#god i love how the patterns are incorporated here

[funishment-time]

🔵 Kodaka BlueSky Q&As: Rain Code Characters (All)

⚠️ DISCLAIMER: Please be advised! Translations of all Japanese answers derive from a combination of Google Translate and my manager's three-quarters-remembered Japanese. We've tried our best to work out what he's saying, but there will be mistakes here and there. Do not take this as gospel!

To avoid spreading too much misinfo, where we're completely boggled about an answer, we've decided not to even make an attempt. We'll still list the post, but mark it accordingly.

➡️ AN IMPORTANT NOTE FROM KODAKA BEFORE READING:

First of all, the questions answered here are not official. Everything that is official is what is said within the work. In contrast, this is simply what Kodaka, the creator, thinks, and it is not the correct answer. Use this as a starting point to enjoy the depth of each character, or to say, "That's not right!" and enjoy it with your own interpretation. I think of this as a way of communicating with the characters who live in fiction. This is important, so please spread the word.

💕 FEBRUARY 2024:

Q: I love shinigami chan. Please make games forever!

A: YES

/////

Q: What happened to everyone at Amaterasu Company after the main story?

A: Yomi [Hellsmile] is growing magmatically angry with the opportunity to revolt while imprisoned…!

/////

Q: Why does Vivia wear such stringy underwear? Does he untie it every time he takes a bath or something?

A: I feel like he just goes in like that.

/////

Q: Was Vivia's umbrella tattoo done in Kanai? I was curious because that was the only tattoo related to rain.

A: I think he likes the gloomy rain. I'm sure he doesn't think Kanai Ward is so bad.

/////

Q: The pattern on Director Yakou's uniform is really cool, is there a reason for that?

A: I leave that up to Komatsuzaki-kun, but being a detective is, after all, a job in the underworld, so I think it's better to have that sort of shady side to it.

NOTE: Komatsuzaki is the guy behind Danganronpa and Rain Code's art.

/////

Q: [the question has since been deleted, but I remember it was about the ages of Master Detectives in Rain Code]

A: It varies quite a bit, but let me just say that most are in their 20s to late 30s. By the way, I'm 45. Oh, you didn't hear that.

/////

Q: How much does the director smoke in a day? That ashtray is disgusting.

A: That's probably three packs a day. I smoke half a pack a day. Oh, you didn't hear that.

NOTE: We're pretty sure this is about Chief Yakou.

/////

Q: I would like to hear about your impressions of the masked man, and what you were conscious of when writing. I will continue to support your work☔️

A: He's nonchalant, talks about himself without listening to what the other person has to say, but seems intelligent. That's the impression I get.

NOTE: This is about Rain Code's Makoto.

/////

Q: Kodaka-san!! Thank you for your wonderful works as always ₍ᐢ..ᐢ₎⊹ Amaterasu is exactly my type of organization (especially the head of security...!) Even if it's not a sub-story, I'd like to know if you have any small details that haven't been made public 🙏🏻💞

A: Thank you! Of all the Amaterasu characters, Komatsuzaki-kun was most enthusiastic about the robot researcher.

NOTE: We're pretty sure this is about either the character known as "Akira" or Yakou's wife.

/////

Q: A question about Rain Code: Are there plans to release a book that delves deeper into the backstories of the people who appeared in Chapter 0?

A: If there's a demand, I'd like to see a spin-off novel or something...

/////

Q: Excuse me for asking a question about Yuma, the main character of Raincode! What type of woman does Yuma like?

A: I wonder...! I think he's a pushover. lol

/////

Q: The names of the characters in Rain Code are sprinkled with elements of Japanese mythology, but is there any inspiration or backstory for this? Is there a reason why you named Makoto after the god of fire?

A: It all started with me wanting to incorporate a Japanese flavour.

/////

Q: Rain Code was really fun! I wonder if there will be an "if" story where the five train detectives (all real) arrive in Kanai Ward!? I'm ready to buy all the DLC and whatever else it takes👍

A: I would love to depict stories of their success. It would add more depth to Chapter 0.

/////

Q: Are there any characters who are certain that Halara's gender is this or that?

A: I don't think anyone can ask. Even if they did, Halara would probably think there's no point in answering. They might tell someone they like...

/////

Q: Mr. Kodaka, what is your impression of Director Yakou of Rain Code?

A: He's caring but also lazy, sloppy but cool... I think he's a very human detective.

/////

Q: Is Vivia's name a reference to the movie "Ghosts of the Sierra de Cobre"? Are there any other works that the names of the other characters are also based on?

A: I'm ashamed to say that I hadn't heard of that movie. The characters in Rain Code were named with an emphasis on giving them a stateless feel, and on the sound of the name.

/////

Q: Was there a deciding factor in casting Uchida Yuuma for the role of Seth?

A: I basically leave the casting up to the sound company. They did a very good job.

/////

Q: I'm sure Desuhiko has picked up as many women as there are stars in the sky, but does he actually have much experience in love?

A: Although he is not unpopular, he is most likely rejected quickly.

🍀 MARCH 2024:

Q: I'd like to know the ages of the Resistance members (even a rough estimate is fine if you haven't thought about it)! Since Iruka is planning to receive a birthday present from her parents, is she the youngest member?

A: Judging from his voice, Shachi sounds like he's 52 years old.

/////

Q: Excuse me.Who is most given chocolates on valentine day in raincode ?

A: Maybe, Vivia.

/////

Q: Why did Shinigami-chan give Halara-san the nickname "Hellara"?

A: I wanted Halara to be so stoic it drew Shinigami's attention.

/////

Q: There may not be sushi in Kanai Ward, but I'd like to know what your favorite sushi toppings are, folks at the detective agency.

A: Desuhiko likes sea urchins, Yakou likes mackerel, Vivia doesn't feel like eating, Halara likes maki rolls, and Fubuki tries to save the fish with time reversal.

/////

Q: [The question has since been deleted, but I believe it was about Seth's childhood.]

A: His childhood must have been similar to that of Jataro [Kemuri]...

/////

Q: I would like to hear about Martina's "calculation" of Yomi, which came up in a previous Rain Code interview. Did you have any stories in mind, Mr. Kodaka?

A: She thought she could use Yomi's favor to advance her own career.

/////

Q: I'd like to know the name of the Amaterasu Researcher who appears in Director Yakou's DLC!

A: His wife? It's a secret! I only tell people when I'm drunk, so... nope. (said cutely)

/////

Q: I'm guessing the age order of the train detectives is Zange > Melami > Zilch > Aphex > Pucci, is that correct?

A: There are various theories about the location of Melami [in that order].

🥬 APRIL 2024:

Q: Do special abilities have a genetic component? (e.g., Vivian's family is more likely to see spirits)

A: Sometimes it is and sometimes it is not. It is said that the Clockford family will rarely produce a child like this due to genetics.

/////

Q: Sorry if this has already been mentioned❗️ Harara Nightmare's gender is unknown, but do they ever wear feminine clothes like skirts as fashion?

A: "No. I only wear clothes that are easy to move in."

/////

Q: Halara is often depicted holding a lollipop, but do they have a favorite flavor?

A: Anything as long as it's sweet. It's to get the sugar needed for that person's brain.

/////

Q: I played Raincode to the end ☔️ I love the masked man...! I'd be happy if you could tell me anything about him.

A: "I made the masks myself. I made them suspicious on purpose to scare people away."

NOTE: This is about Rain Code's Makoto again.

/////

Q: A question! I'm curious about what method the Raincode super detectives used to get into Kanai Ward! What other routes could they have taken besides the Amaterasu Express!? I'd be happy if you could tell me who got there and how!

A: I'm saving [this info] so I can make a special edition someday! lol

/////

Q: who would you choose to solve a mystery and why? kirigiri, saihara or halara?

A: It would be great if the three of them performed together!

🌺 MAY 2024:

Q: What do you think about animals other than dogs and cats, Halara?

A: "More precious than humans."

/////

Q: Can Chief Yakou cook?

A: "I can make lazy meals."

☀️ JUNE 2024:

n/a

🎇 JULY 2024:

n/a

[chaifootsteps]

Armchair Psychology Anon here (not a real Psych just seeing patterns)

I uh... hmm.

So Lilith/Eve is the true villian, wanting to destroy the relationship of Charlie and Lucifer?

Of course it is. (If true).

And her liking these tweets of Luci x Lilith lately makes a whole lot more sense. The fans are most likely not going to take this well if this leak is true. Also, it makes sense that her trading card crops out her face, gives her no last name, and makes her look sinister as hell. She also still has not yet had her VA revealed and no real good look at her.

I just... it's interesting as well that Alastor is secretly sent to protect Charlie. (Male character, too, of course. And seeing someone say he's also a father figure now makes sense as well.) I always liked the idea that he was secretly going to turn on the Hotel and Charlie (or just leaves) and be an obvious hidden antagonist. And it's interesting that Charlie DOES end up forgiving her. Viv mentioned spending time with her mom over the holiday, so it's clear that perhaps that they do have some sort of civil relationship at the very least.

