#give me the splendid silent sun

[exhalereleased]

Give me the shores and the wharves heavy-fringed with the black ships! O such for me! O an intense life! O full to repletion, and varied!

"Give Me The Splendid, Silent Sun" by Walt Whitman

[platossoulmates]

the dynamic between the three of them compared to the dynamic between each of them individually is so important to me you don’t understand

[sadistic-kiss]

House of Alphas Chapter 38: Sneaky Slug

🐺House of Alphas🐺

(Jujutsu Kaisen Omegaverse )

Summary: Waking up in a world that was not your own was problematic enough. Being the villainess was another. However, the possessive alphas might take the cake.

Disclaimer: Angsty but I ain’t Gege

Omega!Reader x Alpha!Sukuna x Alpha!Gojo x Alpha!Toji x Alpha!Nanami x Alpha!Getou

Chapter 38: Sneaky Slug

~

...

“My apologies little bird, I just couldn’t get enough of you…” he drifted as he caressed your shoulder, tone dropping low, “…still can’t…” his lustful attitude then shifted like a switch, “-but your safety is most important. We’ve taken a long enough break.”

You stifled a light yawn, “Okay okay~, I think I’ll be fine.” You rubbed at your eyes fighting back the need to close them.

“Good, let me tell the others.” Nanami slipped out of the tent as you gulped.

Oh damn, it was time to go! Nanami had hogged all your time. You just knew you were about to enter the war zone. Hey, it’s not your fault though! This one was all Nanami! He even said so himself! They can’t be mad at you! Who are you kidding they will still find some way to be upset with you! You know them too well. Maybe you can lay on the affection real thick when you get out there. Make it so thick and sweet that they get diabetes. You mewled softly pulling on your clothes and fixing your hair, that insatiable alpha really did a number on you, thankfully he had cleaned you up in your sleep.

You wondered if he used a cloth or his tongue…

Shifting onto your knees you climbed out of the tent to find the sun was barely peaking between the trees. Nanami was stopped by Sukuna’s tent letting him know it was time to go. Gojo and Satoru appeared to have been taking a nap around the campfire, yawning as they sat up. Your betas stood by Junpei ready to leave.

“Ugh!” Gojo pouted looking toward you, “About time! Is it my turn?!”

“Ah…” you fidgeted, glancing at Nanami who spoke for you.

“Sorry Gojo but it’s time to go- but before you say anything don’t blame our omega…it was my selfishness that kept her in my tent.”

“What!?” He slammed his hands down into his lap as he sat up straight.

“Aw~ you hogged our omega~!” Suguru sighed with a little pout. “How greedy of you Nanami!”

“How could you Kento! What happened to sharing is loving!?”

“Caring-“

“Same thing!”

“I do apologize Satoru. I had fallen victim to my own greed. I was just as shocked as you…” You almost laughed at the way Nanami placed his hand on his chest like a wounded maiden in the spotlight. “…she just kept cumming and cumming and I was lost in the ocean…drowning.”

Now did he have to say all of that-

“Yeah, we heard!” Gojo muttered.

You went toward your pouty alpha and dropped onto your knees giving him a soft smile, “I’m sorry Gojo, perhaps at our next stop I can give you your massage okay?” With that, you nervously leaned forward and kissed his cheek swiftly. That seemed to lighten up his mood a bit.

“Fine fine…”

“Do not pout so much spoiled pup.” Nanami spoke while going toward Toji’s tent to wake him up.

Sukuna popped out of his tent like someone set it on fire. “What the fuck?” He questioned sending you a glare. “I thought you were going to choke on my cock for letting that puny monster come with us?”

“N-Nanami…” you gestured trying to throw this hot potato at him. He successfully curved Gojo and Getou without a sweat how will he serve this one?

As Sukuna and Nanami made fiery eye contact you felt an arm slither around your waist as Gojo brought you close to him.

“Give me more kisses…” He murmured nuzzling your nose with his own.

