#current content has some... interesting march stuff going on

[stoneheart-paramour]

sudden inspiration struck and i'm finally digging into march's backstory further. not that i had nothing established, but it wasn't super detailed in the same way that the backstories of caelus/dan heng/aventurine are. i think a lot of it's gonna be spoilers or spoiler-adjacent so unfortunately i probably won't be able to publish more than a handful of short stories featuring her... but we'll see

[trashy-tries-writing]

I can just imagine Ravine healing himself like he’s in the far cry 2 and everybody just looking at him like “wtf???”

Like broken arm? Nah let me just readjust some bones and we’re good to go!

Sorry for the long wait but it's finally here! 😖 Okay I can see this happening 💀. Price is getting gray hairs because he never knows if Ravine is walking around with an injured bones or not. It's a charade for 141 to find out after the first time they saw him do it 😂. Thank you so much for this idea 🙂 Also to all precious Readers, anyone willing to help me understand the mw2 characters more? Like telling me what your opinion on what their dislikes and likes could be and maybe headcanons you guys have for them? I’m interested to learn/know :DD PS.: I apologize for any mistakes and wrong words I use, It’s been too long since I researched about MW2 and Military stuff 😅

Price has known Ravine for a few years now but the soldier still surprises him in ways that he would never imagine. When he believes he finally grasped the depth of the weapo- Ravine’s abilities, the man swoops in with something unpredictable that has the captain stare at him like he just told him Laswell is firing Price.

Well not after today that is. Now he welcomes situations that could only happen in dreams with open arms so he can spare himself some stress.

The mission was easier than some things they were ordered to do.

The objective was to seize the contents inside the briefcase, it didn’t matter if the briefcase was lost as long as they got their hands on what was inside it. 

Ghost, Ravine, Gaz and Soap approached the enemy base on the mountains on foot as they ambushed them. However the opponent was one step ahead, hiding inside a hidden cave and fled with a jeep down the mountains, making a quick escape as the soldiers shot down the rest of the man.

Soap cursed, hoping to pop a tire with his gun but it was for naught as the bullets were caught by the many trees the vehicle passed through. Gaz let Price know that the objective is making pace down the mountain.

The captain’s voice echoed through one of their intercom radios.

“Ravine, time to fetch.”

They barely tilted their heads towards the mentioned male when they find Ravine darting past them at high speed. Their confusion flip into understanding as they have never seen him run before.

“The rest of you, make your way down and keep a lookout for strays hanging around.”

A few minutes later, they locate the jeep slammed sideways into a tree trunk making it almost fold in two. They quietly roam the area and quickly spot Ravine emerging from the back of the ruined car with a hand holding onto the case.

And that’s where they currently find themselves in when it happened.

“Ooohhh that looks bad, are you okay?” Gaz takes the briefcase from his hands, eyes worriedly staring at Ravine’s slightly bent arm with the bone poking out it.

“Aye.”

Without warning Ravine grabs his broken arm, pushing the bone back inside his flesh. A collective groan of pain and disgust echoed through the mountain from his action. 

Soap lifts a hand and averts his gaze from the scene as Gaz holds the briefcase in front of his face. Ghost scrunches his face from underneath the mask as Price’s voice echoes through, questioning the sudden silence.

The were impressed, sure… but whAT THE FUCK?!?!!?

While they are trying to explain to Ravine that, for a matter of fact, it was NOT okay to push your own bone back into your arm and it shouldn’t have been his first response to the open wound. It was DEFINITELY NOT NORMAL either to use that said broken arm the minute he ‘fixed’ it.

I mean okay, they did find that kind of cool but they were seriously getting worried about him. His blood was running down his forearm, staining his clothes red and he’s standing there like it was a daily occurrence.

Ghost marches towards Ravine and pokes a harsh finger to his helmet with ‘Don’t try this shit again’ glare, making the tall man recoil his head from the push.

“Sit down you muppet and refrain from moving that arm around.”

On the other side inside Price’s office, the captain exhales loudly; it could be heard outside the room. “Of course he did that…” He’s aging so quickly that he’s hoping he won't wake up the next day with a full set of white hair.

He waits by the entrance, seeing the truck in the distance growing bigger each second. He pushes himself from leaving on the wall and sees Gaz, Soap and Ghost instinctively grab onto Ravine who seems to plan a visit to the doctor.

While Ghost’s pushing from the front, one hand locked with Ravin’s while the other pushed against his chest, Gaz and Soap are pulling and tugging the man towards the medical facility.

Price sighs and the soldier’s stop in their tracks when they find him standing beside them watching them try to wrestle Ravine into a checkup. The captain crosses his arms over his chest, his head tilted slightly and a silent conversation is shared between him and the giant of a man.

Ghost can feel Ravine’s hand flinch and shake as he unconsciously tightens his grip on the shorter male’s hand. The lieutenant turns his head back, observing his body becoming tense making him look bulkier than he was.

The trio is shushed away as Price and Ravine go on their merry way.

“Man, he must really hate doctors.”

Ghost’s eyes linger on Ravine’s back, feeling something amiss. He doesn’t push or ask for an answer but questions are filling his head especially due to the sudden heat he could feel from his hand that was locked with his.

They were hiding something huge that was related to the abnormality that was Ravine but there were too many potential answers to piece together, like a puzzle without edges and weirdly shaped pieces.

He was sure Gaz and Soap were thinking the same thing but they didn’t dare risk breaking whatever frail bond they had with Ravine.

Who was Ravine before he became Ravine?

-----------------------------------------------

If anyone wants to be tagged let me know :D

@livinglifebesticanlol

(Hope it worked, never tagged anyone before 💦) (Also sorry if my writing got bad, I haven't written for so long 😳)

[oops-its-a-fanwork]

Bountyhunter/Thief reader x the Pirates ☆

Based on the pirate au by @mega-punani, check out her stuff if you enjoy this! They are currently not creating content for it but what is there is really lovely :3

Reader is trying to catch the crew for their bounty! Or at the very least, get some of their fabled treasures for themselves. Your specialities are thievery and catching people or crews alive, which usually yields more bounty anyway. Not to mention that if you can get people to talk, they may reveal more valuable information, items or treasures. Your skills are becoming pretty well known around te area, and that reputation will grow even bigger when you finally catch one of the big dogs~

Yeah thats right, the Skull Pirates' ship just docked nearby! A perfect opportunity. You realize it would be easier to pick them off one by one (fighting the entire crew is obviously a Bad Time) but oops the first one you picked is like kinda cute actually?? Wait scratch that you're here for the money! ...even if they have some redeeming qualities that make them not that bad and- hey wait when did you end up on their team?

Sans It takes him such a long time to wake up from the knock-out that you are frustrated before he even starts talking. After that it really doesn't help that he starts talking to you as if you were buddies chatting during break instead of, I don't know, a hostage situation?? You press a knife to his neck to shut him up but he just keeps talking, telling you he thinks you'll like some of the edgier types on his crew and making puns about sharp edges and this not being very knife of you, chill as ever. When a loud bang rings through the air and your hideout shakes, he breaks the news: his team is getting him back right now and he has decided you are joining the crew. He thinks you're cute and you've got skills if you can manage to knock out and kidnap someone like him. You know you don't stand a chance against his entire crew so begrudgingly you join, letting your displeasure be known every single step of the way. Even if they start to grow on you rather quickly. The crew is confused and amused about your arrival but they at least tolerate you due to you being introduced by Sans.

Papyrus You tried to lure him into following you with flattery, talking about his interests and even sharing gossip from the village. Asking him to assist you with something was far too easy and he seemed happy to help, stating that he would let his brother know where he was going just in case! He's been told there's some sketchy folk around ;) Before you can stop him he's marched off. You mentally debate on simply leaving now before deciding against it. When he returns he lets you know that his brother is excited to meet you! You are pretty much carried aboard by the pirate before you can even object, where a few curious crewmembers give you a quick nod before continuing their tasks. Shit, now half of the ship knows your face, your surprise attack is ruined! When Papyrus sees you pout he immediately makes it his mission to cheer you up again: he showers you in compliments, shows you every nook and cranny of the ship since you seem so interested in it and he encourages you to talk about your home some more. In the chaos of Papyrus's boundless energy he manages to introduce you to Sans and ask if you can join the crew ('Wait wha-'). Sans agrees easily ('No seriously wait-'), recognizing you from a wanted poster and knowing that keeping an eye on you is far easier like this. Not to mention that he can clearly see that his brother really likes you and that he is already winning you over bit by bit. Welcome to the crew kiddo.

