#i think option 2. for. um. the plot :]

[canon-gabriel-quotes]

Transcript:

No... How can this be?

Daddy’s favorite wine sippy cup...

Now I’m going to have to drink it out of the box like a fucking animal!

You’ve taken everything from me, Machine.

And now we’re going to get drunk together.

That’s right, the only way to repay me for your sins and the breaking of my favorite wine glass, is to finish off this box of wine with me!

And we’re going to have conversations that we think are deep only because we're drunk off our asses.

And by dawn's light, who knows, maybe enemies will be turned into…

EVEN STRONGER FUCKING ENEMIES I’M GOING TO KILL YOU.

Audio source

[danielnelsen]

huh i remember grymforge being really hard to navigate and really frustrating but it’s literally fine lmao. did everything except the actual forge today and that’s all i have left of act 1

[simpshaaaa]

Modern au where otaku Cale has to uno-taku himself and get a job so his siblings can take after him but unknowingly created a huge misunderstanding

So it started with kindergarten Cale, tiny little Cale looking up to Deruth with innocent eyes and empty brain

Deruth: You must study hard, so you can play hard later, ok?

Cale eyes twinkled: Ok dad

Cale studies hard and attends a lot of activities:

Deruth: You must get into good uni, ok?

Cale: Ok dad

Cale gets into good uni:

Deruth: Graduated with honours, ok?

Cale: Ok dad

Cale graduated with honours:

Deruth: Live your life to the fullest, ok?

Cale fisting the air: Ok dad

And so after graduated, he becomes an otaku. Finally, after working so hard he can finally do whatever he wants

And for 2 years he lives with his parents and siblings, stays in his room and plays video games, reads a lot of novels and slacks a lot, Cale felt like he has finally accomplished what his father wanted. And heck his siblings even inspired to become like him

Cale felt proud

However.

Bassen: When are you getting a job?

Cale: Hum???

Bassen worried for Cale: You always stay in your room..

Cale: Ermmm.. (what is this mood? Could it be due to my lack of activities causing Bassen to be uninspired???)

Bassen worried if his brother has become depressed:

Cale: I'll talk to dad (I HAVE TO WORK)

However after years of living in complete laziness, Cale opted for an easier solution to get a job

Cale: I want to work in your company dad

Deruth: ??? (DOES THAT MEAN HE WANTS TO BE THE HEAD OF THE COMPANY?! 🧐😱)

So Cale starts working as an office worker, making his way up as the assistant manager

Cale thinking to himself: ( Yes, now Bassen will be inspired to be like me and be the head of the company)

Bassen thinking to himself: (I didn't know Hyung wanted to be the head of the company. I'm so proud of him, he's working so hard and becoming like himself again :'D)

Everyone thinks because Cale works so hard, he enjoys working hard. But actually he works hard so he can play hard later

Anyway plot thickened with Alver rolling in as the manager

Alver taking one look at Cale and goes: Yeah this guy's an otaku

Cale: Holy fuuuu

So they become somewhat close???? And Cale then poured out his life plans to Alver because no one understands him like Alver understands him

Cale: I want to retire after my baby brother becomes the head of the company and then buys a house, and lives my fullest life as an otaku!

Alver nodding: Uh huh.. *looking behind Cale, co-workers staring at Cale with approving looks and whispering to each other ("He's going to be a great head company!" "He will flourish our company to its brilliance!" "Deruth's oldest son is so competent!") ...Uh huh, I see.......

At the family dinner, Alver was invited to dine with the Henituses

Deruth proudly compliments Cale's achievemens:

Bassen nodding with excitement:

Cale: Just an exaggeration, don't mind it Ver

Alver sweating inside: (No Cale, Deruth is about to retire and you won't Cale.....)

Later

Alver: Hey, um.. I think your dad is planning to put you as the company head..

Cale: Whaaa?? Why would he do that? Bassen is the much better option to pick than me

Alver: What??? No-

Cale: Aishh, don't joke around

Alver:

Anyway months later, unexpectedly (or was it???) Cale was appointed to be the head of the company

Cale: ALVER MY SLACKER PLAN IS RUINED!!! WHAT AM I GOING TO DO?!!!

Alver smiling at Cale: Just do what you usually do, Cale^^ Work hard

Cale: NOOOOOOO YOU JINXED IT AHHHHHH

[tm-trx]

Pit Babe 2, ep 4

Live Reaction Notes:

(warning: may will contain inconsistent punctuation/capitalization, stream of consciousness reactions, and rampant speculation)

now it's Babe's turn to be the protective boyfriend love it

lol Chris - all these emotions are getting in the way of his science

Jeff has a secret now? is he pregnant?!

ah no just another vision - borrring! also I thought he’d told them everything already

of course Willy showed up at the same gym

too distracted by Babe/Pavel working out; can’t concentrate on what they're saying

::brief pause for appreciation::

and we’re back: “what did i do to you?” he’s playing the clueless card, but not believably, sorry kid

IG photo alibi, okay sure

okay but was Babe lying about ‘sorry i misjudged you’ and why did Willy have that look on his face? is he catching actual feelings?

plot cliche that I loathe alert: the loud over-reaction to someone clearly trying to be stealthy and/or keep a secret just so another character notices and joins the scene

put a ring on it Charlie!

that’s the second “not until after the serum is complete” - fishy

Hey Pete, you know this isn’t Way, right? The way he’s pursuing Chris makes me wonder.

Pete has a speakeasy in his basement: nice.

That’s right Chris, they weren’t even boyfriends. Run. Away.

oh that was intriguing; I'm trying not to over-analyze every time Chris’ face changes while Pete is telling him about his history with Way.

love me a pool table scene

um wow did they just . . . ?!?

Kim and Kenta: Team Cockblock

ah so cute - he really put “Mama” on the cake lol

flowers, candles, etc is usually too cheesy for me to take seriously but this is nicely done and Babe loved it; i love them

and then Tony ruins the vibe by corrupting Winner completely yikes; I suspected that other guy was doomed but not like this.

Final Thoughts:

current Tony Mole count:

Willy (obviously is)

Kenta (also obvious but unlikely)

Chris (still might be Way)

Dean (stealth option)

Has anyone written up a lore guide for this show yet? I have thoughts about the world they’re in and how the senses work in everyday life. I know why the characters want an erasing serum, but what would a layperson think of the whole idea? Pretty sure they’d be horrified by what both Charlie and Tony are doing. I’m trying not to think too deeply about it because that’s a whole can of meta worms to get into.

This show is giving me all the romance cliches and I am eating them up. Babe, sitting beside Charlie’s bed for hours, waiting for him to wake up but scared he never will. Delicious.

I was very confused about what Jeff was worried about now, because I thought last episode brought everything out in the open. Turns out he hadn’t been totally honest about what all he’s seen.

I went back to rewatch the gym scene to figure out what is going on with Willy and got distracted again. >.< I’m desperately curious about what is up with him. Is he developing feelings for Babe? Is it hero worship? Do they have history that Babe doesn’t know about? And does Babe really believe the social media alibi or is he stringing Willy along to get info?

Pete and Chris - Holy shit, chemistry! I’m really starting to think that Chris might actually be Way. Or Way’s brother? Could be his brother. His reaction when Pete said that he left Way behind with Tony was telling. Yes, Pete was telling him something horrible, but that looked like a personal reaction. And what was he starting to say to Pete, when the doorbell rang??

I really thought Kenta somehow had proof that Chris was Way and that’s why he needed to get ahold of Pete so urgently. Total letdown to find out he just wanted to go investigate Tony. LOL

Babe’s face when Charlie said no, these aren’t marriage rings. He wants to be married so bad. I’m glad Charlie picked up on that and reassured him, but if we don’t end with a marriage epilogue or at least a proposal I’m going to be just as disappointed as Babe.

Winner - oof - The actor played that scene so so well, wow. Desperation, disgust, and fear were all over Winner’s face while he was killing Tony’s guy. But mostly desperation. He is stuck and he knows it. And unless he swallows his pride and reaches out to the X-Hunter team, I don't see a way out for him.

So, who's taking odds that Tony kidnaps Chris to fix his serum problems?

My Pit Babe 2 recaps: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / 13

[sunatsubu]

White Lotus theories!

Having a blast watching White Lotus season 3, especially as this is the first time I'm able to watch without knowing the ending. The first 2 seasons I was spoiled on pretty much everything before watching, so it's been fun having the chance to get to form my own theories this time. Here's just a few I'll ramble about, as I excitedly wait for today's new ep. Would love to hear others' thoughts/theories! Obviously spoiler warning for season 3.