“Mph!” You find yourself locked-lipped with Gojo as he pulls you into his lap and attacks your tongue, but you can still hear Sukuna and Nanami.

Sukuna was silent so you knew he was giving him a mean grimace that read- I’m about to fight you how about that.

“Remind me who it was that burned our supplies and broke a hole in our home?”

“…-Tch whatever….”

“Splendid. Toji it’s time to go!”

Well, that was easy-

“Hmmm~.” You felt another pair of hands cup your breasts as you squint your gaze open you could see Getou grinning above you.

“Hey, I need some of my sweet omega too~.”

Gojo pulled back from your lips so you could gasp for air but then Suguru was shoving his tongue in your mouth. You were damn near out of breath, unable to do anything but sit there and allow them to take their turn with you. That was until Nanami was barking at them to get ready.

When Toji got up he didn’t even complain, which you found quite interesting. He just came over to give you a kiss and then began packing.

Was this character development? How did Toji manage such maturity? Good for him.

You decide to check on Junpei, your things had already been packed away. But just as you moved toward him you let out a hiss, someone grabbed your hair and pulled you back with your head cocked back.

With the rough treatment, you already knew it was Sukuna before you saw his red orbs.

“I expect you on my cock tonight.”

You looked up at him remembering him and Gojo were going to decide who was next on the list, “Who won the fight?” Your question made his lip twitch. Amusement touched your soul as you slowly smiled, “Gojo won didn’t he?”

“That-“ Sukuna clenched his teeth together in annoyance, then he looked toward the other alpha, “Gojo fight me like an alpha!”

“Nooohoho ~ I won Fire Rock Water, right Suguru?”

“He did-“

“-That’s a fucking pup’s game!”

“Still lost bud!”

Sukuna growled at them but your little snort caught his attention. You tease him while patting the hand in your hair, “Maybe you should have won huh? Must not want my mouth that bad.”

“I’m going to knot your fucking-“

“Sukuna!” Nanami called the man with an authoritative tone. “Is your stuff packed?”

Your alpha grumbled releasing you with a light push.

You laughed a little...

...

~

*Read More*

[woodsrat]

~ give me the splendid, silent sun, with all his beams full-dazzling

[haruchiyo-sanzu]

━━ 𝗋𝖺𝗂𝗇𝗒 𝗆𝗈𝗋𝗇𝗂𝗇𝗀𝗌.

pairing : timeskip!suna rintarō x fem!reader

characters : miya atsumu (mentioned, as the no. 1 drama queen).

genre : fluff

warnings : lowercase, not proofread. time skip! may contain manga spoilers, cringy dialogues and pretentious writing.

notes : so it's rainy season in india, and since rain is so romanticised, it calls for a fic. can you tell i wanna cuddle with rin as we stay in bed whilst listening to the sound of rain? yeah i wanna do that.

ps : i was supposed to post it during june but it really slipped my mind.

it begins as a whisper in the wind.

the night had been beautiful with twinkling stars layering a blanket over the firmament, and the sky ── a dome of midnight blue, with gentle breeze softly sweeping past the streets and roads that occasionally made even the mighty trees to sway to its melody and the leaves to pirouette and prance along its tempo.

but the early morning zephyr that had been still and silent on preceeding days seems to have gained a slight movement as if it has finally discovered its trajectory yet is content to meander at its own pace, has now turned into violent gales, harshly cold by the time morning breaks out in a humid haze. there is tapping on the window which turns into a pitter-patter sound as it showers down; mist lingers in the air as the blazing sun hides behind the mass of grey clouds surrounding the aether ─── simply splendid! raining the day you have an important meeting.

you don't know what time it is in the morning when your eyes slowly flutter open to the sound of heavy rain pouring down onto the earth reaching your ears and the ephemeral scent of petrichor tickling your nose, siesta entangled within the nook your lashes which you rub grogilly, blinking twice to comprehend your surroundings before you try to get off the bed.

key word : try.

suna has an arm wrapped around your waist in a gentle yet tight grip, his face nuzzling in the crook of your neck ── you would have been annoyed at the whole ordeal (first it's raining, second you are most likely going to be late) but looking at how tranquil and peaceful he looks, you cannot bring yourself to push him off and wake him up, and subconsciously your face softens, as you lovingly brush stands of brown hair out of his eyes.

