#even tho i have an essay to write i thought I'd take the evening off 💆‍♀️

[imyourcomputergame]

Waiting for the world to start again

[ryuua]

You're having trouble with an assignment, and Hiiro happens to stumble upon your frustrated figure.

♠️ Amagi Hiiro x gn!reader

♠️ Genre: Fluff(?), Hiiro attempts to help you with work

♠️ Warnings: Hiiro might be OOC, not proofread, none other that I know of

A/N: This was actually a redo because I lost the original draft so I don't really have motivation to properly write, but I still hope this was a good first one-shot tho!!

In a quiet corner of Café Cinnamon, you stared at the blank paper underneath you while your hands grabbed a fistful of hair. With a pen sat untouched beside the paper, you tried to rack your brain over and over again but to no avail. The ideas just weren't flowing! ...Is this how Leo feels every time he's stuck with no inspiration? Well, it didn't matter when the problem at hand was much more important, especially when it's due in a few hours and you still had nothing written in. Thank producer work and tuition for taking up 99.99% of your schedule.

As you heaved out the nth distressed sigh, Niki came over to pass you your fifteenth? Maybe twentieth cup of Shinonon Blend - you ordered so many that he had to check up on the table that was continuously ordering the same drink for about an hour now. The same worried look flashed over Niki's face as he stared at your disorganized self that seemed to worsen every visit he took to your table. You made a mental note to thank him for these later. When he left, you buried your face in your hands while mumbling incoherent curses, unknown to the redhead nearing your table.

You must have been so out of it because it took 4 calls to your name and a snap of his finger to get you out of your thoughts. Looking up, you relaxed at the sight of the younger Amagi brother. His presence brought you more comfort than anything else could.

"Hiiro! Sorry, I was thinking of something..." the boy flashed you a worried gaze so you mustered up a small smile to reassure him, "is there anything you need me for? Did.. did I forget a schedule with Alkaloid..??" you panicked at the thought and quickly whipped out your phone to check, luckily Hiiro was there to calm you that he just happened to see you here. "I felt an irritated presence, and it lead me to you. Is there anything I can assist you with? You've helped me adjust to the city a lot, so it'd only be right for me to repay you!" Oh, how you melted at the sentence, you almost forgot about the work due.

"Ahaha, it's nothing big. I'm just having some trouble thinking of what to write for this work"

"Although I won't be as reliable when it comes to information about the city, Aira has taught me a lot of new insight that I can share with you if it helps!" Hiiro said cheerfully, wanting to give you a peace of mind.

"Is that so? I'd love to hear about them!" you reply enthusiastically, maybe this could help you after all? "Come over to this side, it'll be easier for us to work."

For the next hour or so, Hiiro and you mostly talked about the differences in his hometown and in the city. Learning about where he once lived did spark some ideas in you, but not enough for you to write a full-fledged essay. In the end, you were still stuck and there was only an hour left until you had to hand it in.

"I'm sorry, I think I've only wasted more of your time..." Hiiro sulked when you still hadn't written anything down. "It's fine! I think I'll just ask for an extension with some excuse..." you sighed defeatedly, feeling depressed that you didn't manage to finish the work in time, you might even still be stuck during the extension period. Staring off to the side, you notice a bunch of colorful balloons pass by the window.

"Looks like some type of shenanigan Wataru would be up to..." your mumbling caught Hiiro's attention and he too, noticed the floating balloons outside. "Oh! Is this normal in the city too?"

You chuckled as you turned your head back to face him, only to realize when you do, your faces are a mere centimeters apart. Hiiro looked back at you, but he didn't seem phased in the slightest. "Is something the matter? You look shocked," he questioned while backing up after leaning in previously to admire the floating blobs. You continued to stare with no reaction and just as Hiiro was about to shake you awake, your hand instinctively lifted up the pen and started to write, your head dipped down in silence. As much as he was confused, he let you do your thing in silence, ordering the rest of your Shinonon Blend for you.

♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ - ♠️ -

BONUS (day after):

It was late evening, and Hiiro had you pinned to a wall. How did this happen? Well, it was your fault for avoiding him for the whole day after he helped you yesterday. Hiiro didn't understand why and was worried he did something to upset you so he went to seek advice from his dear brother, and that is was lead to this.

"Hiiro... I have a meeting to attend, can we talk about this later?"

"I really don't want to disturb you like this, y/n, but I need to know if I'm the problem so I can change... so you won't purposefully avoid me..." Hiiro looked at you with puppy eyes, intentional or not you fell for it.

Thinking up of an excuse on the spot was difficult, so you went with the dumbest one, "I play this with my friends often! We hide from each other until a certain time, but it's just a game we made up so no one else plays it..!" it was dumb, but it works.

"Oh! What an interesting game you city people come up with. I'm relieved you weren't avoiding me. Then, good luck on your meeting! Sorry for jumping to conclusions, haha!" Hiiro finally freed you after taking the bait, quickly hurrying away to not disturb you any further. You could tell he relaxed heavily when you told him it was a joke.

Once you made sure he was out of sight, you slammed your head against the wall. Opening your phone, you looked at the latest message from your tuition teacher.

"You did a great job on the essay, y/n. However this is typically not acceptable in your proper exam, so you will be given an extension to redo the work. I hope to see your skills put to... better use."

Your face reddened at the memory of what you turned in to your teacher.

WOO!! It definitely wasn't the best, but it worked out somehow! Thank you for reading :DD

[fixfoxnox]

Bro just wanted to smash and rule the world go figure

I AM JOKING BTW, I absolutely love how you write Makarov, he is so messed up Canon Makarov is extremely messed up; have yall seen the list of crimes he committed IT WAS A WHOLE ESSAY, so no, i will not hear anyone out if someone just as mention Makarov and the word “kinda” in the same sentence

Im curious though (and this is in terms of writing not by your charcter/personality!!) was the plane scene supposed to go in this kinda direction cause I remember reading the scene after they touched down and Makarov mentioned that Roach couldn’t walk (??) like has Makarov in your own vision ever thought of just being a huge A-hole and traumatising dear ol bug here early on in the story, Of course you don’t have to answer if this goes beyond your boundaries tho

Okay but Makarov is kinda 👀👀/j

As for your question, I've actually had a few people question this in the comments before along with a couple of people who definitely thought that was what I was implying in that scene, so let's talk about it.

Warnings ahead for discussion of dub-con and non-con:

So I would like to just start off by saying that when I initially introduced Makarov, I never even intended to take is as far as I did. Like the seduction scene was never even supposed to happen. All of that was meant to be left up to interpretation.

However, when I first started writing Makarov in his first scene, I was really struggling because thats just the kind of villain that he felt like to me? Like I think I've mentioned it before in one of the posts about him, but I do think that if the cod fandom had really blown up like it has back when MW2 and MW3 came out, there would be a shit ton of stuff about Makarov fanfic wise.

Like, in Canon, he's very smooth and calculated. Whenever we hear him speak, he is calm and collected. Even at the end of MW3, when his entire plan has failed and fallen through, he's still so calm. He still finds it in himself to calmly taunt Price about Soap's death. Compare this also with Allen's death where Makarov makes a point to pull him in close before shooting him, and my mind was going one direction. Smooth villain who plays psychological games.

So the way that manifested in that first scene with Roach, was through the touching. He's showing Roach that he's in control. And that was all the touching was really meant to be, was showing control.

Then we get to the church scene, the infamous church scene. While I was writing this, I kinda got hit hard with the question of, "why is Makarov keeping Roach alive?"

Like I'd considered the question briefly in earlier chapters, but I was never forced to actually face it until I got to that chapter. Because I wanted to write this torture scene. I could see it so vividly in my head. But why would Makarov torture this guy? Why would he keep Roach alive.

At this point I considered the sort of obsessive love thing and I decided "okay, its not going to be just up for interpretation anymore. Its going to be explicit." So I wrote the church scene and I kept writing their interactions with the thought that I was never going to take it further. Makarov was never actually going to get his hands on Roach in that way.

