) made absolutely no sense, but I guess I’ll get into that with the characters? Pacing: Absolutely god awful. One minute we’re in the White House fighting zombies then I blink and it’s over and I’m like: Oh, we’re done? Another we’re in a sub and then I blink. Oh, that’s over, too. Also, the creators must’ve taken a page from the last couple of seasons of Game of Thrones (which is an abysmal idea, don’t fucking do that) because with a few cuts here and there we went from Guam to China back to DC. Guess everybody learned how to teleport so they got exactly where we needed them to for the “climax”. Let’s talk about that climax: There was none. Let’s look at Degeneration and Damnation (no I won’t talk about Vendetta). Both had their weaknesses but Leon and the climaxes were BADASS. Leon doing parkour in Degeneration? Leon going against Lickers and the huge Tyrants in Damnation? Those were amazing scenes. He did a few cool things here and there but nothing that got more of a laugh out of me. My man is coming off re4 where he rampaged through a village, a castle, and an island of mutated creatures to save one girl. C’mon now. Characters: By now (if anybody is even reading this rant), you’ve noticed that I’ve talked a lot about Leon. But what about Claire? Yeah, they lied to us about them working together. She got sidelined again. A lot of people are upset about this -- and yeah, it sucks because I do love Claire. Leon has just happened to be my favorite since 1998 so I wasn’t as heartbroken. That doesn’t mean I’m not disappointed, I’m just not very surprised. Leon - My main problem with Leon is Nick, his voice actor. I’m so sorry for all those who like him, but he just isn’t good enough for me. Paul Mercier (re4, Degeneration, Darkside Chronicles) and Matt Mercer (Damnation, Re6, Vendetta) would have been more appropriate. Nick tries his best, but he’s just too soft sounding to be post-re4 Leon. This is a man who is quipping one-liners left and right a couple of years ago. Now he’s barely smiling and doesn’t feel confident at all, and I think a lot of that is because of his portrayal. There are times where the lines hit, but more often than not they fall flat. I never felt that way with Paul who is my favorite Leon or Matt who gave emotional performances every time. Also, his decision at the end? I can understand it, but explain to Claire! Claire - I like Stephanie as Claire, I have no problems with her. She makes her sound tough and ready to do what she thinks is right. Unfortunately, the story completely sidelines her and makes her role obsolete. Everything she uncovers (because that’s her role apparently, just there to Nancy Drew) is already told to us through flashbacks and other characters. Why even have her? Was it just to show us WHY her and Leon don’t talk often? A waste. Shen Mei - I don’t care. I felt nothing for her. They tried really hard, but they just failed to flesh these new characters out and when her time was up I once again went: Oh? That’s it, then. ‘Kay. I think I laughed a bit, sorry girl. Her whole plotline was to get that chip in Leon’s hand, nothing more. Jason -  I don’t care. A character I thought I felt sorry for with his ptsd but nope. Once his story unfolded - messily, I might add (I hate the REPEATED flashback shit. Tell me once and stop teasing me.) I just went... okay, what the hell is your plan? To spread fear? ‘Kay. It was dumb and made no sense. What, he wants everyone to feel terror so they know? It needed to be clarified. It’s like they couldn’t figure out more synonyms for fear and terror. So, what? It helps keep Leon from going public with the chip and that information? Because he knows it’ll just cause mass hysteria? And then you’ve got Claire’s side - she’s not an agent and she believes the people have a right to know. They’re both right, but there’s no goddamn communication between ANYONE in this show. I just felt exhausted by it, nothing else. Not to mention it’s useless angst because of the plot of Degeneration. Wilson - Our bad guy. Let’s just sum up really quickly in case people were confused by the plot: He was putting infected soldiers into war zones so that even after they died they’d kill anybody involved, then he’d bomb the area and clean up the evidence. These soldiers didn’t show any symptoms because they had inhibitors that kept the virus at bay until they died, so they had to take regular shots to stay human. He’s the one who gets the zombies into the white house so that he could blame it on China and get the US into a war with them. That way he could send in his soldiers and infect the populace. From there, he’s the only one with the cure so he could rake in LOTS of money selling it to the world. AKA: he wants to use the US military to infect everyone so he can make a profit. He gets infected by Jason and gets away... then meets up with someone who gives him an inhibitor. This someone is working for Tricell, the big bads of re5 who work under Wesker. So it leads right into the fifth game. That’s all he is, a tie in and yet another example of someone in power trying to profit off the viruses of the RE world. Honestly, nobody else is worth mentioning. Animation: They’re getting better at it. Leon and Claire looked especially pretty, but there’s still a stiffness here and an issue with everyone’s mouths while they talk. I want to praise how different SOME of the characters look - the president and his aides all look appropriately aged and grizzled and distinct. Same with Jason. Other characters (side characters mainly) kinda look generic. Shen Mei for example isn’t very distinct. I mean, her grandpa and brother (both one scene wonders) were more realistic looking than she was. Even Claire - they gave her a bigger nose and made her look more in line with her Revelations 2 model (thank god I love that model). Movement was pretty fluid, I wish we’d seen more fighting and cool action -- though not to the extent of Vendetta. Maybe that’s what they were trying to avoid, but it didn’t make it any fun to watch. Enemies: This is the last thing I’ll comment on. The zombies were fine - they always are. I heard a ton of reused sounds from remake2, as well, but I thought of it as an Easter Egg more than anything. They looked good, their gore was good, all set there. Problem was, they were basically the only bad guys. That’s a huge fucking disappointment. I know people recognize this series as ‘the one with the zombies’ but that’s not true. Every game (save 7) had MULTIPLE enemy types all created through bio engineering. In this show we see three types. THREE. Zombies. Zombie rats - a one-scene wonder that Leon dispatches fast and easy. I’ll admit, they looked cool but there was nothing else to them. “They’re a bioweapon” and then Leon fries them all with some electricity and we’re done. Jason’s mutated form. Okay, I have to admit, I really loved his design. He was cool, I liked that he could talk and emote. But, other than that? He didn’t DO anything cool. He mutated once and hopped around a lot. That’s it. I mean, a bioweapon that keeps his mental capacities? C’MON! We could’ve done so much more with him. Again, this goes back to why the climax was so bad -- he and Leon didn’t fight. One jumped, the other ran around to catch up and fired a few bullets and a rocket at him. Then he used an acid bath to finish the job. (Also, explain to me WHY he mutated into a tyrant-like creature while everyone else with that specific virus was another form of zombie? We see Jun (Shen’s brother) mutating almost crystal-like at one point but... what? You leave them off for a while and they turn into crystal zombies? Make it make sense.) I’m sure there’s more to say, but honestly, unless you’re a hardcore RE fan like me, I’d say you can skip it. It wasn’t a fun ride, there weren’t any stakes, it wasn’t emotional... it just... was. I will end on one good note that made me smile, though: I loved seeing the Ashley Easter Egg.