(he had returned home later than usual, having to stay back to get extra practice for an upcoming match, and crashed on the bed as soon as he came back. he really must have been tired because he didn't bothered giving a sarcastic remark or the middle finger when you had made a remark, about how much he stunk because of the lingering sweat).

you reach for suna's mobile phone kept on the bedside table, the sudden illumination of screen glares at you as it reads 8 : 19 in bold, there are several notifications popping up ── mostly from the miya twins and one from his sister. he'll check that later, placing the phone back from where you took it, you try to get him off you (but pushing a 6'3 athlete is no easy task).

his green eyes flick open as they blink at you, adjusting to the light ── up close, you can see the specs of brown in the chartresure of his irises, one look at them and they take you in, holding you captive, as they journey you into the woods, trees upon trees upon trees, with sunlight reflecting on them, a golden tint. they make you dive into nature itself. his eyes are beautiful ─── ethereal, one the poets write about and artists try to capture in their paintings; even now he looks so angelic, that is until you remember that suna rintarō is the devil reincarnate. “morning beautiful.” he mumbles sweetly then adds : “early morning and you're already staring at me. i'm really that irresistible, eh?” he says (his voice deep and husky, it makes your heart flutter), a smug grin on his features, which you wished to wipe off. you only glare at him in response before hitting him with a pillow.

“no. not at all.” you answer rather haughtily, then motion at his arm wrapped around your torso. “actually, i would appreciate if you'd let me get up.”

“no.”

“what do you mean no?”

“no means no.” he asserts, shifting his position to further nuzzle his in the curve of your neck. “did nobody teach you that?”

“oh, shut up rin. i don't have time for this.” you try to push him off but he takes your hand in his instead guiding it to his head, urging you to continue playing with his hair, he adores it when you do that (like a cat! but he won't admit it). so you move your fingers through his hair, combing and curling it (you can swear he is more cat than human) “i have a meeting today, i don't want to be late just because my boyfriend wanted to sleep. so get up!”

“just five minutes.”

“no.”

“come on, don't be like that.”

“no means no. nobody taught you that?” suna can practically hear the grin in your voice.

“it's raining heavily. call quits?” he suggests. “you can get sick.”

suna is clingy this morning (clinger than usual). blame it on his extra practice which ended later than his normal timings, so yesterday night he had been unable to cuddle with you and had dropped on the bed instead.

“i wont be walking there, y'know?”

“car accidents increase during heavy rain.” he's pulling you down with him, leg entangling with your own as he lays fleeting butterfly kisses on your neck.

“stay.” he murmurs, now towering over you, his voice is barely above a whisper, he is looking at you now, his eyes a soothing green, green ── that you swear can pierce your soul and see the crude and raw parts of you, in the most gentle and loving ways, like a childhood wound you get while playing ── clashes with your own. he leans in closer, and the world seems to fade away like rust and dust. the scenery outside, the sound of pouring shower, the empty, rain-stained streets and him ─── it is just too beautiful, and you can spend the rest of your life admiring it. “please.”

he tucks a strand of your hair behind your ear, his breath tickling your ear. “you know, you're staring again. maybe you should take a picture or even create a whole album for yer amazing boyfriend.” apparently that was enough to snap you out of it. you grab another pillow, and awing it at his head ── careful not to hurt him, but suna being number two drama queen (because no. 1 is atsumu, no arguments accepted!) had to let out an ouch! meanie. this gives you the opportunity you needed, (after gathering up all your courage and determination) you finally leave the comfort of your bed, instantly missing the warmth it provided, the silken sheets and suna's arm wrapped around you.

