#emperor you are massacring the competition

[homeinchaldea]

Finally got a lock-on chocolate while farming.

So there’s no doubt who will be the first one to get it.

[thebigpapilio]

so everyone knows my ASAU of Persona 5 Royal, A Righteous Rebellion. right? And we're all also aware of @scruffyturtles' Adult Confidant AU?

well I sorta fused them? tldr: i made a (mostly) Adult Confidant AU for ARR! Details below, if you're interested - and if you have any questions about it, please ask @rollthedice-playthecards or this blog here!

WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS FOR ARR! CANON-STANDARD TRIGGER WARNINGS!

The Fool and Strength (i.e. Igor & Caroline/Justine/Lavenza) are the same. Otherwise, everyone's changed.

The World (i.e. Protagonist) is Tae Takemi!

Her parents were abusive shitheads to her, and she got into a program that helped her escape for Tokyo.

Her first Persona is Merit-Ptah, a fictitious woman purported to be a chief physician of an Ancient Egyptian pharaoh and thus one of the oldest known women in medicine and science.

The Magician is Sadamu Niijima (transmasc!Sae)!

The home invasion that killed Mr. Niijima also led to his death, but Igor came upon his soul and reincarnated him into a hound (because of Shadow Sae's tattoos) for The Yaldabaoth Game™.

His first Persona is Turiddu, a Sicilian bandit whose gang was "legally held responsible" for a massacre, although the entirely of their role in it is disputed.

The Priestess is Sadayo Kawakami!

She was a member of Student Council, but when she brought up Kamoshida's abuse to Principal Omon "Bael" Kobayakawa, she lost her seat. Kobayakawa actually replaces Kaneshiro as the third major target.

Her first Persona is Elissa, legendary founder and queen of Carthage... oh, and I will be shipping her with Tae for my Kawakemi agenda. :)

The Empress is Chihaya Fukurai (Mifune)!

Yuichi "Mammon" Fukurai, her adoptive father, runs Fukurai Foods (Big Bang Burger's owner and more). Chihaya was setting up to inherit the business when Yuichi "changed his mind" and prepared to sell her off in an arranged marriage to Rikio Sugimura.

Her first Persona is Lakshmibai, an Indian rani who rebelled against the Bri'ish.

The Emperor is Sojiro Sakura!

He's a culinary prodigy studying under his adoptive parent (I haven't decided who yet, but they're Azazel) - a TV chef who runs a kids' competition a la Chopped Junior. They definitely abuse some of those kids.

His Initial Persona is Hamlet, the famous Shakespearean Prince of Denmark.

The Hierophant is Makoto Niijima, owner of Cafe Bianca.

She's been looking for her estranged younger "sister" for years now.

The Lovers is Munehisa Iwai!

Munehisa is Shujin’s star athlete. Excels in every sport in Shujin except volleyball, from which he was banned after standing up to Suguru "Asmodeus" Kamoshida.

Kaoru, his younger brother here, takes the role of Shiho, and Akimitsu Tsuda and Masa replace Nakaoka and Takeishi.

His Initial Persona is Barrow, a Great Depression-era criminal who robbed small stores, funeral homes and banks with his partner Ms. Parker.

The Chariot is Ichiko Ohya!

Leader of the photography club. She caught photos of Kamoshida’s dirty deeds in the past and is trying to find a way to expose them anonymously. Oh, and she has a long-distance girlfriend named Kayo.

Her Initial Persona is O'Malley, an Irish pirate queen so violent Elizabeth I considered sending the Royal Fleet after.

Justice is Toranosuke Yoshida!

I sort of split Goro's two roles in this AU. Toranosuke plays the Detective Prince trying to solve the case of mental shutdowns (+ the Phantom Thief case), but his brother-by-choice Benzo Kuramoto plays assassin and mental-shutdown-inducer for Masao Kuramoto, his grandfather. Tora joins the team in Oda's Palace, and they fight Benzo in Kuramoto's Palace - that's where Toranosuke achieves his Second Persona.

Speaking of Personas, his Initial one is Greenlefe, Robin Hood's second-in-command and the only one present at his death.

The Hermit is Takuto Niijima (Maruki)!

Makoto had a brief stint as a police officer, but after a influential asshole (Kuramoto) drove drunk and killed one Tomoyo Rumi, she attempted to dig into the situation and was dishonorably discharged. Soon after, she met Rumi's boyfriend, Takuto (an orphan with one shitty relative), and took him in.

He would be a third-year if he was still in school. He’s wasting away as he grieves Rumi's death. He can’t bring himself to kill himself, but he also doesn't want to be alive anymore.

His Initial Persona is Popol Vuh, a religious text of the mythology and history of the Kʼicheʼ Guatemalans.

The Fortune is Hifumi Hibino (Togo)!

After Mitsuyo disowned Hifumi for coming out as lesbian, Hifumi moved in with her wife Haru (they both end up with Makoto later). Hifumi took up busking/street shogi, not wanting to be reliant on Haru.

The Hanged Man is Akira Kurusu!

Not much for this guy right now - like Canon!Munehisa, he's an ex-yakuza who runs Indomptable, an airsoft store. Ren is his adoptive son.

Death is Sumire Yoshizawa!

A medical misdiagnosis (by her biological mother Yui, not that she knows it) left Sumire's sister in a coma. Ever since, Sumire can't see anyone unconscious without thinking of Kasumi.

Temperance is Ryuji Sakamoto!

An orphaned man who teaches PE at Shujin and moonlights in an escort service to take care of himself and his son Morgana.

Just after his college years, his mom's ex-husband killed her and then killed himself to escape the police, so he has no support system. Thus, he got himself into trouble with a duo of loan sharks so he could look presentable enough to replace Kamoshida.

He, Ann and Shiho were friends in high-school, but he never saw them again after graduating.

The Devil is Ann Takamaki!

An up-and-coming actress working hard to make it big. She's keeping her sexuality (and her girlfriends Shiho Suzui and Mika Abe) under wraps from everyone, including her manager.

At the end of the Confidant, she moves in with her old friend (and future boyfriend) Ryuji after Tae mentions him.

The Tower is Goro Shido (Akechi)!

Goro is a very temperamental young man with no methods of healthily and safely letting out his anger at the world and his shitty, abusive father.

After Shido's heart is changed, Ryuji (and Ann and Shiho) take Goro in.

The Star is Zenkichi Hasegawa!

Even if Zen doesn't know it, he's the best player in the shogi club at Kosei. It's discovered their "team" has been fixing matches, and Zenkichi is determined to find out who's cheating.

Jyun Owada, his senpai and club president, is jealous, and is trying to cause strife between him and his girlfriend Aoi to weaken him.

The Moon is Sophia Ichinose!

Sophia is a Greek immigrant who moved to Japan for work opportunities. She's Tae's science teacher, so Tae really likes her. Her daughter Kuon, however, has fallen in with a HORRIBLY nasty crowd - a bigoted group who hates (among other groups of people) Kuon's adoptive mother. Kuon, naturally, is conflicted, and this leads to conflict between her and Sophia.

The Sun is Haru Hibino!

A young politician whose bold eat-the-wealthy mentality does not sit well with older generations - for example, her father Kunikazu, who disowned her and silently smeared her campaigns so she'd waste her inheritance and never expose his criminality.

In the end of the whole story, Haru legalizes polyamorous marriage!

Judgement is Shinya Oda!

Uses they/them pronouns here.

After Shinya's mother Hanae was killed in cold blood, they joined the SIU to find the killer. She did something to piss off Kuramoto, though, so he and the director do everything they can to keep Shinya away from that.

The Faith is Wakaba Isshiki!

Daughter of Shujin's new counselor. A science prodigy.

I don't have much ideas for her yet, never mind her Personas.

The Councillor is Futaba Isshiki!

Shujin's aforementioned new counselor in the wake of Kamoshida's arrest. Believing the world to be "without life" without her deceased fiancee Kana, her Palace becomes a Graveyard, where she "raises the dead" by fixing their problems.

She only has one Persona - Chac Chel, an important Maya goddess of many things, most prominently both creation and destruction.

The Hope is Yuuki (Mishima)!

His ranged weapon is eye lasers. They use both he/him and they/them.

An A.I. made by Katsuo Akiyama, a regretful high-school bully who caused one of his victims to commit suicide.

Their first Persona is Thyrsus - a giant fennel staff that Yuuki uses like a weapon alongside the Persona aspect of it.

The Apostle is Yusuke Kitagawa!

The only original Phantom Thief to keep the power of Persona.

Ordered by Madarame Ichitaro (the killer of his mother and Police Commissioner) to investigate the Phantom Thieves after a series of mass heart-changings occur again.

Akane has a brother, Natsuhiko, and they share the Jail. Their mother, Takayo (Yusuke's beard) is still dead.

His Persona is Enjolras, and he later gets with Akira.

Lastly, a unique Arcana - The Actor, Morgana Sakamoto!

A theater prodigy at his school (not Shujin or Kosei) and Ryuji's son. He has no clues to his past before Ryuji, and he wants to know, but he also wants his dad to be happy. At the end of the Strikers arc, Lavenza becomes human, and he and Goro get the Sakamotos to adopt her as well.

Reminder once again to post any questions about this AU to @rollthedice-playthecards!

[shu-of-the-wind]

Character Guide for Swallows on the Beam

SPOILERS BELOW! Read at your own risk if you are not up to date. This post will be updated with every new chapter.

If you are looking for the Swallows on the Beam Facts and Info page, click here.

The Investigators Lan Fan Huo, also known as Enkhtuya. Formerly a member of the Huo, one of the Yao’s sworn subordinate clans, Lan Fan’s true identity has been banished by the Dowager Empress. She is currently posing as a nomadic woman, Feiyan Ma, from the steppes, and acting as an imperial spy.

His Imperial Majesty, Ling Yao, the Dawn Emperor.

Extremely Stressed about declaring it open season on himself (romantically? Violently? Both? Who knows) by opening the Lotus Hall. Also extremely stressed about his job overall. He is half-brother to Mei Chang as well as Lien Hua, Xinzhe, and Dong Mao Feng, but defeated them in the race for the throne by bringing a Philosopher’s Stone to Xing.

Her Highness, Imperial Cousin, the Seventeenth Princess Mei Chang. Alphonse’s alkahestry teacher, First Governor of Chang-guo, and the half-sibling of Ling Yao and Dong Mao, Xinzhe, and Lien Hua Feng. Usually accompanied by her bearcat, Xiao Mei. Has feelings for Alphonse Elric.

Alphonse Elric. A Western traveler and old friend of the Dawn Emperor. Despite Ling’s best attempts to keep him out of the ongoing situation, he’s as deep in it as anyone. Has feelings for Mei Chang, but is not voicing them. It’s possible he is unaware of them.

Suyin Ma. Also named Sarangerel. The wife of Shan Yao, and Feiyan Ma’s cousin. Suyin claims Fuu told her about Lan Fan’s past prior to her joining the Huo family, but has not elaborated on how, when, or why.  

Shan Yao. Suyin’s husband, Commander of the Imperial Guard, Lan Fan’s supervisor for her current mission, and Ling Yao’s older cousin. He has known both Ling and Lan Fan for over a decade and has many embarrassing stories in his arsenal because of it. Lan Fan is currently staying in Shan and Suyin’s rooms at Pubuchuan.

Niu Lu. An alkahestrist trained by Mei and a former torturer for the Imperial Army, Niu Lu is currently serving as Lan Fan’s maid during her investigation of the Fengs.

The Suspects The Triplets, Dong Mao, Xinzhe, and Lien Hua Feng. The triplet children of the Feng family, and Imperial Cousins in their own right, and as such half-siblings of Ling Yao and Mei Chang. They have come to the capital to tear the Dowager Empress from her position of power by whatever means necessary. Dong Mao is the Sixth Prince; Xinzhe is the Seventh Prince; and Lien Hua is the Ninth Princess.

The Dowager Empress, Huian Yao. Ling Yao’s mother. Ambitious, venomous, and ruthless. Appears to have played a role in the massacre of the Nohin people alongside the Retired Emperor, Ling’s father. Currently working with Minister of the Left Shen Liu to get one of her chosen subordinates into the role of Ascending Empress. Fond of poisons.

Residents of the Imperial City Shen Liu. Minister of the Left and primary ally of the Dowager Empress, though they historically have not gotten along very well. Has been pressuring Ling to get married for at least the last eighteen months. He absolutely loathes Feiyan Ma.

Bao Zhang. Minister of the Right and founding member of the Reconciliation committee. He is reclusive and odd, rarely coming out into court even though he is one of the most powerful ministers in the Imperial City. He has a pet crow that delivers messages for him, and an assistant, Yue, who is a mathematical genius.  

Xiao Niao Song, First Governor of Song-guo. Head of the Song family, mother to Xiao Huan, Xiao Liu, and Xiao Xie Song. Another founding member of the Reconciliation committee. She respects Feiyan Ma and is seeking her advice on dealing with the nomadic peoples on Song-guo borders.