This might just be wishful thinking, but I don't think the body is Belinda. Strongest evidence is that Zion's immediate reaction is to run away from it. With how determined he was to get to his mother, even going towards the gunshots instead of away from them, if it was her he'd instinctively want to check if she might still be alive. Also this is more speculative because of how out of focus the body is, but it kind of looks like a short-haired man in a white dress shirt.

Going off this first assumption that Belinda lives, I think Greg will get his comeuppance. If he survived, there's no way he'd let Belinda live since its clear he knows she knows who he is. I think he'll either die, or be exposed for his role in Tanya's death and arrested. I know White Lotus tends to not give justice to those who deserve it, but I do think it could make sense this time. Saxon however, being the douchiest douche and the one character I hate the most, I expect to survive, both physically and ego still fully intact. He'll be season 3's Shane.

Addressing the popular theory that the shooter might be Mook: Definitely not a fan of this theory, I don't think it's her. So far I haven't seen any actual evidence of her having any motive, and the main foundation for this theory seems to be, 'character seems super innocent, surely it must be a misdirect' which isn't much to go on. Especially since I feel like Mike White's been good about laying foundations for his plot twists, and never has them just for the sake of shock value.

It's going to be an interesting, possibly ironic fate for Piper if her dad ends up needing to stay in Thailand to avoid getting arrested, and his family stays with him, maybe because they might be implicated by association if they return to the US. This might seem like a silver lining for Piper since she wanted to stay anyway for her religious studies, but it would totally be in line with the irony of White Lotus themes that she ends up missing her privileged life, now that she doesn't have the option to go back to it. Almost the opposite of Quin from season 1 where we got to see the rich white kid have a happy ending staying with the locals, but the implication off screen is that he has the luxury to return to his privileged life once he'd done with his little paradise adventure.

More on the Ratliff kids - um. VERY incest-y vibes going on there lmao.

I think something huge is going to happen with Lochlan. He's going to have to make a choice that will have major consequences - if only because so far, we are shown constantly about his waffling between who to please. Switching between his brother and sister, being pressured to choose which parent's alma mater for college. We're even told straight up that he's a people pleaser during his posture correction session. I've seen the theory that the kids represent the 'see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil' monkeys, and this definitely seems to line up. Lochlan will witness or even be an active participant in some really crazy, evil act and have to make the choice whether to speak up about it or not. And he'll choose not to. I think because we've been shown so far how relatively harmless and innocent he is, that's going to change dramatically, and he's going to make that choice that will make the audience judge him. Based on his current trend of following Saxon's influence more, maybe he'll witness or be pressured into taking part in some pretty sketchy stuff with his brother. Knowing Saxon, it'll probably involve a woman getting hurt or killed, and Saxon will ask Lochlan to help cover it up.

I don't think the dad is the shooter, only because it's too obvious. The fact that we see him steal the gun at only the halfway point in the season right after that phone call about prison is too straightforward a motive too soon, which wouldn't follow the previous seasons' patterns at all.

The friend trio are probably the most interesting dynamic to me, and the most unpredictable. Probably because they are constantly switching 'alliances,' the power dynamic always seems to be shifting. I honestly have the least idea of what their ending is going to be like, though I don't think any of them will die. I think they will have some huge explosively dramatic event/confrontation like Ethan/Cameron (maybe not a physical fight, but at least a screaming match), but they will all survive the trip to have to deal with the social consequences post-series, knowing their friendship is forever changed with true feelings having been laid out into the open.

Some more minor observations: There's been a recurring thing in previous seasons with dissatisfied hotel managers, and them losing something because of it. Armond feuding with Shane, spurred on by his growing distaste in being expected to cater to guests' every whim. He ends up losing his life. Valentina is super repressed, then has her whirlwind night with Mia. But then kinda gets her heart broken a bit, thinking there might've been something more between them, only for Mia to imply it was just a fling. So in keeping with that trend, if Fabian gets a chance to perform I expect he's going to end up losing something soon after.

Probably an obvious thing, but pretty sure Valentin and his friends are the jewelry robbers. Absolutely felt intentional that he stopped under the gate so Gaitok couldn't close it. Even before that scene I thought there definitely seemed something off about him, tho I'm not sure why? Maybe I'm reading into it too much but his friendly demeanor and almost vacant-like stare felt like even more of a mask than the other hotel workers. Was also weird that he sent the friend trio to the retiree pool. I have a feeling maybe he and his friends plan to rob them. One of his friends even says 'let's make fun', which iirc season 2's Lucia had a very similar line. So that made me think they are the equivalent to Lucia and Mia, in that they are locals intending to scam the rich white tourists.

It stood out to me on my first rewatch, the contrasting reactions during Zion and Amrita's session, when they first hear the gunshots. The therapist is almost willfully oblivious to acknowledging there might be danger, trying to include Zion in it by telling him to ignore all outside sounds. But he's much more situationally aware of his surroundings, which he doesn't turn off even during a meditation session, despite the therapist urging him to ignore the outside world. He's the one who has to pull the therapist back to reality. And when that reality hits - gunshots shattering the window - she panics and flees whereas Zion keeps his cool. I dunno what exactly I mean to say with all this, but it just reminded me of some recent issues I've had with my last therapist. I'd express certain concerns, and her advice on how I deal with them felt really out of touch with reality, amounting to stuff like, just 'meditate it away' or something, as if real life problems can just be willed away so easily.

Chloe and Rick are...unexpectedly sweet. I hope nothing bad happens to them 🥲

[claryshifts]

Making American Horror Story DRs "Safe"

I'll update this with each season I watch! Most of this will focus on one of the "Evans" bc I know a lot of yall horny bastards wanna hop on him (real) Each section will have an "ultra safe" paragraph and a "safe as possible?" paragraph. idk -Murder House: Option One: The house isn't possessed or whatever you want to call it. Hell, you don't even have to live in it. Though Tate has problems with his mom (that adds a lot to his character, so I'd still 'keep that'), he's never had terrible thoughts of doing what he did at that school or any other gross things. I personally would still 'script out' the self-harm. Wouldn't want my partner to suffer that Option Two: If you still want that ghostly experience, then sure, by all means, live in the haunted house. but maybe cut out the satan part... Also script the ghosts don't have shitty timing (they don't bother you in the bathroom or when you're sleeping, for ex). If you want Tate as a ghost and not alive, still, don't date a ghost mass yknow what  😭  😭  BONUS: instead of tate, date violet 🥰🥰 -Asylum: Option One: You can live a nice quiet life with Kit. it's the 60s though, so if you're fem/poc/lgbt/etc, keep that in mind. whenever I go to a reality in the past I script I don't get bored without technology lol Option Two: have fun at the asylum, ig, boo. If you want some edgy lore, pls don't script you're a psycho killer or something omg 😭. Script none of the people in charge inflect punishments on you. If you really wanna get freaky in that musty place, script you don't get caught... and that its not all musty... -Coven: I got a lot to say bc I think Imma make a script for this too haha Option One: no scary demon devils or whatever. Uh, Kyle isn't treated like a sex object???? Nothing bad happens to Nan (she deserves better). If Kyle has to die (that sounds so weird to say) for your lore or whatever, don't purposely give him a traumatizing experience. this isn't a fan fic,, that's your REALITY. Honestly you could just script you're a silly little witch hanging out in New Orleans and call it a day. Madison isn't annoying af. No Axe Man. LaLaurie being Queenie's "slave" was deserved but maybe just script her 'out' altogether... Option Two: Okay, so you want the drama. Have the drama! Still no demon devils though cuz that does NOT sound fun. Script you and the people you care about are all safe from harm. If Kyle HAS to go through that terrible experience (I'm his biggest defender as you can tell), at least keep Madison and Zoe away or at bay bc seeing them fight over a guy who can't even say "food" and OBVIOUSLY can't verbally consent was so uncomfy, for me at least. -Freak Show: Option One: no scary clowns. The "freaks" aren't treated like shit. Neal Patrick Harris doesn't show up with his puppet??? No one is trying to make money off of the freaks. None of them are murdered or harmed. Option Two: Ig if you still want the plot they still have to be treated pretty shitty. Still would apply everything else though, as well as the fact nothing happens to you.

-Hotel: Option One: Ok look James March. Wonderful man. Make him NOT a serial killer omg. If you get with him I'm convinced a relationship with him would be straight up Morticia and Gomez uishfuihfjsf I want him so bad. Anyway, if he's your man keep the countess off your back, if you keep her there at all. I wouldn't recommend making yourself a ghost bc idk WTFFF that would mean for you spiritually. You could be sexy March's sexy human partner. Or the countess' partner. Anyone's partner. but alive. Um no 10 commandment killings of any sort, and no vampire children???