Blue He's clearly trying to impress you. You can use that. He's another one you tried to lure with talking, but he was too stubborn to lure with flattery alone so you used the next best thing: a bet. Feigning innocence as a random townsperson simply curious about the new faces resembling the famous Skull crew, you challenged his abilities. Surely they can't be all people crack them up to be? If you lost, you would tell them more about that lost treasure your town has rumors about, and you would accept that he is simply amazing. If you won, he would help you carry those heavy groceries of yours to your home to make up for the lost time. You knew he was strong so you expected to lose. You were hoping to be introduced as an innocent citizen so the crew won't be suspicious if you show up again to snoop around. Maybe the cutie fool can even vouch for you! Worst case scenario you can get him alone in your hideout and knock him out, then get the information you need by force. Either way, you were getting a good deal out of this. Aaaah bummer, you lost~ Guess you'll give his crew any intel you have! Feeling accomplished, you let him lead you to the ship... where he promptly introduced you to the others as the famous bounty hunter they had been hearing so much about. He knew all along???

Stretch He woke up to the sound of someone softly playing some notes on his banjo, his hands and feet tied. He was too tired and hazy to think too much, but looking a little to his right, he saw you softly inspecting his beloved instrument: gentle touches over the wood, fingers following the pretty carvings along the handle. Soft notes filled the room when you'd pluck the strings gently, listening to the notes intently as you waited for him to wake up. You could've been a siren with how entranced he was... until you snapped him out of it by looking up to him with a mischievous, self assured smile, putting the banjo aside and moving far too close to him. Oh boy. When he was inevitably rescued by his brother, you escaped quickly through a window with a smile and a wink his way, intensifying his orange blush as he looked away. You still follow them around, looking to get some riches here or there. Whenever you encounter each other he can never look you in the eye, a rush of magic spreading across his face, which only makes the chase more fun for you. Eventually the crew outvotes him on trying to get you on board, and he really doesn't make too much of a fuss about it. At this point everyone just wants to see how this turns out between you two. (including him.)

Red Just because you flirted with him when trying to get him alone, doesn't mean he gets to keep flirting when he wakes up!! Every part of you gets complimented, every conversation topic gets turned into a pickup line, and every time you threaten him he tells you he's into that shit. You didn't even know skeletons had... eyebrows?? brow-bones?? but he keeps waggling them at you every time you try to get to the point. It's absolutely infuriating! Annoying! Revolting even! (so stop blushing!!) You are this close to hitting him in the face but he'll probably make a flirt out of that too. When his brother shows up to rescue collect him, you pretty much just shove Red at him and tell them both to get lost. Now every time you encounter each other he drops everything to flirt with you and to convince you to join them, even mid-fight. The crew knows about the whole thing too so you don't have the element of surprise anymore. God damn it.

Edge BITES YOU BITES YOU BITES YOU BITES YOU BITES YOU- No but seriously he is pissed. You had jumped him from up high before he could set any traps to protect the ship's anchoring point! He would be even more pissed to be rescued by his crewmates, hoping to bust out by himself at least, or preferably even return without anyone knowing what had happened at all. Instead, you riled him up into talking, stole his keys and fled the little hideout to steal some of their treasure. Since most of the crew was looking for him on the shore you actually managed to steal some gems, but you were eventually cornered a few days later. He actually kinda respects your skills, he's just very butthurt to have been your first victim as the crew teases him for it a lot. In an act of reconciliation you prank the others and capture/'torture' them if any of them do something stupid or rude, showing everyone it's your skills that did him in and that he was no fool for falling prey to them. Although he nags about it to both them and you, he very quickly realizes that you are helping him keep the crew in check when they do dumb shit and you both reconnect from there. Now you're a terrifying couple to do stupid things around and you have quite the reputation. You both enjoy that a lot.

Razz You are confusing him with the way you act. You flatter him by calling him the most dangerous one there, saying how much research you had to do due to his reputation, telling him just how difficult it was to get some seastone to keep his powers in check... and you've stolen one of his maps too!! He is livid, seething, but keeps getting caught off guard by the flirtatious ways you address him. By the end of the day he's exhausted by the constant emotional whiplash you've been creating. When the crew comes for him you've already fled, leaving him tied to his chair. (insulting!!!) You sold his map for good money, which is how they tracked you down as he immediately recognises his own detailed work. You besting a guy like him made a good part of the crew curious about you though so now you are cautiously accepted in the group. Razz always brags about the quality of his maps to you and you tease him by telling him you'll steal them and sell them for a lot. Somehow, this has become the way you communicate. The higher a prize you name for a map, the higher its quality (and the more he blushes). When you're mad at him you tell him they won't sell cuz they look shitty. It's raining those days.

Cash He looked so tired and lanky that you hadn't realized he was part of the famed skeleton crew until you almost walked past him. It seems you surprised both yourself and him when you swiftly turned around and knocked him on the head, dragging him to your nearby hideout. Good thing you were always prepared for anything! And that no-one was watching. Now that he's awake, he's... far to meek. Almost a little smug, actually. You are suspicious of him, but he can't really do anything shackled up like this. Cash found himself in a really fun situation upon waking up: a good looking person standing over him, clearly ready to write things down in a little notebook and threatening him with the cutest little pocket knife he has ever seen. You remind him of his brother just a little bit... Welp, that does it. He's going to bully you into joining, this is too funny to pass up! Good thing he had impulsively stolen the keys from you before getting knocked out. Cash took you by surprise and carried you onto the ship, introducing you to everybody. He will never stop being a smug idiot about that story either.

Bear He's just sitting there, red eye on you and face blue. Maybe you shouldn't have come so close to threaten him, because as soon as you entered his personal space he completely spaced out. Fuck, did you get the mute one? How can you get information out of him like this! He's not holding anything of value either... maybe you can hand him in alone? It would ruin your beautiful complete-crew-cleanup-plan though... While you are contemplating just what to do with this guy, Bear is contemplating a few things himself: you're clearly not the most buff person, having relied on a sneak attack and the binds to keep him at bay. You were working on your own, which in a place like this likely meant you didn't have any close friends or family or you would've been in their gang instead. You also clearly didn't give a shit about his size, intimidating looks or injury, and while those thoughts made his face warm, it also meant you clearly had no sense of self preservation. Guess he has to take things into his own hands. He takes you by surprise by breaking the chair he was seated on, thus giving him enough space to remove his binds, and simply picking you up and taking you with him. He and the crew will take care of you from now on.

Cinnamon Ok you feel bad. He pretty much stumbled into your arms, apologizing profusely, called you pretty while looking up at you from within your arms and then apologized for the out of the blue statement in a whirlwind of stutters and sorrys. When after a second you recognised him from the wanted posters you knocked him over the head and he was out. You weren't even really hunting for the crew that day to be honest, just taking a stroll through the town for groceries. Now he's awake and stuttering so much you're not getting anything interesting out of him. You got close to his face to interrogate him properly and he almost passed out again. You end up dumping an awake him unceremoniously into his brother's lap, and now they know about you and are hunting you to be on their team instead. Sigh.

[korpuskristae]

Jasmine and Rose - The Air Tastes Just Like You

Warnings: Severus being a moody grump, reference to cannon death, foreshadowing, set during Philosopher’s Stone but no specific references are made, Religious references and guilt

Pairing: Severus Snape x Female Reader, reader uses she/her pronouns

Word Count: 800+

Summary: Severus brews amortentia with his students only to find the scent has changed.