Xiao Huan Song, Second Daughter of the Song family. The Song Family’s entrant into the competition for the role of Ascending Empress. She is an alkahestrist.

Jian Zhang. Imperial Master of the Horse and Bao Zhang’s cousin. Reclusive and resents politics. A former soldier, he served in the border wars with Thamasq. He is helping Feiyan Ma with Changchang.

The Cao Brothers, Aiguo and Heng. Aiguo Cao is Lien Hua’s fiance. He has appalling manners and a worse personality. Heng, his younger brother, is equally as unpleasant.  

Biyi Chang. The Thirteenth Lady of Chang-guo, a distant cousin of Mei’s. She is shy, awkward, and quiet. She was also Suyin’s first friend at court.

Caterina della Barbarigo. An Aerugan noblewoman and the fiancee of Dong Mao Feng, she struggles with Xingese cultures, languages, and customs. Lan Fan has offered to teach her more Xingese.

Gen Chang. Lan Fan’s bodyguard, a former imperial guardsman, and a distant cousin of Mei’s. He may or may not have a slight crush on Lan Fan. He was assigned to guard Feiyan Ma after the Firebrand assassination attempt that nearly killed her.

The Potentials. Six women, outside of Feiyan Ma and Xiao Huan Song, have been selected and granted lotuses to show their status as potential Ascending Empresses. These women are:

Hede Lu. A Lu lady that Lan Fan unintentionally humiliated at a shooting party. A known ally of the Empress.

Lihua Zhang. The niece of Bao Zhang. Lien Hua has described her as an idiot.

Shasha and Yiyi Liu. Daughters of Minister Liu. They are intent on winning the competition by any means necessary.

Jia Zhao. Daughter of the Zhao family, the Empress’s natal family, and widely recognized as a genius. Her allegiances are unknown.

Ziyan Xie. Daughter of the Xie family, and a warrior.

Citizens of Xinjing Xiaoqing. A former firebrand, Xiaoqing is half-Qarashi and half-Xingese. Al is teaching her the basics of alkahestry in return for her assistance in infiltrating the Fires of God in the capital. She is an older-sister figure to Peizhi.

Peizhi. Currently an assistant groom in the imperial stables. Formerly a jockey in the Xuanwu ward. He owes Feiyan Ma his life, and is determined to repay the debt any way he can, up to and including getting into massive trouble with Xiaoqing. He and Changchang have a very special bond that seems to be related to his latent alkahestrical abilities.

Changchang. A trained warhorse who has gone half-feral due to abusive treatment. Lan Fan rescued her along with Peizhi, and is trying to convince her that humans are not universally shitheads. It’s not going particularly well.  

The Fires of God Father Shiloh Trener. The shadowy leader of the Fires of God. An Amestrian who learned (or convinced himself) that he is the son of the sun god, Leto after a forty day fever which culminated on the day the Elric brothers exposed Father Cornello as a fraud. In the wake of the outbreak of Liore’s civil war, he led his religious community to the desert, and then to Feng-guo, where they are currently settled.

Huli. “Fox.” A Firebrand and an assassin. Possibly Cretan or Amestrian. Has tried to kill the Fengs at least once (that we know of) and seems intent on fighting Lan Fan. Original name unknown.

Lang. “Wolf.” A Firebrand. A Xingese man working as a spy for the Feng in the Imperial City while simultaneously reporting all their doings to the Fires of God. He is mute, and speaks primarily through sign language. Original name unknown.

Sheng. “Weasel.” A Firebrand, an Aeurgan, and a former slave. Seems to be the leader of the quartet of Firebrands who are after the Fengs, or, at least, the only one that Huli will listen to. Original name unknown.

Mao. “Cat.” A young Firebrand, approximately sixteen. She has pursued alkahestrical treatments which have turned her into something similar to a chimera, but unable to shift back and forth between her human and animal forms, which means she has long, permanently extended claws, fangs, and hair that is more like long fur. Original name unknown.

Shu (formerly Shubiao, but I fucked up, that means computer mouse, please feel free to laugh your ass off at me). “Mouse.” A Nohin man and Firebrand that Lan Fan captured snooping through her quarters. His original name is Kazuki Sakari. He is currently in hiding after escaping imperial custody, and cannot reunite with his firebrand cohort for fear they will simply execute him for his failures.

[voidsentprinces]

And we’re back at the End of the Universe, Tom and I gotta say, we’ve had a wild night here. Emperor Selch and his old tag team partner from 84, Hythlodaeus “The Soul Seer” made a fantastic entrance and exit as they finished off the Daughter of Despair with their legendary Flowers of Elpis move. The rising champ, Hydaelyn’s Chosen manage to bring the Scions together for one last trip through the Dead Ends tournament. Now, the Warrior of Light faces down the worst of the worst.

That’s right, we have here the villain to end all villains, the heel of heels, the despair to choke the life out of the ring, its the Endsinger. Some might recognize her from when she rose through the ranks and defeated the Convocation of the Fourteenth, the first time Emperor Selch ever lost a match. We thought that’d be the last we’d see her rise from the dark but after what feels like a thousand, thousand life times. She is here, she is dark as the deepest nights and she is hungry to finish what she started. For she failed to track down the legendary champion of the Convocation, the Traveler. Now she comes face to face with their descendent and she’s out for BLOOD!

One by one she has broken the Scions over her knee and now she faces down her final prize. The one thing in her way of the championship belt and things are not looking good. Despite their commanding speech, the Endsinger how now given lie to the Warrior’s bravado and blown away their allies from the ring. Things are looking dire and the crowd stands on a knife’s edge to see what happens next. And we’ve returned from commercial break JUST in time. As Endsinger seems to be winding up for a finishing blo--WAIT! What was that?

A CRACKLE breaks across the ring. The Endsinger looks confused, the Warrior doesn’t seem to know whats going on. ANOTHER CRACKING SOUND! Somethings breaking through the ceiling. Wait...who is...WHO IS THAT!? IS!? OH MY GOD ITS ZENOS VIATOR GALVUS RETURNING FROM OUT OF THE RING! AND HE’S GOT A METAL CHAIR!

But he was disqualified himself back during the Dark Inside competition! This has to be against the rules!?!

I tell you one thing, Tom. “The Prince” makes his own rules and we’re seeing his actions speaking louder than words as he makes his way down from ceiling, down from the entry way and INTO THE RING! The Warrior seems apprehensive. He won’t forgive the Prince for the Massacre at Rhalgr’s Reach back in ‘02. But does Zenos even care?

NOT A WIT! He’s more surprised that the Endsinger is still standing there. A hand up Zenos won’t let just ANYONE defeat Hydaelyn’s Champion until he has another shot. This is him back giving him a boost and--OH GOD!

Endsinger tried to go for fly kick but the Prince is not having it pushing her back with a expert dodge and a chair to the face. It looks like before Hydaelyn’s Champion and the Prince will have to settle their differences another time. They’re tag teaming in on this fight. Let the record show, enemies to tentative allies have come together tonight to take on the Ring’s oldest wrestlers. Music swells and let the finale begin!

[gofancyninjaworld]

Six degrees of Stench

I joke/not joke that One-Punch Man canonicity consists of canon and not canon (yet) link. Wild shit just happens because it can and somehow it works.

So, for shits and giggles, a handful of headcanons that I’m fairly sure *won’t* be becoming canon.

First degree: cute

When Genos wants to wheedle a new toy (like a kit car) out of Kuseno, he makes the old man his favourite treat: home-made doughnuts, a chocolate dipping sauce, and freshly-ground coffee made over the stove. Kuseno claims every time that it won’t work. It's never failed.

Kuseno is strict about his bedtime: from the time he retires at 11 pm to when he appears at 6 am, Genos better have a damn good reason for disturbing him. A leg dropping off does not qualify. Most afternoons, Kuseno also has a nap behind his desk. He has always claimed to be just mediating when Genos has asked.

Second degree: unexpected

Although neither man knows it, Kuseno is the reason King quit competitive gaming: there was this one mysterious guy he just couldn't beat. It still haunts King.

Kuseno himself no longer does competitive gaming: between Genos keeping him busy and missing his once-faithful rival, it's lost its appeal.

Third degree: connections

Bofoi was his old student.  They each changed their names for... reasons.

Fourth degree: Chekov's gunman... or there's no badass like an old badass

Manga-only.  Kuseno finally shows up to give his boy a hand. As Genos tells Kuseno to fall back already, the old man levels one of the suit's shoulder-mounted guns and... there's a void where there was once a dragon-level monster, not even a curl of smoke remaining.  Kuseno: yeah, I came up with this last week but I've not yet figured out how to make it small enough to install on you.

Fifth degree: Old man, you scary

Webcomic-only.  The climax of the battle sees Genos and Saitama get to the heart of the Organization and just as things are getting super tense, a third person joins the fray.  It's Kuseno, heavily armed and very much alive. That bring-back-a-dead-person-so-long-as-their-brain-is-intact technology we saw elsewhere?  He was the original inventor.  Genos: but you told me to run away!  Kuseno: And yet, here you are. Be so kind as to shelter behind Saitama-kun, will you? Kuseno (to the enemy): I don't mind if Genos gets beat up, that's how my boy learns. But you bastards made him cry...unleashes hell

Sixth degree: Cruel, cruel world

Like something out of a cruel soap opera, the reason Genos and Child Empror look a bit like each other is that they're siblings but each was so convinced the other was dead that they'd never thought to look into it. In Isamu's case, his foster parents had been very good at gaslighting him so he doubted his very memories.  As they compare notes, suddenly the random attack makes sense... it'd been intended to grab Isamu in the first place. Something else makes sense too: why Kuseno had arrived so fortuitously. Genos: Oh, I was the consolation prize.

And so...

Webcomic edition: Genos finds his inconsolable grief over losing the old man suddenly become consolable, although it's down to Saitama to accidentally on purpose to say something that puts it in perspective, e.g., by pointing out that there was nothing false about the affection he had had for him.  

Manga edition: Since the old man is alive,  Genos confronts him.  He doesn't deny it but says that he'd intended to kidnap Child Emperor alone to forestall the massacre that happened.  And yes, while to begin with, he'd thought of Genos as a consolation, he's long since changed his mind. Yes, it's true that Genos doesn't have the mind of the century, but he's got the sort of intellect one meets only a few times a decade.  His courage though?  That's the sort people write legends about. Now let’s talk about you trying harder to stay alive long enough to become one.

[bluedevilsrpg]

FLOWER OF ICE

SWORD MASTER. W. ( 28-30 ) Nour Rizk TW: familicide, murder.

HISTORY

THE GROTESQUE HORROR OF BEING EATEN BY ONESELF.  Sweet like honey but sticky like tar - you’ve always bled in such a vicious method that devouring is simply within your nature. The precious lady of deposed nobility, guarded by an overprotective mother and a uselessly weak willed father - they nurtured you to blossom beautifully, their methods a mix of control and savagery. They raised a demon in the way they showered you with affection, teaching you tenderness through carnivorous, fiendish, cutthroat passion. You thanked them for their duties when you beheaded them - mourning their brutality with feigned concern. If you had learned anything from your spoilt disposition, it was to revere greed and make something godly from your own self. Your loyalties were fleeting as you chose the next victim in your game of delusion.

It begins with mild satisfaction when you mold yourself into someone useful - a person that is needed and desired. You devote yourself to your newest fixation until they deem themselves unworthy of your worship. The trail of corpses follow behind you like morning mildew but you pay no heed to your horrendous crimes. You smile prettily in an unnerving manner - for every death is a new gift to your next chosen lover. Fear me, adore me, in truth you didn’t care whether it was one or both. In the midnight shadows you bring a finger to your lips as you throw a bone to your latest prey, as if to pay tribute to your newfound obsession, as if to say, look how I’d kill for you.

CONNECTIONS

MASTER OF DEATH ⌱ DANGLING FROM A BRANCH IS A DISCIPLE CARRYING ONE LAST WISH

He sought you out and caught your eye in the way a diamond glistens beneath the light. At first you believed his curiosities were made for you, but as you unraveled yourself from the obsession that you drink, you realized that it was but another delusional hoax. The person he calls his beloved was one that you knew well. The mystery of the man that he sought was none other than your brother who you had treated with vitriolic acid like the rest of your kin. Only you knew of the truth to his demise. But the secret of his identity is lodged within your throat. Let the memory of his kindness live on in the mania of a desperate man. If anything, the interest he has upon you is a new kind of jubilation that incites rabid glee. Oh how tiresome it is to fixate upon those who refuse to see you and yet he has always returned in need of more. It’s an inevitable exchange that you rejoice. And it’s in this that you finally feel a semblance of hope. Soon you shall show him what it means to accept obsession and make worship in its purest form.