suna has a pout on his face, you merely roll your eyes at him before standing in front of the window ── still raining heavily, the trees outside look too preety to be real, it's almost as if you're in heaven. the glimmering sun is nowhere to be seen, which is a realief from the usual scotching heat of the mornings which only seem to intensify as the sun changes its trajectory. but the peaceful and tranquil rain certainly makes one yearn for a hot cup of coffee and a good book to read. but job is job. so with a sigh you grab your hair tie before pulling your messy, bed hair into a rough ponytail.

the click! sound of photograph is what snaps you attention back towards you boyfriend, who has his mobile phone in his hand and the flashlight zooming in and out of focus as he continues to click pictures of you. tch! clicking your tongue in annoyance you send him a glare before commenting : “Who's clicking pictures now? you're miss me that much while i'll be away?”

“no.” he dedpans as he looks at you bored (you know he's somewhat sad...? or mad...? sometimes it's hard to discern his emotions, but he certainly isn't happy so you made a mental note to watch a movie with him tonight after you get back and cuddle with him and get some popcorn too). “it's actually for my album titled ── vicious monkey.” he says monotonously. you blink, suna can be mean sometimes. your fists clench as you glare daggers at him. that's it! no movies tonight. no hugs. no popcorn. you take the pillow at the corner of the bed, which was almost falling off, and hit his shin with it ── this time with much force (because you don't have a good comeback this time, although you won't admit it ever).

“ow! what's this?” he exclaims (after hissing at you as he gently ran his hand through his legs) in a voice certain octaves higher than usual, as if he's about to announce something very important. he gives you a look before turning back to his phone reading : “breaking news : volleyball star brutally murdered by mad girlfriend.”

“he must have deserved it.” you point out. you know suna has a sarcastic remark to make, which usually lied on borderline offensive, by the look on his face but the ringtone of your mobile grabs your attention.

a call from the office, now? you frown swiping up the green recieve call option, then putting it to you ear, you greet with a simple : “hello.”

suna watches you silently, as you converse ── calls from boss is never good, most of the times they call you for work on weekends, but since you have to work today, how bad can it get? or maybe it can get worse, he doesn't really know, having no experience in working in an office (it sounds boring really. couldn't be him). it must've been important because he knows how much you love day-offs, he'd feel guilty (not that he'd admit it, again, he doesn't admit a lot of things) if you were to be late because of him.

“i could drop you, if you want.” he says once the call is over. you look over at him, a barely contained smile on your face. he archs an eyebrow, what happened?

“severe rain, the other party cannot make it. so the meeting's postponed till further notice.” you explain, although you cannot regain your sleep at least now you can have the day off.

“good for you. should have just listened to me in the first place.”

“hey, how was I supposed to know──” before you finish he is reaching for your hands, holds them in his and slowly pulls you towards him, you can feel his breath tickle your skin and how close he is to you, he leans in and all your previous words and complains hang in. he puts his finger on your lips.

“i'm glad you're here.” he whispers mostly to himself than to you. and you are too.

you have an arm wrapped around him, whilst his fingers find their home in the curls of your hair ── they're tangled, perhaps messy even but he smoothes them out. (he's good at it. sometimes he would even try different braids on your hair)

“your hair is worse than horse mane.”

(and he's also good at ruining perfect moments)

a click of your tongue and a light shove expresses your displeasure, “i hate you”

he kisses your temple, a stupid smile on his face, “i love you too.”

(and you love it when he smiles)

it ends with a whisper in the wind.

[postquem]

It's beautiful here —

God's own country dir. Francis Lee ; The solitude of Night by Li Bai (trans. Shigeyoshi Obata) ; Sanctuary by Jean Valentine ; winter migrants by Tom Pickard ; unknown; Bliss and Grief by Marie Ponsot ; [He is pruning the privet] by Joanne Kyger ; Give me the splendid silent sun by Walt Whitman

[pricklypanda]

song: the life of ram lyrics: karthik netha performed by: pradeep kumar, govind vasantha *translations from the english subtitles of the music video in the alt text

'96 (2018), dir. premkumar chandran // "give me the splendid silent sun", leaves of grass, walt whitman // collected poems and other verse, stéphane mallarme

[radical-revolution]

Give me solitude, give me Nature,

— Walt Whitman, "Give Me the Splendid Silent Sun", Leaves of Grass

[peachysunrize]

I've got so many books in mind but I'll just give you a good couple that I love and are part of the genres you listed as well <33

I really love Chris Carter's books. He has a series with a detective called Robert Hunter, they're mostly psychological crime thrillers, and honestly, his books had me gripped. There's about 13 so far, I think.