Option Two: ngl idk how else to put this?? idk if there should be an option 2 ;-;

Currently on Roanoke! this season is so boring I might not write anything for it

[greatwyrmgold]

are you gonna watch the Gnosia anime when it comes out?

Yes.

I feel like I shouldn't make a post that's just me saying "yes," so, um...I wonder how they're going to structure the anime.

For those who don't play Gnosia and have to infer its mechanics from the dozen-ish posts I've posted, it's basically a virtual game of Mafia/Werewolf with an overarching time-loop narrative.

In theory, you're trying to learn as much as you can about the other crew members by encountering them in a variety of situations created by the loops. In practice, you're really here because a virtual social deduction game sounds fun, and the snippets of lore and characterization are basically just icing on the cake.

But an anime where the main character does the same dance of trying to figure out who's Gnosia and who's a Bug and who's human without looking to suspicious, every single episode, with the story and character stuff layered on top? Would probably be boring and repetitive.

So the Gnosia anime needs to focus on the characters and overarching plot, find a way to put them at the center. But it still needs to preserve the time-loop social-deduction angle, both because that's core to the game's identity and because the plot doesn't really work without it. Removing the time loop element would mean not just removing the heart of the gameplay loop, but also destroying the whole conceit of the investigation and making its canon resolution impossible. I don't think I need to explain why that's not a real option.

And beyond the big-picture stuff, I'm also curious about the nuts and bolts. For instance, how many loops will they do per episode?

If we assume a typical one-cour season length, that's one episode for the tutorial loops and assorted introductions, then cram the entire story into eleven or twelve loops. By contrast, people trying to beat Gnosia in as few loops as possible usually take around a hundred, and the lowest I could find was seventy. Granted, it's unlikely that all of those loops had plot-critical events, and some of those events can be cut, but there are 82 notes to collect and it's hard to combine many of them, so I struggle to imagine how you'd cram all of that plus the endings into just a dozen loops.

If there are 2-3 loops per episode (after the first), then that's more reasonable; something like 35-50 loops total. But also, that would leave each loop with something like 7-12 minutes of screentime, and that's just absurdly fast, especially if you're trying to cram multiple events into each loop.

There are a few ways to resolve this problem, and none of them seem likely.

One would be completely reworking the plot, which invalidates some of my key assumptions, but I think I've explained why that seems unlikely.

Another option would be to trim down the cast; for all they add to the game, characters like Shigemichi and Comet and Chipie can be cut from the story without fundamentally changing it. But the anime key visuals imply the whole cast is going to be there, at least in the background, so we can rule that out.

Or they could simply make a bigger anime, with more or longer episodes. But they didn't do that for Medalist, which AFAICT is a much more popular IP.

One way they could sneak in a "bigger anime" plan would be to resolve part of the plot in season 1 and angle for another season or two to finish up the plot. The problem with that is that Gnosia's story lacks any mid-level structure.

There's structure to individual loops and events, and there's an overarching narrative and goal, but there's not much that needs to be analyzed in any specific order. Big spoiler-worthy reveals aren't uncovered through multiple loops of trial and error; they're discovered through being at the right place in the right timeline.

Moreover, while some of those reveals are more significant than others, it's hard to say that there's any Big Secrets worth building a mystery-box around. Maaaybe Manan? But that's not a status-quo-shaking Everything Is Different Now secret. It's more of an "Oh, that's why they're like this" secret.

Whatever they settle on will probably be interesting. Unless it's stupid.

[heyiwrotesomethings]

hiii i came across your page a few months ago, and i really love the way you write these characters!

i was thinking, maybe a part 2 of “scholarships, mary saotome x she/her reader” where it basically goes into the plot of kakegurui twin and the beginning of the canon-verse?

i could imagine the reader and mary becoming friends, though a slight slow burn romance that forms along the way.

Scholarships Prt II

Mary Saotome x She/Her Reader

A/N: PrtI It’s finally done! You’d think revisiting five chapters of manga wouldn’t be that draining, but it took quite a bit of back and forth to get the important bits. Sorry for the wait, hope you enjoy : ) Word Count: 3,371

“What the hell is this?” Mary deadpanned, looking around the heavily crowded room.

From day one of getting into this school it felt like she slipped out of the frying pan and right into the fire. It took everything she had just to stay out of owing someone an insane amount of money. From gambling Kokoro, to joining the Literary Club, and now being mixed up in Student Council and Full Bloom Society affairs. It felt like they could never catch a break, and if they did, it certainly never lasted. Which was what brought them to where they were now, a speed dating, coupling party gamble.

“Coupling…?” Tsuzura placed a hand over her mouth.

“You got to be kidding me!” Yukimi gawked, “How can you go out with a guy you don’t even know?!”

“Right? Is it too late to back out?” (Y/n) asked, even though she already knew the answer.

“Of course we can’t back out.” Mary groaned. “What the hell did Aoi get us into?”

“Hello.”

“Gah!”

Mary put a hand to her heart, (Y/n) put a hand on her back to help steady her.

“Mikura? What are you doing here?” Mary asked.

“Looking for a boyfriend?” (Y/n) guessed.

“Ugh, no. Gross.” Mikura shuddered, “I’m here on school business. This is Juraku-sama’s event.”

“Of course it is,” (Y/n) sighed, “Can’t escape the council for a minute.”

“Anyway,” Mikura looked down at her clipboard, “there are only four of you, correct? I’ll have to introduce you to a fifth. It looks like Chitose would be an easy addition.”

“Hi, that would be me!”

The Literary Club peered around Mikura to the new addition to their group, a girl with a pin-straight bob. She looked friendly enough at least.

“I’ll leave you to get acquainted. The game will begin shortly.” Mikura took her leave and Chitose took the floor.

“Is this all your first time at this event?”

“Yeah, how does this work exactly?” Yukimi asked.

Chitose explained the premise excitedly. Basically, if they matched with a boy, they would have to pay out. If they didn’t match, the boys would have to pay out. Seemed simple enough.

“So, are you guys playing for love, or money?” Chitose asked excitedly.

“The money.” All four girls replied in near perfect unison, causing Chitose’s shoulders to slump.

“Fine…” she sighed, “Let’s get this over with.”

Chitose lead them to the group of boys they had been paired with for the game and the MC for the event a announced the start of the chat period.

Kuonji, Sera, Kochi, Musubi and Kibashira introduced themselves, soon giving the floor to the girls to do the same. Chitose really hammed up her introduction, so much so it was hard to tell if she was acting or not.

Mary decided to talk about running the Literary Club’s gambling den, a safe option, she figured.

“That’s gotta be tough,” Kibashiba acknowledged with a low whistle, “You must like quick-witted guys then, huh?”

“No, not really…”

“Oh, then what kind of guy do you like?”

“Um…” Mary was going to bullshit the boy, say something shallow, but she happened to notice (Y/n) move in her periphery, sifting her position a little, probably in an attempt to be a bit more comfortable during this awkward game. As her thoughts were drawn to (Y/n), her answer morphed.

“Maybe someone honest?” Her face warmed. Why did I tell him the truth?! She fretted internally as Musubi jumped in to ask Tsuzura questions, swooning over the girl’s ability to cook and sew.

“And what about you, (Y/n)-san?” Kochi piped in, “What do you like in a guy?”

Mary’s ears perked and she glanced at (Y/n) through her periphery.

“Well,” (Y/n) rubbed the back of her neck, “I guess I’d like someone who doesn’t leave the people that care about them behind. Someone loyal.”

Mary wasn’t completely aware of it, but her heart skipped a beat. A small, almost victorious-looking smile appeared on her face.

The chat session wrapped up soon after Yukimi’s introduction and the two groups parted ways momentarily for the group discussion period.

“So, about the rules…” Mary began once they were in their own little corner of the room, “A wager wasn’t mentioned, so how does that work exactly?”

“It was on the entry form, didn’t you read it?” Chitose asked.

“We got a separate invite.” Mary explained.

“Ah, well, it’s a million yen per bet.”

The group stiffened. A million yen?! For speed dating?! Aoi was throwing them out to the deep end with this gamble.

“We’ll have to use the dine out discount.” Yukimi said after doing a bit of quick mental math. “It’ll be just enough to cover the cost.”

“What if we just went straight for the sleepover?” Tsuzura asked much too casually.

“Huh?!?!”

“Tsuzura?!”

“What?!”

