#i did in fact set out to watch belladonna of sadness but it is the perfect length aka 90 mins and i didn't feel up for it

[ambreiiigns]

i watched midori aka shoujo tsubaki and it's huhhhhh how do you say huhhhh lame

[randombtsprincessa]

Belladonna || 1

All Rights Reserved. © RandomBTSPrincessa, Tulips98.

Author: Randombtsprincessa

Characters: Min Yoongi x Reader, Past Lovers! AU

Words: 3k

Genre: Heavy Angst, Smut 

Rating: This chapter is General up to NC-17, rating might go up as story progresses.

Summary: Your life has finally settled into a routine; keeping you far away from your home, friends, family and the man who broke your heart. Coming back home means facing him again and maybe you’re not as over him as you’d like to believe.

Warnings: (in-chap) Heavy Angst, mentions of a toxic relationship.

Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. The idol used as the Muse for the lead is not in anyway affiliated with the work. The characterisation is a work of mine. Any asks or accusations against the work on the grounds of inability to keep fact and fiction seperate on the part of the reader, will not be entertained. 

A/N: Its’s rather sad that the disclaimer has to be added but eh, it’s a bad time for tumblr writing fandom and people are being very mean. Brush past that if you’re sane. Anyway, a very very huge hug to my best friends for screaming at me about this fic. A bunch of thanks to @softyoongiionly​ for hyping up the chapter! And a round of applause for @kithtaehyung​ for beta-ing the chappie!!

Happy Birthday Yoonfie baby!!

It was cold inside the cabin, the air conditioner turned extreme while the outer windows fogged with condensation. Your head leaned against the pane, the thudding and rolling of the train wheels under you jarring your brain in your skull as you watched the world outside flash speedily by.

Trees, small gravelly roads, sign boards, sparse traffic here and there…and then rolling grasslands before the pattern repeated itself…redundant, normal, and soothing.

You sighed, a puff of white exhale clouding around your mouth while your eyes drifted back to the interior of the cabin. This sight was a lot more different, with different people having different lives, problems, worries…

A woman tended to her sniffling child, holding a handkerchief up to the girl’s running nose…a man spoke into his phone; harried and rushed as he more likely than not slurred a few words together…

It was when your eyes caught a girl laying her head on the boy next to hers’ shoulder, smiling serenely when the boy ran a hand through her locks that you turned around again, eyes back to watching the redundant.

There was nothing soothing about people watching.

Or maybe there was and it required some form of inner peace to find the charm in it.

You didn’t have that sort of inner peace; neither did you have the patience for it.

People watching for people like you was anxiety inducing…and you really didn’t want that burden on your shoulders right now. There would be enough anxiety waiting for you when you set your foot home.

“____?”

You turned coffee worn, blue light sunken eyes towards your boss, standing over you with his files clutched to his chest nervously. The sight was enough to make you chuckle. For all his genius, Kim Namjoon was just a giant fumbling through life. It made him a stellar boss and manager, but it also made him a wonderful friend.

“Yes?”

“I just got your email for the leave application.”

You blinked up at your boss expectantly, face calm and relaxed. Of course, your brain had shot straight to overdrive, praying, wishing, and begging for a miracle that would allow your boss to refute the application.

A large red denied would do nothing to hamper your mood; at least it would stamp down the very intrusive tendril of panic that was already gripping around you.

You waited until Namjoon was done rustling inside of the folder in the crook of his arm. The white print out was placed in front of you, green letterings spelling ACCEPTED AND FORWARDED, scrawled on the top screaming obscenities at you.

You looked back at Namjoon.

“We don’t have a lot of work load right now plus you look dead on your feet. Some time away with your folks will be nice, won’t it?”

You very nearly grimaced at his words.

He was sincere, of course he was. Namjoon didn’t have a conniving bone in his body, but right now, you couldn’t help but resent his kindness, his mushy brain that railed against exploiting his workers. You hated the fact that he looked into your eyes and saw past the stubborn energy and caught onto the exhausted person underneath.

So you offered him a tiny smile, just in case the flicker of your crushing despair was made clear onto your traitor face.

“Thank you, Namjoon.”

He placed a heavy, tight hand on your shoulder as he passed by.

“Have a nice vacation, ____.”

Usually, someone who was away from home, working their ass off, making something of themselves away from their family should ideally jump at the chance to take a vacation, to go home and see the family and friends they had.

Ideally…one should be happy at the prospect of going home.

So many times, however, situations were rarely ideal. Sometimes there were complications, convolutions, obstacles…

Sometimes people had no love in their hearts; sometimes there was nothing at all.

Sometimes, there was dread.

Right then, in the rattling carriage that carried you to the small town which had spawned your existence, you could sense the dread carving a pit into your stomach, roiling and curling like a wretched cat kept too long from sunshine.

There was no relief for the upcoming long sleepy times, no joy at the prospect of home food…of warm embraces…

There was just that god awful dread.

You hoped you wouldn’t throw up; though there was nothing in your stomach to hurl but for the coffee you’d pumped in you from the station café. You couldn’t keep anything else down.

You had upped and left your home right after the end of your college life. Many things had come to an end with that particular period in your life. You had scampered and scrapped together enough courage to exit the hole that still robbed you of breath sometimes when you twisted and turned in your bed – sleepless.

You had left shattered pieces of your heart in your whirling escape of the town, the space that you had now the only light that shone at the end of the tunnel back then. Your family and friends, as supportive as they were, had never truly understood why you had nearly clawed away from that world.

To them, it had been the job opportunity.

And it was understandable…

The town, as well-knit and seemingly lovable as it was, was used to being self sufficient. The people there didn’t ever need to leave, they knew everything, helped everyone, and any problem one of them had was a problem for them all.

You couldn’t fit yourself in that mold anymore.

You had left – knowingly cut yourself away from that community.

Your friends had remained; some spreading out of course but they were still as much a part of that bunch as they had been when born.

You didn’t expect anything from them.

Not when he was also still a part of that community.

Your mind jerked away moments before conjuring his likeness behind your eyes, the ticket collector bearing down to save you from the torture of it.

Your fingers fumbled with the pockets of your bag, slipping the stub into his patient hands as he clipped and handed it back to you.

You accepted it meekly, folding into yourself again, eyes drifting back out the window and firmly tugging your thoughts away from your past. You had to prepare for what was going to come now.

Nobody expected you to come, you knew. It was a surprise to you yourself that you had found enough guts in you to pull this off.

Namjoon’s words came back to you.

Some time away with your folks will be nice, won’t it?

You weren’t going to hold out much hope for that.

You found a cab almost immediately out of the station, the many cruisers that stood to one side eager to free you of your luggage and take you off to your destination. You gave your address shakily, hoping this particular driver wasn’t one of the townspeople. Luckily, the man didn’t bat an eye, instead nodding and quietly switching on the radio for the drive over.

You leaned back into the seats, arms grasping the strap of your handbag tight as the moment to face your family and close ones drew closer.

Objectively, your little hometown was very pretty.

Trees lined the major roads, small clusters of buildings interjecting the greenery to spread business to the good people. And as tense as you were, your mind couldn’t help but pick out the differences.

Boutiques were newer and flashier, the diners you remembered now expanded to add cafes or banquets. The town hall was an imposing as ever, only a new marble fountain added to the square in front of it now.

By the time your cab entered the section of the suburbs where you had grown up; your back was straight, neatly aligned with the window. If you had been dreading the homecoming before, it was all gone; replaced with an odd form of resignation.

You lugged your bags out and paid the taxi driver with cold hands, winding bloodless fingers around the handles to pull them up the drive way towards your open door.

The house was full, open and bustling – a normal day for when your mother threw one of her success parties. She was one of the famous people in the town, her career as a landscaper and home decorator for big names making her in turn the man source of revenue and attraction for the town.

It had been both a source of pride and embarrassment to you in your teens. Mainly because your mother insisted on these parties each and every time one of her projects turned out well. But then, as you grew you realized that this is why your mother was important to the town.

She was more than half the money earned and the social events of the calendar.

Inside the house, small clusters of people gathered here and there, in the living room, the kitchen, the dining space. You stood at the door; feeling more exposed than you ever had here but moved in quickly, lest one of them notice you in the doorway and start blabbering about it.

Of course, the three big bags that you carried more than made up for it.

One of the groups of women nearest you turned their heads in synchrony, taking double looks as you passed by before the murmurs began.

How could you tell?

Well because, gossip usually lowers ones’ volume. And each group you passed stopped conversing before muttering arose in its place.

You cut across the living room to your father’s den. Here, there were all men, hands cupping your dad’s cut glasses of scotch but thankfully no one mentioned you dumping your bags right by the door and walking back out.

Your hands fiddled with your scarf, wondering where your family was in their own party but you were loathing asking one of the guests.

Even as you convinced yourself to walk over to one of the ladies by the window sofa, a figure walked past opposite you, a handful of trays of cocktail bites and glasses on them. You jumped, watching as the woman placed the trays on the coffee table, smiling at the people before she turned…and spotted you.

Your sister’s eyes widened, eyelashes fluttering before quick steps led her closer to you.

“____?” She asked, almost checking if it really was you.

You smiled wryly, hand still tangled with your scarf. “Hi Sana, yes it’s me.”

“Oh my god!” She threw herself at you, arms wrapping around your neck to draw you into a warm and nearly forgotten embrace. You stood in her hold for a few seconds, managing to pat her back before she was pulling away, eyes glistening at you.

“Oh god, don’t cry,” you whispered immediately.

“Shut up, these are happy tears; my little sister is home! Hang on; I’ll go get Mom and Dad.” She turned on her heel before you got another word out, mouth parted as she disappeared into the house.

You stood rooted to the spot, hoping against hope she brought your dad first. You just knew your mom would start bawling and then all the neighbors and her social circle would start hovering like the pack of vultures you had the low opinion of them as.

It was unfair and very rude of you, yes, but you couldn’t help but remember half the rumors and gossip that had come from none other than these same people when you had first left. Sympathy or well wishes from them now, would only make you more disgusted.

It had made you keep your own mother at a distance, seeing as she was probably the source of their information.

Thankfully, you knew you could always depend on your dad.

A no-nonsense and rational person, he was only guilty of being extremely in love with your mother. You knew he only bore these parties for her sake and of course your sister, Sana’s.

So when you saw Sana come back, with both your parents you still heaved a relived sigh.

“____, my god, you’re really here.” Your mother was the second to hug you, your father following.

“We didn’t think you would make it this year too.” Your dad said.

“Yeah, it’s been hectic…a lot…for the last couple years.” You repeated the same lies you’d been spouting for two years now. You had spoken the same lines into your phone, in your emails over months and it came much easier while speaking them to their faces.

“Very hectic for a well-established firm, ____, you could’ve asked for a leave, I’m sure office policy allows that.” Your dad said in that logical baritone that rendered most arguments moot.

“That is actually how I got away, Namjoon insisted.” You said; not completely untrue.

“Well, I for one am very happy my little girl is back to me. You’ll stay for a bit, won’t you?” Your mother stroked your hair back from your face.

You smiled tightly at her, thinking of the weeks Namjoon had generously piled on you out of respect for your relentless working for two years under him.

“Yes.”

You caught Sana try and push in, her eyes seeking yours even as your mother squealed in jubilation. “Perfect, we are going to have to throw you a coming home party.”

“Y/M/N,” Your father said lightly. “We are at a party now.”

“Yes, but ____ deserves her own night.” Sana put in before grabbing your hand. “Come on,” she dragged you away from your debating parents.

“Not a lot has changed I guess.” You spoke drily.

“Yeah, maybe, listen I think we need to –”

Sana was cut off by a gasp of your name, your head swiveling to see Park Jimin, one of your old friends gaping at you.

It was a whirlwind of reunions and emotions as people gathered around you, astonished that you’d come back without any mention of it.

“Yeah, I – I guess, it’s a surprise.” You scratched the back of your neck awkwardly, going over the faces of your childhood to college friends.

Many things had changed while you were gone, true – to the town, to the people and even to your friends but one thing you were glad to see…they hadn’t cut you away completely. Yes, your interaction with them had been reduced to the odd Facebook and Twitter chats and the occasional emails and texts here and there but they still looked…happy to see you.

Park Jimin and his twin, Jihyo had been the first ones to come to you, Jihyo hugging you tightly enough to make you wince. She had been your roommate in college; she probably knew you as well as Sana did – maybe even better. She had introduced you to Jimin and the three of you had been inseparable throughout your college life.

Jimin had apparently been friends with one of your childhood friends, Kim Taehyung.

You were not so shocked to know he was now married, living next door to you with his wife, Nayeon. Sweet and charming, she hugged you like her husband.

“It’s almost like I already know you,” she explained to your unsure smile, “they talk about you so much.”

“Ugh, I’m already worried.” You cringed.

“They were all nice things don’t worry. We had to put down a couple old gossips down here and there, though.” Jimin came to defend his friend.

You glanced at them curiously.

“Oh yeah, it was just old gossipy hags around the town, don’t worry about it. People moved on from you pretty soon to a Miss Mina. She’s a spinster, which apparently is a sin.” Taehyung rolled his eyes. “She lives a few houses from us.”

“Also, I think your mom told that friend of hers, Dahyun to stop people gossiping about you. They were task-forcing the town. It was fun to watch.” Jimin added.

A sudden wave of affection for your mother rose up in you, before being quelled by the reminder that she must have done it to protect her own image.

You shrugged then, picking up a glass from one of the trays to take a sip of your mother’s homemade cocktail – fruity and simple on your tongue.

“Enough about me, what about you all?” you pointed at Tae and Nayeon, “Married with a house,” your finger moved to Jimin, “Sports coach,” then Jihyo, “Choreographer,” you stopped.

“What about the others, any news?”

“Not really, we are the ones who still live here you know. Plus, no offense to your mom, but I doubt folks would leave their city jobs to come to her parties.” Jihyo muttered; exchanging a glance of solidarity with you before her eyes widened suddenly.

“What?” you asked.

Her eyes quickly went to her brother, Jimin’s eyes a little more slow on the uptake but they widened too…before repeating the process – albeit comically – with Taehyung.

“What is wrong with you all?” You asked again.

“Um, ____, did Sana tell you -?”

Jimin paused nervously, refusing to look at you as he fiddled with the rim of his glass.

“Tell me what?”

He looked helplessly at his sister. Jihyo hesitated before placing a comforting hand on your shoulder. “Listen, ____, while you were gone” -

She broke off, her eyes darting over your shoulder and stuttering to a stop.

In that moment of her silence, the conversation behind you was clearer.

Or rather, one particular voice was…

Low and deep – soft morning grumbles came back to you – muffled conversations from behind you made you turn around.

It was a voice you would know anywhere. It was one that haunted your dreams, one that crested the ache in your heart on particularly bad days…

It was one you would know beyond a void.

Min Yoongi stood directly across from you, in your home, undoing his coat and removing his scarf, conversing lowly with your sister.

Something she quickly muttered to him had him freezing, long nimble fingers stopping in the unknotting of his scarf.

And then as if he could feel your gaze, could feel your presence, the reason why you left everything behind looked straight up at you, eyes locking across a room…just like the day you had first seen him.

[equalstrashflavoredtrash]

Gentle Max - 1

a/n: So this is a song fic! The song in question being The Salesman, Denver Max by Blood Brothers. It’s not a love song, it’s actually a song abt kidnapping a teenage girl and taking her to Mexico.... so yeeeah.... Anyway, I was listening to it and had a silly idea and then @rzrcrst​​ and @whenimaunicorn​​ encouraged me and now here we are. I have changed some of the lyrics a bit, most notably changing it from Denver Max to Gentle Max (but srsly for years listening to the song I always thought he was saying gentle max) Also this is the first of two parts and part two will be mostly smut

summary: There should be nothing to fear when you invite your crush from work over for tacos ...right?

warnings: None in this chapter, but there will be a lot more for the next

word count: 2,088

Max Phillips x female reader//Bloodsucking Bastards

Part 2 - The Meal

(gif by @elskay​)

1. The Dinner

Through the screen door your thoughts are quarantined, By the way you smell I can tell that you're fitting. My name is gentle Max, I eat heart attacks. From your mouth to your hands to the floor you're bubbling syntax.

With a sigh you hit send before clicking your phone off. You felt a little bad sending a last minute explanation, but you already knew the earful you’d get if you had told Emma earlier that you’d invited Max over for dinner.

Max Phillips… he was the supervisor at work, a new boss who’d only started a few months ago. He was meant to shake things up at the small sales phone bank, help raise profits. From the get-go Emma, your friend and cubicle partner, was highly suspicious of Max. 

“Something’s up with him, he’s just too likable. It’s weird.” She’d declared after his introduction to everyone on the floor. You’d just rolled your eyes and called her paranoid. Max couldn’t be as bad as she suggested, anyway he was always nice to you. 

It started slow; he’d give little compliments—noticing small things like your new earrings—and then there was the evening last month when you were working late and ended up having an hour-long conversation with him about horror films from the 70s. You’d never guess by the way he looked that he’d share your interest in old films, but that helped to cement your crush.

Then this afternoon you were exchanging pleasantries when you were struck with the sudden urge to ask him to dinner. The words were out of your mouth, inviting him over to your place for tacos before you even realized what you were saying. But the way his face lit up at the question, the way he smiled as he said he’d love to, melted any worry you had. 

It wasn’t until you got back to your cubicle that it really started to set in. You had asked Max—Max your supervisor—over for dinner and he said yes. There was no way you could tell Emma right now; she’d spend the afternoon listing all the ways that Max could kill you and dispose of the body before sunrise, something you did not have time for—especially since you suddenly needed to stop by the grocery store after work.

Setting your phone to do not disturb, you plugged in the charger and left it on the bedside table hoping you wouldn’t come back to find too many angry texts.

You couldn’t help but pace around your little kitchen as you waited for Max to arrive, constantly checking the stove clock and stirring the simmering meat a bit more often than needed. When the knock at the door finally came you nearly jumped out of your skin. Trying not to get too excited and run, you did an awkward half shuffle across the living room.

Swinging open the storm door, you glanced down and realized you still had your dirty apron on and swore at yourself for forgetting. Then you looked up and your eyes met his. There was something you found immensely comforting about Max’s presence—just being near him seemed to put you at ease. Whenever he smiled, you couldn’t help but smile back. 

“Hey,” you said in a quiet voice, unable to tear yourself away from him, soaking in the fact that he was here, that he wanted to spend time with you outside of work. It’s not that he was out of your league or anything, no definitely not that. He was very attractive—with his straight white teeth and deep warm eyes—but there was something about him that drew you closer. The more time you spent with him the more you felt he was similar to you; hiding his interests and who he really was in order to fit into the cookie cutter mold of the corporate world. You felt a connection to him and you hoped he felt it, too.

Max said your name with a smile and the sound of his voice broke you from your daydream state. “So… are you going to invite me in?” He asked, his tone light and teasing as he did that little half smile you loved. 

“Oh! Yeah, yes please come in,” You half mumbled as you stepped aside, making room for him to get by. You blushed, looking away before backing up a little bit further to avoid getting the pepper juice from your apron on his suit.

“Please excuse my attire, a meeting went long so I came here straight from the office.” You were paying attention as he talked, you really were, but you also couldn’t help noticing the way his shoulders moved as he shrugged off his jacket, and just how tight his waistcoat hugged his torso.

“Oh, no don’t worry, It’s fine. You can hang your coat by the door, I need to go check on the meat.” Stepping away from him and into the kitchen gave you a moment to gather your thoughts. You really liked Max, and wanted to make a good impression, but it was hard not to be a little intimidated by him. He seemed to have everything together and navigate life with ease, never even having a bad hair day. But you could do this—even if you felt like a schoolgirl with a crush on her teacher every time you were around him—you could have a pleasant evening. Anyway, he seemed to be into you, too.

