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#i haven't been able to draw for a while so I can just offer you old stuff
lost-and-ephemeral · 2 months
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HCs: Playing Kitty Cards (ft. Sylus)
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Pairing: Sylus x reader
Tags: pure fluff
A/N: Hi sweethearts! Amelie's here. I haven't been able to write anything due to some personal stuff irl, but this handsome man forced me to return to LnDs community qwq He didn't let me win a single Kitty Card game, I'm furious.
Requests are closed for now, sorry. I'm still recovering, need some time. But you can write some of your suggestions in the comments nonetheless. Remember I'm not native in English!
-`♡´- MASTERLIST -`♡´- 
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Oh dear, this man is a menace.
Sylus reads you like an open book, so he always knows how the game is going to turn out for you.
Will he often give in to you and let you win?
No :)
You will fight for the win as if your life depends on it.
Every actual win against Sylus is a miracle, because most of the time you get a draw. And all this time he's smirking contentedly at the look on your face.
He's simply enjoying the process and wishes the same for you.
“Winning isn't the main point here, kitten. Cheer up.”
And after that, he gets another +12 points, while you don't have a single card you need.
Oh.
Sylus will definitely torture you for his own pleasure, but not too much.
Like I said, he can read your emotions and reactions perfectly. So if you're very upset with the way the game is going, and the spark of excitement is gone from your eyes, he knows what to do.
Yeah, he's offering you a deal. Two of his cards in exchange for one of yours. And Sylus knows exactly which card to choose to leave you with the cards you need to win at least one round.
His show of concern is pretty specific, but he's really trying.
After all, if his own little kitten gets all droopy, it won't be so much fun to tease you anymore.
He won't say it out loud, of course.
Is his kitten still upset in the end?
Don't worry, he'll cook a fancy dinner for you.
“You don't have to worry so much, kitten. It's just a game where a lot depends on luck. And I think I'm just getting a lot luckier with you by my side.”
And, oh, how he loves watching you pout dramatically and cast disapproving glances in his direction. His favotite kitten in this whole cafe.
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© do not repost, translate or modify without permission
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cripplecharacters · 2 months
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Hi there, i have a character in my original story who is blind, specifically because he lost both eyes (one from injury, one from infection at birth). However, he doesn't have access to prosthetic/glass eyes as he lives in a secluded group of warriors. I've been drawing him with a blindfold to protect from infection, but upon reading your posts about eye coverings on blind characters, i'm unsure if this is offensive or not, but i also can't think of a good alternative other than going bare. He is a warrior, so i don't think glasses would stay on for very long, but i'm wondering if maybe goggles would work? Hes not the only blind character i have (one of the others is a born-blind cane user who does not wear glasses) but i still don't want to misrepresent or spread misinformation. Any help would be appreciated, thanks
Hello!
@blindbeta has an excellent post on the subject, which I'll link here [Link].
In your character's case, the cover would serve more for protecting their eyes and less for photophobia or other sensitivities. One of the points that's mentioned heavily in the post is to ask why your character is using a cover for their eyes.
In this case, you've already answered that question. Your character needs to protect their eyes from infection and further damage but doesn't have the option of prosthetics and glasses are inconvenient and could fall off or get in the way.
That being said... wouldn't a blindfold also get in the way?
A blindfold would be more of a problem in combat than a pair of glasses with a strap securing them. A blindfold gives his opponent another way to grab onto him (Think of ponytails) or something else to get caught on.
Also, if the goal is preventing infection, a blindfold would do the opposite here. Fabric is notorious for encouraging the growth of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms. When it's pressed up against your character's eye sockets while they're fighting and sweating, it's also creating a very humid and moist environment.
Back when I was still rock-climbing and would go blindfolded, the blindfold would become gross and sweaty after just a few rounds. I don't even want to think about how it would have been after a day of fighting and adding in the blood and other fluids that would be on it. This can be especially problematic if your character is living in a secluded place where he may not be able to properly wash the blindfold as often as needed.
In general, the goggles (Or a pair of secured glasses) may be a better way to go. They'd be less of a liability in combat and be much more effective at preventing infection than a blindfold would be. There's also the fact that they would be much easier to clean if it ends up being necessary.
Now, you didn't specifically ask about this but I would just like to point out that prosthetic eyes aren't just used for preventing infection. Prosthetic eyes allow you to maintain the function of your eyelid and ensures that your eye socket keeps its shape. Depending on your character's circumstances, this may or may not be a concern for them.
Regardless, I'd definitely suggest looking into this and giving it some thought if you haven't.
Here's a few links to get you started:
A brief article discussing the benefits of prosthetic eyes.
An article that talks about prosthetic eyes in general. It also includes some brief information on prosthetic eyes in the past, which may be of interest to you.
Some FAQs about prosthetic eyes. Most of this is more specific to the current prosthetics offered but has some general info as well.
If you haven't done so already, I'd also advise checking out the linked post from @blindbeta since it has some excellent information about the specific trope.
Cheers,
~ Mod Icaus
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loveswrites · 1 year
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Omg I loved ur poly volturi!!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️ I'm pleading for more!
Uno~ Poly Volturi x reader
Time it took me: I can't even tell you that hell a month? 26 days?
Word count: 1454
To lovely anon: I so happy you loved it! Sorry I took so long I'm trying to get back into my self! Your guys asks always make my day! Just cause I haven't answered doesn't mean That I haven't seen it! I love just about everyone that comes in! <3
Enjoy!
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Poly Volturi x Reader
"That's just stupid." Alec said huffing looking at the table in distaste.
"You have to draw four. That's the rules." You Said shrugging.
You, Alec, Jane, Felix and Demetri were currently playing Uno. It took a while convincing everyone to play. Sure you live in a huge castle with the love of your lives but you are still human. You get bored. While Felix was down to play immediately the others were disinterested in playing with you. You got responses like "That's foolish, I have much better things to do, my love." From Caius.
A simple "No." From Jane.
"I'm sorry but I'm busy right now, beautiful." From Demetri.
"It sounds like a waste of time." From Alec.
You even asked Aro and Marcus. Marcus just straight up said he was too old for that shit in so many words. And Aro said he was too hungry to play games but maybe later. 
All the rejection from everyone put you in a sad mood. It's not like you could have friends in the Castle that wouldn't eat you the moment you get a paper cut. The receptionist is a bitch. And there aren't any more humans you have access to. So the fact that everyone said no you were distant with everyone. They all noticed.
You stopped going to trails with Caius. You stopped attempting to give Jane love. You stopped asking Alec to use his powers so you'd be entertained by the dark fog. You stopped asking Felix for piggyback rides. You stopped attempting to play hide and seek with Demetri. 
It had been days since you spoke more than 2 words at a time to any of them. You knew it was affecting them because of the tension that rested upon the castle in a thick fog. They were quick to temper. Quicker than normal that is. And that's saying a lot. 
Marcus had asked you why you hadn't been to any of the trials lately. As it happened to be one of your favorite parts of the day. "I just haven't been in the mood." You told him. He's been on this godforsaken earth way too long to be able to know when to call bullshit. But nonetheless the less he let it go. 
After that you noticed that your love's would attempt to talk to you more. Not just brushing it off as human attitude as Caius would call it. It was small talk but it was an effort.
"Yes I'm fine Demetrius stop asking me." You huffed slightly irritated.
"Did you eat today?" He questioned a little squint in his eyes.
"Yes I eat everyday." You rolled your eyes, gathering the book you were reading from the cold castle floor you were sitting on.
There was the random corner in the Castle that you would just sit in and watch as people- vampires walked through the halls. It had a lot of traffic coming through it which was what you loved. Cauis had offered to have something built for you so you wouldn't have to sit on the floor all the time. But you would always shake your head and tell him "No, just keep it clean for me please." And so he did.
"I fed today. The humans blood was a bit bitter but nonetheless tasty." Demetrius said following you in your attempts to run away from the conversation. 
"You sound like a child."
"And yet here you are acting like one." He snapped.
"I'm sorry?" You said, stopping in your tracks turning to face him.
"You've had this horrible attitude for almost a week for the stupidest thing!" He stated staring at you with his sharp eyes.
"I have not!" You said in attempts to defend yourself.
"Yes you have, don't bother denying it, the whole castle can smell it!" He yelled.
"The lies you tell!" You practically screamed upset you were getting called out.
"Oh really?" Demetrius questioned before you could even blink he had grabbed you by your waist and next you knew you were in a room full of all your mates.
Once you finally felt your two feet touch the ground you couldn't help but get angry. 
"What the fuck is this an intervention?!" You screamed. 
“If that’s what you want to call it, then so be it.” Jane said in a straightforward tone.
“Oh my god what do you guys want?! I just want to be left alone but you all keep bothering me!” You yelled.
“Us bothering you? You were practically begging for attention a couple of days ago now you want to be left alone? Foolish!” Caius yelled, taking you back a bit.
He would yell but he would refrain from yelling at you the best he could. So him yelling at you right now kinda shocked you.
“You wanted to play that card game the other day right? That was when you started acting like such a brat, so we're going to fix that and play it.” Alec stated holding his head high.
“No thanks, I'm good on that.” You said going to turn around to walk away.
“Sit down!” Your mates yelled collectively making you stop in your tracks.
“Sit down please, I’ll shuffle the cards to start.” Felix said in a softer tone.
That was about an hour ago. To not even wanna be sitting here right now it was quite entertaining watching your mates fight with each other about the fact that another was kicking the others ass. 
“I will do no such thing. I've drawn four four times!” Alec yelled, upset he was losing.
“It’s the rules of the game you have to Alec.” Jane said, rolling her eyes at her brother's temper. She was just happy she was winning. For now..
You were all sitting at a grand dining room table. Well Alec, Jane, Felix, Caius and Demtruis were. You were actually sitting on the table. Caius put you up there in attempts to make it harder for you to run away if you tried. 
You did.
You almost hit your head on the way down. 
“I don’t see the appeal of such a game, the cards don’t make sense.” Cauis said busy reading the rules that were on the back of the box.
“Don’t look at my hand! That’s an immature thing to do!” Dem yelled at Felix who kept leaning over to see what cards Dem had in his hand.
You had won the first round so you were busy spectating.
“Immature!? It’s not like we're taking a test!” Felix yelled back, plopping down in his seat.
“You're trying to cheat!” Dem yelled back furrowing his eyebrows.
“Cheat?! I am no cheater! Tell him Amore mio!” Felix said, turning to face you.
“You were cheating, I saw you.” You said blandly.
“Your human eyes don’t under the actions of mine-”
“Her human eyes are perfectly fine!” Dem yelled coming to your defense.
Tuning yourself out of the conversation-well the constant bickering. You found yourself just watching your mates. All were yelling or frowning about something but you couldn’t help the smile that came to your face. Neither of them could stand human games. They hated it with the most of them. Minus video games Alec, Felix and Dem said that those don’t count. Though you always tell them they do, they insist that they don’t. A fight you could never win. 
All of your mates came together to do one simple thing that you’ve wanted to do for months. Once they saw how much the disconnection to just one human thing hurt you, They came together to try to make you feel wanted and seen. Though they can’t see the appeal at all there trying for you. And that’s all you could ever ask for. 
“That’s not four Alec!” You yelled when you saw him try to cheat his way into just grabbing two cards.
“Oh come on! I’m never going to win!” Alec yelled back.
“Not my problem.”
“Maybe winning is just not in your line of blood.” Cauis said with a slight smirk. 
“What’s that supposed to mean?!” Jane and Alec said at the same time turning their sharp red eyes at Caius.
“I mean-”
“Nope! Nope! Draw two more cards Alec I’ll help you win!” You rushed out attempting to try to keep the peace. Well as much peace as it was going to get in the room.
“That’s not fair!”
“I need help as well, I deserve it!”
“So were picking favorites now?!”
“Felix, stop looking at my cards!”
“You can’t pick sides!”
You can’t even lie to yourself you had missed them so much. And the smile on your face told no lies.
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yeeterthek33per · 4 months
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Sparklers (Kyra Cooney-Cross x Reader)
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A/n Requested. Honestly this one isn't my best work but I just wanted it to be done, so it's not as substantial but I promise I did my best to save it from the clutches of undone WIPs.
Content/Warning(s): Fluff, Kyra being a pest.
-----------------------
When Kyra had first left for Sweden, she'd been adamant that she couldn't leave you behind.
But after many tears, hugs, kisses and persuasion in the form of future travel plans, she left for Hammarby IF, while you stayed with the Melbourne Victory.
Thus, nearly two years later, just a month before the World Cup and one week before the start of camp, a very tired and whiny girlfriend of yours sits on facetime with you, begging you to let her come over to Australia early to spend time with you.
"Babe, c'mon, I'd only be missing one match anyway."
And thus, you subsequently scolding the twenty-one year old.
"Kyra, no. No way. Seriously, play your last match, if I remember rightly, Hammarby haven't offered you a new contract right?"
She huffs, silently fidgeting with her fingers and not making eye contact with you through the camera.
"You need to play the last match, Ky. Be professional about it, please, if not for the club, for me? I want you to be able to get opportunities over there. Take it seriously and you can come see me the moment your last match is over."
She groans, letting her head hit the bed from where she'd been laying stomach down with her phone in front of her.
"Promise me, Ky. Play out the rest of the season. Even if you don't get the league, you've still got a trophy under your belt there, baby."
"Alright."
The look in her eyes as she turns her head away from the camera makes you sigh softly.
"Kyra, promise me you'll stay. I miss you more than anything, but your career comes first. Promise me."
She mumbles back, finally.
"I promise, baby, I promise I'll stay."
You nod in satisfaction, giving the girl a small smile and pressing a kiss to the tips of your fingers before holding them up to your phone as she does the same.
"Goodnight, baby."
"G'night, Ky."
-----------------------
So she does stay.
She plays her heart out in her last match, taking the draw with Piteå before finally getting on her flight to Australia.
She's exhausted from the match, and nearly forgoes showering and changing to switch tickets to an earlier flight.
Instead, she heeds your warnings of not kissing her should she decide to show up at the training centre without at least taking care of herself first.
She's already got her bags packed and ready in her rental to fly to Australia, and just about drags them to the match with her but forgoes it.
The poor aussie just needs to see her girlfriend. To collapse into a warm, fluffy pile of cuddles and-
"Flight 157 to Sydney, Australia, Now boarding."
She sighs and hopes the flight boards quickly, eager to see you.
-----------------------
Everyone was told similar times to be at the centre by, giving them a roughly six hour window to arrive in, given any delays in flights, although that doesn't seem enough knowing international boarding mid year can be dicey.
So you've taken the initiative to be in Brisbane early to avoid the traffic of the day.
It's ripe time at six-thirty in the morning, meaning you're far earlier than all of your teammates, even the one's closer to Brisbane than you are, and thus you have plenty of time to kill and nap in the lobby waiting for your teammates to start arriving at around ten.
Of course, you're startled awake by a slap to the stomach.
Taking a precursory glance at the clock on the wall above the receptionists desk, it's about three and a half hours later.
It's Steph and Caitlin, both of them sporting tired smirks at you.
"Well hello miss."
You just about jump into the arms of your vice-captain, having missed seeing the woman at the last camp due to injury, thus you haven't seen the woman since the games in April against Scotland and England.
"Steph!"
She chuckles, giving you a tight squeeze.
She had taken you under her wing the moment you'd stepped into your first national team camp just four years ago, not long after the World Cup but right before the Covid Pandemic.
She'd been the one to stick with you over facetime while you navigated the league in Australia, and of course, once a sense of normalcy returned and after the Olympic games in Tokyo.
You were often found in her room with her even though you'd all been given the privileges of single rooms.
Now, you tended to spend more time with Kyra, but, if your teammates needed you, it was always one of the two of them that you'd be found with.
"What, and I'm chopped liver, am I?"
You poke your tongue out at the striker, burying yourself back into Steph's arms.
"No, I'm just the favourite."
"Please, you and I both know you're no longer the favourite."
"Shhhh, let me have this, she isn't here yet."
Giggling, you nudge the defender and separate from her.
"I'm in love with the girl, but you're more tolerable, some days."
"Ayy, that's my girl."
She ruffles your sleep mussed hair.
"Hey! Hands off the goods, Catley."
You swat at the older woman, who dodges the tired attempt.
"Yeah, stop bullying my girlfriend, Catley."
Your head shoots up from it's laid back position on the back of the couch to look at the newly appeared brunette, standing across the lobby from you.
"Ky, get that cute butt over here, right now."
At your demand, she drops her stuff and runs over in two seconds flat, nearly tackling you back onto the seating, arms wrapped tightly around your form, nose buried in your neck.
Staying for a moment to just breathe each other in, your hands rub circles into the woman's back, your face buried in her hair, breathing in the scent of her shampoo, wincing at the smell of airplane on her.
She pouts when you pull away with a terribly hidden grimace.
"Baby, I love you, but you need a shower."
A soft whine from the midfielder makes you raise a brow at her.
"I just got in, can you blame me?"
There's a teasing smile on your lips as you wrap your arms around her waist.
"Obviously, you were supposed to shower before coming here."
Kyra huffs at that, crossing her arms.
"Love you."
She grumbles in response.
You nudge her, pouting.
"Love you."
Still no response.
You grab her face, turning her head back towards you with a small frown.
"I love you."
When she doesn't respond again, you start peppering her face with kisses and she gives in, grinning at you.