Part 2 Part 3

AN: This is my first time posting fanfiction on this account and to my surprise, I really enjoyed writing this. Ignore any grammar and spelling mistakes, I glanced over this before posting. I wrote this little drabble (it's now much longer than I anticipated and will be split into multiple parts) while listening to Jasmine and Rose by Clan of Xymox so I guess you could consider this a borderline song fic. Here's the song if you’re interested in listening, if you like it you should check out my Sev playlist on Spotify. (Also give me Sev smut ideas, I’m ITCHING to write smth, no teacher-student stuff)

‿̩͙‿ ༺ ♰ ༻ ‿̩͙‿ ☆ ‿̩͙‿ ༺ ♰ ༻ ‿̩͙‿

Read on AO3

Hunched over a cauldron, Severus stood in the middle of his dark classroom, his face illuminated only by a candle he’d lit hours ago which had been reduced to a mere stub at this point.

Grumbling to himself, he meticulously cut up some herbs and threw them into the cauldron with a flourish and a flick of his wand to clear off his workbench. Impatiently waiting for the potion to finish brewing, he attempted to busy himself with something, anything, to get his mind off of his current predicament.

A few moments of contemplation passed before that same scent, that damnable scent, snapped him out of his thoughts.

He had to have been insane.

Perhaps he was losing his touch? Even the most knowledgeable scholars have been known to have days where even the simplest of tasks elude them… it was true he hadn’t slept in a while, maybe he was simply imagining things.

Yes, he was just imagining things.

That was the only logical conclusion. He found comfort in the fact that It wasn’t a problem with him but rather his sleep schedule, for once, just maybe, something wasn’t his fault.

His momentary relief of guilt came crashing down upon smelling the scent, your scent, yet again, only this time much stronger.

Still refusing to believe it, he reasoned it must have been some mistake on his part. Maybe he was daft. Furiously waving his wand, he cleared the cauldron of its contents and extinguished the flame underneath.

“Evanesco,” he muttered bitterly as he dramatically spun on his heel before marching over to the potions storeroom.

He was going to settle this once and for all.

He had to be doing something wrong. Maybe the herbs were stored improperly and therefore lost their potency, maybe he measured out the wrong amount of one of the ingredients, maybe…

It didn’t matter in the end.

The possibilities of potential errors were endless. In the art of potioneering, even the smallest of errors could result in entirely different outcomes, perhaps this was one of those cases.

In reality, he didn’t care why or how, he already knew he must’ve, no, definitely, made a mistake somewhere during the brewing process. He had to have…

For the last fifteen years of his miserable life, his Amortentia had smelt like the same thing, lilies. Lilies with a hint of willow bark and the overwhelming smell of vanilla.

Unmistakably Lily’s scent.

Every. year. Every single year he had to teach those insufferable brats how to brew the cursed potion he was tormented by the memory of Lily. Reminded of how he had failed to protect her, reminded of how he had hurt her, and reminded of how one stupid mistake landed him a life sentence of servitude to not one but two wizards. Trapping him right in the middle of a war, ensuring his life would forever be dedicated to finding redemption.

Knowing one day, he’d give his life to atone for his mistake.

He carried with him the burden of his guilt three hundred sixty five days a year, twenty four seven, and he would carry it until the end of his days.

But that day, as if to rub salt in the wound, was his own personal hell, personally delegated to him by God, if there even was one, dedicated to guilt and self hatred.

Severus was God’s very own crowned patron saint of guilt and he felt it necessary for his saint to be subject to his very virtue.

Today was that day, his saintly day if you will, or rather, was supposed to be that day.

While everyone usually tended to give Severus a wide berth, students and staff alike avoided the potions master like the plague whenever the Amortentia lesson drew near. Already known for his intimidating demeanor and hot-headed attitude, the week of the lesson was among the worst for those unfortunate enough to be in his presence.

Even the smallest of provocations would cause Severus to fly off the handle and berate whoever was unlucky enough to be within his general vicinity.

Naturally, Hogwarts’s rumor mill was working overtime to come up with a plausible explanation for the Potions Master’s increased irritability.

But no one rumor stuck around for too long, and eventually, students would grow bored after a week or two, moving on to the next piece of hot gossip, of which there was no shortage.

Nevertheless, Severus never paid any mind to the school’s gossip, at least not since he was a student. He found it endearing how valiantly you defended him in front of students who dared to bad mouth him around you, he’d never admit it, but knowing someone didn’t see him as an emotionless bat of the dungeons made him feel just a little bit better about himself.

(Sorry for abrupt ending, will be a part 2 :p)

[sapphanimates]

SapphAnimates Art Recap 2024!

Calling it a little bit early, but here's a quick recap of my art progress for the year ^^

JANUARY

My Alacrity AU designs for Team Chaotix! Espio was one of the new designs I was most proud of at the time (despite the fact I ended up slightly modifying it later on). Hence why I chose him to represent January!

FEBUARY

THIS IS IT. THE ORIGINS OF SASHA. A Sonadow fankid I originally made just for shits and giggles, as many other creators were making them at the time, has slowly evolved over the year to become a pseudo-face for the blog! I wouldn't be where I am right now if you guys hadn't loved her as much as I do, and I'm super grateful for all of your support! Stay tuned for more Doom's Child AU news!

MARCH

Warrior Cats designs! These are some Medicine Cat/Healer designs for fun, though it did push me into a short era of drawing a lot of warriors stuff. I think most of my March was dedicated to Warriors content, actually...

APRIL

I like garten of banban. I needed to share my concept for a darker, psychological horror type of banban story, with a hint of infection au in there as well. please forgive me.

MAY

The end of the Sasha's run in the Sonic Fankid Showdown hosted by @head---ache . She didn't last very long, but the support behind our campaign was insane. Same goes for Zayne's run in the second Showdown. Thank you all so much!

JUNE

I did a "Six Fanarts" Challenge, featuring a mix of Warriors and Sonic characters, this one in particular featuring Sonic, Tails, Shadow, Tangle, Yellowfang, and Breezepelt. Shadow was my favorite from the group, with the bright yellow moon in the background and new Doom Wings (the Doom Powers were recently announced at the time).

JULY

Drew some of the horror adjacent Tails designs from some of the zones in my Project Alacrity AU. Ojo, Maggie, and Tailtrap playing Operation together and failing miserably at it :]

AUGUST

Some scrapped art from an animated shorts compilation video I posted on my YouTube Channel! It features some of the main characters, namely Fallen Leaves from Warriors, a Floragato from Pokémon, and a Mimic and Blarret from My Singing Monsters. Please go check out the video if you haven't yet!

SEPTEMBER

September means school, and school means teachers. And I've never met a more wackjob teacher than my current Chemistry teacher. This picture was one I did as a "Get to Know You" project on the first day of school. Labcoat Sapph.

OCTOBER

My first self assigned school art project, and a photography one! A multimedia picnic, a clay frog, a paper doll coati, and a portrait of a ghostly cat-woman, all sharing a lovely shoo-fly pie. Each character was created in a different medium, and the final photo was taken in my grandmother's backyard.

NOVEMBER

Part of a community challenge spurred by @yourpalsalamander . Asha in Wonderland needed a high af caterpillar, and who better to fill the role than Sasha. Just uh... don't touch her shrooms.

DECEMBER

Mlp horror AUs have had a small comeback lately, mostly on TikTok, but I wanted to throw my hat in the ring and create new evil versions of the entire Mane 6. I haven't come up with a design and concept for Rarity yet, but I've had a great time developing the rest of them! I'd love to turn it into a video series if you guys are interested in hearing my thoughts.

See you all next year! Template is by @zontarzon

[nakanotamu]

Okay this is my I'm back update post I guess

I'm definitely going to change how I was using tumblr a little bit. Cohost was a great vibe and kind of opened my eyes to what was stressing me out on here outside of the like. Corporate stuff. I'm following too many people and have to cut back on accounts. I'm more interested in making longer posts and I don't really care any more that that's not tumblr's ~vibe~. What's new with me:

idr if I was on prog yet when I left but I was on prog and also stopped taking prog. I absolutely hated it it made me gain weight and grow hair in ways that were bad for my dysphoria and my anxiety got super bad. Did not remotely get the experience from it everybody else who posts about it seems to, 0/10 will never recommend

Stardom is maybe better than ever. Rossy leaving was a breath of fresh air and then after The Conversion a steady upward trend became a company that actually feels incredibly fresh and exciting and has been putting out banger after banger. I'm still only in March in my backlog but I follow what's current and haven't been this excited about wrestling in years.