So when I wrote the plane scene, I actually did not have any form of S/A in my mind at all. I wanted to press Makarov's touchieness. I wanted to press his obsession/love for Roach. But that was it and I wrote it without S/A in mind.

Roach not being able to walk was supposed to imply that it wasn't just that one moment of Makarov hurting him that we saw, but rather that Makarov had essentially tortured him on the plane ride back. It actually wasn't until I had people comment on it that I realized it could be perceived that way. And I am all up for interpretation, so if someone believed that that happened, then that's for them to decide. However it was never intended to be that way.

Then we got to the next chapter. To the seduction scene. I cannot tell you where the idea for this chapter came from. All that I know is that I had two scenes in mind. One where Roach has a dream about his Past! Simon where Past! Simon tells him how seductive he is without even trying. And another scene where Roach quotes Makarov's words from the plane back to him.

I actually struggled with this chapter a lot. While writing it came rather easy to me, I'm a very anxious person and I knew that this was taking a step further than I had intended to go with the fic. I kept trying to justify it in my mind of like "oh its going to be implied but nothing will actually happen!"

Eventually I just had to sit down with myself and go, "Its my fic, if people don't like it, they don't have to read. This is how the story has naturally progressed. You know that you won't take it further than this."

So in the initial idea for this chapter and the following ones, it was going to be that more intimate touches were the extent of what happened.

That went down the drain very heavily with Chapter 19.

When I started writing that scene at the end with Makarov, it actually took me much longer than it should have to write. I had the ideas, I knew I wanted it to be painful, but I kept stopping because I felt like I was taking things too far. Again, I'm a very anxious person, I never intended the fic to go down this path.

This was the only chapter in which I genuinely considered writing out a scene of explicit S/A. It would have been closer to the end. Its mentioned during one of the last sections that Makarov shoves his hand under Roach's shirt and into his pants to dig into his wounds. I'd considered, at this moment, having Makarov forcefully kiss Roach and literally grab him while muttering about what his plans were for him when he got him alone.

I did genuinely consider it. I even came here to post about whether or not I should do it or not. But the second that someone commented mentioning it, I decided that I didn't want to do that. I did not want to take things that far.

What we have instead, and the absolute farthest that I've been willing to take it is dub-con. Because while Roach "consented" to Makarov's affections, the truth is that he was only doing it to survive.

This is something that has actually been coming up in some of the chapters I'm writing now. And even this is causing Roach a lot of distress and self-hatred, I just don't think I would have been able to write a scene with explicit S/A or even implied that it happened and be able to properly handle the fall out of it.

That all being said, I do think Makarov definitely thought about Roach a lot and definitely fantasized about him. But I do think, with the way I wrote him, it wouldn't have made sense in the end for him to actually S/A Roach or even think about it.

You'll notice in his POV that I wrote, while he does fantasize about Roach a lot (like a lot, man is so horny for Roach) he always stops himself and controls himself. He tends to mention that he "needs to take things slow." This is his mind set even to the point that he doesn't take things further even after Roach has given "consent."

This is because his end goal is to have Roach completely. He wants Roach to be dependent on him. He wants Roach to love him. He's smart. He knows that if he does something like that, its going to make turning Roach to his side much harder. Its why he doesn't even kiss Roach until he essentially gets permission at the end.

He is really evil. He is really horny for Roach. But he also is very smart and knows people. He isn't going to push things too for too quickly. The only time he even gets close to that is during his last chapter, when he gets so angry/possessive/stressed that he allows himself to break Roach down physically. (However, again you may notice that even in that scene he doesn't start attacking until Roach does. Most of the time he wants Roach to make the first move so that he's somewhat justified in hurting him.)

This was kinda a long winded response lol, but I did want to talk about it and I do think it gives a mit more insight into my thought process/Makarov's character.

[featherlouise]

Hi, I'm back!!

Been lurking every once in a while in the shadows and saw that you and the other anons were talking about gemstones (and su) for the hk cast.

First off, the higher beings as diamonds is a 10/10 idea, buuut I'm thinking that the Vessels could all be varieties of Corundum!

Corundum is actually the mother stone of Sapphires and Rubies, the only difference between the two is that only Conundums with Chromium are Rubies, while everything else is a Sapphire. Now, I could go on and write and entire essay in your inbox about the nuances and details and elements and god, it's all really fascinating, but yeah. Pinkish-Orange and Orangish-Pink are the most valuable of all Sapphires (also called Padparatcha), as well as the classic Cornflower Blue one. Also, Corundum is 9 on the Mohs hardness scale, one unit below Diamond, which makes sense for the Vessels, seeing as they're half-higher beings.

Also, for Hornet and maybe the Dreamers and the knights, I'd recommend Beryl, the mother stone of Emerald, Morganite and Aquamarine (and a few others). Red Beryl is the rarest Beryl and fitting for Hornet, I'd say Emerald for Monomon, and Green Beryl (which IS different, yes) for Isma. The rest can be up to you. Beryl is also one unit lower than Conundum on the Mohs scale.

Source: me, a geology student taking a gemmology elective xD (aka my wonderful teacher who has been sharing everything she knows with us)

As for others, I haven't really thought about it much, I haven't even really read what other anon have said bc i just got home and I'm so tired and hungry and rknddhhhdhdhd. Yeah. So I apologize if I'm just bursting into the discussion uninvited.

-names anon (tho I'm an anon of two things now lol)

I’m pretty sure we’ve got everyone’s gem’s figured out but these are some cool ideas!!

*hands this to evil anon*

[literaphobe]

What I'd be really excited for is to find out how this works in-world.

Is this literally the first time ever this has ever happened in that universe? Is it something that's happened before in history? Is there mythology about it in ancient cultures where love stories are solved by one person being teleported, thus proving them to be made for each other despite other restrictions? Has the fandom in that world been making jokes about "careful Dream, if you take another step to the left you might just teleport George there lol" about dnf?

Did the military try and fail to utilize it because it's too at-random? Does the government handle it or is it so rare that they decided "ah screw it here's a half assed law about how they should just try to get back when they can"? Are there non profits in places where cross-cultural or cross-racial marriage isn't allowed that treat these as a special case and fight for the rights of the couples? What does an extremely homophobic state/country do when it's two women or two men, do they go "ah look theyre just SO GOOD friends, you know its oversexualization to assume raptures are always romantic!!!" or do they just get super sus and try to sue you?

I'm probably reading WAY too far into it but I'm a worldbuilding nerd. Even if it's just the first time ever it happens I'll still be happy to read the fic tho! Your writing is super banger. I also want to note that it took me literal weeks to find the askbox because my brain is too hollow to understand how to do that from ur page on the theme and I have to do it by going thru the dash-sight when you click the eye. No pressure to give spoilers (I would totally eat them up though) and I'm sure I'll love it either way!

I feel like after this essay I can say that I'm that one long comment person on ao3 who disappeared for the last few chapters and to avoid my heart being actually shattered into a million pieces I'm waiting for the last chapter to come out to drop comments on everything, bc if I have to see them heartbroken again i will ACTUALLY cry and also if they don't get an actual happy ending I will also cry, and I've been trying to avoid that by trying to see if they are actually happy in the end via osmosis thru my dash before I read. I'm fragile sdkfjsdf.

ok this is a long ask sorry for the wall of text but anyways excited for ur future projects!