This one isn't mainly romance but there is a sweet romance in it, it's called as long as the lemon trees grow, but it is quite heavy so I'd suggest reading the trigger warnings beforehand. But I absolutely loved it !!

I'll never not recommend it but A Thousand Splendid Sun's and The Kite Runner, all time favourites, and the more I reread ATSS the more beauty and sadness I find in it.

Circe by Madeline Miller will always have a special place in my heart, it's just beautiful prose and bittersweet.

Song of Achilles (by Miller too but I preferred circe)

Silence of The Girls is another really good one.

The series is more YA but the Folk of the Air series is really good, I think it actually deserves the hype it has, it's fantastic.

The Poppy War Series by R.F. Kuang, again I'd recommend reading the trigger warnings beforehand but it's simply superb and the MC is mind-blowing it's crazy.

I've heard good things about the silent patient, and it's literally sat on my shelf waiting for me to read it lmao.

Animal Farm by Orwell is short, but it's a very contemplative piece and I love it so much, really thought provoking.

Purple Hibiscus, again it's like ATSS and I love Adichie so much, beautiful book

The once upon a broken heart series I loved but the MMC is originally from a series called Caraval and tbh I preferred the OUABH series so so much more. I'd say to read the caraval series just so you have that background but yeah

I recently bought a book called 'Perfume, the story of a murderer' and it looks really interesting

The Mountains Sing, Pachinko, Fahrenheit 451, The God of Small Things, The Book Thief, The Secret History, Serpents and the Wings of Night, Heartless, a good girls guide to murder, daughter of the Moon Goddess, and lastly, one for my enemy

Those are the ones that came to mind, and chances are you've might have read or heard of most of them tbh but yeahh if you're into crime and thriller chris Carter would be my main one.

Hope i managed to be of some use, and i hope you have a lovely day too <33

OMG THANK YOU SO SO SO SO MUCH!!!!!! I’ll definitely order these😩😩😩😩

I WAS ACTUALLY SEARCHING FOR CIRCE IN THE BOOKSTORE BUT I COULDNT FIND IT😭😭😭😭😭 I’m sooooooooo excited to get my hands on this book asa

I HOPE YOU HAVE A VERY VERY LOVELY DAY TOO!!! Thank you, I’m a fast reader so I’ll get to these books quickly!!🥹🩷🩷

[exhalereleased]

"Give Me The Splendid, Silent Sun" by Walt Whitman

[platossoulmates]

TRY and convince me jean wouldn’t be able to get both of them into those fuzzy robes. you can’t

[sadistic-kiss]

🐺House of Alphas🐺

(Jujutsu Kaisen Omegaverse )

Summary: Waking up in a world that was not your own was problematic enough. Being the villainess was another. However, the possessive alphas might take the cake.

Disclaimer: Angsty but I ain’t Gege

Omega!Reader x Alpha!Sukuna x Alpha!Gojo x Alpha!Toji x Alpha!Nanami x Alpha!Getou

Chapter 38: Sneaky Slug

~

…

Oh damn, it was time to go! Nanami had hogged all your time. You just knew you were about to enter the war zone. Hey, it’s not your fault though! This one was all Nanami! He even said so himself! They can’t be mad at you! Who are you kidding they will still find some way to be upset with you! You know them too well. Maybe you can lay on the affection real thick when you get out there. Make it so thick and sweet that they get diabetes. You mewled softly pulling on your clothes and fixing your hair, that insatiable alpha really did a number on you, thankfully he had cleaned you up in your sleep.