"Alright! Alright! Love you, too."
Satisfied, you give her a small peck, to which she chases you up for a second, a third and then someone clearing their throat beside you interrupts her from a fourth.
"Alright, you two, stop being gross."
It's a grunt from the striker on your left, which earns her a slap to the shoulder.
"Leave them be, Caitlin."
-----------------------
It's your final day off before the full commitment to the World Cup preparations takes precedence over your time in Australia, thus you want to do as much as you can with your girlfriend before your time together, alone, gets limited.
You'd had a few days off to explore the city, but nothing really concrete as you and Kyra had just wandered around the area where the hotel is.
This time, you wanted to plan something for the midfielder, something to last you both the couple weeks of the World Cup, hoping it would tide you both over, knowing it'd be torture not spending time together.
At least when she was in Sweden, you had space to yourselves over facetime.
World Cups are chaotic, and allow little to no time to yourselves, as you've so discovered and been told by the older girls on the team.
So, here you are, calling various different restaurants for reservations tonight, with, unfortunately, no luck.
Instead, managing to sneak away from the girl for an hour or so, you run down to the grocery store, pick up several of her favourite snacks, drinks, and a small surprise that you think she'll love and then rush back to the hotel, getting ready for a night out in one of the cities parks.
She looks at you suspicious when you drag her down, scraggily dressed in hoodies and sweats, to a taxi rather insistently, dragging a completely full duffle bag behind you.
Not that you blame her.
You would be sussed out, too, if she decided to randomly drag you out to a taxi at six on a Saturday night, carrying a nearly ripping at the seams, black duffle bag.
"Sooooo... Where are we goin', babe?"
"You'll see."
You let out a little laugh at the small pout she has on her face, pecking her sweetly on the lips in exchange for the small smile she relents at the sound of your giggle.
When you finally pull up at the park, you're all but dragging the woman across the green grass and to the edge of the waterline where you drop the blanket you'd been carrying down onto the somewhat flat grassed area.
It's lit well enough that when the sun starts to set, it's not ridiculously dark, so you take a little comfort knowing it's not entirely dangerous out, plus the added comfort of the occasional family or couple wandering by on the path just to the left of you by ten feet or so.
You nudge her to sit down next to you, hand settling in hers.
"I wanted us to have a nice little sit down together to just relax and talk and eat and just be stress free for a little while. Just to breathe for the night. Together. It's about to be even more hectic and I've missed you."
You pout softly, leaning into her a little.
She leans over, kissing you fully, hand on your face tugging you in closer.
You're both a little breathless when she let's your face go again.
"I love you, so fucking much."
Giggling, you kiss her once more.
"I love you, too."
Finally, you open up the bag and dump out the contents onto her lap, knowing you're about to have a very excited sugar hyped puppy on your hands after this.
Her eyes sparkle up at you, the grin on her face causing her eyes to crease at the corners.
"Just wait 'til you see what else is in there."
Eyes darting around the small pile, she digs through it to find a pair of packets of sparklers and a small lighter.
She feels giddy, and looks the part, too, her immediate giggle and hug crushing you making your heart just about melt through your body entirely.
It's adorable.
It's cute.
It's oh so Kyra and you feel your heart bursting at the thought that you get to call her yours.
You're dragged out of your train of thought by said woman dragging you to your feet, lighting a sparkler and handing it to you, running around you, both of your giggles and the small handheld fireworks lighting up the night sky and the river before you.
No matter where you are, how far apart they keep you, Kyra will always be your one, you realise.
It's a small, heartbeat skipping thought, but it makes you smile harder and enjoy the moment all the more while you can.
The sparkler she's holding blasts out tiny stars of combusting magnesium, being spread out harmlessly in the air and onto the grass as she runs circles around you.
It goes out within a minute or so, and she's looking over at you with puppy dog eyes.
"Babe, can you get another one out, pretty please? I wanna attack those cheezels soon."
You chuckle, obliging with her demands, a small kiss to your lips as thanks.
She may be a child at heart still, but she's yours.
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Text
Barnaby facts (confirmed by the devs)
Hello! Since I was bored and it's making me so happy to see Barnaby getting so much love lately, I've decided to collect all the info I have about him! I most likely missed something, so if you have info I haven't put here, or got wrong, let me know, ok? ^^
Anyhoo, here we go! **}
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- Barnaby, despite his name, is not a barn owl. He's actually a long eared owl.
- Barnaby isn't his real name; he used to have a different one, back in his alive days. One of the drawings featuring him has him surrounded by many names starting with "B".
- Said illustration has "Who am I?" hidden among the names and words such as "Where" and "Help", hinting at something linked to his identity is torturing him.
- It's been stated that Barnaby is the way he is because of a dangerous experiment that corrupted then killed him, changing him completely as a result.
- Barnaby is asexual homoromantic, and is genderfluid: while he goes primarly by "he/him", he accepts any pronoun.
- He considers his Barnaboos as his "little pretties", and often offers help or advice if they need it; of course, his help may not be as helpful as he believes...
- He hates cheesecake.
- He's not a fan of rootbeer neither; he will serve it in his parties, but he personally won't drink it.
- His favorite food is eye scream, and favorite Halloween treat are caramel apples.
- As for ice cream, his favorite flavor is Strawberry Shortcake.
- Speaking of food, yeah, he doesn't need to eat, nor sleep. But still likes doing it anyway.
- Barnaby is a confirmed sleepyhead. He naps a lot, but never in an ordinary position, or in his bed; he tends to sleep in various gravity bending position, especially upside down.
- Meaning, yes, when Billie comes to steal his gem, he was sleeping!
- And when he sleeps, he apparently snores and hoots.
- While hugging him would result in a kill from him, Ash confirmed Barnaby is a hugger! Hugging him would still involve him squeezing or stabbing you to death, tho'. And he'd feel both soft and slimy to the touch.
- Barnaby is around 10-11ft tall, and with his size-shifting abilities, he can be any height he wants; when he was alive tho', he's as tall as Aristotle, more or less.
- He doesn't need glasses anymore, but sometimes will wear them because they make him look smart. They also tend to follow the eyes' movements.
- Barnaby is very emotional: while it won't stop him from trying to kill you, he will cry if he sees you cry. Ironically, he would comfort you until you feel better. Then he'll kill you.
- It's been confirmed that Barnaby's biggest fear has "already come true".
- His tears are orange, just like his eyes.
- Barnaby is not one to open his heart easily, but the moment he does, there's many ways to reach it. He's quite romantic, tho' not in the usual way: if you gave him a dead rat, he'd consider it a very romantic gesture!
- It's been stated he doesn't have a partner now, but in life, "maybe".
- When it comes to children, it's been confirmed he'd be the best caregiver alongside Dutch, althought for him "it's complicated".
- He apparently had a child of his own, if the picture posted about him during "Father's Day" is any indication. What happened to the little one hasn't been revealed yet.
- Apparently he's the least judgemental character in BBU!
- If he had a TV, it'd be old timey, and he'd watch something really random. Like ducks.
- Barnaby loves small critters; Ash specifically mentions they always linked him with guinea pigs. And indeed, Barnaby had a science guinea pig co-worker once, that turned into an actual guinea pig because of a reckless experiment, and he took care of them.
- He's able to control reality; it's unclear if it's his gem's doing, or his magic power as a ghost.
- In any case, he's now the most powerful character in the game
- Back in his alive days, he was a magic researcher and scientist.
- He actually owned the gem before he turned into a ghost. He even experimented on it, and it's suggested that actually sealed his fate.
- A lot of songs from Oingo Boingo and Lemon Demon fit him: Ash specifically mentioned "Weird Science" as really "Barnabycore"
- Barnaby is autistic: he stims by hooting and flapping his wings when he's excited.
- When he's scared or nervous, he tends to cover himself with his wings.
- Katie said that, if he were a candy, he'd be a sour blueberry.
- Barnaby lives in his own dimension, with his own mansion and everything. And he can travel between realities. Although one comment from Katie suggests he's trapped in there, but it's too early to say for sure.
- According to the devs, he was inspired by Weird Al Yankovic, Lewis from Mystery Skulls and Discord from MLP.
- No, he wasn't inspired by Snatcher, since the development of BBU has lasted longer than A Hat in Time. The two of them canonically know each other tho': only problem is, Snatcher hates Barnaby's guts and finds him too clingy, while the owl adores him.
- He canonically knows Wally Darling from "Welcome Home" and Kira from "Far Fetched" too, since he can travel between realities.
- Barnaby has his guests come to his home by portals that pop just below them. He apparently has kidnapped people before, every once in a while.
- He'd get along well with Dutch.
- It's left vague whether he knows Fantoccio or not.
- He actually has never met Arthur nor Aristotle before the game.
- In any case, he'd find Aristotle really funny, and wouldn't take them seriously.
-- Barnaby is aware of the player, and can break the 4th wall. And that's why only he can use Twitter.
- Whenever he writes on Twitter, hE WRiTSE LIkE THIS!!!
- Barnaby is REALLY mischeavous, and finds no problem in cheating in games. But if YOU cheat, then he gets ticked off.
- This suggests he's also a sore loser.
- Judging by his expression in the cutscene, he doesn't like being interrupted.
- It's been confirmed he smells like meldew. :P
- He could fake glitching out, then attack the moment you come to check out what's going on with him.
- He HATES party crashers. Also scarecrows: not good for conversations. And he's not interested in their crops.
- He can play the organ: Katie even suggested that if you hear it in the background of his chapter, that's him playing it.
- He was a young prodigy, back when he was alive!
- Don't be fooled by his goofy antics: he's very smart, still loves making experiments and can speak a lot of languages.
- Ironically, he hates skulls: he finds them icky.
- He was 25-26 when he died; he's been dead for 100+ years.
- Time is very important for him: that's why there's so many clocks in his parlor. It's been suggested he sees partying as a way to keep track with time.
- Despite that, Barnaby himself in the contest video has briefly stated he tends to forget what year it is.
- There's tons of pictures in his manor: all of them depict him, suggesting he's good at painting.
- Katie has noted that Barnaby "remembers everything". When asked if there's something he'd rather forget, they stated that "what he wants and what he needs are very different things".
- His family is "infinite", apparently. Then again, one of his very early descriptions stated he's got no friends nor family to speak about...
- He's been described as "self interested"
- When asked which character had the most trauma, without giving hints about being traumatized, Katie confirmed Barnaby as the answer, even stating his story makes them the saddest, alongside Fanto's.
- His favorite color is pink!
- He can change himself into lots of animals, and can even clone himself!
- When asked if he can talk to his alive self, Katie said it's "technically possible".
- Back when he was alive, he was noted as a dork and a hardworker, so much so he'd even pull one-nighters before making speeches for his research. Katie jokingly suggested that's why he parties so much: it's to make up for lost time!
- He had a different way of speaking, back when he was alive. And his icks were probably different as well.
- When he gets overwhelmed, he has a shutdown, and goes completely silent.
- At early stages, Barnaby was supposed to be a bug.
- The moment his design as a ghost was chosen, he went through a lot of palette options, like a pale blue color like he came from "The Haunted Mansion", or all colorful like "Dia de los Muertos". Ultimately they settled for his currently shadowy look because, not only it's easier to animate, it was in line with his backstory.
- Barnaby can melt. It's still unclear what triggers such a reaction, but some pictures hint that it's tied to his psychological state.
- Barnaby has been noted that he can talk fancy, but he's not eloquent.
- His favorite dance is the charleston!
- Ash has stated that in the game he is going to be depicted doing something similiar to "singing himself to sleep".
- Apparently he still makes pellets from his mouth. Dead or not, he's still an owl.
- He often puts emphasis on words, sometimes even making his bowtie spin.
- In the latest Twitter post featuring him, when you decode the garbled message, you can read: "Barnaby lies Along in his thoughts, Resting On the floor Neglected". Not only this hints at his turmoil, it also hides the word "BARON". It's unclear if it's his name, a title he possessed, or someone or thing else entirely connected to him.
- He loves recieving scretches on his head.
- Barnaby can cook, but he'll more often than not leave that to the Barnaboos.
- He's not that interested in gardening, even tho' he owns a greenhouse.
- He'd enjoy playing "Luigi's Mansion"!
- In Super Smash Bros. he'd main Meta Knight, even relating to him.
- He'd happily accept smoochies, apparently!
- His favorite party game is "Pin the tail on the owl".
- If you are his friend, he'd consider it even more of a reason to stay in the manor and never leave!
- He has claimed that he's used to give himself self love and compliments, since no one else does it. That, and his tendency to ask others for hugs or if they need a hug to calm down, suggests he's affection starved.
- He tends to react to compliments from fans by smiling bashfully, or happily shouting that he's popular.
- Katie stated that his favorite movie would be something unexpected, like "Marnie & Me" or "Up".
- Barnaby can see everything from the eyes of the plushies that look like him. So, if you bought one... watch out...
- Among his early designs, he also looked like a completely different owl, tall and austere looking, who was the guardian of the forest. It was changed because the devs wanted a goofy boss that could stand out among the others.
- Having said that, it seems Barnaby was the last boss to be officially revealed, and initially the game only had Elaine, Dutch and Fantoccio as the main bosses.
- Barnaby LOVES puns. A good deal of the lines he says when you get defeated in his chase contain a pun.
- You try being slick by stating you want to die of old age? Too bad: Barnaby will make you age rapidly. Despite that, Katie confirmed he doesn't have time related powers...
- Katie and Ash confirmed Barnaby can fly. And such a sight is apparently really hilarious.
- Barnaby loves shiny trinkets: if he sees a sparkly thread, he'll fixate on it and will follow its movements. It's like with a cat following a laser.
- Barnaby has teeth; they're orange and sharp, and come out when he's ticked off, or especially devious.
- When he was alive, he only used he/him pronouns. He became comfortable with all pronouns after he died. He's always been interested in men.
- This goes without saying, but still: he operates on cartoon logic. He can use both his wings AND his feet as hands. Even both feet can act as hands, even when they appear off camera. How? Because it's Barnaby and he can do anything he sets his mind into!
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katescribblesabit · 15 days
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I love your fairy Timmy turner au and your art! It’s amazing and wonderful!! Sending virtual hugs your way since you absolutely deserve it!! Make sure to stay hydrated and take breaks from drawing when needed :3 I hope you have a great day/night wherever you are !
I have a question about the au, considering the jimmy timmy power hour still happens, did Jimmy Neutron and his friends ever hear about Timmy going missing from the national news channels? I’d like to think they were probably really sad about it and tried looking for him themselves :( OR since they already know about fairies and everything, when Timmy turned into a fairy, did he ever pop by and say hi and told them that he was alright and everything was fine so they wouldn’t be so sad? If he did, does he still visit them in Jimmy’s lab even as adults so they all can still hang out once more and ever explain why he became a fairy? I wonder if that would sort of get Jimmy to maybe just a little bit believe in magic
Anyways I’m sorry if this is so long 😭
aw don't apologize! its fine, and thank you for the virtual hug haha
i haven't even thought about including the Jimmy Timmy power hour in the au honestly. i did some quick research and it seems like many people do consider the trilogy canon on both shows.
so.. if we do wanna take it into the wacky crossover territory. well,
Sheen probably pestered Jimmy into visiting Timmy again since its been a while and he was bored. Jimmy eventually faltered and dug out the old portal door he had build. setting it up attracted their other friends and they all wanted to go.
When they arrived at Dimmsdale however they quickly learned about Timmys disappearance from AJ and Chester. they offered to help look but they also couldn't find anything that day. they eventually had to go back home.
Jimmy however couldn't really let it go. he was a genius! if anyone could help, then it was him right? so he cooked up a plan and went back and asked around for some kind of DNA samples of Timmy. Jimmy then build some kind of locating machine that brings them to the one they want to find.
he then teleported right into the living room of Cosmo and Wanda where Timmy currently was. to say they were all surprised is an understatement haha
since Timmy was a fairy now, there were no consequences of telling Jimmy the actual truth anymore. (since Jimmy is from an differente Dimension - LOOPHOLE hehe) So Timmy was able to properly explain that yes magic was real in Timmys dimension and that he simply wanted to stay with his fairy family. (maybe he properly introduced them hehe)
Timmy also begged Jimmy not to tell anyone. ESPECIALLY anyone from Timmys dimension.
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wellgoslowly · 1 year
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Hello! I was wondering if I can get a request please. The reader works for Lockwood and Co but she has the complete opposite personality of what Lockwood has (ex: reader is more of listener rather than a talker and when she is around new people she is more on the quiet side until she gets comfortable around them) and Lockwood falls for the reader. Thank you!
Ain't a Life a Many Splendored Thing?
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a/n: a bit of a shorter post but I think I might make it into a series!! I loved this prompt and I loved writing it sm!!! it's not much but I didn't want to write more before knowing if yall would want a part 2 :) also yes the title is from hello hello by elton john from the hit movie gnomeo and juliet.
pairing: lockwood x fem!reader
word count: 1.4k
warnings: none :)
tags: @hufflepuff1619 (thank you for the request!) @oblivious-idiot @tangledinlove @ikeasupremacy @givemea-dam-break @neewtmas [if u guys want to be put on a tag list just lmk in the comments!!! also if i missed anyone im sorry!!!!]
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The moment that you stepped into 35 Portland Row for your interview, it was obvious to everyone that Lockwood was a goner.