Moving the pan off of the heat you placed it on a trivet before grabbing a spoon. Shuffling around the cramped space of your kitchen you made sure you had everything set out, cheese, lettuce, sour cream, peppers—all the usual fixing. So focused on double checking everything you barely noticed when Max entered the kitchen.

“Something smells delicious,” He hummed, suddenly standing right behind your shoulder. 

You jumped a little in surprise, letting out a nervous laugh as you turned to face him. Trying to not stare, you noted that he now had his sleeves rolled up with his waistcoat unbuttoned and his tie loosened just a bit. Something small in the back of your head encouraged you to grab the bright red strip of silk that hung from his neck and yank him forward into a kiss. The thought was gone as quick as it came and you prayed the lingering heat in your face wasn’t a dead give away. 

“Ok, yeah, so I figured we could do a build-your-own thing, make it however you want,” You explained, trying not to stammer or think about how close he was standing. “The shells are just over there if you want to grab some.” 

“How ever I want, sounds perfect. I am honestly starving and can't wait to sink my teeth in.” Max pivoted and grabbed one of the plates before handing it off to you, his and brushing ever so slightly against your finger—the contact sending a chill up your arm

Dinner with Max was surprisingly easy. Soon as the two of you were sitting down and talking, the conversation just flowed, bouncing from one topic to the next without pause or awkward silences. He complimented your cooking, which you tried to downplay saying it wasn’t much more than prep but he insisted it was delicious. You didn’t even notice when the grandfather clock in your hallway chimed, counting the late hour as both of you stayed seated at the rickety IKEA table long after you’d cleared your plates.

“Last film I watched was Belladonna of Sadness,” you responded, thinking back to the other night as you swirled the little bit of wine at the bottom of your glass before tipping it back with a gulp. “It’s one of my favorites, the animation is just so expressive and there’s a whole sequence that can only be described as a hair orgy,” you smiled to yourself when you heard Max chuckle. Every time he laughed or agreed something in you felt light as air, and wanted to tell him more just so you could see the way the corner of his mouth curled up. “It's a really great film though, truly one of a kind.”    

“It sounds fascinating.” Leaning forward Max reached to grab the wine bottle while keeping his gaze locked with yours. “Maybe you could show it to me some night.” Your heart jumped at his words, realizing he wanted to spend more time with you. “Uh-oh, out of wine.�� His comment caught your attention and you quickly hopped up.

“Don’t worry, I have a back up!” You called over your shoulder as you hurried to the fridge. Pulling out the bottle of Merlot you spun around and found yourself face to face with Max. “I—uh, didn’t hear you follow me—,” you mumbled, voice trailing off as his finger stroked along your upper arm, feather light touches that barely made contact but still so perceptible even through the cotton of your blouse. A shiver went down your spine, and you felt yourself relaxing into his presence, wanting him closer than he already was.

“I was actually in the mood for some dessert,” Max stated, his words tinged with a low rumble that came from somewhere deep in his chest. As his eyes drifted from his fingers—now at your shoulder—to your eyes. His gaze held yours, keeping you from thinking about anything besides just how rich the brown of his iris were.

“I—I didn’t prepare any—,” you stammered, noticing the way his eyes flitted to your lips as you spoke. 

“It’s a good thing I had something planned then,” his voice was low but steady as he spoke, slowly stepping closer, backing you up against the fridge before dropping his head forward. His lips were almost on yours when he stopped. “I’ve been wanting this.”

“Uh-huh,” you nodded, not able to form a coherent thought, let alone a single word with the promise of Max so near.

You felt like jelly as his lips met yours. He overwhelmed your senses until all that you could register was him and the cool press of his mouth. His hands came to you, one on your waist that pulled you against his firm chest as the other cradled your jaw. Your skin burned under his touch as he brushed his thumb against your cheek, his gentle caresses feeling almost icy in contrast. 

All you could think about was wrapping your arms around him—and not the wine bottle you were still holding. Raising your arms to reach for Max’s shoulders, the glass slipped from your slack fingers and shattered as it met the tile floor.

The sound of the shards scattering across the room rang in your ears, drawing your attention away from the man in front of you. You could feel your stomach drop as you looked at the dark puddle of liquid splashing onto the floor. The reflections of the ceiling lights looked red as they danced with the ripples until all the debris lost its momentum. Panic was starting to creep forward from the back of your skull as the realization of all the clean up you suddenly needed to do set in. What if Max wanted to leave instead of wait for you to mop everything up?

Just as you were trying to parse together some kind of apology, his large hand came to cup the back of your neck. His grip cooled the hot sting of anxiety that was bubbling under your skin as you shifted to look up at him. As soon as your eyes met his you relaxed, no longer worried that he was going anywhere

“You don’t need to worry about that right now,” Max stated, his voice soft and soothing in your ears while his words held an unyielding presence to them that felt solid. His thumb continued to draw little circles against your skin, dancing along the side of your neck.

“Yeah, I don’t need to worry about that right now,” you echoed, watching the way he smiled as you agreed. Something inside you buzzed under his approval, wanting to do anything he asked. Biting your lip you tried to hide your grin as you felt the same little impulse from before, this time giving in and wrapping your fingers around his bright red neck tie.

“Why don’t you show me to your room?” 

With a nod and a tug, you stepped to the side, pulling him along as you shuffled around the pool of Merlot, leading Max towards the door of your bedroom.

---

Part 2 - The Meal

@whenimaunicorn​ @captbvcks @no-droids​ @rzrcrst​ @readsalot73​ @spacegayofficial​ @lannister-slings-and-arrows​ @libellule2001​

[rwby-nwbe]

Just Finished RWBY Volume 4...

...and I actually liked it?

[Spoilers Ahead, Y'all Know The Drill]

I mean, from what I've heard the Volume gets a lot of flack but honestly? I don't think it deserves it.

Yes, this is the first volume without Monty, and yes, the fights lost a bit of their momentum compared to earlier volumes, but aside from that... it's actually pretty good?

Alright, let me give you the play by play character style.

Ruby Rose

There goes my baby... off to destroy evil.

Ruby hasn't changed much, at least to a noticeable degree, compared to the rest of the cast. Actually, no, that isn't true, she just hasn't changed in a way that would force her overall character to noticeably shift. And I think that's fine. She's still a child at times, and is still really optimistic. But the thing is, she has matured. She doesn't immediately jump head first into danger like she used to, and it's clear she's still trying to process what happened at the Fall of Beacon. And yet, she's pressing on, and I'm glad that she and the rest of Team RNJR have each other's backs.

My only concern is what will go down in Mistral...

Weiss Schnee

Welp, Jacques Schnee, congrats! You've joined Cinder and Adam on the hit list I'm writing up!

The a-hole aside, I really like how Weiss played out this volume. According to what I've heard, volume 4 took place about 6-8 months after Beacon, so I'm kinda sad that Weiss was stuck home for all that time. On the bright side, we get a look at her progress on her summons, which looks to be coming along quite nicely. Then we see the concert, and ooh does that make my blood boil. I'll get to Jacques in a bit, but personally, I'd have no qualms watching him burn, figuratively, or literally.

Fly, Weiss, fly from the coup. Give your bastard of a father the metaphorical middle finger he deserves! (P.S. Klein is best dad.)

Blake Belladonna

Oof. I hurteth.

So Blake tends to stay away out of fear that she'll hurt her friends (i.e. some alternate version of survivor's guilt). In order to make amends from her point of view, she heads home to Menagerie. And once again, we're reminded on why humanity sucks sometimes!

Humans: Here, have this desert island for your large spanning species that covers just as much ground as we do.

Faunus: But... but it's so small!

Humans: Is it? Oh well, we can't have everything!

Me: Y'all LITERALLY have several freaKING CONTINENTS-!

*Ahem* That said, Sun came along! And we met Blake's parents! But first, Sun; I'll admit, I had mixed feelings about him being there at first, but that was mostly because Blake was being angsty and despite Sun's best intentions, virtually nothing he did help. Although, towards the end of the Volume, he managed to help Blake realize why her way of thinking was wrong, so props to him for that. Uh, Sun, could you maybe knock like a normal person? Wait, Blake, DON'T SLAP HIM FOR IT!!!

Ah, Kali, you're just as chaotic as Sun, oh dear... Ghira, never change, man. Never change.

Yang Xiao Long

Oof. I hurteth again. (ADAM!! LET ME DESTROY YOU, DANGIT!!!)

So Yang has been... adjusting to life after Beacon and without an arm. Oh, and Adam gave her PTSD! Isn't that just swell?

[When the find your corpse it'll have Wilt running through your spine and your skull severed with bullet shots from Blush I swear-]

Luckily, Yang gets a prosthetic from Atlas. I was afraid she'd reject it, but it's actually kinda nice to see that she takes to it rather well. And after seeing Oobleck (YAY!) and Port again, it's cool that she's just trying to find her footing. Though, Tai, you might wanna consider NOT flying to close to the Sun Dragon, capiche?

And all this culminates in Yang finally getting back out in the end of the Volume, hoping to find some answers. Hopefully she takes Tai's words to heart.

Jaune Arc

IT'S BIG BOI SWORD HOURS!!

But seriously, it was... kinda off-putting to see Jaune act so... morose. Granted, we all know why (PYRRHA!!!), but still. I'm glad his team is looking out for him and that he's slowly starting to recover like everyone else. His conversation with Ruby in Kuroyuri was also really touching. Come to think of it, didn't Blake have a similar conversation with Sun? The PARALLELS!

Also, that upgrade, tho. CUT THAT NUCKELAVEE INTO DUST, MY DUDE!!!

Nora Valkyrie+Lie Ren

You can't talk about one without bringing up the other.

Guys, this was as much a Renora volume as it was a RWBY-Post Beacon volume. The Fall triggers some odd behavior in Ren, but we figure out why pretty quickly once we reach the Kuroyuri episode.

First, young Ren and Nora... adorable!

Second, I was NOT ready for when Nora had to talk Ren out of charging blindly at the Nuckelavee. The slap. The way Ren sees young Nora and then sees current Nora. Nothing could prepare me. Nothing.

They are so SOFT together, it's just... <3

New Characters (and Old ones, too)

Lightning round, baby!

Qrow Branwen. So Qrow serves as the inside man. He knows what's been going on, and he fills the rest of us in. We also know why he tends to keep his distance, because his semblance brings bad luck to allies and enemies alike. The poor birb. Glad he managed to survive Tyrian!

Jacques Schnee. Egotistical manipulative piece of garbage whom I will not feel sorry for once he's put in his place. 'Nuff said.

Whitley Schnee. Mixed feelings. Mixed feelings everywhere. 'Cause on one hand, I've seen plenty of the fandom's takes on his character putting him in a positive light, but on the other he starts getting kind of unbearable after Weiss loses her title as heiress. Then I have to remind myself that Whitley is the "Fawn" reaction to trauma. Weiss is "Fight," Winter is "Flight," their mother is "Freeze," and Whitley is "Fawn." Stuff like that helps me contextualize that when Whitley says things about their dad like "It's foolish to not do what father asks," or "It's barbaric. It's beneath me. Beneath father," Whitley's not just saying that 'cause he's a bit of a brat. That's his coping mechanism to the abuse Jacques put him and the rest of his family through, and it's probably been a long time that he's been telling himself stuff like this so he can keep in his father's good graces and not risk getting a slap to the face like Weiss, while also trying to deal with the fact that Weiss and Winter get a freedom that he never had a chance to get. And you have to remember that Winter and Weiss were abused to, and that trying to blame Whitley's current condition on the two of them doesn't make things any better. They're not obligated to care about Whitley just as much as Whitley isn't obligated to care about them. It would be nice if either one of them could get through to him, but they were all trying to combat Jacques in one way or another. Whitley was just the odd one out. And if you really think about it, the biggest brain play you can take from all this is to blame it solely on Jacques. I swear, when I get to Volume 4 in my NWBE AU, one of my top priorities will be getting Whitley the ever loving hell out of that accursed mansion alongside Weiss, mark my words.

Klein Sieben. Ladies and gentleman, the only valid man under the Schnee roof! And a Seven Dwarves reference no less. Thanks, I love him! Glad he helped Weiss escape his father's clutches.

James Ironwood. Oh boy, boss man is starting to lose his grip on things. Granted, he's trying to do the right thing, but it's clear his paranoia is getting to him. You know crap is getting bad if the most valid person in all of Atlas simultaneously needs to be told to get a grip from Jacques of all people (especially if he's making a point). Hope this doesn't trigger a downward spiral...

Ghira and Kali Belladonna. Ghira is done and Kali just wants to have fun. I love their dynamic and interactions with Blake and Sun! It was a nice wind down from everything else going on, though I don't think that'll last for long.

White Fang. So we got three more WF members: Fennec, Corsac, and Ilia. The Albain brothers are sleezeballs already, since they're working with Adam and all. Ilia's working with them too, but I'll have to withhold my judgement since she appears to have an as yet undisclosed connection to Blake, but I don't want to get my hopes up since she already stabbed Sun, so... Low expectations, but still expectations.

Salem's Group. Yup, Salem's a villain alright. I'll be keeping my eye on her, she just reeks of trouble. Cinder apparently lost her voice... eh, probably for the best. Emerald, Mercury, get the ever-loving FRICK outta there, you're clearly out of your element! Hazel, you're... fascinating. Neutral Evil, perhaps? Watts, you're on my radar, especially with the last episode of the Volume. And Tyrian... well, he's clearly beyond the point of no return, entirely devoted to Salem, and his psycho-sadistic tendencies are enough to freak Cinder of all people out. Needless to say, I hope something or someone takes care of him before the damage becomes irreversible.

And for now, I'll wrap this up with Oscar Pine. I'll admit, it was interesting how they set up Oscar's character as a slow burn this Volume. We learn he lives a quiet life with his aunt in a barn, and at first we're wondering "Who the heck is this kid?" But then Ozpin shows up and suddenly everything is like "Oh... wait, WHAT!?" So yeah, Ozpin just brought another child into thia conflict. At least they're both not happy about it, and hey, they met Qrow! Hopefully that keeps things from getting too crazy down the line. We still need answers, after all.

Well, those are my thoughts. Sorry they took so long. Hopefully Volume 5 won't be so hard to complete. Well... cheers!

-Mathewton, the RWBY Newbie (15 May 2020)

[the-gedonelune-times]

Unhappy Ending: She Who Walks The Path Of Darkness.

Summary: Gedonelune, the prestigious royal magic academy is waiting just for you! The door has opened a whole new world of possibilities for your future. For the next thirteen days you’ll be undergoing the provisional trial to see if you have what it takes to become an official student. Along the way you’ll be meeting new faces and going on exciting new adventures. But be warned, shadows are being cast on the land, if you dive to deep, you may find yourself being swallowed up by the chaos. Your journey begins now, will you be able to banish the darkness?

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6 

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

I gripped my wand in my free hand, Lily’s magic managed to heal the magic wood used for making wands. Our magic was pouring and mixing with one another to help strengthen the barrier that we had put up. There was a booming sound that sounded eerily similar to that of thunder following a flash of lightning; a beam of darkness was shot at us. I gritted my teeth as I focused all of my magic into the barrier which was draining me rather quickly to the point where my stamina was waning. I looked over to see that Lily was struggling as well. Her magic was becoming unstable as the beam came into contact with our barrier. 

Time seemed to slow down as the next events unfolded. I watched with worry as cracks began to form in the barrier until finally it could take no more. The beam of light had become smaller as if it was aiming for someone and had been the whole time. That someone….was me. Or well...it would have been, but at the last moment, right before the beam was about to strike me, Lily had pushed me out of the way, taking the attack in my place.

I watched in horror and let out a scream when it hit her directly in her stomach, sending her tumbling to the ground with a cry. Using what strength she could muster, she managed to sit herself upright, holding her hand against where the beam had pierced her. I immediately moved myself to her side, allowing her to use me to keep herself upright without falling over. 

“Lily, your...your stomach…” Wisps of dark smoke were forming and began to engulf her body, starting with her lower half and slowly working upwards.

Lily kept her calm and looked at me. “It seems that the magic really taints one’s soul...”

“What does that mean? What’s going to happen to you?”

“I don’t know…” She paused while holding up her hands. “To be honest, I’m scared. I can feel the darkness crawl up my skin. I-It’s so cold and filled with such malice.” Tears rolled down her cheeks as she cupped my own. “I’m afraid this is where we must part.”

“Part? What do you mean part? Lily, what are you saying?!”

“I kept my promise to you.” She smiled through the tears. “I promised to never let the darkness touch you and I’m so glad I...I got to protect you. But the darkness, it will soon swallow me up. If that happens who knows what I’ll-”

“Stop it! Don’t say things like that! You’re going to be fine! We’ll get back home and wake the others up, we can’t give up hope- mmfph!”

I was cut off by Lily, who had pressed her lips against mine tenderly. The kiss was short but even so, I could feel such warmth and love, all of her feelings were being transferred through this single kiss, and when she pulled away I could feel my heart shatter. The look in her eyes, I knew this really was goodbye, but I didn’t want to believe it, not for a single second! This can’t be how things end!”

“Lily…”

“I love you.” She choked on her words as she embraced me. Her horns and palms began to glow and I saw a bright light begin to engulf my body.

“W-What are you doing?!”

“Getting you away from here before it’s too late. I want you to be safe and live your life. You have...you have to move on and forget me because…” Her words became more and more inaudible as she began sobbing harder. “The next time we meet, you and I will be enemies.”

When she looked at me, her eyes lost their colour, in fact, everything within her dulled. I could sense no feelings whatsoever, she was like a mindless puppet who could do nothing without someone pulling on the strings. The scene was so heart wrenching that the tears began to fall more steadily now. I cried out to her, calling her name over and over as I watched Lily, the one I love, be plunged into darkness along with the rest of my vision as I was teleported away from the scene. 

I was back near the center town of Solomon, on the outskirts to be precise. My fist came into contact multiple times as I slammed them down again and again out of frustration. How could this happen? Tears still spilled down my cheeks as I picked myself off from the ground. My vision was still blurry, no matter how many times I wiped my eyes. I had to keep going, I had to go and wake up Willem, Felix and Lacan, if I did, then maybe just maybe there was a chance to save Lily. My chest swelled with sadness and determination as I set out on the goal I had set. I didn’t even care about the provisional trial anymore, I just needed to save her.

I had just started walking when I could feel a presence from behind me. When I looked over, I could see Fenrir, he wore a solemn expression and didn’t even bother to look at me.

“You’re going to try and save her, right?”

I grabbed my wand and whipped around to face him. “That’s right and if you try to stop me then I’ll-”

“There’s no need for that. I don’t like fighting and besides, I want to save Lily just as much as you might. Along with someone else…” Fenrir sighed. “But you’re not going to be able to save her by yourself. Adonis is much to powerful to go up against alone.”

“So...Adonis is going to hold her captive...if he hurts her so help me…”

“He won’t...well, as long as she obeys him. Lily is something sacred, something he wanted. Her power as the last Zirnitra in this world and the fact that one of the seals, the Seal of Life was actually inside of her all along, well….he’d never put her in harm because of that.”

“I can’t let him treat her like that, like she’s just some tool!”

“Ten do something about it.” Fenrir folded his arms over his chest, his pulled-up hair blew in the breeze as he now looked at me. “Go get the others and maybe you’ll have a chance.”

“But the others, we...we never got the things to wake them up.”

“They never would have anyways. The curse on them was linked to Lily’s own curse. The tampered Belladonna leaves were covered in what I call, chaos. Lily’s curse broke, so theirs have as well. Although, don’t count on them waking up immediately.” 

Fenrir grabbed out a small gem, just like the one he used to summon the chimera that had attacked Lily and I, and threw it to the ground where it shattered. A summoning circle appeared and he began to put distance between it and himself.

“This will take you back to the train station in Gedonelune. You’ll be waiting a few hours until the next train to Gedonelune departs from here, by that time, Adonis might find you. After all, he doesn’t take kindly to people who interfere with his plans.”

“Fenrir-”

“Don’t thank me. Don’t say another word, just...go.”