MADAME MASSACRE  ⌱ WHAT WOULD I LOOK LIKE IF I AM CONSUMED BY MY DEPRAVED OBSESSION?

There’s nothing like the infatuation of passion, blood and devotion being spat from the lips of a woman who commands the attention of all. She has aroused your curiosity in her distinctive mannerisms, every second of her gaze made lethal with vengeance. You have watched her from the moment she served the Emperor as one of his prized hunting dogs. Although you never cared for the frivolities of court, you became haunted by her image, her voice and everything that the mystery madame was. You needed to know everything, you wanted her to see. Perhaps it was a twisted means of competition and desire that set you on a path of chaos. You set a village aflame for her to see what expression would contort on her lovely face: would it be tears or rage? Your answer is only ever exhilaration when there’s death written on her beautiful features. She finally sees you when you decapitate an assassin in her chambers, as you bow with conceited dramatics - as if to say, this is just the beginning of all my gifts to come. She plays coy and it only results in your endless chase - you never stop and you never will. 

SUNKEN WITCH ⌱ THERE IS A JEWEL THAT’S WORTH MORE OF YOUR ADORATION, I PROMISE IT BETWEEN MY TEETH

As beautiful as a goddess, SUNKEN WITCH has always been a woman molded in finery, in expensive baubles and the most luxurious adornments imaginable. It was in this established standard that made you bored of her vapid fixations. There was no burning desire in her gaze, rather, she looked like the result of your many morose endeavors; dead before she was even un-alived. She who had always expected worship was intrigued by your cold indifference and it had certainly wounded her pride. So she chooses another method in which to entice your attention. From her lips she whispers a promise of a muse worthy of infatuation. She spins tales of their greatness and you find yourself peeved by the anonymity of the unknown identity. So you’re forced to appeal to her for slivers of this dream-like entity. You must have them and she appears to be your only guide to your burgeoning obsession.

CHILD OF FLAMES ⌱ YOU BURN AND I CLEANSE, ONE CANNOT EXIST WITHOUT THE OTHER

They’ve always been deemed as delusional as you are. It was one of the very few things you agreed upon. They wear their derangement and violence as a second skin, stretched from the corners of their lips into sadistic self preservation, while yours stems from unwavering monomania. CHILD OF FLAMES had a demon of their own in the shape of their own egotistical mania. You know how they adored to prolong the lives of their beloved targets and thus, you senselessly cut them down. You denied them their satisfaction, spite driving the crimes you committed in mockery of them and resulting in their ire. While they command fear and terror, to you it’s nothing more than one hunter meeting another. They crawled beneath your nerves and embedded themselves in your skin when they took it upon themselves to send your previous obsession into an early grave. You seethe in your rage at their involvement, biding your time to make your next mark.

FLOWER OF ICE IS OPEN & THEIR SPECIAL STAT IS STRENGTH.

[justtronic]

Chen jing ke

CHEN JING KE LICENSE

If you do not agree to these terms and conditions, do not download, display or use the image. Please credit the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and provide the following copyright notice: "© 2010 The Regents of the University of California, through the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory." Oiai ua phoihoi n poe pau no ke kumu i hoololi koke ai ka hui i n mea nona, aohe mea i nnau no ke aha. Name: / Chen Jing Ke Profession: Actor Birthdate: 1988-Mar-11 (age 34) Birthplace: China Agency: BGTalent Hello Mr. You agree that the image selected by you may be used for noncommercial, educational purposes only no derivative works are allowed, photos of individuals may only be used for identifying the individual and/or their research, and attribution and copyright notice is required. Mokuna 696: Ma hope o ke kamailio ana me Rebekah Hu, ua hele o Stephen Lu i ka hui e hui me Jiao a me n mea pani.

CHEN JING KE LICENSE

Zhao Fei was awarded the 1999 Golden Rooster Award for Best Cinematography.Ĭhen Kaige noted upon the film's premiere at the Cannes Film Festival that he hoped The Emperor and the Assassin would hold relevance to the events of the time, notably the Yugoslav Wars.IMPORTANT – READ CAREFULLY: This End User License Agreement (“Agreement") is a legal agreement between you (in your capacity as an individual and as an agent for your company, institution or other entity) (collectively, "you" or "Licensee") and The Regents of the University of California, Department of Energy contract-operators of the Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory ("Berkeley Lab").ĭownloading, displaying, using, or copying of the image by you or by a third party on your behalf indicates your agreement to be bound by the terms and conditions of the End User License Agreement and that you have read and agree to the Copyright Notice, Disclaimers and Usage Terms. Since then, he has appeared in a handful of television dramas, including Hello Mr. The Emperor and the Assassin won the Technical Grand Prize at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival and was in competition for the Palme d'Or. He was born on March 11, 1997, in Shenzhen, Guangdong, China, and made his acting debut in 2020. Huan jing ke xue Huanjing kexue / bian ji, Zhongguo ke xue yuan huan jing ke xue wei yuan hui Huan jing ke xue. He is further saddened when Lady Zhao returns to Qin only to retrieve Jing Ke for burial. in Nanchang, Singles Qualifying M-ITF-CHN-16A, match ended with. Jing KE Chen previous match was against Zhao Z. The attempt fails, but Ying Zheng expresses his fury when his associates make no attempt to stop the assassin and he is forced to kill Jing Ke himself. Statistics are updated at the end of the game. After learning of Ying Zheng's massacre of the children in her home state of Zhao, Lady Zhao desires the assassination in earnest. Despite Jing Ke’s failure, his postmortem glory rivaled that of his purported victim, the First Emperor. And This VIdeo Is Uploaded By List OF Dramas And Movies at. Lady Zhao persuades Jing Ke to perform the assassination. Hellow Guys Welcome to My Blog Website You Are Watching Chen Jing Ke Dramas List. In situ lignocellulosic unlocking mechanism for carbohydrate hydrolysis in termites: crucial lignin modification. Which is actually what all the Denver crew is saying about all their dramas. She says that the show is light, fluffy fun. It’s almost like it’s fate Chen Jing Ke is currently starring in the drama Hello Mr. In the film, Ying Zheng sends his concubine Lady Zhao to the Yan state as a spy to enlist a Yan assassin to attempt to assassinate him, intending to use that as a casus belli to start a war against Yan. Area: 2011, Ke J, Laskar DD, Singh D, Chen S. Chen Jing Ke is an up and coming Chinese actor. The first incident is the climax of the film, with earlier scenes foreshadowing it the other two incidents occur between the fictional genesis and historical manifestation of the first. The story consists of three main incidents: the attempt by Jing Ke to assassinate Ying Zheng in 227 BCE the (fictitious) rumour of a Chief Minister's having sired the latter before transferring his concubine to become the Queen Dowager and the story of an official having sired children by the Queen Dowager herself. However, his experiencing of various betrayals and losses slowly turn him into a mad tyrant. He is essentially depicted as an idealist seeking to impose a peace or unity on the world. The film covers much of Ying Zheng's career, recalling his early experiences as a hostage and foreshadowing his dominance over China.

[the-lightning-strikes-again]

Yeah I never understood why people say Allura is racist she's perfectly fine with Keith AND Krolia who is in fact FULL Galra

Hi, anon! Thanks for your note. Yeah, that’s a good point! Honestly, I think some people pick up on the show’s implicit narrative biases, which are largely unsympathetic to genocide survivors while sweeping under the rug the visceral level of brutality that a significant number of Galra enacted point-blank against so many civilizations. The narrative and visual “lens,” if you will, even in s3 flashbacks, focuses more on the instigators and their motives than it does the victims and their traumatic experiences. And the narrative lens throughout the show continuously demands that genocide victims unquestionably forgive and accept oppressors into their lives without said oppressors/groups vocalizing empathy. But we see Allura going above and beyond with accepting Galra!

Regarding specifically season 2′s initial plot twist with Keith—I suppose it helps to look at Allura’s sudden suspicion from the lens of season 3. Galrans and Alteans had a great relationship between them—the official VLD book “Allura’s Story” even calls Zarkon Alfor’s “best friend.” So in this past, you have a strong Galtean alliance, you have Alfor saving the entire Galra people after Zarkon destabilized their planet and endangered the entire solar system with a widening rift, thus forcing Alfor to blow Daibazaal up to save every other civilization too. You have Alfor hosting the Galran people/Zonerva’s allies while giving Zarkon and Honerva an honorable state funeral. But the instant Zarkon wakes up and demands his people massacre the entire solar system (not just Altea—in s3, the Galra extinguished their entire galaxy planet by planet until only Altea was left)….the Galra people at large accept that order? Without question? Despite all the deep friendship and bonds that came before? Literally, a single order from an undead emperor of their own kind overturned this solid interracial alliance and launched an unstoppable, galaxy-level bloodbath?

But of course, we don’t get this history until another season later, so Allura’s initial reactions to even Keith for example, feel left-field to some who hadn’t already emotionally connected to the trauma of genocide/omnicide. Specifically, Allura’s trauma was triggered with Keith because she’s 100% experienced having mass allies and treasured friends suddenly betray you in the name of pure loyalty to someone of their own race. But we don’t get that additional history until later.

So while clearly the racism accusation is not justified and Keith and Allura reconcile anyway in season 2, I think the seeds of “Allura is racist” were planted at large during this time, while waiting for season 3.

And notice as well that in the show, it’s Allura who comes to Keith and apologizes. There is zero narrative attempt to understand the “why” behind Allura’s reaction during this plot twist, and no other character (including Keith) makes an attempt to reach out to her either. They all turn into a bunch of passive aggressives. So narratively, the show champions an imbalance—you feel sympathy for Keith and are asked to join the paladins in demonizing Allura (or seeing her as the “other” for suddenly having suspicions, per her experiences). And the show champions the paladins for such riveting high school diplomacy while Allura takes full responsibility on herself to open up the conversation, make herself vulnerable by explaining her own trauma, and then begging for Keith’s forgiveness and even hugging him. She does all of this, by the way, upon seeing that—unlike the s3 Galra in the past—Keith’s revelation didn’t mean he felt an automatic loyalty-tie to the Galra, and that he was just as true and good as he always had been. And kudos to Keith, he confirms his nature again by accepting her apology and the both of them moving on together, with Allura even ultimately accepting Keith’s authority over her as Black Paladin.

So for all the trauma Allura has from actively experiencing the Galra wipe out her entire galaxy and planet, we see Keith and Allura reconcile—and we see her move onto accepting the Blade of Marmora and Krolia. She admonishes Lotor for not protecting his own Galran subjects from attack. And despite the romance and alliance with Lotor going south over his activities with an Altean colony, she still pursues alliances with other Galrans and even tries to emotionally connect with them. She’s the one who first offers an alliance with Zarkon himself into s8, ultimately resurrecting Daibazaal as equal to her own resurrected Altea. And she does all of this while fighting against an Altean who is the ultimate big bad of the series. So even if someone wanted to totally ignore Allura’s past as an omnicide victim and just wanted to crucify her point-blank for her season 2 actions, we see her acting in incredibly dynamic ways to preserve and obtain peace for the Galran people.

I think, in looking at Allura’s development arc from season 1 to season 8, it becomes clear to me that people holding onto the “Allura is racist” card are doing so for one or several of the following reasons:

They haven’t watched the show entirely to see her interactions with a wide myriad of other Galrans, so they’re cherry-picking based on a few uncontextualized scenes.  

They view Allura as an antagonist to their favored character, so they hate her anyway and are looking for any reason possible to hate her.

They view her as romantic competition for their favored ship (that old fandom internalized misogynism where gosh darn if a female character dare exist to unsettle their own personal romantic headcanons or self-ship needs, which means we gotta find a way to get rid of her and her fans).

And thanks to purity police corruption of fandom, militant antis using the “racism” card recognize that they can inappropriately hijack a social buzz word to manipulate fandom interests and obtain supremacy over other fans by de-legitimizing their voice. Because no one wants to stan a racist, right???

Either way, “Allura is racist” is definitely an inaccurate use of the word, yeah. If people want to hate on Allura, which is their right to do if they so desperately want, they just really need to find other reasons to do it.

Thank you for your note, anon! Sorry, I guess I rambled after I got to thinking about “why,” haha.

[adhd-wifi]

MDZS and the Legends of Hou Yi

So just for fun, I wanted to talk about how much the tales of Hou Yi, a famous figure in Chinese legends, is referrenced in the story of MDZS. I’m pretty confident that MXTX is quite the fan of this particular story. (Note: There are multiple versions of this tale, and I went with the one that had most ties with MDZS, which, coincidentally, happened to be the version I personally grew up with, with one or two minor differences.)

This post took me 6 hours.

The Legend:

Back when the world was still new, there were ten brilliant suns in the sky, children of the Heavenly Sun Emperor Di Jun. They took turns illuminating the sky, bringing light and warmth to the mortal world below. However, the ten suns were still children, and despite their father’s strict instructions of only allowing one of them into the skies at a time, they all went out together one day to play together. 