[alphabravocharliedelta]

Therefore I Am | Russell Adler x Bell!Reader I

Series: Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War

Therefore I Am | Russell Adler x Bell!Reader

Chapter I

Word Count: 4700+

[Prologue] [Chapter II]

Summary: [Y/N] “Bell” [L/N] was content with dying. Shot by the person whom they admired and left to die, the world was now left in the hands of the team they once thought as family. However, it seems that fate had other plans in mind...

Content Warning: mature content, gore, vulgar language, blood, injuries

Notes: The first couple chapters are a bit boring, so please bear with me! I’ve been doing a lot of rewriting to try keep the story a bit more accurate to timelines as well as trying to figure out how to write better (if anything sounds redundant or if there’s any formatting issues, I apologize in advance OTL). Italics is when they’re speaking Russian, and the ‘0000′ signifies a short time skip.

[Y/N] "Bell" [L/N]

March, 1981

???

White was the first thing that blinded you as you opened your eyes. 

You flinched almost immediately, bringing your hand up to shield yourself. Taking a brief moment, you tried again, opening them more slowly to let yourself adjust. 

For a moment, you thought you were in Heaven.

As soon as your eyes adjusted, the first thing you noticed was that you were in a white room, bandages wrapped around you tightly as red began to seep through them. Your throat began to constrict almost immediately at the sight of the sight of white, brief flashes of the lab coming back to you. A wave of nausea came over you as you resisted the urge to vomit.