I started following OZ Academy and in the next week or two I'm gonna start watching SenJo. SenJo has Mika Iwata and has been working closely with Stardom lately so with them becoming more accessible on Wrestle Universe I'm happy to give them a try. OZ seemed for a long time like the closest to my tastes after Stardom so I arbitrarily decided to actually start watching this year once I saw Unagi had shown up there. I've got a post in me about how OZ is actually the closest thing to "joshi DDT" out there.

I never actually started following Marigold. I think they have a fantastic roster but I hate Rossy so much and the stories - or lack thereof - they're doing there just make it wildly disinteresting to me. If Utami & Kouki ever start making out in the ring or even if they ever start doing an ounce of god damn drama I might still begrudgingly check them out one day but I'm not holding my breath right now.

I started playing Fallen London again & finally got back into Final Fantasy XIV in a big way. I found out about plugins! I think people should openly talk about plugins more. I was totally sick of tab targetting rotation based combat, to the point I couldn't play the game any more, but I found combat plugins to help with that and it turns out that was literally the only problem I had with it so I'm having a fantastic time again, more into the game than I've been since Heavensward.

So, yeah, hi. I might make a Bluesky at some point or something idk but for now I'm here again. Tumblr is draconian so ig I'll use my nsfw for that content again when it's relevant. I will probably be even weirder about wrestling on main bc I truly don't care any more but other than that これからもよろしくお願いします

[constellaris]

Please disclose why everyone is saying they’ve got a bad feeling and it makes me anxious sob

tbh mine isn't really a bad feeling at this point. i'm not that far in probably, but the way some stuff has been handled ... i really feel uncomfortable.

i'll preface what i'm going to say with this warning : if you do not like seeing people talk badly of a character you like, please do not continue reading. i have said on here before that personally, i do not care about firefly the way hoyo wishes we all would, and what i'm going to say revolves around her.

with that out of the way, i'm putting it as plain as i can - i'm so fucking over having characters shoved down our throats as potential romantic interests in a way, you know what i mean? from the second we met her, firefly was basically marketed to us as " oh the trailblazer is falling in love with her !! look how cute they are together !! "

sorry sis but as someone who also doesn't really like march that much ( i find her to either grate on my nerves or just straight up piss me off with how condescending she can be ) firefly really ain't a step up in any sense.

if you like those girls, cool beans, you enjoy them and love them with your entire hearts and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. but me? no. march annoys the shit outta me and firefly, at best, would be a friend . i hate the whole vibe of trying to force us to view her as someone close to us and super special when she literally lied to us off the bat about pretty much everything.

but ritsu, why do you feel this way when you seem to like characters like jade? i can answer that real simply - because jade is unapologetic about being a fucking bitch. i can get behind that. what i can't get behind is how firefly has been handled in a narrative perspective.

she has been shoved down our throats since we first saw her. we knew nothing about her truly and were supposed to feel sad when she died the first time? the second time?? um no fam i felt fucking nothing. absolutely nothing. and with what's happened in the early part of the current quest i still feel absolutely nothing, even after everything we've learned about her and her people.

i feel more for the people of glamoth as a whole than i do for the character that so many people have a fucking hard on for shipping with the trailblazer, including hoyo. i've been trying to ignore it, but my god it's getting real hard when you're basically being shown fantastical, romantic scenarios that just scream ship fodder.

again, my main issue is the narrative perspective of it all and how forced so much of it feels. in contrast, honestly, i love the hints of interest characters show toward the player character in something like wuthering waves with how jiyan and yinlin treated the rover at the end of their story quests. there was no denying there was the intrigue there, but the romantic subtext was very up in the air.

sort of the same between xiao and the traveller in genshin. xiao's attachment can be seen growing toward the traveller, but at least in my opinion things were done more subtly and we're given a reason as to why he's been so slow and cautious opening up before things start going anywhere .

anyway i'm gonna stop ranting because really i could keep going, but long story short stop shoving this shit down my throat. at least give me the option to be more distant with a character and i'll be content because i don't feel like i have a knife to my throat.

[cindylouwho-2]

RECENT SEO & MARKETING NEWS FOR ECOMMERCE, JUNE 2024

You know the drill - here's all the marketing, SEO, social media etc. news for the last month. You can see the Etsy and other ecommerce news here.

TOP NEWS & ARTICLES 

As of July 5th, sites that cannot be read on mobile will no longer be indexed by Google. This has been coming for a long time, and we’ve all had plenty of warning, so it is unlikely to affect many ecommerce sites. 

One final reminder that you need to save your old Google Universal Analytics data before July 1, as it will vanish on that date. There are several ways to do this. [Even if you never upgraded to Google Analytics 4, the old stats will still be going away, so don't miss out on saving the important stuff!]

SEO: GOOGLE & OTHER SEARCH ENGINES 

If you are interested in deep dives into the recent Google leak, Aleyda Solis has compiled a Google spreadsheet (ironically), of articles on the topic, along with resources. 

It appears that Google’s AI Overviews are so bad that they are now only showing up for 15% of queries, down from 84%. 

Google’s latest spam update started June 20th.

This case study on Google’s March core update looks at the hazards of having high-ranking but irrelevant content on your website. 

Another recent study looking at the effect of various Google updates found that some losing sites may have been trying to game SEO a little too much in Google’s eyes. 

Out-of-date content can hurt SEO, but there are proven tactics for dealing with those pages. 

If you missed any Google news last month - and there was a lot of it! - Barry Schwartz summarized May for you. 

SOCIAL MEDIA - All Aspects, By Site

General

Artists concerned about AI tools training on their items are joining Cara in droves, and many are hoping to leave Meta properties at the same time. Cara allows users to add Glaze to their images, which disrupts AI training. 

True federated social sites are getting closer, with an app that lets Mastodon users and Bluesky users connect without joining the other site. Confused about how federation works? This TechCrunch article goes through all of the current details, and highlights some of the biggest federated sites, including Mastodon, Threads, and Bluesky. 

Facebook (includes relevant general news from Meta)

Meta will stop using users’ personal posts and information to train its AI models in the EU, due to privacy concerns.  

Turns out that using AI to detect use of AI is just as flawed as most applications of AI - ask Meta, which is inaccurately claiming some real photos were “Made with AI”.  

Facebook thinks it is for young people again. Yes, really. Among other areas, “Facebook Dating is continuing to see steady and strong daily active user growth, and is up +20% year-over-year with young adults in the United States and Canada.”

Here’s a decent overview of various types of Meta ads; it is written by Wix, but has some useful points for any advertiser. 

Instagram

The head of Instagram divulged some tips on the algorithm recently, including the fact that video gets more views than photos these days. 

Some video ads on Instagram can’t be skipped right now, but it is only a test. 

Apparently Instagram’s Notes feature is quite popular with teens, so the platform is adding more to it. This includes mentions and likes. 

LinkedIn

If you want a full sized image in posts with links, you will need to pay for LinkedIn Ads from now on. Regular posts with links now have downsized images. If you don’t know anything about LinkedIn Ads, here’s how they work. 

LinkedIn Ads can no longer use data from LinkedIn Groups to target people in Europe. 

Pinterest

Pinterest is now working with Shopify for its “Pinterest Inclusion Fund” which helps underrepresented groups use Pinterest to boost their businesses. 

Reddit

Reddit’s traffic is said to be up 39% this year, increasing interest in using it for marketing. It is also making people worry about bad information. 

Reddit has changed its conversation ads. 

Snapchat

Snapchat now has increased safety features, including improved blocking abilities. 

“Snap Inc., the parent company of Snapchat, has agreed to pay $15 million to settle a gender discrimination lawsuit from the California Civil Rights Department...Snap paid women less and offered them fewer promotions when compared to male employees.”