The mortal world suffered from their game, the blinding light and unbearable heat killing crops and livestock and causing the people immense suffering. Seeing this suffering, the great immortal archer Hou Yi climbed to the top of a great mountain, armed with exactly ten arrows in his quiver, and spoke one final warning to the suns, asking that they return home peacefully. But when they did not heed his warning, Hou Yi drew his divine bow, letting loose nine arrows made of dragon bone towards the heavens. One by one, nine suns were struck, each of them falling dead to the Earth as blood red crows bearing three legs. With one arrow left in his quiver, however, Hou Yi chose to spare the last sun so the world would not fall into icy darkness. The last sun promised to behave, fearful of the archer who shot down his brothers. The mortal world declared Hou Yi a hero and their saviour.

Di Jun, however, was furious at the deaths of nine of his children, and so he cast Hou Yi and his wife, Chang'E, from the heavens, stripping them of their immortality. 

Seeking a way to return them to the heavens and relieve the feelings of grief felt by his dear wife, Hou Yi sought out the help of Xi Wang Mu, Mother Queen of the West, who was known for having created the Elixir of Immortality. Xi Wang Mu took pity on Hou Yi, and also recognized his heroic deeds in shooting down the suns despite knowing there were consequences, and thus, she gave him her last bottle of Elixir. She warned him, however, that the elixir was too strong for any single mortal, and it must be shared between him and his wife. 

Overjoyed, Hou Yi returned home, hiding the elixir in hopes of surprising his wife with it. He told her that the 15th day of the Eight Lunar Month would be a special day, for he planned to share the elixir with her on that day, and ascend back to the heavens together under the light of the beautiful full moon. 

However, others had heard of the elixir the famous fallen hero had managed to obtain. Greedy with the thought of ascending to immortality themselves, they stalked Hou Yi home and overheard what he told his wife. So they planned an ambush on the promised night, when Hou Yi left to go hunting for a special feast. They attacked Hou Yi under the moonlight, killing him and then raiding their home. They tried to force Chang’E to give them what they wanted, but Chang’E refused to give it up to her husband’s killers. To ensure they never got their hands on it, Chang’E drank the entire elixir. True to Xi Wang Mu’s words, it was too strong for one person, and she was immediately cast into the skies, forced to leave her husband behind without even saying goodbye. She then decided to live on the moon, the closest she could to the Earth, where her husband was, her only companion the Jade Rabbit of the Moon. 

References to the Legend in Mo Dao Zu Shi:

The Wen Sect & the Ten Suns

The Wen Sect represent the Ten Suns, who enjoyed their lives and did what they wanted at the expense of others

Though we don’t meet all of them, there are exactly ten named (sort of) characters bearing the name Wen

Wen Mao

Wen RuoHan

Wen Chao

Wen Xu

Wen ZhuLiu

Wen Qing

Wen Ning

Granny Wen

Uncle Four

Wen Yuan

Note: While not explicitly stated, Granny Wen & Uncle Four were only ever considered part of the sect, so it’s fair to assume that they were in fact surnamed Wen

Out of those ten Wen Sect members, only one was alive by the end of the story, Wen Yuan (Wen Ning was technically dead)

The Wen Sect as a whole is said to be bad at archery, and they were furious upon losing an archery competition where missing a shot disqualifies them (Hou Yi only had ten arrows, at first planning to shoot them all down, and couldn't afford to miss a shot or the world could've been left with more than one sun)

The indoctrination can be seen as a metaphor for the suns playing and exerting their power harmfully over the mortal world

The Wen Sect primarily resorted to burning and fire, the element most associated with the sun

The name of QiShan Wen’s residence is 不夜天城 (bù yè tiān chéng), (overly) literally translated, “No Night Sky Palace”, AKA Nightless City. With the Ten Suns in the sky, night could not fall

Wang LingJiao took the shooting of a sun-like kite as justification for her accusations of the Jiang Sect going against the Wen Sect 

It was specifically the child of the Wen Sect Leader, Wen Chao, that led the attack on Lotus Pier, like how the Ten Suns were the children of the actual Sun Emperor

Also on a narrative note, both the Ten Suns and Wen Chao had larger roles in the overall story compared to their fathers, despite their fathers playing key roles as well

The first Wen Sect member to take Wei WuXian’s side, which ultimately led to Wei WuXian & Jiang Cheng surviving the massacre of Jiang Sect, was Wen Ning, the only notably skilled archer of the Wen Sect

On a similar note, Wei WuXian, who was the considered a hero and major player in the fall of the Wen Sect, was also the winner of the archery competition

This means two skilled archers were heavily responsible for the Wens losing the war in the long run, albeit somewhat indirectly

The Sunshot Campaign is literally named the Sunshot Campaign and was in fact directly and explicitly referencing the legend of a great hero shooting down the sun in canon (meaning the story of Hou Yi exists as a legend or fairytale in MDZS canon, nice!)

Wei WuXian, who is the Hou Yi of MDZS and a hero in the war against the Wens, is represented by a crow in official promos for the animation, and when the suns were shot down, they turned into red crows with three legs (this one could be pure coincidence since crows are also just seen as symbols of death in general and he controls the dead)

The Golden Core, The Yin Tiger Seal, and the Elixir of Immortality

Since golden cores are seen as necessary to cultivate, and cultivation leads to immortality, they are what represent the elixir in MDZS

Wen ZhuLiu, a Wen Sect member, having the ability to destroy golden cores could be seen as referencing how Di Jun took away Hou Yi and Chang’E’s immortality in retaliation for shooting down the suns

Jiang Cheng into going up a mountain to meet BaoShan Sanren to restore his golden core is similar to how Hou Yi sought out Xi Wang Mu to restore their immortality

On a related note, MDZS’s version of Xi Wang Mu is both BaoShan Sanren and Wen Qing combined, BaoShan Sanren playing the role of the immortal figure to give the golden core, and Wen Qing taking on her identity while being the one to actually give it through the experimental surgery

After getting the elixir however, it became more similar to the Yin Tiger Seal instead, being sought after by hostile people who were willing to kill Wei WuXian for it, all for personal reasons (Fuck you Jin Sect)

Wei WuXian hiding the golden core transfer from Jiang Cheng can be seen as similar to how Hou Yi initially hid the elixir from Chang’E, though Hou Yi always planned to tell her about it unlike Wei WuXian

In an alternate version of the tale, Chang’E was suspicious of Hou Yi’s secrecy with the elixir after subconsciously blaming him for their immortality taken away (Hou Yi may or may not have told her about his task, depending on what version of this alternate version you read), thus peeking inside the hidden box while he was away on a hunt. When he returned, she panicked over betraying his trust and drank the whole thing. This alternate version can be seen as similar to how Jiang Cheng wasn’t sure whether to trust Wei WuXian or not after the events of the Sunshot Campaign, and his inability to trust his “former” brother heavily contributed to their separation. I mean if Wei WuXian & Hou Yi had just talked to their loved ones in these versions of their stories they would’ve had a little less problems but what’s an ancient Chinese dramatic tale without miscommunication am I right?

WangXian and Hou Yi & Chang’E

Both Wei WuXian and Lan WangJi share aspects of Hou Yi and Chang’E’s individual sides of their stories in MDZS

Lan WangJi, like Chang’E, wasn’t present during his loved one’s confrontation with the Wen Sect (”the Suns”) 

Lan WangJi is also associated with the moon in some official art and his robes are always white and resemble “mourning robes”. This ties into Chang’E being the goddess of the moon and being known to wear white, some believing she does so in mourning the loss of her husband who remained on Earth

In contrast, Wei WuXian is more associated with the sun narratively, having fought the Wen Sect during a major turning point in his life, then lived as family with the Wen Remnants and always having something red in his otherwise dark outfits (his ribbon). This ties in with Hou Yi’s involvement with the Ten Suns in general

Side note: Lan WangJi wore clothing that was more typical of a non-combatant (long, flowy hanfu-looking robes), like Chang’E, who was a dancer never saw the battlefield. Wei WuXian tended to wear clothes more typical of an active combatant (pre-Yiling Patriarch at least) with narrow sleeves and trousers, similar to the portrayals of traditional archers such as Hou Yi. He no longer wears such attire in Mo XuanYu’s body. (CQL not counted for this point)

 WangXian’s representative animal is the rabbit, specifically the two rabbits Wei WuXian gifted Lan WangJi. Chang’E’s main (sometimes only) companion on the moon is the Jade Rabbit

On a related note, the Lan Sect is the one that keeps the rabbits, and the Lan Sect happens to be the Sect most associated with jade ornaments, even though the other sects have them as well

Like Chang’E, Wei WuXian was unwilling to give his assailants the Yin Tiger Seal, choosing instead to ensure they could never have it, but by destroying the seal (”drinking the elixir”) he ended up being separated from his loved ones in the mortal world, in his case by dying

Also, part of his decision to do this was driven by the grief of losing someone he loved, though in his case it was Jiang YanLi instead of his future husband

In an alternate version of the tale where Hou Yi survived the ambush, or the version where Chang’E betrays his trust, Hou Yi becomes violent and cruel, going from a worshipped hero to a hated tyrant. This alternate version can relate to both Wei WuXian and Lan WangJi. Wei WuXian was a hero of the Sunshot Campaign, but became hated after the war was over (though he did so by sticking to his personal morals). Lan WangJi turned against his sect and the cultivation world despite his reputation as a righteous man because he feared losing the man he loved, then upon losing Wei WuXian he lost himself in his grief, especially notable in his drunken rampage where he branded himself with the Wen branding iron

Also related to the alternate versions in which Hou Yi lived, like Hou Yi, Lan WangJi was left on the mortal surface without his love, who had gone to a non-mortal plane of existence and was unable to even communicate with him

Hou Yi and Chang’E, post-separation, are sometimes associated with the concept of Yin-Yang, representing the “opposites” of Earth and Heaven respectively, connected by love. WangXian is similar, having started as opposing personality types with shared ideals, then their relationship became that of love by the end of the story. (WangXian is also more visually representative of Yin-Yang, with their black and white clothing respectively)

Welp this got so long LMAO. Anyways this was still really fun to do, especially since I personally really like this story, since it was one of the stories I was told growing up (it’s not my favourite exactly, tiny-baby-me got mad at the Jade Emperor a lot, but one of them). Hope this was just as fun to read lol. 

[kyrrahbird]

Ky’s 琅琊榜 Nirvana in Fire/Lang Ya Bang liveblog experience

EPISODE 2

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Time for episode 2!! the one you should really stick around for!! Altho ill be honest, episode 3 is when it really really gets going. this ep is still introducing more major characters LMAO

We left ep 1 finding out about a competition for Nihuangs hand. thank god ep 2 picks up with a discussion about that

The princess is a marquess general rank and has made it on to the Langya martial list

have i mentioned i LOVE HER

unfortunately the emperor is very paranoid

(summary of the whole drama)

and Nihuang is apparently too powerful. hes trying to limit her power with marriage

HIM

I love this intro. Crunchy knuckles man

Bamf and ominous!!

little did I know!!

They also casually drop that Xie Yu controls the capitol patrol guards

i sure do hope that doesnt become relevant later

I still do not like prince yu. hes trying to control Nihuang :(

Mei Changsu has disappeared!! Right under their noses!!

He’s already delighting me

“Even though Fei Liu has mental insufficiencies, he has a good temperament” I CACKLED

MY FACE TOO

Great father-figure, just letting hes souped-up superhero kid wander wherever

But thats okay, we now get to see Commander Meng and Fei Liu battle it out

Fei Liu is HORRIFIED that there might be someone he cant beat

All the fight scenes serve multiple purposes too. Xie Yu is Judging™

Commander Meng “I wouldn’t have dared say I could have won within a hundred moves” 

Cut to Xie Yu’s double take 

SOMETHING CLICKED

you used the Su Zhe alias for like 1 day tops and its already nearly useless

It’s solely to confuse first time watchers

Fei Liu being depressed against a pole im dying

(MCS said he couldnt have beaten Commander Meng)

Im not making a comment about that quote

youre making a comment about that quote

But Xie Bi is onto MCS secret and runs straight to prince yu, while Xie Yu runs straight to the crown prince LMOA

So predictable

“Openly yet discretely took discretely took up residence in my househole”

Yeah it wasnt that discreet 

Also love how Xie Yu goes “yeah no we’re probably gonna have to kill him”

OH

HEY GUESS WHOS FINALLY HERE

YEAH

THE OTHER MAIN CHARACTER

PRINCE JING. JINGYAN. MY PRINCEEEEE

i love how hes just so,,, fucking blunt

and terse

absolutely no social niceties

Xia Dong just stares off into the middle distance and refuses to acknowledge him

Priceless

“This wouldnt be another big conspiracy case would it?”