“We’ve known each other for years.”

The voices echoed at the back of your mind, refusing to disappear. You couldn't cover your ears, it was a part of your character now: Bell. It was sometimes hard to distinguish from reality, and Russian was beginning to be thrown into the mix.

No one else was in the room currently, and your hands weren’t bound to the sides of the bed. At the same time, you noticed that your hands were shaking. Your gloves were gone, and you could see the hardened calluses you’ve obtained from years of training. 

Pushing yourself off the bed, you almost toppled over when your feet touched the ground. Sucking in whatever air you could, you propped your hand on the wall to balance yourself. It felt warm compared to the arctic water you drowned in. 

Collecting your thoughts, you wondered why you continuously live through the most unlikely circumstances. Shot by Arash, tortured and brainwashed through the MKUltra, implanted memories, and then being shot once again. Bullets seem to be the bane of your existence, but you still pulled through. But why? At this point, you had trouble as to what to feel. 

You looked up towards the wall, only to realize that it was a window. The image of the lab flashed in front of your eyes again, this time with TVs on carts and a chair, proceeding with some images of Viet Cong soldiers before they faded away. It felt too real, like you were living in the moment. That was, until you were told they were implanted onto you.

All thanks to Russell Adler.

What was your purpose? Which memories were true? 

If there was one truth at all, it's that everyone thinks you're dead.

"Fuck!"

Before you knew it, you punched the glass. Cracks spread out like a web upon the blow, and your hands began to bleed. 

Did the rest of the team agree to this? For you to be eliminated and wiped off records, only left to linger in their memories of the missions you went through together? Even if those moments were brief, it felt like you guys were a family. At least, that was how you felt. 

So when you weren't able to save Park, you felt horrible. You watched her reach out to you, only to be shot by enemy soldiers as the helicopter carried you and Lazar away. She was right there. i If only you were a bit faster, you could have saved her. But you didn't.

As a result, guilt plagued you the entire trip back, too exhausted and injured to even move. Adler had to drag you to the safe house when you fell. That was when they put you on the gurney, strapped you down, then...

Now you had no one. They all betrayed you. 

The more you thought about it, red seemed to be the thing that accompanied you the most. From the Soviet flag to the red door, to the blood you continuously bled. It even started to stain the floors below you, and you could feel yourself becoming light headed from the constant loss of blood.

Wait, blood?

That was yours. 

You flexed the fingers of your bleeding hand; the pain was definitely there for sure, and little pieces of glass stuck to your skin. Something tribbled from the corner of your mouth– It was blood too. Using the back of your hand you wiped it away, only to smear warm red on your face instead.

Breathing labored, you surveyed the room you were put in. You should have assessed the situation first. 

“The lab? Why is Bell in the lab?”

You were in a white room. It was square, and the window you had just attacked was one heavily reinforced. There were subtle yellow stains everywhere, and the bed you lied in was just a surgical table with a few cushions and sheets thrown on it. There was an outline of a door right in the middle of the wall opposite to you, something you haven't noticed until now. It wasn't red, to say the least.

Mustering up any remaining strength, you trodded your way to the door. You let your hand sit on the handle momentarily, feeling the rusty metal, before turning it and pushing it open.

Seeing what the door revealed to you, you didn't even know it was possible to feel worse that you already were.

The hallway was greyish, dimly lit by the dying lightbulb that was barely hanging on. Papers and rubble were scattered about, a few holes in the wall revealing the wires and pipes behind them. There were some bloodstains on the floor, though blackened with time. An awful smell filled the air.

The bunker.

You snapped your head back almost immediately to look at the door you came out of, and you let out a small sigh of relief.

It wasn't red, but rather a depressing shade of silver, covered in soot and dirt. 

No, this wasn't the bunker. But it sure as hell reminded you of it, almost uncanny. 

Taking a moment to let the scene sink in, the hallway was different compared to the bunker Perseus would hold meetings at. In addition, the team evacuated Solovetsky Islands right after finishing the mission, so you shouldn't be that close to the mission site. But if that's the case, where the hell were you?

It was then you noticed the sound of footsteps coming closer. There were multiple of them, and they were speaking to each other in a language you couldn't make out yet.