And of course, the Root of Evil is a woman.

Chai, I say this as nicely as possible, especially after carefully analyzing and seeing the complaints of HB as a whole, and that recent interview with Brandon asking about how women are written, and about Ghostfuckers (whilst also knowing about the leaks of it). Also likes silly tweets about being depressed, and most of her main cast of Helluva consists of depressed characters. Especially Stolas (who is also rich, and Vuv defends like crazy (He's her self insert/her father rolled into one character). That one is not too hard to see. Most people are depressed these days (myself included).

Vivienne needs therapy.

She needs it if she hasn't already been getting it.

I understand that writing out trauma is therapeutic. I have author friends who do it. I do it myself. But I also see my own therapist every week.

She clearly hates women. She loves her own father and incorporates loving father/daughter relationships into her own work and clearly does not let anything get in the way of that.

That's why the main character is allowed to be woman. Because it's Viv and the relationship with her own father. Charlie is also bi... which Viv is apparently too.

Something else I've noticed is older bad dads.

Which is ironic because God punishes Lucifer (his son) and Luci wants to be good for Charlie.

I think it's quite possible that maybe her grandfather was not as kind to her father, as her father is to her. See Crimson to Moxxie (it can be assumed Moxxie wants children and would be a loving father). See Paimon to Stolas, and Cash to Blitzo.

But then, going down the line of the newer fathers being better to their daughters. Stolas tries with Octavia (doesn't try very well), Blitz REALLY tries with Loona, Millie's dad seems to have a healthy relationship with her. Perhaps her father has shared with her that his relationship with his dad wasn't great and that he wanted to be a better father to her and her sisters. And whatever her mother did to her/her father...yikes.

Her latest IG post also does mention being depressed about "plans changing" and that food from her dad helps.

I just... wow. Viv can be so easily read. She really doesn't leave anything hidden. And she can't stop herself from writing out her truth.

And that's not going to go over with the fans or public at all, I'm sure of it.

It is also interesting to have a male voicing Katie Killjoy. Hmm. Not that I have a problem with men voicing women, but when it comes to Viv... I don't have a good feeling about it. I've also noticed Brandon seeming a bit miserable in his IG posts and his HH ones don't seem very excited either.

I think his declining views on his own channel other than the 2 HB ones say a lot. Especially when he's clearly trying to placate Viv by saying he's "one of the worst writers of HB".

Chai... oof. I don't know what else to say. We'll just see what comes next.

Thank you for all of this, Armchair Psychology Anon. Your writeups are always fascinating to read, in a haunting sort of way.

I don't know what's going on in Viv's personal life and family history, but all this is pointing to something that demands a really good therapist. Viv being an awful person doesn't negate that.

[angelthefirst1]

01x01 ♾️ 10x10

YEARS...

TOWL

First off, I loved episode one, and I hope you all enjoyed it too.

I very much believe the title is linked to Beth - The one who lives.

I mentioned in previous posts that we would be heading back to repeat season 1 of the walking dead. We got many callbacks in episode 1 of TOWL. Such as Rick stepping into Merle's role of being handcuffed because he is "difficult."

Like Merle, Rick has to chop his own hand off to escape.

The callbacks are quite detailed. If you remember back, Merle was horrible to T-dog, refusing to take any direction from him because of his skin colour. He almost kills T-dog and wants to become the leader of the group, which leads to Rick handcuffing him.

Whereas to contrast, Rick wants to escape the CRM to get back to Michonne, whom he loves.

Rick also doesn't desire power in the CRM at all and even says so to Okafor.

Rick, in season one, is also looking for Lori his wife.

Merle and Daryl (the brothers) are separated.

It's a beautiful rework of that time around the rooftop scene in Atlanta...

The exciting thing about all this is that Andrea was first introduced just prior to Merle (Daryl's brother) being handcuffed on that rooftop.

They are reversing and reworking season one and season 5 scenes combined (I'll get to the season 5 patterns soon), so Beth (a reworked Andrea) is close...

We even saw Rick's own version of a Brulent (burner) walker that leads to cauterization...

I talk about the cauterization theme at length here from DD1.

The cauterization theme is related to walking away from God, which is interesting with Rick specifically because Rick is "walking away" from or running away from the CRM.

The CRM logo is a representation of God.

The Borromean rings have been used in different contexts to indicate strength in unity. In particular, some have used the design to symbolize the Trinity.

The end is the beginning theme ♾️

This theme reveals a major clue to the story and what they are drawing from, and that is the Revelation or revealing of Jesus Christ.

Beth's revealing is symbolic of this...

The book of Revelation is known as a book about the end of all things but also the beginning of something new.

To remind you, not that you need it, this is a show about the end of the world, and the writers are heavily incorporating biblical end time events into the show.

Jesus describes one of his characteristics in the book of Revelation, he says:

‭‭Revelation 22:13

I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

The beginning and the end theme, will eventually reveal Beth. 01x01 ♾️ 10x10 get well soon.

The symbolism around her character is used to link her symbolically to Christ, I've mentioned this many times before. As a reminder, some aspects of this are:

She dies wearing a cross.

She dies sacrificially (goes all in) to save Noah.

The bible says Noah walked with God, so God saved him from the biblical flood. In the cauterization post i linked above, i go into how 510 events when it rained and they hide in the barn (Ark) was a rework of the biblical flood.

Beth was also the only character given the symbolism of an "empty" or missing body/grave.

She was innocent and considered "good" as Daryl was trying to indicate at the "oh" moment (and yes, he was also saying he loves her 😉)

Jesus was also called good by his disciples. The real definition actually means morally perfect, so while back in Alone the writers were using the "good people theme" to indicate someone that hasn't become out-rightly evil in these evil times, with Beth, it was just one more way of linking her symbolically to Jesus as morally perfect.

Seeing what Rick has experienced with the CRM is a shadow of Beth.

Now let's talk about how season 5 Grady has been reworked.

While we are back in season 1, they are also showing us Rick's version of being at Grady.

Dawn is Thorne, and yes, we're rhyming names now it's becoming that obvious.

Rick (Beth) and Thorne (Dawn) play a game of Poker, and Rick goes all in... Thorne folds.

Thorne tells Rick she's great at poker, but she loses.

Dawn also liked to play poker... Poker is about holding the right cards, having the upper hand, and even bluffing your way to a win.

Remember the hostage trade at Grady? They focused a large amount of time on the numbers of cops to trade with Dawn.

Daryl says to Rick, "3s better than 2" talking about the 3 cops they have to trade back for Beth and Carol. 3 cops gives them the winning hand...

Now, in poker, that's a true statement. All you need to win is a better hand than your opponent.

Well...in fact Dawn and Beth were playing poker in that hallway at Grady.

Beth made the choice to go all in like Rick did. Dawn dies (folds)

It's a big risk to go all in, but the pay-off can be huge. Dawn got nothing in the end.

While Beth is the one who lives and survives a bullet to the forehead. This is actually confirmed in this episode twice, so read on.

A shadow of this is shown with Rick...

In the very next scene after the poker game where Thorne (Dawn) folds, we see Rick hold the bullet right to his forehead. It's not a coincidence...

In that defining moment, you'll make the right choice...

Beth made the right choice.

Beth won and it was lights out for Dawn before she even got to play... just like Thorne said...

Confirming the poker theme and bullet graze theme.

This combination is actually reinforced as it's mentioned in sequence twice in this episode.

Rick and Thorne both sign up to the CRM, and Okafor asks them to work secretly for him. Afterwards, Thorne talks with Rick, and Rick asks her if she gave Okafor the scar on his forehead (a shadow of Beth's scar)

It's then she admits to shooting Okafor in the head, but the bullet just grazed him, she missed. Rick then asks if she will shoot him, too...

Then, she stops and seemingly very randomly brings up the topic of playing poker. But it's not random at all.

It's a reworked reverse shadow of what happened at Grady.

Bullet graze to the head, missed didn't make the kill but it did leave a scar, poker and lights out for Thorne/Dawn. All while Rick (Beth) asks if she will shoot him too.

And all while Rick (Beth) is trapped in the CRM (Grady) away from the love of his life.

Thorne also gives us more hints that she is a new version of Dawn back at Grady. She thinks the system of the CRM is working fine and it doesn't need to change.

Rick disagrees as no one is free to leave.

Beth kept telling Dawn that she wasn't staying any longer than they made her. She wasn't free to leave either, and Dawn told her she shouldn't see it as a sentence. That out there, she would be dead.

This whole rework also gives us insight into Beth's mindset. Just as Rick was trying to escape to get to someone he loves, so was Beth trying to get back to Daryl.