THATS SO DANG POINTED

i didnt even know what was going on the first time and i still figured out that was a pointed dig. Xia Dong’s look of outrage is priceless

AND THEN HE JUST FUCKS OFF

So Lin Xie (our mc’s dad) apparently killed Xia Dongs husband and that was part of this whole big Chiyan conspiracy that resulting in the army being massacred and mcs falling off a cliff and not dying

But Prince Jing and Nihuang dont believe it. dun dun dunnnn

I remember the first time i watched this and i had the thought that this dude is just. dead inside

I was not wrong

His life sucks rn

And his father and brothers are making him stand outside for hours

thank god for gao zhan the eunuch

His dad FORGOT about him

His brothers piss me off soooo much. i can just see his desire to sink into the floor and/or throttle them both and I CONCUR

And here we have Jingyan’s mother!!!

The real mvp of the show

shes also absolutely gorgeous

And sad that her son didnt visit :((((

Jingrui protecting mcs from his mother and the empress is precious and absolutely breaks my heart

“There’s nothing moral about needlessly placing a friend in a difficult position” AAAAAAA

The thing i loved was that foreshadowing was always evident (through the music and stress and long stares) even if u had no idea what was being foreshadowed 

They’re deliberately late to the fight show so that they dont end up in the boring procession

We (briefly) see Mu Qing who is Nihuang’s lil bro and a Whole Idiot. I love him

But then we get the gr8 scene of the Crown Prince and Prince Yu blatantly jockeying for MCS’s favour

MCS manages to deftly deflect all their gifts

its incredible

Yujin and Jingrui are just looking on like o_o’’’

ooooh no

we’re going to meet the grand dowager empress (the emperors grandmother)

;;A;; IM GONNA CRY

“She is the most peaceful grandmother on earth” oooo my heart

I LOVE THIS bc i was not entirely clear on the family relation here the first time but i still knew EXACTLY what this meant to mcs

THAT MUSIC

she doesnt remember any of them ;;n;;;

HIS EYEEEES

SHE CALLS HIM XIAO-SHU

AAAAAA

u just know this is important. that this recognition is everything hes lost (his family, his friends, his fiance)

but his great grandmother still recognises him

She remembered his favourite sweet too TAT

oh no

and MCS grips nihuang’s hand!!!

Jingrui had to remind him to leave

im so sad :((((( 

I feel bad for his great grandmother;;;

And then he goes back to lying

Why you always lyyyyinggggg

Nihuang asking the pertinent questions like “why tf would you come to the capital, where all the politics are, to REST?”

She may have a point

This ep ends with a slave boy being whipped when spills a bucket of water :000

Which means next ep is the MEETING

I said this one would be shorts and it....nearly is. Apparently i have a lot of thots on Every Scene /surprised pikachu face. 

[black-water-simping-ships]

yunmeng wei au

let’s add something to the list of “AUs I’ll never write” - feel free to play in this with me:

Jiang Fengmian was a servant and close confidant to Wei Changze, Cangse Sanren is still BSSR’s disciple who descended, Yu Ziyuan was the heir of a small, almost insignificant Cultivator’s family - almost insignificant except for the spiritual weapon Zidian. Bam, meet-cute, same pairings as canon, same kids as in canon, same timeline. JFM+YZY hit the road and die during a night-hunt in Yiling, YZY passes Zidian on to her (what the fuck are canon ages?) 10-or-so-years old daughter and tells her to grab her brother and run. lbr Yanli would manage to get them both to Lotus Pier somehow, might take a few months but they’ll get there, WCZ & CSSR adopt them both and by the time Cloud Recesses Boarding School comes around we’ve got:

Zidian-swinging Jiang Yanli. Still the only braincell of the three siblings, still caring, still a bit timid but she takes absolutely no shit. First disciple? First disciple. Basically the goal here is to make Jin Zixuan spot her absolutely decimating the other disciples in training during a diplomatic visit and go “holy shit that woman could kill me and I’d say yes and thank you” (if xuanli is the pairing...just saying, jyl/wen qing doesn’t get enough love) - regardless, OP yanli it’s what she deserves

Sect heir Wei Wuxian. fucking disaster. posterboy of “why familial inheritance is Not The Way To Go”. yeah he knows he has responsibilities and he does try but he’s sadly too carefree for his role. would still tear his own arm off for any of his family members but in daily life? no. (either that or he would be far too compassionate and drunk on the power to help the downtrodden i cannot tell...maybe that would be him as a sect leader. he will do so badly because he s a walking diplomatic incident with how irreverent and outspoken he is and I am not sure if he would have the mind to manage resources properly....)

Jiang Cheng, resident wwx-minder. spends most of the day attempting to get the sect heir to act befitting for his station. inferiority complex/competitiveness somewhat mitigated by good parenting and the station reversal because it wouldn’t do for a mere disciple to surpass the sect heir; still a bit of a jelly bean ofc. not sure how much threatening/yelling at wwx would be appropriate but wwx lets him get away with everything and wcz&cssr are just glad that he’s so sensible compared to wwx

misc:

the best part might be that the “sect heir” thing gives wwx a bit more immunity, no? lwj fights him over the emperor’s smile and then the next morning finds out he caused a diplomatic incident and almost started a war by nearly killing a sect heir, seeks him out to smooth the waves and witnesses jc chasing wwx and whacking him with his sleeves, also for causing a diplomatic incident, while nhs cheers them from the sidelines. lwj forces himself to be far more tolerant while screaming and dying inside constantly except by the end of the year he’s angrier at himself for falling in love with this obnoxious, uninterested sect heir - sect heir! you fool! that man needs heirs of his own one day

how much canon divergence will else happen? i’ve seen a few post by uh dr-wcn i think mention demonic cultivator!jiang cheng and ngl that would fit, that would hit

wen remnants are basically wei wuxian going: “respectfully, eat my entire ass” before settling the lot of them at lotus pier and done, while jiang cheng has an apoplexy in the background...or is secretly grateful because core transfer?

concept: cssr survives the massacre at lotus pier because she’s away helping her shidi xxc with a thing

wouldn’t it be hilarious if wwx never develops his fear of dogs and instead has. 2 dozen of them, not even spiritual dogs but ill-educated strays he picks off the street

concept: lxc mentions what a talented cultivator the ymw sect heir is to lwj and encourages him to write to wwx under the guise of diplomacy and the exchange of skills but actually because he hopes that lwj can make friends through pen & paper. it works, they become pen pals and are then completely disillusioned by their first irl meeting: lwj can’t believe that the smart guy with the admittedly messy handwriting is an alcoholic gremlin, wwx can’t believe the eloquent guy with the subtle, biting humour is such an unexpressive stick-in-the-mud

xuanli. just. the sole legitimate son of the richest bitches courting the daughter of a servant? the OUTRAGE

“live without regrets” or smth would be great sect words just saying

(excuse the incoherence i am so so tired)

[soundlesslament]

*old lady voice* It’s been 20 years... No, really. I love Pokémon of all generations, but the starter trios keep having bad designs since Gen 3. Specifically, the base forms might be nice, but the final evolutions kill their appeal. This is going to be a rant and, as many rants out there, it will be based on my personal opinion and anyone who reads it is in their right to disagree. You can even disagree in comments as long as you aren’t a jerk about it. Also, I don’t play Pokémon competitively, so this is based on appearance only. Miss me with all that stats and IV stuff.

Gen 1: All cool evolutions. Charizard is my favorite, but all of them are classic, cool-looking mons. Good bois. Gen 2: More cool evolutions and three more good bois! I can never choose between Typhlosion and Meganium, and I like Feraligatr as well. Gen 3: At this point I thought to myself “Okay, Sceptile is ugly and a missed opportunity, but we still get two good evolutions, so it's okay. Swampert and Blaziken are nice mons. I can live with this.” Gen 4: Things really started going downhill for the starter trios, uh? Empoleon is pretty nice, an original design that is basically a pun on ‘emperor penguin’. But the others? Torterra might get a pass. Maybe. I don’t even want to look at the fire starter line. Gen 5: We have reached rock bottom, everyone! There is not a single salvageable Pokémon here. Look at how they massacred my cute baby Tepig. And did that snake get dressed by a three-year-old? What even. Gen 6: Greninja is our only hope. At least there is one hope...and even then it isn’t the greatest. Also, how did Delphox get popular? The color scheme is awful and the missed opportunities scream too loud. Gen 7: Oh, look, Decidueye is so cool! I love it! They are back on track! Let me just look at the other tw-NOPE! Gen 8: ...not this again. Somehow they made it even worse than Gen 5. The silver lining of not having a Nintendo Switch and not being able to play Pokémon SWSH is that I won’t have to raise one of this messes.

Alright, that’s enough sarcasm for one post.

[seitjun]

tea parties

title: tea parties

pairing: akakuro

rating: G

summary: akashi seijuurou didn't know someone like kuroko would appear in his life, but there he is, suddenly in his life. in the end, though, he finds that he doesn't mind him at all, especially when it's over tea.

notes: for my akashi, @ssanctuses , despite how the beginning sounds, it’s actually super lighthearted and is closer to a humor/romance genre! i tried to write a cool thing, but am i cool enough? nah, but i did throw in a fight scene.

read on ao3 or below!

As the emperor of the greatest dynasty in all of Japan’s history, Akashi Seijuurou is powerful. He knows this perfectly well, spending the last twenty-six years of his life and the last eight years of his rule in finely-tuned, absolute control; everything that happens is planned and everything that’s planned happens.

It’s a simple fact of life for the Teikou Empire, but not so for the little, outside village of Seirin.

Scarlet-gold eyes watch as person after person are pushed down to their knees to kneel below him. His gaze travels the entire room, mentally counting all of the present people, only to frown in displeasure when he realizes there’s one less person in the room from his guard.  Who was missing didn’t click until a second later, one second too late as a loud yell had already traveled to him and his ears.

“Ryouta! Find Daiki now!”

A head of blond hair immediately moves into action, bolting out of the room. A head of green and purple only stare at the disappearing figure, but Akashi can see the tenseness in their shoulders, the slightest frown on their lips, and the hard glint in their eyes.

Contrary to popular belief, he cared quite a bit for his personal guard, and whoever had caused Daiki to scream and for the others to be worried, they would die.

Another scream erupts, and Akashi is debating if he’ll have to send himself to dispose of the attacker – or he’s assuming it’s an attacker, at least. But his debate proves useless in the end when familiar gold enters his vision, followed by limping navy carrying sky blue before the body is thrown carelessly onto the floor.

Akashi eyes Daiki’s state, narrowing at the sight of slashed skin and dripping blood, feeling a tundra creep into his body. He moves onto the pitiful lump in front of him, sneering at the audacity of the man for attacking his reputed guards; he had guts, but it meant nothing if he didn’t win in the end.

Before he can speak to announce the fool’s punishment, Daiki is already speaking…

“Sheesh, Tetsu, you didn’t have to be so harsh on me! 8 years we don’t get to see each other, and this is how I’m greeted? Pft!”

...and laughing.

Raising an eyebrow in bemusement, he switches back to the lump on the floor, eyes widening in surprise when the figure picked their upper half up, supported by weak and shaky arms, but unblemished.

“Perhaps you weren’t fighting harsh enough, Daiki, if this,” Akashi gestures his hand to the navy-haired guard and the guest, “is the result of your fight. Do you wish to be trained by me again?”

Fear overtakes Daiki’s navy eyes, but it’s ignored for a sudden tinkling of soft, barely there laughter, echoing everywhere and capturing everyone’s attention.

“He was actually much harsher on me,” blue eyes suddenly appear in Akashi’s visage, and he suddenly feels enamored for a foolish moment. “It’s just in less obvious locations. Take that however you will.”

“Oi, Tetsu, don’t say shit like that! We’re not fucking,” Daiki denies, red blooming beneath tanned skin. “We’ve just been friends for a long time now, graduating from the Academy at the same time. And y’know, the whole 8 years thing I said earlier.”

Oh. Now, that was an interesting fact. Akashi muses, now viewing the tiny blunet in a new light; this frail looking man managed to graduate from such a prestigious school and not only manage to at least tie Daiki in a fight, but also be friends with him? Heterochromatic eyes gleam in amusement.

“Yes, hello. I am Kuroko Tetsuya,” the ‘Tetsu’ kid greeted, slowly getting up onto shaking legs and bowing. “And as you can tell, I’ve come here to tell you that you’ve captured the wrong people. I’d like for them to be released, but I can alway do so myself.”

Akashi doesn’t miss the sharp gleam in teal eyes and the smallest smirk on his lips; his own lips twitch slightly. Is this what being finally surprised at something truly unexpected felt?

“There’ll be no need for that. We’ll talk in my study.”

And it’s only a few moments later that Akashi and his personal guard find themselves watching a certain Kuroko Tetsuya sit in front of them. He sits primly and properly, sipping his green tea apathetically as he silently nodded along to Aomine’s words.