You wondered if he used a cloth or his tongue…

Shifting onto your knees you climbed out of the tent to find the sun was barely peaking between the trees. Nanami was stopped by Sukuna’s tent letting him know it was time to go. Gojo and Satoru appeared to have been taking a nap around the campfire, yawning as they sat up. Your betas stood by Junpei ready to leave.

“Ugh!” Gojo pouted looking toward you, “About time! Is it my turn?!”

“Ah…” you fidgeted, glancing at Nanami who spoke for you.

“Sorry Gojo but it’s time to go- but before you say anything don’t blame our omega…it was my selfishness that kept her in my tent.”

“What!?” He slammed his hands down into his lap as he sat up straight.

“Aw~ you hogged our omega~!” Suguru sighed with a little pout. “How greedy of you Nanami!”

“How could you Kento! What happened to sharing is loving!?”

“Caring-“

“Same thing!”

“I do apologize Satoru. I had fallen victim to my own greed. I was just as shocked as you…” You almost laughed at the way Nanami placed his hand on his chest like a wounded maiden in the spotlight. “…she just kept cumming and cumming and I was lost in the ocean…drowning.”

Now did he have to say all of that-

“Yeah, we heard!” Gojo muttered.

You went toward your pouty alpha and dropped onto your knees giving him a soft smile, “I’m sorry Gojo, perhaps at our next stop I can give you your massage okay?” With that, you nervously leaned forward and kissed his cheek swiftly. That seemed to lighten up his mood a bit.

“Fine fine…”

“Do not pout so much spoiled pup.” Nanami spoke while going toward Toji’s tent to wake him up.

Sukuna popped out of his tent like someone set it on fire. “What the fuck?” He questioned sending you a glare. “I thought you were going to choke on my cock for letting that puny monster come with us?”

“N-Nanami…” you gestured trying to throw this hot potato at him. He successfully curved Gojo and Getou without a sweat how will he serve this one?

As Sukuna and Nanami made fiery eye contact you felt an arm slither around your waist as Gojo brought you close to him.

“Give me more kisses…” He murmured nuzzling your nose with his own.

“Mph!” You find yourself locked-lipped with Gojo as he pulls you into his lap and attacks your tongue, but you can still hear Sukuna and Nanami.

Sukuna was silent so you knew he was giving him a mean grimace that read- I’m about to fight you how about that.

“Remind me who it was that burned our supplies and broke a hole in our home?”

“…-Tch whatever….”

“Splendid. Toji it’s time to go!”

Well, that was easy-

…

~

*Read More*

[lokivonkrusenbusch]

16.12.2022

“Give me the splendid, silent sun with all his beams full-dazzling.”

Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass

[alduinffxiv]

‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎‎ ‎ ‎Give me the splendid silent sun, with all her beams full-‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎dazzling;

[darkageprincesss]

“Give me solitude, give me Nature.”

—Walt Whitman, "Give Me the Splendid Silent Sun", Leaves of Grass

[nalanzu]

Weiss Kreuz Episode 14: Fliehen

When we left off, we were at the cliffhangeriest of cliffhangers - Aya was about to get stabbed through the face, while the rest of the team was in the process of losing a fight with multiple helicopters and rocket launchers. Persia was of the opinion that adding a man with a pointy stick would solve the second problem.

The episode would also like to remind us that Takatori did in fact murder Aya's family and Aya knows it. Also that Aya pierced his own ear with his sister's brand-new earring. Very metal of him. Oh, and that Aya has learned that Crawford is psychic.

Well, that's an ominous title for the episode, isn't it.

Weiss is pinned down not only by a helicopter but also multiple men in SUVs. They scatter, Ken managing to run just fine on that leg that was allegedly broken last episode. Meanwhile, Aya dodges at the last second. The high drama of the fight continues. Aya and Crawford have a fist-fight, which seems like a poor choice on Crawford's part.

Despite having multiple actual machine guns firing at them, somehow Omi is the only one who ends up with a bullet under his skin. Only one bullet, even. It's still not great. We get a dramatically silent moment as everyone stops firing while Omi twitches and concludes he can't move and is about to die.