Threads

Threads has expanded the ability to post to other federated social sites. 

TikTok

TikTok has combined a lot of its Creator Center tools into one dashboard called TikTok Studio. 

Klaviyo now integrates with Tiktok, so advertisers can find their known audiences and personalize ads. 

Twitter

Hootsuite has updated its guide to Twitter ads, which is quite detailed. 

(CONTENT) MARKETING (includes blogging, emails, and strategies) 

July content marketing ideas include International Joke Day (July 1). [I can’t decide if I am insulted or not that it is the same day as Canada Day.] 

Patreon has announced several upcoming changes to their creator tools, including the ability to give away paid memberships to fans at no charge, opening chat to free members, and a countdown clock for big posts. 

ONLINE ADVERTISING (EXCEPT INDIVIDUAL SOCIAL MEDIA AND ECOMMERCE SITES) 

Microsoft’s smart shopping campaigns will become “Performance Max” in the near future, although you can also make that change yourself now. 

Brave now has Search Ads in some areas, after testing them for a year and a half. 

Websites that offer coupon codes and use Google’s free shopping ads can sign up to have the codes displayed in Google's organic search listings. You can get all of the details here. 

STATS, DATA, TRACKING 

If you use Google Shopping Ads (free or paid) for your website, you can now see their performance in Google Images by using the Google Search Console. 

Google Analytics 4 has an updated Realtime report now. 

BUSINESS & CONSUMER TRENDS, STATS & REPORTS; SOCIOLOGY & PSYCHOLOGY, CUSTOMER SERVICE 

Price cutting (as opposed to sales and discounts) is the latest retail trend. “[C]onsumer spending on goods fell 0.2% during [April]”, while US prices were up 2.7%. 

US consumers are still buying some types of “hot” items, such as clothing, but they are spending less on electronics and homewares. 

UK ecommerce sales to the EU have dropped £5.9 billion since Brexit. 

IMAGES, VIDEO, GRAPHIC DESIGN, & FREE ONLINE TOOLS

Adobe confirms it will not use its customers’ content to train AI.

A list of 19 new design tools, including free fonts. [Note: some of the tools use AI.] And here are even more free font libraries and resources. 

Get notified of these updates plus my website blog posts via email: http://bit.ly/CindyLouWho2Blog Get all of the most timely updates plus exclusive content by supporting my Patreon: patreon.com/CindyLouWho2

[artistic-m3nace]

Tried my hand at the ol' "display your own gallery" trend we were all doing a while ago! (ft. some of my latest, strongest work and pure vibes)...

»--•--«

Hello out there again!!

I'm going to be re-sharing a lot of the free content I've been posting to Patreon because I've realized that's about the only place I'm active right now aaaand that needs to change.

So, while I'll probably reblog the Timeline Tuesday posts later on for the sake of continuity, I figured I'd start with a modified version of my intro post explaining WHY I'm moving primarily to Patreon:

»--•--«

For those of you who might be finding my page for the first time or are otherwise less familiar with me:

Hello! Allow me to introduce myself:

My name is Ripley (Artistic Menace, or R. A. Menace), and I'm the creator of Broken Dimensions, an in-development sci-fi fantasy project universe!

I am an illustrator and author with experience in illustration, creative writing, story and concept dev, graphic novel development, and social media. I'm also a recent graduate from a digital arts program at a non-art university, and I have big dreams for getting my art and stories out into the world.

The goal of starting my Patreon is to develop platform that not only works well with my work schedule, but also allows me to form a comprehensive, easy-to-follow guide and resource forum for Broken Dimensions. However, I work retail 4-6 days a week. My ability to work on or share art or writing is limited. In addition to this, the world (especially that of the entertainment industry) is a mess right now!

That's where you come in:

While most of the introductory worldbuilding stuff for Broken Dimensions will be always available on a free tier, now that we're past a certain point I have begun posting special art, worldbuilding progress, constructed language info, special content, and prose on paid tiers. Work published to the free tier has been somewhat reduced and/or continues to be released later than on the paid tiers. I kindly ask that those of you who find my work interesting continue to support me by becoming paying members!

You can support me financially by joining any of the three Patreon tiers:

"ooo, shiny!" (tier 1, $2/mo)

Monthly sketch dumps

All paid worldbuilding posts

Most finished illustrations

And more!

"woah! SUPER shiny!" (tier 2, $5/mo)

Everything in tier 1

Weekly sketch dumps, plus my ramblings

Early access to all finished artwork

And some other things!

"SHOOTING STAR!!"

Everything in tiers 1 and 2

Written fiction of all kinds, including snippets and WIPs

Smut (written and drawn)?? (Still working this one out)

Monthly shout-outs

Possibly requests??

If you cannot support my financially that's okay! Please consider sharing my posts, social media pages, and shop links instead.

You're welcome to re-share these social media platforms and links to anything on them:

Cara | artistic-menace

Bluesky | artistic-menace

Instagram | artistic_m3nace*

This tumblr!

If you're willing and able to support me financially, you're also able to support me through Redbubble and INPRNT!

Redbubble | Artistic Menace

INPRNT | Ripley Poremba

»--•--«

There's still a lot of progress to be had when it comes to posting, themes, and updates on Patreon. For more on that, read the March Update Post that has more details on my current situation and reasoning.

For now, that's all! I hope you'll continue to follow along as I build up the narrative of Broken Dimensions and prepare to share more awesome art.

[pochqmqri]

With how OtonaPre ended up being mid and had several questionable choices, I know that there are some, myself included, who are worried about how the MahoPre adult sequel will turn out. Even so, I remain cautiously optimistic, as this was always the one out of the two I was the most excited for.

Going back to the initial announcement for both OtonaPre and the MahoPre sequel, it's interesting to note that they only tentatively call it Mahou Tsukai PreCure! 2. They don't outright call it something like Otona Mahou Tsukai PreCure!, so maybe it's not really tied to the OtonaPre brand.

This would be a welcome change because one of the main problems with OtonaPre was that they tried to juggle a main cast of 8, arguably 10, or even 13, in just 12 episodes. This meant that several characters got shafted in development, notably Rin, Komachi, and Mai. In a MahoPre sequel, we'd only really need focus on Mirai, Riko, Haa-chan, and Mofurun, and maybe a few of the other side characters. Realistically I don't see what other seasons they could try and jam into MahoPre2, like not GoPriPre or KiraPre. MahoPre has such a distinctive style to it with all the witchcraft stuff.

Another thing to note from that initial announcement is that MahoPre2 will be airing on the late-night Animazing!!! block owned by TV Asahi and ABC TV, on Sundays 2:00-2:30 AM. This is quite the unusual choice because even OtonaPre, which aired on NHK-E, aired as late as Saturday 6:30PM. Similarly, Tokyo Mew Mew New aired around midnight when it broadcasted. I don't know what this really means in terms of "adult content" though, because even TMMN was mostly restrained in that regard. OtonaPre aired on a night/afternoon timeslot, but it also aired in the same block that had stuff like Spongebob, so they couldn't get too "adult," the most being stuff like alcohol consumption and climate change.

From this article back in March, Producer Takashi Washio notes that when NHK-E ("E" standing for education) was chosen to air OtonaPre on, he was asked if they could focus on topics related to SDGs, sustainable development goals. This is why OtonaPre has a large focus on climate change and sustainability, despite it feeling a bit out of place. I appreciate the focus on such topics, but I felt like it was taking up too much space in OtonaPre when combined with the topics of adulthood struggles and usual PreCure stuff, especially for just 12 episodes. I also think that the aforementioned Tokyo Mew Mew New, which aired last year and earlier this year, was much better at conveying these topics.

There's not much we know about MahoPre2, but I think I can say for certain that it won't have much of heavy environmental theme to it, and more so focus on expanding the lore of the Witch World. I expect the sequel to have 12-13 episodes like OtonaPre did, so not trying to jam several themes into such a limited scope will be good.