I took a deep breath before running towards the summoning circle and jumping in. I was scared….what if things don’t work out? What if I can’t save Lily? No, I can’t start having these thoughts, especially not now.

“Just hang on, Lily..I’m going to save you!”

[heartbreak-of-a-marauder]

Honour (3)

Title: Lord Forgive Me

Pairing: Elijah Mikaelson x OC

Summary: With the future looking increasingly bleak, Ivette takes matters into her own hands.

Words: 1,344

Note: TRIGGER WARNING for contemplation and the committing of suicide. My research into the Belladonna plant was very superficial, so I’m sorry if I’ve got anything wrong about it. Previous parts linked below:

<- 3 ->

~*~*~*~*~

West Sussex, England, 1395.

Over the course of the next day, the mysterious Elijah Mikaelson continued to pay Ivette regular visits, sometimes only for a few minutes, or for as long as an hour. There wouldn’t always be a conversation, and if there was it was limited to him prying information from Ivette. Any questions she presented were avoided or he would give vague answers. The little information he had provided told her that everyone she loved and cared about had died in the massacre.

She survived, but it wasn’t done for her. No, Elijah had stopped them for their own good.

The sun had set nearly an hour ago, and Ivette was currently knelt in front of the fire watching the flames dance and listening to the sounds the wood made as they burned. She had arrived as a guest but now felt like a prisoner. The surreal nature of her situation made it feel like she was in an impossible dream that she couldn’t wake up from, but with each of Elijah’s visits she was cruelly reminded it was, in fact, her new reality.

With each passing minute her eventual fate became clearer and clearer, she had no protection from those things. They would come and finish what they started eventually. She wondered how long she may last. Absentmindedly she thought of which death would be less painless, would it be another attack? Or would she do it herself?

Could she do it herself?

This thought stayed at the forefront of her mind; did she have the courage to do it? She had her baby to think about… would she ever see her baby again? From the little, Elijah had revealed told her that she had no chance of escape, not while they occupied Arundel Castle. It wasn’t long until she resigned herself to the fact that she would probably die here.

“Why has the lord chosen such a cruel fate for me…?” She whispered miserably.

From here Ivette’s thoughts took a more morbid turn, a decision had already been reached but the guilt she felt at even considering the thought was eating up her insides. It was poisonous, an action that would bring shame upon herself and her lineage.

Determined to take her fate into her own hands she began to make her way through the corridors of the castle, descending staircases, travelling towards the heart of the building. As she neared the main feasting hall she wiped her clammy hands against her skirts. She could hear their voices and laughter; it sent waves of nausea through her. She stopped just short of the door, hearing the blood rushing through her ears.

‘Be still my heart’ she chanted inwardly.

After a few moments, Ivette squared her shoulders, crossed her hands behind her back and held her head high in a way that she hoped would exude the confidence she didn’t feel. She had nearly crossed the entirety of the length of the door when Elijah’s familiar voiced called out to her, but she had other business she had to see to. Ignoring his call she continued to step one foot in front of another. He stood in front of her in the blink of an eye.

“Not thinking of running away are we?” He asked calmly.

“No… but I must also feed.” She replied plainly.

“Someone could have brought food to your room.”

“Forgive my ignorance, I thought you and your family had eaten all of the help.” The snide remark caused the corners of Elijah’s mouth to twitch upwards. It appears that no one had ever dared to speak to him in such a way.

“Quite...” His reply what short and sharp, but still, he did nothing to harm her.

Not keen on wasting any more time Ivette sidestepped him and carried on her journey towards the kitchen, or rather to the room that was connected to it. Everything remained dark as she neared the door leading down in the kitchen. In an unladylike manner, she picked up her skirts before carefully descending into the kitchen, her eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness surrounding her and with the little light provided by the moon, she could navigate her way to the west wall where two doors stood. One for the wine cellar and the second for the apothecary.

Once inside the smaller room Ivette used the last of the burning candles light to locate the small jar of powdered belladonna root. She had chosen carefully based upon the previous conversations she had with her husband, from this she knew that all of the Belladonna plants were poisonous to man and beast, but the roots were especially potent.

Using the last few centimetres of the candle found in the apothecary she had roughly put together a spread on the tray that consisted of bread and wine she had collected from the kitchen. The goblet now stood in front of her as she sat at the table. The candlelight danced weirdly against its shiny surface while the wine that generously filled it looked like a deep and dark lagoon. Nearly all of the contents of the jar had been stirred into the liquid – she had to be sure.

Tentatively her fingers wrapped around the cold neck of the goblet, she’d just begin to bring it towards her when rapping at her chamber door disturbed the movement. The door swung open easily to reveal Elijah.

“Good evening Ivette.” He greeted nonchalantly. “How was your meal?” He asked curiously; eyeing up the tray on the table.

She had only picked at the small loaf of bread, her appetite had diminished to nothingness as guilt and sadness had already filled her stomach. But he didn’t need to know that.

“It was quite filling my Lord.” She replied, pushing the tray away from her.

He came to stand behind the chair on the opposite side; his left hand came to rest on its back panel showcasing the gold ring that adorned his middle finger. He had discarded his jacket and now stood there with his tunic slightly open, its laces having been tugged loose. His head tilted to the side as he observed her seated form.

“I see that in your fright you have forgotten your manners, Ivette.” He stated softly.

She exhaled evenly through her nose and considered her words carefully.

“Forgive me my Lord, but I am deeply fatigued and I wish to retire for this evening.”

His eyes zeroed in on the full goblet that still sat on the tray. “But you are yet to finish your wine…”

“Please. My lord.” She stressed again, afraid that she would lose her nerve with every passing moment. Elijah stood stoically seemingly mulling over her reply, but in an instant, he turned on his heel and exited her chambers.

She waited a few moments longer after his exit until she could be sure that none of them would be able to bear witness to the sin she was about to undertake. With clammy hands she once again gripped onto the neck of the goblet and brought it towards her, she focused on the ripples caused by her unsteady hand.

“Dear Lord, forgive me…” Ivette whispered into the empty space before bringing the rim to her lips.

The cool liquid ran easily down her throat, the nightshade making the drink even sweeter. After many large gulps, she tried to set the goblet back on the table but in breathlessness and a lightheaded daze, it overbalanced and sent the last dregs spilling out across the table while the goblet clanged noisily. Ivette tried to stand but her joints gave way so she crumpled in a heap on the floor.

She laid her head against the stone slab floor but it did nothing to stop the spinning. She gasped for air like a newly born babe while pain enveloped her insides and her throat closed even tighter. It wasn’t long before the darkness that had rimmed her sight had completely blanketed it.  

[kchuarts]

Flowers in Blood

A/N: This ones a sad one I ain’t gonna hold you on that. Also the ending isn’t very cliffhangery? It will be though. It will be. 

Summary: Sometimes Jonathan Pine needs to be held in return. 

Warnings: GRAPHIC WAR / DEATH SCENE

Taglist: @lucywrites02​, @shiningloki​

Chapter 8: Black Rose 

The crime lord took a drag from his cigarette, puffing out smoke before answering. “I have my ways, you should already know that.” his lips pulled up into a smirk. Roper waved two fingers at one of his guards to bring him a glass of wine. “So I heard you and good ol’ Danny boy have met. Nasty bloke he is.” Roper takes another drag from the stick. 

“I am not here to have idle chat, Roper.” Pine looked behind him, making sure the door was still shut and Katie was hopefully out of ear shot. “Just tell me first how in the hell you managed to crawl out of the hole you hid away in and what you want from me.” His blue eyes kept glancing over to the door, debating if he should let the young woman in his flat that he had to step outside. 

Richard chuckled into the phone, taking a hold of his wine and sipping it. “I’m not going to repeat myself, Pine. You should have heard me the first time.” He took another sip of his expensive beverage before setting it down. “I’ve come to give you a ring and tell you that you’re off the hook. I’ve taken care of what Natalie wants from you within a few hours after your departure. She’s got the biggest of smiles on her face right now because of it too.” A knowing smirk touched his lips again, sinister intentions gleaming in his eyes. 

Pine huffed and opened the door for a moment, holding his phone away from his mouth. “Katie? I’m gonna step out for a smoke for a bit. I shouldn’t be more than ten minutes.” Dragging her into the mess known as Richard Roper was one of many things that Jonathan didn’t want to meddle her into. He put the phone back up to his ear, fast walking out of the flat as fast as he could. 

“Katie?” The older man mused, chuckling and pursing his lips as he inhaled from the white stick. “You’ve moved on fast if I’m assuming correctly. I thought you and Jed would have eloped after the stunt you pulled with me, shaming me for a few years.” He flicked the ashes into a tray and frowned at the memory of just a few years back. It was certainly interesting to know that Pine potentially had a new love interest. Roper noted this in the back of his mind and would ask Daniel about this new woman later on. 

Jonathan lit a cigarette of his own, taking a drag before lowering his voice as he was outside. Anger and hot smoke ignited inside the agent's chest at the mention of his past lover. “You should know that the life I lead isn’t meant for time to play romance or settle down. Now tell me what the fuck do you want. I can’t say I’m overly thankful you took care of something I had started planning ideas for.” He took another drag, eyes scanning the crowd for any onlookers that could be eavesdropping. 

“Bollocks! Come off it, Pine I know you better than that. You certainly didn’t have your finalized plan of shutting Poppy down within a fortnight, so I went ahead and took care of it for you!” Richard leaned back in his seat, staring out of his villa balcony. Like he had said, Roper had his ways of working his way back into the land of crime and managed to get his private island home back. “I’m not trying to kiss ass and earn points with you, I’m playing devil’s advocate at the moment. I did it because you have bigger problems ahead of you and Daniel was tired of waiting around for Natalie and her drug addicted squabble to actually do something. You can certainly cross Poppy off your list now because Bloodroot is now taking over.” He clicked his tongue and reached over to grab a file, “Sometimes I wonder about these Americans and their tenacity to get the job done. Feisty ones they are, I’m sure you understand just as much as I do.” He hinted at Jed once again, still sour over that whole debacle. “Oh and you needn’t worry about Natalie’s boys watching you anymore, in fact you should be more worried if Belladonna could be creeping nearby. Luckily for you, I haven’t called any of my men to keep tabs on you… Yet.” 

The Crime Lord’s slight cryptic speak was beginning to drive Jonathan crazy and he just wanted to hang up right then and there. However, if what Roper said was true then this meant he could return the call to Angela and find out what she dug up on that thumbdrive and note. “I can only wonder when that will be.” He hissed, exhaling smoke and flicking the ashes. “So you only called me just to tell me that you handled my situation but that you’re also in cahoots with Belladonna’s leader? Brilliant. What a waste of my time. Next time you even think about calling me, be sure that I don’t have your number being tracked resulting in putting you away for good.” He pulled the phone away from his ear and hung up, jaw clenched tightly. Pine knew DAMN well that Roper was up to something more nefarious than he led on. It wasn’t out of the kindness of his own cold heart that he’d do Pine a favor after what he did to him. He wanted something and whatever that something was wouldn’t be good. 

“Well?” Daniel narrowed his gaze at Roper sitting across from him. 

Richard gave a knowing smirk and nodded, “He’s suspicious but I think he took the bait.” He reached for his wine and leaned back again, sipping it. “Now we just wait for when that stupid woman sends him off to South Korea or Japan. Bloodroot is currently enroute to Tokyo?” 

The Greek man nodded, his arms folded across his chest. “They are to meet up with Wisteria and possibly Daphne if The Tigress decides to get off her lazy ass and make the trip. From there, they will be discussing new trade routes and deals now that Poppy has been taken care of.” Daniel sneered at his former English branch. 

“What of your sister? The Wolfsbane branch?” Roper raised a brow, curious as Abbadon’s area was not brought up. For as long as Richard had known the siblings, he rather liked the younger sister as she was quick and took no shit. He thought that she was better suited to be leader of Belladonna instead of her aggressive older brother. Daniel was too brash and never thought of how his decisions would impact his business after he leapt. It worked out eventually but with too many mistakes and messes. 

Amber eyes gleamed with dark fury, “What about my traitorous sister? Of course Wolfsbane is out of the question.” Daniel scoffed and gave a slight snarl. “Because of her little performance in Moscow and now with Poppy gone, we have to work even harder with just four instead of six branches.” His eye twitched from irritation. The night of the gala still infuriated Daniel as he had blindly put his trust into his sister and was played right into her trap. She knew Pine would be there and had been hiding her desire to break free of the family business until then. That is the reason why her son, Nikolai, was locked away in a cage in an unknown location in order to keep tabs on her. However, this did not appear to be enough and so Daniel decided that having two big branches was useless. “So do you have anything else to tell me, Richard?” He exhaled hotly and raised his brows. “Anything that may perhaps calm my rage? News of successful weapon sales? New whores shipped from Seoul? Pine’s new partner?” A sick smirk cracked across his tanned lips. 

“Oh.” Roper inwardly rolled his eyes at Daniel’s insatiable thirst for a perfect harem. Sure, Richard enjoyed a woman’s company from time to time but, Daniel was rather disgustingly obsessed with it. He even saw first hand that his respect of women was zero to none, hence why his wives were covered in bruises. “Well yes, I believe he mentioned her name was Katie? Don’t you have… Twelve wives already?” He raised a brow but would rather not hear the details. 

Daniel got up and clapped his hands, beaming pervertedly. “I much prefer that over Natasha. That was her little nickname back in Moscow. Mmm “Katie” yes I do enjoy that.” He frowned slightly at Roper as he heard the hint of disgust in his ally’s voice. “Thirteen is just another number, no? I have collected wives from all over! Egypt, Germany, Canada, Thailand, Japan, Korea, China, Russia, Spain, Africa, France, Australia… I need an all American girl to carry on with my little theme I have going on.” His smirk returned and a very obvious erection stood out. “Now, when you hear news of their fated arrival to the land of the rising sun, let me know and I will discuss plans to lure them to the den of The Tigress. She may be a lazy bitch, but she knows what she does and performs it well. Oh and Roper-” He turned around, smirk gone again. “Do not let me regret bailing you out or it is your head I will take as payment.” 

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

Police sirens blared as several cars pulled up to the abandoned warehouse out in the woods. Angela stepped out of one of the cars as she had been informed that this crime was another piece to her case. “Jesus H. Christ-” She muttered, covering her mouth with her sweater sleeve upon seeing the blood bath. 

The entirety of Poppy were currently being dressed in body bags as just hours ago, they had been slaughtered brutally. Natalie Baylor’s appearance was by the far the worst with her eyes gouged out and her mouth split from ear to ear. On each member of the drug organization there had been a Belladonna flower carved into their forearms complete with a small bouquet of the said plant. What was more gruesome was that many of the members, Natalie included, had the equally toxic berries stuffed into their mouths by the handful. 

“So I’m gonna assume this is the higher ups. God save the Queen, they’re going after their own crew.” Angela pondered, walking carefully around the corpses. Natalie’s clenched fist particularly caught the Director’s attention and she asked for a pair of gloves to inspect the late woman’s body. “Thank you dear” She took the gloves from a paramedic and slipped them on, carefully opening the stiffened hand. It had been around four hours since the discovery of the murders, so rigor mortis had already settled in. Much to Angela’s lack of surprise, there was indeed something held. The older woman removed the paper and frowned in concentration, waving a police officer away as they tried to escort her off. “I’m part of this investigation, Angela Burr? Haven’t you heard of me?” She shook her head as the officer gave her a bit of an attitude. “Bugger off.” She cursed under her breath before returning to the strange piece of parchment. What she read made her blood run cold. 

Considering that you’ll be the first here, my dear Angela, I dedicate this work of art to you. The higher ups of Belladonna have so graciously allowed me to walk a “free man” once more. All I had to do was take care of these spineless oafs for them so that your dogs could continue to sniff their way along the investigation. Take this as a warning that I am watching and should you reveal anything that this note contains, the same could happen to you. I’d like to think of this as a little game and see how long it takes before someone slips. Have a lovely evening, my dear. 

-An old friend  

It was wrong of her to do, but Angela quickly shoved the piece of evidence in her pocket and growled. She knew exactly who this was and was not happy in the slightest, “Roper.” 

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

The moment Jonathan stepped back inside, Katie was already in bed and sound asleep, snuggled into the sheets. Pine couldn’t help but think of how adorable the brunette looked all tucked in and cozy. He sighed deeply, figuring that now with Roper’s odd involvement it would be safe to give his boss a ring. It still puzzled Pine though with Richard suddenly appearing out of the blue and giving them some leeway. There had to be more than just this, Jonathan was certain that Roper wanted something, he would just have to find out as soon as he could. Shaking his head, Jonathan makes his way to the bathroom and tends to his nightly needs before making his way to bed. He would think more on the case tomorrow morning with a more clear and concise mind. Carefully, he peels back his sheets and slips into them without waking Katie up. Thankfully, the young woman seems to be a rather heavy sleeper as Jonathan’s arms wrapping around her body does not seem to disturb her. Pine was more than happy to have Katie in his arms and would never turn something like this down as her body molded perfectly to his. Leaning over, he turned the lamp off and adjusted his position. With the soft patter of rain hitting the window, soothing darkness, Katie’s warm body, and lovely scent; Jonathan found himself asleep within minutes. 

-flash- 

“GO! GO! GO!!” The sergeant of Pine’s squad screamed as the Taliban were firing at them. 

A younger Jonathan frantically looked around, the sound of gunfire ringing in his ears for a moment. “CAM!? CAM WHERE ARE YOU!?” He screamed for his friend, hiding behind a bullet ridden wall for cover as a pipe bomb blew. Cries of pain from his companions had suddenly become louder than the explosions and rain of fire. He was not about to leave his best friend behind to die. “CAMERON!?” Pine threw himself from out of his hiding place, only to be forced to army crawl as bullets from each side whizzed above him. He had to hold back a scream as a child soldier fell dead right in his eyesight. Anything that he had eaten that day made its way up and covered Jonathan’s front as a reaction to seeing this innocent child fall victim to war. There was no time to stop as Pine continued to army crawl, using the dust from the area as coverage. 

“Pine-” A voice moaned out hoarsely. 

What Jonathan saw next made his stomach drop. Cameron was tied to a post with a large handmade timer bomb stabbed into his hands. “N-No, Cam.” He felt breathless as he quickly made his way to his dying friend. Almost immediately, he tried to undo the ropes securing Cameron, struggling as his vision was blurred from dust and smoke. 

The brunette man gave a bloody smile to his best friend and laughed weakly. “Hey i-it’s ok. I’m gonna be ok, Jonathan.” He coughed, shutting his eyes and continued to smile through the pain. 

Jonathan began to cry hard, tears trailing down his dirt ridden face. “No! I won’t let you die!! I’m gonna get you out of here and, and patched up. Your sister is waiting for you, Cam!! I won’t allow you to die!!” His bruised fingers ripped away at the bindings as fast as they could. “I know that your parents give two shits less about you, but your sister needs you!! Katie needs you!!” He sobbed, seeing he only had less than two minutes left. If only he hadn’t gotten into a stupid argument with Cameron over a week ago, none of this would have happened. Cameron wouldn’t have stormed out for a smoke, wouldn’t have gotten kidnapped, wouldn’t have gotten beaten, and wouldn’t have to die. Deep down, Jonathan knew it was too late to save his best friend but his frantic state wouldn’t allow him to see the truth before him. 

Cameron shook his head slightly, “It’s too late. M-My legs.” He coughed, nodding down to them. He saw Jonathan’s blue gaze look at his gored limbs in horror. The terrorist group had practically severed them off down to the bone and even a bit through it. To make matters even more painful, his achilles tendons had been ripped out. 

01:00 

00:59 

“NO!! I CAN’T!!” Jonathan breathed harder and growled as he fought a losing battle in order to save his friend. 