You two were clearly exact opposites- where he was confident and cocky, you seemed more reserved and humble. Where he was reckless, you seemed calculated and exact. And it was now evident that while he found it natural to talk in order to prevent awkward silences around new people (especially those whom he found to be very attractive), you were perfectly comfortable with listening to him ramble.
“And right up here is the attic.” He was saying now as the two of you climbed up the creaking stairs. “You've met Lucy, obviously- this is her room. And yours as well, if you choose to live here.” He watched you take in the room, filled with Lucy's drawings and scarce decorations on the walls, your eyes lingering on the small bed hastily shoved in the corner. He looked at you with apprehension, admittedly a little worried that you would turn to him and say that you'd changed your mind and reject the employment offer.
Instead, you turned to him with a slight smile on your face and said, “Is it ok with Lucy? If I stay here?” Instantly, Lockwood was filled with relief. “It was her idea, actually.” He said softly, watching you nod in understanding. “Alright then.” You said, a sense of finality in your voice. Lockwood smiled and watched as you walked to set the small bag of belongings you had taken to your interview on top of your new bed. “I'll leave you to it, then. Dinner should be ready soon.” He said to you. You didn't respond, but Lockwood wasn't worried- he knew exactly what your soft smile was meant to convey.
------
“Lockwood, I just- I don't know if she fits here.” It had been only 3 days after you had officially joined Lockwood & Co., but Lockwood wasn't necessarily surprised by the remark George threw him from across the table that morning. You and Lucy were asleep, still tired after facing an infuriating ambush from a large cluster of Type Ones while on a Type Two case.
“What do you mean, George?” Lockwood asked as he took a sip of his tea. “I mean, she's just so quiet. She never speaks, and when she does it's either in one word responses or a couple phrases- even then, she mostly only ever talks to you. I'm just worried about how well she'll be able to communicate in the future.” George explained, his hands moving wildly about.
“You haven't seen her in the field, George- she's brilliant. Her sight is comparable to mine, and her touch… it's like Lucy with her Listening. Yes, she's a bit… reserved, but I'm sure she just needs to warm up to us, is all.” Lockwood smiled at his friend as he took another sip of tea, peeling open the front page of a new issue of True Hauntings.
“Don't think I didn't notice how you avoided the comment about how she only seems to talk to you.” George grumbled, taking a bite out of a piece of toast. Lockwood didn't look up from the text on the page in front of him as he mumbled a soft “I don't know what you're talking about.” George scoffed in response, starting to say something that sounded a lot like “you're clearly gone for her, why do I even try”, when you walked in, hair amess and blinking sleep out of your eyes.
The kitchen fell into immediate silence, George's face flushing in embarrassment as you looked at him, your expression unreadable. “If you're going to talk about me, you could at least do it while I'm around.” Lockwood looked up at that as he didn't notice you silently entering the kitchen. He took in your sleep-addled state and the look of fear in George's eyes. And then you were softly smiling. “I was joking, sorry. Didn't mean to scare you.” You said before sitting down next to Lockwood.
George snorted. “I think that's the most you've said to me the entire time you've been here.” George said, apparently taking your joke to heart. Lockwood softly kicked George under the table, but you just laughed a little.
Deciding to change the subject, Lockwood turned to you with a smile. “I'm sorry for him. What he meant to say was good morning. Would you like some tea?” You smiled at Lockwood, and he was hit with the thought that it mightve been the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. “Yes, please.” You responded. Lockwood nodded, getting up to turn the kettle on once more.
The morning passed like that- you and George softly trading barbs with one another, Lockwood making you your tea and toast, and Lucy stumbling in once you were almost done with breakfast and mumbling a “gmornin” to you and the boys. Soon, the discussion turned from an easygoing conversation over breakfast and lapsed into a more serious discussion as Lockwood started explaining the cases that you all had scheduled for that night.
You and Lockwood would be going out to a house that was reported to contain a Type Two and a couple Type Ones, George would be staying home to do some research for a bigger case the four of you had coming up the next week (he had also gotten injured a couple of days ago and his wound hadn't fully healed), and Lucy would be going to an office afflicted by a couple Type Ones.
Lockwood had been too busy dishing out the information for the night's events to realize that you hadn't been talking. It was only after Lucy and George had nodded in understanding and set out to set their own respective tasks- Lucy heading down to the basement and George getting ready to go to the Archives- when Lockwood looked to you and realized that you had been drawing on the Thinking Cloth the entire time.
He leaned over slightly, watching as you drew a small landscape on a tiny piece of empty space with a green pen that Lockwood wasn't sure he had ever seen before. He smiled as you drew, watching the concentration on your face. “Did you hear the cases for tonight?” He asked softly, watching the quirk at the corner of your lips.
“George is doing research, Lucy's got a couple of Type Ones, and you and me have got the Type Two.” You clicked your pen, signaling that you were finished with your drawing, and then you turned to look at Lockwood. “How'd I do?” You asked softly. “With the cases, or the drawing?” You shrugged, a look in your eyes that told him “both.” He smiled. “Excellent.” He whispered, making you smile.
Eventually, the two of you migrated from the kitchen to the library. Lockwood sat in his favorite armchair, surveying a stack of recent magazines as he decided which one to read first. You left the room quickly, and Lockwood frowned at your departure as he settled into the chair with a week old gossip rag.
But as quickly as you left, you had returned, a book in your hand as you sat down in the chair next to Lockwood. You two sat there for a while, Lockwood taking breaks to explain to you different London Society news while you happily listened and Lockwood smiling to himself every time you reached a point in your book that made you laugh or make some sort of exclamation of disbelief.
He was content, he realized, to just sit there and exist by your side. While he normally felt the need to make his presence known, to charm and impress anyone he might’ve just met, he found that he was very happy to just sit and read with you.
An hour or so later, Lockwood decided that he wanted to go down to the basement and get some training in before the case that night. He was about to ask you if you'd care to join before he noticed that you had fallen asleep, arms curled around your legs and head laying peacefully against the cushioning of the chair. He smiled as he closed his magazine, getting up slowly and draping a blanket over you without a sound.
As Lockwood walked out of the library, he realized that George had been right. Not about you not fitting in- no, you had definitely proven George wrong. Instead, he was forced to admit that George might've been right about Lockwood being gone for you.
hehehe thanks for reading!!! I just put in my 2 weeks at my soul sucking part time job so I'll hopefully have more motivation to work on these hehe!!! I'll also be making a masterlist very soon- I've been meaning to do that for a while
also if yall want a part 2, pls lmk! I loved writing this and I think I could do a lot more w it hehehehe. anywhom if you've read this far, thank you for reading!!! love u!
mwah, linnie
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nejis-desk · 7 months
Text
Jack Jeanne Complete Collection - Interview with Ishida Sui and Towada Shin Translation
This interview is from the Jack Jeanne Complete Collection art book, it’s available on CDJapan and Amazon jp. You can also purchase a digital only version on bookwalker jp. I encourage anyone reading to purchase the game (if you haven't already) or the art book itself to support Ishida and Towada directly. 💕
This is a VERY long interview so I apologise for any typos or errors I may have missed.
~ ~ ~
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An interview with Ishida Sui and Towada Shin, who both worked on writing the story of Jack Jeanne. In this interview they reveal what went on behind the scenes during production, rejected story ideas and much more. This interview was conducted remotely on the 9th of February 2021.
Interviewer: Yui Kashima
How did Ishida Sui end up making an otome game?
—How did the production of Jack Jeanne begin?
Ishida: It was sometime around Autumn 2015 I think… On an old personal site that I used to run, I received an email from the company Broccoli to an email address that I no longer use. It was a commission request for character designs.
—In 2015 Tokyo Ghoul was still being serialised wasn’t it?
Ishida: Yes. Usually job offers like that go through Shueisha first, so I contacted my editor asking why this one was sent to my private email…  At the time, in addition to working on Tokyo Ghoul, I was also drawing illustrations for a tear-off calendar and very busy with various other things, so when my editorial department heard about the offer they seemed very shocked like "What!?".
—Why did you decide to accept the offer even though you were so busy?
Ishida: I would often receive offers asking for me to draw manga or illustrations, so I figured that this one was a similar case. However, some words in the email caught my eye. Like ‘Gender Swap’, ‘Takarazuka’ and ‘All Boys Opera'. When I saw these concept ideas, a dream began to swell in my chest and I felt like giving it a try.
I think if it had just been a normal character design job, I would have turned it down. However just from reading the short brief in the email my interest was piqued. While in discussions with the Young Jump editorial department, I also casually mentioned the kind of offer I’d received to Towada-san.
Towada: Yeah, Ishida-san asked me for some advice. I was also drawn to the ‘Gender Swap’ and ‘Opera’ concepts. I could easily visualise the setting of the story. Additionally, it seemed like it would be a story that included many different themes such as gender. When I thought about that, I figured that Ishida-san would be a good fit, since I knew he would be able to draw something that went beyond all genders.
Ishida: I’ve been drawing androgynous characters for a long time, so Towada-san and I talked and wondered if that's what they must be looking for. After that, I created my own proposal and submitted it to Broccoli.
—You created your own proposal, Ishida-san?
Ishida: When I looked at the original proposal that Broccoli had sent me, a lot of it differed from my personal tastes. It was a very upbeat and dazzling story. It would’ve been hard for me to match my art style to that, so in my proposal I noted things like ‘if it were me, I’d do something more like this’. I was interested in this unpolished gem of a story, so I thought it would be a waste to turn it down altogether. I wanted to at least try throwing my own ideas into the ring, so I spent a week creating the six main characters and sent them in.
—At that time, I heard that the game wasn’t titled ‘Jack Jeanne’ yet, but was instead called ‘Jiemarie’.
Ishida: At first, I wanted to try creating a word that doesn’t exist. So using French as a base, I came up with ‘Jiemarie’ as the game's provisional title. But then a month later when I was reconsidering the title, I looked at it again and thought, damn this looks lame. So I hurriedly called Towada-san on Skype and we entered a discussion that lasted about ten hours over what the title should be.
That’s when we decided on ‘Jack Jeanne’. The male roles take the name from the knight, or the ‘Jack’ in a deck of playing cards. And the female roles ‘Jeanne’ take from the word parisienne and Jeanne d’Arc. When these two terms are put together, I feel like you can comprehend what the game is about with a bit of nuance. Plus you can shorten it to ‘JJ’… That’s also the title of a magazine though (lol).
—Taking on another job whilst your manga was being serialised sounds like it would be tough on you both physically and mentally.
Ishida: I think I must’ve been a bit unwell (lol). My body was fine, but being able to work on something other than a serialised manga was a lot easier on me mentally. I may have seen it as a way to escape, so I didn’t feel that working on two projects at the same time was difficult. When it comes to game development, I can only create what I’m capable of, and there was no set release date yet. Of course, I would work on and submit things whenever I could though.
—What kind of things would you submit?
Ishida: I would sketch character designs, discuss and create story elements with Towada-san and try to put Univeils history into chronological order. Then I would share the progress with Broccoli and have meetings and such with them. In the beginning, rather than having to draw anything yet, it was mostly just brainstorming and planning. That’s why I think I was able to do it all concurrently with the serialisation of my manga. 
~ ~ ~
How Ishida Sui and Towada Shin know each other
—Do you chat with Towada-san often?
Ishida: Well yeah, she is my older sister after all.
Towada: We talk a lot. When we both have the time we chat over Skype.
Ishida: Once we start the conversation can last up to five or six hours. We mostly talk about things that happened throughout our day. When I’m talking to someone I often bring up something that’s happened to me and ask their opinion on it. She became someone that I could chat with whilst working on my manga. Ever since my student days we’d talk until early morning, I usually told her about storyboards I’d drawn.
—At the Ishida Sui exhibition it was revealed that Towada-san had even given you advice on some of your earliest works.
Ishida: Yeah that’s right. It was a work I’d prepared for a 'bring your own work along' induction course in Tokyo that I attended back in my student days. It was a manga about two characters who eventually became the prototypes for Tsukiyama and Hori Chie in Tokyo Ghoul. It was only about 30 pages long, however when I showed it to Towada-san the day before the presentation, she told me that she thought my linework was too thin.
Towada: Yeah, the overall linework of the manga was thinly drawn. Once I told Ishida-san this thought, he began tracing over his linework and making it thicker. And then when he looked at it again, he said “Yep, I need to redraw the whole thing”.
The linework being too thin was only my personal opinion and the presentation was in Tokyo the next day, so in horror, I began hastily telling him, “You won’t make it in time, stop, stop!”
Ishida: All I could think about was that the lines really were too thin, so I wanted to redraw it. All of the screentones had already been affixed to the panels, but I didn’t want to bring something along with me whilst knowing it wasn’t the best that it could be.
Towada: Ishida-san handled the linework and I helped with redoing the screentones. We worked throughout the night and finished redrawing the whole manuscript. Once it was done, it wasn’t even comparable to the previous version, the lines were powerful and the characters' expressions conveyed a lot. I was seriously worried though (lol), I didn’t know if we’d complete it in time.
Ishida: I couldn’t think about anything other than the lines being too thin, so I wasn’t even worried about whether I had enough time or not.
Towada: I fell asleep halfway through, but you continued and boarded that Tokyo bound flight without having slept a wink, didn’t you?
Ishida: Yeah. I let Towada-san sleep and continued applying the screentones myself right up until the very last minute. I was still applying them whilst on the plane and also after my arrival in Tokyo. I used screentone number 10 a lot, so I remember the scenery around me gradually began to look grainy like the screentone. It felt as though I was hallucinating.
—Sounds like it was a tough manuscript to complete. Towada-san was also the author for the Tokyo Ghoul novels, has your relationship always been one akin to work partners?
Ishida: When it was decided that Tokyo Ghoul would be getting a novelisation, I was given other authors' works to look at. However, none of their styles really clicked with me, and they didn’t seem right for the series. I knew that Towada-san wrote, so I tried reaching out to her.
Although back in the days of Tokyo Ghoul’s serialisation, Towada-san and I didn’t talk as much as we do now. If I had any concerns I would just try and sort them out by myself. We’d always gotten along as brother and sister, however we didn’t really start to have a ‘work partners’ kind of relationship until we started working on Jack Jeanne together.
Towada: That’s true. Back then, we only occasionally conversed regarding the novelisation of Tokyo Ghoul. Before :re we only spoke once every few months over Skype. As Ishida-san said, it wasn’t until I started working on Jack Jeanne that we really started properly talking to one another.
—How often would you contact each other?
Towada: Depending on what stage we were at, we would bounce ideas off each other once every three or so days. Ishida-san would make a request like “I’d be happy if this part of the script was done within the next two weeks.” And then I’d present what I’d written and we’d discuss it and then I’d return to writing again. This process was repeated until Jack Jeanne reached its completion.
—Was Ishida-san the one that reached out to Towada-san to write the script of Jack Janne?
Towada: He didn’t ask me specifically to write the script, early in development he’d ask me to help with some research like “I’d like you to look up some information on this, could you help me?”. I’ve always liked ikusei games and within that genre I also enjoy romance and otome games. So I think that’s why it was easy for Ishida-san to consult me about it. We’ve had a common interest in games ever since we were kids.
Ishida: Back then I played games like ‘Pinnochia no Miru Yume’ and ‘Angelique’. I wanted to try and conquer Marcel in Angelique but it was one difficult game, so it was a tough task. Before I could even raise any flags with him, the training aspect of the game was so hard that no matter how many times I played I never got any good at it.
Towada: I’m the type that loves playing games, so after talking with Ishida-san, I went on to play every popular otome game that had been released around 2015, as well as every Broccoli published otoge. I completed every single character route in those games. I began analysing otome game trends and Broccoli’s brand identity and relayed my findings to Ishida-san. After that, I went along with the Jack Jeanne production team and Makasano Chuuji-san from Shueisha, who was the scriptwriter of the Tokyo Ghoul anime. We all visited the city of Takarazuka for research.
Ishida: I was also supposed to be there for the Takarazuka trip but since I had my manga to worry about, I had Towada-san go and take in the atmosphere in my place.
Towada: I did have to gather material but I think I visited Takarazuka a total of five or six times. From morning I would watch the Takarazuka theatre from afar and simply watch the guests move about, soaking in the atmosphere of the city.
Along with the Takarazuka plays, I also watched student plays, in total I probably went and watched one hundred shows. Theatre shows that are performed by professionals are fully realised and flawless. So getting to see the contrast to student plays, where they progress and improve until the show is complete was a very helpful reference.
I’ve always enjoyed watching plays, so everything I had to research overlapped with my own hobbies. I still shared my own input with Ishida-san though.
Ishida: I’d never formally been asked to write a script before… I felt like a fraud (lol). I think it’s because I’m not very good at being considerate of other people. I don’t think I’d be able to work with anyone other than Towada-san on something.
—Why is that?
Ishida: Well, for one I don’t want to talk to anyone for long periods of time (lol). Because Towada-san understands what aspects of a story are important to me, she’s also able to comprehend what I mean when I talk in abstract concepts. We could save time by not needing to have any pointless discussions.
Towada: Back then Ishida-san was still very busy publishing his manga, so bringing in all sorts of new people to work on the project probably would’ve put quite the burden on him. That’s why I wanted to help him out in some way.