Another thing, that's a bit small is that, personally, I wasn't a fan of the art direction, notably the character designs, of OtonaPre. Toei outsourced the anime primarily to Studio DEEN, so most of the staff, character designer, series director, animation directors, art director, etc. were assigned to people who didn't seem to be that familiar with the series and the final product sort of reflected that. It's understandable why Toei outsourced most of the production, as this year, they also had to focus on the usual yearly PreCure, One Piece, the Sailor Moon Cosmos films, etc., and I expect more of the same next year for MahoPre2.

But I think that, at least in terms of character designer, we might get Emiko Miyamoto, who was the CD for the original MahoPre, back. The reason why Toshie Kawamura, who was the CD for Yes! Pretty Cure 5 and Yes! Pretty Cure 5 GoGo!, didn't come back for OtonaPre, seems to be that she's currently not accepting new work due to her poor health, as stated in her Twitter bio. This makes sense, as Kawamura recently did the character designs for the all-male Dancing Star PreCure, which, as a live-action stage play, had less commitments for her to deal with compared to OtonaPre. In contrast, from what I could gather, Miyamoto appears to be in good health, and she hasn't really done much work since Dragon Quest: Adventure of Dai, which ended last year. She did do some small animation work for the recent PreCure All Stars F film, but that's pretty much it. I think there will be time for her to return next year for MahoPre2, along with other staff like head writer Isao Murayama and series director Masato Mitsuka.

Ideally, I would hope that MahoPre2 has the women transform into adult Pretty Cure, unlike what OtonaPre did, but there's really nothing right now that I can predict, other than that it seemingly not being apart of the OtonaPre brand may raise some hope.

So yeah, these are the reasons why I'm holding out hope that MahoPre2 will still be good. Hopefully they don't do what they did in OtonaPre and have Mirai and Riko be paired off with random faceless men, and instead with each other. They have to make it gayer, with maintext, not subtext, like how they kissed in the manga.

[journey-to-the-attic]

Trailblazer Ik:

:0

YAY YOU’RE PLAYING HSR!!! Now that you have a general idea of it, can i tell you some cute scenarios i thought of?

So just imagine, Ik looking at Welt expectantly as he tells them stories of something from his homeworld or anything that seems interesting, Ik helping March with her pictures and go get bubble tea together (with Dan Heng probably paying), Ik and Dan heng just reading together in the Data bank, enjoying each others presence (i imagine Ik and Dan Heng’s relationship to be similar to her and Satan’s because when you think about it, Dan Heng and Satan are kinda similar once you know of Dan Heng’s past), Himeko and Ik enjoying a cup of coffee together as Ik is probably the only one in the Astral Express who likes Himeko’s coffee (sooo Himeko’s coffee can be said to be the equivalent of Solomon’s cooking), Ik just hugging Pom Pom because Pom Pom is adorable and must be hugged! and lastly, Stelle and Ik going trash dumbing because it is what they must do.

Also remember Bailu? A character i told you about how i imagined Dragon!Ik would look like? I cant help but imagine Bailu and Ik would get along so well! Ik being the one to invite her to the Astral Express as a place to hide and chill when she wants to run away from work, Bailu showing Ik local Xianzhou snacks (-with either Stelle or Dan Heng paying), and just the both of them being the cutest partners in crime

And that’s it for now, i would like to add more but idk where you’re currently are rn. So what part of the story are you at rn?

Hope you have a lovely day/night btw!

- 🐧 Anon

i'm up to the end of the jarilo mission! i sort of fell off before getting to a high enough level to start the luofu stuff, but i've been meaning to get back to it... i'm vaguely aware of the imbibitor lunae stuff, but not well-versed with the details

stelle and ik knocking over trashcans and very intently rifling through the contents while march films and dan heng stands off to the side pretending he doesn't know them. big and little raccoon <33 i like to imagine that stelle carries her around on her back to explore bc she has a hard time keeping up with the adults

also yes bailu and ik!!! i still haven't met bailu in-game yet but i Love her (perhaps partially because she has the same cn va as paimon). you'll find them just scampering around the astral express, probably causing trouble for later, but they seem to be having so much fun that you can't bring yourself to stop them

all iks share a universal love for creatures also so ik would just be thrilled to be friends with not one but TWO dragons. upon meeting dan heng in IL form for the first time she's just like ":O you're so COOL"

[kyepha]

Update - Thoughts about YouTube

Hello!! So I figured alongside posting art and posting new videos, I could also use this blog as .. you know .. a blog.

So here’s a little catch up on where I’ve been at in the past couple of months.

It’s the beginning of March and I’ve already uploaded two videos this year which is near record breaking. Usually nothing is up until April.

Something I’ve been slightly scared about is the fact I’m jumping ship from Pokémon content again. I did something similar back in 2020 and when I look back at the content I made back in ‘20 and ‘21 (and the variety stuff in ‘22!) it makes me wonder why I don’t go back and do that again - but just in a different form.

I do love Pokémon but making my channel totally Pokémon/Fakemon focused has started to feel like a chore. There just isn’t a lot to cover that I’m super interested in, and the videos weren’t super fun to make anymore which I feel was definitely reflected in the final product.

The Halo and Sims videos I’ve recently uploaded were some of the most fun ones to make and so I’m just going to keep at it, see where I can go with the current format.

My next video has just been scripted. Since these latest videos are very much gameplay focused and don’t feature really any animation, I’ve had to shake up my process which has been a fun challenge. Now I’m making a rough cut of the footage and then writing my script around that sequence. I’ll spend tomorrow recording the script and then I’ll work hard on the video so I can have it ready for you next week.

It’s a really fun video, and the game is WILD - like nothing I’ve seen before. Think Total Drama x Animal Crossing.

With this new format I’ll also be able to upload so much more frequently and share a whole lot of interesting games that I’ve been wanting to talk about for years. I hope you’re excited to see what I’ve got cooking, I’m more than excited to share it.

But that’s all from me today, I’ll probably write another blog post when I upload my next vid!

All the best,

Ky 🌟

[honney-pies]

Ma Cherie ❤︎

Family Bonding

Pairing: Inumaki Toge/F! oc/ Okkotsu Yuuta

Length: 2.3k

Summary: Kanae has some bonding moments with Satoru and there's totally no angst

Content warning: this chapter contains major spoilers for jjk season two, elements of temporary character death, stabbing, excessive bleeding, and toji

A/N: guys i actually remembered to post! as always there is a self insert version on my blog and you can also find me on ao3.

Teaser -- Chapter One

  ─── ⋆⋅ November 2016 ⋅⋆ ─── 

Yuuta and Kanae had just finished a job with Inumaki and were currently waiting for him outside of a convenience store while he got his throat medicine. Since the two had their conversation a couple weeks ago, they have been getting closer and more open with each other. Toge noticed and thought it was quite cute, Kanae also noticed how the pair had also been getting closer since their last mission. She also thought it was cute. 

She saw Yuuta fidgeting and knew that he was going to ask something that he felt was an invasion of privacy, though it hardly was.

“Um Kamo-”

“Kanae, ‘kkotsu,” she interrupted. 

 “Kanae-san, how do you know Gojo-sensei outside of school?” She looked at him as she tilted her head to the side.

“What do you mean?”

“I know you’ve told me a little bit about how he was the one who raised you, but how did that happen? Why did it happen?” Kanae finds it amusing how quickly he became comfortable enough to ask personal questions without stuttering. She smiled at him and hummed.

“Well technically we first met when I was one, but I don’t remember that for obvious reasons. He said it was boring since I couldn’t talk yet. Our parents made a deal that I would basically be his puppet if the time ever came he would need support or something like that. I don’t know the details of it and I don’t care all that much since I know he wouldn’t put me in that position without asking me.”

  ─── ⋆⋅ March 2001 ⋅⋆ ─── 

“Satoru-kun, why don’t you spend some time with Kamo-kun while we grownups talk?” Satoru knew that he shouldn’t say anything and just go along with it, but that didn’t stop him from making a rude remark to his mom; being the chosen one had its perks.

“So, you’re how old?” No response. Just the baby babble and the smashing of toys.