“JONATHAN PINE!!” Cameron shouted, getting his attention. His bright green eyes shimmered in the ray of sunshine that tore through the clouds of war. “Go. I’m dying for m-my country. I need you to run. Run as fast as you can and don’t look back. Please. Live on for me and if you ever meet little fox, make sure she doesn’t get into too much trouble.” A tear slid down his bruised face as the bomb was down to thirty seconds. “GO!!” He wailed at Jonathan, watching his friend get up with remorse and look at him one last time before taking off. Cameron shut his eyes, smiling and waiting for death to take him. “Thank you, for everything.” 

BOOM!

-flash- 

A young girl with brilliant green eyes stands before him. “My name is extremely Irish, it’s corny I know. I’m Katie O’Connor” 

His heart stopped as soon as she spoke her name. So he wasn’t dreaming after all when Angela said that a “Katelyn O’Connor” would be accompanying him. This was her; Cameron’s little sister. Little Fox. 

-flash-

“JONATHAN!! JONATHAN HELP ME!! I DON’T WANNA DIE!!” Now it was Katie strapped to a pole instead of Cameron. 

Jonathan shot up, gasping for air. His hands shook as he looked at them in the moonlight. The clock read 3AM once he glanced over to see how much sleep he had gotten. 

“Pine?” Katie spoke softly, adjusting her position so that she was facing him. Around 2:30AM, Katie had been woken up by sounds of whimpering and slight thrashing from the man next to her. She had tried to wake him up, but with no success. Her brother’s name kept slipping from Pine’s lips in a panic and he even broke out into a full on sob. What had he truly seen that day? 

The dark blonde haired man froze up at the sound of her voice and turned to face her, swallowing to soothe his dry throat. “Did I wake you? I-I apologize for whatever you may have heard.” He took a deep breath and ran his hands through his hair. It had been a while since he last dreamt of that day. How horrific war truly was and how unnecessary that mankind craved it as a means of justification. His brows knit together as he felt Katie pull him down slowly. He felt her arms wrap around him as she pulled him close to her, laying his head upon her chest. The sound of her heartbeat made Jonathan wrap his arms around her in return and start to sob into her chest. His body shook as he cried softly, not holding back his emotions. 

“I forgive you… About Cameron. It wasn’t your fault.” She whispered into his short blonde locks, her fingers gently massaging his scalp. “We still have a long way to go before I completely forgive you, but I understand now that you tried to save my brother.” She shut her eyes, feeling tears of her own burn them. One witness to Pine’s nightmares of past war was enough for Katie to forgive and let go of her false grudge against Jonathan. A sort of peace had come over her upon her words and a soft smile graced her lips to know that Cameron wasn’t in pain and that he died heroically. Katie held Jonathan a bit closer that night, with both of them succumbing to sleep shortly once more. They had a big future ahead of them in taking down Belladonna, but they would do it together as she needed him and he needed her.

[tahnex]

Road to Graduation

Hi, so this is the first chapter of a new RWBY fic. I’m stuck in quarantine with time on my hands, an idea, and decided screw it, let’s write a RWBY fic. A very quick bit of background, this is canon-compliant until after the Volume 7 finale, then it goes its own way. The first two chapters are mostly setting the scene and giving some background for the following story, so apologies if they’re a bit long, and a little heavy on dialogue and exposition, but there’s a fair bit that needs to be explained.

(Also the title is currently temporary, I’m pretty bad at titles and this was the first idea that came into my head that sounds decent enough).

Anybody who wants to be like a beta reader or give any reviews or anything is REALLY welcome to do so! I don’t have one at the minute, so it might be a little rough around the edges. Any, click below for the actual chapter!

It’s been a month since they fought Salem. A month since Ozpin had taken over Oscar’s body and, with a little help from Ruby’s silver eyes, wounded Salem enough to force her into the Winter Vault, with Penny sealing it, and Salem, away. Tyrian had been recaptured and, whilst in a fury at Salem being sealed, was goading the Ace Ops with how many people he had killed in the fight, and accidentally let slip he’d also killed Clover. Robyn Hill had used her semblance on both Qrow and, under heavy restraints, Tyrian, proving Qrow’s innocence and his release. The CCT towers are slowly being set up again, and a message was sent to Vacuo to make sure they didn’t try to open the Summer Vault, along with a promise to Beacon that the Atlesian Military would send help to rid Vale and Beacon of the Grimm that were plaguing the city and old Academy grounds, including the Wyvern Grimm clinging to Beacon Tower. Once the two kingdoms worked together, and nearly the full might of the Atlesian military was brought to bear, the Grimm surrounding Beacon were forced back and Beacon returned to the way it was two years or so ago.

 Following that, a rather awkward conversation took place in Atlas tower, involving the now General Winter Schnee, Team RWBY and JNR, and with Professor Goodwitch on call from Beacon.

 “What do you mean our licenses were revoked?!” Yang slammed her hands down on the table.

 Winter sighed, “Former General Ironwood revoked your licenses when you declined to support his plan to save Atlas. I’ve…”

 “You mean when we refused to let him sacrifice the whole of Mantle and the people in it.” Blake retorted, glaring at Winter.

 Winter met Blake’s stare for a beat before continuing, “As I was saying, I’ve tried to reinstate the licenses, as well as issue you new permanent ones, however when he revoked the licenses he blocked all seven of you from being granted a license by anyone with Atlesian authority, including military and the council.”

 Ruby turned to the scroll with Professor Goodwitch on, “Professor? Is there anything you can do?”

 Professor Goodwitch’s voice came through the scroll, slightly crackly as the CCT system was not back up to its prior strength, “Atlas is the only country who can produce Huntsmen licenses without graduating at an academy. Without returning to an academy, completing your education, and then graduating, we cannot grant you your licenses.”

 At this nearly everyone looked crestfallen. “So, despite everything that’s happened, there’s nothing you can do? We helped to defeat Salem! Surely that should count for SOMETHING!” Jaune yelled.

 Professor Goodwitch sighed, “I appreciate your frustration Mr Arc, and the whole of Vytal is thankful for your assistance in defeating Salem…”

 “Not that they’ll ever know about it” muttered Blake.

 “Thank you for your comments Miss Belladonna, but considering the panic you all saw in Mantle and the amount of Grimm it brought, would you really wish that on the rest of Vytal when they learned of an immortal Queen of the Grimm that is trying to destroy humanity?” Professor Goodwitch replied sharply, “Even if she is sealed away, it would still bring panic and Grimm, leading to loss of life.”

 Blake looked down embarrassed and Yang glared at the scroll.

 “Back to your point Mr Arc, I’ve spoken to the council members in Vale, and informed them that your absence from all of the Academies was approved by Professor Ozpin before his death, and your recent efforts were part of an extended mission, watched over by Qrow Branwen. Fortunately, news of his mistaken arrest, which I WILL be speaking to you about General, did not reach Vale. I have convinced them that due to the success of your highly secret mission, your entire second year, for all of you, was passed.”

 “Is that really all you can do?” Ruby said quietly.

 “Yes Miss Rose. That is all I can do.” Even to most of the people in the room Professor Goodwitch sounded tired, and possibly even a little sad.

 Everyone looked at each other, slightly unsure of what to do or say until Ren spoke up “So what happens now?”

 “If you all still wish to graduate and become professional Huntsmen and Huntresses, you are welcome to return to Beacon to complete your training there, starting in your third year. I’ll give you until 5pm tomorrow to decide. Since the disaster of the last Vytal Festival the council is trying to keep a much closer eye on Beacon, so I have to tell them what is happening with you seven at their next meeting tomorrow.”

 Ruby looked back to the scroll “And if we refuse?”

 “Then you will not become legal Huntsmen and Huntresses.”

 There were a few moments of silence before Winter spoke up, “You can go back to your rooms now to discuss this. It’s the best option you have.”

 Taking her not so subtle hint to leave, the two teams left the room, but not before hearing Professor Goodwitch turn her attention to Winter, “Now, would you please be so kind as to explain not only why the hell you put out a warrant for Qrow’s arrest, but also why you then followed through with it?” Any further words were cut off by the doors sealing behind them. Ruby and Yang glanced at each other grinning slightly, they’d been on the receiving end of one of Professor Goodwitch’s scolding, more than once for Yang, and knew how bad it could be.

 It wasn’t long before they reached their rooms and split into their respective teams.

 Ruby and Blake sat on the beds, with Weiss and Yang taking chairs opposite their respective partners, Yang spinning hers round to sit backwards.

 “Well Ruby? What do we do?” Blake asked.

 Ruby looked to them all in turn, “What do you guys WANT to do? I know I’m the leader of our team, but I don’t want to force you to do something you don’t want to…”

 Weiss was the first to reply, “Personally, my vote is to graduate and become a Huntress. My only other option would be to take over the Schnee Dust Company, but I don’t want to do that, in fact I want nothing to do with it. I’m done with Atlas; Ironwood was the last straw.”

 Yang looked to Blake before facing Ruby “I don’t know Rubes, to be honest I’m not happy with the whole situation, if they do this to us now, what’s to say something else won’t happen again in the future? I’m not sure about returning to Beacon, but I want us to stay together as a team.”

 Blake looked at Yang directly whilst saying “I want to stay as a team, so I’ll follow you guys.” Yang smiled in response.

 Ruby looked down at the ground for a moment, “All I’ve ever wanted was to be a Huntress. To help people. If the only way to do that is to go back to Beacon and graduate, then I would do that. But being together as a team is more important. We got split up once before, that’s not happening again.” She looked at the time on her scroll “It’s getting late, we’ll sleep on it and see what we think tomorrow.”

 The others nodded their agreement and got ready for bed. Across the hall, JNR was having a similar discussion.

 “What happens now Jaune?” Nora looked to her team leader.

 “I don’t know Nora, I don’t know.” Jaune sat down on his bed heavily.

 “Me and Ren have nowhere else to go, we don’t have a family or home to return to, it’s just us three now. So, we’ll follow you where you go.” Nora looked to Ren for reassurance, slipping her hand into his, and he nodded.

 “Thanks you guys,” Jaune smiled at them both, “To be honest, returning to some kind of, I don’t know, normal life would be good you know? Finishing school and actually having something to show for everything we’ve done would be good. Plus, I could kinda do with a bit more training,” he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

 “Then back to school we go,” Ren said quietly.

  The next day they all met up in Winter’s office. Professor Goodwitch was on call from Beacon again, “Well, have you all come to a decision?”

 Ruby and Jaune looked at each other and nodded. The two teams had discussed it over breakfast that morning. “Looks like you’re going to have to put up with our team again Professor,” Ruby smiled.

 “And ours.” Jaune chimed in after Ruby.

 “Good. Pack your things, you’ll be on the next flight to Vale, it leaves tonight.” Winter nodded at them all.

 “Mr Arc? If you, Miss Valkyrie and Mr Ren could all remain for a moment, there is something we need to discuss with you three.” Professor Goodwitch said.

 Jaune looked at Ruby and said, “Go on, we’ll catch up to you.” Ruby looked a little confused but nodded and led her team out the door. “Yes Professor? What is it?” Jaune turned back to the scroll.

 Team RWBY reached their room and packed their things, Weiss double checking to make sure they’d left nothing behind, before heading to the landing platform, finding someone waiting for them. “Hey kiddo, looks like you’re hitching a ride back to Vale with me.”

 “Uncle Qrow!” Ruby sprinted to give Qrow a tight hug. “I was worried about you” Ruby whispered into his coat. Yang came up behind Ruby and gave her uncle a hug as well, whilst Weiss and Blake stood back a little, not sure what they should do.

 “I’m alright, just tired of this cold.” Qrow said, looking to the door as it slid open to reveal Winter standing in the doorway.

 “Weiss. Come here.”

 Weiss breathed out before turning to walk to her older sister. “Yes Winter?”

 They walked to one side of the doorway and Winter stood awkwardly for a moment before replying, “I’m glad you decided to continue your education.” They were silent for a moment before she continued “Now that Father is in custody, and will never touch our family again, I will…see what I can do to help Mother,” she motioned to Qrow with her head, “If that alcoholic idiot over there can drag himself to sobriety, I will see what I can do to help Mother achieve the same.”

 Weiss almost couldn’t believe what she was about say considering how he had treated her but… ”And Whitley.”

 Winter looked a little surprised at Weiss.

 “He was always closer to Father than us or Mother. He will need support as well. Especially as he is now the heir and will take over the company.” Weiss swallowed hard, wanting to say the words before she changed her mind.

 Winter looked solemn for a moment, “Yes, we all neglected him, and Father took him completely under his influence. I will try to help him as well, but I suspect Klein will be better able to help Whitley than me.”

 Weiss smiled at the memory of her friend and former butler and, seeing the members of Team JNR come out into the air said, “This will be goodbye then sister.”

 “Yes, it will be.” Winter nodded, before Weiss grabbed her in an impromptu hug. Winter hesitated for a moment before smiling slightly and returning it. “Try to write or call more often too.”

 “I will” Weiss smiled at her sister, before turning and walking back to her team.

 Qrow looked up at her arrival, nodded curtly to Winter, then turned, slipped his hands in his pockets and walked up the ramp onto the aircraft. Winter sighed, shook her head, then stood to attention as the others waved goodbye and followed Qrow up the ramp and back to Vale.

 Ruby lingered slightly before continuing into the aircraft, a little upset Penny hadn’t come to see them off, but the ever-energetic girl had left on a mission from Winter a week ago and wouldn’t return for a few more days. Sitting down with the rest of her team opposite Qrow and JNR she heard Weiss ask Jaune “What did Professor Goodwitch want to speak with you about?”

 Jaune looked slightly awkward and Nora a little cross, whilst Ren remained relatively impassive as always. “She said when we arrive, we need to go to her office and speak with her straight away, just the three of us. She didn’t say anything else.” Weiss and Blake suspected something wasn’t being said but decided that the others would tell them in time, and for now, all they wanted to do was lean back and rest. Just before closing her eyes to sleep Ruby noticed Qrow leaning back, eyes closed trying to sleep, but with a glimmer of green in his right hand.

   After arriving at Beacon, they all wearily climbed out the aircraft, Yang and Ruby giving long hugs to Qrow, before he walked off, raising a hand to say goodbye. The seven climbed up the steps to the main doors, not noticing there was someone standing next to Professor Goodwitch.

 “Salutations friends!”

[razorblade180]

Sunshower

[Menagerie]

It’s as busy as its ever been. The streets are bustling more than usual as vendors and civilians alike decorate the island with the symbol of the Belladonnas on flags. A celebration is gonna begin; one that will last indefinitely. If there’s one thing Menagerie is known for it is parties. This one is bound to be the biggest one since.....

Kali:Come on everyone, double time! Blake could come home any minute!

Ghira:Khali please don’t yell at anyone. They’re doing all of this of their own free will after all.

Kali:Well that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t put forth their best effort. *pouting* They need to have the same enthusiasm as Ilia.

As quickly as her name was uttered was as fast as she could be seen. Palm tree to palm tree she’s dashing at a speed that would make Ruby jealous. In her arms are wires of flags she’s precisely pinning with each tree jump.

Ilia:I’m running low on flags! Neptune, hook me up!!!

Neptune:*raises a box* A hundred flags right here!

Ilia*grabs it midair* Thank you!

Kali:Thank you for your help too a Neptune. It’s greatly appreciated.

Neptune:Pleasure is all mine. Not everyday a human gets to set foot in this place. I feel super... *looks around* fortunate.

Ghira:Young man I do hope you behave yourself. We’ve been informed of your.....reputation. It would be a shame if the faunus around here got worse opinions of humans.

Neptune:Yes sir. I wouldn’t be much of best friend if I ruined things around here; right Sun? *throws up a box*

Sun:Got that right! *catches box from a tree* thanks dude!

The young man might not have White Fang training but he’s a monkey faunus through and through. Jumping from the trees couldn’t be more natural; not one flag is out of place that he places.

Sun:*bouncing frantically* Woohoo! I should do this for a living!

Ilia:*keeping up* Geez can you be a little serious here? If any of your flags banners come undone I’m not fixing them.

Sun:Aw don’t be like that. I’d fix yours; then again it wouldn’t take as long.

Ilia:What’s that suppose mean?

Sun:Nothing, just that you’re moving incredibly slow.

Ilia:Slow!? Last time I checked you could barely keep up with me when we first met.

Sun:Pfft home field advantage. Now that I know this place I could lap you faster than you can change colors.

Ilia:That sounds like a challenge. First to pin a hundred more flags gets to greet Blake home first.

Sun:As long as the loser gets to stand there and watch.

Ilia:Oh you got yourself a deal!

Sun:Don’t be grumpy when she wants a kiss after a long year of saving the world!

Ilia:Like she would want to kiss you banana breath. Time to put your skills to the test.

Sun and Ilia:Neptune!!!!

Neptune:Yeah yeah...*tosses boxes up and watches them get whisked off* I swear those two.....

Ghira:My money is on Ilia.

Kali:Nah, Sun has this in the bag. If not then I’ll be less hard on the workers.

Ghira:Deal.....

Neptune:(These two aren’t much better. How did Blake end up calm with people like this her whole life?)

Both Faunus race at breakneck speed; not giving up an inch of progress. People who didn’t know any better would mistake the acrobatics for a routine instead of a romantic rivalry showdown.

Sun:45.....46.....47

Ilia:48......49......50

Neptune:*whistles* Look at them go. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Sun move that fast.

Ilia:75....76.....77

Sun:78....79.....80

Ilia:You look tired! Maybe you should give up?

Sun:I’m fine, you’re the one who should be-

Ilia:*sticks leg out* Ooops.....

Sun:*trips* Ilia!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ilia:Ha! All is fair in love in war. 93....94....95.....huh?

Three clones dart pass her with the remaining flags he had left. Before she could process what was happening the flags were wrapped across the trees in her sight. The clones then landed at the base of the final tree where Sun was.standing smugly.

Kali:Woo! Alright everybody double time!

Workers:*groaning*

Sun:Boom, a hundred done. Oooo want me to take two from you? I see you still have some left.

Ilia:Your semblance is annoying....

Sun:So is getting tripped, but all is fair in love and war right? *sticks tongue out*

Ilia:*rolls eyes* I may have deserved that.

Neptune:*throws his arms around them* Good job you two. Everything is basically done now and not a moment too soon. *points to the sea*

A giant ship is approaching with an all too familiar captain on board.

Khali:I bet you I know who’s on board.

Sun:To the docks! *runs off*

Ilia:Don’t run! There’s people everywhere. *chases after him*

Neptune:She says as she runs after him. *starts walking*

Ilia:Do you ever slow down.

Sun:Of course I do. Today I’m just extra pumped, don’t act you’re not.

Ilia:I’m not as excited as you are.

Sun:So what are your freckles pink?

Ilia:What!? *checks her arms* how long have I been like this!?

Sun:The whole time. You should really keep an eye on that.

Ilia:*changes back* Noted, you should also pay attention to where you’re going instead of looking at me.

Sun:I told you I know this place like the back of my- *pulled back by his tail* Hey that hur-

Ilia:You rather take a dip in the ocean?

Sun:*realizes he’s on the dock edge* Oh.....we’re here. That was fast.

Neptune:*few feet away* That’s what happens when you sprint!

Ilia:Oh you showed up too....

Neptune:Aw don’t be like that. I thought we were getting along. *smiles*

Ilia:Half the time. The other is still trying to tolerate you.

Neptune:What side would that be?

Ilia:*rainbow colored* Did you even have to ask?

Neptune:Fair point.

Sun:Both of you hush! She’s coming.

Ilia:You’ve gone this long without seeing her. A few more minutes won’t kill you.

Sun:You’re just saying that because you lost the challenge.

Ilia:*squints* whatever...like she’s actually gonna kiss you.

Sun:A guy can dream can’t he? Blake and I have something special and I’m sure she’s been- *Neptune turns his head to the boat*

The boat had gotten significantly closer during their brief chat. Blake was seen clear as day now waving at them from the ship, but she wasn’t alone. Bye her side was Yang, just Yang. No other members of the team in sight which could be easily dismissed as they’re on the other side. What couldn’t be dismissed however the two of them holding hands, fingers interlocked. They looked really happy as they waved. Sun didn’t realize that he zoned out and Ilia’s skin started turning gray.