After researching all sorts of things, I ended up participating in a production meeting for Jack Jeanne, but I was not expecting that I myself would end up being in charge of writing the script. Rather, I was more just looking forward to getting to play a game made by Ishida-san. As things progressed though, I was asked to try plotting things out, or to write part of the script to be used temporarily. Eventually I came to think, why don’t I just write the scenario myself?
I’d never written the script for a game before though, so that’s what had been holding me back. Unlike novels, it’s commonplace to not have to write descriptively. Novels are made up of dialogue and descriptions, like describing the setting and characters' expressions or emotions. So I had to spend a lot of time working out how to write to properly convey a story through dialogue alone.
When I first started getting the hang of it, I tried writing a script that still included descriptions but I quickly stopped. Jack Jeanne is about theatre, so I figured that it would be easier to convey the presence and narrative of the story through conversation. I usually write novels, so I was uncertain, but since Jack Jeanne has sprites of the characters on screen, I thought that I could do it. I suppose it’s closer to writing for a manga rather than a novel.
~ ~ ~
The rejected character routes
—Before Tokyo Ghoul was completed, what kind of things did you work on?
Ishida: The first two years were mostly spent creating the game’s world and mechanics. Like deciding how many performances there would be, how the plays would be presented. Would it be a dialogue drama? Would there be mini games? Things like that. We also had to decide whether summer break would be included or not, how raising affection would work and how the choices would be presented. Those are the sort of things that were talked about first.
—You got to watch over the entire game’s development then.
Ishida: At first, I got carried away and envisioned a stage play game full of skill mechanics that I personally enjoyed. A busy game full of specs you can raise and improve in mini games, however when I explained these details to a friend of mine, they were like “You’re just imagining a game that you would like, right?”.
They asked me if that’s what the eventual players of Jack Jeanne would be looking for. That same friend said that since it’s a story that deals with the theme of theatre, it would be better if the player could witness the performances themselves. So I took that advice and the prototype of the current Jack Jeanne was created. I told all of this to Towada-san and had her handle the script.
Towada: You can’t write a script without knowing how the game’s system works after all.
Ishida: Now that I think about it, before Tokyo Ghoul was finished, rather than build the game's foundation, all I was really doing was scattering the sand to prepare for said foundation.
When Tokyo Ghoul entered its endgame especially, I really had to concentrate on it, so I took a six month break from Jack Jeanne. Ending a story requires a lot of energy and attention, so I left the practical work of Jack Jeanne to Towada-san and only supervised the music production and attended any important meetings.
—So during serialisation you were making preparations to jump right into it afterwards?
Ishida: Yes exactly. I wasn’t able to do much practical work, so I had Towada-san prepare the script in advance for me. And for the time being, create one character route.
—Which character was it?
Towada: It was Shirota. I wrote about the equivalent length of a short book and it was more or less complete. In the end, we scrapped the entire thing though… Because the atmosphere in the beginning was quite dark.
Ishida: It was dark because I was too used to Tokyo Ghoul. It included issues like a troubled household and severe bullying. Reading something like that wouldn’t put the player in a happy mood.
Despite it being a story about the theatre, my attention drifted to other topics which didn’t fit. And it was me who had asked Towada-san to write something like that… A couple months after the Shirota route had been completed, I read over what Towada-san had written for me once again and realised that it was a bit too gloomy. I’d forgotten what prompt I’d even given to her in the first place (lol).
The first character portraits and CGs that I created were for Shirota too. The reason being that Shirota is the only second year student and he was already a complete individual, so he was easy to create for. As for the third year students, there’s three of them, Fumi, Kai and Neji. Along with Kisa, Suzu and Yonoga are also first years, so continuity and character relationships need to be taken into account in order to create them, so they were a little more complex.
—How did the other characters come to be?
Ishida: At the proposal stage, the first character that I created was Kai. It’s a game where characters will be falling in love and confessing to one another, so first off I wanted a character that was handsome. Then I made Fumi who would be Kai’s partner. After that, I think Shirota was next.
Towada: At first you created the characters by basing them on plays didn’t you?
Ishida: I’m a fan of Yamamoto Shugoro’s work ‘Kikuchiyosho’ so Shirota was created using that as a base. In Shirota's case the genders are swapped, but Kikuchiyosho is a story about a girl who is born into a samurai family and raised as a boy. It has an element of androgyny and portrays the confusion and anger concerning gender quite well.
—How did you select the plays to base the characters on?
Ishida: I chose plays that lots of people are familiar with and would be easy to assign characters to. Kai is ‘The Phantom of the Opera’, Fumi is ‘Salome’, Neji is ‘Faust’ and Yonoga is ‘Shintokumaru’. Kisa and her classmate Ootori are ‘Don Quixote’. Ootori ended up becoming a side character though.
—So Ootori was originally meant to be a main character?
Ishida: Yeah. If I were to compare it to Tokyo Ghoul, Ootori is in the same position as Tsukiyama. I wanted a pompous character like that in Quartz. However I may have made him a little too unique (lol).
I received feedback from Broccoli that they want the main six characters to be an elite group, so a more easy to approach character would be better. So I moved the bright and cheerful character that I had originally made as Onyx’s Jack Ace over. That character was Suzu.
Making the characters personifications of plays started to become difficult to stick with though, so I abandoned the idea entirely halfway through.
—Despite appearing glamorous, the characters are all dealing with their own issues, like certain complexes and family troubles. I think that they’re all conflicts that are easy to sympathise with, how did you decide what the backbone of each character's conflict would be?
Ishida: First I created the character's appearance and then decided what personality would match them. Like with Fumi, when I began to think about making his story about the unique struggles that come with being born into a respected family, if becoming a successor was going to come into question, then he needed to have a brother.
In this way, I worked backwards from the vibe of his appearance and created his home life. I did the same with the other characters too, thinking things like ‘to have a personality like this they must not have parents, or they must struggle with expressing themselves’.
I think that if you let your characters do human-like things, then aspects of them that are easy to sympathise with will be born.
Jealousy, setbacks due to failure, inferiority complexes… Each and every character naturally ended up having some form of theme attached to them.
—I feel as though Kisa had a different sort of personality than that of a typical heroine.
Ishida: To put it simply, I want my protagonists to be fighting something. If they’re not giving it their all, then it’s no good. If they’re just standing around, then you can’t empathise with them.
—There’s times where she draws others towards her or supports those around her. She also has some masculine aspects to her.
Ishida: I think that I’m moved by characters who make me think “This kid’s really admirable”. That’s why I made Kisa a girl who works hard no matter the difficult situation that she’s in. I like Kisa and I’m sure Towada-san feels the same way.
Towada: She’s the result of both of our preferences. While due to the game’s setting, she of course has struggles related to being a girl, but I was careful to write the main thread of her story in a way that transcended gender and instead simply showed her charm as a human being.
—Regarding gender, I was impressed by how neutrally it was portrayed.
Ishida: Yes. Originally, I was going to make Shirota a character with a feminine personality, but I ended up scrapping the idea. In the end, he ended up having more of a masculine mentality. The premise of Jack Jeanne is that boys also play the female roles on stage, but it’s not a metaphor for anything and I didn’t want it to raise any questions. I simply wanted to give it my all creating plays with that setting and create something new and refreshing.
I don’t struggle with any gender related issues myself, so it’s not like I can fully understand what it’s like, but in general I’ve never considered gender to be a very big deal. If someone born male were to tell me “I have the heart of a woman” then I’d just think ‘ok cool’.
To me it feels strange to place so much weight on such an issue. I don't see why others need to be bothered by someone else's gender, I'm not since I myself am not able to speak for such experiences.
Towada: At first, it was possible to take that direction with Shirota but as I continued to write, I came to realise that there was no need to exaggerate any emphasis on his gender identity.
To those looking from an outside perspective, it may seem like a unique identity such as that is a person's defining trait, when in reality it's only just a portion of their whole self. If you consider it to be all they are, then you end up denying the other aspects of that person.
Whilst considering the individually of each character, I kept in mind to write them in a way that seemed natural for them.
—The side character, Tanakamigi Chui of Amber, had a very striking presence. How did you go about creating him?
Ishida: I wanted someone that’s easily understood to be the antagonist, so I went ahead and tried to draw someone who looked like an unstoppable genius. Despite being a second year, it’s as if he controls the school. I wanted an enigmatic and intriguing character like that. Once I named him Tanakamigi Chui I felt as though he was complete and his inclusion in the story was quickly decided on.
—On the flip side, were there any characters that you had a hard time creating?
Ishida: I had to think a little harder about the other members of Amber. They needed to have the aura of the enemy but since they’re only villains in the context of the stage, they’re not actually bad people. So it was hard to find that balance between them.
Visually they’re edgy and have a talented vibe, but they also have their own individual quirks, they’re not all homogeneous. I struggled with Kamiya Utsuri especially, I wanted him to visually look like he could be a Jeanne while also still looking like a boy, so it was difficult to get him right. I didn’t have to do many redesigns though and all the other characters came to be without much trouble.
What I actually had more trouble with, was the fact I made the cast too large. I initially created almost double the amount of first year characters, but when I looked back over the script that Towada-san created, I told her “There’s way too many characters, please cut some of them out.” To which Towada-san replied, “Ishida-san, you’re the one who created them in the first place.” (lol).
Towada: That’s because the cut characters had already appeared in the script (lol).
Ishida: I feel that when there’s too many characters a lot of them get wasted, so just like that I end up creating and scrapping a lot of my characters. I think even Broccoli were surprised by the amount of times I’d suddenly tell them “Oh that character doesn’t exist anymore.”
—Apart from characters, were there any other aspects of the game that were abruptly discarded?
Ishida: The performances I suppose… Originally I had wanted there to be a larger variety of shows, but if you were to put all of them in the script it probably would’ve ended up being three million characters long.
In the beginning of development, I had originally planned for each character's route to have a different final performance. There’s six main characters, and including Kisa’s route, that would total to seven unique shows.
Before that there’s the newcomers, summer, autumn and winter performances, so I arranged to have a script written for each. Basically I wanted to include more shows and increase the amount of sub stories, but that would be confusing to play through and development would never end. The game engine has its limits too, so I decided to keep it simple.
Towada: It would’ve been difficult to play through all that as well (lol). For the final performance, we settled on it being one show and letting the player enjoy it from each character’s perspective instead. And even then, there’s still over 20 different endings to the game, so it still took a long time until everything was fully complete.
—Newcomers, summer, autumn, winter and the final performance, were these five show’s scripts all original?
Towada: Yes. However at first, like the characters, we had planned to base them on famous productions. Like Shakespeare or fairy tales. We figured that players would find it easy to get immersed in plays that they were already familiar with.
Ishida: For the newcomers' performance, I thought we could have a show called ‘House of Biscuits and Candy’ based on Hansel and Gretel. I had also originally planned to use each character's motif to base the plays on.
Towada: Like Shintokumaru, right?
Ishida: Yeah yeah. I even went as far as getting permission to use it, but if the show were to be following a story that already exists, then the script would be bound to it. Once I understood that it would make it difficult to relate the stories to Univeil, we decided to create the plays ourselves.
Since I acquired the permission to adapt Shintokumaru though, maybe I’ll have to make a manga about it someday…
By the way, the one who was saying “Let’s do this” and then changing it to “Nevermind let’s not” was all me. I’ll start on something wholeheartedly thinking that it’s the right choice before realising halfway through that I can’t actually take it anywhere and stop. Jack Jeanne’s development was full of trial and error.
Whenever I’m about to start something, Towada-san will express her concerns with my ideas but I always end up pushing on with them only to ultimately scrap it.
I probably have at least ten books worth of scrapped drafts alone. I had no real knowledge of how to properly craft a story. I hadn’t drawn anything other than Tokyo Ghoul, so even though I had no idea what the fundamentals of storytelling were, I misunderstood that I could write other kinds of stories too. This time around I studied and revised each time… I really learnt a lot.
Towada: You learn things by doing them, so I think I just got used to it (lol). Also, you don’t commonly see stories presented within stories, I thought that it was a rare case for a game especially.
~ ~ ~
The story behind ‘Lyrics: Ishida Sui’
—You also wrote the lyrics for each of the songs used in the performances didn’t you, Ishida-san?
Ishida: Yes, that’s how things ended up. It goes without saying, but no one, including myself, thought that I’d be the one writing the lyrics.
Originally Broccoli brought in several professional lyricists and had me look over what they’d written. However I couldn’t help but feel that they were lyrics I’d heard somewhere before, or they at least didn’t leave a unique impression on me. I did feel the finesse of a professional, and they were beautiful lyrics that fit the story in one way or another… But the words used didn’t touch on the core of the story. 
The songs in Jack Jeanne are stage songs that Neji wrote for the members of Quartz. So unless you’re familiar with the setting and understand how the characters are feeling, then you won’t be able to write lyrics that perfectly fit the scenario.
While I knew that my lyric writing technique would be far from that of a professionals, I thought that no one understands and loves these characters more than me, so I approached Broccoli about it. I’d poured my heart into not only the character designs, but also the story and system of the game, so I didn’t want to compromise on the lyrics and have them pale in comparison.
So, to the best of my ability, I wanted to at least try my hand at writing them. I had Broccoli check whether or not what I’d written was viable and asked them “If there are no problems, then please let me write the lyrics.”
—Did you sing the temporary vocals for the songs too?
Ishida: When I submitted the lyrics to Broccoli, I got the normal response of “Thank you, we’ll leave the temporary vocals to you.” Along with this message they also wrote “You can hire a professional vocalist if you’d like, or you could record the temporary vocals yourself.”
Because of this I started thinking that maybe I should record them myself. Similar to how one wouldn’t be able to write lyrics for the songs without a deep understanding of the story, if you weren’t the one who wrote the lyrics, you wouldn’t know how they’re supposed to be sung either.
So, after deciding that I had to be the one to do it, I made preparations to acquire some audio recording equipment and downloaded some editing software. I divided up the parts and harmonised with myself and over the course of three days, I finished recording the temporary vocals. That’s more or less how I did it.
—When recording yourself singing, being self conscious about it can interfere, can’t it?
Ishida: I don’t think I was possessed by him or anything, but… When I tried to go all out, as expected I felt a bit hesitant, so I began recording whilst imagining I was Neji.
In the game, Neji is the one who writes the scripts, so surely he would also write the lyrics and subdivide the song and do everything himself. So I got through it thinking like that. In that pumped up mental state, I sent in the temporarily recorded songs but all Broccoli said back was “Alright, let us know your upcoming schedule”, I got so carried away that I was somewhat bewildered by the cold response (lol).
~ ~ ~
Recruiting via DM, gathering specifically selected creators
—It appears the creators you gathered to handle things such as the concept art and music are all people whose work you enjoy.
Ishida: Yes. Almost everyone was sent a targeted offer. For example, I’ve always loved the concept artist Lownine-san’s work ever since I was a student. I suppose you could say I was jealous of how high quality their artwork is… They’re someone who I thought I'd never be able to beat in my entire life. Lownine-san is an amazing artist who is especially good at blending characters into their backgrounds.
When we were creating Jack Jeanne, I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to pull something like that off, so I definitely wanted to recruit Lownine-san for the job. After getting permission from Broccoli, I reached out to Lownine-san myself through Twitter DM’s. I had only appreciated Lownine-san’s work from afar, and we’d never actually interacted before, but we did both follow each other. I received a reply that Lownine-san was fully on board to accept the job.
Towards the end of Jack Jeanne’s development, I got the chance to speak with Lownine-san, so I asked them “Could you teach me how to draw?” They gladly accepted this request and taught me how to draw whilst screen sharing over Skype. However, in about 10 minutes, they’d already drawn such an amazing piece that I felt I should just put my pen down (lol).
Towada: You were a little down after that, weren’t you?
—Had you been a fan of Kosemura-san, who was in charge of music, since you were a student as well?
Ishida: Yes, I’ve listened to Kosemura-san’s music a lot since I was a student. When I was brainstorming what kind of music would fit Jack Jeanne, Kosemura-san’s ‘Light Dance’ immediately came to mind, since it fit perfectly. Because I didn’t have any personal connections to Kosemura-san however, I didn’t know how to get in contact with him, so I made the request through Broccoli. I only found out about this recently, but apparently Kosemura-san almost turned the offer down*, I was quite shocked to hear that (lol).
*When the initial request was sent, it was under wraps that the game was being made by Ishida Sui, and since Kosemura-san didn’t have much experience in writing game music, he wasn’t optimistic about the offer. However, later, when he learned that it was a game being made by Ishida Sui, he readily accepted the offer.
—How did Seishiro-san, who was in charge of the choreography, get chosen for the job?
Ishida: A very long time ago I saw the group Tokyo Gegegay appear on a program called DANCE @ HERO JAPAN and I remember thinking ‘this group is crazy good’ and I was immediately charmed by them. After that, whilst I was looking through more videos of Tokyo Gegegay on YouTube, I happened upon a studio workshop video and discovered Seishiro-san.
—What about him caught your eye?
Ishida: Whilst first and foremost his dancing was super sexy, it also had a certain strength to it. I remember thinking that he danced in a way that embraced the best elements of both masculinity and femininity. And that had stayed in my memory ever since. When Seishiro-san was recording motion capture for the game, he allowed me to interrupt and even taught me some of the choreography.
(note: you can watch Seishiro dance here, he is also the choreographer behind this RADWIMPS music video!)