The feeling of dread and alertness filled your body as your eyes began to dart around for some kind of weapon. A knife or pistol, preferably. Strangely enough, despite the smell of death having a hold on the stagnant air, there were no bodies of soldiers around. 

Before you could take another step, your knees buckled and you collapsed. It had taken all your willpower to keep standing and walk, but your body couldn't stand it. You planted your palms firmly into the ground and coughed violently. Specks of blood flew onto the floor. 

You could see a collection of boots at the end of the hallway. They stopped, most likely seeing you on the floor, before they rushed over. It turns out they were speaking Russian.

"Shit, what the hell happened?"

"Right when I patched you up, you do this. You're in no condition to move."

You could only blink in return. Your eyelids were beginning to feel heavy as your chest felt more warm. You didn't struggle as hands wrapped around you as they hauled you over back into the white room you exited earlier.

"Keep them awake! I'll go get more supplies."

One left in a hurry, leaving three with you. You wanted to sleep, but one kept slapping your cheek to keep you awake. "Don't sleep."

You felt something sharp sting your hand, and you glanced over to see one of the men picking out the glass from your knuckles with some old tweezers. The guy who ran out returned shortly afterwards with a roll of bandages, as well as a bucket of other stuff.

"Where am I?" you struggled to ask in a hushed tone. Your chest heaved painfully as you tried to breathe normally.

Everyone in the room seemed to pause as they realized that you spoke the mother tongue. They undid the bandages around your torso, revealing scars you have obtained from battle, all rounded in shape thanks to you being a bullet magnet. Privacy seemed like the last thing on your mind, and if anything happened, you weren't sure what you could do.

"An old military base. Unfortunately, the Americans came in and wiped the place out. Except for us," the one doing your bandages replied. You could hear the disgust in his voice as he talked about it. He wringed out a cloth of extra water, before wiping away blood carefully. The way he went about it clearly showed he had experience doing this kind of dirty work, perhaps some kind of medic.

"Mikhail found you on the shore when scavenging old boats for supplies," another added, nodding towards the apparent medic. 

They didn't say anything afterwards. After a painful procedure of getting stitches, they wrapped you up again, throwing the old bandages into the bucket filled with water as red as wine. Mikhail handed it over to one of his colleagues, who left the room and went down the hall

"Your belongings are in the other room. I’ll bring them over soon," Mikhail informed you. He surveyed your facial features with some interest, before finishing up his job. "You're American, no?"

"No," you reply with a firm voice. "I never was."

You weren't American by nationality, but their sense of morality and patriotism was instilled into you, and it only became stronger the more missions you went on with Hudson's team. That's what Adler wanted. Hell, he even called you a hero for telling them about Solovetsky, which could be considered the highest honor in that country.

It made sense, really, the more you thought about it. The phone call and the strange duffel bag. That was most likely where Adler kept the drugs that were needed to keep you in check, and it made further sense as you remembered how strange tiny dots would appear on your arms or neck at times. You even noticed Adler having a trained eye on you as you explored the safehouse. 

Nonetheless, it was hard to remember what kind of person you were before, but some fragments of your old past would return each passing day. Some were ruthless, as you remembered executing people in cold blood. How it was one of the things Perseus liked about you, and how you were then easily given the responsibility of being one of his trusted comrades. Perseus wasn't a person, but a group, and you, in a way, are Perseus itself.

But considering how you defected against the group, and how Perseus had an ever-growing bounty on your head, you couldn't exactly show up on good terms.

In the end, you were just Bell: also known as Adler's protégé, and the kid. But then again, Bell was your identity when you were with Adler and the squad. Your real name was just a part of your past. 

The group of Russian soldiers left you in your place, advising you to not move too much, Mikhail adding that he'll come back later to check up on you. His colleague brought over an old MRE, which you ate slowly. Your lungs never felt as heavy as it does now; the sensation of drowning was way more painful than you had envisioned. 

You didn't know how long you laid there. 

Time seemed redundant and pointless, and you didn't even know what time of day it was, nor how long it's been since you've seen the sky. It was only you, your thoughts, and the whispers of English and Russian in the back of your mind.