The A's and B's - a repeat of Grady only taking in the ones who they thought were weak. In Beth's case, they got it wrong, she thought for herself, which classified her a an A.

They thought she was a B but she was an A

The man i was with, is he here?

They thought Daryl was an A and same with Noah's Dad so they left them out in the world to die.

Okafor, Thorne and Rick are a reworked version of Beth, Dawn and Noah.

The repeats in this story should give hope that Beth survived that bullet and just like the end of this episode with Rick and Michonne, the story will eventually lead to two people who love each other reuniting. One of whom thought the other died but could never find the body...

[temporalhiccup]

🌤️

🌤️Share your favorite mechanic from a game you’re working on.

So @ostrichmonkey-games and I have been working on [a yet unnamed space pirates! game], which we're designing in the more narrative OSR space (discussing my understanding of OSR/NSR/etc is a whole other thing but anyway). Suffice to say we're having a lot of fun working out the machinery of emergent narratives! I wanted to create a way for the space pirates to be able to assert some control over how the exploration procedure, or basically how the crew travels the void tides. But I wanted to keep to the grungy-spooky-cool vibes Josh and I were aiming for. Also, I wanted to draw inspiration from one of Josh's cool little tool kits: Distant, Cold, and Beautiful.

We still need to playtest this a bunch but I'm happy with what I've wrangled together and Josh helped me work out the details. I had a lot of fun running a few simple tests between us too!

I'll run us through some excerpts, if you'll indulge me!

Ritual of Desire

When you wish to do more than follow the whims of the tides and instead wish to make demands of the Void instead, it is then time to perform the Ritual of Desire

The Ritual of Desire directly interacts with your crew position, one of the building components of your space pirate. So let's take a look at the Black Terror described as:

You may die with the Void filling your veins and pouring from your eyes, but until then your hair grows long and black with the Void and your voice will break any heart.

The leading space pirate has to spend a Whisper of the Void, and all pirates must sacrifice one Hit to the ritual. This grants a starting 1d20 to the ritual. Here are the Whispers from the Black Terror section:

A drunken story spun between two old hags

A blackened skull small enough to fit in the palm

A vision of a tentacled star beast consuming a station

Additional dice depends on what the Black Terror offers to the Ritual of Desire (different crew positions grant different dice, for different narrative costs):

1d12 - Burn away a love that keeps you steady

3d6 - Receive a fear deserved and compelling

So every space pirate makes the makes their offer for the dice for the ritual. So what do you do with all that dice once you've collected them? You cast them and seek out any of the following patterns:

The Twin Daggers of Levi - A pair of dice that show the same number (Reroll any of the Exploration die once, taking any result)

The Footsteps of Drowned Jack - Two sequential numbers (Mark a second location on the map)

The Three Sisters of Dreams Past - Three dice that show the same number (Move the results of the Exploration Die by one level)

The Four Star Crossed Lovers - Anything more than four dice showing the same number (Increase the tier of the results)

The Sea Wolf Howl - At least three dice of sequential numbers (Change the results of the Exploration Die to another type within the same tier)

The Path of Prophecy - At least four dice of sequential numbers  (portal to the desire or something similar)

The God-Siblings of Chaos - If no patterns appear at all, declare exactly where you want to go. You will receive a request from the God-Siblings, and it must be fulfilled before the end of the next session. Once fulfilled, your ship and crew will be taken directly to your heart’s desire. Shirk the responsibility, and the Star-Killers will hunt you down.

And laaaaastly, I wanted to somehow incorporate the idea of younger and older stars too from Distant, Cold, and Beautiful.

The stars know when they are being watched, the ancient skies will look back and observe in turn, drawn to the bright light of hubris. Should the hungry stars be moved to entangle their light with yours, prepare yourself.

If any of the final Ritual Die is a 1-9: The younger of the stars observe you and send out a Whisper of the Void.

If any of the final Ritual Die is a 10-15: The older of the stars wish to interact with you directly, the crew will soon meet a Void Stranger.

If any of the final Ritual Die is a 16-20: The hungry stars turn their baleful eyes on you. The Keeper unlocks a Sinister Unscene.

Basically I wanted to mimic the feeling of casting runes, charm casting, and similar ideas. I also wanted to experiment with blurring the lines between play and procedure, meta and narrative. But! Most important! it's all for fun, and rolling different dice is always fun.

[hikennosabo]

trimax vol 14 random thoughts (ch 5-8)

okay enough stalling... let's get this done... HOO BOY

chapter 5:

i love how vash is drawn in these panels... and vash waking up from hearing meryl's words... WAAHHHHH...

GET UP COWARD (<- lyric from my chemical romance's 2022 single 'the foundations of decay' which i may or may not be considering for a vash playlist)

oh, i LOVE this image of knives covering his face...

hmhmhm... the way knives addresses the other plants is... gentle, almost?

"sorrow and grief," huh... over the humans trying to communicate with them? those are the kinds of emotions this scenario is bringing out? there is something there but... i don't quite know what it is...

uwahhh... i do love this image...

"we were united in hatred" -> "i feel a murmur of fear"... hmmm. sounds like knives himself, who buried his fear underneath hatred... am i connecting any dots???

but fear in communicating with humans... fear because communication is scary in general? fear because of the abuse humans have put plants through? fear of uncertainty of what this communication will result in?

the tiniest merylmilly u can imagine...

they ask if it's safe, but it's not like vash cares if it's safe, he's been prepared to die for several volumes now, so... he's probably thinking "if i die i die," lol. (<- in pain)

this is a cute expression...

"don't touch me," he says...

knives trying to incorporate himself with the fused plants - now it's HIS turn to go "if i die i die" i guess LJSDKLFDS... both him and vash risking it all for their ideals. they really are brothers...

vash's "grant me that ticket"... it doesn't directly address god, but it feels like a prayer nonetheless.

chapter 6:

wah... meryl's strength gives vash strength... wahhh... is this the first time they've... well, "talked about it" isn't the right phrase, but is this the first time vash understands what meryl was going through that time when she flinched away from him?

"what matters is that you communicate. that you understand the person next to you is breathing and existing." ugh, fuck, i can feel myself getting weepy again.

the people getting good AND bad memories from the plants.. good! good! they said a few volumes ago that most(?) of the population has gathered in this city, so this really is everyone?! individual normal people couldn't do much about plant abuse, but now that EVERYONE understands, things can change! they can acknowledge what's happened, and they can change, and move forward!!

and vash being the bridge, the point of commonality between humans and plants... uaaghgh it's so interesting because for a long time vash's reputation among the humans was one of destruction. but in this moment everyone understands who he really is and what he wants. ueueeueueue....

also. this pattern of receiving traumatic memories via feathers, and to come out the other side not with fear and hatred but with increased compassion and understanding... sounds like what happened between vash and meryl, doesn't it?

"i've never made a promise like this before, but today i'd like to try" UAAGHGHHG.G U AHGHGHGHG.

haha. hey. why does it look like he's been crying. i'm going to throw up.

i don't know if the rest of this post will be comprehensible.

chapter 7:

what do i even say here.

hey remember the chapter title "king of loneliness." i'm gonna go eat rocks now.

even now, he's stubbornly clinging to his ideals, thinking he's in too deep, that he's gone too far to turn back...

oh, this is getting to me, the way it's worded. "caught up in something too big" and the panel of them as kids. they were just kids when this all started. this was too big for them. knives was a kid, a traumatized, scared kid who made a very bad, very destructive decision, and he has lived his life up until this point digging his heels in, growing more and more twisted, more controlling and violent, trying to justify his own actions to himself because how do you carry something like that.

"kill me, vash, there's nowhere else for me to go." literally two chapters ago vash said "where am i going? what's there left to see?" i'm fucking eating rocks.

"even though we were apart for so long, we were still brothers. but i was the one who broke away..." knives looks so pained when he thinks this. now, after all this, he's finally feeling regret, or letting himself feel regret. in the last possible moment.

...or so he thinks. vash has a clear shot, the opportunity to kill knives, and knives wants vash to kill him, he expects it - but vash protects him instead. with his last bullet. despite knives's blade going through his torso. despite everything. despite EVERYTHING!!!!! vash has EVERY REASON to hate knives, to KILL knives, and he STILL chooses not to!!!! i'm not okay i'm crying again

in 98, rem tells vash "take care of knives"... this is pretty much the same thing... i don't want to say this is necessarily another thing nightow took from 98 because of course this is what she said, what else would she have said at that time?

the beginning of the chapter had vash struggling to remember what rem said, but the preceding pages imply it's knives remembering her words... or maybe they both are...

this is fucking getting to me, fuck, i'm crying again!!! fuck!!!!

also, oh, chronica IS still alive... honestly i was (and still am) so caught up in the twins that that information just immediately left my brain the first time around LMAO...

i am so. fucking. unwell. about knives's expressions in this scene. he's feeling so many things at once. i just... the fact that vash protects knives and picks him up to haul him away... he ISN'T leaving knives on his own, even in the end, even after everything that's happened... and knives is just. what IS he feeling? shock, disbelief, regret... love, can i say love?? love for his brother?? the love between them that never went away, despite everything?? i am gonna fucking throw up

i don't know where to put this in the post because it occurred to me while i was proofreading, but knives stabbed vash, felt shock and regret, and then acted to save him... which sounds awfully similar to what happened between rem and vash, huh?

this, with knives's hair turning black... new hair, new outlook, right?

will you drive me back, can you take me home... (<- lyrics from gerard way's 'brother' from his 2014 solo album 'hesitant alien')

oh, the fact that they sprouted wings like this in the stampede s1 finale is gonna make it hit SOOOO MUCH HARDER once THIS scene gets adapted. this is such a beautiful spread, a beautiful moment... i'm gonna cry again...