Aomine is the only one sitting on the same couch as the boy, a tanned arm lazily hanging around a pale neck while sporting a lazy grin and fond look as he spoke. It’s clear to the others that the kid is special when Aomine himself looks so cheery and docile for once, his usual smug and fiery aura suddenly gone.

“I wish you coulda’ seen me at the sparring competition held in Teikou last year, Tetsu. Bet you would have been impressed with how easily I beat everyone,” he brags, flexing his free arm and showing off his muscles.

“I actually was present for a few of the matches, Aomine-kun,” Kuroko replies. “My favorite was your last match in which you managed to somehow stab yourself instead.”

“Oi, that was an accident! The guy was nimble as hell! And how come that’s your favorite, bastard?!”

It’s useless for the taller male to argue when everyone around him starts to chuckle or make a noise in agreement with Kuroko. He shuts his mouth immediately and sulks, grumbling about ‘traitor friends’ and ‘a stupid Tetsu’.

Akashi is the only one besides Kuroko and Aomine that isn’t laughing, but his eyes betray his slight amusement before he clears his throat; the room turns silent almost instantaneously, and Kuroko’s eyes shift over to him.

“While I’m pleased that you’ve had your overdue reunion, we originally came here to talk about your Seirin friends, yes?”

The other males nods. “Yes, I came here because I heard that you deemed the Seirin responsible for the massacre in Seihou last month.” He doesn’t elaborate, instead choosing to take out a slim folder – where was that hiding? – the white sheets of the files inside peeking out, and hands it to Akashi.

Heterochromatic eyes read over the information, expression remaining unchanged as he flips over page after page. His personal guard looks between their emperor and the guest, slight worry blossoming in Aomine’s chest; he knew how Akashi could be if meetings like these were found unsatisfactory, especially if it dealt with crimes or information. After all, he joked silently, it was hard to impress the emperor with information when Satsuki was on his side.

Except his worries turn to naught when Kuroko’s hand gently touches his arm, and he looks up to see a smug smile on Akashi’s face. It’s cold and sharp, much like the look in his eyes, and Aomine feels himself shiver, but at least Kuroko wasn’t being executed for being ‘unsatisfactory’ to the redhead.

(Akashi’s words, not his, Aomine says later, defending himself to Tetsu.)

“So, Hanamiya Makoto is the true perpetrator?”

“Yes,” Kuroko confirms, nodding once more and placing his teacup down. “His original motive in arriving at Seihou was to recruit the village into their own budding empire due to the old family lines that lived there. Many of them were samurai families, and while quite a few still follow that path, most of them are at least experts in ancient martial arts and possess ancient moves that have been long forgotten by most societies today. Not only that, they also hold quite a varied storage of weapons that specifically improved their fighting styles, and in extension, their skill.”

“While that’s a fine explanation, how do I know you aren’t doing to trick us into giving you your Seirin friends back? What if you were secretly part of Hanamiya’s entourage? And even if you aren’t, you could also easily be lying to get us to incarcerate the wrong people.”

The tealnet didn’t seem bothered by the accusations, choosing to slightly tilt his head as he regards the emperor. “You read through the information and asked me a question regarding the information instead of ignoring it and immediately sentencing me to death. You at least accepted the information, finding it accurate. You’re also quite known for knowing when one is trying to deceive you. Besides,” Kuroko paused, “you already captured the wrong people once. What would be new?”

Akashi’s personal guard swallow the lump in their throat, feeling sorry for Aomine’s friend; Aomine himself just gapes at Kuroko’s  bluntness, silently mourning his good-as-dead friend. May he rest in peace and hopefully in one piece once the redhead was finished with him, he prays.

But Akashi simply mirrors Kuroko’s head tilt and rests his cheek on the palm of his hand, his other hand motioning for him to continue on; he ignores the surprised looks of his guards aimed at him. Maybe he’ll appoint them some more rounds of his training regime, feeling slightly irked that his personal guard found it surprising that he wasn’t always violent.

“And anyway,” Kuroko continues, ignoring the atmosphere, “who said anything about you having to worry about incarcerating the people? I already have him and his inner circle of nobles captured, currently being held by Kiyoshi Teppei and Hyuuga Junpei, both members of Seirin.

“Do you now see why I asked for Seirin’s people back? Of course, if you oblige, I’ll hand over the culprits to you. If need be, I’d be willing to offer more. If you don’t, I’ll simply let them free and call it an accident on my part,” he finished, shrugging lightly at his last sentence.

Akashi hums in contemplation while half-lidded eyes finally took in more of the small man in front of him. He didn’t look too impressive at first glance being so tiny and soft with only the odd blue hair and apathetic expression being noteworthy; yet the male ended up being sharp and fearless, close to being a threat after he had seen the navy-haired man’s appearance after the surprise match.

(He’s suddenly slightly glad for said tanned male to be friends with the tealnet. It’d be annoying if he was on completely opposite sides of Akashi.)

“How irritatingly fascinating,” he faux sighs before smirking. “I’ll agree to your deal of exchanging Hanamiya and his men for Seirin. However, I’ll also take your offer of adding more if need be, and I wish for you to temporarily join my personal guard.” Akashi ignores the surprised yell from said guards, eyes focusing only on Kuroko.

“I’ll gladly do so, Akashi-sama. I’m pleased that we have reached an agreement.”

Kuroko picks up his tea again and Akashi’s eyes flash in acceptance.

“Ah, there’s a steam of a tea leaf standing up.”

“I thought the kid would die for sure, Midorimacchi, but instead he gets temporarily hired by Akashicchi instantly!”

“Stop your annoying wailing, Kise. While I admit that it’s a surprise that Akashi didn’t punish the boy, it’s obvious that the boy had caught his attention the moment he was thrown to the floor and noticed Aomine’s wounds. You, of all people, should know how hard it is to harm the idiot in a fight.”

“Aka-chin also smiled more or at least looked somewhat happy. Plus he volunteered to be the guide while Kuro-chin stays in the palace for a while.”

“No way. And Kuro-chin? You give him a nickname on the first day, but it takes me a year?!”

“Shut up, that’s not the important part. I’m annoyed that Akashi did this without consulting us first, but we’ll have no choice to accept it. And despite the outcome of Aomine’s match, Kuroko still looks extremely weak, and it’s only a matter of time until Akashi retracts his invitation for him to join the guard.”

“True, Midorimacchi! Don’t let Aominecchi hear you say that, though.”

“He does look like he can be crushed easily…”

“So you were the one who took out the entirety of Fukuda Sougou? Even Haizaki Shougo himself?”

Akashi finds himself asking as Kuroko nods over his cup of tea. The both of them had been spending the early morning out in the palace gardens, having tea as they learned more about the other. And suffice to say, the redhead was learning quite a lot, and he felt himself being more and more enamored.

His eyes momentarily flicker towards the contents of the table: the multiple pages of information concerning Tetsuya surrounded by pencils, the momentarily forgotten shogi board still unfixed from their last match –  and the empty china that once held strong and warm tea.

“I admit that he wasn’t an easy fight, far from it, but even the strongest man will fall to a silent, invisible threat. How that threat plays out is a different matter. Don’t you agree, Akashi-sama?”

He raises an eyebrow at the question. “Is this your own way of threatening me? I’ll have you know that there’s a reason why I have a bloody reputation.”

The bluenet chuckles lightly. “Of course not, Akashi-sama, and like most people in this world, I know who you are. But I still stand by my previous statement.” Kuroko bows. “Forgive me.”

Without hesitation, Akashi pushes his chair back and dodges to the left, eyes narrowing at the sound of a broken teacup. He stands up, Kuroko following, and unsheathes a small kunai hidden in his sleeve before lunging. Kuroko evades him easily, and he catches the glint of a silver dagger coming straight for his eyes.

He parries the blow, a grin overtaking his features as he pushes Kuroko back. A soft breeze alerts him of another weapon, but far too late to prevent the shallow cut on his cheek. He ignores the cut, focused on evading both of the weapons. He pulls away to gain some distance from the dual-wielder, foot trampling on flowers.

His eyes narrow again as he watches Kuroko stay back, scrutinizing him as well. Akashi shifts into a defensive position again, barely blocking one dagger as the other lands another, deeper cut. He clicks his tongue at his own inability, but a few cuts wouldn’t mean anything as long as he won.

His free hand jerks forward, catching the wrist holding the unblocked weapon, and presses a finger against a pressure point. Kuroko hisses and drops the dagger, aiming a high kick towards the redhead and twists his body around. The grip loosens and he drops down into a ball to roll away before stopping and squatting in the soil.

He glances at the soil before secretly grabbing a handful, watching Akashi lunge towards him. He growls quietly as the kunai slashes his cheek and tosses the soil into a pair of heterochromatic eyes. Said eyes shut tightly reflexively, and Kuroko doesn’t hesitate as he disappears.

Akashi opens his eyes only to find no more Kuroko in front of him. His guard is up even higher, gaze flickering everywhere in the garden, but he can’t fucking find the dude until the brief feeling of cold metal against his nape makes him twitch away. He ducks under Kuroko, his hand holding the kunai already moving to knock the last dagger away as he trips the bluenet.

Kuroko huffs as he falls and his second dagger is kicked away from him before rolling to the side as a kunai lodges itself into the soil where his head once was. He huffs again as he gets up, bolting towards the table and grabbing a pair of sharp pencils, immediately throwing two of them. They catch onto the hem of Akashi’s robe, keeping him there for a brief moment.

But the garment is easily shed, and Kuroko discards the idea of throwing pencils. He slips one into his own sleeve and drops the rest before grabbing the pot of lukewarm tea and chucks it. He doesn’t check to see if it hits Akashi when he can hear the sharp hiss of said male.

Kuroko takes a moment to breathe, already feeling his stamina start to run out at the fight’s fast pace. But he grunts almost silently, grabbing the shogi board as a shield, wincing as the tip of Akashi’s weapon almost went straight through. He shoves the board back at Akashi and takes the brief glance Akashi aimed at the board to disappear again.

His eyes flicker towards his kicked weapon and dashes towards it only for something to grip the hem of his pants, and he feels himself collide with the soil. Kuroko kicks wildly before slipping the pencil out and jabbing it forward, stopping just before Akashi’s golden eye right as a kunai presses against his throat.

Blue eyes look at a pair of red-gold ones hovering above his body, Akashi sitting on his waist to keep him still.

“How lewd, Akashi-sama, we’ve only known each other for a week.”

“How irritatingly fascinating,” Akashi simply repeats.

They get up from their positions and start to dust themselves off. Despite the minimal amount of cuts and bruising, Akashi couldn’t help but grin again at their brief fight, at the momentary feeling of being alive.

He watches Kuroko from the side of his eyes as he helped restore some sort of order in the unfortunately ruined garden, picking up scattered shogi pieces and fragments of shattered china. The two of them nearly silent with the only sounds being their harsher than normal breathing and the shifting fabric of their clothes as they moved all over the garden to fix it.

Akashi is the one to find Kuroko’s weapons in the end once the cleaning is done, for the most part, hidden in a once beautiful but now trampled section of red roses. He chuckles as he hands the two daggers to the bluenet while in the roses, the smaller male flushing before bowing in gratitude.

“Once again, forgive me for the sudden brawl I had initiated, Akashi-sama,” Kuroko apologized, but a small smile had overtaken his lips as he stared fondly at his daggers. “However, that was one of best legitimate fights I’ve had. As someone who’s used to stealthy and subtle assassinations, I don’t get to fight directly much.”

“It was no problem at all considering it was also one of the better matches I’ve had in my life. However, I could see what you mean by an invisible threat from what I’ve witnessed and what Daiki had briefed me a few days ago. Though, I am surprised that you chose to stop using your misdirection during your stay so far.”

“Yes, I usually employ misdirection everywhere at all times subconsciously, but it does get tiring after a while. It explains why I hadn’t been able to use it much during the fight or my stay here so far.” Kuroko hums for a moment before adding on. “And now that I think about it, my fighting style could be considered an invisible threat, but I was mostly referring to poison and such.”

The bluenet sheathes his daggers and wipes the sweat from his forehead, eyes glimmering with something as he meets Akashi’s gaze after.

“We should train together and spar again, Akashi-sama.”

A smile graces the redhead’s at the other’s suggestion, nodding his head in agreement. He looks up, only now noticing the blinding brightness of the overhead sun, and clicks his tongue before turning to the bluenet, offering his arm.

“It’s nearing lunchtime. Let’s return back, and talk more over some food and drinks. And if you won’t mind, preferably in my study as everyone in my personal guard will most likely question us.”

Kuroko accepts and loops his arm around Akashi’s offered one, letting the taller male lead him until he muses, “I find it quite offensive that Akashi-sama says everyone in his personal guard, but forgets that I’m temporarily part of it.”