0000

Yet somehow, you managed to fall asleep.

The rest was short-lived, unfortunately. 

You flinched awake as you heard something drop to the floor. 

Quickly, and painfully, you rolled out of bed and kept a crouched position close to the floor. Cautiously, you made your way to the side of the door, back pressing against the wall, waiting for the door to open and ready to take them down.

No one came though. After counting down a minute, you stood back up. You must have been imagining things. Your vision deteriorated just for a bit from getting up too fast, but adjusted.

Only now you realized that something new had appeared inside the room. It was an old wooden crate. Taking a look inside, you realize it was your belongings that you had on you before.

Bending over it, you began sorting out the stuff, setting them out on the floor gently. There was the shirt you were wearing. The bullet hole that should have been there was stitched up, and any blood was washed off. There was your combat vest, your heavy duty boots, your pistol holster. 

Your heart skipped a beat as you made it to the bottom of the crate. There was your pistol, and underneath it was your combat knife. Grinding your teeth anxiously, you picked it up.

It was lighter than it should have been. You pulled out the magazine and saw that there were no casings inside. Clicking your tongue, you slid the mag back in, pulling the top back to hear the satisfying click. It was unkempt and dirty, you could still detect the remains of gunpowder; you had to maintain it later.

You put all of your gear and shirt back on. The weight that it had, as well as the tightness of the vest, felt oddly reassuring. Your gloves felt a bit tight as it rubbed against your bandaged hand, but it didn't bother you much. The knife and empty gun went to their respective spots. But, with your tactical equipment gone, the only weapon that remained was your knife. 

Exiting the room, nothing in the hallway changed. You hear some voices down the hall towards the right, and decide to head there. Your steps were silent and gentle, barely noticeable. Your loadout was considerably light as well, so there wasn't as much clicking and jingling that occurred. 

“Bell.”

You froze. The nicknames continued to repeat itself in your ear, the different voices of your former team taking turns. Lazar, Sims, Adler, Park, Mason, and Woods. 

Letting out an annoyed puff of air, you continued your way. Allowing yourself to take it a bit easy, you observed everything that was visible to the eye, making notes of things you saw along the way. Anything to not pay attention to the voices.

You took a peek into the rooms you passed by, but nothing piqued your interest. Judging from appearances, some were mainly offices and old interrogation rooms turned into storage. 

There was an old board with a map on it. Small notes in Russian were written on the borders of it, and would have a giant red arrow pointing to an area of interest. Old photos of people were pinned at certain locations, possibly rumored defectors. Some were already crossed out. Cross-referencing, you pinpointed rough coordinates of your current location. The old base you resided at was towards the north west coast of the Soviet Union. Unfortunately, the name of the place was too faded for you to read.

You had drifted a good distance from the place you were thrown off of. It was rather surprising how you were even alive, especially due to the water temperatures and the bullet wound. Mikhail must have been a miracle worker.

Leaving the room and continuing your expedition, the hallway ended. 

“You chose the fork on the right, not the one of the left.”

It's not like you could have gone left in the first place. The walkway was blocked by debris that came from above thanks to the roof caving in.

Continuing right, you found yourself in an open room where Mikhail and his friends sat at an old table tinkering with some equipment. 

"What do you mean it's not getting a signal? It worked a few days ago!"

"Yes, I know, but now I can't hear anything, only static."

"Have you tried-"

They cut off, noticing your presence. "Ah, comrade! How do you feel?"

"Better," you voice croaked. Coughing a bit, you managed to clear your throat.

"Not much of a talker are you? Come, sit with us. Allow us to introduce ourselves." He paused, realizing you donned your gear. "We won't bite."

You obliged. The chair creaked as you sat down. They each introduced themselves, and you took note of defining features they had. Mikhail wore a necklace, and had unkempt light brown hair with streaks of grey. Anton always wore his uniform cap, with strands of blonde poking out (you stiffened up when he introduced himself, coincidentally sharing the name with Volkov). Artyom wore a tank top despite the weather, had dark hair, and Vadim had a rather fancy watch on his right wrist, and bald. 