HI! also no, there is no pre-existing lore about teleportation in the rapture!dnf universe :) basically, they do some googling online but realize this is some freaky crazy shit that would be very hard to prove, so they don’t end up telling a lot of people, and even though they speculate that its possible they’re not the first people this /tp irl shit has happened to, they think it’s dangerous to try and actively find people who have experienced it on the off chance that it 1) gets them in trouble bc they’re famous 2) it doesn’t work 3) they get like murdered…. but basically, since dream doesn’t have a passport OR any legal records of him leaving the US and going to the UK, they realize how dangerous their situation could be because dream could be accused of trespassing, worst case scenario, which THEY DO NOT WANT so on the surface they’re hoping dream wakes up back in florida and nothing else happens so that they don’t run into any trouble, but UNDER THE SURFACE… what do they ACTUALLY want? y’know

also HOPING U LOVE SADF WHEN U CATCH UP AND LOOKING FORWARD TO UR THOUGHTS!!!

[kwon-eunbi]

No, that sounds so interesting! How many languages do you speak then? I graduated a while back, but I also got a degree in language and social sciences, it’s so much harder than people think. Like yeah there’s the speaking part of it, but it was around my third weekend in the departmental library getting ready for an oral project in a language not spoken since 900 that I really wondered what I was doing there. How did you get into informational sciences? What’s your favorite class you’re taking (or have taken if this term’s dull)?

I don’t know if you know A.C.E at all, but Jun covered “12:45” about a year ago and I annoyed everyone with my insistence that this is IT this song has PEAKED no one else even BOTHER trying to cover it, but then Wooyoung dropped his and I was like OKAY they can SHARE IT. (The fact that they’re both short kings makes it even better) He’s really got the vocals and is so underappreciated for it.

“Inception” was so good! I know they were teasing “Guerilla” era at the end of the “Answer” video, but in the end I’m glad that was delayed (San’s vocal growth especially over those two years), and that we got something as good as “Inception” as their first derailed-by-covid-comeback. Hongjoong with his blue hair and little half skirts was truly exceptional. And “Say My Name” was also truly Such An Era omg Wooyoung in his little cropped fur jacket go baby go.

It sounds like you like their more melodic songs, what did you think of the tonal shift into “Guerilla”?

I started watching Lucifer, but fell off when I didn’t have time, if it’s good I’ll check it out again! Recently I’ve just been rereading books I loved when I was about fourteen and getting entirely different experiences out of them now. Mostly Discworld, but also quite a bit of Salinger and Rilke, and right now I’m rereading Water for Elephants on the bus every morning.

Sorry to write a whole essay, but I hope you have a wonderfully restful weekend~

--🎅

i mean it is interesting, but i'm just tired of the constant assignments and studying lmaoo. well i do speak two fluently (croatian, my native language, and english), but i do know swedish and german well. i also do know some korean but i definitely need to work on it more haha.

ohhhh wait did you study latin? tbh i loved latin, i had it for two years in high school. but social sciences sounds really interesting, and i definitely agree, it really isn't as easy as people think, especially when you're majoring in certain language you also need to learn everything about the language and the country and culture, not just the language. and well information sciences... actually i thought i'd have some programming subjects but i was wrong about that lmaoo but i can go to become a librarian from it (which i really hope i'll get in) since that is one of the careers i did always want. honestly all subjects this term are boring af.... but i think the ones i liked the most were swedish in the first two semsters and web design basics (which was kinda easy for me since i learned the basics of coding on my own lmao). what about you tho? how many languages can you speak?

ohh yes i do know a.c.e but i didn't know he covered it omg, i'll have to check it out! and sooo true.

yes yes i couldn't agree more! and yes hongjoong in say my name era was def sth else. honestly that era is so iconic! and to think it was only a few months after their debut...KINGS!! and ikrr wooyoungs jacket and the hair and that specific line he has in the chorus oooof forever obsessed with it

yeahh i do like more melodic songs but i did love guerilla! honestly i'm a fan of everything they release. whatever they put out i will devour hahah. but i do like their songs that are more like answer and treasure and inception. wbu tho? what songs of theirs do you like?

ohhh i definitely recommend continuing lucifer. s5 fell off of a bit but it was still good nonetheless. ohhhh i hope you enjoyed rereading them! honestly i was thinking of rereading some of my favorites too (it's not like i don't have a huge tbr list lmaoo) that's not just heartstopper which i reread idek how many times already in the past 3 years lmao

and dw, i love when people talk to me <3 even tho idek who you are yet hahah but i do apologize for even a longer essay in response hahah and i hope you have a good and restful weekend too <333

[dannyphantom-rewrite]

Character ref for; Jack, Maddie and Jazz,

Art by @gally-hin / @gally-hin-phantom

Okay so first off; in terms of Actual redesign, I didn't change a whole lot. I'm actually very fond of Jack and Maddie's design's, my only real issue was with their proportions. Like...look as a lady person who is also thiCC I do not have a fucking wasp thin waist and I'm sure I'm not the only one, lmao. As for Jack? Godamnit he looked like a brick on toothpicks. Just Let him be a fucking Bara man! Anyway of course I asked Gally to do this one bc they're fucking great at drawing different body types

I also cannot and will not take credit for Jazz's outfit. I didn't have any issue with her canon clothes aside from them being a bit plain, so what she's wearing here was literally pulled straight off of her original concept art, which I will link here.

Anyway, getting to the Actual character lore now, let's start with

Maddie Fenton

-Full name is Madeline (I haven't decided on a maiden name yet)

-Born and raised on a farm in Arkansas, had a southern accent that she trained herself out of in college bc it was just one more reason for people not to take her seriously. Still sometimes uses "y'all" completely unironically bc old habits die hard.

-She has a really big family, and they're proud of her accomplishments but feel like she's wasting her talent studying ghosts, because really, up until the Fenton portal was up and running there wasn't even any solid proof they existed. Her sister Alicia is the one outlier there, and even if she doesn't understand, it she completely supports her.

-She majored in engineering and minored in psychology at Wisconsin EDU. Her, Jack and Vlad were all in the same engineering class, and that's where they met.

-Maddie is particularly interested in how ghosts think, analysing their behavior, their motives. Not only that, but they aren't just dead people with unfinished business, they've built an entire culture in the Ghost Zone that is completely seperate from humanity, and she wants to understand all of it.

-skilled marksman and 9th degree black belt, (which is. The highest fucking level there is holy shit? I looked it up after I saw it on her wiki page.)

Jack Fenton

-He's from Minnesota (Amity park is in Illinois and him and Maddie didn't move there until after they got married) 

-okay, "but why minnesota specifically" you ask? Because. I crave. Foot ball discourse. 

-minnesota vikings vs green bay packers guys do you UNDERSTAND WHERE IM GOING WITH THIS 

-The funny thing is that Jack only watches football casually while Vlad is a fucking die hard so when these two got together to see a game it was like....

-Jack: Here to chill and have a good time.

-Vlad: Primed and ready to start a fist fight at any given moment.

-I am never not going to be salty about how Canon Jack was portrayed like a complete moron 99% percent of the time. Like no...theres a difference between Actual Stupid and ADHD induced dumbass-ery.

-Am I saying Jack Fenton has ADHD? Yes. why? Because I also have ADHD and I have always vibed So Hard with his Character.

-Jack is loud and easily excited about things that interest him. He's impulsive and fidgety and yeah, a bit absent minded. He has a mouth that clearly runs so much faster than his head. His train of thought doesn't get derailed so much as it stops and takes several different detours on the way to it's final destination.

-and that's only the tip of the iceberg, really, I'd need an entire essay to get into this completely, but I just really relate.

-Jacks skill-set / interests regarding ghosts vary a bit from Maddie's, most notably in the sense that he doesn't believe that they're static entities already set in their ways, completely incapable of change.

-Jack majored in engineering and minored in Biology at Wisconsin EDU.

-Jack's work with tech is a bit hit or miss. He definitely HAS the engineering skills, but the intrest isn't always there and he's constantly jumping back and forth between different projects. He tends to focus on the concept work and schematics and leave most of the assembly to Maddie as a result. It's an arrangement that works well for them, and has drastically decreased the number of unintentional explosions in the lab.

-A lot of Jack's work tends to revolve around ghostly biology and Ectoplasm, figuring out how ghosts are made, what makes them tick, what the hell Ectoplasm Actually Is, how it's used as an energy source, ect.