“What’s your name?” Again, no response.

“Do you know how to do anything?” At that the child stood up and took a couple shaky steps before falling and laughing, she was clearly proud of herself.

“You’re not interesting.” The young girl huffed and went back to her blocks and all Satoru could do was stare at her. Semi entertained.

 ─── ⋆⋅ November 2016 ⋅⋆ ─── 

“So you’ve known him almost your whole life?”

“Yeah pretty much!” The pair saw Inumaki exit the store and he quickly met the two out front and began the walk back to the school since it wasn’t that far away.

“Any more questions?” Yuuta looked lost in thought and then looked back at her.

“Kanae-san, what was it like growing up with Sensei?” Kanae laughed a little at that.

“He’s one of the loudest people I know, he was there for all my school stuff, he got banned from my school at one point because he and my brother were caught threatening a kid for making fun of me. They would walk me to and from school and Sho-nee was the only one allowed to get me from school if Yaga-san wasn’t available. It was annoying but a lot of fun too.”

─── ⋆⋅ April 2006 ⋅⋆ ─── 

 As the young girl walked through the barrier of the school she wanted to go straight to her room and not come out. Unfortunately Suguru knew something was wrong the whole walk home. 

“Kanae, would you like to talk about how her school day was,” he asked. She shook her head. Her frown practically a permanent feature on her face. He grabbed her hand a little tighter.

“How about we make cookies?” He laughed at how bright her eyes became and Kanae practically sprinted to the kitchen. He called Satoru and told him to head to the kitchen once he’s done with his meeting with the elders. It’s comical how quickly he showed up after that. 

“Kanae, how was school?” Satoru really needed to learn how to read the room a little better. Kanae frowned and then her eyes got watery.

“Today was bring your mom to school day.” The other two looked at each other with wide eyes, holding a conversation with no words and only glances. 

“How was it?” 

“Awkward. Some of the mom’s asked questions, but they were pretty nice to me after I told them she died,” she said, “But a couple of the kids made fun of me and the moms looked at me weird, I didn’t like it at all and it made me feel sad. One boy said that I can’t have a family and when I tried to tell him I did he just yelled over me!” Satoru and Suguru could tell she wasn’t going to feel better soon, but they would do all they could until she did. 

“We’ll walk you to school tomorrow, okay?” She nodded her head as she watched the cookies bake in the oven. They took silly pictures and watched a silly movie.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next day the three of them made sure to leave a little early to talk with the school and with the boy. The boys went to deal with the insolent child. 

“Kanae, who’s the boy who made you feel bad?” She pointed to a boy with the ugliest fucking haircut and they stalked up to him and started bareting him. 

“Who do you think you are talking to her like that?”

“How dare you say she doesn’t have a family?”

“Do I need to talk to your mother?”

“You ever do it again, we'll take your cat!”

“Satoru, too far,” Suguru whispered before saying, “we’ll burn your house to the ground instead. After making sure your cat isn’t inside.”

“U-Uh I don’ have a cat.”

“What the hell is wrong with you?”

“What, do you like dogs more?” The boy shakily nodded his head.

“What are you, a psycho? We should take your dog!”

“Suguru, too far,” Satoru whispered before telling the boy if he ever pulled a stunt like that again he would track him down and eat his bed.

“Satoru, what is with you and eating things?” 

“Don’t ques-”

“Gojo-san, Geto-san, what are you doing to that poor boy?” 

In the end Shoko had to come to the school and bail them both out of trouble, but not before it was stated that they could never step foot on the school grounds again. 

Kanae was so embarrassed, but happy when she found out. Satoru bought her a phone so she could call them if something happened again, Suguru bought her charms for it and they spent the afternoon bedazzling it while sitting in the corner of Shoko’s room while she got ready for her “hangout” with Utahime. 

─── ⋆⋅ November 2016 ⋅⋆ ── 

“Your brother?” Kanae looked straight ahead and she felt Inumaki nudging her arm with his shoulder.

“Did I ask something I shouldn’t have?”

“No, you didn’t. It’s just a sore subject, maybe not the best one for right now.” Yuuta looked at her and saw the sad smile on her face. 

As they entered the school grounds, Yuuta noticed how Kanae avoided walking across a couple cracks in the ground. Upon closer inspection he also saw that the concrete was slightly uneven and had splotches of discoloration surrounding it. They were only slightly darker than the rest of the ground, small weeds growing through. 

Just when he was about to ask about why it wasn’t as pristine as the rest of the school, Inumaki bumped shoulders with him and shook his head. 

‘Not a good time, maybe later,’ the boy signed. 

─── ⋆⋅August 2006⋅⋆ ── 

Kanae had been hanging out with Yaga learning more about how cursed energy flows when she got a text from Satoru letting her know that they just left the airport and would be home soon. Of course she had been planning on meeting everyone at the barrier, but Yaga had wanted to finish more of the lesson before she went to go goof off with her “bestest-not-brother-brothers” for the rest of the day. Yaga had a sneaking suspicion that Kanae saw Satoru more as a father and Satoru saw her as his daughter no matter how much he tried to deny it. Especially after what happened with her mother. It had been a while since the two of them had been away from each other for that long, even though it had only been two days, and called each other regularly and texted frequently. After Yaga decided that she had done enough of the lesson he let her go run off.

Kanae was extremely excited to see her brothers after the two days apart, nearly three! There was also a very pretty girl who she spoke to on the phone named Amanai. She was also excited to meet her. Though from what her brothers had told her they could only meet for a minute or two since she was supposed to meet and ‘assimilate with Tegen-sama’ whoever and whatever that was. 

When Kanae arrived at the entrance of the school she hadn’t been prepared for what she saw. Her doting brother was lying in a pool of his blood as a dark haired man stood over him. The man began to walk away, towards her. Well towards Tegen-sama and the Plasma Star Vessel - Amanai -  but she didn’t know that at the time. What she did know was that she was scared. Kanae was scared that she was going to die and this time no one would be able to save her from death like they had from her mother. 

Before she knew what was happening, a blade made its way just under her collarbone and a scream ripped its way from her throat. She didn’t remember seeing the man move, let alone that quickly, but she did remember his face. A scar across his bottom lip, bright green eyes.All Kanae could think is how much the man looked like her mother as he threw her towards her future guardian, her protector. 

She could feel the blood leaving her body and that terrified her, but that’s not what scared her the most. What scared her was that she couldn’t feel Satoru. She had never been able to describe it all that well, mainly because she didn’t fully understand what ‘it’ was, but she always knew if he was close. She could hear his heartbeat and feel his blood move. But now she couldn’t feel either. She felt nothing from him and she couldn’t help but sob. She sobbed for what felt like forever to the poor girl as she wished all the blood would go away, that all the blood would return to where it was supposed to be.

“Toru-nii please! Please wake up!” Kanae repeated this over and over as she clung to him like a lifeline, ignoring the pain wracking her small body, like he would come back to her. Her throat had become raw and her voice became hoarse, but she didn’t stop. She couldn’t stop until he came back to her. Kanae could feel her consciousness starting to drift away. Her body was tired from crying, loss of blood, and loss of energy.  As she began to lose hope for Satoru to wake up, she voiced two final sentences. 

“Dad please don’t leave me, you promised! You promised to stay with me!” Her blood mixed with his until there was no separating them and she began to feel her cries be answered. She could feel Satoru again. Kanae could feel one of the most important people in her life had begun to wake up. She felt his arms move to hold her and she felt as if everything would be okay again. Her tears had stained their clothes and she could feel the snot from her nose move its way into her mouth and it bothered her immensely, but she would rather deal with it than to let go of Satoru. 

“I’m here, Kanae. Toru-nii’s here… your dad’s here,” Satoru said these words in a mantra until the young girl began to loosen her hold on him enough for him to look at her. He saw blood coating the left part of her chest and in the back of his mind he could tell that it wasn’t his blood. That thought alone was more than enough to send him into a panic. He saw the stab wound and placed his hand over it and pulled her closer to his chest, pressing a soft kiss on to her temple. 