LIVIO!!!! TO THE RESCUE!!!! also... that's not a double fang, whose gun is that?

WOLFWOOD!!!!! WWWAHHHHGHGHGHH!!!!! the "turn around and he's gone" scene is SUCH a cliche but FUCK!!!!!! IT'S GETTING TO ME!!!!!!

chapter 8:

i feel so normal i feel so normal (affirmations) (lying)

i can't. i can't type. i'm crying too much. this is love. it's just love.

his last act, knowing that it will kill him, is an act of love. love for his brother. so vash can eat. so the doctor and his kid can eat. and as time goes on it'll grow bigger and be able to feed more people. food as a love language. i'm crying and sobbing.

knives understands he has no place in this world, especially after everything he's done, and the world needs vash more than him... that vash can't live in the world as long as they're together... he doesn't even tell vash himself that he intended to disappear... it's his choice, he walks his path with pride... but i'd like to believe they were able to spend some time together before this. just being brothers. TALKING. eating together. sleeping next to each other. hugging?? apologizing?? knives finally being a good brother after so long and taking care of vash?? making up for lost time. i'd like to imagine it. let me imagine it.

i've been thinking this for a while but i actually do think that vash would forgive knives if knives expressed regret and asked for forgiveness. because vash is jesus and all, and that's how sin and forgiveness work in christianity, if you believe and repent you will be forgiven, etc... i don't know if vash would forgive knives right away - he is very, very human after all - but i definitely think he could. and maybe he did. maybe they had that talk.

phew. okay, i'm finished crying now, and BOY was it a big cry. not any easier the second time around. anyway.

does he really need a wig? if he doesn't spike up his hair, that would be effective by itself, since it's one of his identifiers according to the earth forces...

DOES THIS CONFIRM THAT VASH CAN'T GROW A BEARD WITHOUT EFFORT? like since his plant powers are completely drained he can no longer grow a beard???

AHHHH... VASH'S BIG SMILE!!!!! and everyone's wearing their old clothes, and with a bunch of guys comically chasing vash around, yeah, this is really all for callback's sake... we've come so far, and full circle.

meryl's lecture to him is so typically meryl LOL... he DID NOT keep his promise LMAO

the fucking jojo sound effects are cracking me up HDSFKSFJDFS

also everyone who complained about stampede """changing""" meryl into a reporter owes me $100 right fucking now. that was a complaint i saw SO MUCH. i thought it was a bit strange myself, but i figured orange had a reason, and now i know. those complainers know NOTHING!!! NOTHING!!!!!!

meryl frantically reading from her script and milly's big smile... cute... also WHAT DO YOU MEAN WARDROBE MALFUNCTIONS LMAO?? are they planning on stripping him?? vash the stampede nip slip???

AAHHHHH LIVIO GREW HIS HAIR OUT AGAIN!!!!! and he's at wolfwood's grave... oh fuck i said i was done crying GODDAMMIT!!!!

okay. okay i'm done for real now. man. man. what do i say. what can i say.

"the same song of humanity still sang." and what a beautiful song it is.

i don't really know how to conclude this post... just. wow. what a journey this was. i don't think i've ever cried this much over a manga, lol... i... had a really good time!

[meanderingandrambling]

I never really feel clever or informed enough to comment on the met gala but some folks I like skipped this year and at the very least I want to save my top ten for posterity so here we are.

I'll be doing this in several rounds. Theme Favorites: top ten that did a good job with the theme and were interesting enough for the met gala. That's A Nice Dress/Suit: top ten that were beautiful for some event that wasn't the met gala. Come on, this is for wearing theatrical art. Personal Favorites: top ten free-for-all in which I just pick my favorites based purely on personal aesthetic. Absolutely no attempt to even pretend I'm thinking of things like theme, craftspersonship, or style. Maybe a forth round for stuff I just want to talk about or things I did not like.

The 2024 theme was Garden of Time, the exhibit Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion. Most people took that in a historical and/or botanic direction, both themes I adore. Interestingly enough the Garden of Time is a short story about the hyper-wealthy walling themselves in their pleasure gardens with magic time slowing flowers until the hoi polloi riot and overtake them. Unfortunately I saw no outfits that incorporated the injustice of our capitalistic hellscape, the inevitability of death, or less generously: the unwashed masses destroying genteel beauty. Perhaps next year.

Lana Del Rey wearing Alexander McQueen

There were a lot of outfits I really liked but I thought this one really captures the threatening beauty of nature, genteel isolation, and vague sense of mortality you get in Ballard story. I also dig how it looks like something a member of the fae would wear.

Everything else below the cut to keep this from being a color of the sky length post.

Cynthia Erivo wearing Thom Browne

This number will be showing up in my favorites. When I imagine the anthropomorphic Death as she would appear in the Ballard story, this is she. The petals over the darkness are a bit on the nose as a death image, but I positively love it.

Rebecca Ferguson wearing Thom Browne

Another one that will appear in my favorites. So it's hard to talk about the Garden of Time without mentioning The Masque of the Red Death. Both are about rich aesthetes locked away against the rioting masses and the inevitability of death. Ferguson is dressed to sweep uninvited through a decadent compound to bring darkness and decay in her wake, and really isn't that what we're all going for at all times?

Demi Moore wearing Harris Reed and Cartier

God I love this dress. The spear things remind me of the hands on a clock and the peonies are that brilliant pink that makes me want to lick them. I like how the sleeves frame her, almost like wings or a halo.

Harris Reed in Harris Reed

Amazing. Honestly I hardly have anything to say. I adore the sort of Georgian (I think Georgian, my art history is pretty shit) pattern and the halo effect of Reed's headpiece. A feel like he's pretty purposefully doing a saint thing in the picture and I love it.

Tyla wearing Balmain

Holy fuck did this one fly under my radar. Much like an operatic magpie, I am attracted to bright colors and shiny things, and so missed the subtlety of this sand gown. She's dressed as the sands of time, very cool. Spoiler for an 80 year old short story: it ends with the main characters turning into statues, so I really like how the dress makes it look like she's turning into sand.

Taylor Russell wearing Loewe and Fred Leighton

Like Tyla's gown above I like Russell's suggestion of inorganic transformation. She has a sort of sad dryad/maiden warrior chosen by god thing going on.

Dan Levy wearing Loewe

Gives me Persephone energy. I like the floral color and life contrasted to the black. The transition reminds me of the transformation in the story and, if I sort of tilt my head, the passage of all life into death.

J Harrison Ghee wearing ???

Okay so Ghee's gown doesn't really capture the themes of time or death but holy fuck I love it. This is how six-year-old me wanted to dress every day. A friend said "it's a carnival dress, though certainly a very good one." Personally I think it's perfect for any and every occasion. I love that they look like she's at the 1994 Thumblina film's Beetle Ball. I mean, look at this image and tell me they didn't come from the same party. Playful, camp, and over-the-top.

[tunamayuuu]

poe thoughts/hcs?👀

GOD I REMEMBER WHEN HE WAS MY FAVORITES :(( i don't think much about him now please, BUT. BUT. i have a couple thoughts and hcs!