“It’ll help us save money, right? And if we’re all in the same room, won’t that be super fun?” She gushed, “I haven’t had a sleepover since elementary school!”

“Are you for real right now?” Mary sighed, resting her face against her open palm.

“Oh my sweet summer child…” (Y/n) said sympathetically, not really wanting to burst Tsuzura’s bubble.

Yukimi couldn’t sit by and let the poor girl live in ignorance and whispered what the wager would really mean. (Y/n) and Mary watched in real time as Tsuzura’s face morph from cheerful to frazzled embarrassment in a matter of seconds.

“She really had no idea, huh?” Mary shook her head.

“Poor girl.” (Y/n) concurred.

“Anyway…” Mary cleared her throat, “I think it’ll be in our best interest to avoid making couples in order to make the most money we can. So that means we should all pick different guys to keep the matches down to a minimum. We can do a random draw to decide who “confesses” to who, but I think it’ll be best to make sure Tsuzura doesn’t get matched with Musubi.”

“Yeah, he definitely has a thing for her.” Yukimi chuckled awkwardly while (Y/n) was still trying to calm the girl down after the whole “sleepover” misunderstanding.

“Any other ideas?” Mary asked.

Chitose eagerly rose her hand, hoping to be paired with Kuonji and getting all blush and lovestruck just thinking about the prospect.

Mary shared a look with (Y/n) who shrugged her shoulders.

“Uh… yeah, sure.” Mary jolted the note down and then turned the paper around, showing how the “confessions” should work out. “Anyone got a problem with this set-up?”

“Nope.” The rest agreed.

As they began walking back to their table, Mary pinched the fabric of (Y/n)‘s jacket to keep her back.

“(Y/n),” she spoke in a low tone, “the two of us will switch confession targets.”

“Huh, why?”

“There is one flaw with this plan, that being spreading out like this could lead to trouble if there is a mole in our group.”

“A mole?” (Y/n) repeated in a harsh whisper. “You think someone could be working with the guys?”

“Exactly.”

“Then it would clearly be Chitose, wouldn’t it? Shouldn’t we let Tsuzura and Yuikimi-senpai in on the plan too?”

Mary shook her head, “I don’t trust Yuikimi-san yet and I don’t want to stress Tsuzura out.”

“I don’t think it’s necessary to exclude her. She can handle it.“ (Y/n) tried to dissuade.

“We can’t hesitate now. If we want to win, we have to consider every possibility.” Mary stuck to her guns, getting closer and resting a hand on the girl’s shoulder. “We’re going to come out on top, we’re going to be the winners! We’re going to show these rich bastards what for, right?” She gave her a confident smile that made (Y/n)’s heart speed up.

“Right!” (Y/n) nodded resolutely, matching Mary’s competitive smile.

“Then let’s win this so we can rub it in Aoi’s face.”

The duo rejoined their group and all circled their agreed upon targets on the submission forms, except for Mary and (Y/n) of course who switched their targets, making Mary’s target Kibashira and (Y/n)’s Sera. After everything was squared away, they all sat across the table from the boys, each offering up a dinning out bonus to meet the betting requirements. They each confessed to their targets and there was a bit of an upset when Yuikimi and Tsuzura heard that Mary and (Y/n) switched targets, but that was nothing compared to the upset that occurred when it was the boys’ turn to reciprocate or reject… that’s when things started to get messy.

One after the other, instead of falling through, the couplings were perfect matches. Though unfortunate, it was exactly what Mary had anticipated. What she hadn’t anticipated however, was for her and (Y/n)’s targets to match them as well.

“No…” (Y/n) sunk in her chair, joining Yuikimi and Tsuzura’s anxious expressions. “It’s impossible. Everyone?”

“Congratulations.” Mikura drawled, “Five couples have been formed.”

“Bullshit!” Mary stood, slamming her palms against the table, “This is all a fraud! We couldn’t have all coupled by chance! Even if one of us was tipping the guys off, (Y/n) and I switched to avoid just this scenario!” She yelled at Miruka. “You rigged it! Wouldn’t be the first time—“

“Is there a problem, Mary?”

Juraku Sachiko sidled up to the table, compelling Mary to grind her teeth together, eyes blazing with fury.

“Of course there is! You rigged this game!”

“Such baseless accusations.” Sachiko smirked. “We aren’t rigging anything. I can guarantee you that.”

“Do you really think I’d believe that!” Mary sneered.

In a second, Sachiko was looking over her with a devilish smile.

“Oh Mary, there is a far more simpler possibility, don’t you think? Surely you aren’t that incompetent?”

Another… possibility… Mary’s mind whirred with possibilities. The student council, Aoi and the Full Bloom Society… but then her eye caught (Y/n) helping Tsuzura dry her tears and her chest tightened.

No… was (Y/n) the traitor? Couldn’t be… they were fellow scholarship students united in their second class status to the high society high rollers, more than that, they were friends. They had triumphed and lost together time after time they always had each other’s backs. They had made plans to be winners, to be respected… but had those boys offered (Y/n) something better? Something so good that she would send Mary and the others floating down the river without blinking?

Her heart physically hurt, she had pegged (Y/n) as a honest person, someone to confide in. She was the only person she had trusted with this plan so logically… it had to be her. Mary clenched her fists. (Y/n) was the mole!

Meanwhile, (Y/n) was having her own similar crisis, believing that Mary had cut her own deal. Mary had left her behind… she wasn’t loyal at all! She could feel angry and disappointed tears stung at her own eyes, but she kept them at bay and continued tending to Tsuzura.

“Round two is fast approaching ladies, what will you do?” Sachiko smirked, tapping her chin. “You already blew the money Aoi gave you. If you don’t think of something quick, you’ll all be house pets.”

Mary paled. “But 2 million yen…” They didn’t have that kind of money just laying around… suddenly they were approached by someone in the crowd who introduced herself as Kurumi.

“I don’t mind spotting you all 200,000 yen, but as for the rest… if you bet on the sleepover that should cover it.” She smirked.

“That should work just fine.” Sachiko purred.

“Mary?” Tsuzura sniffled. “What should we do?”

(Y/n) looked a Mary with an impassive expression that further irked and pained Mary. Likewise, the hot fury Mary aimed (Y/n)’s way made her feel even more numb. Though divided, they shared the exact same thought.

Who were they supposed to believe in?

“Mary?” Tsuzura pulled Mary from her thoughts with a cautious calling of her name, “We’re doing round two, right? Applications are closing soon, so we should hurry.”

“I need a minute to think.” Mary murmured distantly.

“But we’re out of money, so we’ll have to join, right? I’ll sign us both up—“

“I told you to wait!” Mary yelled, causing Tsuzura to flinch.

“Hey, you can’t talk to her like that!” (Y/n) yelled back.

“As if you care about any of our feelings!” Mary hissed, striding closer to (Y/n) with a sneer, “how about you do me a favor and stop pretending that you’re on my side!”

“Oh, that’s really rich coming from you! You’re really going to keep up this charade until you believe it too? I hope your guilty conscious eats you alive!”

“Guys… what’s going on?” Tsuzura whimpered, not sure who to go to.

“I’m not joining the second round.” Mary coldly informed. “Don’t try to rely on me anymore.” She started to walk away, but (Y/n) called after her.

“That’s it? Now that we’re all in danger of being house pets, you’re going to walk away?” (Y/n) felt even more convinced of Mary’s betrayal now.

“I thought we were all going to be winners together.” Tsuzura said softly, clutching her hands to her chest.

“What will happen to our gambling room?” Yukimi added.

“Figure it out yourselves.”

“I can’t believe you!” (Y/n) spoke through gritted teeth.

“The Mary I know wouldn’t give up just because she thought a friend betrayed her.” Tsuzura sniffled. “You’re strong and dedicated and never give up. You always win in the end, so please, don’t give up!”

“Don’t waste your breath, Tsuzura.” (Y/n) wrapped an arm around her shoulders in an attempt to comfort her whilst glaring at Mary. “We can figure it out on our own. It’ll be easier without her betraying us.”

Something about the dead serious delivery and the pure disgust in (Y/n)’s eyes caused Mary to have an epiphany. Another possibility… she wasn’t committed to trusting them again just yet. As far as she was concerned, the only person she could trust was herself. That didn’t mean she couldn’t manipulate them to play the roles she needed them to play.

“Fine, I’ll play.”

“Mary!” Tsuzura looked relieved until Mary stared them down.

“I won’t lose just because one of you stabbed me in the back. I’ll teach you all a lesson you’ll never forget.”

“Right back at you!” (Y/n) shot back.