—I hear you’ve known Gyudon-san, who was in charge of making the movies, since your Tokyo Ghoul days. 
Ishida: Yes. Around the time volume 13 of Tokyo Ghoul was set to be released, we held a still image MAD (Music Anime Douga) contest. The grand prize winner of said contest was Gyudon-san, who at the time was still only a student. The way they made a video by manipulating the manga panels to move so fluidly was really cool and stood out from the rest. 
Around when Tokyo Ghoul had ended and :re was about to start, I had Gyudon-san make a minute long video for me. After that, Gyudon-san grew in popularity and became someone whose work is in high demand, so they seemed very busy.
However when Jack Jeanne was announced, we were able to have them create a promotional video for us. Since I’ve known them since Tokyo Ghoul, I figured I couldn’t go wrong entrusting the job to Gyudon-san. They didn’t just deliver their finished work without a word either, Gyudon-san also made a variety of suggestions and worked on the project with a positive attitude. For the videos used in the performances, I was asked to provide materials and became very involved in the process. I think it took about two weeks… Despite the really tight deadline, Gyudon-san allowed me to catch up and was super helpful.
I was also the one who reached out to Touyama Maki-san, who was in charge of creating the in-game chibi characters and the 4koma manga used for promotional purposes. During Tokyo Ghoul’s publication, Touyama-san would draw short comics for the series as a hobby, I thought they were a nice person for doing so. Their art was great too and I was very thankful. So when it was decided that we’d be displaying chibi characters during the game’s lesson segments, I wanted to leave it to Touyama-san and sent them the offer.
(note: this is the MAD that gyudon won the contest with, they now regularly make moving manga CM's for jump titles, they make the Choujin X ones too!)
~ ~ ~
The winter performance moves into Quartz’s ending, and the divergence in the story since the beginning of the year drastically branches off
—The performances, packed full of each of the character’s skills, continue for a year and pass by in the blink of an eye. Once the new year breaks, it feels as though the atmosphere of the game drastically changes. What were your intentions behind this?
Towada: That’s when the character route specific endings begin. So we packed all the needed material to set them up into the winter performance.
Ishida: The winter performance is like an ending for Quartz as a whole, so we packed it full of good lines and scenes without holding back. I may have used up all of my cards but by using them all without compromise, we were able to make the story reach a nice peak. After that, the story switches to focusing on each character's individual ending.
Towada: We used a lot of great material in the winter performance, which meant the final performance would have to be even better still. In a good way, it gave us a higher hurdle that we now needed to overcome.
—So you needed to create even more anticipation heading into March?
Towada: From January to March, each character’s route is completely different. From the new year onwards I needed to create seven different scripts, so it was very challenging. The amount of text for the last three months of the game alone just about eclipses the amount of text from up until the winter performance. There was so much to write that I began to fear I wouldn’t even be able to finish it.
Ishida: Having more choices that drastically change the ending of the game makes the player feel more involved. So, despite it making things tougher on ourselves, around the time we were working on the autumn performance is when we began thinking about how the game’s big branches should work. Along with the main routes, we also planned for there to be the option to deepen your bonds with the side characters.
—How did you go about creating the confession scenes?
Towada: Before the winter performance, to some extent each character has already grown closer to Kisa, so I kept in mind not to disrupt that flow. Since if I didn’t make it a confession that respected both Kisa and her suitor’s feelings, then I felt it would spoil the fun.
—Is that how you approached the ‘realising Kisa’s a girl’ scenes as well?
Towada: Yes, I suppose so. As I was writing the script, I knew that a point was going to come where Kisa would have no choice but to acknowledge the fact that she’s a girl. There’s characters that realise her true gender once their bond deepens and on the flip side, there are some who don’t realise it at all. There’s also the case of Yonaga, who knew Kisa’s situation from the beginning. I guess you could say each reveal followed one of these three patterns. Those who came to realise it, those who didn’t notice anything and those who knew from the start. I think they ended up being nice variations and I put careful consideration into writing them to make sure none of the realisations felt forced.
Also, the beginning half of the story is akin to that of a sports drama about teenagers putting on shows together, so the room for romance to be added is limited. That’s why, when I first started adding romantic elements to the character routes, it felt strange to me, so I discussed it with Ishida-san. I wasn’t able to effortlessly soak the story in romance. I think I had to rewrite Shirota’s ending at least three times…
Ishida: Shirota was who you tried writing an ending for first after all.
Towada: Shirota and Kisa aren’t the sort of people who’d be all flirty, and Shirota’s initial route was already muddy, so it was difficult to pull everything together. However, once I stopped trying to write in a way that forced romance on them and instead wrote them becoming closer as partners, things went more smoothly.
It may not be a stereotypical sort of love, but it was a human love. I thought that the natural way these two would be drawn together wouldn’t be through whispering sweet nothings to one another, but instead by coming to understand one another without having to exchange words at all. Once I’d completed Shirota’s route, to some extent, I continued writing the other routes in a similar way.
Ishida: While it’s true Shirota acts like that, the other characters all act differently. To the point some aren’t even comparable. In contrast to Shirota, Suzu’s route ended up being more of your stereotypical kind of romance. I thought that it would be nice for each character to have their own unique form of love.
Towada-san’s strong suit is writing a love story with your more classic otome guys like Suzu and Kai. I have no idea about that kind of thing, so I left Towada-san to pour her own ideas into their routes. On the flip side, characters like Fumi and Neji were dyed more with my own ideas. Neji’s way of flirting especially were mostly lines that I requested.
Towada: He’d say “Make him say something like ‘Try seduce me!’ Because I want this CG to appear.” (lol).
Neji especially plays with his words a lot, so unless Ishida-san told me what wordplay to write, I wouldn’t have been able to expand on it. Ishida-san has a very unique way of phrasing things, so I asked him for advice a lot to make sure I was making Neji speak in a Neji-like way. I then arranged the lines and created events in order to reach the intended goal. I constructed the route in a way that wouldn’t disrupt the flow of the story. As for Fumi, Ishida-san wrote his route himself.
Ishida: Yes, I wrote it all myself.
—Well isn’t this quite the exciting plot twist?
Ishida: I turned into quite the young maiden myself (lol). Even though I’m clumsy at it… I began wondering why I ended up loving writing it so much. I added some lines that have more of an adult and deeper meaning to them, so when I played the route myself I was like “Woah!”.
Towada: It’s more interesting if at least one character is that way. From the early days of production, I’d quietly wanted Ishida-san to write a character himself, so I was happy. I was unsure how to deal with Fumi too, so it was a big help that Ishida-san took him on. His route ended up being a lot sweeter than I’d been expecting though, it got my heart racing (lol).
Ishida: I was also the main writer for Kisa’s solo route. There’s no romance in it, but it’s an ending where long lasting friendships are born and it ended up being the kind of story you’d see in an uplifting shoujo manga.
Towada: It’s full of Ishida-san’s flair, I loved it.
Ishida: If love is a lie, then how do you face that lie? That’s the sort of thing I thought about. Kisa is lying about her gender and pretending to be a boy, but Neji, Suzu, Fumi, Yonaga and so on, are also hiding lies within themselves.
The fact they’re all hiding their true motives is something that they have in common with Kisa. Whilst hiding, the two grow closer. I think that a confession is a scene where all these lies intersect and burst open. Everyone is lying, and I thought that was like a play, without realising it I think that slowly became the theme of the work. 
As people, we meet others whilst lacking something and some people end up becoming a necessary part for someone else. I wanted to see a drama like that. Despite it being a game with confession scenes, I wanted it to be a story that both women and men alike are able to identify with.
~ ~ ~
From thorns to rounded edges, how the style of work transformed 
—If there was a small novels worth of rejected material, then how many books worth of words made it into the final game?
Towada: In terms of paperback books, probably about twenty volumes worth.
—Because as well as the main scenario, there’s also the sub scenarios and the stage plays?
Ishida: As much as time allowed, I put my all into creating the game. However there was a deadline for things like the voiceline recordings, so I was working both day and night to get things done in time.
Towada: I was only getting around three hours of sleep. I feel like at one point Ishida-san didn’t sleep for four days.
Ishida: I was in a serious pinch so I don’t remember it well, but when I was writing the script I would hole myself up in a manga cafe for around thirty hours at a time. Multiple times a month. Once I felt as though I’d written to a good point, I’d go home only to return to the manga cafe again. Why? Because I was sleeping in the manga cafe. I mays well have been living there…
Towada: Once Ishida-san had finished writing his part of the script, he’d have me check it. So at the same time, I’d have Ishida-san check what I’d written.
Ishida: For a period of time it seemed like Towada-san was always awake. Whenever I would send a check request she always responded right away regardless of the time, so I figured she must not be sleeping.
So that my productivity wouldn’t be affected, I made sure to sleep at a regular time, however I’d be awake for like 30~40 hours at a time and then sleep for 10 and then be awake again for another 40. My sleeping patterns would repeat in this cycle. During Tokyo Ghoul’s serialisation my sleeping patterns were similar, so to some extent I might’ve gotten used to it.
—That’s just like Neji-senpai, isn’t it?
Ishida: Yeah yeah, I worked in a similar way to him. However in Neji’s case, he can complete a script just one day after coming up with the idea for it, so he works way faster than us. It took us around two months to write parts of the script, so Neji really is a genius isn’t he? I was writing whilst wishing I could be like Neji.
After experiencing writing a script, I’ve come to have a lot of respect for authors. Writing is completely different from drawing. When writing I need to really concentrate on it, I can’t multi-task or think about anything else. Whereas with drawing, there are some things that can be done as long as you can move your hand, so I can talk to someone whilst drawing or watch a movie in the background or work whilst thinking about other things. I can’t do that when I’m writing though, I was starting to wonder if I really had to think so deeply about everything I wrote.
—During the production of Jack Jeanne, as you worked on the script or the lyrics etc, did you notice any changes in how you worked?
Ishida: For Tokyo Ghoul, I was always consciously adding things, meaning I would draw everything that I came up with. I thought that it was fine to only put 20% of my output into the characters and dialogue. However, when I was working on Jack Jeanne, I began to think that my method of just adding things was incorrect and that I should also consciously remove things. It’s ok to just be left with what’s necessary. My way of thinking ended up being the exact opposite to before.
—What brought about this change in thinking?
Ishida: It was early in production, when I had asked Towada-san to write Shirota’s route for me, I got concerned about the ‘sharpness’ of the story. As I mentioned earlier, I ordered Towada-san to add this and that and sent her walking on a long journey. Except, what lay completed at the end of that road was such a painful story that even I myself was shocked by it. When I looked down at the world I had created it was as if I’d received a psychological shock. I think I even smelt the faint scent of blood.
—From thorns to rounded edges. I still remember the comment you made during a press conference saying, “I was careful to not kill off any characters”.
Ishida: Stories where characters die are usually fast paced with high stakes, however, the kids at univeil are living a different kind of story. I had to consider the best way to create drama in that kind of setting. I thought about it a lot and it may have only ended up being possible because of the fact it was a game.
—Why is that?
Ishida: Because of the flow of the dialogue, backed by Kosemura-san’s music while it's being read out by all of the voice actors. It all comes together as one… That’s what I think at least. Writing and illustrating are Towada-san and I’s main domain of expertise, but I think that it was thanks to all of the other various creators involved that we were able to create something new.
—Do you think anything about yourself changed, Towada-san?
Towada: It came down to the fact I wanted to create something for Ishida-san whilst there were also things that I wanted to add myself. This dilemma caused me trouble at times, however when I started to consider what components I should add, or which ones I should remove, I began to discover what elements I liked and what my own skillset was. 
The way that Ishida-san and I go about creating stories is different. I came to understand that Ishida-san’s strong point is creating impactful scenes, whilst mine is plotting and world building. Ishida-san being in charge of the pivotal scenes would make things more exciting, so I concentrated on writing everything else whilst keeping the balance in mind. Through working on Jack Jeanne, I’ve become able to say that my strong suit is being able to create a story that flows well.
It may be true that by working with other people, you come to understand more about yourself. Starting with Ishida-san, I also looked at what the other creators were doing and thought ‘so this is how they interpret the story.’ Seeing what they came up with made me notice different approaches that I hadn’t thought of.
I’d write whilst listening to Kosemura-san’s music and decide which way to take a scene. Or I’d watch Seishiro-san dance and think about how I could make the performances more exciting. We were all connected in some way. Novels are usually written alone by one person, so I came to learn the thrill of working on something in a team.
—The way you all came together as gears to create a single work sounds similar to the story of Univeil.
Towada: True. I never thought I’d experience something straight out of my youth again at this age. Being helped by other team members or being supported by them, being motivated by simple phrases like “It was great” or “I like this idea”.
For example, when I was working on the final phases of the story, I was just writing and writing with no end in sight, I couldn’t take it anymore and my pen just stopped moving. During this dire moment so close to the end, my proofreader messaged me saying, “You’re almost done.” And with that simple message alone, it was as if a burst of light appeared before my eyes. Everything had gone pitch black, but they lit everything back up again. Ishida-san also wrote some of the script, so I didn’t feel as alone.
Ishida: At that time I left all my drawings alone and decided to solely focus on the scenario.
Towada: Yeah, because I hit a point where I wasn’t able to write it on my own anymore… When Ishida-san sent me the script he’d written, it was interesting and I let out a breath of relief. I felt the joy of being able to see someone else's work. I was the same as the Univeil students who find joy in performing with others. I definitely wouldn’t have been able to do it if I was alone.
Ishida: You’ve got that right. I think that if anyone was missing from the team, it wouldn’t have worked out. Not to mention that in my case, everyone’s contributions were directed to me, and they were all people that I’d personally gathered.
With manga, even if it comes to the worst case scenario, at the very least it would all just fall on me. However this game isn’t just something I made on my own, I need to contribute as much as I can or the efforts of everyone around me will go to waste as well. There was a moment where I felt afraid of having such a heavy responsibility placed on me. However, if I had tried to do it all on my own, I think I would have given up.
By listening to wonderful music, reading interesting scripts and moving forward together with everyone, I was inspired. Coming together with fellow creators to make one work came with a lot of challenges, but it was fun. It was refreshing being in an environment working alongside other people, and because of it I was able to experience something new.
—Has working alongside other people changed the way you work at all?
Ishida: Right now I’m still in the state immediately after being swept away by the raging waves of a storm, so I’m not sure how I really feel yet. I’m in the phase of just watching what becomes of Jack Jeanne as the waves subside.
Even though the script and illustrations were done, like bonus stages lots and lots of new tasks kept popping up. So I was still busy with work up until the beginning of October last year. When I looked at some of the thoughts people had on the demo version of the game, it felt as though what we’d all been working so hard on had finally taken shape, and I was relieved.
Working on this project I’ve come to learn both the hardships and the fulfilment that comes with creating something with others. So, I suppose I’ve started considering working on something by myself again… I’m not trying to say that it’s in my nature to want to work alone, I think I’m just experiencing some kind of aftershock. I think the waves are returning.
Towada: I’m still working overtime and supervising Jack Jeanne (lol). Like checking content that will be posted on social media, as well as the 4koma manga. Content is still being released and there have been bug reports from some people who played the demo… Meaning that my journey is still not over yet. I think that things should calm down once the game has been released for a while.
Ishida: Yeah, probably after around five months (lol).
—After their final performance, the members of Quartz all threw a party to celebrate. Did you and the rest of the creators do the same upon the game's completion?
Towada: I celebrated with Ishida-san as siblings. And then afterwards we got swamped with work again (lol).
Ishida: Yeah, we didn’t end up meeting with the other developers or the voice cast. Big project after parties aren’t as common these days, but I do want to hear everyone’s stories of any struggles they had.
Towada: There were way too many people involved in total for me to be able to speak with them all, but I’d still love to convey my impressions to them. Like letting them know what I thought was good, or letting them know that a certain thing really helped me out.
Ishida: Ideally I would like to gather everyone and really have it feel that ‘this is the team of people that created Jack Jeanne’ and I’d like to express my gratitude to them all in person. I hope that an opportunity like that will come one day.
~ ~ ~
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vodika-vibes · 3 months
Note
I love your writing and I was so excited to see this event! I promise I am still rereading and reading all your new releases and each and every one gives me life! May I get a Fairy Tale AU with Rex? Maybe where reader is a second born princess, with a protective but very feminist older brother, who has encouraged her to train to defend herself. Rex is the captain of her guard and he loves her because they grew up beside one another and yet she’s promised to a prince who doesn’t swing her way? They’ve grown up and ��grown up” with each other in every possible way and she loves him back but it must be secret? But the prince she’s promised to sees their closeness and realizes that the only way he’s not going to be miserable is release her from the betrothal and take her older brother’s hand in marriage (which he’s not complaining about because her older brother is sweet and wonderful and very much more so who HE’s interested in). And because her older brother is a real one, he unapologetically rewrites their governing laws when he takes the throne to say screw you I’m not providing an heir because I don’t fancy women and you wouldn’t accept any foundlings I adopt, when my sister marries her beloved best friend Rex, that little one will be my heir to the throne. Angst at the beginning because reader doesn’t know how she can have what her heart wants while fulfilling her royal expectations, Rex loves her dearly but doesn’t think he’s worthy of standing at her side (honorable and self deprecating King he is), and all along her cheeky older brother is the unsung hero bringing justice and love to them all. Even if this isn’t quite how it plays out when you write it, I know you’ll work your magic! 💕
My Lady's Choice
Summary: Rex has been in love with his best friend for as long as he can remember. And he knows that she loves him too, she tells him often enough. But he’s just a knight, and she’s been promised to another man.