They caught you up to date: apparently the military base was attacked by the U.S. a couple weeks back, days after you guys were ordered to prevent the nuke in Solovetsky Islands. Anton and Artyom were trying to find a way to contact others so they could be evacuated from the area before the Americans returned to do a sweep of the area, but the radios have been dead silent, leaving them to make do with whatever they had for the time being. That's when Mikhail found you. 

It was now early April, and you had been in a small coma until now, occasionally slipping in and out of consciousness. 

"The vest you wore saved your life. Absorbed some of the impact. The bullet was this close from tearing your heart open," Mikhail detailed, holding up his hand to show the length, about an inch, or 2.5 centimeters. 

"Why did you save me?" you inquired. 

"Doesn't hurt to have more company," Artyom spoke. His voice sounds nasally, as if his throat hasn't been cleared for years. "If you lived, you could probably help us in return. If you died, then just another body to burn."

You simply nodded in response, eyeing the radio they had. 

"And you?"

You hesitated. What were you supposed to tell them? That both sides of the war shot you in the back and left you for dead? The flags were different, but in the end the methods were the same, and you were just their pawn. "Just a ghost from the war.”

"A bit young of a ghost, aren't you?" Vadim points out, and you couldn't help but smirk a bit

"You think so? I get that a lot." With your head, you gestured at the radio. "You need help? It's the least I can do."

Anton slid the radio across the table. You reached over and brought it closer, rotating it around. The components of it seemed to be intact, and there weren't any noticeable issues. There was a decent dent on the top of it though, but it shouldn't interfere with anything else.

"Looks fine to me," you comment. Maybe it was just out of range or something. Turning it on, you quickly realized what the issue was. "Can you pass me that?" 

You pointed to one of their tools, and Anton slid it over. You took off a few screws and took off the cover carefully. Noting a few misplaced components, you made a few necessary adjustments, and the static lessened to background noise as a result. After fiddling around with the knobs, looking for any more issues, you put the cover back on. Everyone else stared in awe as you placed it back down. "Where did you want to send a message to?"

Encryption and decoding was your thing after all. That was one of the benefits you had on the team, even working with Sims a couple of times. Given enough time you could identify codes hidden within newspapers or transmissions. 

"Don't worry about it, we can do it," Mikhail assures. "Just go get some rest."

Right when he told you to do so, you could feel a bit of fatigue hanging over you, despite being wide awake. You nodded, getting up from the seat, and traced back your steps to the white room. You took off your gear and set it on the edge of your bed before lying down. 

You couldn't fall asleep right away. 

Staring at the ceiling only reminded you of the cliff, and how you watched it get smaller the further below you went. Your left eye would ache from time to time, and your hands felt empty without having something to occupy yourself with. You couldn't exactly exercise either without risk of opening your wound back up. The silence wasn't as welcoming as it was before; you were just waiting in anticipation for some kind of loud noise to just suddenly occur.

Unable to stand it, you forced yourself back up and grabbed the pistol out of its holder and disassembled it. You laid out all the individual pieces, and proceeded to clean them with an old cloth you found on the way back.

Once done maintaining it, you put it back together.

Then took it back apart. 

You didn't even have to think about it, your hands moved on its own. With each round of deconstruction and assembly, you could feel yourself getting back to the speed you used to have. And you did this over and over until your eyes grew tired and your hands didn't feel the weight of it anymore.

0000

Anton and Artyom's attempts to contact their unit were repeatedly futile.

Each day they would send a message out, hoping for someone to receive and answer their call, only to no avail.

It has been slightly more than two years since you have arrived, now May 1983. You couldn't believe that you were out here for this long. Time felt so slow.

It had taken a few months to adjust to your surroundings, but once you have gotten the hang of the lifestyle, you helped Mikhail and his group to search for anything important around the base, and to stockpile them in the meeting room for ease of access. With your help, you managed to put back together additional electronic equipment. Electricity and water ran without interruption throughout the facility. You also managed to find the armory, which was on the left wing of the facility. It was almost bare, other than a few magazines and grenades. 

But, after musing over it, you decided not to grab anything other than a couple clips for your pistol (luckily they had).  Life had been oddly calming and easy, so having a grenade on you would have brought on extra paranoia you didn't need. You even thought about retiring your vest, but that proved to be too difficult to separate yourself from. It was one of the few things that had meaning to you.