OKAY FIRST OF ALL

i love him sm??? i just might reread all the chapters he's featured in because again, when i first got into bsd, him and ranpo were instantly my first favorites (hence my ranpoe blog theme for a long time) because he's just so??? he's so funny to me. "he's like me for real" kind of moment everytime i think of him because i too dislike large group settings and push myself to working hard at my passion!! but that's neither here nor there

maybe it's changed now, but like, i guess my problem with him is how he's kind of viewed as an extension of ranpo by both the fandom and the story? i won't say that ranpo uses him like a tool because we do know that ranpo does respect poe and his skills quite a lot, it just happens that his gift is incredibly useful for his plans for the agency. and honestly good for them! poe gets to have his gift be acknowledged by ranpo, and ranpo is able to include himself in the fight despite his lack of an ability.

i don't know... i just want him to be his own person!! he's really entertaining and interesting on his own with his dramatic dialogue and his mood swings (same) and i want him to be appreciated for him!!!

yes i'm aware that there is a chapter with him welcoming mushitaro into his home, and like?? this part?? always gets me PLEASE, he's the sweetest ever

OH YEAH ANOTHER PROBLEM I HAVE IS HOW, just like the rest of the guild, HIS DESIGN WAS DONE SO DIRTY. WHERE'S THE CHAIN ON HIS COAT, THE INTRICATE WEB LIKE PATTERN ON HIS COAT, THE PIN STRIPES IN HIS PANTS? he's arguably one of the best designs among the guild members and he got done ridiculously dirty.

anyway i love him! onto some hcs i guess?

there's no way this man isn't some level of fan for musicals. literally no way. i'm not sure what kind of musicals he'd like because i'm not a musical fan myself, so let me know what you think he likes!

i think he's a sour/savory type of guy. like. i feel like he'd love pasta and bread a lot? he's definitely a food critic internally

i feel like he's the type to keep a decently sized stationary collection! he's more into dark academia style stationery, but that doesn't stop him from eyeing the halloween/orange and purple stationery in his online shopping!

i think he's 50 50 at homemade and takeout. he does have the money to always buy takeout, but cooking is his little passion when he's not writing! i'm really pushing my poe cook/food critic agenda here, aren't i

he's not exactly high-maintenance, but he will do absolutely everything for his hair. absolutely high maintenance just for his hair, it's gotta look messy but kind of cute, you know?

also super personal design hc i might incorporate when i draw him again: his hair is definitely a gradient from purple to a darker purple.

[riddle-me-ri]

i’m gonna follow the pattern here lol:

your thoughts on…the different scarecrows? especially MOF jon?

Oohh spooky Twig Boys that I may or may not slightly slightly enforce my southernness on (only the good southernness like cooking, music, hospitality none that other shit) I'll be more than happy to oblige anon hehe. It's not often I get to talk/discuss the masters of fear.

Again gonna just kinda discuss all the ones I write for since I'm the most informed on those versions so sorry if I missed one and the post got long lmao

Masters of Fear Scarecrow: since you asked for him specifically I put him first lmao. And this Jon is just incredibly endearing? I think he's an adorable spry kinda guy that, like most, deserved better. I'm also super fond of his design. Also as someone who writes for "x reader" it was nice to see him...actually have a romantic interest? (albeit she was a bully bitch) listen listen...any extra info in a romantic sense of a character I will take

Arkhamverse Scarecrow: Uhh can I just say, absolute whiplash in design and mannerisms lol. While I enjoy both its like...such a bizarre change? Like yeah he did go through something traumatic (being very close to dying) but like...a total voice change? Maybe there's some behind the scenes explanation or something I don't know but yeah...I do enjoy him being whimsy and silly in Asylum and brooding and stoic in Knight with his waxing poetic lectures...but also also...does anyone have any idea how Knight Scarecrow's face works? Like his mouth and such?

TNBA Scarecrow: Definitely a more gritty and intriguing take, especially considering its a revamp of BTAS. Allegedly this is the idea of Scarecrow with a noose started? And now we've seen it incorporated in other designs which is pretty cool.

BTAS Scarecrow: Much like Jervis and I think Batman as a whole, this was my first Scarecrow encounter, and cause of such there's a wee bias to him being one of my favorites lol. Super rich voice, I don't care if he's terrorizing me, I will die of fear peacefully. Solid design and a super strong depiction of the character overall? Also my god his theatrics, top notch such a dramatic lad I love him.

Dark Knight/Nolanverse Scarecrow: pretty eyes...pretty eyes..strong jawline..pretty pretty scarecrow..huh, what? Oh..uhh yeah he's...fine I guess..I mean like not just fine as in fine as hell just...meh? I don't know I just remember him being stupidly criminally pretty. Although to be fair I don't recall much about him..sorry (granted I don't recall much about nolanverse as a whole...its been at most five years rip)

Year One Scarecrow: it took me an embarrassingly long time for me to actually read Year One rip. But it was very gut wrenching. It was the best updated take I've seen on Jon's origins and just how deeply rooted he is in his obsession, and it was a unique way too? Like it was an interesting take on the broken family scenario, I dunno I just thought it was super enriching.

Fear State Scarecrow: so I will say the designs for him are jarring as there's like..a different artist between the beginning, middle, and end of Fear State. But I like both looks, especially in the middle where he looks a lot like his BTAS counterpart. It was an amazing surprise to see the spikey red hair and wide eyes again in comic form and more realistic but still animated? I hope that makes sense. But I loved the story, and he was especially cunning and ruthless here.

Happy Halloween, Scooby-Doo! Scarecrow: asdgggh this boomer asshole lmao. But definitely one of my top three favorites. He's a decent blend of old and new for me. Like he bears resemblance to BTAS but also some other comic appearances, he doesn't even need to he in the costumer and you can just tell he's Jonathan Crane. Also his voice is amazing, and I will forever be grateful to the writer that decided that Scarecrow was a fucking Elvira fan boy. Like of fucking course he'd love Elvira, Mistress of the Dark asdfghjj one of the few times where canon got it right lmao

[bad-decision-central]

If you had to judge your muse and sentence them to a “fair” fate, what would your judgement be? Would you punish them? Reward them? How?

For Bakura

This

Ok, this is about to get long sorry.

Honestly? A second chance. I do not feel like he really had a fair shot at being anything other then what he'd become. This is especially true while he's attached to The Dark God as Yami Bakura.

Please note that I am not excusing his actions, but with that said many of the other characters (and I am including season 0/early Yu-Gi-Oh) were not declared evil despite doing similar actions. Marik was redeemed, Seto isn't seen as evil, and even Yami Yugi isn't exempt from this. In my opinion, the anime/manga (likely unintentionally) made Atem look kinda hypocritical with how it went about Bakura and Yami Marik but that's a whole different rant

What I mean is he's over here throwing chance after chance at Seto and anyone else he likes (I love Seto, this is not me shitting on him. I also love Atem) but somehow he draws the line at Bakura??? Seto was after him because he couldn't handle losing but the massacre victim is where you draw the line??? Really??? That is not a good look, either Atem is inconsistent when it comes to that for whatever reason or he's a hypocrite who makes his own rules and decides how redeemable you are based on how much he likes you.

I would like to believe it's an inconsistency, though admittedly if I wrote Atem it would not be. He would feel deep regret for a lot of his actions. Ok I'm getting off topic shit.

But basically I just feel like if Atem is not in fact a hypocrite he'd of looked into Bakura more, realized that he's being too hasty with destroying him when he was attached to a literal dark god (there is no way that didn't affect Bakura's thought patterns, a god is going to overpower a human, there is no way to tell who is causing what to happen until they're separated ok).

Long story short: A more consistent or non-hypocritical Atem would've, in my opinion, annoyed the fuck out of Bakura by trying to play hero and save him from this hole he'd dug himself. He may have even felt obligated to some extent because of his family's involvement. Bakura made his own choices, obviously, but it seems to me that for a while he thought he really was in the right. (Don't feel like going into that much because there is a lot of layers and this is long af already).

I also do want to point out however that Bakura already has a bias against Atem, every action that Atem does that Bakura perceives as negative would be highlighted whether he's consciously doing it or not. That complicates things a lot more. Also being deemed bad by people who have also committed murder? Uh, not a good look. Pot meet kettle.

ANYWAYS I can rant about this for hours but I'll cut it here an say that a fate I'd give Bakura is:

A second chance BUT he is stuck with Atem so they're forced to see more than the biases they may have. I think the Gods recognizing how complex this situation was and giving a fair shot would be great. I've actually been meaning to edit his bio to incorporate that idea more. It makes more sense, but I'm explaining it horribly here.

[thecoloroute]

Art Deep Dive: Ines J.

Words cannot truly express how I feel about this artist! but i will try.

I discovered Ines J. on instagram where they go by the handle @a.creature (ive linked her direct instagram to this @ so it will not take you to a tumblr account of theirs, not sure if they have one but i will check and edit this after typing everything up if so!).