Pairing: Captain Rex x F!Reader
Word Count: 1239
Warnings: None
Prompt: Fairy Tale AU
Tagging: @trixie2023 @n0vqni @imabeautifulbutterfly
A/N: Hi there! Thanks for your request! I hope this is close to what you wanted! Also, sorry that it took so long, words haven't wanted to agree with me for a bit.
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“You’ve been in a foul mood all day,” Rex notes as he offers the Princess another arrow, “What’s wrong?”
Her pretty lips become a scowl as she notches her arrow and draws the sting back, “Nothing.” She releases the string and the arrow flies true, striking the dummy in the center.
Rex watches her momentarily, taking in the tension in her frame and how her lips are turned down, and he sighs. “You might be able to lie to yourself and your brother, but you can’t lie to me.”
She hesitates and lowers her bow, “My betrothed is coming to meet me.” She finally admits, “My brother told me yesterday.”
Rex feels a pang in his chest, but he shoves it to the side. He always knew that he was going to lose her one day, he just hoped that it would be one day far in the future. “Well, perhaps you’ll like him?” He offers.
She tosses him a frustrated look, “I don’t want to like him.”
“Now you’re just being stubborn.”
She whirls to face him, “I’ve made my choice. I made it years ago.”
Rex sighs, soft and slow, “Princess,” His voice is so softly pained, “I’m not an option. You know that.”
Her lower lip juts out and she lifts her chin defiantly, “I don’t care.”
“Princess,”
“I love you!”
Rex pauses and his heart swells with affection for the woman standing in front of him. He glances around and, upon seeing that they’re alone, he takes a step closer to her and brings his hand up to cup her face, “I know you do.”
There’s something almost panicked in her gaze, “And you love me?”
His smile spreads, “More than I can put into words.”
The panic settles into something a little steadier, and Rex lightly brushes his thumb across her painted lower lip, “Then why won’t you fight for us?”
“We always knew that this was going to happen, cyar’ika.” Rex murmurs, the familiar endearment falling from his lips without thought. “That someday you would be claimed by someone else, and that I would lose you.”
“No.”
She says it so firmly that Rex almost believes her. But then, she’s always been so sure that they would find a way to be them, even within the constraints of the laws.
“Cyar’ika,” Rex pauses, “Princess,” He corrects, “Maybe it would be best to end things before you lose everything.” It’ll break his heart, but he won’t stand here and watch her throw away everything that she has a right to because she was fool enough to fall in love with a lowborn knight.
The panic returns to her face, “Are you breaking up with me?” Her voice is small, fragile sounding almost, and Rex wants to kick himself. He knows, better than most, how his cyar’ika views herself. And why she’d view a breakup as a form of abandonment.
Rex presses his other hand to her cheek, “No. I said that I should.”
Confusion slides across her face, “Rex?”
“I should let you go.” He murmurs, “You might find happiness with your betrothed. But I don’t want to.”
“I won’t be happy with anyone who isn’t you.” She announces as she presses her hands over his.
For some reason, her announcement surprises him. Never mind that he already knew that. Never mind that he thinks the same thing.
He’s still shocked to hear her say it.
Slowly, he leans in and presses his forehead against hers, and a small smile lifts his lips when he feels her warm breath against his face.
Stars, he really does love her so much. 
Maybe he can talk himself into her guard after she gets married, that way they won’t be separated. And it’s not like she would be the first Queen who had a low-born lover after getting married.
It’s a horrible idea. And Rex knows it.
But he also knows that watching her ride off into the sunset with her betrothed will destroy him.
She leans in and catches his lips with hers, and Rex surges into the kiss, one of his hands moving to tangle in her hair as he adjusts her head to deepen the kiss.
He smiles into the kiss as she almost becomes boneless against him, her soft hands lightly gripping the plates of his armor to try and pull herself closer to him. She breaks the kiss before he does, her eyes closed and a small smile on her face.
She looks happy. Content.
He’d sell his soul to keep her smiling like that.
She opens her eyes and favors him with the warmest smile he’s ever seen, “Cyare?”
Slowly she reaches up and traces his lips, “I think I have an idea, Rex.”
Rex eyes her, doubtfully, “A good idea?”
Her smile widens, “Trust me.”
He watches her for a moment, and then sighs, “As if you have to ask,” Rex leans in and kisses her one more time, and then pulls away from her. It wouldn’t do for anyone to catch him kissing her, after all.
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Rex doesn’t see much of his cyare for the next couple of weeks, a fact that makes him unbearably anxious. He knows that the wedding hasn’t happened, as there’s no way that he would miss that, but the constant meetings between his cyare, her brother, and her betrothed don’t bode well for his relationship.
When he does see her again, he’s a bit surprised.
Well, ‘a bit’ is something of an understatement.
The truth is, he almost doesn’t recognize her when she comes running up to him. She has a bright smile on her pretty face and her hair, normally pulled into a series of intricate braids, hangs loose around her head.
And she’s wearing civilian clothes. A tunic and comfortable trousers with boots, rather than the delicate gowns that she’s supposed to wear as princess.
“Princes—” Rex is forced to drop the training mat that he is supposed to be bringing to the salles when she flings herself into his arms. His arms wrap securely around her, supporting her weight as she wraps her arms around his neck.
She’s giggling as she bumps her nose against his, her grin so broad that it looks like it’s going to crack her face in two.
And, despite the audience, Rex can’t help but smile back at her, her good mood infectious, “Why are you so happy, cyare?” He murmurs.
“My brother has canceled my betrothal,”
“He did wha—”
Her hands come up to cup his face, “He’s also rewritten the laws, I am free to marry anyone I choose. And if the council of old people have a problem with it, they can take it up with him and his sword.”
“Cyare, what—?”
“My brother is going to marry my former betrothed,” She continues, “As it happens, my brother is more his type.” Her fingers slide over his short hair, “And, to keep the throne in the family, my firstborn child will be named heir.”
Rex stares at her, wide-eyed, and then a slow smile crosses his face, “So, that means—”
“—nothing is stopping us from being together.” She finishes.
That’s all Rex needs to hear as he crashes his lips against hers, no longer caring about their audience. Needing her as close as he can get her.
Looks like he’ll actually have a use for that ring he’s saved up for after all.
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kissofthemis · 1 year
Note
Hello!Can i request the nxx biys with a slightly weird s/o?
Like weird as in they're always happy and goofy 24/7 even in dangerous situations?Like maybe something happened to them in the past that made then this way(you can decide on what happened :D )
Oh,and can i be the K Anon?My keyboard lags a lot if i use emojis,so I hope you don't mind if I go by K Anon here :D
Sorry if this is a super long request it's just been brainrottingbin my head 24/7 and i don't have enough writting skills lmao
❤ Artem ❤
At first, he doesn't notice that you have a tendency to laugh off your pain or make morbid jokes. He thinks that he's just more uptight or strict than most people, so he suspects your behavior is actually more akin to how "normal" people act.
It's when you act blasé after a dangerous encounter that he realizes that this seems to be a unique trait, specific to you.
He specializes in criminal cases. He knows that people who feel threatened or have experienced dangerous situations can react in many different ways... but to be this carefree is not something he's seen before.
You don't lash out, but you don't withdraw. You don't scream or cry, but you aren't bottling your pain either. You're an anomaly.
"Mr. Wing, it's a dark world out there." He knows that. "If I'm too serious, I'll crumble." He's never heard you speak in such a flat, detached tone. "So I stay silly!"
He isn't going to pry into why you feel you have to laugh all the pain away, because he trusts you to tell him if/when you're ready.
He knows what it's like to mask his true feelings.
Instead he offers you his shoulder. "If you ever need to turn away from the shadows... I'll shield you if you need a moment to be vulnerable, before putting that smile back on your face."
~♡~♡~♡~♡~
💛 Luke 💛
Your smile and laugh make him warm inside. He likes that you can stay cheerful even when faced with stress or with gloomy situations.
He soon realizes that you're a bit too goofy, a bit too relaxed, a bit too much of a jokester. He's not mad about it, but he wants to figure out why you're this way.
At first he doesn't want to tell you he's investigating your behaviors. He's in detective mode and NSB agent mode at the same time; he won't ask for help nor reveal his intentions when he asks to spend more time with you.
He cares, but his pride can get in the way.
Finally he pieces together the puzzle, with clues and hints he obtained partially from you and partially from totally legitimate public sources, no hacking involved. (/s)
"You could've just asked me!" You laugh and wave him off. "It's no big deal!"
Luke gets stern with you. "You were subjected to immense psychological and physical abuse."
You just smile. "And you haven't been?" His scowl gets deeper. "Tell you what! Promise to look after me, so you don't have to worry about me getting trapped or endangered ever again! And then I'll be able to smile freely all the time!"
He reluctantly agrees.
Don't ask if the plush dog he gives you the next time you meet has a camera in it.
~♡~♡~♡~♡~
💜 Marius 💜
Your cheerful and carefree nature is what draws Marius to you in the first place.
He's constantly under stress. Whether it's school, tutoring, Z, or Pax, he always has some project pending and is subject to intense scrutiny.
You're a breath of fresh air from stuffy old men. You smile, you laugh, you play. He wants some of that l joy back in his life.
Unfortunately, trauma knows trauma. The more time he spends with you, the more he picks up on eccentricities that... don't quite line up with "innocence" the way he imagines it.
He understands the value of secrets and how they can protect others. He's had to keep secrets to protect his family, the company, reputations, wealth, you name it.
But he also wants to work on being more honest with himself, and that means being more honest with his closest friends. He doesn't have many friends, so he wants you to be able able confide in him the same way he can confide in you.
Of course, while he's a bold and bright businessman, he's a timid and inexperienced friend.
He'll try to tease and pout his way into your heart and mind. "Aww, are you laughing at me again, miss/mx/mister?" Tugging at your sleeves and your heartstrings. "Trying to trick me with a fake smile? Miss/mx/mister doesn't trust me..."
Turns out he has to be direct and blunt. You two end up having a heart to heart about your respective fears and struggles, the horrors you've faced, the sorrowful smiles and the humorous tears.
He comes up with an idea. "Here's a key to my studio. Want to turn pain and fear into something bright? Show me what you can paint."
~♡~♡~♡~♡~
💚 Vyn 💚
In case it wasn't readily apparent, Vyn picks up on your act instantly.
He's a psychiatrist. He doesn't know why you act this way, but he can figure out it's unnatural.
(Not to mention he enjoys card tricks. He's also good at perceiving sleight of hand and other "magic" that involves showing someone what you want them to see, instead of showing them the truth and mechanisms behind the magic.)
Instead of playing games or trying to snoop his way into your secrets, he just observes you.
He's skilled at sitting back and watching, waiting, picking up pieces and fitting them together.
You catch him by surprise, however, when you call him out on his behavior.
"Vyn, am I your patient or your friend?" You pout at him and fold your arms over your chest in a highly exaggerated manner, one that is almost comical in nature. You shift back into chuckles and spin around as you wait for his answer.
Your one moment of frustration could easily be brushed off as a joke, but Vyn hears there is actual hurt in your words.
"You are... quite the anomaly," he replies at last. "You wear both the masks of comedy and tragedy. I couldn't help but wonder which was your real face." He leans closer and whispers, "I want to see my friend's true face, beneath all the masks and pretenses. Is that so wrong, dear?"
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thenightfolknetwork · 8 months
Note
Hi. I have a bit of a problem regarding my appearance.
You see, for a long time I was a vessel for a greater deity. But, recently, that deity has left me. Usually, this isn’t supposed to happen. But, The Great One will do as She desires, so I was left behind.
The problem is, while She was inhabiting me, She made a few adjustments to my appearance. Horns, ear piercings, tattoos, etc.
When She left, the horns and scales disappeared. But the piercings and tattoos stayed. Honestly, I don’t mind them. I find them very stylish and have grown accustomed to them.
But it’s not exactly my call. You see, I am Sapio. Without The Great One using my form, I’m about the most average Sapio out there. But the markings and piercings adorning my body are symbolic of the devine-folk genetically related to The Great One. Which I am not. So, naturally, me having these markings is seen as incredibly appropriative.
So, what do I do? I can’t remove them, they’ve been divinely protected beyond belief. I can’t cover them either, they’re everywhere, and bundling up in the middle of Arizona summer isn’t exactly a wise choice for me.
So, how do I get people to realize that I’m not trying to be offensive? Or at least, how do I stop being offensive?
Unfortunately, reader, there's nothing you can do to ensure people don't misinterpret your physical appearance. It would make life a great deal easier if we could transmit our good intentions and mitigating contexts into the minds of others at a whim.
But even if we could, that's no guarantee others would take the time to actually listen before forming an opinion – or even that, after hearing our reasoned defences, that they would agree with us.
I think it's important to emphasise that you aren't actually being offensive here. Cultural appropriation is a very real issue, but you haven't appropriated anything. You were fully and sincerely part of the culture to which these adornments and markings belong.
In fact, I would strongly argue that you have every right still to identify with this culture, if you so wished. 'The most average sapio out there' has never been a vessel for a great deity. That experience doesn't stop being part of your story just because it is now in the past tense rather than the present.
However, you may still wish to avoid the stares and snap judgements your appearance might draw. In practical terms, you might consider using a glamour to subtly alter your appearance, or at least to draw attention away from your more controversial features.
Any reputable, licensed practitioner should be able to supply you with such workings, and many offer discounts if you're buying bulk. Glamours can be expensive though, so you'll likely want to reserve them for situations where they'll be most effective.
If you're just popping to the shops or taking a walk round the park, your best defence is a shift in mind-set. You don't need strangers to understand you. You know who you are, and you can share that with people who take the time to actually engage with you.
Otherwise, keep your head high, and concentrate on the opinions that matter – your own, and those of the people who love you.
Alternatively, you might consider getting some custom t-shirts made. 'I Was A Vessel To An Elder God And All I Got Were These Lousy Piercings' has a certain ring to it.
[For more creaturely advice, check out Monstrous Agonies on your podcast platform of choice, or visit monstrousproductions.org for more info]
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Text
Black Light
Wednesday x Parasite!Reader
A/N: I hear y'all wanted a series?
Part One
Your door bursts open and you suddenly find yourself with a knife at your neck.
"You shifted yourself into Rowan, didn't you? Why? Are you on cahoots with Weems?"
The onslaught of questions following the intrusion left you stunned. It took longer than you would've liked, but you finally found your bearings and returned Wednesday's glare.
"What are you talking about?" The virus within you reaches out from your neck and grasps at the knife threatening you. "I saw Rowan's body with you. What would I gain from becoming him?"
"You tell me." The goth pulls at her arm, trying to release herself from your hold. You just let out a groan and push her back.
"What do I have to do for you to trust me again? I've done nothing to warrant this."
The two of you are locked in a staring contest. Neither of you were willing to back down. You could see Wednesday's mind running haywire, going through thought processes like nothing. With a growl, Wednesday finally relents.
"I suppose I can give you the benefit of the doubt..." With a sigh, you release your hold on the girl.
"So what's going on? I've heard rumblings, but I don't actually know anything."
"Rowan reappeared," Wednesday stares as she sheathes her knife. "Appeared after I spoke with Weems. Now everyone thinks I fabricated the murder." She starts to pace. "Nothing about this makes sense. We saw the attack. We saw the body. Suddenly, he's walking through the doors like nothing happened."
"See if you can find him," you offer. "Talk to him. See what you can get straight from the source."
The goth thinks for a moment before turning towards you. "Not a bad idea. Xavier is his roommate, so I might be able to use him as an in."
Without so much as a passing glance, Wednesday marches out of your room. You just sigh and wonder where this fixation was going to lead.
-----+++++-----
You walk into your botany class to see Wednesday talking to a familiar hand. It had been a while since you'd seen Thing and it brought you back to the days when you and Wednesday were thick as thieves. You take your seat near the front, leaving the two to their conversation.
"I see you finally made a friend." Looking up, you see Bianca being her usual self. You disliked a lot of the elitist students and she was on the top of the list. "Even if it is a plant." You frown at the words. But, as per usual, Wednesday has a quip up her sleeve.
"I prefer quality over quantity." That makes a soft snort come out of you and Bianca glares in response.
"There's an open spot next to me." You glance behind you to see Xavier offering the seat beside him. "If you can stand sitting next to an elitist snob."
You roll your eyes at him and turn back around. When you do, your eyes lock onto Wednesday's and a silent conversation happens before she breaks eye contact.
"I have better options to choose from." She sets her things next to you and takes the seat. A small, pleased smile threatens to split your face, but you keep your composure. At least she considers you better company than some people. Plus, it didn't hurt to see Xavier look put off at the rejection.
The best part though? Having front row seats to the verbal tennis match between Wednesday and Bianca.
-----+++++-----
Wednesday finds you later and drags you somewhere private. Once she's sure that you're alone, she speaks.
"Who knows of your powers, Y/N?"
"Just what I've shown. Mainly my weapon shifting and armor. Strength. That sort of thing." You shrug, wondering where this was leading to.
"And your shifting?"
"I haven't had reason to use it. Plus the academy gives me enough to eat so I don't consume bodies to draw from." You narrow your eyes at the goth. "Why?"