Crawford finally gives us his team name, as Aya concludes that he cannot give up. Persia snatches Aya off the street, and Crawford makes the executive decision that they're just done with him now and don't need to chase him. Persia tells Aya that his buddies need his help, and Aya tells him to fuck off. Persia insists they go have a look-see at how shit's going and see if Aya still feels the same way.

The other three are still doing very poorly, although Yohji has managed to steal a jeep, run down three men shooting straight at him and missing entirely, and also light a cigarette while doing stunt driving. He thinks he could probably escape on his own, but that would make him an asshole, so he just drives straight into the machine gun fire. Predictably, bullets hit the engine and the windshield - but miss Yohji, how lucky for him - and he crashes.

Yohji is saved from the helicopter strike by a surface to air rocket; Ken has somehow managed to steal a missile launcher. He missed the helicopter, but did create a splendid distraction. He then discards the missile launcher, as his position has now been revealed, and manages to literally dodge bullets as he jumps into Yohji's crashed car that somehow still runs and shoves Yohji into the passenger seat. They're off to collect Omi and continue to manage not to collect bullets. Honestly, these special forces guys have the shittiest aim.

While stunt driving, Ken has an existential crisis about being a failure. He also dodges missiles. Persia also arrives on the scene, with Aya in the back seat, as we cut to a very dramatic shot of the upside down jeep and the rest of Weiss motionless on the ground. There is a literal firing squad lined up to take them out as Aya watches from Persia's back seat, which is the highest of drama.

What this does, of course, is set them all up to be mowed down by Aya's machine gun fire as he appears, standing on top of Persia's car. He grabs another machine gun and aims for the helicopter. Misses. Steals a jeep. And finally nails the helicopter with a rocket launcher. The rest of the special forces flee.

The sun rises over a badly injured Ken being supported by Omi, while Yohji hangs off Aya's shoulder. Persia and Manx know that the Real Battle must still be fought, but Persia is still police commissioner until Takatori can maneuver him out of the position and they aren't out of options yet. They drive off, leaving Weiss standing on the battlefield.

Let me pause for a second, because I honestly need to laugh hysterically at how goddamn OP Aya was in that scene. It is a Big Damn Hero moment - all of them except Omi, honestly, got a pretty decent Big Damn Hero moment - and while it was happening I was absolutely into it. The second I start thinking about it afterwards, it becomes completely absurd. To be fair, this more or less encapsulates the action film genre as a whole, so I can't really complain that the creative team is out of pocket here.

I do, however, want to know who the fuck taught Aya to fire a machine gun and a missile launcher.

MOVING ON. We have reached Election Day. Of course, Takatori has won. Because this is how drama works. Persia packs up his office (he also has that same picture, by the way, of his brother's family). Manx hurries him out of the office, and we cut to the flowershop. The only one there is Momoe, who looks at the SWAT team rushing into the building and gives them a pitch-perfect dotty old lady routine. The SWAT team heads for the basement, finding no one, and concludes that the four-story building is otherwise empty. They shoot up the walls of the basement for no good reason, and honestly, this kind of breaks my suspension of disbelief a little. There is paperwork for this and I know in my heart they're not doing it.

Continuing to move on, let me reiterate that it is Election Day. It's morning. The vote has been finalized, Takatori has been sworn into office, and he has fired his brother and publicly named him as the leader of the terrorist group Weiss. Shit is moving REAL FUCKING FAST. This also kind of breaks my suspension of disbelief. Takatori is starting his term of office with an apology for his brother's actions and mobilized his private army again.

Manx is surprised that shit is moving so quickly. This is literally the only reasonable reaction. We know damn good and well Takatori will move as quickly as he can, because that's what we've seen him do, but there should be structures in place that keep shit moving more slowly. Bureaucracy fucking exists, ok. She thinks they should head for Kritiker's Secret Hideout.