From what i've gathered, Ines is a very multifaceted artist that incorporates their work into a variety of mediums and trinkets. Im going to highlight some of the recent works of theirs that I'm absolutely obsessed with. to be honest, they're all fantastic though so i would definitely recommend checking their page out and getting lost in a surrealist paradise of wonky doodles.

my thoughts on the pieces are going to be in bullet form so bear with me.

bodies, demons, faces, morphed creatures, morphed selves

stickers, commercial, industrialized, contrasting organic lines

organic shapes resembling body parts, intestines

bright color unnatural to regular body tones, for emphasis? (or personal taste which is what id do for color choice)

the beautiful inclusions of black imagery, woman on top left is my favorite she looks so haunted and her hair reminds me of myself on a rough morning

"on & on" speaks to works theme of chaos and continuing on despite it, like me during those said mornings

unraveling in a sense

god! beautiful color choices just IMMACULATE

THE FACE ON THE LEFT? THE CONTRAST OF THE BLUE WITH THE ORange??? Ines!!!!!!!!!!!!!! great job

different features, organic material

text adds to juxtaposition of natural vs. unnatural which is a common theme

Wednesdays do feel yellow. sometimes being human is about being alive to hear/see observations like this

i am guilty of throwing checker patterns in lots of spots on my art, love the teal checker pantsuit here it fuels my soul

red, anger, angst, sex, sexuality

large dominant figure is not happy, and contrasts to the abundance of color around, could signify a void or lack of emotion, creativity, maybe even happiness

this drawing reminds me of how it feels to scroll through instagram on a bad mental health day while it seems like everyone else is living their best lives while i occasionally rot

reminds me of something similar i said to the man i currently am infatuated with, minus the airplane part

"oh what can you do!" this is how i feel about him lol. the black and lime green image of the two people also reminds me of him

i wonder if this piece is based on a lover... probably

tears, unfinished boxes, distance that is most likely unwanted, lack of memory

when those things fade we will do our best to capture things creatively like this in art as a shrine for the emotions we feel and have felt but ultimately have to let go of

drawings like this break my mf heart (cause they remind me of when i was mf heartbroken lol)

and ykno what yes to the green head on top right corner, everyone has their own interpretation but that makes me think ya love can actually make you lovesick and that is how id mentally draw myself with the green worm sliming out and all bc sometimes thats how it feels out here

more tears i see:(

one of my favorites that i've seen so far honestly?

this image reminds me of myself and im sure a lot of women feel the same

colorful blobs at the top, bubbles of experiences, memories that have passed, things that make you who you are, and the shapes get more specific and thought out in terms of painted construction as you near the woman (red star, blue circle, black teardrop, etc).

delicate nature of the wispy but sharp surroundings behind her, like a girly, cosmic barbed wire (luv it)

pink and overall colors mentioned before contrasts with the deep blue and black used to illustrate her, somber colors and face expression, head down

the vibrant red flower seems to be the focal point, most vivid spot in terms of color

to me symbolizes a feminine rage because it is so big, red and bright that it is something which naturally demands to be seen

her demeanor is the exact opposite, like a woman in society trying not to seem out of line even though she has every right to be upset

cultivating the flower, knowing when to let certain emotions bloom?

possibly being tired from not being able to let certain emotions bloom

okay thats all for tonight everybody. i know ive been saying that i'd do this for a while but adult life can get so hectic. Also i wanted to wait till i found someone i really enjoyed so i wouldnt get writers block halfway through this blog post. here's to ines j. for being a super dope artist!

[cosmicangel888]

Healing, Medicine & Epidemiology 5D New Earth

The essence of love and light, and the song that is Creation will show at every level of our new earth, how we operate and how we define any disease, disorder, ailment and social wave of anything will shift dramatically and those of us that are conduits, empaths, medical intuitive, and healers will allow for great strides in the study of our eternal health that is entirely possible and will bring an entirely new dynamic to our collective evolution and potential

It will no longer be pseudo but truth in;

who are we

what we exist within

what exists within each - our DNA our essence, our connection with our planet and our understanding and self design of who we are will mean everything

DNA is our core code & is multi-dimensional and is expansive eternally - beyond the beyond - this is only our beginning and why stay in limitations of fixed beliefs and stagnancy of what is possible in new energies, new realms of play, new play upon lightships and healing teams engagements that are sent to specific healers to help offer, teach, those upon earth of higher vibrational healing techniques and ways -

I was a part of a divine Pleiadian collective that was sent here 1000's of years ago to offer such about herbs, natural ways to work with the earth and nature for healing and evolution of intuitive expansion

Medicine was only the bandaid of what was known and practiced as a topical physical experience and as we awaken, a much deeper more elegant knowing, design, and incorporation of all lives 3D-5D and then participating in the plasmatic harmony of sacred cords, codes, imprints, aspects & sacred geometries of all higher essence aspects

We do not need to build billion dollar telescopes or machines for connection with our celestial and et families - they are right here and with us - you cannot see or hear because there are beliefs that separate and deny, or shame, or have to be cleared to accept as oneness -

Oneness is our key to eternal life - unity, peace, oneness is our healing and portal to all eternal health

The harmonization of our own soul sacred geometry and energetic potentials - plus the entanglement with our planet and the elementals and such light workers behind and beyond what is seen and known - essence of God is the essence of God - felt and knowing and available for our positive loving engagement (not abuse)

All has impact absolutely to predicting, empowering change in our collective and global health -

5D Health - The Earth balance & understanding our biosphere is key - properties of love is all that heals us - found everywhere that is natural and wild and divine

We are now entraining through divine self-re-writing and multi-dimensionally our new eternal health and wellness beyond what we could have ever imagined;

Over-writing DNA and lineage disease, social patterns and imprints

this is only the beginning -

Beyond the beyond - that is our potential

Blessings and light

Joanna

Donations are deeply appreciated - THANK YOU

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#epidemiology

#healinghumanity

#healingourchildren

#God

#Source

#love

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#unity

#Oneness

#ascension

[cmcsmen]

CMCS Christmas Message 2022

We who live our lives under the blessing of believing will find ourselves most fortunate in celebrating this holy season.  Our faith has given us eyes to see and appreciate the Christ-event as the moment for which all of human history has prepared and from which every believer continues to find meaning, hope and purpose in life and in death.

Jesus‘ life and teaching have caused millions to inform their minds and model their lives on His. Belief in his death and resurrection has resulted in His being called Lord and Christ by the largest group of worshippers in the world ever.  Indeed, even some who do not call themselves Christian readily admit His impact upon social mores and social discourse and moral patterning.

Scripture readings the Church selects for this season speak of God’s loving persistence in shining a light for us as we stumble in the dark.  Jesus was born amidst the darkness of night seemingly for a reason.  All that is opposite of God is given by the authors of the bible the metaphor of ‘darkness’.  To save us from darkness we are given opportunity to respond to the Good News that Christ is alive and not bound by death any longer, by sin, by hate, by misguided ideology.

Then there are some other words right out of the sacred writ: “By the tender mercy of our God the Dawn from on high shall break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.”[1] - Zechariah’s words celebrating the birth of his son, John who would be called the Baptist, the forerunner of the Messiah, Jesus the Christ.

Although, we are a people who know the Light has come and will come again to take us with Him, nevertheless, our world still sits in the shadow of death.  In the meantime we await the fullness of the Light’s rays for darkness has no power over the Light.[2]

The world continues to struggle with that darkness even as the Light of God shines brightly in so many hearts ad places.  Our faith experience tells us repeatedly that there is no experience from which God is absent, no event however tragic about which God is indifferent.  We are justified in being confident because God is always at work to bring life out of death and good out of evil.[3]

Jesus reminded his disciples again and again, “...the kingdom of God is at hand.”[4] The kingdom is dawning. The Light who is Christ can already be seen in the life of the Son God sent among us.  We await its full radiance we who are the people who wait and watch and trust the Lord’s coming. For we are people of hope, people who wait for God trusting that even in our darkness God sees us and draws us to His own heart. We are God’s people living in the world in order to share the Light that we have seen calling others to see the Light along with us.

Know that the risen Jesus still challenges our opinions, disrupts our expectations, disturbs our politics and invites us to seek His wisdom and live our lives for His sake.

Sometimes, when I listen to the news or read the newspapers I want to shout, “We’re still here!”  Who’s we?  Christians, that is!  Believers!  Folks whose lives got turned upside down or right-side up by an encounter with Jesus the Christ … believers that Jesus not only as but is.

The story isn’t finished.  There are new lessons to learn, new insights to incorporate into our daily lives. We are people who believe the Light is still shining showing us how to strive to live by that light with intention and hope.

Christmas is all about that original and mot genuine love story – namely, our relentless search for finding God.  As the late superior General of the Jesuit order once put it so simply and profoundly: “Nothing is more practical than finding God … (searching for God is) what seizes your imagination (and) will affect everything.  It will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning, what you do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, whom you know, what breaks your heart and what amazes you with joy and gratitude … nothing is more practical than finding God.”

Shepherds and Wise Men discovered this to be true and so have you and me.  This Christmas, let’s be joyful, confident that whatever darkness is in our world profound in our lives will not overcome the ever-present, gently glowing Light who is our Savior and Lord. For, we all wish to walk as children of the Light, His Light which reigns this day and forever, Amen!

2022 Bishop Joseph N Perry

[1] Luke 1, 67-79

[2] John 1, 4-5

[3] Ephesians 5, 8-14

[4] Luke 17, 20-21

[absolutebl]

So at your recommendation (and after seeing the show incorporated elements of BDSM), I gave Unforgetten Night's first episode a go.