Your life at an undisclosed location, stuck with four men, was ironically chill and uneventful. The side effects of MKUltra still lingered, most prominent in your dreams or when you heard or saw something that closely resembled the experience. There were days that you woke up drenched in sweat, or nights where you couldn't fall asleep no matter hard you tried. Nonetheless, this lifestyle allowed you to slowly sort out your thoughts and feelings. Or, more accurately, live with them. You didn't have a trusted shoulder to lean on for support, so you had to do it on your own.

It was morning again, and you were up and walking by 7 am. Mikhail gave you the "okay" for you to do light exercises a month after your arrival, so you would do a lap around the area that was accessible. By month four, you were given permission to do vigorous exercises. Your morning routine would now also include sets of workouts to keep your body fit.

On month five, you knew the layout of the entire facility as if it was tattooed to the back of your hand, so you let your body run on its own. It was cold, but it wasn't anything you could handle.

At the end of your routine, you would end up at an empty lot behind the base. There, you set up a makeshift practice range with whatever you could find: bottles, cans, unwanted pieces of paper.

But supplies were running thin. You never shot a bullet at your fake targets, but only aimed your gun at them, pretending to shoot and hit your mark. Eventually, even you found yourself forgetting what your handheld sounded like. 

Now that you have joined Mikhail's group, food had to be divided equally. At first there was enough to go around to last a year. But since that year passed, and with the correct calculations, you would run out of food in two weeks. At this point, you were all sharing one MRE each meal. Help had to arrive soon or you were all going to starve to death. Wildlife around the area were rare, which left you all wishing for some kind of animal to run into the hunting traps or hidden ditches you set around. 

It was sunset by the time you returned to the meeting room, where you found Mikhail sitting alone. 

"Artyom and Anton went to check up on the traps again," he told you as you took a seat across from him. You hummed in understanding.

"Any luck?" you ask, gesturing at the radio.

"No. I don’t know why we even bother at this point," Mikhail grumbles in disappointment. You had to give him props, for holding out hope for this long. "I mean, who would want to come all the way here just for five people?"

You couldn't help but agree with him. Collectively, you all have been trying to ping anyone to your location for two straight years. The look of hope had all been lost within three months of your arrival.

You thought of a moment. At this point, sending a message was just a force of habit, based on the slim belief that someone would even eventually come. "Let me take a look." 

Who knows? Maybe they didn't know anything about encryption. There was always the possibility that there was a mistake, which can mess up some lines. Or even misinterpreting the message.

"No, it's fine. Anton knows his stuff."

You raised an eyebrow, but shrugged.

"It's not like we don't trust you, but…" Mikhail leaned over a bit. "Let's keep this between us, but Anton doesn't like being proved wrong. He gets cranky, you see?"

Mikhail was firm about Anton's message, so you didn't push it any further. You nod in understanding. 

Silence. 

"You know, it's been bugging me for quite a bit," Mikhail states suddenly, breaking the tension. "You know a lot about that kind of stuff. Encrypting, computers… Who are you really?"

You bit the inside of your cheek. "I… used to work for the KGB in that area, you could say. Got tied up into some shit, and now I'm here."

It was the first time you revealed something about your background since being saved by Mikhail. You weren't exactly lying. But you weren't completely knowledgeable of the truth either. You were sure that you were originally KGB, before being noticed by Perseus, eventually being recruited by him and becoming a loyal agent of the group. 

"I see. And your name? After all these months, you never told us your name. I swear, I've seen your face somewhere."

"...[L/N]."

When was the last time you said your name? Or have been addressed by it?

"...Ah. A well fitting name for you." He had a face that you couldn't read.

"Are you sure you don't need my help?" you asked again, changing the subject. You needed something to do.

Before Mikhail could answer, Anton and Artyom walked in, both carrying something heavy. The fawn they had looked like it had enough meat on it to last half a week if eating in moderation. After that, it was back to crackers.

Both of them had the look of accomplishment written on their face, smiles of satisfaction from ear to ear. Their clothes were dyed red from carrying the animal. Upon touching it, the body was still warm. 

"You wouldn't happen to know to skin a deer, do you?" Mikhail asks with a tiny glint of hope in his eyes. 