Neptune:Guys?

...........

Neptune:Guys look alive.

Ilia:*color coming back* Huh? Oh...right. Sun are you oka-?

Sun:*makes a clone to toss him to the boat* Can I get a hand here kitty cat!?

Blake:*lassos his arm and pulls him up* Hey Sun! *hugs him*

Sun:Long time no see you two.

Yang:Well that’s what happens when you go off to save the world.

Sun:How’d that go for you?

Yang:There was challenges but we had each other so everything worked out. *snakes hand around Blake’s waist*

Sun:Heh, glad to hear it. *smiles*

Neptune:Poor guy....

Ilia:He seems to be taking it well.

Neptune:You’ve hung out for him how long now and you honestly believe that?

Ilia:*watching closely*......

His tail isn’t moving, but not in an idle way. It’s stiff like he’s tensing it. As she keeps watching he’s purposely not looking at Yang for long and keeps smiling. Not his normal goofy smile, it almost looks like his cheek bones look like they’re giving it all they got. It’s almost sad, frustrating in a way. Is that what he’s feeling?

Ilia:He’s not taking this well at all.

Neptune:Not one bit.

*boat docks*

Blake:Hey you two! *Jumps down and hugs them*

Ilia:Wow, when did you become a hugger?

Blake:How else am I supposed to show how much I mess you?

Ilia:(I could think of a few) Cash... I could always use that.

Yang:*chuckles* She reminds me of Ruby.

Ilia:*holds out hand* Hi I don’t think we’ve ever actually met. I’m Ilia, Blake’s friend.

Yang:*shakes her hand* I’m Yang, her girlfriend.

Ilia:Is that right? Well you got a good one, Blake is great. *smiles*

Yang:Don’t I know it?

Neptune:Where’s Weiss and the others?

Yang:Sorry lover boy. Everyone else finally went home. I’m only here because Blake wanted me to meet her parents. Hopefully I make a purrfect first impression.

Ilia:Please tell me she’s not actually going to say that in front of them?

Blake:*nervous* I really hope she doesn’t.

Neptune:Well they’re bar your home so need for an escort.

Blake:Cool, we can all walk and catch up.

Sun:Actually I still have a lot more preparations to take care of. This is where I tap out for now.

Blake:*frowns* Really things look done?

Sun:Nah it’s not even close hehe. Catch up with you later. *walks off*

Ilia:....

Blake:Sigh, I thought this would end up a bit weird. Maybe I should-

Neptune:Trust me he’s fine. Your mother literally gave him a list for three people because of his semblance. As a matter of fact, maybe you should help out Ilia.

Ilia:Huh?

Neptune:Yeah, you lost the race you two had. Wasn’t the promise to help with his work?

Ilia:Ummm it was. I...I was just hoping I’d weasel my way out of it.

Neptune:Dang, you stab him and you won’t even help with his work load.

Ilia:You weren’t even there for-hey! *getting guided away.

Neptune:*whispers* Aren’t you spy? Can’t you read what I’m trying to spell out? Go check in him.

Ilia:Why don’t do it? He’s your friend?

Neptune:Sun rarely gets mushy around me. Besides do you really want to spend time around Blake and Yang? It looked like any minute you were gonna change into every shade of red. I’m giving you an out.

Ilia:......fine. But don’t get used to me doing this. *walking off*

Neptune:Thank you, you’re beautiful!

Ilia:So is every girl you look at.....Thank you though.

Neptune:*Turns around* Alright you two, I want every detail about your adventure. Blake, I know you didn’t cut your hair for nothing; what happened? *chuckles*

Ilia:(He’s really good swaying people...)

She started walking in the opposite direction; thinking and following her target’s footprints. Neptune was right, she didn’t want to go with them at the moment. There was too much to process right now and it was starting to show as her skin did get a little red as if she was getting sunburnt. She felt burned alright but the heat had nothing to do with it. Sandy foot prints faded as they led through the market streets.

Ilia:Not gonna make this easy for me huh? Actually I’m glad, I need a good distraction right now. *climbs a tree* All right Sun, where the hell am I gonna find you?

[bumblbytrash]

My Just Right™️ Theory

So I know I’m not the only one who thinks Blake is Baby Bear. Or at least I hope I’m not alone.

I mean then again I literally never really see anyone else posting about it other than people reblogging my posts so fucking maybe.

But I’m really latched onto this head canon and y’all better buckle up cause I’ve got new thoughts to add to this crackpot theory.

Now, I’ve made a semi lengthy post about this already, which can be found here, and y’all should really go read that first bc I’m gonna gloss over what over already talked about and y’all will be confused. Now that post really only talks about Blake’s introduction as Baby Bear. But now I’ve got for y’all all the reasons how Blake fills the role of Baby Bear/ being Just Right™️ for Yang.

-

The first thing I wanna to clarify with y’all is the basics of Goldilocks and the three bears. Just cause I’m obv gonna talk about symbolism that I’m pulling from quite a lot and I want us all on the same page. So,

Goldilocks vs Papa Bear: porridge is too hot, bed is too stiff. Angry and mean, or passionate and protective.

Mama Bear: porridge is too cold, bed is too soft. Distant and bracing, or level headed and receptive.

But then Baby Bear’s stuff is Just Right™️. Y’all starting to get why I’ve also latched on to “Just Right™️”?

-

Second thing I’m gonna come right out and clarify is that yes. I am aware that Junior’s name means Baby Bear. Actually his name means Black Bear, the nickname Junior is what makes it Baby Black Bear. But I’m imagining the titles being a little flexible and applicable to multiple characters.

-

So cool, Yang fought two Ursai, one was “hot headed” and aggressive, attacked her up front. The other was a more “cool headed” passive one that watched at first, and the poof, Blake.

Baby Bear. But I wanna take it a step further. So let’s look at team RWBY

Papa Bear = Ruby. Yes I know, the Yang is far more hot headed and fiery than ruby but hear me out. In the scene immediately following Blake’s introductionas Baby Bear, we see Ruby rum into a situation without much thought. She makes a hot headed move to attack without double checking her surroundings and fucks up Weiss’ shot. Then, in the ensuing argument, Ruby loses her temper and cuts down a tree. That’s some pretty hot porridge right there.

Mama Bear = Weiss. I means come on, she’s literally called the ice queen. In the scene after Blake’s introduction as Baby Bear, Weiss is shown being ice cold and honestly a total bitch. She’s literally standing there surrounded by beowolves, slowly going down a check list. I’m not here to say that proper form isn’t important but woman. Don’t wait for the second ice age. Then after Ruby beats her to the punch she starts an argument and she’s really cold. Saying to Ruby that no, she’s not perfect but she’s leagues better than her. That porridge is FROZEN.

Baby Bear = Blake. Y’all. Do I even have to say it? They’re literally perfect for each other. Blake is Just Right™️ in so many ways. Blake’s the person that Yang has the deepest connection with. Blake’s the one who laughs/smiles the most at Yang’s stupid jokes or really even just at Yang because she’s there. Yang strives for Blake’s approval, she immediately tears up and visibly breaks down the second it seems like Blake doesn’t trust/believe her. And when Blake asks Yang to promise to her specifically, in return for Blake’s trust, Yang doesn’t even hesitate for a second. Makes eye contact and promises. Blake’s also like, the only person to show worry or concern over Yang in a fight. Then, after being separated from each other for around a year, they just fall back into sync as it nothing ever kept them apart. Sure, they had a bump of two I’m looking at you apathy barn but they were just that bumps that’s they got over in a snap.

I mean shit, even the color scheme lines up for team RWBY.

Next we get to look at our in-world family of bears: The Belladonna’s

Kali Belladonna. Y’all look at this sweet bean and tell me she isn’t the softest Mama Bear to ever soft.

Kali Belladonna isn’t ice cold in the way that Weiss is, she’s more cool and soft. She does silly things, teases her daughter about the boy that followed her home and doesn’t hesitate for a second to wrap her daughter up in a bear hug.

And damn if Ghira Belladonna isn’t intimidating as all shit

Ghira Belladonna is a damned force to be reckoned with. This man is the very definition of a hot headed, protective Papa Bear. Y’all cannot convince me other wise if you tried.

The Belladonna’s are admittedly a fav and I’m really just including them cause I can and it fits sooooooooo. Moving on:

So the last thing I wanna talk to y’all about is Yang’s abandonment issues. How we’ve seen it played out in the show and how it fits into my Baby Bear!Blake theory. And yes, I know this is reaching. Like shit, my spine popped, I was reaching so far up to this shelf but hear me out.

Yang has canonically been abandoned 3 times.

The first time was her birth mother, Raven Branwen.

Now we can only speculate on why Raven really left. Yang also, has no idea why Raven left, a fact that hit us over the head in V2. So for Yang’s entire life (tho she got some closure in V5) Yang has just built up bitterness and anger toward her mother. “How dare she leave, how could she just go, abandon her family like that.”

The second time was Summer Rose. But Summer didn’t chose to leave.

I mean yes she chose to leave for the mission, but she fully planned on returning. She was killed. The was a fight, a slip up, an accident, and Summer couldn’t make it back home. Yang more than likely spent her years wishing that maybe she or Tai or Qrow or anyone would have just gone with her, made sure that Summer was alright. Summer didn’t leave, she was taken away inexplicably and Yang would have felt sad. Lost and cold without her mother’s guidance.

The third time was Blake. And yes, our baby girl fucked up when she left, I’m not here to deny that.

So during the fall of beacon, Yang finds Blake on the ground under Adam who has just stabbed her. Keep in mind, Yang has spent the majority of her life wishing she or literally any one could have been there to save Summer. Wishing that someone could have prevented her loved one from being ripped away from her. And now, Blake is about to be killed in front of Yang’s very eyes.

Y’all damn know she flipped her shit. She is CRYING as she launches herself at Adam, so blinded by her need to make to Blake, to be there in time, to save her life. Y’all also know that she failed, pretty miserably in fact. But Blake didn’t care. She only cared that Yang had come at all, and was upset with herself for having brought Yang into her world of trauma. So she left. She left because she thought that that would protect Yang.

What’s different about Blake leaving is that she’s the only person who actually chose Yang. Sure the message didn’t come across to Yang right away, but that’s what happened. Blake chose Yang’s safety over her own safety, well being, and happiness.

And I know, I know, that what t probably hurt Yang more than anything was that Blake chose to leave her behind, like Raven had. Yang ultimately made her peace with Summer because that was out of anyone’s control. But Blake? We see in volume 5 we see that Yang is very VERY upset that Blake left. When Ruby tells Yang she wishes Blake was with them, Yang lashes out. Ruby pushed farther, prying, trying to force Yang into wanting Blake there and Yang snaps, of only for a moment.

Her eyes burn red and she is LIVID. Yang eventually gets up and sulks in her room while carressing Blake’s image in a group photo. And then, enter Weiss. Weiss says nothing as she enters the room. Just sits and lets Yang rant. Once Yang’s down Weiss speaks. Talks about her own traumas and her own family issues. And finally talks to Yang and convinces her to try and see things from Blake’s perspective.

I mean shit. The poor girl did her absolute best to remain distant, to keep her secrets, to keep her past away from the rest of them. But she opened up to Yang, they became very close friends and at some point (I’m looking at you Burning the Candle) it became a little more flirtatious and romantic. Then with all this going on, Adam appears of literally nowhere and maimes the one person in all of Beacon that Blake has truly opened up to. And like let’s not fucking forget that Blake is also the only person we see Yang open up to. I mean we see her open up to Weiss, but she’s literally opening up about her pain from Blake leaving soooooooo.

The last thing that sets Blake apart in this cycle of the three bears, and the reason why she gets to be Baby Bear/ Just Right™️ is because BLAKE CAME BACK.

This girl, who is notorious for running from her problems, to the point that her semblance which is an extension of her own soul, is literally a mechanism to run away, SHE CAME BACK.

Blake came back to Yang. And she’s promised she’s never going anywhere again. And Yang believes her, Yang trusts her, and y’all can damn well believe Yang LOVES her.

So yea. Blake’s Baby Bear. She’s Just Right™️ for Yang. Try and change my mind. You can’t.

This post has gotten really long, and I do have more thoughts, but maybe in another post cause again, this is already a fucking full length essay.

For y’all who wanted to be tagged:

@sunnydragonqueen @yeehawyang @AG_Nonsuch

[kob131]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZiQAq_nf1s

“Could have expanded on the ideas surrounding the character but you just couldn’t do that, Rooster Teeth?”-

Look man, I get getting angry about a character you like being killed off-

But for fuck’s sake, keep the creators out of your bullshit.

0:24 See the thing is-

If you take a look at numerous things surrounding the show and how the show actually treats them: Expectations are almost completely out of the CRWBY’s hands.

This isn’t like what happened with The Last Jedi were the creators purposefully built up what their predecessor did only to completely dash them-We had people making theories about and treating the shattered moon as this huge plot point when no one makes any mention of it and it’s basically there to look cool. And then when the unimportant background object was given non-earth shattering reveal, people bitched at the CRWBY. So unless you can show beyond a shadow of doubt they did this with Adam (which you’ve failed to do twice before): All I’m going to do is throw you in the same bin as the Yang fans who insist that she has no flaws.

1:13 Wanna note here this spider tank is smaller and weaker looking than the Paladin from Volume 2 (the same one that Team RWBY had troubles with until Yang punched it out full force with her Semblance). Looking being the operative word because assumption is the same thing Eruption here is basing his argument on so if he tries to bring up the Paladin being outclassed later on then the Spider Tank is logically even more outclassed.

Also of note:

The Spider Tank does not have Aura.

Adam absorbs a full three second blast.

And Adam is not shown taking a hit once.

These are all important factors.

1:23 Same expectation for Yang surprisingly, to the point she was considered a Mary Sue pre Volume 2, Episode 10. There we established Yang isn’t as powerful as she seems due to her anger, recklessness and lack of finesse in her fighting style. This shows that weaknesses in these characters can be established after their establishing moments since we had never seen Yang faced with a situation like this before. Again, keep this in mind.

1:53 No actually. Two of three things you stated are not established here. Adam is not established as a leader due to this being a two man operation PRECISELY because it’s a two man operation. Because of this, Adam is not shown leading anyone and in fact is portrayed as Blake’s equal as he almost never gives her orders. Nor is he presented as caring about the WF as he never expressly shows concern or dedication to the cause. He only seems to care about blowing up a train full of humans. 

If anything, he is established a powerful combatant with a bloodlust against humans. That’s all. 

3:02 *holds up a finger*

Unreliable Narrator.

It’s a trope where the person giving the information isn’t exactly reliable and thus the information isn’t that good. Reasons can range from lies to insanity to personal bias. Personal bias, like say an abuse survivor glorifying their abuser because of mental damage. 

In order for me to take Blake’s words as you do at face value, you have to prove this is inconsistent behavior for an abuse survivor. 

Not to mention the fact that you ignore an important bit of context: Adam approved of and helped carry out a plan to destroy not just Beacon but Vale as well. Both of which contain a fair number of Fanaus. He makes no attempt to warn Fanaus ahead of time nor does he seem to care about them.

4:40 yes and I’m sure Adolf wouldn’t want to waste German soldiers on a Jewish cause.

The issue here is that you focus on the word ‘cause’ whereas the narrative could be focused on the word ‘human’. A racist psychopath wouldn’t waste time and resources helping someone who they are racist against.

4:48... And you showcase a clip where Adam clarifies ‘human’, meaning it barely has anything to do with leadership and everything to do with racism. … Why?

5:08 Once again, the same traits can apply to a racist psychopath sending people to die for his own selfish reason rather than some leader. You have not shown anything to disprove the first interpretation (which is the one you arguing against as you think his character was changed.)

5:25 Really? It didn’t become shaky when Blake contradicted the idea of Adam being someone reasonable when she expressed concern and FEAR over the fact that Yang acted slightly like Adam? It didn’t become shaky when you never proved Adam being a leader and only proved him being racist? It didn’t become shaky upon reflecting on all this as the only reason you think Adam is a leader is because of Blake, someone who has reason to be an unreliable narrator especially with her actions in Volume 3?

I think we’ve been riding on a completely different set of trails this whole time.

5:33 >Not romantic >”my mentor” >Same show with Arkos in it

Yeah, either show me proof it's platonic or this was a case of Schrodinger's Relationship where it can be both things at the same time due to a lack of information, only to be defined when given solid proof.

5:45 Once again, I refer to Adolf Hitler who acted like his actions were a revolution himself. And I don't refer to Adolf for no reason, Adam display all the classical examples of a racist sociopath like Hitler did. Hell, he was one Mein Kampf quote away from being a more blatant Nazi Expy than the Daleks.

7:05 Except that Yang’s power level was cemented before this with the destruction of the Paladin, a feat FAR greater than Adams previous feat, only to be defeated by someone who never showed that level of strength (Neo) by acting around her and taking advantage of Yang’s weaknesses. This cements a very simple idea: Power is not everything. Yang was shown to be more powerful than Neo but Neo was far more skilled and was able to work around Yang’s Semblance and anger issues. Not just that, but Adam is once again NEVER shown to take a hit from Blake OR Yang in this whole fight so his DURABILITY is undefined.

So you’re basically applying DBZ logic to something more like JoJo in nature. Not really anyone’s fault here but yours.

8:05 Except not really.

Blake said Adam was misguided. Illa acts misguided.

Blake said Adam fell off the slipperly slope. Illa acts her descent.

Blake said Adam was these things. Illa IS these things.

This like saying Raven’s character was retconned because Taiyang described her differently, never mind how Taiyang has an inherent bias for Raven/would have a reason to lie.

Illa exists because she is what you deluded Adam was. Once again, no one’s fault but your own.

8:10 And you know...Illa doesn’t contradict a single thing stated about her unlike Adam who contradicted EVERYTHING stated about him...by Blake...his abuse victim...

You uh, wanna rethink your arguments now? Cuz you’re sounding less like someone who knows what they’re talking about and more like a RWDE poster.

8:40 You know, aside from the fact that Sienna denied him what he wanted and stood in his way...like Blake...a Fanaus...and former partner/lover.

Wow those arguments just keep getting more and more flimsy. Wonder if we’ll get to the point where I can just quote the show to disprove you.

9:01 Like say, trying to kill the Runaway Blake or the Belladonnas or, I dunno, THE HUNDREDS OF FANAUS THAT LIVED IN VALE/BEACON WHO HELPED TRY TO KILL WITHOUT REMORSE?

See how each of Adam’s actions makes him look more and more self centered, almost as though he’s breaking down and losing the mask he’s portrayed himself as?

9:45 Wrong.

Here’s where we get to the fundamental misunderstanding you have about Adam.

Why does he want to hurt humans? Because they hurt him.

Why does he want to hurt Blake? Because she hurt him.

Why does Adam work for the WF? Because it benefits him.

Why does Adam believe in Fanaus Supremacy? Because it benefits him.

Adam’s character never changed. It never made this dramatic shift you keep hinting at. He was always this way. All his actions have the common thread of benefitting himself whereas the character you think he is would have some kind of self sacrifice for his people.

But that’s only half the story. I’ll get to the other half when you do.

10:17 *raises eyebrow*

… Do I even need to bring up things like the KKK and the Nazis, who were both groups of people in VASTLY greater numbers that were manipulated and used by manipulative people without any real rational reason because people are not rational? Hell, want a better example? BLM is an organization of people who do terrible things because they feel oppressed, nevermind how that doesn’t excuse their actions nor that their leaders care more about their own selfish desires than anything meaningful.

Your argument doesn’t work, history disagrees with you.

10:26 So are all known dictators and tyrants: That doesn’t mean Adam was a misguided revolutionary.

10:43 No it just didn’t exist. He was never the character you made him out to be, your disappointment is the result of nothing more than buying into an illusion. And I can’t blame anyone for that but the person who willingly did that. I don’t care how sad you are: You fail because of your own flaws.