Mary ended up taking the lead of the group and left (Y/n) on the outs, though it didn’t seem she was letting anyone else in on everything she was planning either. As mad as (Y/n) was at Mary however, it still hurt when she lead the group away from her to discuss turn order and confession targets.

(Y/n) motioned Yuikimi and Tsuzura to join Mary and Chitose, assuring them that she’d be fine on her own. She trusted them to find a way to tell her if something went awry. She took a deep breath, and brainstormed her own course of action.

Before long, they were all seated at the table again, each offering up the sleepover option to cover their lost wagers. (Y/n) and Mary studiously ignored each other as the set up occurred, but when the last person was seated, Mary spoke up, leaning over so she could look at (Y/n) who sat on the other side of Tsuzura and Yukimi.

“Hey,” she said gruffly, “I just want to say, I don’t care what you do. Just know that we are going to be the winners, got it?”

(Y/n) wanted to say something snarky in return, but something about the way Mary’s inflection changed slightly when she said ‘we’ gave (Y/n) pause.

“Only one way to find out.” She grumbled. “Let’s get this over with.”

Chitose confessed first, matching with Sera. Then it was (Y/n)’s turn. Really it was a one in five shot that she picked wrong. She assumed Mary still wanted everyone to stick to one target to minimize matches. So if there was a mole, she shouldn’t have to worry about multiple guys targeting her.

“Here goes nothing,” she audibly exhaled, “I’ll confess to Musubi-san.”

The boys looked disappointed, but didn’t seem too heartbroken, like they expected it wouldn’t be likely that they would have a match with her, but then it was Yukimi’s turn and when she said she would be confessing to Kibashira, it caused an uproar as if they expected a different answer. Then Tsuzura upset the boy’s expectations even further by also confessing to Musubi. Then finally, it was Mary’s turn.

“Musubi-san,” she smirked, “you’re getting rather popular, huh? That makes me a little jealous because,” she presented her paper for all to see, “I picked you too.”

“There is only one successful coupling.” Miruka observed. “Congratulations, Sera-san and Inui-san.”

(Y/n) took a breath of relief and after a moment, Mary started snickering.

“You guys are so dumb, you know that?” She asked pointedly to the boys and Chitose. “I knew you were the mole, Inui-san. Once I took the time to actually think about it, it was the only thing that made sense.”

Sh got up from her seat and walked over to (Y/n), placing a hand on her shoulder.

“I should have realized right away. (Y/n) wouldn’t betray me like that and I owe her a big apology. I was being a narrow-minded idiot.”

“Mary…” (Y/n)’s hand moved to rest atop Mary’s, “I’m sorry too. You’ve never turned your back on us before, so why start now? We were both being dumb.”

“We were… but we managed to course correct and it’s thanks to these idiots,” she sweeps her hand over to the boys and Chitose still looking angry and shocked, “that we just made a damn fortune! Thanks sooo much!” She teased.

“Enough jeering.” Miruka sighed, “The second round has concluded. All arrangements of wagers will be dealt with promptly.”

Once everything was squared away, the four friends left the event hall, exhausted but satisfied that they had won out in the end.

“Hey guys…” Mary stopped walking, making the other three turn around, “I just wanted to apologize for how I acted today. I suspected you all in one way or another even though you guys have never given me a reason to doubt you in the past.” She bowed at the waist, “I’m really sorry.”

“Hey, it’s alright. I probably would have though the same thing.” Yukimi said.

“Mary!” Tsuzura hugged her, “I was so afraid! I thought you had given up on us!”

“It was pretty rough, but I think we’re a much stronger team now.” (Y/n) simpered.

“I promise I’ll never doubt you guys again.”

“Alright, give me some room, Tsuzura. I want in on this too.” (Y/n) worked her way into the hug, making Mary blush.

“Hey! What are you doing?”

“You never give out hugs. Have to take advantage when I can!” (Y/n) teased, hugging Mary tighter and enjoying every second of it. “Right, Tsuzura?”

“Mhm! Yukimi, come join!”

“Alright!” Yukimi joined in on the hug, making Mary more exasperated.

“Hey! You guys! Come on!” Mary flustered, “You guys?!”

***

The only sound was the clatter and clink of silverware.

Though they had won when it mattered most, they still owed the boys a dinner date. No one was particularly excited, but free food was free food to Mary and (Y/n).

“Alright, well, I’m full.” Mary stood once she finished her plate.

“Me too, thanks for the meal.” (Y/n) stood as well, followed shortly by Yukimi and Tsuzura.

Tired from the intense gamble the day before, it was pretty much a given that they would all go to their respective homes to rest and enjoy the rest of their weekend without any other obligations. (Y/n) and Mary waved goodbye to the others as their bus pulled away from the curb.

“Hey,” Mary spoke once the bus started rolling down the street, “want to see a movie or something?”

(Y/n) felt her heart flutter a bit. “Sounds fun. We should have asked Yukimi-senpai and Tsuzura if they wanted to come.”

“They can tag along another time. We don’t have to do everything together all the time.” She rolled her eyes and looked out the window. “So, what movie do you want to see?” She mumbled.

(Y/n) leaned her shoulder against Mary’s. “I don’t know,” she smiled, “we’ll have to see what’s playing when we get there.”

[darkspellmaster]

I also think Aladdin would've been greatly improved if he had more competition for her hand. The only source of conflict in that whole movie, outside of Aladdin's self esteem issues, is Jafar, who wants to use him to get into the Cave of Wonders and then only wants him out of the way when he's disguised as a prince. By adding in another good option like a version of Jafar who's the same age as her, it would add more personal conflict for Aladdin and make him need to actually prove himself to win her over. As is, it does seem like Jasmine picked the best option out of the shitty hand that was dealt to her and Aladdin just needs to go to therapy instead of trying to get another partner. Again, that's just me.

Well the series did allow for a few. The most well known was, of course, Mozenrath, (favorite of mine, not gonna lie, Rip Johnathan Brandis), who sometimes flirted with her and clearly had a thing for her, but also lusted after power, so there was that. And then there was Daru Tavelevil, who was this conman like dude who came off as cultured and impressed Jasmine a bit with it, turned out to be selling iron to one of the other villains. Prince Wazoo was a snooty guy who tried to win her over, but, um...he was more of a joke character, and some people have shipped her with Arbutus, who was a kind of cross between Beast in personality, and Poison Ivy.

In the original Arabian Night's story there was a small conflict in the form of Aladdin, using his Jinn to beat the son of the Vizier who was an option for the Princess to marry, though, depending on the retelling if she was into the guy or not. Some versions have him a clown, some have him a threat, others just have him as like, parents wanted them to marry because. From what I've read and seen of the making of Aladdin, there was going to be more to it. Aladdin's mom was going to be in the movie, being the moral voice to her son with the Genie, helping him to see that he had to make it up to the princess, and be better for her. Basically, what you're saying is Mozenrath should have been in the original movie. XD I mean, given what Iago said about how strong he was in magic, and then later we see what he does when he brain washes here, I can see where people would want that to happen. I do really wish they would have kept his mom involved somehow, it could have helped with some plotting beats, but at the time, most animated movies were between 89 and 93 minutes long. You didn't have the 2 hour plus run time some of them get now to expand on dynamics, so the songs had to do the heavy lifting. Could it have made for more drama, yes. But I'm not totally sure it would be as needed in this case, as the romance, while important to the story, was more about the growth and bonding between Genie and Aladdin. Showing how their friendship allows him to become more honest and true to who he is. And while I'm all for the romance in the story, I'm okay with it being the B plot of the relationship dynamic. Opposed to Beauty and the Beast, where the Romance is A plot, and everything else is B plot. Aladdin was a shift from that formula at the time.

Same kinda with Hercules, Mulan, and Hunchback. Family and Friendships took the mainstage, and romance moved to the back. Aladdin kinda was a bit of a start of that.

It's fun discussing these sorts of things. Ps. if you ever get the chance, and you can find it (since Disney still doesn't have it up on Disney Plus) look up the Aladdin series episode The Secret of Dagger Rock. It's the one where Jasmine fights Mozenrath to free Aladdin. (Additionally for Evil Jasmine, look up Forget Me Not, where she gets tricked into thinking she's a famous villain and totally leads the hell out of a team of baddies, forcing Abis Mal to ask for help to stop her from Aladdin. It's where her black outfit first shows up)

Hope the answer is good for you.

[ask-postcrash-curly]

Heya curls!

Oh boy new SU episode,,, um, geez, this one is kind of intense. …for an entirely random non-specific reason, remember the amalgams from undertale?