-and yes, that does also mean he handles the dissections.

-See that facial scar? Yeah, that's not actually there at the start of the series rewrite but it's very important for plot reasons so I had to include it. Can't say much more on the subject because SPOILERs owo.

Jasmine Fenton

-Jazz is a 18 years old, and a senior at Casper high.

-Which means she prepping to go away to college and won't be around to keep an eye on Danny.

-Obviously that doesn't mean I'm just writing her out of the story, oh no. Know why? Because she's also gonna go to Wisconsin EDU. ya know who else is in Wisconsin? Fuckin' Vlad.

-Jazz is autistic, Although she passes for neurotypical in part due to symptoms being completely over looked in girls due to gender stereotyping and also the fact that she doesn't have any special interests that are considered " "too weird.""

- Her hyperfixation with psychology started at a young age in an effort to better understand people, and social/emotional cues and all that.

-Jazz is well liked at school but she's not popular or apart of any specific group or clique. She's very kind and compassionate to people, and just about everyone knows her, but you'd be hard pressed to find someone who actually Considered her a friend. Except maybe Spike.

-I'm gonna have to give spike his own Character ref at some point, but he's this scary looking goth kid that's been held back twice. He's actually super sweet, just really fuckin' quiet and anxious. Him and jazz kinda ended up gravitating towards each other. She might do most of the talking, but they look out for each other.

-its not like jazz doesn't try to socialize, but it's difficult and she's found it much easier and less stressful to just. Keep to herself and let her interactions with her peers stay shallow and superficial. Sure, it's lonely sometimes but it's better than constantly worrying about saying the wrong thing or making some other misstep.

-One of Jazz's other special interests is football, and it's not so much the players or the game as it is the strategy of it? Started out as one of those things you do to bond with your dad, and she ended up getting really into it.

-She absolutley winds up getting into stupidly intense discussions with Vlad about it, too, lmao.

-Her and Danny probably bonded over SBNation bc that shit has both sentient satellites and ridiculously complex football mechanics.

-She's completely oblivious to the fact, but Dash has a massive crush on her bc holy shit this girl understands football (hey bud your toxic masculinity is showing put that shit away)

-I mentioned that Danny was in Cheer for a bit in middle school so it makes sense that she'd also be pushed into doing some kind of extracurricular activity.....so.....she was in a martial arts class for a bit thanks to Maddie and has a good grasp on self defense.

I think that's everything? I feel like I'm leaving things out tho? Idk if I did I'll come back and add on to this later and also pls don't hesitate to ask questions bc it really helps me flesh things out better.

[retvenkos]

Congrats on 2.5k!! You're an amazing artist, and have no idea on how many times I've read your fics 😂 even tho I'm kinda shy to comment... sorry, I'll try to work on that 😅 Can I get a 🔥 for Narnia, Newsies and Harry Potter Next-Generation?

I'm a straight girl, INFP, Hufflepuff, Daughter of Athena (in Percy Jackson universe 😂). I really like to read, and watch movies or TV series, theater or... anything that tells a story, I really don't care about the media as long as they have a good story to tell. I also really like writing, I really write a lot about what I think, or some poems, or even have tried writing songs, but I have no music knowledge so... lol. I really love music, I've loved music since I can remember, and I'm currently trying to learn how to play guitar.

To me, the most important thing that I have are my friends, I appreciate them more that anything in this life and would give my life for them. But I'm not an affectionate person, it's kind of rare when I'm openly about how much I love them, and only with real close friends I tell them a little more often how much they mean to me, and I'm not really into physical touch either, just with really close people.

I love long talks where I can talk about... anything. I have so many thoughts about so many things, and I'd really like to share them with someone, and that person to tell me what they think too. I'm open minded, and if someone doesn't agree with me it's ok, but I really like to debate and be able to see everyone's point of view.

I don't tend to say when I'm feeling down, and I'm kind of good at hiding it, (I hide my feelings with humor lol) so... I have to be really sad to let people know about it (and just really close ones). I don't feel comfortable letting other people know when I'm not feeling well, and even if they know it's still rare that they could help me so... I just feel with it on my own (even tho it would be nice to have someone there sometimes). On the contrary, I'm always there to help everyone. Most my friends come to me for advice and I help them the best I can. So... I'm kind of the therapist friend that no one check how is doing lol

You could say I'm kind of a geek? Nerd? Whatever xD but I like to have fun (like... it's easier to get out of trouble when you're one of the "good kids" in class 👀 I still follow most of the rules tho, just know how to have my ways sometimes). I'm kind of the stereotype for Ravenclaw, but I'm a Hufflepuff xD so yeah... I really like music, and musical theater, and lots of reading. Love to spend time with my friends, but really enjoy time with myself. I spend most of my day daydreaming, and don't like to follow rules lol (But I'm the voice of reason with my friends. I don't like rules, but follow them... if it's necessary) . I hate people who are selfish, or that don't care about others. Also hate people who manipulate others or that get into "friendships" just to get something out of it (those are fake friends so).

So... yeah, that's it. I'm sorry if it's a lot, and no problem if you can't do it 😅 (also, I would love some rivals-to-lovers? If it's possible). Really love your work 💕

Pd. Sorry for my bad English 😅

HP Next Gen:

I ship you with James Sirius Potter!

so first of all, james sirius is one of those dorky jocks who is made up of lame jokes, poorly timed finger-guns, an inexplicable talent in school (despite rarely studying), and persuasion skills that somehow work on even the strictest of teachers.

it is from this that the rivalry between you is born. james sirius potter doesn’t have to do anything! he can run a hand through his god awful hair, give a teacher a grin, and his entire year is set. he can skip lessons for quidditch, where you get extra work when you were sick with dragon pox! it’s not fair that james sirius potter gets to waltz through this school like he’s all that, and the rest of you have to suffer.

at first, the rivalry wasn’t that bad, you just rolled your eyes in class whenever his obnoxious “thanks, professor” was heard over the din, or whenever you went to quidditch matches and he showed off on his broom, instead of doing his job as seeker (at which he was pretty good, not that you’d admit it).

BUT THEN,,,,, you become herbology partners, and things get bad. fast.

you get that harry potter is friends with neville but really? neville, head of gryffindor house, the most just of gryffindors, is letting james sirius potter leave class 20 minutes early because he has quidditch practice? practice that, mind you, doesn’t start until AFTER class has ended? your professor leaves you to do the work of two people all on your own because james sirius potter said it was cool that neville cut the head off of nagini? come on! everyone says that!

so you end up having to do extra work, which leaves less time for your other classes, and you have to do it in herbology - a class that has the potential to be deadly when difficult. 

it’s not a week until you march up to gryffindor tower (which is a pain on the legs, especially since your common room is in the basement) and wait for james sirius to show his sorry face. he doesn’t come down until lunch time, and then you have to follow him down to the great hall, because he “didn’t have breakfast” and he needs to eat “for quidditch.” it’s annoying, and yet he’s smiling the whole time?

you tell him he can’t leave class early - you almost had your finger bitten off the other day because no one else was there to hold down the plant while you tried to pick off it’s petals.

he says he can’t, but he’ll do your essays or whatever. “that’s plagiarism, you realize that?” “alright, then i’ll give you my notes.” “you don’t take notes.” “then i’ll start.”

and this is clearly going nowhere, so you sigh and leave.

it’s probably not even two weeks later when you are going to neville. he’s the head of gryffindor house and the one who made this arrangement. can’t he do something? the professor tells you that he chose you to team up with james sirius because he knows you can handle it on your own - and then he gave you some lame excuse about why james sirius needed the extra time, something about him about to be promoted to team captain at the end of the year or whatever.

and next class, for the little time that james sirius is working with you, he teases you about how you went to the professor. it annoys you to no end.