"I have to get back to the woods, but Weems is watching me like a vulture circling a carcass."
"And you need me to cover for you?"
"I do. I have beekeeping in the afternoon and I need a decoy. Your shifting ability is perfect for that. Even if Weems gets close enough, you can still fool her." She pauses for a moment before continuing. "You're the closest person to know my mannerisms well enough to be convincing."
You lean back against the closest wall with crossed arms. "You do know what this entails, right? I need your DNA in some form. While I don't need to consume a full body anymore, I still need something."
"I'm aware," Wednesday answers. "I do remember some aspects of your abilities." She mirrors your stance and crosses her own arms. "How much do you need?"
Your eyes close as you think. To Wednesday, it seems like you're communing with yourself. It's not too far off the mark.
"Like I said, it's been a long time since I've even shifted. But, if I remember correctly, it shouldn't be too much." You run your hand across your face in frustration. "It's really hard to quantify."
"Then take what you need." Your eyes shoot to Wednesday as she rolls up her sleeve. The pale skin tempts you in a way you buried away ages ago.
"This could hurt. A lot."
"Nothing I can't handle."
With a sigh, you reach out your hand and grab her forearm. Almost immediately, black tendrils ease out of your arm and settle into Wednesday's. It takes only a beat before the goth starts to react. The dark mass sinks into her skin and begins to essentially eat away at her. You will your parasite further into her arm, taking care to not go too deep. As soon as you feel it's enough, you draw back the darkness into your body. Wednesday grips her arm as it pulses in pain.
"You'll bruise, but I made sure there's no bleeding. Nothing to bandage." The telltale signs of bruising are already taking effect and you feel a little guilty. But this is what your friend wanted.
"Good." She rolls her sleeve back down. It was as if you didn't just take a piece of her. "Be at the apiary at noon. I'll brief Eugene."
"Sure."
-----+++++-----
After the successful decoy mission, you find yourself in your room once more. One of the few solo rooms since most were scared of your powers. Or rather, the rumors of them. It didn't bother you though. You had your friends and anyone else who didn't want to cross that line didn't matter.
Your door opens suddenly, causing you to look up. Wednesday strides through and you wonder if you have to actually lock your door now.
"I need your help." She states. "I'm joining Enid in the Poe Cup and we need to make sure we win." You furrow your brow.
"You're actually joining a school event? Voluntarily?"
"Bianca needs to be knocked down a few pegs."
"Ah." You nod in understanding. "Makes more sense now." Now fully facing Wednesday, you give her a wicked grin. "What do you want me to do?"
-----+++++-----
The cheers in the quad echoes in your brain. Ophelia Hall won the Poe Cup for the first time in a while. Enid was ecstatic as she carted the large trophy around everywhere she went. The sight made you smile.
You managed to help out the Black Cats by helping Thing with Kent and adding holes into the Gold Bugs canoe. All from a distance of course. Being able to see via your parasite had its perks.
One person was missing though. The other star of the event. You knew how Wednesday was with this type of crowd so you sought her out, finding her at the statue of Edgar Allen Poe.
"Hiding?" You sit down next to her. She seemed so small when she was out of her element.
"People keep randomly smiling at me. It's unsettling."
You let out a soft laugh. "Don't worry. It'll pass. At least it's a victory for you. Bianca is thoroughly pissed." That news causes a small upturn of her lips to appear. However, it quickly disappears when a particularly loud student passes by.
"I just want some peace..." Wednesday laments. You glance up to look at the balcony leading to her and Enid's room.
"I can probably make that jump." She follows your line of sight before looking back at you.
"As long as you take me with you." You meet her eyes with a soft smile.
"Of course."
/////-----/////
Tag list: @tundra1029 @rainbow-love4ever @ladyqueenxoxo @izumikokomi
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jokeroutsubs · 10 months
Text
[ENG SUB] Bojan Cvjetićanin: I know that we will cry our eyes out. And I'm really looking forward to those tears
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Original article from Slovenske Novice Si
Translation credit: @moonlvster
Bojan Cvjetićanin: I know that we will cry our eyes out. And I'm really looking forward to those tears
Just before the highly anticipated concert in Ljubljana's Stožice Arena, we talked to Joker Out's singer, who told us about the band's plans for the future. First, they're going on vacation, and they're even all going together.
At the time of our chat, there are two days separating you from the concert in Stožice, how are you feeling?
We announced the Stožice concert quite a while ago, everyone was asking us if we were a little crazy, even we sometimes asked ourselves if we were completely sane in the meantime. But after a year, we are now in the final stretch, and we can't wait, because we don't have the nerves to wait anymore. If it dragged on for another week or so, one of us would explode. We can't wait to get on stage, we really need it by now.
What do you expect to feel after such a big concert? It can probably kind of drain a person?
When the concert was announced, we didn't imagine that in one year we'd be at the point where we are today. A lot of things happened in this year, and for us, this concert marks the end of one era and the official start of a new, even more important one. Based on the experience from Cvetličarna and Križanke, I know that we will cry our eyes out as soon as we get to the changing room. I really look forward to these tears because I haven't cried in a while. The crying will probably last a while and we'll let a lot of things out. I wouldn't say that we'll feel empty. Two days after the concert, we're going on holiday together, and that's where we'll be able to talk and air out everything that has happened to us. After our holiday, we're immediately going on tour again, there won't be a lot of time to think.
It's interesting that you're going on holiday together, do you not need time to have a break from each other?
Everyone we tell reacts the same way you did, they ask us if we're normal. But we have a good time together, we enjoy it, we get on well. Going on holiday togather is natural. We're constantly building a relationship that gets deeper every day, even though it seems like it couldn't be any deeper.
How do you resolve any conflicts that might happen in the band?
Luckily we haven't had any big conflicts so far. We have daily friction, which tends to happen in a group of five creative people, but it probably happens in all teams. Our rule is to speak honestly about all feelings, to prevent any grudges from developing. That way, we resolve everything quickly.
On your website, I looked up the concerts you've announced until the end of the year, a lot of them are abroad. How did you pick the places where you'll play? I understand that venues in the capital cities of former Yugoslavian countries are a natural choice, but how to choose the right venue in, for example, Barcelona?
After the Eurovision Song Contest, we had to really quickly draw up a tour. When we started doing that in June, it was already really late, generally you book venues for the year at the end of the previous year or the start of that year. We responded to invites from all foreign promoters who invited us to have a gig in their cities. Venue availability dictated where we went, we grabbed everything they offered us.
I know that the audience response abroad has been excellent so far, did that surprise you?
We have two tours behind us, UK and Nordic, we were in Great Britain and Scotland, in Norway, Sweden and Finland. We weren't surprised by the good response, but we were surprised by how many people sang in Slovenian. That's pretty hard to get used to.
When we talk about Slovenian musicians breaking out internationally, we quickly come up against language barriers - well, now you're saying that you don't feel that. But still, global success isn't just a question of talent, there's only one Rihanna, but there are plenty of girls who are like her at the start of her career. So what is the key? Luck? Connecting with the right people?
Any kind of success is an accumulation of many links that have to connect into a chain. Hard work, knowledge, talent, a huge amount of luck, being in the right place. I'm not really someone who believes in coincidences, but we can say that, as well. And connecting with the right people. From the start of our journey, we've tried to connect with people who wanted to be with us from the beginning because they liked this story, and not because they thought they could get money from it. Well, at the beginning, it was clear to them that there wouldn't be any money for a while. Love within the team and hard work are the key things.
How much of an influence did performing at the Eurovision Song Contest have on your international success? Some might say that young people don't watch the contest, but your performances prove otherwise…
It's true, the Eurovision Song Contest was our catapult. Just the final night was watched live by 62 million people. We're very glad that before the Eurovision Song Contest, we had built a strong enough base in Slovenia and made enough music that a certain percentage of those 62 million who looked up our music online could actually find it there.
I think that it was in 2020 when the songs Vem da greš and Gola were being played. Back then, I said that Joker Out would definitely be the next biggest band here, and I like to brag about that now. Would you say that there was a certain moment when you looked at each other and said: this is it, we've made it?
Right from the beginning, we've considered what we do to be the best thing. Success is a completely subjective thing, but we've truly believed in what we do. We trusted that if the five of us, our producer, and the people closest to us liked something, that meant it worked. We didn't let any outsiders challenge that. As for a specific moment... for me personally, it was our two concerts in Cvetličarna when we released our first album, that was when I saw how big everything that was happening around us was, when you put it all together in one place.
But it's probably not easy if so many people want a piece of you? You've spoken about panic attacks before…
We have a specific profession, the working hours, workplace and working relationships aren't defined. Us performers also constantly feel like we have to be available 24 hours per day. It's important, when the time comes, to learn how to say no as well, and to understand that nothing is more important than your health and well-being. If you don't have that, you can't create either. All professions have their dark sides, that is ours.
Earlier you spoke about entering a new era for Joker Out, what's coming up for you?
I can talk about short-term plans, about next year. We will spend the first half of the year in London, in March we will also have a European tour, we'll spend the summer at festivals, we already know that we will perform at festivals we've been dreaming about all our lives, and we will finish the year with two more tours around countries that we won't have visited in March. So, our new era will be marked by conquering new territories, as well as moving our brains there.
Siddharta is currently celebrating 20 years since the concert at the Bežigrad stadium, where do you think you will celebrate the Stožice concert anniversary in 20 years?
I have no idea, but I certainly hope that we will be as close then as we are now.
I know that most of the Joker Out boys are from Bežigrad, but twenty years ago you were still far from going to concerts, but perhaps you were kicking a ball somewhere around there on the day of the concert?
I was four years old, I know the other guys also weren't old enough to remember that concert. But we have watched it many times on CD.
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miasmaghoul · 1 year
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A lil something for our beloved @forlorn-crows, who has had a miserable week and deserves some mountrain smut.
Based on some ~feelings~ about the recent soundchecks of Twenties, I give you these two getting horny over each other's skills and fucking nasty in the practice room. ♡
(ft trans Rain (use of cunt and clit for his anatomy), rough sex, oral, cum eating, praise and these two just being so very into each other)
Rain can feel the sweat soaking into his t-shirt as his fingers fly over the neck of his bass. He bobs his head in time with the music filling the practice space, dark curls sticking to his damp forehead. His fingers ache for how long they've been here, tendons burning, but it's worth it for the sight before him.
He hasn't been able to take his eyes off of Mountain for a while now, focused solely on the obvious bulge in his shorts. The advantage of having these rare, secret sessions means that Rain can stare without fear of being chastised for ogling, which is always something he enjoys.
Not that Mountain is alone in his arousal. Far from it. The rich, filthy tone of Rain's bass is complimented by the intense pounding of his drums, something Rain can feel in his bones. His chest aches nearly as much as his cunt, and it's a wonder his knees haven't given out already. He can feel his slick soaking into his joggers, can feel cool fabric sticking to his skin as Mountain hammers away at his kit.
Practicing Twenties always does this to him. To them. It's the whole reason they'd started doing these private sessions in the early mornings, long before anyone else was interested in playing. The prerecorded track of the guitars fades into the background when their instruments take over, and the pair of them find it easy to lose themselves in the driving drone of their favorite song to play together.
Rain eyes the damp patch on Mountain's crotch, and his fingers falter. Just once, but it's enough. Enough to draw Mountain's brilliant emerald gaze to him instead of his drums, enough for his own disciplined hands to pause, and in the half-second they spend staring Rain can feel every ounce of Mountain's desire.
They don't stop playing, can't. Not in the middle of the song. There's only a minute left, maybe a little less, but it feels like it lasts forever. They watch each other with hungry eyes as the seconds tick by, and Rain breathes deep through his nose. He can smell Mountain from here, juniper and sage and the salty tang of sweat-drenched arousal. He sees the other ghoul's nostrils flare and knows Mountain must be catching his scent too. He's not surprised, Rain can feel the way he's gotten slick to his thighs. He shudders when Mountain's lip curls back, and Rain knows that if the music were even a little quieter he'd hear a rumbling growl.
At long last, the track ends. The guitars fade, the drums quiet, and before his last note has even finished ringing through the space Rain is shrugging his bass off with careful urgency. He's panting, can tell he's flushed by the heat in his cheeks and the tips of his ears. His hands tremble as he sets his instrument in its stand, and in a blink a massive hand wraps around his bicep.
Rain's bent over the nearest equipment case before he knows what's happening. Mountain kicks his feet apart and Rain huffs out an eager breath, bringing his arms up so he can grip the edge of the case where his head sits. He looks back over his shoulder, and the way Mountain looks down at him makes his clit throb.
His eyes are so dark, blown wide. He's visibly sweaty, droplets of the stuff streaking down his temples and dampening his hair. His shirt sticks to his pecs, to the obvious bumps of his nipples, to the subtle swell of his belly. He's breathing through his mouth, swaying in place, and as his shaky hands fight his zipper Rain feels himself grow slicker.
Neither of them speak when they get like this, at least not at first. Rain does offer a groan when Mountain pulls himself out; he doesn't bother tugging his shorts down, just gets that gorgeous, fat cock of his in hand and lets it poke out of his zipper. Rain stares at it, at the swollen, purpled head and the thick vein running up the side that he always loves to lick his way up. Mountain gives it a pull, milks out a thick drop of shiny pre, and Rain's stomach swoops. He looks up again, peers at the other ghoul through long lashes, and gives him a frantic nod.
Mountain's growl bounces around in his skull, Rain swears it. Long, callused fingers grab his waistband and Rain gasps when his aching cunt is exposed to the cool air of the room. Mountian whines like he's in pain at the sight of him. Rain watches him bite his lip, watches him line up, and the look of indulgent ecstasy that paints his face when Mountain drags the head through his slippery folds sends a shiver down Rain's spine.
Under normal circumstances, Rain would talk. Would instruct, would order, would demand. He'd make sure that, no matter how much Mountain may think so, he'd know he was not in charge here.
Like this, though? With the echo of pounding drums caught in his ears and between his ribs, a hypnotizing force, all Rain can do is rest his cheek on the cool surface of the case and offer a single, breathy word.
"Please."
Mountian's answering whimper speaks volumes.
Rain's claws dig into the edge of the case when Mountain sinks inside, the burning stretch not quite enough to overwhelm but plenty to satisfy. Every new inch forces the air from his lungs, no space left with the way Mountain fills him. Rain feels his gills flare, his knees shake, and once Mountain bottoms out he finds it impossible to keep his eyes open.
Strong arms wrap around his waist, and broad pressure surrounds him as Mountain molds himself to Rain's back. The tall ghoul hooks his chin over Rain's shoulder as he clings to him, holds him so tight while he breathes hot over his sweaty neck. Rain grits his teeth when Mountain sinks that much deeper, carving a singular space for himself within Rain's needy body. Rain can feel his heavy balls resting against the stiff length of his clit and really can't help the way it makes him clench.
He knows exactly what's coming next, but it doesn't keep Rain from sucking air through his teeth when Mountain cants his hips back. He can feel every bit of the way the flared head glides along his walls, the way Mountain only pulls back halfway while he huffs in his ear.
He slams back in all at once, and Rain chokes on the moan in his throat.
It's always the same when they get like this; Mountain immediately starts up a bunny-quick rhythm of deep, invasive thrusts. He barely pulls out before he's rutting back in again, and every ruthless stab inside him rattles Rain's bones. It's not entirely comfortable, but it satisfies something unnamable inside him. Something starved, silently craving this brutal treatment.
Mountain clutches him so tight, claws pricking into Rain's sides even through his shirt. The pressure around his stomach only make Mountain's jabs feel that much deeper, and it takes barely a handful of them for Rain to be rendered shaky and stupid. Every thrust has that fat sack bouncing against his throbbing clit, and each slap sends jolts of electricity through Rain's gut.
The wet, filthy sound of Mountain inside him floods the space around them, accompanied by his own high-pitched yelps, and it takes entirely too long for Rain to recognize that Mountain is speaking. Spitting a garbled stream of nonsense into soft, salty skin while he humps like an overeager dog. He has his mouth pinned to the corner of Rain's jaw, lips rasping against his stubble, and if Rain really focuses he just make out some of the words.
Mountain seems to be babbling broken, incoherent praise - none of it goes together, but Rain gets the picture. He's talking all about his playing, about Rain's skilled fingers and how beautiful he looks when he's focused.
Rain gurgles as it sinks in, drooling as he takes every bit of what Mountain gives him, and it takes real effort for him to release his death grip on the case with one hand. He threads quivering fingers into Mountain's sweaty hair, grips tight, and does his best to return the favor.
Rain doesn't know if a single one of his words makes sense, syllables falling from his lips slurred and stuttered. If he could think, he'd suppose it doesn't really matter. Not when he can show Mountain his appreciation with his body, with the way it flutters and clamps around his pulsing cock.
Still, he tries. Tries to tell Mountain how stunning he is when he plays. How hot it is when he gets so into it that he breaks a stick, how stunning it is to see him create something beautiful out of such a cacophony.
Mountain's panting in his ear now, hot and nasty as the sqeulching slap of his hips. Rain can feel him going jerky already, his thrusts rapidly losing coordination in favor of hitting an angle that makes Rain's eyes cross. He's yipping with each one now, all words lost to the way Mountain takes his breath away. He's throbbing deep inside, impossibly hard, and as Rain struggles to keep his legs under him he hears it.