10:56 No, nobody but Adam stans felt that way. No one said that but people who refused to accept the idea that Adam wasn’t what they thought he was. It's the same damn bullshit in regards to Raven: It’s not the writers fault you hyped yourself for something they contradicted. If you want an example of hyping up a character aspect then abandoning it: Look at how cinder was portrayed in Volume 4 and how the sympathetic angle was abandoned in Volume 5 onward. THAT is the fault of the writers. Not this.

11:31 Except-

A. Adam was never in it for anyone but himself as his previous actions with Vale/Beacon can attest.

And B. Blake directly says that the change was only temporary and we can see that such extremity only leads to creating the opposite. Adam was created as the result of Jacques’ opportunistic and psychopathic actions, making Adam opportunistic and psychopathic. And we can see this in our world: white supremacy as a whole was on it’s last legs a few years ago and it was on the verge of becoming as arachic and out dated as monarchies and slavery. But when extremists yelling about how awful white people are as a whole and being violent extremists rose up, white supremacy resurged. Why? Because those hurt by the first group became extremist themselves due to how people gravitate between extremes. And the first group only existed because of the older form of the second group being douchebags in the past. 

Adam works not as a revolutionary but as a cautionary tale of how self sustaining this cycle of hate is. Eventually, Adam would have caused Fanaus racism to spike right back up and give those racists a strawman to point to, just like what happened at our doorstep.

12:57 No, Sienna is portrayed as opportunistic and power hungry and Adam is giving a sadistic smile at the praise. There is no ambiguity here: Ghira is and was portrayed as in the right and Adam/Sienna were portrayed as and are in the wrong. You’re ignoring context. AGAIN.

13:47 Says the guy whose trying to discredit everything Adam related post Volume 2 and would have every reason to willfully misrepsent the scene to support his argument, nevermind how he hasn’t proven a damn thing.

14:29 And just because you say it doesn’t make it so, especially considering a loot of people found Adam interesting again after this short AND this finale.

15:00 No, he’s always been 100% for himself. It’s just that Blake is an easier and more recent target than humans.

15:53 And yet he overcomes her, like the Fall Of Beacon. Forgot that part eh?

16:04 Nope.

The development with Yang was never her strength but rather her tactics. Thing is, we never see Adam use tactics in a fight. We never see him think or strategize in fights. And his style reflects someone who fights with power alone. Meanwhile, Yang has developed from Volume 3 with her training because Taiyang taught her that she can’t just power through everything in sight and has to THINK her way around thing. This being demonstrated by tripping up Taiyang, prioritizing the long ranged bandits in her Volumee 5 fight, letting go of her arm in the Haven fight and here by not feeding Adam’s Semblance and instead waiting for an opening to strike him down and disarm him (you know, like Neo did in Volume 2.)

The show directly said this, you have no excuse Eruption Fang.

16:30 No you just overhyped the boss and made it look tougher than they are. you basically hyped the Minotaur from SMT4 as Matador from SMT3, despite the latter being tougher than the former.

17:01 ADAM. IS NOT. THE FANAUS.

BLAKE is the representative of the Fanaus.

Just as Jacques isn’t the representative of the humans, WEISS is.

Stop trying to make Adam look like the only Fanaus involved in the conflict.

And even THEN: Adam IS Morally grey. Just not the ‘misguided revolutionary’ you made him out to be.

Remember when I said that Adam is selfish being only half the story? Well, Adam is selfish BECAUSE of his brand. Why? Because that action symbolizes how he lost his agency and his innocence a long time ago, now seeking control over other people through either tricking people into following him or abusing them until they listen, because he lost the control he once had. Because the branding scarred him so deeply it changed him as a person. But because of his obsession with control over others, he’s stuck in a mentally immature state. He’s just a scared child trying to get back at the people who hurt him and get back SOME semblance of control that he lost, nevermind how he hurts others because a child never thinks about such things.

He isn’t a misguided revolutionary, he’s a victim of abuse and racism that defined him before he had a choice, so he now tries to rob others of choice to feel better.

It’s the same thing Nazi Germany went through in regards to WWI’s aftermath, where their economy tanked and they became hungry and cold so they sought out anything to make themselves feel better, even if the option was a manchild of a dictator.

And that’s why this is no one’s fault but your own, Collen. You were given a morally grey character as you say you were promised: You just threw a fit because it wasn’t 100% what you wanted.

18:07 And just because someone is evil doesn’t mean they cannot be pitied or understood. You are denying complex writing for your headcanon.

19:10 No you’re just salty and denying it.

19:41 and yet you ignore the bad decisions Adam makes on his path through life, deciding to be violently, giving in to his abusive urges, deciding to be selfish and deciding to hurt other people for his own benefit:  basically preaching what the show said except worse in every regard.

20:08 You say as every ‘inconsistency’ you try to list is more evident of you ignoring facts right in front of you just to make yourself feel better than an actual inconsistency. I would have given this to you except by going through all this bullshit and spewing all of this, I’ve come to learn that Adam was never inconsistent and that the only fault was not portraying Blake’s symptoms of abuse more clearly.

20:12 And this si where we’re stopping because I swear, this one line makes me wanna smack you upside the head.

Adam didn’t ‘die’ in Volume 3. Your Adam NEVER EXISTED. He was never real, he was just an illusion built on misinformation and denial of reality. And yet instead of reflecting and thinking about Adam’s actions and trying to see if there’s a connecting thread, you decide to stomp your feet, flail your arms and insult everyone else, even the creators, just because you didn’t get what you wanted.

Either accept it or let go.

[brokenmimir]

The Soulmate Chalice

White Rose Week Day Two: Soulmate AU

All her life Ruby Rose had dreamed of getting into Beacon so that the Archmages could find her soulmate.  She was sure everything was going to be perfect, just like her parents marriage had been.

Nothing, not even some crabby girl she ran into after landing could get in her way!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/14905727

The stories say you'll know the moment you meet them. Your soulmate. The person you're destined to spend the rest of your life with.

Ruby had been looking forward to meeting them since she was old enough to talk. Her mother and father had read fairy tales about soulmates to her, and she couldn't wait to meet her own. When her mother died and her father shut down, her older sister had taken over reading her stories, and while she'd been more hesitant, she'd never been able to resist Ruby's pout.

Of course, the world wasn't quite so simple, something she'd started to discover as she'd gotten older. Her mother and father had met at Beacon, as most mages did, but somehow her father had had Yang with someone else even though he'd already met his soulmate. In fact, despite most mages discovering exactly who their soulmate was, some never married them.

“You excited Rubes?” Yang asked.

Ruby grinned. “Yup!”

“Even though it means meeting new people?” Yang asked, raising a questioning eyebrow.

Ruby folded into herself a little. “Er…”

Yang chuckled and bumped shoulders with her. “Come on sis, it'll be great. You'll see. You're gonna make a ton of friends.”

“Why do I need friends?” Ruby grumbled, crossing her arms. “I'll have you! And my soulmate!”

Yang's smile faded slightly. “Ruby… it's not that easy. I mean, yours might not even be here, yet.”

“Yours was!”

“Yeah, I got lucky,” Yang said with a grin, which faded slightly as she gave Ruby a serious look. “That doesn't mean it was easy, though. Seriously, I had to work hard to win my kitty cat over. She didn't want anything to do with a soulmate, and it took forever to wear her down.”

“I still don't understand what some people have against soulmates,” Ruby said, crossing her arms. “Why would someone want to be with anyone else?”

“'Cause people choose what they want, no matter what some magic spell says,” Yang said. “Some people don't believe it's real, or that the Archmages make it all up so tjey can control everybody. Some people claim the soul mate finding spell is basically a giant love spell, making people they want to be together be together. And of course, most of the old families think marriage is the best way to make alliances and gain power.”

“That's all stupid,” Ruby grumbled. “I just… I just want what mom and dad had.”

“I know,” Yang said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “Just remember… even if your soulmate is already at Beacon and you can meet them the first day, that doesn't mean things will just work out like, well, magic. You've gotta work for it.”

“I had to work for my magic, too,” Ruby pouted. “Not everybody taught themselves how to make fire when they were two.”

Yang chuckled. “Yeah, I wonder sometimes how dad isn't all gray hair.”

They airship set down at Beacon's dock with a splash and a creak, and the two of them stepped off onto dry land, walking past someone that was puking noisily over the side while a statuesque redhead rubbed his back. Once they were on solid ground again Ruby turned to her sister, who was already walking away. “Wait, where are you going!”

“Sorry Ruby, I'm off to find my Blakey!” Yang called as she dashed away.

“Wait, come back!” Ruby shouted as she tried to run after her sister. “I want to meet Blake… don't leave me alone! Oof!”

Ruby slammed into someone while she was focused on keeping up with her sister, knocking them both to the ground. She groaned for a moment, and was just about to get up and apologize when a loud, angry shriek interrupted her. “Get off of me!”

“Sorry!” Ruby yelped, stumbling back and barely reaching her feet before she was confronted by her victim.

The woman was about her height, with long white hair in an off center ponytail and angry blue eyes that glared spitefully at her. She was dressed in an incredibly fancy white dress, which was obviously enchanted since it didn't pick up any dirt from their impromptu fall to the ground. Ruby realized that she must be very wealthy, and was probably the most beautiful girl she'd ever seen, the scar over one eye somehow enhancing her already sharp features.

Then she opened her mouth. “You!”

“M-me?” Ruby stammered.

“Are you completely braindead!?” the woman shouted. “What are you doing, running blindly through a crowd?!”

“I said I was sorry, princess!” Ruby snapped.

“Do you have any idea who I am?”

“She's Weiss Schnee,” another voice drawled, this time coming from a tall brunette with cat ears. “Heiress to the Schnee Family… the most infamous family of dark sorcerers and demon summoners in the Magocracy of Vale. Only the Salem Clan has a worse reputation, but they didn't have enough gold to bribe their way out of banishment.”

“How dare you, Belladonna,” Weiss sneered, before turning on her heel and storming away, a small collection of white creatures, some form of imp that Ruby didn't recognize, scrambling to gather her luggage and follow after her.

“I'll make it up to you!” Ruby shouted, only to be ignored.

“You must be Ruby,” the woman named Belladonna said.

“Yeah! How did you know?”

She chuckled. “Your sister wouldn't stop talking about you. I'm Blake Belladonna… Yang's soulmate.”

“Oh!” Ruby gasped, before jumping forward and pulling Blake into a surprise hug. The faunus stiffened up for a moment, before relaxing and hugging her back. “I'm so happy to meet you!”

“I'm happy to meet you, too,” Blake said. “But where's Yang?”

Ruby rolled her eyes. “She ran off looking for you and left me behind. Come on, I'm sure she's around here somewhere…”

It took a while, but Ruby enjoyed getting to know Blake, and Beacon's campus was lovely, so she couldn't really complain. When they finally found Yang she was waiting in the main amphitheater with a growing crowd of students. Ruby hung back for a moment while the couple kissed, before finally Yang turned her attention to her. “Hey Rubes, I see you met Blakey.”

“Yeah, she saved me from some crabby girl,” Ruby said.

“Crabby girl?” Yang asked.

“Weiss Schnee,” Blake explained.

Yang made a face. “Ugh. Her.”

“What's her deal, anyway?” Ruby asked.

“She's a stuck up ice queen,” Yang said dismissively.

“She's worse than that,” Blake said darkly. “Her family uses magic to summon and bind creatures to their service. Mostly demons, which is bad enough, but they made most of their wealth by magically enslaving faunus. They only stopped when the White Fang forced them to, and even then it wasn't until Vale threatened to banish them to the Darklands that they agreed to free their slaves.”

“That's terrible!” Ruby gasped.

“Yeah, and despite everything they never had to give up even a copper of their ill gotten wealth,” Blake said, glaring hatefully at a head of white hair a few rows ahead of them. Ruby jumped as she realized that Weiss was close enough that she could potentially overhear them with how loudly they were talking. “They are the worst kind of mages.”

“But I mean, she was kinda crabby, and she had those imp thingies carrying her luggage, but… she's still in school so it's not like she enslaved people, right?”

“The Schnee slaves were freed ten years ago, so who knows,” Blake said. “At the very least she had faunus waiting on her hand and foot as a child, and she still acts like she expects everyone to keep doing so.”

“Yeah, she's a lost cause,” Yang said. “She spends all of her time studying and looking down her nose at everyone. She doesn't have any friends.”

“That's… sad,” Ruby said quietly.

Blake's ears twitched. “Sad?”

“Yeah, I mean, can you imagine not having any friends?” Ruby said. “She must be really lonely. Does she have a soulmate?”

Blake snorted. “She'd need a soul for that.”

Before Ruby could reply two adults walked to the center of the room. She recognized them as the Archmages Glynda Goodwitch and Ozpin. The rest of the room obviously recognized them as well, as everything quieted down.

“Thank you,” Goodwitch said. “Now, as is traditional, all new students will take these enchanted cards, fill them out, and then push some of your mana into them. Then, you will place them in this magical chalice, which will determine if your soulmate has done the same. This way every mage who passes through Beacon has the opportunity to meet their soulmate.

“Now, all new students, please come to the front so that we can begin.”

As excited as Ruby was, she hesitated for a moment. This was it. The moment she'd been waiting for. In a few minutes she could be meeting her soul mate. Or maybe she wouldn't be matched to anyone at all.

“Go on, sis,” Yang said, giving her a shove. “It's time!”

She stumbled a few steps, before rushing forward to reach the line of other first year students. She bit her lip nervously as she was handed the heavy parchment card and quill, writing her name on it quickly and then carefully channeling a little burst of mana into it. The card glowed bright red for a moment, and she grinned, knowing it was ready. She was ready. She could do this.

She also had a name in the second half of the alphabet, so while other students one by one were called forward and placed their cards in the chalice she watched everything that happened. Most names simply went in, making the chalice flash silver, but some of them flared with golden light, provoking cheers as two cards shot back out, snatched from the air by Ozpin who would then casually read the names of two people who's lives were bound together forever.

Ruby looked around at the crowd. Most people were eagerly watching, excited about the drama unfolding. Older students who hadn't found their soulmates yet were either playing things off as unimportant, or eagerly watching every student that approached the chalice, hoping or fearing that each one would be their soulmate.

She noticed Weiss sitting by herself near the front. Apparently her sister and her soulmate had been right about the girl not having any friends, as no one even seemed to want to sit near her. She had a cold, disdainful look on her face, like she was above all such silly things like soulmates, but Ruby saw a glint of well hidden hope in her eyes whenever the chalice flashed gold.

Ruby hoped that Weiss would find someone, even if she did feel a bit sorry for whoever was stuck as her soulmate. Even if she was kinda mean no one should be alone, and she bet that Weiss was probably mean because she was so lonely. In fact, when things calmed down she was going to track the white haired girl down and make her a friend, since everyone needed a friend. Besides, with Weiss she might actually have someone worse at making friends than her around!

“Ruby Rose!” Goodwitch called.

Ruby eeped and jumped, dropping her card and having to pause to scoop it up before she could run up to the front where Goodwitch was tapping her foot impatiently. She ignored the derisive laughter for her clumsiness and hurriedly stuck her card in the chalice, biting her lip as it disappeared into the shimmering opalescent magical fluid within.

Ruby felt like her heart was going to explode from her chest, and that was before the chalice flashed gold. She had a soulmate! She couldn't even imagine what they were like. This was the greatest moment of her life!

“Ruby Rose… and Weiss Schnee,” Ozpin read, giving her a warm smile.

“What!?” Yang shouted.

Ruby felt her smile freeze for a moment, before she turned around and looked at the crowd. Her sister and Blake both looked upset, making Ruby shrink into herself, and the unpleasant looks she was getting from the crowd didn't help either. Weiss, her soulmate, was looking at her like a particularly unpleasant bug that had crawled on top of her freshly baked cookies and started doing the can-can.

She swallowed hard, unable to move, until Goodwitch cleared her throat forcefully, making Ruby stumble forward, almost tripping over her own feet as she moved up next to Weiss, taking one of the empty seats beside her. The other girl stiffened up, her perfect posture somehow becoming even more rigid, although she didn't say anything.

“Hey,” Ruby said quietly.

Weiss just gave a disdainful sniff, but she was at least looking at Ruby out of the corner of her eye.

Ruby gave her a nervous smile. “Look… I'm sorry about the whole running into you thing, and the whole Blake ambushing you thing… uh, but… I mean… I hope we can get along.”

“Why?” Weiss asked flatly.

“Well, I mean… we're soulmates,” Ruby said with a smile, which faded as Weiss glared at her.

“I fail to see the relevance of that,” Weiss said. “No Schnee has ever married their soulmate. My father will pick someone for me to be with, so I can assure you that you won't receive one gold piece from my family.”

Ruby's brows furrowed. “What?”

“Look, whatever it is you think you can gain by being with me… you won't get it,” Weiss said.

“That's not… I don't want anything,” Ruby said. “I just… my parents were soulmates. And I remember… they were so happy. I've always wanted that for myself.”

“The world isn't that easy,” Weiss said, standing as the group was dismissed. “Soulmates are nothing but a waste of time.”

“If you thought that, then why'd you watch everyone so closely?” Ruby challenged, but Weiss ignored her as she strutted away, nose in the air.

“Rubes?” Yang said, coming up behind her and putting a hand on her shoulder. “I'm so sorry.”

“Huh?”

“You got her as your soulmate,” Yang said, grabbing her and pulling her into a too tight hug. “I know you really wanted to meet yours, and then this happened.”

Ruby looked down, frowning for a moment, before looking up with determination. “No.”

“No?”

“No,” Ruby said, pulling away from Yang. “Nothing is wrong. I've found my soulmate, and now I just need to convince her to give me a chance.”

“Why would you want her,” Blake said.

“Because she's my soulmate,” Ruby said simply. “Look, I appreciate you guys being worried about me and all, but… she's my soulmate, and that's good enough for me. Now I'm gonna go find her.”

“Wait, Ruby!” Yang shouted, but this time she was the one left behind as Ruby ran out of the room.

Ruby didn't know where to look, but she refused to be dissuaded, running around the school as fast as she could, hoping to spot a glimpse of long white hair. Just when she thought she would never find her she saw someone hunched over under the shadows of a tree next to a small pond. It was only when Ruby got close that she heard soft crying.

“Weiss?”

Her soulmate froze, before wiping her face. “What are you doing here?”

Ruby carefully sat down next to her, although she stared into the pond to give Weiss a little privacy to recover from her crying. As much as she wanted to hug her and make her feel better, she was on thin ice as it was, and she had a feeling that Weiss' pride wouldn't let her accept being comforted. “You're my soulmate. Where else would I be?”

Weiss scoffed. “I already told you, this is meaningless. We're never going to be each others anything, no matter what a glorified cup says. So why don't you just go away and leave me alone.”

“Nope,” Ruby said.

“What?!”

“Jeez you're so loud,” Ruby grumbled, before finally looking at her. “Weiss… why are you so against this?”

“I already told you, this is meaningless,” Weiss scoffed. “Look, even if soulmates and that stupid chalice are real, my father would never allow us to have any sort of relationship.”

“But what about what you want?” Ruby asked.

Weiss blinked. “What I want?”

“Yeah,” Ruby said. “You told me what your father thinks, but what about you? Do you want a soulmate?”

“There's no such thing.”

Ruby rolled her eyes. “Come on, Weiss. I saw the way you watched people putting their names in the chalice. I know you wanted someone. Am I really that bad?”

Weiss hesitated, a sharp retort on her lips, before she looked away. “Bad enough,” she grumbled, but it lacked the force of her earlier complaints.

“Look, we're at Beacon, right?” Ruby said. “Even if your parents don't like soulmates, they wouldn't pull you out just because of this, would they? I mean, graduating from here will really help your magic and stuff, so wouldn't they let you stay?”