Season 2 episode 8: Keeping it together

Oh geez

Trigger warnings:

Minor stuff: an injector thingy falls, not exactly an explosion tho?

Major warnings:

The following list does not apply to any members of the cast!!

-body horror, non-consensual body modification (not of any members of the cast!), corpse desecration (not of human corpses!), consent issues (sort of a rape allegory??? I guess??), unsettling noises of pain and suffering, loss of autonomy

Hey 3rd party? Could u give curly the option to pause/skip the episode if he’s watching and it gets to be too much for him? Thanksss

I can’t think of a way to censor the episode because aside from the episode’s noises, most of the horror is in The Implications. And I can’t exactly skip over it either because it is very important to the plot.

[beams SU season 2 episode “Keeping it together” into your head]

Btw, random detail, but when a gem is bubbled they aren’t conscious! Later episodes confirm this but I just wanted u to know that when they bubble corrupted and shattered gems, they really are putting them to rest, haha.

Anyway uhhhh. Here’s 10 minutes of relaxing rain sounds! https://youtu.be/H5f8YR9Dk1c?si=bln-Q4-bq4hywRbG

And here’s a cute Lion short!

https://youtu.be/h7r03KNiVPs?feature=shared

Heya!

Yeah...? Wait, sorry, what is this about?

Theme song changed, hey.

This is nice and domestic... Ah, and the planet's in danger? Hah, Steven's so happy to be included. Hey, there's Peridot again.

Just uses her hand as a helicopter... Can I do that, d'you think? Hahah.

Well, that's creepy. Fuck no. Did Garnet almost die...? And now she's arguing with herself...

That got dark... Garnet's still the best character here.

Wow. Uh, thanks for the rain?

Don't think Lion actually does fit in those boxes. Heheh. S'adorable, though.

[straying-further-from-gods-grace]

New fic idea 💡👉👈🥺

So um

Human!AU Trans!Alastor raised by Husk and Rosie to be strong and independent

Gets pregnant.

Whether from consensual or non consensual sex idk yet.

I'm currently a trans author who's ovulating and I don't EVER in a million years plan to have children. But ummm. Alastor can!

The main plot will be Valentino stepping up.

Because I want this to be Valastor, cause I want it! *stomps foot*

The real question is why does he wanna step up 🤔ᴴᴹ

I have 3 options hwre

1) the baby is his and his parents would fucking kill him (in this case the sex is consensual) (OR the baby is Vox and Vox is like "Fuck that shit" and Valentino steps up attempting to make Vox jelly, and it works! But oops he's fallen in love!)

2) Alastor, a semi famous singer or dancer or something, being publicly shamed outside of a planned Parenthood after going there for a test. And Valentino whose mama did NOT raise him to stand back during an injustice, and is also famous but for his Casanova stage image in lots of sexy hot movies (both X rated and theatre approved. I'm making him an actor ;p), steps in and rescues him, maybe even punches a protestor or reporter or something. And um. They're all over the news about their apparent "affair" and how Alastor is another of Valentinos flings and Alastor is apparently such a whore now (even though this is his first scandal), and Valentino is like shit. I made it a looot worse than if I did nothing... So he vows to stay by Alastors side, at least until the birth, to try and make it smoother for him, like, shield the rumors (maybe the real baby daddy is some low level shit who took advantage of Al, and is tryna get popularity by being the one to get Al pregnant) and they ya know. Fall in love UwU

3) Alastor gets drugged, and left used in Valentinos bedroom at his college dorm/frat. And Valentino stumbles in drunk, gets in bed with him, and they wake up, naked, with hints of sex having happened. And so Valentino steps up when Alastor finds out he's pregnant- thinking it's his. UwU

SO

Any OTHER suggestions ARE SOOO WELCOMED!

And I'd just like to know which of these y'all would prefer to see!!!

Thank youuu

Other things involved but the main plot I'd also love ideas!!!!

In this I'm gonna keep my Rosie/Velvet and Husk/Angel ships where they're half their age and is their younger sugar babies but in this they're not seperate they're happily in an open marriage UwU

Ummm. That's non negotiable. UwU

[allykakamatsu]

Part 2 of my brain being unhinged.

As I said last time, this is the basic lore run down for my KH X GI au because I have a problem.

Basics: Like I said last time, the basic run down is that Sora ended up in Teyvat instead of Quadratum, so now Riku and Kairi are going there to try find him, however the power that sent them there also dragged a good few of the others along for the ride. What I didn't mention last time is that Teyvat is like Quadratum in the sense that is very difficult to get into, so as an 'entry fee' to get in they're not allowed to leave until 'peace has been restored', aka until the plot is over.

Visions: The interesting part, I know the whole group is Descenders and realistically couldn't get a Vision, but it's my au so I'm gonna twist the rules and say for a reason the gang isn't aware of they can get them. Everyone can still use their regular powers though, and a good few characters won't even have a Vision by the time the main team catches up with them. Because of this, Vision's don't have to match the characters associated element and are instead given based on a trait they show when they unlock their ambition, for example Elrena is going to have an Anemo Vision alongside her usual lightning powers. I'm mostly basing my decisions off of this post as it gives a good case for a unifying trait of all the elements.

Keyblades: Every nation is going to be treated as it's own world basically, so after completing the Archon Quest every Keyblade wielder who was present get's a new Keyblade to play around with. Part of this was for rule of cool, the other was because drawing Destiny's Embrace made it very clear I had to get people more options so I don't have to murder my hand drawing some of these things. Also, not gonna say who or when yet, but certain Genshin characters are gonna get Keyblades as well, some intentionally, a lot by accident-

Princesses of Heart: Like I said, every nation is gonna be treated like it's own world, so every nation is gonna have one of Teyvat's Seven Princesses of Heart, though in this case Princess is more of a gender neutral term as a girl, guy or anything in between can be one of the Princesses.

Is the main plot gonna have any changes: Not gonna spoil what specifically is gonna change, but the KH gang being in the plot is gonna spawn a lot of changes, some out of necessity so the KH crew don't steamroll the plot, other things I changed because I think they would be neat, and some changes were purely because the plot desperately needed some ironing out in areas (spoilers but not really, Inazuma is gonna be changed the most-)

Characters: Gonna have some character focused posts later but for now I’ll just go over the basics of where everyone starts out.

Riku and Kairi start in Mondstat, with Ienzo also being along for the ride.

Naminé is assisting Albedo up in Dragonspine

Lea/Axel is working for Beidou so she can get him and Roxas to Inazuma, meanwhile Roxas is more or less just Vibing with the Liyue kids.

Isa is working for Yae at the Shrine to help him and Xion, meanwhile Xion herself is pretending to just be a helpful random girl but is actually with the resistance.

Repliku is vibing in the Saberuz theatre with Nilou cause he as nothing else to do, and Vanitas is making questionable life choices yet again (he’ll get better I swear-)

Sora um… he’s complicated, but let’s just say he isn’t tied to any one nation and he’s having a not great time-

Laurium and Elrena are both members of Spina di Rosula, however the former is also the part time tea party planner to Furina and the latter spends her free time helping the twins with their act.

There’s still more but I wanna leave them a surprise so I’ll get back to them later.

That's about everything I can thing of for now, I'll be posting more art and tidbit's about this au soon, so hope you all enjoy, and here's some concept art just so this post doesn't look too boring.

[ainsellshadewalker]

Minor update to the X-Men Evolution Wings of Fire-fied AU: I am scrapping (for now) making it the Dark AU version. I have ideas, but I really want to fledge out with a different story first, then maybe work my way back around to a WoF version of the Dark AU.

So, um, is it okay if I info dump a few ideas + minor story plots + scenes I really really want in my fic/au at some point? I shall assume yes, but don't worry, you don't need to understand the book plots at all! You can look up a picture of the dragon tribes, but seeing as the mutants are hybrids, well, they'll be a bit different. Let's dive in-

Plot and AU Ideas:

#1 • There is the One of Us AU, or regular gradual platonic yandere X-Men Evolution au, centered around the background tension and dread, but with no extra add-ons, just a pretty standard au or plot, I guess, with Reader (Bee) being a new mutant, but who appears as a HiveWing and seems to initially have no powers at all...

#2 • There is the Propehcy AU, where the teen are part of some vision and prophecy that can either save the world or end it, but it woukd be hard to fit everyone in, but I do like small prophecies...

#3 • A Secret Animus AU, where Reader (Bee) has not an animus-like ability, but full animus magic, the most rare mutation of all... in this Reader is more nervous, fidgety, and avoidant, but it is a bit more stressful and tense than the other options...