“Ah, that is true. I apologize for that,” he chuckles as he enters the house and takes a left turn. “However, please, don’t call me Akashi-sama anymore.”

“But Akashi-sama is the leader. It’s only polite to address you as such.”

“And as the leader, I’m telling you to address me in a less formal way.”

Kuroko sighs inwardly. “You can be Akashi-kun, but no more than that.”

“That’s good enough for now...Tetsuya.”

“Seriously?! The guy is here for a week, and Tetsu is already comfortable enough to let the sadist touch him and let him call him by his given name? The fuck?”

“Is that jealousy I hear, Aominecchi?”

“Kise, fuck off! Don’t tell me you don’t find it weird that the redhead psycho was being nice and smiley when he passed by us with Tetsu.”

“Fine, you do have a point, Aominecchi…”

“Oi, you two idiots! Have you been the ones ruining the garden? There’s sections of flowers all trampled, soil dug up, and the furniture’s been all moved and dirtied. I thought I told you to start acting responsibly!”

“Eh? I’ve been with Aominecchi working on the whole Seirin and Kiridai exchange at the gates this whole morning!”

“Who else could have done it then besides you idiots?”

“Ah, Mido-chin, stop being so mad...it was Kuro-chin and Aka-chin, y’know? They were in the garden for morning before they fought and left.”

“What?! They fought?! Great, now when Akashi calls, I have to dispose of Tetsu’s body. I can’t believe my best friend is dead already...”

Kuroko hums lightly as he sits on a couch in Akashi’s study with said owner sitting next to him; his body is pressed up to Akashi’s side, head resting against the broad chest and legs almost intertwining with each other’s. His eyes lazily follow character after character of the paper the redhead is reading, only speaking when he points out a mistake in the numerical reports of the villages – otherwise, he hums, enjoying the feeling of Akashi’s hand running through his hair and the taste of warm tea.

He thinks about the last three months he’s spent in the redhead’s home, originally here to only be a temporary part of his personal guard, yet now finding himself enjoying the home more and more; it was like a permanent base, a place to return to after difficult missions and to spend time with the people he had grown close to.

More than that, it was where Kuroko could return to Akashi over and over again.

He sneaks a glance towards the taller male, eyes tracing features he had grown to memorize and appreciate. His lips quirk up into the smallest of smiles only to quickly bring the teacup to his face to hide his smile when Akashi caught him looking.

“Is there something on my face, Tetsuya? Or are you staring because of my looks?”

Kuroko suppresses the urge to roll his eyes, only commenting, “How egotistical of you.”

“I’m simply going off of what a few of the women in our city whisper about me. Besides, I didn’t hear Tetsuya denying it,” Akashi smirks, leaning down to bump noses with the smaller male. “Tell me, Tetsuya, do you find me attractive?”

“Quite honestly, I do think of Akashi-kun as attractive,” he confesses, placing down his tea cup before shifting his body closer to the Akashi and looking up, blue eyes meeting red and gold. “Of course, I find him attractive in other ways besides appearance such as his intelligence, hard work in improving his skills, and even his odd sense of humor.”

Akashi finds himself smiling genuinely at Kuroko’s words – even at the slight jab of his sense of humor – and the pair of blue eyes that were glimmering with heartfelt fondness, his heart picking up the slightest bit. He chuckles softly, pressing his forehead against Kuroko’s, his mind racing with thoughts filled with the same affection and fondness.

“Is this your way of confessing your feelings to me, my dear? If so, I believe it’s too late when I’m quite aware of your feelings for me.”

Kuroko huffs quietly. “Then Akashi-kun should have told me and rejected me the moment he realized instead of doing nothing and leading me on.” Blue eyes tear away, and Akashi finds himself dropping the pile of papers and lifting his hands up to cup both of Kuroko’s cheeks.

“Who said I was leading you on, Tetsuya? It’s actually the opposite considering that I, too, am infatuated with you and your odd self. From your apathetic exterior yet emotional interior, your need to be polite and kind to everyone yet also be so witty and teasing towards me, your own hard work into improving as well, and of course, there’s a lot more to list, but that’s for another day,” he lists, voice slowly quieting into a gentle murmur at the end.

“Yet you still didn’t do anything earlier?”

“Forgive me for that. As surprising it may sound, I’m actually not the best at handling and processing emotions, love included. It took me a while to realize that I did indeed reciprocate your feelings for me after all,” Akashi admits. “That, and the fact that Daiki will become much more annoying than before.”

Kuroko jerks slightly as he breathed out a puff of laughter at the last comment, his eyes turning back to face the redhead, now shining again with love.

“You’re an idiot, Bakashi-kun.”

“Yes, I am, my love,” Akashi sighs, resigning himself to his nickname as he watched his now lover pick up the teacup again. Except instead of drinking from it, blue eyes peer into the cup before looking at Akashi once more.

“Ah, Akashi-kun, look at all the bubbles in this tea,” Kuroko smiles. “Do you know what means?”

Akashi raises an eyebrow at the bluenet, but gives in to his quiet laughter before pressing his forehead against Kuroko’s once.

“If I’m correct, according to superstition, it correlates with how many kisses you’ll receive. Considering the amount of tea we’ve had together over these last 3 months, we’ll be extremely busy, my love.”

“I don’t mind at all, Akashi-kun.”

Akashi steals a glance at the bright look in teal eyes before it flutters shut, Kuroko pressing his lips against the emperor’s. He can feel the softness and warmth of smooth lips, the taste of strong, black tea, and the electricity buzzing under his skin as they shifted closer until there is no more room left in between them.

Their kiss is innocent and gentle that it reminds them of the feeling of light spring breezes that hit their skin in the palace gardens, of the warm and bubbling tea they would always talk over, of quiet days spent in the study simply enjoying the other’s presence, and of their deep yet sweet-tempered affections.

It feels like forever had passed when they finally pull apart, Kuroko now sitting on Akashi’s lap with pale arms wound around his neck and the brightest smile Akashi had ever been gifted with. It’s gone a moment later when it turns to the laughter he had heard months before during their first meeting, and Akashi finds himself falling further into fondness without any fight.

“I love you a lot, Akashi-kun.”

If this was what defeat felt like, Akashi Seijuurou would have chosen to lose a long while ago.

“You’re kidding me, right, Kise?”

“No! Why would I joke about our Akashicchi dating your Kurokocchi?!”

“You joke about a lot of things, Kise. That, and you’re pretty dumb and gullible sometimes.”

“Fine, let’s go ask Akashicchi and Kurokocchi if they’re dating then since you won’t believe me, Ahominecchi!”

“Oi, Tetsu, you here with Akashi?!”

Kuroko levels his best friend with a blank look for barging in unannounced into the study. Glancing at Akashi, he can see the displeasure starting to form along with a frown. He blinks as he waits for the reason as to why Aomine thought it’d be a good idea to just storm in impatiently instead of waiting like a normal, refined person.

(Of course, Kuroko knows that Aomine is the farthest thing from normal and refined, but he digresses.)

Another familiar head pops up right beside his, golden eyes sparkling in happiness and curiosity the moment his eyes landed on the bluenet. Kise opens his mouth to yell out something and lunges forward, only to be stopped by two fists grabbing the collar of his shirt, and instead ends up whining by the doorway.

“Oh, look, Midorima’s here too. You interested in hearing?”

Said green-haired male glares at the tanned one before replying, “Interested in hearing what? You two being fools and rudely coming into Akashi’s private study without notice or invitation?”

“Man, I sure do feel bad when you put it that way,” Aomine sneers. “No, carrot-top, we’re here because we’re asking Tetsu and Akashi if they’re dating or fucking or whatever.”

“Aominecchi, that’s crude,” Kise screeches, whacking him before huffing and turning back to face two in question. His face morphs back into cheeriness, personality back to being like a dog. “So? Is it true that you guys are finally together?”

Kuroko only sighs in exasperation at the rest of the group while Akashi chuckles in amusement. He intertwines his hand with the bluenet’s before lifting it up to show to the rest of them before moving forward to place a soft peck on Kuroko’s lips.

(Still soft and reminiscent of tea, he notes.)

Kise is screeching again, but out of happiness, and smiles smugly at a shocked Aomine, his mouth open in disbelief. Midorima only turns away, jaw clenching and unclenching as he tried to process the new information.

“Hmm..? Why is everyone here?”

“Oh, Murasakibaracchi! You’re here,” Kise grins. “We just got the official news of Kurokocchi and Akashicchi finally being togeher!”

Aomine rolls his eyes before asking, “Oi, Tetsu, that means you’re staying here permanently now, though, right?”

Kuroko gazes at Akashi’s face, smiling lightly before nodding and feeling the smallest warmth travel to his cheeks.

“Ah...Mido-chin was wrong before. Kuro-chin ended up staying with Aka-chin in the end.”

“Murasakibara,” Midorima glares, looking affronted.

“Oh? Shintarou, what is Atsushi referring to,” Akashi smiles, grim and sharp.

“Yeah, a few months ago, Midorimacchi thought you would end up finding that Kurokocchi was weak and take back your invitation for him to join your personal guard,” Kise happily supplies.

“Kise!”

“You thought Tetsu was some weak guy even though he ended up tying me and managing to actually harm me in an actual span? He even managed to land at least a cut on Akashi when you couldn’t!”

“Daiki speaks the truth, Shintarou.”

“You can’t blame me for thinking that way, and even Kise and Murasakibara agreed with me,” Midorima argues, trying to lessen the damage.

“Daiki may not be able to blame you, but I can. I’m offended that you thought so lowly of my lover, and for that, you’ll be properly punished. You’ll be on cleaning duty for my entire home for 2 months, become a personal helper for Daiki during those 2 months, and as well as returning to old training regime for you, only tripled this time. Ryouta and Atsushi will haves their punishment decided later.”

“U-Understood,” Midorima says, balking.

“I think I should be the one offended since I was the one being insulted,” Kuroko interrupts, eyes narrowed in annoyance. “Am I allowed to poison him, Akashi-kun?”

“Tetsu, you’re already just like Akashi! What the fu–”

“Excuse me, what is that supposed to mean, Daiki?”

“Nothing!”

“Good.”

Kuroko just sighs again, but looks at the scene fondly before squeezing the hand intertwined with his, and rested his forehead at the nape of Akashi’s neck, feeling happiness flutter in his heart.

OMAKE:

“Akashi-kun, do you remember our fight and how we conversed for a bit after that?”

“Yes, Tetsuya, what about it?”

“Poison isn’t my only specialty,” the bluenet hums, “I also do quite well with seduction.”

“Is this another threat?”

“I retract my statement.”

“What?”

I’ll be sleeping in Aomine-kun’s room tonight. Good night, Akashi-kun.”

“Tetsuya!”

[savetopnow]

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[congeriesofchars]

Essie

(This is a personal character of @mtraki.  She is displayed here for sharing purposes, but also as an example for how a character can be fleshed out from a more basic profile!  Please ask the Concierge before borrowing this character for any content.)

Name: Estrella “Essie” Guistina Montserrat Floortje

Acceptable forms of Address:

Formal/Polite address: Lady Floortje; Lady Estrella Floortje; my lady

Essie

Formal introductions customarily require the whole name to honor the family.  She is very reluctant to give formal introductions.  Most everyone who needs that much information (her peers in the Niflheim and Accordo courts, and some in the Lucian courts) already know it.

Species: Human; Niflheim nobility

Age: 28-30; she answers this question evasively

Sex: Female

Setting: FFXV fanworks

Roles: This is a Original Character (OC) for FFXV fandom works and roleplay.

Physical description: Essie stands a proud 5ft 9in/ ~1.7426m with a lean-- almost thin-- build.  She has golden blonde hair in a pixie cut and dark hazel eyes.  She almost always wears makeup, focusing on her eyes and keeping the rest very light and natural.  Her neutral/repose expression tends to appear somewhat condescending to others.   She is right-handed.

Until recently, Essie found it important to wear fashionable clothing and jewelry to match her social station.  She was fond of long, fluid coats over very structured, corset-like tops with blouses and fitted trousers.  She had a number of riding boots, both with and without heels.  Skirts were long with high slits up one or both sides, and worn only for special occasions or consorting with someone she wanted to look particularly sexy for-- the general consensus being that she has very nice legs to make up for her lack of prominent curve.

After fleeing Altissia and the majority of her wardrobe, the lady found herself in a fashion crisis.  What clothes she had managed to bring with her were not as suited to a life on the long road as she had anticipated.  Unskilled in mending and used to simply discarding and replacing stained or damaged garments, Essie quickly ran out of fashionable things to wear.  Nowadays, she wears whatever she can put together, focused on comfort and durability, though if she can, she’ll trifle with fashionable choices.   At the very least, everything matches or complements.  Jewelry, such as earrings and her signet ring for House Floortje, are worn consistently.  Occasionally, she will add additional rings, and perhaps a choker or torc.  Other necklaces and bracelets are avoided for their disadvantage in the wilds and combat-- and many she owned were sold.