“I’m sorry for scaring you like that. I won’t do it again. Big Bro-dads shouldn’t go back on their promises.” Kanae looked him in the eyes and furrowed her brow. 

“Wha’s a bro-dad?” Satoru laughed a small, quiet laugh at the tired girl. Nothing like his usual one. 

“Me of course! I’m your bestest big brother and I’m going to be your legal parent when I’m legally allowed, so you can’t go away now, at least not when we’re so close to finally saving each other!” Kanae smiled at him and rested her head against him. 

“You’re the best bro-dad ever, Toru-nii.” And all Satoru could do was pull his little girl as close as he possibly could without hurting her and promise to himself that he would try his damn hardest not to scare her like that again. 

─── ⋆⋅ November 2016 ⋅⋆ ── 

Once they reach the main training grounds, they see Gojo helping to train the other first years when he got a phone call. 

“Hello? Ah yes, this is his guardian… another one? Yes, I'll be there shortly.” Kanae let out a small snort and pulled out her phone, sending a quick text. 

“Do you want me to go get him, Gojo,” she asked. He looked at her through his bandages and smiled. 

“I’m sure Megumi-chan would love that!” She smiled and looked over at Yuuta.

“Would you like to come with me?” The boy in question tilted his head to the side.

“Where are we going?”

“To go get a little crotch goblin,” she replied. 

“... Huh?”

____________________________________________________________

a/n: thank you so much for reading!! the next chepter, 'what once was,' is heavily revolved around suguru and kanae's dynamic along with satosugu, so yeah lol. it will contain spoilers for jjk season two and jjk 0, i'm also going to refrence spoilers for the shibuya arc as well, so be aware please.

[talenlee]

The Increasing Presence of Anime On This Blog

The Increasing Presence of Anime On This Blog

Around early April, late March, I made a chart to check the distribution of material I was covering in Story Pile, and then the stuff I had planned to watch. I made this chart because I realised that there were anime I was looking to cover, but I already had covered an anime in that month. And then I realised that my initial idea to keep the distribution of content varied, which was to write anime articles starting in november and work towards the current now, had kinda hit a wall, because I had already watched more than twelve anime this year.

The anime had caught up with containment.

The anime had breached.

There was no plan to make this blog ‘about’ anime as a primary form of the story pile. The original plan was in an attempt to engage with anime (something I like) more, I would plan to watch at least one, a month, and write about it. This plan meant I grabbed a bunch of stuff that looked interesting, and then it started. I watched some anime dubbed at double speed to rip through it, to remind myself of specific points in specific shows.

Hey, did you know there’s a video sharing website like Youtube that’s primarily for Indonesian users? And that they put anime up there with dubs in their (sometimes very specific) languages? As far as fun group projects to do with your besties, ‘let’s all dub an anime together’ is pretty sweet, considering how likely you are to have your interests underserved anyway, and it’d teach you a lot about how to make things and do dubbing tracks.

It also reminded me that as much as anime is being made available for me in maximally convenient ways these days, there are still these uneven distributions. Funimation don’t subtitle the opening songs – which is a really weird thing since that’s a thing fansubbers have been doing for decades and their absence actually makes Funimation’s work look less professional. I want to know what the themes of the opening song to Kageki Shojo is, dammit!

But still, I wound up going: Hang on, this is becoming an anime blog.

It’s weird, though, because it’s not like I felt the need to defend the blog material when, thanks to a Netflix subscription, I was watching entire series of Star Trek at a time. Or that there were periods where the Story Pile featured a bunch of movies all in a row. What’s extra surprising to me, as I engage with this, is the way that I feel apologetic about this, like hey, I know you didn’t sign up to learn about anime, you came here for other stuff.

But nobody’s said that.

I have a friend who isn’t into anime. He rightly points out filler elements in it, and the ways that the genre does things like explicate things with dialogue that you wouldn’t see done in non-anime sources. Regardless of why things are this way, this doesn’t change the fact that anime observably has trends for storytelling and budget extension that works on different rules. A diet of nothing but anime builds a reference pool that is, mostly, other anime, and that kind of thing is what leads to heavy anime fans (in my experience) having a very basic vision of storytelling, because they’re too marinated in the experience of anime’s conventional structures.

It also means they’re probably way too okay with some of the things that anime does which we file, in general, under ‘Anime Bullshit.’ Things like weird age ranges or dubious consent communication, or even less obviously odious things like the way that these stories overwhelmingly are about finding a place to operate within a system, rather than doing things to destroy or replace those systems.

(Generally.)

(It’s getting better.)

The big reason I find myself watching anime lately, though, is a practice of sharing time with Fox away from our computers. I still have my phone on me – if people need me, I want to be able to talk to them! – but to watch anime together, we have to get away from the computer, sit on the couch together, and focus on the show. We can talk to one another, but there’s no other tasks that get done, no cooking or baking or cleaning — it really is just time spent, with one another, as we share in a media experience. Fox can do exercises for her wrists, I can take some time to rest my hands, and all of this while we get to watch a radio announcer lose her mind.

The subtitles really pin me in place – I can’t just ignore what’s going on in a show, and catch up from context clues in the same way to jog my memory of what I heard while I wasn’t focused.

This isn’t the only way I’m watching anime. I also have some anime I put on monitor 2 and watch while I’m doing more rote things on monitor 1. Minecraft or Pokemon are both great anime watching material, just grinding through some simple things that don’t need a lot of active attention. Digging through text for references and rewording things to make more sense? Easy to do while watching anime. I didn’t burn through a whole season of Jujutsu Kaisen in a day without a lot of fiddly word choices to pick through.

Which means that anime suits me right now. It doesn’t hurt things that anime of the past few years has been really good. The stories they’re being based on are developed more, there’s less filler and padding, and the stuff they choose to be about seem more focused? It wasn’t planned, but man, there’s so much cool anime happening right now and I’m really glad I’m getting to enjoy it, especially with Fox.

And that means that this blog is gunna be a bit of an anime blog for a while. Don’t worry, I am mixing it up! I’ve written about more books this year than I expected, because books are usually really hard to engage with with so much of my day to day involving reading these days.

Check it out on PRESS.exe to see it with images and links!

#Media #Meta #Anime

[bandkidcentral]

WELCOME + UPDATE

Let’s get the update part out of the way first…

This blog is being ran by alters in a system! Since our core (Phoenix) has been occupied with innerworld stuff, we’d rather not let his blogs get abandoned- so mind as well post content of ours… lol. This’ll go for continuing any projects he has and whatnot. Thumbs up!

WELCOME TO THE BAND ROOM!

We are the Marching Band Collective! Named curtesy after Phoenix’s love for the sport. We have been diagnosed some years back along with a few other things…

Collectively we don’t have very many interests. But I’ll list em anyways: marching band, dystopian novels (Divergent & The Hunger Games), The Amazing Digital Circus, Project Arrhythmia, SCP, Murder Drones, Evangelion, Regretevator, Dandy’s World, Five Nights at Freddy’s, and horror stuff.

Bodily we are 19 but DO NOT BE WEIRD OR CREEPY AROUND US. You will be blocked.

Who will be running this blog?

It’s a handful that I’ll list here, we’ll be signing off with our symbol!

Siley 🔻 - any pronouns [CURRENT HOST]

Cleo 🏔️ - she/her

Elizabeth ⚫️ - she/it

Dauntless 🎡 - she/her

Erudite 👁️ - he/him

Candor ⚖️ - he/they

Amity 🌳 - she/he

Abnegation 🤝 - they/them

Melodious 🎵 - she/they

Trip ⚛️ - she/they

Zodiac 🦈 - he/any pronouns

Kairos 🔱 - any pronouns

OTHER BLOGS!

@bandkidcentral - Main blog

@marchingbandcollective - System blog (that we don’t even use lmfao, maybe one day)

@red-carnival - A blog strictly for gore artwork (16+ ONLY)

@musicbythefield - More personal blog to post personal or vent artworks

@facilityofsickdreams - Experimental AU blog (WILL CONTAIN UPSETTING CONTENT)