#4 • A Neglect au, where Reader (Bee), due to appearing seemingly normal and average, is shunned by the mutants, or at best forgotten about, and Reader eventually ends up hurt or captured, and possibly almost dies... but is saved at the last minute, and now the others have to try and take care of them and make up for lost time, while Reader wants to act like nothing happened and go back to the regular status quo...

Story Plots:

• possibly stopping or freeing Dragon! Apocalypse or using his animus scroll (magic scroll of limitless potential spells)

• Reader finding out they're related to someone

• Reader possibly having a darker past than everyone thinks (such as Reader used to work for a villain/evil dragon; or Reader was rejected by their family for being a mutant, despite not appearing like one; Reader almost dying when they were really young; or maybe all three, who knows)

• Reader trying to find perfect gifts or make perfect gifts for everyone, and the teens and adults do the same thing (a seasonal story, possibly as an extra or it's own stand-alone oneshot) (this one woukd be very sweet, with a bit of silliness)

• Prinicpal/Headmaster Kelly (he's going to be a SeaWing named Kelp), slowly realizing that he's wrong to hate mutants, and that groups like the Weapon X Program (called Wing X Program) and the MRD aren't good for everyone, and kinda has a talk and understanding with Xavier (because I know he's a squishy jerk, but I want to use 97's character growth on this version of him, so at least one normal dragons doesn't stay a jerk)

• Dragonets! Jean and Scott gradually getting together, and it's sappy and sweet and has a touch of hurt/comfort (they deserve better, let these two be happy)

Small Scenes (I just want these to be canon!):

• Reader hunting like a heron, then teaching Todd or Lance how to do it, too (they use their wings to create shadows, then stab the fish when they swim below it)

• The teens (dragonets) trying to cook, but most of then have never used fire, let alone a pan or pot or seasoning

• Reader finding one of the teens sleeping with them because of a nightmare, so they just let them stay, putting a blanket over them, then going back to sleep

• A beach day (the kids and adults just play in the sand and lazily swim around and catch some crabs and seagulls and laugh together) (they need to be found family)

• Reader crying, and someone comforting them

Well. This is all i have so far. I need more sleep. I hope you are doing well, ainsell! Please get some rest, drink some water, and have a snack.

Those are all wonderful ideas! Something you can do to tie in multiple points, Apocalypse sending visions to Bee to release him. They're not demanding though and he seems to actually care and acts very fatherly and protective over them. Something bee doesn't have from the others because they're just not as special as their pack. Except, the reason for apocalypse to be so doting is the fact that Bee is his child who's mutation is reincarnation. He doesn't know why they don't remember as much as when they used to reincarnate he sees that there are some memories but blames the xmen and brotherhood for causing so much distress in Bee that they've forgotten they were ever loved. And maybe when Bee finally gives in they've grown cold and uncaring to the world, so instead of immediately causing the end of humankind, his main goal because he knows no other way to save mutantkind, Apocalypse bonds with Bee and teaches them that there is still something to love in the world. Seeing that the person who's supposed to know only destruction and violence according to myth treat his young so carefully truly wanting them to heal and be as they are causes the xmen and brotherhood to rethink their behavior. Which leads to them somehow separating Bee from Apocalypse to talk but Bee doesn't want to talk and tries to leave. Cue Stryker seeing an opportunity taking Bee and setting up for an end where you decide who gets custody!

I rambled a bit sorry but you have so many good ideas to bounce off that something always grows

[ritzcrackee]

september tbr yayyyyy

rereads are marked by a ✩, new reads are marked by a ♡, library reads are italicized and new acquisitions are bolded

physical tbr: 8

dune messiah - frank herbert - ♡

oedipus rex - sophocles - ♡

antigone - sophocles - ♡

medea - euripides - ♡

the way of kings - brandon sanderson - ♡

wuthering heights - emily bronte - ♡

circe - madeline miller - ☆

the immortalists - chloe benjamin - ☆

digital tbr: 2

the hundred years war on palestine - rashid khalidi - ♡

in the shadow of the sun - em castellan - ♡

last months books: 8

a dowry of blood - s. t. gibson - 5/5

this was a rereaddddddd and it held up! i'll always feel mildly conflicted about alexi's age but its not enough of a hang-up for me to lower my rating. i like this book a lottttt yippee

dune - frank herbert - 1.5/5

guys. i fuckinf. ifucghinh. i did it. i rwad dune. slamsmy head againsy the wall.

i haven't talked about this yet (i think), but i kind of read dune twice? i realized very early on that the physical book wasn't the way to go for me. something about trying to absorb complex information when there's pretty lights and sounds and tiny tiny text on a weirdly shaped object was truly? impossible for me. BUT!! my good friend (hiii king) had given me his special annotated copy so i really wanted to read his thoughts on everything?

anyways, the way i solved this problem was to just... read everything twice. once, physically, as more of a vibes catching heavy skim, and then again, digitally, really trying to understand the minutiae of it.

this approach maybe worked? i still couldn't tell you very much of the plot, but knowing what was coming helped me enjoy it more? idfk

my favorite part wasssss the annex at the end and the chapter where the ecologist dies ❤

(franz please don't be offended by my rating and come to my house and kill me IM SORRY IM BAD AT SCI-FI I STILL LIKED IT)

in at the deep end - kate davies - 2.5/5

meh. writing style was fast paced and interesting, but a little too #qUirKy for me. the author said she was a big fan pf pheobe waller-bridge, and like... yeah you did kind of write knock-off lesbian fleabag didn't you? (to be clear i did enjoy this somewhat, just a perfectly average amount lol.

done deal - skrifores on ao3 - 4/5

woo hoo this was a 50k word modern au gentlebeard fic :3 i feel like 50k is enough to count as a novella? i guess we r tracking long fics too now. um yeah this was very sweeeet and very cuteeeeee

turn on the light - smallest church on ao3 - 5/5

THIS MADE ME TEAR UPPPPPP my babies.... (also a gentlebeard modern au fic but THIS one was 55k. so. yay)

divorce towers - ellen meister - 1/5

yeah idk what i expected. i got a free trial of amazon prime and this looked like the most interesting of the free book options? wish i had dnfed it halfway through but yk. i'm sure its for someone out there.

beastars vol 1 - paru itagaki - 5/5

yayyyy beastars ❤ fun fact i absolutely hated the anime on my first watch but like,,, in that obsessed way yk? rewatched it recently and LOVEDDDD it so i'm making my way through the manga :3

beastars vol 2 - paru itagaki - 5/5

i love to love animal cannibals....

last months goal: find a tbr system that fits my current goals better lmao

i just added a library marker lol. i was gifted a couple books, so my physical tbr got a lil longer. alsoo i keep reading novella/novel length fanfics so i'm tracking those as well heart emoji.

this months goal: read some stuff off of my fall tbr

gang i'm tired. the reading slump has been so real and i KNOW the fall weather is gonna kick my ass. i'd also love to finish a hard book this month but realistically i will read six fanfics and a romance. fml.

[tanatola]

Do you mind if I ask your top 10 favorite characters (can be male or female) from all of the media that you loved (can be anime/manga, books, movies or tv series)? And why do you love them? Sorry if you've answered this question before.....Thanks....

Oh um! Thank you for the question, I do love that kind of thing, love writing it out... Honestly I think I can track almost a lot of my fav characters to just yaoi but whatever, I'm valid!! Also there might be some spoilers here since it's difficult to write 'why' without them. Sorry for long text, I like rambling about my favs. 1) Currently as is obvious it's Geto Suguru from JJK, I think he just combined a lot of the things I like in a way that really works for him and for the story... The inherent romance in being dead before the main plot even starts, ahh. Also the complexity behind his fall into villainy is sooo well-written, having so many reasons and chains of consequences that lead him to it, a slow and easily preventable descent into tragedy, it's so appealing... I truly believe he could have been saved and dissuaded at any point in his life, even during the events of jjk0, but people who cared about him didn't understand him, while people who did understand him didn't care enough (or actively planned to take advantage).

2) Kaeya from Genshin, similarly because he's a very contradictory character with a lot of inner demons and a tendency towards self-destructive behavior. Also back then the kaeluc of it all forced me deep into researching chinese terminology and similar examples in fiction which made playing Genshin a much more educational experience than one would expect lmao... Honestly I didn't love what the game did with him in the last few years, mostly ignoring the more serious and cunning aspects of his personality and story and focusing on the cute and insecure little trickster persona, it's very ehh to me. But in my heart I still love the version of him that made me obsess for over a year.