about a week later, you come down with a cold - madam pomfrey says a lot of it is due to stress, and while she gives you a potion to help you out, your still sick for two days. the day you get better, it’s the weekend and you get up early with the plan to get to the teachers before the quidditch game starts and ask beg them for less homework, or at the very least pick up what you missed. it’s early - almost everyone is still asleep, and when you walk out of the common room, you see..... james sirius potter? he asks if you’re alright - he heard you were sick for a couple days. you’re a little too tired for this, so you just answer his questions, no complaining. he then hands you a stack of parchment. “what is this?” “notes, for the classes you missed.” “oh.” “and i know how you feel about the rules, so i didn’t actually write you a herbology essay, but i did give you a good outline.” “oh.... thanks.” “’course.” and he gives you one of his awkward smiles and a solitary finger gun. you roll your eyes, but wish him luck in the game. he’s a little shocked, but you say it’s against ravenclaw, and their egos need to be taken down a peg.

and from there you are a little softer toward james sirius, but he’s still annoying as hell.

i have a very vivid idea of you having gone to a quidditch game, and gryffindor, of course, won. you decide to wait in the stands until everyone clears out, because it’s easier that way, and you want to finish your popcorn, anyway. james sirius has lingered on the pitch with the current quidditch captain, and when he sees that you’re one of the few still lingering, he goes up to meet you. he sits down next to you and steals a bit of you popcorn, which makes you roll your eyes, and he says something like “i didn’t expect you to wait for me.” “i wasn’t.” “sure.” and the two of you sit there for a moment, james coming down from the high of winning, sharing the remnants of your popcorn. it starts to drizzle and james uses his wand to make an umbrella, and the two of you start up a conversation about whatever - definitely not school related, and not even quidditch related, just something out of the blue. it’s not until all of the popcorn is gone and it’s raining in earnest that the two of you walk to the castle, james laughing at his own jokes and you smiling despite yourself.

i also imagine that, when the two of you become better friends, james sirius has a quidditch accident where he maybe breaks his arm or something. you get to go into mom mode, and james sirius teases you, saying that he “didn’t know you cared.” and it’s reminiscent of the dialogue above, but instead of denying it, you say “of course i do, you idiot.”

alright i went off (and now i want to write a fic about this) but i think the two of you would be really cute together because james sirius would love to talk with you about everything. he has a whole lot of siblings, and as the oldest is great at keeping conversation and he’s also actually really good at reading a room, despite what he may pretend. he would know when you’re feeling bad, and he’s also really good at accurately finding your insecurities and then boosting your self-esteem in exact ways.

and i also think that you and james sirius are music enthusiasts. if you are a pureblood, he introduces you to the wonders of muggle music, and if you are a half-blood or muggle born, you bond over your favorite muggle artists.

also, i have this headcanon that james sirius learns the guitar so he can be a certified heartthrob™ and no doubt he got the idea from you - you were in the hufflepuff common room just messing around, and he notices your guitar. maybe you learn together?

and while james sirius isn’t much of a reader, he loves movies more than anything else, so the two of you definitely have marathons.

Narnia:

I ship you with Peter Pevensie!

alright, the two of you would have the sweetest, most supportive relationship I’ve ever had the pleasure of writing

this one is a certified friends to lovers because from day one, the two of you get along really well together. even though peter is a little more extroverted, he’s the older brother and has a lot of introverted tendencies because he’s tired™

there is nothing that peter would love more than going on a walk through the gardens with you, talking about your interests - he likes to steer the topics to what you like to do because (1) he likes the way your eyes light up when you talk about what you love, and (2) he is tired of talking about himself. as king, he’s only ever talking about the problems he’s facing, or big problems that cover all of narnia. the smaller interests you have are his respite, his chance to have a bit of normalcy, as a high king.

you are also both hufflepuffs, so you’re fiercely loyal to those you love, and you’re both hard workers - stopping at nothing to do what needs to be done. you are both there to bolster the other in their efforts, but also get them to relax at the end of the day, since caring as much as you do and working as much as you do is the definition of exhausting.

you’re also the parent couple! we have peter, the dad friend (complete with the worst dad jokes you have ever heard. they’re even worse when they’re “king” jokes which are like dad jokes 2.0) and you, the mom friend! together, you make sure that your friends (and subjects) are well taken care of. and you act like stand in parents for edmund and lucy, which is not only exhausting but rewarding.

now, even though peter is a very affectionate person, more than that he’s thoughtful and the moment he realizes you don’t like that, he’ll stop. he’s more than happy to just be near you - reading books or pouring over documents with your input (because he definitely gets your input on issues of state). 

he also becomes big on getting you flowers or making you food (because headcanon that peter learns to cook in the cair paravel kitchens!). peter just has a lot of feelings, and as long as he has a way to express them, he’s good. 

he loves it when you give him praise, so whenever the two of you are stargazing and you compliment him, he blushes deeply. use this power wisely, because he will blush a deep red, and it’s a little awkward when he’s the definition of heart eyes in the middle of a privy council.

Newsies:

I ship you with Crutchie!

alright, so you and crutchie are, once again, a really sweet couple.

crutchie loves your way with words - you have a tiny notebook that he got you as a present, one year, and you are constantly writing poetry in them. you will often show him your work, and he’s astounded with your level of craftsmanship. he’s told you on multiple occasions that you should write one of those poetry books that he sees well-to-do men buy for those they love, and you get al bashful, one of his favorite looks.

also, both of you are dreamers. you definitely have lots of talks together, usually when you’re doing something absent minded like mending clothes or selling on the same corner, and you talk at length about what you want for this world, and what you hope to do in it. crutchie has a big imagination, and so do you. sometimes, the two of you see who can make up the best, most random story.

also! in a high school! au the two of you are the sweetest, most unsuspecting rule breakers ever. i mean, you’re friends with race and albert, after all, there has to be a chaotic streak in you somewhere. everyone is genuinely surprised when they realize that you and crutchie have snuck out of class and pulled the fire alarm before.

the two of you are also big readers. i imagine that crutchie likes mystery novels a lot. idk why, exactly, but he loves sherlock holmes, so the two of you not only read books together, but rate the different versions of sherlock holmes adaptations. (modern! au, of course, unless benedict cumberbatch is making tv series in 1899)

you debate over which of you is watson and which one of you is holmes. you’re both really smart, so it’s hard to say which one of you gets sherlock rights.

also, both of you are really good at hiding when you are hurting or in pain. and yet, both of you are also really good at spotting it in the other, seeing as you know the tells of hiding. i think you are both really empathetic and would be good with each other - leaning on each other when necessary and always being attentive of the other. all around, you’re a great match.

also, in a modern! au crutchie would love the percy jackson series. the two of you would riot over the terrible live-action movie and be very excited when the disney+ series comes out (here’s to hoping they don’t botch it)

[haknew]

hello!! just thought I'd stop by and say thank u for making content for us!! your little creations help make my day go by a little better :) also I thought I should ask whats your favorite thing about each tbz members if you dont mind? I'm in the mood to adore these boys more! 💞🥰

ahhhh i’m glad i’m able to brighten someone’s day with my content ! that’s all i could ask for ^~^ hmm i might end up writing an essay so here goes:

(also i might mention two things for some just bc 1 is more about them as a person in general and the second thing is about them as performers!)

sangyeon - for sangyeon, it might be a bit on the nose but i really think my favorite thing about him is his leadership, esp when oneus were collabing with tbz on rtk, he has really good people skills and knows how to talk through and guide conversations and group dynamics !

