#interested to see what happens with this current arc...

[flossylove]

Last nights clip was so disturbing oh my goodness

I don't know how SRAM did it, but genuinely I felt so sick watching as the night progressed through the clips. Yes, we knew what was coming and how shitty Sven is, but still, they really elevated how horrible it was for Nora.

Also, by Petra joining in as well? With her removing Nora's clothes and kissing her? Like, girl, Nora was clearly too out of it to consent to any of that. I really wonder how they're going to go along with Petra, because in the OG Mari was always helping Noora and making sure she was safe and okay. Whereas Petra literally joined in!!

The call with Petra as well just solidified for me that Sven deffo does this on the regular and drugs up those girls around him. Like, "Yeah right. That's what I always feel too." Girly, get the hell away from Sven PLEASE

I feel like they're gonna go along more with the drugging plotline, with Nora feeling/knowing that something more happened, but everyone around her is assuring her that she just got drunk. Because then that'd work still with her being absent with Roko. She knows something more happened and feels unease with that, and no answers.

Of course, there's still the photos that we saw Sven take in the clip last night. Which, yeah, actually seeing him do that around everyone else?? And no one stepping in or stopping him from photographing the minor?? Gross.

I loved the clips we got this morning, they felt really fresh with the switch-up (even under the current circumstances). I loved how Roko was waiting outside for her, lover boy certified, but I just know this is gonna hurt so much with the upcoming weeks. I already knew this plotline was gonna be painful, as it always is, but especially with Nora and Roko, who as we all know I really love. They are top remake for me. They are just so sweet with each other. And the character arc with Roko from Season 1 to now?

As always, I am really interested in how they're going to execute this new aspect of the plotline. I loved that we got to see Roko there this morning, and finding out through Vito that he held her hair back and truly looked after her. It really just highlights how shitty Sven is, and we haven't even gotten to the worst of it.

Hearing Roko talk about those parties Sven holds, like he knows about them, hates that they happen. That's just gonna hurt so much more when he finds out about Nora being there. Which, just slightly talking about the future, I really hope he actually does something to Sven. Yes, violence isn't always the answer - but in this case it absofuckinglutely is. Like, if they don't make him do something, the same guy that said "If anyone so much as lays a finger on you, I'll be there" - and he just does nothing to his slimy brother?!?! I would really feel like that's a missed opportunity absolutely.

This post is probably so negative and like, underwhelming. I just don't know how to express my reactions. Like, yes of course I love this show, and I am loving the changes, but this storyline is always difficult (I find) to talk about in any sort of happy way, because we all know what's coming.

In other news, we got another forehead kiss and several more! So I guess there's a positive 😭😭

Also, Roko's "I've been waiting the whole week for you to call" 😭 "Chamomile? For my delicate flower." Nora's smile!

User flossylove found sobbing on the floor over this cutie.

Guys, I'm really trying to focus on the positives in this scene, and that's probably what I'll be doing going forward because otherwise rage will just take over my body :))

~ floss

[faguettism]

I wish GA would stop watching the show with their eyes closed so they could actually see the obvious fucking parallels that show Mike's queerness and his relationship with Will.

First of all, there are insane amount of details put into this show to meticulously design every aspect of each character so nothing is a coincidence nor a reach.

Second of all, there are hours of proof why Mike Wheeler is queer, starting all the way back from season 1, but if i tried to explain everything it would be a whole series of novels so i'll just settle for this very obnoxiously loud piece of evidence.

Now the reason they created Vickie as a love interest might be because one, Robin deserves it duh, and two, so they can show how a canonically queer character's romantic arc plays out and compare it to another character in the series.

Here's the prize winning question for GA, who might that person be?

If you answered Will, you're pretty close! He's actually paralleling to Robin though, so not the answer we're looking for. But Robin's love interest Vickie parallels to Will's love interest, which would be Mike.

And this is where things get a little complicated for GA.

Because if you asked any viewer with a sane mind if there was a chance Vickie was queer and was interested in Robin because her relationship with her boyfriend wasn't working out very well (they weren't exactly in love), they would answer yes; because they have eyes.