3) Jimmy McGill from Better Call Saul. Again, something about preventable tragedy and how difficult it is to tell where his actions can be traced back to his childhood and family relations, where he was forced and where he chose to make bad decisions himself, he is my poor meow meow 100%. Also has the benefit of being in a well-written show.

4) Princess Carolyn from Bojack, honestly it should have been Diane but Diane struck too close to home for me, while PC is a 'safer' to love option. Highly competent in professional areas, utterly delulu in others, one of the most caring characters in the cast... <З I also just liked her VA a lot, plus she's like a power fantasy in a lot of ways... Super great at her career, loving partner, realising her dream of having a baby, I mean yeah. Not that I want a baby, just that she got everything she wanted by the end, nice.

5) Wei Wuxian from MDZS, same with being dead before the story starts djkgdkjg, also a necromancer and a disaster, need I say more. I think for me a big factor of why I like him is that despite being a talented genius with a steady moral compass he absolutely failed at... everything? Lost everything he held dear or wanted to protect, when revived he doesn't even have any specific goals in the new life he was given. But his endless positivity means that he didn't mind taking that second chance anyway, and as a reward at least learned in detail why his first life fell apart, and also gained a devoted husband in the process, good for him. A rare happy end among things I like actually,, I mean I actually have words to say about the 'happy' part of it but well, as happy as it could have been for him.

6) Grantaire from Les Mis, this one is just very personal I think, a cynical drunk who never accomplished anything in his life, am I right dfjgnkdfg...,, Him being a typical asshole but well-educated and sentimental, loving Enjolras and all of his friends but giving 0 effort to actually supporting their cause, still managing to do the right thing in the end, it's ahh т_т Also I'm still obsessed with him mentioning studying under Antoine-Jean Gros in one sentence which led me down the rabbit hole of researching what real life Gros was like, spoilers he drowned himself in Seine after his artistic career went into decline. You can really see why looking at his works but that makes it all the more upsetting... Like not because of some 1 specific failure but just a lack of artistic progress overall, which his mentor, peers and students couldn't help but comment on... Anyway this isn't about Grantaire anymore but also kind of still is! 7) Vriska, I named my second cat after her!! Honestly one of the better written characters in Homestuck I think (im thinking the first five acts), just everything about her is perfect to me. A huge bitch of course, but at her core just a teenager with pure ambition and insecurities born from consequences of her actions, always trying to prove herself no matter how much she hurts people around her. And yeah like always with characters I like, so many opportunities for her to go off the doomed course, but either herself or manipulative adults always redirected her back, and that was always supposed to be the 'main' timeline, doomed by the narrative etc. The tragic nature of her friends-to-rivals-to-enemies with Terezi was also just sooo... And that Terezi didn't even care about that rivalry as much as Vriska did, or at least pretended that she didn't... Sighh....

8) Granny Weatherwax from Discworld, my favorite old woman. What's so great about her to me is that she's like all those other characters I like, an asshole who wants to solve everyone's problems, always tempted to react emotionally, do the wrong thing,... But she just doesn't, and she's been choosing to be good ever since she was young. The appeal of a powerful witch holding herself in check, mmm, she's just so much more introspective, complex and relatable than say Gandalf in LOTR who had the same issues. Iconic role model honestly.

9) Harry Du Bois from Disco Elysium, or at least specifically the communist well-natured version of him you can play as djkfgdfkfg, not that it erases his complexities and masculine asshole ways but... I mean yeah, he's a cop and an asshole no matter what, but the sheer potential he holds... No matter how low he's fallen, his sentimentality and his empathy, being so in-tune with people and the city, it all leads to a blooming hope for humanity I suppose. That you can get better, always, and not only a-la Grantaire by dying. Of course, you can also always get worse, too, but that's the other inevitable side of the coin (I still haven't played the fascist route since it makes me too sad).

10) Leo from Pandora Hearts! Again I didn't really love how he ended up, but ahhh :^) His unlikely friendship with Elliot, agreeing to becoming his servant to stay by his side more, not realising that he's dooming his friend by doing so, yandere-ish personality plus secret pretty eyes, I mean. Classic flavor.

[sylvaridreams]

20 19 questions for writers

<- why did they lie to me about the #? i demand answers.

I was in bed and going to bed and then I saw that I was tagged by ANTA MY FRIEND @antariies so i got out of bed to answer these

tagging: um. well i dont know. teensie. do you write...? you have to do this then. even if you are in bed.

1. how many works do you have on ao3?

39 right now, but I know I've orphaned about that many as well

2. what fandoms do you write for?

right now... all guild wars 2.

previously I've done a lot of metro 2033, half life, jojo's bizarre adventure, digimon, katekyo hitman reborn... and then less of hlvrai, final fantasy vii, and fruits basket... gw2 is all i do for right now. <:)

3. what are your top 5 by kudos?

This is super skewed because I orphaned a tooooon of my more popular stuff but Nuclear Option, two other vrai fics, Lent (<- should be number 1 if we're being honest and true) and a fruits basket thing that i should have probably also orphaned. the overwhelming urge to orphan things to skew the data further. you have to hold me back

4. do you respond to comments?

yes but not in a timely fashion (last round took me. over a year before i replied to anything. pensive.

5. what is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I dunno about actually angsty.... the fic that makes me cry every time is butterfly bridge; I wrote it after having to put a pet to sleep. if I ever got around to writing more "portal to the metro" the ending would probably also rank up there. due to. the tragedies.

6. what is the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

proooooobably Lent? idk I feel like I get a lot of "fuck yeah that ending ohhh the catharsis" type reactions on Lent.

7. do you get hate on fics?

I have a number of times. sometimes anon but sometimes people put their names to it?

8. do you write smut? if so, what kind?

yes. sorry. the apologetic kind.

9. do you write crossovers?

not often... usually a crossover is a pretend thing just for me in my Imagination. however. portal to the metro... it was a roleplay between myself and a friend. and then i started writing it in earnest. and then i got tired. then i started writing primarily gw2 stuff. you understand. but someday I'll return to it. and then they'll all be sorry.

10. have you ever had a fic stolen?

um. kind of. when I was 17-18 I plotted out a fic I was working on and shared it with a couple of dear close friends. and then like a couple weeks later a massively popular person in the fandom in question posted my fic: their version. down to every little detail. 🙈 never found out which of my friends shared the planning with them.

11. have you ever co-written a fic before?

yeah, Pluto's Moon -- started 8 years ago, finished almost a year later... I wouldn't bother rereading it at this point but. it was a fun experience. we had fun. I also cowrote several chapters of a Reborn crossover fic with my long distance mmo friend when I was a freshman in high school. I don't think we ever got anywhere with it let alone posted it to FFN or anything-- I was handwriting short chapters between classes lol. I might still have those pages somewhere...

and then I think I would also consider portal to the metro a co-write in many ways. because it came from both of us :)

12. what's your all-time favorite ship?

well. I think Canach/Alba has been too prominent for too long for me not to say it. canon/oc numero uno!!!!!!

13. what's one WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

i dont even wanna answer and jinx it nooooo cry2. I yearn to finish everything... i guess maybe I have some weird misc smut fics I don't anticipate finishing. due to the strangeness.

14. what are your writing strengths?

dialogue is my dearest sweetest friend. my sweetie pee

15. thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

i LIKE it! thumbs ups. am I GOOD at it? thumbs in the other directions

16. first fandom you wrote for?

Kingdom Hearts before I ever touched any of the games. (like 17-18 years ago)

17. favorite fic you've written?

I feel like my most recent is always my favoritest 😭 uhhhhg

The Echo (current project)

Drochshúil (recent work)

18. what are your writing weaknesses?

I have no pacing control. I can't meet goals, OR i'll go full crazy and write 160k in 2 weeks. you have to watch out because that can happen to you too if you just go off your antipsych meds for a while

also filling in the stuff AROUND dialogue. so often i'll be editing a fic and just (sighs) dama (me) you (i) can't just have 8 lines in a row of dialogue. what are these people doing in between talking. and then dama (me) is like alright wise guy why don't you take a crack at it if you're so smart. and i do. but in the moment of writing i'm not super good at figuring out the in betweeeeeeens.

also I feel like ending scenes and such is really hard. also getting characters from point a to point b (locations) without doing a timeskip to "well here we are at point b!"

19. have you ever had a fic translated?

I had someone ask to do so with one of my metro fics, to repost on a Russian fanfic site; I wasn't particularly attached to the fic so I told them go ahead. but also I have no idea if it ever happened. heart hands. so maybe. there may have been another but I don't rember.