jacob - this is a bit,,, tough ,,, as a performer jacob is a good all-rounder, i absolutely adore his vocals and his dancing and i think he’s one of the strongest members in both categories... in general terms though, my favorite thing really is what everyone probably said too which is how kind, considerate, and angelic he is... i know he said he likes keeping his own problems to himself because he doesn’t want to burden anyone else with it, but then he goes around trying to take a little of everyone else’s problems to try and make them feel better,,, he really loves and cares about everyone around him;;; and he never really complains or take it out on anyone else and i just- ... yea i’m love he :((

younghoon - i think my favorite thing about younghoon is how unique (?) / eccentric he is,,, he tends to think very divergently / outside-of-the-box and considers stuff i never would have even dreamed of coming up with,,, and he’s just proud and unapologetic about it too ! he’s silly but bright and i think that’s the really cool thing about him :))

hyunjae - my fav thing about hyunjae is his tendency for acts of service ...? if that makes sense,,, he uses actions to express things just as much as his words ;;; like he did this vlive with haknyeon once where he adjusted the camera to include hak even tho it wasn’t intended to be a two person vlive anyway, or on chanhee’s bday vlive where he told off bbangkyu for blocking chanhee,,, it’s really just how much he tires his best to take care of others even when he’s jokingly teasing them despite it !

juyeon - my fav thing about juyeon is his ... what i’d call a perfect combination of self confidence and humbleness haha,,, he knows his strong points and he knows how to utilize them best and to his advantage but he never lets it inflate his ego bc that’s just how down-to-earth he is :,,))) you can kind of tell in the way the other members always prank him but he’s just so trusting of the people around him, he never shows off without immediately getting a bit shy after and i think that’s very admirable and wholesome of him :,)

kevin - HHHH okay let’s see... my favorite superficial thing about kevin is this one smile he has where,,, when someone says something he finds funny or he’s talking to fans and he smiles so wide it looks like his cheekies are about to burst from how happy he is and ..... yea ok i’m- going to say something serious now,,, this is also from his gen z interview video but i think the thing that i love the most about kevin is just how aware he is... of those around him,,, during mafia games for example, he’s always peace keeping and giving members the chance to defend themselves and he’s always trying his best to adjust his own behavior to fit in with what he thinks other people want ;;;; and i just,,, really adore him for that,,, i hope he can feel comfy and unapologetically himself too of course, and i think he is when he’s drawing and being artistically active and so i’m just *heart eyes* i guess *sigh* 

chanhee - hands down my favorite thing about chanhee as a performer is his voice... i talk about this a lot bc i was a choir kid for 4 years but, chanhee is a spectacular vocalist, and his voice is so distinctive too,,, falsetto king, he’s got this light airy / breathy timbre and it’s so beautiful to me ;;;; and his. adlibs!!!!! as a person... this is actually really difficult for me to put into words bc i just want to say my fav thing about chanhee is he’s tinie LOL but what i mean by that is,,, he’s got this,,, delicate sensitivity ? idk i feel like we’re similar in many ways which is probably my fav thing about him,,, he clings to the other members despite their teasing but he always tries his best to avoid embarrassing stuff and he’s introverted ... ok yea please give me one pass i cannot pick just one fav thing about chanhee i am a mess

changmin - hmm i think my favorite thing about changmin is just how genuine he is,,, i think he likes to just... talk ! about anything he wants which is why he goes on vlive so often, and i’ve noticed he is pretty straightforward and says stuff directly ! it’s not a bad thing i admire him a lot for it, actually, he really just talks with so much open honesty about how he feels and what he thinks that it’s almost second nature to him... i really love just listening to him talk about anything honestly his vlives are like having 3am conversations over the phone with your best friend... that kind of feeling 

haknyeon - THIS IS THE HARDEST T^T i love so many things about haknyeon... ok as a performer, my favorite thing about haknyeon is how adaptable he is and how he completely (?) absorbs a concept,,, like it doesn’t matter if it’s cute like keeper or darker like reveal,,, he fully embodies whatever concept it is almost to the point you would never guess how he is irl,,, i really think he’d make a great actor just bc his stage presence is so powerful and convincing and his facial expressions are killer... as a person,,, i think my favorite thing is something i’ve talked about before but he has this natural wonderment in his worldview... i think it’s his confidence like he talked about in the generation z video but he treats everything as something new he can learn from,,, he gets so so excited over the smallest things and is easily intrigued by anything and everything around him and he treats it all as a personal challenge, like if he tried hard enough he could do literally anything  (i compare him to a cat going outside of its house for the first time and getting to see a butterfly that kind of vibe ;;;;)

sunwoo - my favorite thing about sunwoo is how caring he is ? i’m not sure a lot of people catch it but despite his endless clowning and bullying of the other members, he’s also always one of the first members to praise them or shower them in compliments. he’s also so whipped for all of them T-T he (mostly) always laughs at any of their jokes, dumb as they may be, or agrees with whatever they’re saying, the teasing and shading is all a front almost :,)) it’s really cute of him

eric - my favorite thing about eric is his pure earnest enthusiasm for everything,,, i know all the tbz members work their hardest at everything they do as performers, but eric,,, he tries his hardest and then 54396 times more,,, i think it comes from him being the youngest member maybe, but he works so hard at anything and everything, may it be games or performing... he just acts as if he’s always trying to prove something, our energy eric T^T ! he never lets up even for a second and i adore him so much for that, goofball that he may be !

[punkscowardschampions]