"Rain - Rainy," the words drip with desperation, "'m gonna - cumming, make - make me, make me -"
The rasping wine of Mountain's voice shoots straight through him, and Rain clamps down so hard he bites his tongue. Mountain cuts himself off with a hoarse cry as he shoves in one last time, and Rain moans long and low when he feels him start to spill. It floods him in hot waves, every pulse of Mountain's cock matched by the pounding of his heart against Rain's back.
The sound Mountain makes as he cums is something Rain hopes he remembers for the rest of his days.
The other ghoul buries his face in his neck while he shakes through it, and Rain's so hazy around the edges that he barely recognizes the moment Mountain pulls away. Not until that pressure on his back vanishes and can finally suck in a deep breath, the world spinning around him as Rain finds himself being moved.
Mountain flips him with no effort, gets Rain's pert little ass perched on the edge of the equipment case while he tugs his wet joggers down to his ankles. Mountain sinks to his knees and looks up, slack jawed and red faced, and Rain's clit jumps. Mountain's eyes dart to it, widen at the sight of his ruined hole, and the wrecked sound he makes has Rain's thighs trembling.
He shouts when Mountain leans in, wrapping one arm around narrow hips and burying his face into Rain's dripping cunt. Rain pitches forward, grabs two fistfuls of thick auburn hair, and when Mountain gives his clit a firm suck Rain swears the world tilts.
He's lost in moments, drowning in the skilled swipe of Mountain's tongue through his folds, the warm, sweet suction of his lips, the way he groans deep in his chest every time Rain rocks his hips. It all shoots through him in jagged bursts, a flood of pleasure so sudden and direct that it threatens to bring tears to his eyes.
He feels himself throb against Mountain's tongue, two long fingers press inside him, and Rain howls.
"Fuck - fuck Mount," he manages, hunched and clutching Mountain's head for dear life. The other ghoul curls his fingers, hooks them just so, and Rain keens. "Oh shit, there, right there - oh, oh -"
He devolves into nothing but high-pitched feminine cries as Mountain works him so, so perfectly. Rain's eyes roll back as he bucks and grinds, chasing Mountain's fingers and tongue and begging wordlessly for the release barreling down his spine.
Mountain, as ever, seems only too happy to oblige.
He presses his tongue to the underside of Rain's clit, gives it the most devastating suck, and with one last curved pump of those incredible fingers Rain is gone.
It's a feeling beyond sound, the ghoul's toes curling tight in his shoes as colorful stars burst behind his eyelids. His ears ring with it, filled with the groan of bone-deep satisfaction Mountain gifts him as he works Rain through it.
It takes ages for him to calm down enough to open his eyes, riding out the aftershocks on gentle fingers and the soft licks Mountain gives his still-twitching clit. Rain blinks at Mountain's hair, trying to find his focus. The first thing he sees is a puddle of drool between Mountain's horns, and Rain can't help his dumb little giggle.
Mountain gives him a teasing suckle and Rain hisses as overstimulation starts to set in. He pushes himself upright and gives Mountain's hair a tug, his legs like jelly. Mountain pulls away just enough to stare up at him, and Rain's chest aches for the look on his face.
The other ghoul's expression is one of pure bliss. His eyes are heavy lidded and crinkled, cheeks flushed, and to Rain's utter delight he's shiny from his nose to his chin. Rain gives him a dopey smile, gliding two fingers through the mess coating his skin and bringing them to his own lips. He groans at the taste of himself, sweet and salty over the sharp metallic tang of his strings. Delicious.
Rain grunts when Mountain finally pulls his fingers from his body, clenching just enough for the other ghoul to feel. A sharp intake of breath drawn his attention back down, and Rain finds Mountain staring at his own hand. Rain can't blame him - his fingers are coated in their combined mess, so much that it's dripping down to his palm. He can practically see Mountain's stomach rumble.
Rain doesn't hesitate before folding to his knees, one hand in the back of Mountain's hair and the other curling itself around his wrist. He gives Mountain a kiss on the cheek before bringing his messy hand between them, and Rain hums happily.
"Let me feed it to you," he coos, and to his delight Mountain's spent, sticky cock gives a valiant twitch.
"As long as I can feed you the next one," the other ghoul murmurs, eyes sparkling. His mouth opens obediently, pink tongue lolling out, and Rain feels disastrously fond.
"You keep playing like that and you won't have any other choice," he teases, adoring the soft sigh Mountain offers when Rain presses his own fingers into his mouth. "Clean them up," he says, eyelids fluttering as he feels what's left of Mountain's load start to drip down his thigh. "Maybe then we'll see how well you play with your cock down my throat."
Mountain makes a punched-out sound, his shoulders sag, and Rain hopes everyone else decides to sleep in today.
He's far from done.
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runa-falls · 1 year
Note
Congrats on your milestone, em!!! 🥳💖
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If you feel so inspired, I'd like to request a blurb using the following prompt:
“this isn’t what i had in mind when i yelled fuck you.” + Poe Dameron 👀
Thank youuuu 💕
hihi whitney :3 thanks for joining in! this one is a bit longer than a blurb but i can't help it!
cw: smut (18+), friends (with minimal benefits)-to-lovers, jealous!poe, angst, alcohol, fluff?, fingering, hickies, panty sniffing (IDK WHERE TF THIS STUFF I COMING FROM ??), kissing, anddd not proof read
wc: 2.3k (???)
a/n: honestly poe is kinda an asshole in some of this but imma connect it to his commitment issue bc he's afraid to lose the reader idk
--
poe has never given you a straight answer about the two of you, and for a while it didn't matter.
for a bulk of your friendship, there's been the ongoing war between the first order and the resistance, so there was never time to sit down and talk about it, or take it any further than what it was.
and what is was, was a pair of kissing friends.
it's confusing. the words "kissing" and "friends" don't usually go together. either it's a 'mistake' or a gateway to a different kind of relationship, but you've been stuck in this middle area for months.
the war is over now and you won, but you haven't moved an inch.
this confusion, this fuzzy line between friends and lovers, has been weighing on you.
poe gives you those eyes, that intense stare, the one that makes you feel like the only girl in the universe, but then he openly flirts with officers, fellow pilots, and mechanics that work on his ship, buying them a drink and sitting real close to them, right in front of you.
poe kisses you, tastes you, like you're the finest wine in coruscant, like he's trying to memorize your flavor because each kiss could be his last, but then he tells you he's not ready for a relationship, he's too busy, he doesn't want to ruin the friendship that you have.
now, you're done waiting for him. you've tried to be patient and understanding, to give him time to figure things out, but he's been drawing it out, painfully, and you refuse to just sit there and watch.
you decided to finally take up voren na'al's offer of a date. he's a cute guy and you've worked with him throughout the war. you figure you might as well give him a chance, if only to take your mind off of poe.
you slip on a simple dress, something that makes you feel 10x cuter than the usual resistance uniform that the base usually sees you in. you're not going anywhere fancy, just the local pub to grab a drink and hang out.
--
it's quite crowded when you get there, though everywhere's been pretty crowded since the war ended. now there's more time for leisure, to enjoy life, without worrying about another attack.
the bar is full of bustling bodies, loud conversations, and moving glasses of jet juice, tihaar, and vosh. you're barely able to squeeze into a small table with how many standing bodies surround you.
"you look really nice tonight!" voren basically has to yell for you to hear him.
"thanks, a bit of an upgrade from my usual--"
"what?!"
"i said, a bit of an--"
voren gets up and decides to just stand next to you while you sit on the barstool instead. "sorry, i didn't realize this place would be so packed tonight..." he's close, almost leaning into you as he speaks at a normal volume.
"no, no, it's fine! I'm happy to see that the whole resistance is enjoying their weekend."
"let me get you a drink, yeah?"
"alright, i'll take...nikta with some soda."
"gotcha." he leaves you and you let out a breath you didn't know you were holding.
you've finally decided that it's too lively in this bar for you. the overlapping voices and cheers overwhelm your brain as you desperately try to get comfortable as a party of one in a sea of thousands.
how can you feel so alone in a room full of people?
this is a bit harder than you thought it would be. for some reason it just feels wrong to be on this date, despite not having any exclusivity with poe in the first place.
"gods, i thought that guy would never leave!"
speak of the devil.
"poe."
he steps closer to you, smoothly walking through the crowd that's nearly trapping you at your table. his face is pink, flushed from alcohol and the heat of the bar, and his eyes are glazed with untethered delight.
he says your name, draws it out with the slur of his tongue. his eyes glance at your attire, a dress he's never seen before. actually, he's never seen you in a dress, ever. "so you have a little boyfriend now?"
where did he even come from?
usually you'd know if he were at the bar, he has a whole entourage of people that like to follow him around. in fact, you'd know if he were in any room because of the loud cheers that constantly accompany the resistance's favorite flyboy.
"this is our first date actually." you hope you sound casual, despite having to raise your voice to be heard over the noise. you try to bite your tongue before you could ask, but you can't. you need to know. maybe it'll make this easier for you. "...are you here with someone?"
"i was, but i ditched them." you heart lurches and warmth quickly pools in your stomach. it's pathetic how easily he can make you feel special, but the doesn't linger on that thought for long. "does your boyfriend know you kiss your friends?"
you sit back at his words, shocked that he's deciding to bring this up now. "ok, where is this coming from?"
"i just feel like i would want to know if my girlfriend was seeing other people." you frown, genuinely confused.
"well, i'm not."
"you...aren't?"
"poe, what--"
"you're telling me that this," he points between the two of you, "meant nothing?"
"why are you bringing this up?"
"because a second ago, i thought we had an understanding but then i see you in this short dress going on a date with some logistic's dweeb!"
you roll your eyes, "his name is voren and unlike you, he's not making me decipher any understandings. he asked me on a date and i agreed."
"and you still kiss me."
"i kissed you and then i got tired of waiting for you to kiss back."
"i just don't get how you move on so easily when what we hasn't even ended."
"oh, fuck you, poe. it never even started!"
"hey...is this a bad time..." voren is back with the drinks, staring at the two of you awkwardly as the glasses of iced alcohol begin to sweat in his hands.
you both speak at the same time:
"no, voren, you're fine."
"yeah, if you wouldn't mind, we're dealing with something right now."
he nods his head slowly, understanding what's happening. he sets the drinks down on the table. "look, i'll see you back at the base, just text me when you want to meet up again." he walks to the exit of the bar and you try to call for him, but it's no use with the wall of people between you.
"look what you did, you ruined my date!"
"wasn't much of a date from the looks of things."
"ugh, you asshole!" you hop off your seat, grab your stuff, and rush through the crowd. maybe you can catch up to him if you get out fast enough. swaying bodies threaten pull you back into the tide as you attempt to escape, but you push through, determined to get the fuck out of there.
the cool air is refreshing when you finally shove the door open, it's almost a bit chilly compared to the building you came out of. you scan the area, trying to get a glimpse voren walking home but you don't see a single person.
"come back, honey, you shouldn't be out here alone."
you don't even have to look back to know who it is.
"i'd rather be alone than with you."
"you don't mean that." a hand gently pulls at your shoulder to make you turn around and face him. a warm hand cups your jaw as he regards your upset expression, his thumb comfortingly gliding over your cheek. you can't help but lean into his familiar touch. "this is why i never wanted to change what we had. i was trying to be smart, for both our sakes."
"by pushing me away? by leading me on?" your voice comes out in a whisper, but it's so quiet in these empty streets that it didn't matter.
"by keeping it simple, safe."
"i can't do it anymore, poe. you can't just expect me to be content with what you give. i need more."
"i know, baby, i was just scared. you're the best thing that's ever happened to me and i didn't want to lose you."
"but the war is over."
"not for me. i'll always be a fighter and i'll always have my battles. sometimes i can't be there for you like i should be, i can't be the boyfriend you deserve, but that doesn't stop me from wanting it any less." he rests his forehead on yours, holding you close to him in the middle of the sidewalk. "i didn't want you to leave me so i decided to never give you the chance."
"and now?"
"now, i don't want to think about what could happen tomorrow or the day after that. i've wanted you since forever and i want you now." he leans in, his nose nudging yours, "do you?"
"you know i do." you giggle softly, a grin spreading on your face.
you tilt your face up and capture his lips, slowly moving against him, savoring this moment. he places a hand at the back of your neck and pulls you in closer, showing you all his love as his soft lips mold over yours.
---
the walk back to base was a blur of soft smiles and quiet words as you traveled hand-in-hand. poe offered you his jacket after seeing you shiver and you reveled in the feeling of the heavy leather over your shoulders. you're both so giddy like a couple of teens that have been crushing on each other for eons.
when you got to the entrance of the main building you both paused for a second and an unspoken question hung in the air. is this the end of the night?
"come over to mine."
you surprise yourself with your bold offer. it was blurted out before you could really think it through.
"is that really a good idea?"
isn't it?
you've been placed at an arm's length from the man you've wanted since you showed up at the base and you've gotten his affection, his touch, and his kiss, but never more. and you want more.
"i want you. i-i mean, i want you to come over..."
he smirks like the asshole he is.
"alright, lead the way."
---
heated kisses are planted down from your jaw and all along your neck. splotches of purple already litter the silky skin, but he's still hungry for more.
poe barely got into the room before you rushed over to him and practically attacked him with a kiss. luckily his pilot reflexes helped him catch you and pull you against his body with finesse.
he laid you out on your bed and crawled over you, wanting to taste every part of you that he been denying himself from. his hands smooth over your curves, groping your tits and your waist as he makes his way down.
fingers tug your dress over your thighs and reveal the suggestive underwear you wore for your date.
he raises an eyebrow, "this for me, or him?"
"for myself, actually...but i guess you can enjoy them too." he pinches your thigh teasingly and you yelp out a giggle.
"fucking brat. you know what," he pulls them off easily, "i will enjoy them." poe crumples up your delicate lace in one hand while holding you down with another. you attempt cross your legs as you watch him bring them up to his face and breathe in your scent, but they're forced open by a strong hand. "mm...my sweet little girlfriend is so needy for me, hm?" you can feel him against your leg, hard and prominent under his pants.
you squirm under him, nearly dripping slick all over your sheets at his words. his girlfriend.
poe brings his hand up to your face, slowly tracing your lips with his index finger. "open up, honey." he groans as you let him slip between your lips. you suckle at his finger while staring up at him, your tongue flicking the tip every so often. "that's right...good girl." he adds another finger and watches you with half-lidded eyes, imagining that it's his cock you're sucking, nearly choking around it.
he pulls them out and reached between your bodies. you whimper as the cool slickness is pressed against your pussy. he runs them through the seam of your cunt, prodding gently against your entrance.
his eyes watch your facial expressions shift when he pushes them in, drinking in every minute sound and move that you make. you let out a broken moan as he curls his fingers inside of you and starts moving, rubbing right against your g-spot.
he whispers encouraging words as you start to shake under him, already so close to the edge. "that's it, sweetheart," he speeds up and vulgar sounds of your dripping cunt fill the room, "cum all over my fingers."
you whine as you reach you climax, pussy fluttering around his still moving fingers. your back arches at the intense pleasure and you wrap your legs around his arm.
his movements stop and he pulls away. you hide your face under your arms as he starts to lick his fingers clean, suddenly embarrassed by his shameless actions.
"what?" he chuckles, "am i not allow to taste my girlfriend?"
"you know, this isn't what i had in mind when i yelled fuck you." you breath out, referring to your heated talk at the bar.
"i know baby, you want my cock don't you? we'll get there once you recover."
with a flushed face, you give him an appalled look, "poe!"
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alexa-fika · 6 months
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Coming off anon, I've been doing some drawings of her since last night when I could sleep and during work and lunch today.
I still haven't decide haven't decided on her name yet. I still need to Color and pick out the pallete for her.
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So because her hair was so tangled and matted when Luffy found her, Dandan and Makino suggested it to cut it. Which was a great decision because when she didn't have chores she ran after her brothers into the woods.
She isn't a picky kid when it comes to dresses, skirts or shorts. She'll happy accept anything anyone offers her.
While Dandan influenced her attitude and taught her to stand up for herself.
Makino had taught her manners and gave her lessons.
I kinda want her to cry when she first meet Garp because of all the stories her brothers told her about him. She doesn't want to get the fist of love.
The boys learned that a little girl crying is a massive influence and used this to their advantage. They would walk around with her in goa kingdom and let someone bump into her,making her drop something. All she had to do was cry and Ace would start gaslighing the poor person.
When Luffy left she joined him because everyone agreed he shouldn't be traveling alone.
That’s so interesting! So we have a in between of tomboy and feminine characteristics on her as she switches her wardrobe around and can go from punching back someone to apologizing and crying for punching said person. So we got an pretty good balance there I love it!!
And absolutely based, on what you have told me she would problably freak out when she meets Garp, since she not only has the asl telling her these stories but Dadan and her crew also probably badmouthing the guy would not help her opinion on the marine. Wonder how Garp would take it?
Omg the gaslighting 😂, I can totally see Ace complimenting her in a job well done after they got a load from their latest victim. Just ace patting her head and telling her she did a good job and shes there beaming and taking it all in, happy that she was able to help them.
The very first strawhat member! What abilities would she portray? What would be her position amongst the crew
I love your drawimg! They are so good, you really showcase that motion on her dress and hair, it looks swift and realistic. I can’t wait to see the end result with color!
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