And as a kinkster who happens to be a Service Dom, I'm left feeling how I often feel watching media portrayals of BDSM. Discontented.

Where do we begin.

Firstly, thank god we have consent established (RACK and all), but did Kamol tell Kim what he was going to do to him beforehand? Or did he pull a Christian Grey and talk about a "game room" and then go 'Surprise! Hope you consented to this!'? I'll presume it was established off screen.

Sad we got no negotiation scene considering how integral it is. Especially considering the sub is in an emotional state, potentially drunk (you found em in a bar, visibly drinking), and could easily slip into sub-space or may be unable retract consent during the scene due to being in a bad headspace

Speaking of consent, no safe words? Not even the classic traffic lights system that everyone speaks of but I've yet to see used IRL?

Also, if a sub says "do anything you want with me" while crying, asking you to help them forget their ex, you simply don't.

Then the actual scene itself. Jesus.

Those cuffs were pathetically loose, weren't even properly chained on, and so couched, it makes me wonder if the previous guy underwent a scene or accidentally ran into Vegas and mistook him for Kamol.

I mean, the cuff was drooping down his arm lol.

Then we have the flogging. Kamol has clearly never touched a flogger before. That technique is so bad, it made me cringe in sympathy for his poor wrists. Just have him flog an 8 pattern onto Kim's back. That's it. Simple and easy and basic and realistic.

Then the wax/temp play. Decent enough there. Only concerns here are that we don't see the dom checking the wax temp before pouring it on to the sub, and that *usually*, doms don't tend to pool drip wax like that, But I've known it to happen. Generally though, most doms I'm friends with and myself just go for streaks, Jackson Pollock, but heavily controlled style. So not that bad in itself.

Kinda sad that every portrayal of BDSM has to end with rough sex, even though BDSM is so much more than that, but at least we have something unique with what I presume is a Bite Kink.

Yay we got aftercare at least. However the previous aforementioned sub got thrown out after a scene while he was in clear distress. That is such shitty dom behaviour, especially considering the likelihood of subdrop, which makes me instantly angry with Kamol.

The acting, editing, camera work, and narrative presentation was as much of a trash fire as you made it out to be. The editing this episode was serving Indian Soap Opera realness.

What did you think of it? Particularly from a BDSM perspective as I believe you engage in kink aswell? Did it live up to all your expectations?

Goodness I don't expect them to get it RIGHT. I expect kink rep to be, if possible, WORSE than queer rep. It always is. I can't think of any visual medium that's done kink correctly, and I include all movies, TV shows, series, MVs, and most porn in that one. I mean there are a few books out there. But that's it/ Honestly, that's why we have dungeons. I mean I guess a few of the pro domme shows tried? Love & Leashes was... cute?

This show is/will be/and was always gonna be a disaster in all ways.

That's what I am here for. I absolutely have no intentions of defending it.

Be kinda hilarious, actually, if they did everything else terrible but like got the kink SPOT on.

Snicker.

Bet there's a kink for that...

[mochie85]

I'm So Sick

Chapter 30 of my Mayari series.

Mayari Masterlist | Complete Masterlist

Summary: The last part of Mayari's memories. Loki finds out how you lost your voice. A/N: I took a lot of liberties in incorporating Filipino mythology and lore. I hope you all like it. This entire series is inspired by songs. The complete playlist can be found here on Spotify. Word Count: 2111 Warnings: Action/fight sequence. Blood. Trauma. Song fic. Artwork: Mayari by Lasarasu

True to his word. Your father came to visit once a month. On the nights when the sky took over the heavens and the moon was nowhere to be seen. The sun unable to reflect light upon the new moon. That was when he would visit, and continued to visit for the next thousand years.

You never got off the islands. You were its protector. You watched over the people, living their lives. You saw babies being born, people finding love, then people exhaling their last breath. The never-ending cycle of life.

Your collection of little islands was abundant in beauty and assets. You and the people you had protected never wanted for much more than what the islands could provide. You protected the islets from ravagers, or from the other islanders trying to pillage the resources.

The people of the village brought you music as a thank you. They left offerings in exchange for protection and fertility. They would share the newest songs and the newest trends. They would leave mountains of books and papers. Anything and everything to do with the outside world.

You also continued to watch over Tala, making sure she was loved and cared for. Always feeling guilty for having a part in taking away your mother. She was free to come and go, as long as she was accompanied by your father. Sometimes, she would bring you back little gifts from the outside world as well.

When you weren’t watching over the villagers or your sister, you trained. You practiced with every available weapon they had on the island. Long daggers, Kampilans, Arnis fighting sticks, bamboo canes, longbows. You also sang and harmonized with the animals and the waves. Practicing your call on willing villagers.

One night, when the moon had hidden from the sky, on one of your father’s monthly visits, two strangers had accompanied him.

The Avengers had come to your home asking for help. Two of their heroes, the Man of Iron and the Hulking scientist, discovered the days getting longer, despite it being late in the year. As well as unusual weather patterns and droughts all along the islands of the Pacific. They had uncovered a plot by your eldest brother, to take control of the skies.

“After a thousand years, you’d think he would give up this notion of taking over.” Nature needed balance. The skies belonged to all of you, not just the god of the sun. It belonged to Tala, the goddess of the stars. And it belonged to you, the goddess of the moon.

“This is it, anak. You have grown more powerful and cunning. Avenge your mother. Stop your brother once and for all and prove to him that you will not go easily into the dark. Show him that you can shine as bright as him. When you have proven you are capable, you can be set free.” The promise of freedom filled you with hope and fear. You have known nothing but this island growing up. You had nowhere else to go. “I don’t have much longer myself. As soon as I pass, the enchantment on this island will leave. You will be visible again. He will find you. I am proud of you, my daughters. Take care of each other.”

“You can do it, até.” Tala encouraged. “When you do, we can explore the world together. I can show you wonderful things that papa has shown me.” You smile at your little sister and engulf her in your arms.

“I’m sorry, Tala. For taking mama away. I will end this.” You whispered to her.

“I never blamed you. You know that.”

“And for that, I am eternally grateful that I have you as my sister.”

It was not long before Apolaki found your secret islands. Two days after your papa had passed- two days after you held a ceremony for his safe passage into a new life, you heard your older brother call out your name. He came at sunrise, with the power and glory of the new dawn.

“So this is where he’s been hiding you,” Apolaki said slowly approaching you. “I will kill you and then our little sister too. And when I’m done with your friends, I can finally reign over the skies.”

“There is no point in bringing others into this, kuya. Fight me and leave them out of this.”

“You’ve had more than a thousand years to practice, little sister. Let’s see how you can fight.”

He attacked. He lunged at you with his gayang sword. You blocked it with your daggers, chipping away small pieces of the blade. You fought the best you could. You landed punches and were able to keep him on the defense.

Loki stood off in the distance, next to Tony and Bruce. He had never seen you as agile and powerful as he did right now. Have you been holding back this whole time? Have you been suppressing your strength? He knew that this was just a memory. This was your past and that you were safe, in his arms, in the real world. But he can’t help but wonder if you’ll make it out.

With each blow landing on Apolaki, he gave you one back. You felt like you weren’t strong enough. A thousand years of training for you meant a thousand years for Apolaki as well. You were being beaten. You could only do so much before you got tired. You kept receiving blow after blow. Hit after hit. You were lucky to land a couple of punches to his temple or his ribs. The last straw was when he called out a fireball in the palm of his hands.

“NO!” Tala yelled, revealing her hiding spot. She was followed by Tony and Bruce. You can see the iron suit had started to form around Tony and the scientist started to grow and turn green. Tala called forth her bow and celestial arrows. She aimed it at Apolaki, the tip a bright burning ball of gas and light.

“What are you waiting for?! HELP HER!” Loki yelled at Tony.

Apolaki switched targets. He was now aiming for your sister. You weren’t thinking. Lying on the ground, seeing him turn to attack your sister and your friends, you started singing the first song that came to your head. Whispers at first, but as your anger grew, your powers grew. Even though the sun was out and high in the sky, you had called the moon out to do your bidding.

I will break into your thoughts With what’s written on my heart I will break, break.

The wind picked up around you and you transformed under the moonlight. Your hair shone bright silver-blue. Your eyes had changed their pearlescent white, and your markings had crept up your skin like ink bleeding on paper. A bright round halo appeared behind the crown of your head. Its final shape takes the form of a crescent moon behind you.

I’m so sick, Infected with where I live Let me live without this Empty bliss, selfishness. I’m so sick. I’m so sick.

Loki was in awe. It’s been so long since he’s seen your moon form. He doubts he ever will again. You were radiant and glorious.

If you want more of this We can push out, sell out, die out. So you’ll shut up and stay sleeping. With my screaming in your itching ears.