Essie openly carries her sabre sword, Ferro Lingua, on her right hip and a pistol holstered just below the small of her back.  While in the wilds or otherwise anticipating a fight, she will wear an intricate, short leather gauntlet tipped with metal claws on her left hand--upon close inspection, it is clearly magitek.

Personality: Poised, articulate, curious, and headstrong; Essie scales from cool to red-hot.  As a noblewoman and heir to the estate, she was raised to uphold the honor of her House through her good manners, social graces, and education-- so these are very important to her in general.  As an individual, she balances a number of decidedly conflicting interests as a scholar, a skilled warrior, and an unrepentant party girl.

Though a self-proclaimed scholar, and able to spend days on end studying with great discipline, she does not believe in reading for pleasure, finding it a foolish waste of time.  She is well-read and has a gift for picking things up easily-- ‘naturally talented’ is a phrase often used.  Essie is as proud of her swordplay as she is of her breadth of knowledge, and almost just as proud of her pistol marksmanship-- a very rare skill among noblewomen.  These accomplishments appeal to her personal pride due to their controversy and her competition with her social peers.

The Lady Floortje is a humanist and a hedonist.  In her education and limited experience, the gods of Eos are too far removed from the doings of humankind to be truly considered, much less worshiped or obeyed.  At best they are unpredictable, prone to wrath, and untrustworthy.  At worst, they are humanity’s greatest threat-- seeking to bind mortals to slavish, short existences for their mercurial whims.  Instead, she celebrates the great accomplishments of her kind-- regardless of political borders-- and is just as likely to admire the city of Insomnia and its seeming mastery of magic as she does her own home of Gralea and the wonder of magitek.

Though from a noble House of Niflheim, she has no aspirations for imperial government, seeing such a position as a great shackle to her otherwise fiercely independent nature.

Though no great patriot, one will be hard-pressed to convince the lady that Niflheim is guilty of any actual evil or dishonorable underhandedness-- any news otherwise is chalked up to ‘Lucian propaganda’.  “Emperor Aldercapt purposefully and underhandedly turned the treaty signing in Insomnia into a massacre, unprovoked?”  Nonsense!  The Emperor was gracious enough to propose and sign a treaty in enemy territory, at great risk to his own life.  It is preposterous that he would instigate further, needless violence.  Whatever happened in that room, it is more likely some hot-headed Lucian patriot started it.  Everything after was simply a terrible, tragic consequence.  That being said, she does not believe Lucians to be inherently evil or degenerate either, and certainly does not consider any of them to be her enemies without sufficient evidence.

Merits:

She is a humanist and believes in the greatness of people.  Each person is worthy of respect for their potential to add to the great fabric of human ascendance and the progression of society.

She is charitable when she can afford it-- and sometimes when she ought not try to…

She is happy to do a favor for almost anybody.

She is the first to buy you a drink if you’ve accomplished something… or if something terrible has befallen you.

Essie is curious and loves to learn new things-- which she finds easy to accomplish.

Articulate and well-educated, Lady Floortje, is charismatic and engaging with most people.

She is fiercely independent, makes her own decisions based on careful consideration of facts, and is unwilling to rely overmuch on others despite no longer having access to a fortune and a house full of servants to attend her.

Flaws:

Essie is often very impulsive when her curiosity or temper get the better of her.  Or when drinking.

Though she affirms every individual is worthy of respect, she very often falls into the trap of classism, thinking herself and her peers are due an extra dose of respect simply for their social status.  Anyone of lesser status treating a noble with disdain or disrespect risks her displeasure.

Vices:

Essie loves to learn things, and pursues knowledge with great enthusiasm, revealing her naivete due to a sheltered upbringing.  The easiest way to bargain with her is to appeal to her curiosity and thirst for knowledge-- the danger comes that she may already possess the knowledge being offered!

The Lady Floortje is known for her hedonism.  She enjoys, and will seek out, good food, good drink, fine clothes, entertainment, attractive and pleasant company, and pleasure in all its various forms.  Untold hours will go wasted while she sates her appetites.

Pleasure costs money--especially these days!--and she often forgets she no longer has the seemingly endless resources of her House.

Sex is for pleasure, and Essie has few compunctions concerning seeking it out from anyone she wishes, whenever and wherever she wishes.

Relations:

Family:

Sadly, the former Lord and Lady Floortje did not survive Altissia.  As an only child, Essie is the heiress and sole-survivor of her noble line.

Friends/Allies:

Essie’s lifestyle and personality don’t provide much room for meaningful relationships, however, she does have notable connections in Altissia and Niflheim.

The members of court in Niflheim are sometimes allies, more-often stumbling-blocks.

Court Superiors:

Emperor Aldercapt - He knows her and respects the history and loyalty of her House, but since their flight from Gralea, he has more or less written her off.

Chancellor Izunia - They are acquaintances, and appearances are maintained on both sides.  Essie respects his knowledge and resources-- particularly concerning magitek.  She’s not so fond of his often smarmy, theatrical mannerisms.  Likewise, he is amused by her, but overall considers her of no use in his plans.

Research Chief Verstael Besithia - She considers him a brilliant, but secretive and perhaps disturbed man.  Her family was once a great supporter of his work, finding great merit in taking the citizens of Niflheim off the battlefield.  In turn, Besithia remembers fondly the support of her House, but otherwise is too busy with his own affairs to acknowledge them.

Court Peers:

Lord Caligo Ulldor - House Ulldor and House Floortje have been fierce rivals for generations, competing for imperial favor.  Caligo was the arch-rival of Essie’s father and considers the facts of Lord Floortje’s lesser military accomplishments, and failure to produce a son to replace him as a general, to be proofs of his superiority.  Essie considers him a cruel, twisted, pig of a man and takes pleasure in humiliating him in conversation whenever afforded the opportunity.

Lord Loqi Tummelt - Loqi and Essie met in their schooling, though Loqi was always behind Essie due to his younger age and her ability to learn and master things more quickly.  Aware of their social positions as equals and rivals for the favor of the Emperor and glory of their respective Houses, he resents her so frequently showing him up.  Therefore, Loqi takes great pride in the fact that despite all her accomplishments and humiliation of him during schooling, he is a brigadier general of the Niflheim army and she never will be.  Meanwhile, Essie considers Loqi very infrequently, deciding the most effective way of dealing with his frequent childish moodiness is to ignore him.  There are two significant but unconfirmed rumors about the two of them: 1) That there was an illicit tryst between them once. 2) That Loqi desires to wed her for the pleasure of proclaiming once and for all, for everyone to know, that she must finally submit to him.

Others:

Ravus Nox Fleuret - There is an intense rivalry and admiration between the two of them that goes back to their schooling days.  It is much debated which of them is a better swordsman, as they favor similar weapons and had tutors who were also bitter rivals.  Upon completing their training, a match was arranged with a points system and Essie was declared the victor, awarded with the superb blade she still carries at her side.  Naturally, she and Ravus have conflicting accounts about how this occurred:  Essie claims simply that she outright won.  Ravus maintains that she was chosen out of favoritism-- strongly insinuating that she had been sleeping with the judge of the contest.  Despite this, Ravus acknowledges that she is a woman deserving of respect for her skill and knowledge, and Essie agrees that it is mutual.  Still, Ravus was born a prince and considers Essie his social inferior, which he does not keep a secret.  Meanwhile, Essie is unsure how to treat Ravus-- as a deposed-Prince of a conquered kingdom, he surely is no longer her social superior, but is he her peer or her inferior?  This confusion is exacerbated into frustration by the traditions and decisions of the Imperial Court-- he leads men into battle (and is later promoted to High Commander) while she is never to be permitted such a role due to her sex.

Commodore Aranea Highwind - Despite her inferior social rank as a mercenary, Essie has a great deal of admiration for the dragoon as a self-made woman.  They have never met in person, but Aranea has heard plenty about Lady Floortje from the Niflheim court and is reserving judgement.

Romantic:

Essie is one of the few remaining unwed noblewomen in Niflheim court, however she refuses to let this dictate her future-- one of the prime reasons she has not returned to Gralea to take up her House.  This may not stop her peers from attempting to formally court or claim her…

There is noone in particular she feels particularly beholden to… That being said, Essie is not shy about initiating or accepting a tryst with attractive company.

Her preferences are unclear.  She doesn’t concern herself about the labels.  If she’s attracted to a person, she has little compunction with an intimate liaison.

 Attraction:

 In spite of (or perhaps because of) her own lack of obvious female attributes, she seems to prefer her men to look traditionally masculine and her women to look traditionally feminine.  Bishounen men have a better shot than less-traditionally feminine women, however.

Good hygiene and a ‘put-together’ image.

If someone knows something or does something interesting, they have her attention.

Dogmatic speaking will encourage her to send someone packing.  She likes people who think for themselves.

Fortune favors the bold.  It punishes the obnoxious.  Confidence is sexy!  Pushiness isn’t.

Shyness doesn’t exclude a person, though.  She might get very forward in this case-- if they back off or resist too much to her advances, she’ll just let them go.

Courtesy for her as a lady scores someone points.  Restricting her behavior for the sake of chivalry or preconceived notions of acceptable female behavior will quickly lose them-- it’s a delicate balance. (Good luck!)

Flattering her skill or intelligence gets a person much further than flattering her appearance-- That being said, if she thinks they only appreciate her mind, then she isn’t going to show them her body…

If the goal is to win her heart… there is a long, turbulent voyage ahead.

 Abilities/Resources:

Essie is a lady of the Niflheim court.  Though she is separated from Gralea and therefore unable to claim the authority and resources of her House, she still commands respect and has many connections there.

She is a very well-read scholar.  She knows a great many things.

She is a formidable combatant:

Sabre: Essie is an excellent swordswoman due to a long, grueling education and her determination to prove herself capable of competing with her male peers.  Her fighting style is unique in that she wears her blade on the same side of her body as her sword arm.  She draws with a reverse grip for a very fast, very strong (often surprise!) opening attack right out of the scabbard, sweeping a wide, rising overhead, arc.  While overhead, she uses the full guard and inertia to spin the blade into the proper grip.  Still, this leaves an opening on her right side-- especially low-- between her first and second strikes.  Most opponents are too surprised to take advantage.

Pistol: Essie is a decent marksman with her pepperbox-style pistol, though she is decidedly much better when not moving, which puts her at risk if there are multiple combatants.  If she is using her pistol, she cannot use her gauntlet.  Her accuracy and timing are much worse if she is wearing the gauntlet.  Her pistol carries only four rounds, but reloading is a quick and simple process (though it requires both hands).

Gauntlet: She possess a short gauntlet (coming only to her wrist) of leather, armored in engraved steel plates and strong steel claws at the end of the fingertips.  This article is a piece of armor and weapon both, with magitek properties to boost both.  As a piece of armor, outside of the usefulness of other gauntlets, she can activate a small energy shield that operates much like the ‘Protect’ spell, though this shield has a smaller diameter than the length of her forearm and relies heavily upon the strength of her arm and body to hold in place.  As a weapon, aside from the metal claws that can be an additional melee weapon against anyone that gets inside her guard with the sabre, she can also deliver a very painful magitek-fueled electric shock to anything she grabs hold of.  Outside of combat, she can use the gauntlet to assist with climbing.

Limitations:

Essie is a normal human who cannot use magic.

As a Niflheim citizen and noble, she is understandably in more danger than others in war-embittered Lucis.

As a noblewoman, there are a great many things she does not know how to do because it was unbecoming for her to learn.  These things include (but are not limited to): cooking, cleaning, mending, driving a vehicle, keeping track of her own appointments, buying her own groceries, etc.

Brief History:  Essie was born and raised in Gralea, where she also began her formal education.  With the first news concerning the “Vanishing Sickness” coming to the capital city, Lord Floortje evacuated his family immediately to Altissia, establishing there quickly and easily due to some connections with the more prominent citizens there.  They lived comfortably in the Protectorate for many years before the arrival of the Oracle, followed by the Lucian Prince and his Retinue.  With the arrival of Lord Commander Ravus, Lord Floortje begged Essie to cut her long, beautiful golden hair so he would not recognize her-- for an unknown reason, he feared their discovery in the city.  Eventually agreeing, she cut her hair to shoulder length, though she always held it against him after, as her hair was perhaps the most feminine part of her appearance.  With the awakening of the Tidemother and the fall of the city, Essie was forced to flee alone after discovering the deaths of her parents.  Unwilling to face the political machinations in store for her at the hands of her peers and superiors in Gralea, she went instead of Lucis by boat and began traveling.  In a sort of remembrance for her father, as well as a very traditional custom for mourning, she cut her hair again very short.  Wise enough to know the sentiments of Lucian folk toward Imperials, she made an attempt to hide her identity, particularly through the almost exclusive use of a nickname.

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