“Unless I bring shame on my family,” Weiss said. She didn't actually say that Ruby had the potential to be that, but Ruby felt her stomach churn at the implication.

She pushed that thought away and reached over slowly, giving Weiss a chance to retreat before carefully taking her hand. It was so soft and delicate, making her heart pound in her chest just from something so simple. “Then I'll be good enough they won't say anything! I'll work super hard, and they won't be able to be upset with you hanging around someone at the top of their class, right?”

“Maybe.”

“See, and we can get to know each other,” Ruby continued. “Before you know it you'll be like, 'wow, that Ruby is so awesome, and I'm glad I'm her soulmate.'”

“I will never say such a thing,” Weiss said with a sniff.

Ruby grinned. “Just you wait. I'm going to make you so happy you won't be able to believe you tried so hard to keep me away.”

“Why?” Weiss asked, staring into her eyes, obviously searching for something. “Why do you want this so badly?”

Ruby smiled at her warmly. “Because I want to be happy, and nothing could make me happier than being with a happy soulmate.”

Weiss finally looked away. “F-fine. If that's what you want to do I'm not going to stop you. Just don't expect things to work out so easily!”

Ruby grinned, squeezing Weiss' hand, which she noticed the other girl had never let go of. “Nothing easy is worth having.”

Weiss harrumphed but didn't say anything. She did, however, tighten her grip as well.

[kingofbluebell]

Top Physical Anime Releases of 2016

I wish I could spend this entire month making "Best of the Year" lists for 2016, but unfortunately, it would be disingenuous to do so. Most of the media I consumed this year was either older or just not strong enough for me to promote. However, there is a year-end list that is entirely made up of content not released in 2016 I consumed that I can put out: A List of my "Ten Favorite Anime Home Video Releases". That’s an overly specific title, but pedantry is something that comes with the territory. I am by no means an expert in the field of disk encoding nor would I say I’m well versed in all the goings on with the way anime is distributed, this is just a list containing the anime I was happy to see got a release or a re-release this year with a few honorable mentions. I’m also limiting this list to North American releases, only because I have even less knowledge of other regions' anime markets. Since this post is rather long, I’ve provided a list of the anime I’m going to cover here making it easier for you to search for a particular title.

Table of Contents

Shirobako (Honorable Mention)

Maria the Virgin Witch (Honorable Mention)

Otaku no Video

Belladonna of Sadness

Gundam Thunderbolt

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time

Dai-Guard

The Vision of Escaflowne

Dennou Coil

Only Yesterday

Getter Robo Armageddon

Sword of the Stranger

Shirobako: As impressive as this show is I wouldn't call the anemic release it got this year a must buy. A shame as the release and popularity of Shirobako in the West has aided in the significant change happening to the western anime fandom in recent years. The show opened a lot of eyes to the struggles inherent in creating anime, leading to a greater appreciation of the medium as a whole. I've seen it spur on people already present in a community branch out and diversify the type of content and critique that gets produced about the medium. These claims may be a bit unsubstantiated, but I’ve known a lot of people who after watching and enjoying Shirobako got a fire lit under them to really dive in and give back to the community/industry more than they had before. The knowledgeable and passionate members of our community are creating more content than ever that help breaks down the barriers between consumers and creators that appeared to exist for decades. Slowly we’re coming together to support these fans turned scholars and the medium of anime more and I can’t wait to see what 2017 brings to the table in this way. Unfortunately, as I mentioned earlier, my hyperbolic statements about Shriobako and what it may or may not have done for this community aren't reflected in this two-part Sentai Filmworks release (nor could they ever realistically be). With the show available to stream currently on Crunchyroll as well as Sentai’s oft-forgotten The Anime Network and its license nowhere near close to expiring this is a show you don’t need to run out and buy immediately. Frankly, if you’re still fanatical about the show you probably bought a bunch of character goods or the second pressing of the Japanese Blu-rays. I bought this domestic release an impulse buy because Amazon has decent pre-order discount and I had the leftovers of a birthday gift card. For everyone else who wants to buy I suggest you wait until Sentai inevitably releases a complete series set.  

Maria the Virgin Witch: Another impulse buy, this the result of a Rightstuf.com holiday sale daily deal, but one I’m less regretful supporting early. What pushed me over the edge to buy it is because I am almost certain this gem of the Winter 2015 season will continue to be overlooked. It may be in part due to its title or the fact that a lot of anime fans tend to check out during the winter season. Either way, this show about a witch in an alternate history version of a European conflict is far more engaging and endearing than the one that aired in 2016 (though those are the only similarities between Maria and Izetta I swear). I want to talk about this show for the blog this year, so I don’t want to spoil too much. I will say that you can currently stream it through Funimation or Hulu and with Funimation’s partnership with Crunchyroll I’m sure it will enter their catalog as well next year (which would be a good time to release whatever I’ve written about it). Until then this show is destined to reach Funimation’s S.A.V.E. line in the coming years as a lot of good shows, unfortunately, do in this era of overwhelmingly huge anime seasons.

Otaku no Video: Probably the most impressive complete package I bought this year, Animeigo’s remaster of this classic OVA/Live-Action documentary by studio Gainax is pure shelf candy. I had slept on their remastering of Bubblegum Crisis, but I was enthusiastic in backing their second Kickstarter to give this essential commentary on fan culture the high-definition treatment it deserved. This limited edition comes in a solid chipboard box and includes an 180+ artbook on top of the additional audio commentaries, liner notes and three language tracks provided in the standard Blu-ray release. Though OVA itself looks better than it ever has the documentary, being not shot on 35mm film, looks decidedly more dated but less compressed than it did on the older DVD release. Robert Woodhead and everyone involved deserve high praise for the package they put together, and I would suggest any anime collector to grab the standard Blu-ray copy if they are the least bit interested. While I came from the generation of anime fans that grew after this project, I still find the topics it brings up relevant to fan culture today. There are numerous anime now that star “Otaku” now but the reasoning for almost all of those shows to do so is purely self-referential. The main character/characters are “Otaku” because the writer is one, and it gives them carte blanche to so how genre savvy they are to their majority otaku audience. Very few of these shows tackle the issues brought up about fan culture, and instead the "Otaku" character archetype has become so emblematic that it’s almost become a necessary cliche for a lot of writers to fall back on. So when I see shows that set out to address fan culture it makes me elated to watch. Shows like Genshiken, Welcome to the N.H.K. Comic Party and even Lucky Star to an extent come from a more genuine place. Whether this place is a more critical or celebratory doesn’t matter to me as it does to a lot of other fans and Otaku no Video clear cut between the fun-loving OVA and the far more sobering documentary may turn off some viewers. Sure both halves aren’t as seamlessly melded together as in later series but they are two halves of an essential whole, and I urge you to watch both if you haven't to gain the full experience.

Belladonna of Sadness: I adore this film and relish in its beautiful restoration, but I’m at a loss for words with how to sell it to those not already in the know. Conceptually Belladonna of Sadness your straightforward rape revenge story but its presentation is anything but, not only in the realm of anime but animation as a whole. Belladonna is the final of the three Animerama films made by Osamu Tezuka’s Mushi Productions, a project that aimed to create more adult-oriented animation. It’s by far the shortest of the three films and, from what I believe is due in part to Tezuka’s lack of involvement, by far the most serious. Still, it shares the trilogy's real sense of wanting to experiment with animation on top of showcasing more mature storylines. Belladonna tale is shown through ornate watercolor stills, their elegance worthy of presenting in any art gallery. Despite showcasing limited animation for an animated feature the use of these still images through cinematography manages to make its tale no less poignant. However, in movement Belladonna is a surreal journey unlike anything on celluloid. The closest comparison I have are some of the films of Ralph Bakshi but even the most psychedelic of his sequences appear far more grounded than Belladonna’s phallic parade. The use of color and sound in these moments would be electrifying by themselves, but given the stationary nature of the film these energetic and unearthly sequences stand out even more. Despite all my praise, I understand that not everyone is as willing as I am to watch a 1970s, experimental, anime rape-revenge flick that is made up of mostly watercolor paintings let alone run out to purchase it. Luckily Amazon has it for streaming for Prime members so if you’d like to try it before adding it to your collection or just want to watch something daringly different be my guest.  

Gundam Thunderbolt: In a year where Nozomi was putting out a Gundam release every month, fans of the long time mecha franchise, such as myself,  were downright spoiled for choice when it came to collecting the series on home video. If I was a more die-hard fan I could have made a list consisting of almost nothing but Gundam titles, but I decided to have one release represent the franchise this year. I could have chosen traditional favorites such as Zeta Gundam, 0080 War in the Pocket or Char’s Counterattack. The oft-maligned ZZ Gundam or underrated series like Victory Gundam and After War Gundam X, surprising newcomers in Gundam Build Fighters and Gundam Build Fighters Try are also appealing buys. The glorious trainwreck known as Reconguista in G was at points calling my name to defend it here and if I really wanted to send I could have even chosen the excellent adaptation of Gundam: The Origin which came in some lavishly designed art boxes. However, if I had purchased all of these this year, even taking advantage of every sale and discount possible,  I’d have been downright broke. Besides, I have a much better candidate. Gundam Thunderbolt December Sky, the compilation of the previously released four episodes, is probably the biggest piece of fanservice anime I’ve seen so far this decade. From the action choreography to the mechanical design and fluid animation all nestled in a dour military plot where neither side is the clearly in the right: This is the stuff of Gundam fans' dreams. Thunderbolt demands to be viewed in the highest definition possible, its excellent jazz soundtrack and overall sound design pleading for an appropriate surround system and this minimalistic Blu-ray release doesn't disappoint on that front. Where it does, however, is in the included dub. A dub little to most Gundam fans, especially those willing to import a Blu-ray movie, but after coming off one of the best dubs this decade, Gundam Unicorn, this is a real letdown. I’m sure this will still go over well when this eventually airs on Toonami, but I think this could have been casted a lot better. As of this writing, Gundam Thunderbolt isn’t legally streaming anymore, but hopefully when the planned second season comes out, the original will be made available either through streaming or a domestically released Blu-ray. It may be too much to ask most people to shell out for, but this right here is one of the best looking series this decade. Truly a high point for anime and animation in general. Plus one of the leaflets included in this box announces the Japanese release date for the Mobile Fighter G Gundam Blu-rays, which means they can’t be too far out from releasing domestically. I can’t wait to experience that beautifully godawful dub again, this time in high definition.

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time: Shinkai’s first non-franchise film initially came to the West with far less fanfare as his name carries now. Sure there were fans of Digimon Adventure: Our War Game! And One Piece Film 6: Baron Omatsuri and the Secret Island but the cultural cache behind the director's name hadn’t exploded yet. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time changed that and probably lead to Funimation’s decision to pick up the rights and heavily market his next film Summer Wars, a film which increased his level of notoriety to the point where people began calling him “The Next Miyazaki”. While still beloved post Summer Wars, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time had the unfortunate distinction of being one of the last anime Bandai Visual had licensed before they closed up shop. The film’s popularity combined with the small print run the Blu-ray received lead to massive price gouging on the secondhand market even for the more readily available DVD copy. Having already acquired the rights to Summer Wars, Wolf Children, and the then upcoming The Boy and the Beast it seemed clear to everyone that a Funimation relicense of this film wasn’t far off. In the meantime, many in the collecting community decided to purchase the frankly stunning South Korean Blu-ray set, though others including myself waited for a far cheaper domestic copy. I bought the standard release although Funimation released a limited edition version as well that I hear doesn't compare favorably when up against the previously mentioned South Korean release. Either way, this major film from a now well-established director has finally been made available again so it can reach the wider audience he has now. Funimation’s release comes with a number of extras on the disks the most valuable being the two interviews with Hosoda. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time might not be in my upper echelon of anime films, but it’s certainly one I enjoy on occasion, even with my general lack of interest in time travel and I'm glad to have it back in my collection in an affordable higher fidelity.

Dai-Guard: In this modern era of anime where new giant robot shows, outside Gundam, are infrequent it sure was kind of Discotek Media to redistribute this forgotten title in the genre. Imagine if events similar to those in Neon Genesis Evangelion occurred except that N.E.R.V. was not a ludicrously well-funded organization and instead had a budget similar to many of our real-life underfunded government organizations. Yes, the angel-like, amorphous threat known as the Heterodyne have returned after humanity's destructive confrontation with them twelves years prior but the only weapon capable of defeating them, the robot Dai-Guard, has seen better days. Now used as a mascot for the military Dai-Guard is barely able to make it through a battle without falling apart. This somewhat more comedic take on alien lifeforms set to destroy earth is one of the many things that set Dai-Guard apart from the many anime the share its premise. Unlike a lot of those anime, however, Dai-Guard is piloted by three people and their conflicting personalities and interpersonal stories, along with those of the rest of the 21st Century Defense Security Corporation add a lot of the flavor and weight to the series. The ensemble cast is what makes Dai-Guard more than your average giant robot show and anyone who's been a fan of office comedies, both in and outside anime, in the past decade will find a lot to enjoy here. Dai-Guard itself, while not the most memorable robot in anime history, is well designed and its signature weapons lead to some very well done fights. This show's more light-hearted tone acts as a nice reprieve in between watching more heady programming, for example, I decided to give this show a rewatch after watching Casshern Sins, and it worked wonderfully as a palate cleanser. As always Discotek does an excellent job maintaining the quality of the original release as well as shipping it in solid packaging. The original dub from the ADV release is here and is on par with what they usually produced back in those days. Overall Dai-Guard isn’t the flashiest show, but much like its titular robot it manages to hold itself together to deliver a satisfying punch to fans of a currently underserved genre.

The Vision of Escaflowne: There was and still is a lot of drama in the anime collectors community surrounding the re-release of this well-loved anime from Sunrise. Funimation’s successful Kickstarter to redub the series was already showing warning signs before funding ended and their handling of the aftermath left a lot of people with a bad taste in their mouths. Needless to say, I doubt they’ll consider using crowdfunding again. I was unable to back the project and therefore I wasn’t privy to a lot of the discussion that took place about it. From what I managed to glean, unfortunately, it looks like an actual resolution hasn’t been met which is a shame that will continue cloud this release. Escaflowne was a huge deal in the western anime fandom upon its initial release and while it’s time in the limelight isn’t as constant as its contemporary Cowboy Bebop it is by no means a show that has aged poorly. Sunrise did an excellent job remastering this title in the Japanese release a few years ago, and the show has never looked better. I’m a bit biased toward the style of the show, being a huge fan of Nobuteru Yuki’s character designs since Chrono Cross, and when you add giant robots into the mix, you have a show that hits me right in the sweet spot. Top it all off with one of Yoko Kanno’s most celebrated scores, and you have a series poised to remain a staple in the western anime fandom for decades to come. As far as the new dub is concerned, it is certainly more up to the standards of new anime dubbing than the original, included with Bandai’s release. I never had a fondness for the original, so I can’t say I miss it. Nevertheless, I’ll still be sticking to the original Japanese for this show, unlike so many other Sunrise shows from this period. If this new dub is capable of bringing in more modern fans to enjoy this classic, then I am all for it supplanting the old one. I’m a bit disheartened that due to the new dub Funimation decided to split the series initially like they do with a lot of their newer acquisitions of similar length. They could have charged the combined price and kept everything in one box, but I guess that’ll happen when this show gets reprinted for their Anime Classics line. In the end, I’m for more people viewing this stunning show however possible either through purchasing these physical sets or streaming through Funimation and hopefully Crunchyroll sometime this year. Despite all of the mishegas, I’m glad to add this series again to my collection. However, I decided not to purchase Escaflowne: The Movie. The movie itself is an odd duck, being a pseudo-compilation movie that also alters many characters and events not just for the sake of time. I tend to find a lot of these movies rather substandard, the exception being The Adolescence of Utena which I have grown to enjoy over time and will be pleased to repurchase along with the rest of the series on Blu-ray in 2017. As for Escaflowne: The Movie I may pick it up for the sake of completion but only further down the road when it’s discounted.

Den-Noh Coil: 2016 was going to be the year that I began importing a lot of anime as domestic licensers were either slow or unable to distribute the shows I wanted. Many these series were made available by Australian publisher Siren Visual, whom I’ve purchased from before to get my copy of Welcome to Irabu’s Office. Luckily Sentai Filmworks stepped in to begin distributing a handful of Siren's catalog in Region A including this one (now if only they or anyone would license Monster or Kaiba). Den-Noh Coil had been a show that struck a chord with me when I found it online in 2008 and was one of the big things I shared with my college anime club when I was asked to run nights. I held out hope that the show would officially available in English, but that wish and the little fanfare the show received subsided as the years continued.  It’s a shame the series and its talented creator Mitsuo Iso haven’t become household names, and I’m hoping this late release can help restart the conversation about both. What surprised me most about this release from Sentai Filmwork’s Maiden Japan imprint is that they decided to dub it, and I honestly think it isn’t half bad. I rewatched the first handful of episodes dubbed and while North America’s limited anime VA talent limits it (as it does almost every modern dub) I’d hazard to say it tops Maria the Virgin Witch’s for my personal choice for best dub of the year. Unlike Maria’s I find the dubbing of this show far more important as I genuinely think this is a good show for younger children. The kids in this show look and act like kids and while it gets a bit dark in places there is nothing here that I think would frighten kids more than the cavalcade of horrors I saw growing up watching Don Bluth movies. I also see this show as a good candidate to ease your older friends and family into anime as there isn’t anything here I’d consider objectionable or embarrassing. Besides, a lot of the concepts in this show are moving far closer to the realm of possibility than they were a decade ago. Wearable computers, virtual reality and the omnipresence of technology and how it meshes with where we live are far more relevant topics than they ever were in 2007 due to how tangible all these ideas are to us now especially with kids who grew up only knowing smartphones and tablets. I’m glad I got to revisit this show recently, and I’m hoping more people do in the coming years so I can talk about it with someone. It’s only available to stream through The Anime Network for now but hopefully, some other site (Crunchyroll) will be able acquire it as well.

Only Yesterday: It makes sense that this would be the last of the major Studio Ghibli films to see release in North America. A movie about the growing ennui of a late 20-something business woman isn’t something you can easily sell to kids, especially when there isn’t a randomly inserted fantasy sequence such as with the similarly tonal Whisper of the Heart. Still, as I hasten to reach the age of our protagonist Taeko Okajima I’ve only found this film more relatable and it has managed to climb the ranks of my personal “Ghibli Hierarchy”. There was a lot of buzz around this Disney dub starring The Force Awakens' lead Daisy Ridley, but I can’t say I’ve listened to this one yet. I can assure you that the mixed reactions  I've heard and read from a lot of people haven't affected my decision to do so. My reasoning for not listening to it is rather simple: I don't want to watch a film grounded in 1980s Japan with English voices. The dub is there for those who want it, and if it manages to get more people to see this movie, then it was worth making. Only Yesterday is a fantastic film worthy of placement in your collection alone, but the over 40-minute making-of documentary included in its extra features make it a must buy for anyone interested in animation production or Studio Ghibli.  Not only does this cover a lot of the movie's unique production aspects of the film but the culture of Studio Ghibli at the turn of the decade. Being filmed around Only Yesterday’s 1991 release this is relatively early in the studio’s life, so it’s an excellent snapshot of this period. Being one of Takahata's films we see a great deal of him and his worth ethic both in animation directing and with running the studio, something we, unfortunately, don’t get a lot of due to the cult of personality surrounding Hayao Miyazaki. Of course, Miyazaki is prominently featured here, as well, and this being the early 90s he’s relatively less cynical. Being able to own this documentary that I’ve watched for a number of years is great, and I’m thankful the folks at Disney went out of their way to acquire it again for this release. It's a sizable contribution that makes an already great package truly stellar.