Junior & Nancy

Gay nerds

Junior: Nance, how on earth are you tackling this art project? To say I'm discombobulated is an understatement that isn't getting me an A any time soon! Nancy: 😕 sums it up in a way. Obviously I can fall back on the twin thing but is that too safe? 😩 But we couldn't be more different Junior: 😖 Like, I love how vague and open to our own interpretation it is...but also I fucking hate how vague and open to our own interpretation it is! 😢😂 No one would blame you; least of all me, 'cos I was tempted- being the sore thumb I am when counting our ten- and I've not even got the twin angle everyone is so about in all areas of art tbh Junior: If nothing else, Buster is a willing participant in a photo op always? Junior: Ooh, you could get something matchy match from your childhood photos (I know they exist) and splice it with portraits of you now...Think that elevates it Nancy: You've put your finger on it. Nancy: But I don't think you're so right about the lack of blame 🤔 even with the boy/girl straight/gay redhead/brunette angle it still feels ??? Nancy: Basic 😒 Junior: I get you Junior: Meant to become the next Magritte in just 4 weeks, like !!! Junior: Well, I've heard at least 4 girls from class saying they're going to do a heavily made-up portrait next to a #nofilter #naturalbeauty one so Junior: We'll do better than that by default but I'd like to come up with something vaguely original still Junior: Miss' sanity relies on us lowkey, no pressure 😷😜 Nancy: I had that passing thought let it go though 😜 Nancy: You could text her Nancy: 😕 yes pressure Nancy: What to do? Junior: I like to keep it in professional hours Junior: for her sake, she gets a bit amorous when she's had a glass o vino after work Nancy: 😮 she does? Nancy: can I bribe my way to top of the class by raiding the cellar Junior: That was my second suggestion 😏 Junior: Take one for the team please 🙏 Nancy: but she's straight STRAIGHT Nancy: couldn't be enough Nancy: back to the mindmap Junior: Damn straights 😒 Junior: if all else fails, we can put this grade next to our last Junior: break the fourth wall, v meta Nancy: our school gets the one bohemian who is Nancy: put her next to the sterotypical art teacher Junior: did you mean my mother? 🤔 Junior: her, the engineer, hilarious 😂 Junior: Mum'd be up for it, you may borrow her Nancy: I might yet Nancy: when's this due again? Junior: we've still got 3 weeks, don't worry Junior: just trying to get it over and done with here Nancy: I should Nancy: The Tempest essay is due soon Junior: Don't remind me, even the gayness can't make it enjoyable, like many a teen show 🤷 Junior: Could combine? Somehow? Umm Junior: The supernatural characters and the humans...why yes, I am clutching at straws Junior: This term is killing me Nancy: If I'd get away with handing in some shots instead of an essay I would Nancy: not happening Nancy: 😩 Nancy: What ideas have you had? For the juxtaposition...forget the tempest Nancy: burn that Junior: If only, 1000 words=1 photograph, no contest really Junior: again, if only Will had 💀 Junior: The idea I can't get out of my head, even though it has been done to death so is BEYOND basic, is mashing up a classical art piece with something modern and pop culture...to say something about me (eww!) Junior: Tbf, they usually use Renaissance or very very famous art pieces so I could win points by using some relevant surrealism/ going beyond calling Mona Lisa #flawless Junior: Its all I've got Nancy: I think it's good Nancy: Let's both run with overused concepts and make them not basic in our way Nancy: act like we planned it Nancy: nobody has to know we had no other ideas Junior: Absolutely 😎 Junior: Total confidence is key, comes so natural to the both of us, like Junior: I think worrying about being 'original' is the true hack thing to do here anyway 💅 Nancy joined the chat 13 hours ago Nancy: 😖 yes Nancy: stealing that all Nancy: now if you could keep it going and give me some thoughts on shakespeare to plagiarize 😜 Junior: If I could, I would but even SparkNotes isn't helping me Junior: shall we peruse the best film/stage adaptations? maybe tomorrow night if you're free Nancy: I've seen the 2010 version a few times for obvious reasons Nancy: but yeah the others not so much Nancy: we need to do something that isn't me asking my mum for help Junior: Oh, babe 😂 that's the real tragedy here, you doing that to yourself Junior: maybe I'll borrow her and she can do mine for me Junior: still down for a movie night obviously Nancy: 🙉 Nancy: Lead female character Nancy: Shakespeare should've Nancy: Please do take her Nancy: mum swap 😂 Junior: As much as Bill LOVED any excuse for a drag show darling... stick with the evil queens and witches 😘 Junior: Let's do this, full family swap! Let them drive you insane for a bit whilst I live the life 😬 Nancy: Switch that around both my parents are so type A Nancy: Plus you've got all the brothers and sisters to dodge behind Nancy: Buster takes more heat off than most but he's still just one boy Junior: well, mine would refuse to be bound to a type, just as annoying I promise Junior: Its true I can mostly fade into obscurity with all their shenanigans, yet it still somehow isn't the case, just 12 nosy people in your business instead of the usual 2, with a disinterested brother flexing off in the background Nancy: 🙈 Nancy: I'm not having kids Nancy: Don't care if the future wife is frantic Junior: It is an issue that divides all of us tbh Junior: I don't think I'd mind one, to put all my efforts into Junior: but unlikely Junior: unless I co-parent from the sidelines with your wife Nancy: weirder scenarios have come about Nancy: I'd prefer a kitten Junior: steal one when you come over Junior: Ma'd probably notice but really, do we need so many? Nancy: Gran's such a dog person can I get through the door Junior: True, true Junior: Always living on such extremes this fam Junior: I don't know 😏 Nancy: look at me and my brother ultimate homo and hetero Nancy: embarrassing Junior: 😂 Junior: I'd love to suggest he doth protest too much but lbr Nancy: dad's never been prouder 😂 no teen pregnancies for his little girl Nancy: shakespeare would write that Junior: Who are we putting our money on to go first Nancy: that's harder than it sounds Junior: Rio is obvious choice but I sometimes think Grace might go insane and come along and take the claim Junior: *Shudders* Nancy: change the subject I beg you Nancy: I'd rather hear about your attempts to avoid your secret admirer who's a girl and hopelessly 💘 Junior: well, I would rather pretend that was not a thing 😬 Junior: as your brother once eloquently put it, when he was very pissed, 'i could clean up and get untold amounts of pussy' Junior: and that's that on that Junior: considering getting a face transplant 'cos my off-putting demeanour is not doing enough 😒 what problems to have, eh? the privilege of it all! 😂 Nancy: maybe we should go under together Nancy: moral support and potential discount Nancy: if I get told I don't look gay one more time I'm returning my badge Junior: well, where is your crewcut and tank top, like? 🤔 Junior: out here confusing the masses like that, idk Nancy: 🙉 Nancy: Not an identical twin playing tricks either how dare I Junior: why can't you just get in your box and like it, god damn it Nance! Nancy: unrelated except about boxes but should I get some new kit for this project or am I just stalling Nancy: a memoir Junior: any excuse 😜 Junior: but yes, do it Junior: i'm using it as excuse to go 'round all the best art galleries in town again so Nancy: Can I tag along Nancy: they're so quiet it's everything Junior: Naturally Junior: We're art students, we've gotta act like it, I'll keep the pretentious commentary to a minimum if you keep the equally as pretentious 'grams down too 😘 Nancy: I'll try Nancy: The feed wants what it wants though Junior: Can't argue, just leave the real money outta the shot Junior: Gotta leave my fangirls wanting more, like 😂 Nancy: That I will promise Nancy: Not trying to be mobbed by straight girls Junior: You mean you resist the lesbian stereotype of LOVING that too?! Nancy: Somehow it's managed Junior: no mean feat, one of the few gays in the village Nancy: Don't clap it's too loud 😂 Junior: *Finger clicks like this a slam poetry night* Nancy: Thank you Nancy: [sends a selection of childhood pictures] how early years can I go before everyone's rolling their eyes Nancy: Thank you too mum for these. Why did you do this to us? 🙈 Junior: Awww what 👼 Junior: This is how I like to remember Buster, before it all went wrong... 😉 Nancy: 👶🥕 Nancy: The glory days Junior: Weren't they just? Junior: At least you didn't have an extra older sister to dress you up, that's worse...the photos I could bring out, good lord 🙄 Nancy: 😜 And I wasn't that sister. You've welcome Buster Nancy: 🍀 Junior: *Whispers* Can we agree he needs SOMEONE to give him a makeover tho Nancy: I volunteer you as tribute Nancy: I've tried Junior: Maybe next family gathering Junior: if he shows Nancy: Bide your time Nancy: birthday present failsafe idea Junior: the amount of birthday celebrations in this fam is unholy Junior: We have a better social life than I would ever wish for, ugh Nancy: don't make me think about it Nancy: I'm sharing and it's made no difference Junior: wouldn't want you to miss out on all that good good attention we all crave 😂 Nancy: 🙈 Junior: Speaking of attention, have you heard the latest gossip that has piqued our peers? Nancy: You tell me Nancy: I can't think of anything off the top of my head Junior: Mark Colm Junior: a massive gay? Junior: I can't make up my mind if they're just hysterical and he's just a bit camp Junior: or there's something in it Nancy: He's one of us Nancy: Definitely crushing on the headboy I've seen him looking Junior: Isn't everyone? Junior: Even the teachers, complete popularity contest got him that position Junior: Interesting, though... Nancy: Besides me in my minority of one Nancy: And Sian would never Junior: Sian Gaffney? She's never gay! Thought you didn't do straight girls, you're reaching there Nancy: 🙉 not her she's dating the oldest Keenan lad Jake? Blake? idk Nancy: She'd love to ride half our class anyway Junior: Ohh you mean Mrs Kelly, duh Junior: yeah she's one of the only decent teachers about, doesn't seem like she goes in for all that popularity politics Nancy: No she doesn't Junior: Seems like a good place to while away a lunchtime Nancy: don't tell everyone how fun it is there'll all wanna join me Nancy: not ready to say goodbye to my happy place Junior: I think your secret is safe from the masses, even if I suddenly got uncharacteristically chatty Junior: Even the ones that don't take the piss and are relatively decent human beings Junior: still rather go get a nandos or whatever it is they do Nancy: Yeah I'm an open book if anyone asks 😂 Nancy: I'll stick with the one stereotype I'm okay with embracing, my eager vegetarianism Nancy: No offence lads Junior: Its all kale and charitable acts with this one Junior: No ulterior motives at all 😏 Nancy: just a rich girl with more wealth than she can give away 😜 Nancy: nothing else to see here Junior: mhmm okay 👌 Junior: we'll pretend I don't know you better than that Nancy: Hey you don't know everything Junior: True Junior: are you in the mood for telling? Junior: 🤔 Nancy: Sometimes Nancy: Can't put it all in my art Junior: not if you don't want Miss to think you're trying to tell her something Junior: flattered but straight, like Nancy: She's not the one Nancy: She'll be flattered to hear Junior: Indeed Nancy: When there is someone it'd be nice to talk about it Nancy: Sometimes like I said Junior: Well, you know where I am Junior: When there is someone Nancy: But I wouldn't know where to start Nancy: I can't put words to it ?? Not the right ones Junior: That's not just you Junior: If I'm to understand all the songs and poetry professing they too have no words Junior: Can but try 🙂 Nancy: Helpful Nancy: What about you? Headboys to one side. Any crushes? Junior: No, no Junior: No point, is there Nancy: Doesn't mean there's a way to stop yourself Nancy: Wish I could just No at myself Junior: I don't know, I don't find it too hard Junior: but you're out so its different Junior: I wouldn't want to go out with anyone...even if Mark is a gay Junior: what would he want with me Nancy: You're a catch Nancy: Out or not he'd be punching above his weight to have you Junior: I don't think there's any point being with someone if you can't be open with it Junior: Being a dirty little secret isn't going to feel good for either party Nancy: For some people it feels worth it Nancy: Just to be with, or around them Junior: Perhaps Junior: Safe to say I don't feel that deeply for any lad here so yeah Junior: keeping on my shelf for now, like Nancy: There's a junxtaposition, us on our respective ledges Nancy: I can't remember what being happily single is like Nancy: Another lesbian stereotype for the list Junior: Don't, how depressing 😂 Junior: I am not about that angsty teen art life Junior: How do we get you a lady? Junior: Do we have to hit the clubs? Nancy: 🙈 Nancy: No no no Nancy: Give that up for a bad job and worse idea Nancy: I'm too picky Junior: You're speaking to me Junior: vowed a celibate here Junior: we can do this for you Nancy: We can't Nancy: Leave me in my rut Junior: Fine fine 😋 Nancy: I'll be in my dark room angsting 😂 Junior: Noted Junior: I'll drag you out for museums and Tempest film marathon tomorrow, yeah? Junior: 'Til then madame Nancy: Looking forward to it Nancy: Stay inspired 💚 Junior: Stay golden 💛