Their movements are hindered by the fact that Takatori has imposed martial law on all of Tokyo (!!!!!!! the fuck? THAT IS NOT HOW SHIT WORKS) in order to hunt down the alleged terrorists. Takatori also thinks now is a great time to get rid of Schwarz, who he accuses of being spies for Estset. He thinks he doesn't need them any more, as he has what he wants. Crawford is content to sit back and watch him fuck up.

We finally see where Weiss got off to, which is the sewers. They worry about Momoe, know (somehow? did he call them? Does someone still have a working cell phone?) that Persia and Manx are safe, and think that Japan is fucked. Also, all of them appear uninjured, in direct contradiction to the earlier scenes. (Aya was literally the only one who did not get shot at least once, ok, AND YET. Do they not have holes in them? Were they not in explosions? This shit fucks you up! There are CONSEQUENCES!! I know we have to do shit in the name of drama, but OH MY GOD.)

Aya is incredibly vindicated that his personal nemesis is now the Big Bad for the rest of his team and threatening the Entire Country. I… feel like this is really not healthy for Aya's continued personal development. The man is going to develop a superiority complex. More of a superiority complex. In any case, the rest of Weiss decides they're going to help Aya take on the prime minster. And the literal army.

Persia, before heading for a safehouse, has vone to visit his sister-in-law's grave. She married Takatori and - for some reason - committed suicide. The episode doesn't tell us why (it may or may not be related to Omi's kidnapping and subsequent disappearance, but the show is not going to tell us this). Manx is trying to get Persia to go to the safehouse, and he has ANOTHER errand to run. He decides he needs to leave her behind, for her own safety, unconscious and out in the open. What the actual fuck.

Do y'all remember kidney girl? Aya does. I don't know that he's actually talked to her since their It's Not A Date, but he sneaks onto her balcony and asks her to use the money in a lockbox to transfer his sister to a different hospital. (This is honestly a mark of desperation; Sakura doesn't have the legal authority to do that as there is no paperwork to support it, she's underage, and there is literally nothing stopping her from taking the money and running.) Instead of a very reasonable What The Fuck Is Going On, we just get Sakura The Ingenue with a wide-eyed hopeful smile telling Aya she's sure he'll be back to collect his key and everything will be fine.

I'm not sure what, exactly, Persia thinks he's going to accomplish by driving his car right up to Parliament, but he does. And gets out of the car, wanting to talk to his brother. Somehow, the trigger-happy special forces do not shoot him.

Setting up another cliffhanger is further special forces personnel driving around with wanted posters of the members of Weiss (it's kind of hilarious to me that at least some of them must have been the ones who set the bombs, right, because we know Takatori was using them in that capacity, and now they're holding amateur flyers to seek out men they know damn good and well are not actually terrorists; I would honestly fucking LOVE to get an internal perspective from some of these guys, and feel like there is absolutely potential for a story here). Omi lets himself be seen and then flees on foot down an alley in order to draw one jeep-ful of men into a trap.

Weiss gets a win by eliminating four soldiers and stealing their clothes. Yohji, buddy, I feel like you should hide your hair under that hat. It's a dead give-away. Not that the rest of them have anything resembling military haircuts, but oh my god, Yohji. They have concluded that they are going on their Last Mission.

I can only assume they think they're going to sneak into the building with their Very Clever Disguises and murder Takatori, which is the shittiest plan ever istg. I don't think there is the slightest bit of critical thinking on the part of literally anyone here; not the characters, not the writers.

I swore I wasn't going to do this, but I am already in my head rationalizing the fact that Takatori moved so fucking fast and Weiss not being injured by telling myself that more time than like, literally A DAY must have passed; it has to have been weeks. Martial law wouldn't have been instituted quite so fast, except that then what's the rationale for locking down ALL OF TOKYO (?!?!?!!!) if no further bombings have taken place, so there must have been more bombings carried out in the meantime we just didn't see it on screen and you see how I am now just MAKING THINGS UP ENTIRELY so this makes some sort of sense.

Why the fuck is it still so incredibly entertaining????