Apolaki sank to his knees. With every word, he could feel his insides turn, like a vice was squeezing his organs, draining the blood from his body. His bones ached as if they were splintering from the inside.

Hear it! I’m screaming it. You’re heeding to it now. Hear it! I’m screaming it. You tremble at the sound.

Writhing in pain, he forgot about the fireball in his hand and tried to cover his ears. But your powers were uncontrolled. Everyone who was within earshot of you felt your compulsion. Tala and The Avengers were on the ground as well, doubled over in excruciating agony.

You sink into my clothes And this invasion makes me feel Worthless, hopeless, sick. I’m so sick, Infected with where I live Let me live without this Empty bliss, selfishness. I’m so sick.  I’m so sick.

The moon’s pull was strong since it had been summoned. It was closer than it should be. The tides around the island had started picking up, like tsunamis ready to break. Like the tides, your body was attracted to the gravitational pull of the moon, and you started to hover.

You wanted Apolaki to hurt. To never think of harming you and your sister ever again. He would always be like this, looking down on you two because your father had relations with your mother, a mortal woman. He never thought of us as equals.

Apolaki reached for the closest thing to him, a bamboo cane, and swung at your head, in hopes to stop you. It found its mark on your right eye.

The sudden blow made you stop singing and you fell to your knees. An unbearable sting crept into your eye. You momentarily saw a flash of bright white before you lost your sight completely. You stumbled over from the strike. It incapacitated you long enough that the moon had gone, disappeared into the sky. You called out and screamed holding your right eye as you felt warm blood trickle down your face.

You had screamed so loud and so fiercely that your voice was heard throughout the Pacific. Everyone who heard you felt your pain as if it were their own. They clutched their eye, feeling the phantom pains of being struck.

Although Loki was only witnessing it in your memories, he felt the sudden burn in his eye, almost as if he were truly there with you.

You finally stopped screaming. The air from your lungs gone. The people around you slowly got up with the sudden pain vanished from their bodies, sweat dripping, and fatigued as if they’ve been in intense torture for hours. The call was powerful. That much Apolaki knew now. He won’t be able to take over the skies as he planned. And it was just you he was fighting. He knew that both of his half-sisters had gifts. He can’t imagine the power you two could wield if you had used your divinity together.

He laid there, unable to move. Frenzied breath and sweat-covered body. But he could still hear you. In his head, long after you had stopped singing. He could hear your voice screaming your song. Unrelenting and never-ending.

So you’ll shut up and stay sleeping. With my screaming in your itching ears.

You hadn’t meant to use your powers on anyone but Apolaki. You were not used to using the Call as a weapon. You had just wanted to stop your kuya. Even with your blurry vision, you recognized your sister on the ground, almost lost to your carelessness. A cold feeling, a darkness crept into your heart. That was when you blacked out.

You had woken up to a room full of healers. Tala was crying in the corner. You felt the cloth against your right eye before you realized that your blurry vision was only coming from your left. Tony had explained that the Triumph Division came by. They had heard your scream from the fight. Red Feather III, the leader of the Triumph Division, had come to escort Apolaki away. They found him petrified on the ground, with his eyes still open and his body slightly trembling.

You tried to answer back, but your voice had gone. You remembered screaming before you blacked out. Maybe my throat is just hoarse.

Seeing that there was no longer a threat, Tony and Dr. Banner had returned home with a promise to stay in contact. You had stayed at the healer’s for a couple more weeks until your bandage was taken off. Your right eye had been saved and you were glad to find that you could still see through it, although somewhat blurry. Yet, your voice had not returned.

You went to modern doctors in hopes of finding a cure. The first time off the islands and it was to tend to your injury. But without revealing too much, they couldn’t help you. Your right eye had never shone bright again ever since the fight. When you transformed under the moonlight, you didn’t feel complete. Your right eye had stayed the same color, a visible scar glowing, running through your right eye. And your voice…never came back.

⬅Chapter 29: Demons | Chapter 31: Misguided Ghosts➡

Tags: @user13cabs @alexs1200 @lokiprompts @huntress-artemiss @mischief2sarawr

[schmafs]

gods planetarium

(design notes under readmore)

hi so i’ve been trying to figure out this asshole’s design since april. he is by far the most difficult to design character i’ve made thus far, and i guess that tracks since he’s god. it’s what he deserves. what was particularly tricky was figuring out how to maintain the general feel of a bird while also giving him multiple arms! i’ll elaborate on this in a little bit.

the basis of his design is centered around astronomical instruments. the leftmost part of his outfit is based off an astrolabe (you can see the little ticks and marks where you’d track things on a real astrolabe). the middle part is based off an alidade, another astronomical tool. this bit’s fun in that this design motif comes back when we look at my other oc, yunvei, who also has triangles in the same pattern but in less detail. for those of you who aren’t familiar with either of these two, bufraeva was split into multiple gods by his partner (love wins etc etc etc). yunvei is a part of a cycle of vessels that house these gods with the end goal of bringing bufraeva back (not that he knows that). lastly, we haveeee moon phases because why not

this has the other important part of his design: his hands! the big thing with bufraeva is he’s not supposed to have hands to begin with. he’s actually meant to have wings, which he basically mutilates every now and then to look like arms (i’m on my hands and knees please get help instead of doing this shit it ain’t worth it). so! a big part of the issues with his design arose when i tried figuring out how on earth to incorporate his arms in a way that makes sense if he were to have them as wings like he’s supposed to. i managed this by showing a few variations of his arms, meant to be at different stages in his wing/hand process (left = hasn’t done anything recently, right = recently armed). the longer he waits the more black webbing and feathers crops up on his skin. also this is a smaller detail that’s hard to see here BUT his pants tie on the sides since i mean.. he wouldn’t be able to put on people pants.

the last bit of his design is hard to see given that he’s in profile here, but from the front, his crown thing looks like it overlaps and it has a fair deal more of astronomical stuff on it.

anyway. boofy raeva our friend(????????????). og comic is by mysillycomics:

[pancakeke]

How were you able to get into so many different crafts? Do you have a dedicated craft room? (Ur entire setup is aspirational to me as a college student!)

I have an office that has become my craft room!! My computer is in there and I work from home so I work in there too, but most of the space is dedicated to different tools/workspaces.

MESSY but here's the majority of my office. I have 3 desks in a big C shape. The left desk has all my sewing stuff, middle has my cricut and computer, then right has all my resin casting stuff and little SLA 3D printer. There's a paper drying station above it that I made from vinyl record racks mounted sideways lol

Off to the far left you can see part of an enormous shelf where I store other tools abd materials (keyboard building stuff, rug making stuff, knitting machine, spray paints, bulky sewing materials, dremel kit, serger, regular printer, sewing patterns, unfinished sewing projects, my old sewing machine, packaging for my store, god what else...)

If you want to get into a lot of hobbies it will seem really daunting with how many tools you need to buy, but realistically you shouldn't expect to get everything you want/need all at once. (DON'T get into leathercraft unless you can buy a lot of stuff immediately btw)

I started just with sewing years ago. The sewing machine I had was a tiny little Kenmore my mom got me for Christmas when I was in 5th or 6th grade. I stuck with that for a long time while slowly picking up more stuff.

Second hand is the best way to go for getting new tools when you join a hobby. Ebay is ok but people will try to rip you off sometimes. Shopgoodwill randomly has amazing deals on equipment. I you can get lucky with them for sergers and sewing machines if you're ok waiting around for specific models or buying older models that are available.

Joann Fabrics has great sales every so often on various sewing machines, but I've become partial to Ken's Sewing Center because they carry refurbished items with pretty decent discounts. Costco also has sewing machine deals but I haven't explored that option super well. Heads up though sewing machine and the like prices have gone up a lot the past 2 years :/

My knitting machine I got for an AMAZING deal on eBay because it was from an estate sale (like $100 shipped, which is nuts), and the serger I'm "borrowing" from my sister. Also I got a TON of knitting needles and crochet hooks from goodwill once for next to nothing.

Being buddies with boomers can get you cheap or free tools too. My stepdad gave me a dremel he never used and also a hot knife that I have somewhere. Also keep your ideal purchases in mind and watch out for sales rather than impulse buying. My 3D printer was on sale for $100 from $150 so that guy wasn't too costly.

Um I kind of went off here lol but just keep a list of what interests you and have patience and you can build up a mighty collection of tools. Just be careful because space becomes a premium after a while :')

As for actually getting into different crafts, I like to see what other artists are making and watch tutorial videos for random stuff to see if the craft seems fun. and like 99% of the time whatever the thing is does seem super fun to me. it's especially interesting when a new craft is something I can incorporate with a craft I already know to expand upon a skill I already have.

This is why I love when my friends show off their art and why I set up a discord for sharing your art. It's so inspiring just to be around other artists and bounce ideas around with them!!

I think the only craft that's ever turned me off though was macrame because you have to be ORGANIZED to do that and omg I am not.