[shenanigumi]

You've mentioned before that harada's route moves too fast while saito's moves too slow. If you could change their routes to be your ideal of "the perfect harada route" and "the perfect saito route" what would you change? I like how you view ships and how your writings remain in character even in the most abstract settings so i'd like to see your take on their "perfect" routes :)

Oh, wow… thanks!! I’m so happy at least some people like reading all my crazy-long ramblings, because goodness knows I have a lot to say. Get ready for a second essay in one day, everyone!!

See, with Harada and Saito, I may criticize the pacing, but at the same time, canon is canon. And that’s not me being consciously “BUT CANON THO” obstinate; that’s me having operated within the bounds of canon for so long that being granted the freedom to step outside of that box and say what I ‘want’ is a little difficult. So maybe it’d help for me to explain the problems I have. All of the following issues are minor and subjective and going under another read-more:

I’ll start with Saito’s route (link is to a past essay contrasting SaiChi with OkiChi), because I’m almost positive that’s been fixed with Shinkai. You’ll understand why later.

Honestly, the only thing missing for me in Saito’s route was some solid exterior indication that Chizuru’s decision at the end wasn’t all for nothing. My main problem with the plot (and, to a slightly lesser extent, with Chizuru on that route) is that there are very few overt instances of SaiChi before its canon confirmation. We as players are all madly in love with Saito and have the foreknowledge required to know that he feels the same way, because we’re playing his route so of course he’ll end up with Chizuru—but Chizuru as a character does not.

In fact, I seem to recall her mentioning in the narrative that she doesn’t know how Saito feels about her, even as she expresses the wish to risk her life and stay behind with him. That’s the part that bothers me. Even though it makes sense from a narrative standpoint, if you take into account what they do and do not know about each other, their becoming a couple reads as very sudden. Furthermore, their timing severely shortens the window of development as a ‘couple’ (I use that term loosely, since most ships aren’t confirmed until close to the end of the route) that most other pairings get almost as soon as the route splits.

Technically speaking, I run into a lot of the same difficulties on Hijikata’s route. However, because his route is also longer and covers more territory, I can forgive the lack of emphasis on romance. That is, because HijiChi isn’t as prominent a part of Hijikata’s route as SaiChi is supposed to be on Saito’s, I can forgive the comparative lack of fulfillment. (Does that make sense?) I understand that it would be insanely OOC for Saito to say anything beforehand, but I don’t mean that he should confess any earlier than he did. I mean more that I’d have appreciated a little more of a spotlight on his interactions and dynamic with Chizuru, since it’s supposed to be so central to their plot.

But that’s where Stories of the Shinsengumi comes in! Because Shinkai has integrated some of Saito’s Memories of Love with his main route, I consider that sufficient evidence to lead up to their becoming a couple, because Saito’s route is actually just fine by me as long as you include all the side content. Together, it makes a more complete route, and gives skeptics like me enough visible chemistry to believe that Chizuru has reason to think there’s a point in staying behind. Pretty easy solution, to be honest.

Now, as for Harada’s route… hoo boy. Believe me, I’m not saying I don’t enjoy That Scene. I do, for a lot of reasons. But a lot of the reason I do enjoy That Scene so much is in a really meta sense, because no other guy gets one. It’s that imbalance that bugs me. I honestly think I did a much better job explaining that point in my previous essay (which contrasts HaraChi with HeiChi), so I’ll just put that up front before summarizing and paraphrasing my thoughts concisely here:

In a way, my issue with HaraChi is the polar opposite of my issue with SaiChi. Saito is in denial until almost the end, when suddenly everything comes together and SaiChi is confirmed. Harada comes on strong and fast, yet it still takes until a chapter or two after the route split for HaraChi to be a thing. I know it’s impossible that Harada say anything to Chizuru before the split for obvious reasons (although Shinkai at least introduces the opportunity, even though I don’t think they’ll use it), but the volume of overt advances he makes in Chizuru’s direction is a little… overwhelming, especially in comparison to everyone else’s routes. That is, in order for sex to take place that early in the route compared to all others, everything else should logically also take place earlier.

What they’re doing is cramming a longer-term, more mature relationship into the same timeframe as a lot of other less-fully-developed relationships, and it makes me the slightest bit uneasy as a result. If we measure backward, equating everyone else’s Stories epilogues to That Scene, which is being charitable since sex still isn’t directly mentioned at all: it takes everyone else an average of a full year (and Saito more than two, of course) to get really serious about their relationship with Chizuru, e.g. asking for her hand in marriage. By that standard, since HaraChi is consummated in April 1868, their mutual confession and first kiss should have happened mid-1867, which happens long before the split.

And yes, I know different people have different dynamics and paces, and I know Harada and Chizuru are both consenting adults, so they can do whatever they want whenever they want to do it. I know that. It’s just that when you think about it, and how quickly they move compared to every other route, it just feels kinda… unhealthy… to move that fast, especially if this Chizuru is the same person as all the other shy and conservative Chizurus. Besides, as I mentioned in the linked essay, Harada seems to have a habit of substituting gestures of physical affection for important verbal communication, and that’s a definite turn-off to me personally.

Maybe it’s a function of being a-spec, but I have to stop looking at the bigger picture in order for That Scene to feel natural. As a single moment out of context, it makes my pulse race just like anyone else’s… but in the grander scheme, it feels a little more dubious. The thing is, I don’t have a conclusive “this is what should have been done differently” idea. I guess I’ll just say that either Harada needs to back it off, slow it down, and spread it out—or everyone else needs to move it in, speed it up, and lock it down. Neither of them are plausible, but if we want things to be balanced, that’d be the best way to go about doing it.

Anyway, hope that clarified things!! actual essay for my independent study~