"Not in my field of specialty, unfortunately," you chuckle.

[dialovers-translations]

Diabolik Lovers BLOODY BOUQUET Vol.8 Mukami Yuma [Track 4]

Original title: 柄にもない

Source: Diabolik Lovers Bloody Bouquet Vol. 8 Mukami Yuma [CD not owned by me]

Audio: Here

Seiyuu: Tatsuhisa Suzuki

Translator’s note: Some delicious domestic fluff with Yuma & his S/O are exactly what I needed after the drama and angst in the past couple of tracks~ Most of the other BB CDs skipped over the preparations for the wedding and just jump straight into the ceremony, which is why it was nice to see them take a different approach in this one! 

Track 1 ll Track 2 ll Track 3 ll Track 4 ll Track 5

→  LIKE MY TRANSLATIONS? SUPPORT ME ON KO-FI!

Track 4: Out-Of-Character

The two of you are walking through town.

“...Ugh. It’s too damn crowded. I’m havin’ a hard time walkin’...Oi! Don’t wander too far away, I’ll lose sight of ya, remember?”

You return to his side. 

“Geez...Come on, gimme yer hand. It’d be a damn pain if ya get lost before we get to the store.”

Yuma holds your hand.

“If ya take even a few steps away from me, imma suck yer blood on the spot. ...Understood?”

You nod as the two of you continue walking.

“...Haah...”

You ask him if something is wrong. 

“Huh? Ahー ...Eh? Nothin’ at all...Ah! We’re here. This is the place.”

You come to a halt and ask him which kind of store this is.

“Argh...You’ll know once we set foot inside so let’s go!”

You enter the store

*Thud*

“Haah...I just can’t get used to this atmosphere...”

You ask Yuma why he took you to a jewelry store. 

“...Hm? We need them for the ceremony, right? Wedding rings. So we’re here to buy some.”

Your eyes widen in surprise.

“Hm? ...Oi. Ya listenin’? If ya don’t want them, I don’t mind just headin’ straight back home, ya know?”

You quickly protest.

“...!? Yer voice’s too damn loud! This place’s pretty fancy, ya know!?”

You apologize.

“I mean, it’s fine but...I didn’t think you’d be that happy. And alsoー I didn’t know. Stuff like the size of yer finger or yer personal preferences. I came to take a look here ‘cause Kou suggested the place to me, but they had a hella lot of options to choose from. Then when they asked me for the size, I had no clue...I figured Azusa might know that sorta stuff, but he kept on insistin’ I just take ya here personally...”

You chuckle.

“Can ya blame me? I mean, sure, I’m sure the guy’s supposed to have these made in secret but...”

You shake your head.

“Hm...Oh. I see. Then shall we make our pick already? Ah...No...I guess we should take our time and properly it through, huh?”

*Rustle*

“Ah, well...I guess we should use this opportunity to choose together. These’ll stick with us for our whole lives, right? ...That bein’ said, I feel like there’s even more options than before? To be honest, I haven’t even really thought ‘bout which ones I’d liー Ah, actually, I kinda dig these.”

You note he made his choice quickly.

“I came here once before, remember? Well, I didn’t know the size back then so I went home empty-handed. If any of them strike yer fancy, tell me. No need to be modest right now.”

You nod.

“...Haah!? H-Hold up! At least take a second to consider! How can you just decide on the spot!?”

You explain.

“Oh...I see. ...No, as long as you’re happy, I am too. ...Guess I’ll call over a clerk then. We gotta measure yer size. Wait here like a good girl, ‘kay?”

*Smooch*

“...Come on, don’t make a fuss. The other people all have their eyes glued to the showcase so nobody noticed.” 

You puff out your cheeks.

“Oh shut up, what’s the big deal? You’re mine, remember?”

You note that he seems in high spirits. 

“Yeah...Right now, I feel extremely blessed. I’m ‘bout to expand my family so that should be a given, right?”

Yuma wraps his arms around you.

“...I wanna do it one more time. Actually, ya should keep yer eyes on me. That way, the people ‘round us won’t bother ya, right? Mm...”

*Smooch*

ーー TO BE CONTINUED ーー