Getter Robo: Armageddon: I tend to have horrible luck when it comes to purchasing old media. Most times I buy something that’s long out of print it gets announced for a re-release within the next few weeks. Getter Robo: Armageddon would surely have been another one of those cases had I not checked Facebook to see Discotek Media’s announcement. I used to show this one as well in my college anime club, and a lot of the folks who were Gurren Lagann fans ate it up. For months I had been waiting for this action-packed OVA to be released in high definition, getting jealous of those who attended summer cons grabbing and early print copies. This gritty, high-octane giant robot show is an enjoyable romp from beginning to end. The remaster not only makes the colors pop, but the improved sound makes all the action scenes for me, that and most of the episodes starting with the second opening HEATS doesn’t hurt either. This entire series scratches that itch for hot-blooded fun and looks marvelous doing it. I’m always happy to support a company like Discotek because time and again they release quality products and Getter Robo: Armageddon is no exception. After the anime crash in the late 2000s, I thought a company like Discotek that only licensed older anime would be a flash in the pan. With every box set and movie, I buy from them I'm reminded how wrong I was in my assumption. Their 2017 lineup is already looking stellar and the fact they announce new licenses almost every other month shows how strong they’ve become.

Sword of the Stranger: You might wonder why I’ve taken a photo of the older Bandai release instead of Funimation’s recent reprinting. This is because despite the Funimation release getting a dub I didn’t feel the need to rebuy something I already owned on Blu-Ray. I’ve heard the dub is fair and the extra features are nice, but neither are spectacular enough for me to double dip so early. Nevertheless, I wanted to bring attention to this great action film’s re-release and if you read until this point in the post you know I’ve already spent my fair share on anime this year so cut me some slack. Sword of the Stranger one of the first names brought up when anime fans want to showcase a great action scene. The choreography the folks at Studio Bones nailed down here is outstanding and worthy of any action showcase. Fans of Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood should be elated in finally getting access to this movie again as that series owes a lot to the style of action created for this film. Not only that but the film as a whole is a solid feature: a simple samurai story told well. There isn’t anything revolutionary going on here plotwise, and the characters are familiar archetypes though not to a fault. It isn’t trying to deconstruct its themes and characters for critique. Rather it comes off as a slick action movie that effortless falls into the greater chanbara canon. I appreciate this film's simplistic approach. It makes for easy sharing with friends and family who don’t usually watch a lot of anime. Sometimes all I want is a good self-contained action movie and Sword of the Stranger delivers and then some even a decade later. My only reservation about picking this one up now is that somehow Funimation failed to include subtitles for the Chinese dialogue, something included in the Bandai release I own. I'm hoping that with the release being so recent and the mistake pointed out that it will be fixed in newer pressings and that those who picked it up early can get exchanges. Maybe 2017 will be the year Funimation also revamps its attitude toward quality assurance? Here's hoping because I'd hate for a great film like this to be dragged down by an easily fixed mistake.

By now I’ve written more than enough about the anime on home video (re)published in 2016. Not only that but some well-beloved classic titles have already been announced for release (again) next year. Featuring plenty of Gundam, Revolutionary Girl Utena Blu-Rays, Urusei Yatsura: Beautiful Dreamer, Captain Harlock: Arcadia of my Youth and if we're lucky more popular Sunrise shows. 2017 looks to be an even better year for those of us who relish in collecting disks and I'll be there, my bank account willing, ready to enjoy it.

See you next week.

[propertyofdarklink-blog]

I looked into his eyes and saw tears. I had tried to explain to him that if I died then so did everything else. I knew he wouldn’t understand it, because by now tears were streaming down his face and he looked at me with pure sorrow. He told me that the thought of me being connected to everything was just something I made up. A child, that’s what he called me. He wiped his eyes and stood up. Not bothering to make a sound. He started to walk away but I told him...I told him about everything I knew. I told him about my parents, about how I was kept a secret for all of my younger years, and about how it for some reason hurt Shiro when we touched.  But even as I said it, I knew that it wasn't the whole truth. I had been told so many secrets by my own family, that I could never tell the whole truth. He looks at me and says, “I don’t believe you. Why should I? Your just a fourteen year old girl who doesn’t understand.” At these words I responded in my on way of grieving and sorrow. I could only think of one thing and it was about to leave me alone forever. I grabbed his hand and it was like everything I had just said didn’t matter. I pulled him back to me and said, “What’s the point in believing when I can’t prove it. You’re right that i’m just fourteen but your wrong...I understand now because I don’t care about anything, because  being alive doesn’t matter without you. After everything we have been through together I realize I was just being stupid. I love you Izaya. I can’t live without you…” He looks at me and I see him force a smile. I let go of his hand and he says, “Marina...I always knew you felt this way but why go through so much pain for just one person. This is the last day we will see each other. It won’t make a difference now like it would have back then.” I stand there in tears and I say, “No...it does make a difference, because we won’t have to keep being scared. I don’t care what I have to do to keep you here...I couldn’t see it then, but if you let me prove to you I care will you stay?” He looks at me and I realize he just couldn’t understand or take in what I was trying to say. He was overwhelmed and I felt like I was the cause. I stop and look off to the side. I feel as if it was just too little too late. I could have made him stay if I would have just stopped being scared. All thoughts of hurting Shiro left my mind and I look back up at Izaya. I walk up to him and he says, “If we go through with this what will we have to remember? If we never see each other again then what is the point?”

I stop thinking and I kiss him. It was nothing big but a kiss on the lips but I ran. I ran and didn’t look back, because I knew at that moment I couldn't keep them all safe. I was the one they needed protection from, because they always seemed to get hurt through me. I stop running and drop to my knees. I cry and stare at the ground. I put my entire family in danger because I told Izaya everything. I knew that I would have to explain to Shiro what happened but there was nothing I felt anymore. It was just an empty void I didn’t know how to fill. Thoughts filled my mind of what Izaya could have been thinking. He could have just left but he didn’t. He stayed put while everything hit me at once, and while I told him things I didn’t even know I felt. The silence only made it harder to get over, but I stood up and walked back inside. I couldn’t bring myself to make eye contact with anyone while I walked down the hall. I just decided that if he wanted to leave there was nothing I could do to stop him. I hated it. The feeling of love. The way it made you want to be with someone so desperately even though you knew it wouldn’t be anything but a dream. How you think someone loves you until they choose to leave you. I think about what else I could have said when he approaches me in the hall. He stops me and I hear the sadness and anger in his voice, “You should have told me this sooner. I would have understood but now I am about to leave and I can’t get you out of my head.” I say in a tone of pure regret, “I shouldn't have told you. It would make this easier and we could have just moved on but I would have never been able to feel the same as when I have you. I’m sorry that this has to be goodbye.” He hugs me so tightly I thought he was trying to cut off my blood flow. His voice becomes shaky when he says, “I don’t want to leave you. I want to be with you every day despite the fact we will never be able to see one another. I keep seeing you flash through my mind and I turned you down because I didn’t want to make things more painful. I am so sorry, but I can’t stop the move. I promise we’ll see each other again, but until then I want you to have this.” He hands me two chess pieces, one was a king and the other was a queen. The same hand carved pieces Izaya used on his chess board. I hold them as if they would shatter in my hand if I closed it. I slide the pieces into my pocket and say, “Until now I didn’t realize what love was. I thought it was a petty emotion and a waste of time and then you just decide to show up. I was told that people come into our lives for a reason...either they’re a blessing, or a lesson. You were always both.” Izaya lets go and says, “When you see him, tell Shiro I’m sorry for the pain.” He kisses my forehead, gathers his things and then walks out the door. Everyone starts yelling, “Why are you standing there!? Chase him! Make him stay!” I block them out and reach into my pocket. I pull out the chess pieces and study them. I see carved into the bottom were two names, Izaya Orihara, Marina belladonna almost like he was expecting this. But to me the game was far from over. In fact, it was just beginning. I watch Izaya walk away but I start running. I run up to him and grab his arm. He stops and says, “Marina? I told you I have to—”

“—No, you could stay with me. We have an extra bedroom and a guest bedroom if you need it. Just move your stuff in there. I don’t want you to go yet because I still need you. I just want you to stay for one more day. We can hang out until the sun sets and then i’ll let you leave but i’m not ready yet Izaya. I can’t feel like this and then just let you leave. That isn’t how our game is played.”

Izaya looks at me and grabs my hand. He leans in and softly kisses my forehead. He brushes my hair out of my face and says, “I’ll stay till the end of the day and then we have to say goodbye.” I nod and we just stand there in the school parking lot as if nothing around us was there. Like we were the only two here at all. He hugs me and we just stand there, feeling each other's presence. Then, I see someone running towards us at top speed. It takes a second to realize who it is, but it's a shock once I see it. Akise is running up the sidewalk and then, instead of stopping when he gets to us, he rams straight through us, knocking Izaya on the pavement. “What was that for!” I ask in utter shock, as he picks himself up off the ground and makes sure to keep Izaya pinned there. My anger wells up inside me, so strong it's almost like there is another person inside me, purposefully screwing me up. I start lunging towards Akise, but what he says next stops me in my tracks. “Marina! Shiro is dying!” I knew that it hurt him when we touched, but I didn't realize it was that bad. I see Izaya’s expression turn shameful, and he hides his face. I start sprinting off towards home. I've got to do something. Something to make up for all the pain. When I reach home to my utter surprise the cards have made their way across the table shifting and moving from each group. I don’t pay it attention until I notice Shiro’s card nearly turned over. I race to his room and find him lying on the floor gasping for breath and drained of life.

[azureseraph]

An Unexpected Adventure

The previous company was a little… unlucky, so I’ve decided to mess with it a bit. Added an extra character. Tried to make it a little better, a little more lucky to see if it helps the ending. Not to mention I completely took the timeline of Hobbiton and scrambled it, destroyed any semblance of the original characters and made them O.O.C. There will be death. Loss. Heartache. Oh also I hope to throw in some Thilbo if I decide to continue. Here’s the beginning draft.

>>>>

Belladonna sat on the little stone bench that rested in front of her smial. Her fingers curled around her pipe as she drew in a breath. Withdrawing the old wooden pipe from her mouth Belladonna blew out a series of smoke rings. The slight shuffle of wind blew the near perfect circles thinner and thinner until the rings disintegrated into the air.

“You know, Bungo m’dear,” Belladonna smiled at the rings, “Bilbo has yet to master the art of smoke rings.” She giggled at the memory of watching her young son practicing blowing the smoke from his pipe when he thought she wasn’t around. Oh he tried so hard. Practicing until he grew dizzy. He had thrown his little wooden pipe down and smacked his head against a tree, growling in frustration.

Puffing some more on her pipe, Bella gestured towards the small grave marker that lay on the other side of her. “He’ll get there one day. Just you wait n’see!”

Bungo was her beloved departed husband and the father of her child. He was the love of her life and at one point the center of her small world. With the birth of their son she had learned to transition her center to include the two of them. With the death Bungo her center became uneven. It felt like a carriage with only three wheels constantly tipping from one end to the other, unbalancing and nearly toppling over.

Closing her eyes , she raised her chin to soak in the sun. A small grin overtook her frown as she basked in the first real heat of spring. It was on days like this that Bella was able to imagine Bungo was with her, caressing her cheek like he used to do. She could even picture him sitting next to her laughing away at her story about Bilbo.

“Bella, my love,” He would say jovially. “Bilbo is half Took! Well of course he’d get it one day. You Tooks never did like not being able to do something. Especially once you’ve set your minds to it! Just wait an’ see he’ll be the best ring puffer this side of the shire!”

“Aye,” she whispered back to the imagined voice, “we’ve raised our son well.” Her smile turned sad. Tears stung at her eyes as she lowered her head in grief. And within those few seconds the sun no longer held the warmth of her departed husband. A chill crept through her body despite the heat of the spring air around her. Now her pipe lay forgotten in her hand as it rested on her knee. Bella screwed her eyes tighter together as her heart gave out a stuttered beat.

A choked sob broke through her lips. Unconsciously she turned her head away from his gravestone. She pressed the back of her hand to her mouth blocking any more unwary sobs from coming through.

Three years since his death and yet the pain that consumed her made it feel like it was only that morning that he passed. She bit down hard on her knuckles as another surge of grief washed over her.

Honestly if she wasn’t a Took she would be ashamed of the blatant unrespectableness of her actions. By sweet Yavanna what would dear old Lobelia Sackville-Baggins think of her? At this Belladonna snorted. Just what would her favorite cousin think?

Here she was crying in her front yard for all of Hobbiton to see! No respectable Hobbit would dare shame themselves so. Oh undoubtly not! A Hobbit must always behave with the utmost level of respectableness while in the public’s eye. With their nose stuck high in the air and their clothes neatly primed and pressed. Definitely a respectable Hobbitess would not be sitting in her front yard in wrinkled dirt smeared trousers all the while crying and smoking a pipe. No siree!

Belladonna burst out in gleeful giggles. They started deep in her belly bubbling their way up her throat and passed her lips. She threw her golden topped head back joyously as her laughter consumed her.

Imagining Lobelia’s affronted face was always enough to send her into fits of giggles. Her body shook as she pictured Lobelia standing in front of her with her hands on her hips and her lips pursed out resembling themselves almost as if she were a duck. Her nose would crinkle in the most unbecoming way as her green eyes narrowed in disgust. It was the exact face she always wore when Belladonna, or even Bilbo, did something that was less than respectable.

A new image of Belladonna being an actual respectable Hobbit entered her mind. She was in a light spring dress, her golden locks curled gently to frame her face and pulled back into a neat bun, a freshly baked pie in one hand. While the other waved happily to invite, an imaginary, Lobelia inside for afternoon tea. No pipe or trousers in sight.

Bella flung herself backwards with the sheer force of her laughter. She slipped right off the stone bench to sprawl undignified into the grass below.

It was like this that Gandalf found her. With her legs wrapped up and over the bench while the rest of her body contorted in mirth on the dirt covered ground. Pipe ash flew from her pipe and dusted her face and torso as she waved it madly about. Mad Baggins indeed!

“Is everything alright?” The gray wizard questioned as he leaned upon his staff.

Bella peeked open on eye to stare at her old friend, “Quite well in fact my dear old friend.”

The wizard smiled down at the Hobbitess as he waited for her to right herself. After a few moments it became clear to him that she would not be making such a decision. Clearing his throat he said, “I wish to find someone in which to share in an adventure.”

“Oh?” Her response was lackluster in its reply. “Mayhaps you should go down the way and ask upon one Lobelia Sackville-Baggins.” The sheer thought of Lobelia venturing a mere step out of the Shire sent Belladonna into another laughing fit.

The gray robbed wizard frowned down at her, “What has happened to the Belladonna that used to jump at the opportunity to come along for an adventure?”

Belladonna stopped laughing at that. When she was a fauntling she had pleaded with Gandalf to leave the Shire and go see the rest of Arda. He took her on many adventures. As far as the Sea of Rhûn, to Gondor. Then one day he just never came back.  A scowl twisted on her face as she sneered at the agely wizard. She could no longer tolerate the old man. One too many hopes and dreams were extinguished by the Maiar.

In one (less than graceful) move, Bella jerked to her feet and stormed towards her wooden door. As she marched away from the Maiar she caught sight of her husband’s grave from the corner of her eye. She stopped in front of her freshly painted green door with her hand outstretched for the doorknob.

She cocked her head towards Bungo’s final resting place. She felt the wind blow through her matted hair. It pulled at her clothes. It seemed to breathe new life into her veins.

In the few moments before she had reached her door she could have sworn she had heard Bungo’s voice once more, “Experience life again.”

Her heart beat erratically at the silent words. It made her skin flush and her body shake.

With wide eyes she turned towards Gandalf. He had both hands curled around his staff with his head gently resting on the side of them. He stared at her with a curious expression on his face, one that she could not name.

“Where…” Belladonna’s mouth felt fuzzy and dry. Licking her lips she tried again, “What exactly would be the adventure?”

Gandalf smirked at her question and said, “This way and that. To see Elves and Dwarves. Trees and mountains. Rivers and Gold.”

“Elves?” She mumbled to herself, “I’ve always wanted to see the Elves.”

“Will you be partaking then?”

“I,” she started. “I’m not saying that I will… but I’m not necessarily saying that I won’t.”

“I see.” The grey wizard spoke softly. He walked slowly towards her. His staff clinked on the cobbled walkway as he approached her. Gandalf raised his staff and scratched three runes upon Belladonna’s door.

Gasping in shock, Belladonna said, “I just had that painted last week!”

The wizard ignored her as he hobbled back towards the gate. Gandalf stopped himself half way, “Oh I had almost forgotten! The Company will be making an appearance for supper.” Pointing at the runes upon her door, he continued, “Those runes are a symbol to the company. It informs them of your interest to join in their company. If you wish to come, best pack your things and hurry. There is not much time to be delaying.”

As Belladonna watched the old wizard hobble down the path of Bagshot Row, she heard a voice again. This time she didn’t think it was Bungo’s. It felt like it came from deep within her heart. She could feel the word clawing its way out practically screaming to be heard.

Once out it came as a whisper.

“Go.”

[beatsbangblog]

Top 5 Indie Artists to Watch for This Month

Music, as they say, is the way to the soul. Its relieving effect cannot be denied. Hence, if your aim is just to relax, dance or sleep while listening to the very best of music you wouldn't go wrong by treating yourself to the very best of indie music this month. Get things cranking this month by listening to assorted songs from your favorite indie artists. Whether you just want to listen to some old school indie songs or a blend of contemporary scintillating music genres, these 5 top indie artists will fulfill your every music fantasy this May. Below are the top 5 indie artists to watch this month:

1. Moses Sumney

What can I say about the ever-emotive voice of Moses Sumney? With his voice, it is almost like creating a melody that is memorable and unforgettable. In his singles and concerts, you hear a Moses Sumney that creates fascinating and evolving beats by infinitely looping his voice with some delicately woven confessional lyrics. The LA-based songwriter is known to convey more intense feeling in a single track than most artists can manage in a full album. Consequently, for music lovers looking for some enchanting music to spice up this month, you will find his hit songs like “Everlasting sigh,” “Lamentations,” “lonely world” and “makes gospel glow” absolutely enchanting. Connect with him on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1uZtgpg and Twitter: @MosesSumney

2. Cherry Glazerr

This rock trio based in LA is a brainchild of a couple of high schoolers from the west side, and their sound is nothing short of entertaining, to say the least. They have out of the box songs like “Grilled Cheese” which promises to electrify this month of May. The icing on the cake is their fresh out of the oven Album “Apocalipstick” which has commanded lots of airplay since its release in January. Every track on that album was a hit back to back. So, if you are looking for an electrifying rock song to spice up this month of May the Cherry Glazzerr’s unapologetic “Apocalipstick” rock album is just perfect for you. Connect on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1mg2Hbt and Twitter: https://twitter.com/cherryglazerr

3. Alexandra Savior

This musical maestro is a force to reckon with. Her musical ingenuity is simply out of this world. For me, her music is simply enchanting and soothing. Her recently released album "Belladonna of Sadness" is a testament to the fact that she puts so much work into creating unforgettable music that her fans can relate to. Songs like "shades," "mirage," "risk," and much more promises to set May on fire for lovers of good music. Connect on Facebook: http://ift.tt/2qJ9NwP

4. Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith

Her impact in the world of music cannot be overlooked. Though trained initially in classical piano and guitar, Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith has most of the time explored the endless possibilities afforded by synthesizers. This has helped her to create orchestral soundscapes for her self-released albums that require no visual to tell their story. Want a feel of music that's so captivating yet relieving? Then her songs like "Riparian," "when I try, I'm full," "rare things grow, " and a host of others promises to make May truly a memorable month for music lovers. Connect on Facebook: http://ift.tt/297CCts

5. Oddisee

2016 was the only year since 2011 that did not see this DC-based rapper release an LP. Nevertheless, his trailblazing singles have continued to dominate the airwaves. For lovers of electrifying rap music and rich lyrical content, you wouldn’t go wrong this month by varying your playlist with some of Oddisee’s finest songs. New tracks like “like really” and “NNGE” would be a good place to start. Connect on FaceBook: http://ift.tt/1ORVDDo and Twitter: https://twitter.com/ODDISEE

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