But for some reason when it comes to Mike, suddenly he's the straightest guy to walk on earth and he loves his girlfriend very much even though he can't say or write it and there is no chance of him being queer and all of us are delusional blah blah blah.

Like are you not seeing this or are you ignoring it on purpose?

Obviously, there are nuances to the shots taken because the situations aren't exactly the same but that's why they are called parallels dear GA.

In both shots, the character featured in between and in the background of the couples is not an obstacle in their relationship. On the contrary, it shows that they have an important relation to the other character, that there is something more than just a one-sided tragic love story.

And we can confirm that it's not one-sided because after the first shot with Robin and Vickie, Robin's feelings gets reciprocated at the end of the last episode.

In the second scene Vickie starts complaining about her relationship, her ex-boyfriend, and then feels guilty for being irritated at something so insignificant but Robin reassures her about her insecurities.

Let's reel back a bit and think about what happened at the van scene... Mike complained about his relationship but felt guilty about it because it felt stupid to fuss over it and Will reassured him about his insecurities. That seems so familiar i just can't put my finger on it hmmm...

Both Vickie and Mike feel insecure in their past/current relationships, but they find comfort in their other love interests because they bring out their best sides.

In a way, Robin and Vickie's relationship is like a simplified version that of Will and Mike's. It indicates how Mike will break up with El in season 5 and slowly accept his feelings for Will.

I just hope GA can pull their heads out of their asses to take a look when it happens.

[inhuman-obey-me]

Babe, Wake Up. New OM World Lore Just Dropped!

So. Nightbringer Lesson 22.

(spoilers, obviously)

The Father of Demons

While cleaning the library, MC finds a book -- one that has the same lines narrated by Solomon in the Prologue video. The book, like the video, ends abruptly at "the demon's name was..." as the rest of the book is gone, pages torn out.

The brothers wonder what the name could be, and Mammon insists it must be Nightbringer, to which Asmodeus agrees. Then, we find out that Satan learned some interesting information from a Celestial Realm book.

So the Celestial Realm also knows of Nightbringer -- but as "the father of demons", thought to be the very first demon born in the world. They go on to say Nightbringer has been known by other names as well, but otherwise, there isn't a whole lot more information on him. Okay, Simeon, please go home real quick and see if you can get this book in undamaged form for us.

That certainly brings a whole new weight to Nightbringer's identity, if he is indeed supposed to be the first demon ever to exist. So far, the game has been heavily hinting that Nightbringer is a version of Barbatos, and this new information would seemingly match up with one of the chats in OG where Barbatos mentions he was never a child, as well as the stories Asmodeus mentions of Barbatos being strong enough to be Demon King himself.

However, the identity of the child, as well as what Nightbringer's actual goals are with MC, is still to be revealed, and this doesn't help to actually clarify any of those questions yet.

The Secret of the Little D.'s

Another major thing we learned is about the Little D.'s -- and that is that they are technically fairies or spirits that came from a tree that the Fairy King used to tend, back when the Fairy King ruled the Devildom. The game goes on to explain that this makes them technically actually fairies or spirits, though the Little D.'s call themselves demons, so their true nature is a mystery -- especially since they are also sometimes born when a new demon is born into the world, but not always!

Interestingly, Barbatos also phrases it as those demons being chosen, so though it's extremely rare, it is seemingly not random, though we don't know exactly why or how.

New demons being born into the world also includes when fallen angels turn, it seems, since the extremely rare occurrence of these spirits being born alongside demons happened with all seven of the brothers after their fall.

So it's not that the main Little D.'s are just lesser demons of each particular sin, but that they are direct spirit counterparts to the demon brothers -- one for each of them, one for each sin.

Which brings us to ...

The Seven Sins

We've always known the seven brothers as the Avatars of the Seven Deadly Sins, but an interesting bit of information we learned in this lesson is that the brothers didn't know why they were given these particular titles, or if Pride, Greed, Envy, etc. were even known as the Seven Deadly Sins at the time the titles were given to them.

Beelzebub refers to them as "keywords", and we again establish it was the Demon King who gave these titles to the brothers. Diavolo says that if his father decided to give these titles to them, they must be important.

We know that the brothers were already exhibiting signs of their assigned "sin" even when they were angels, but as shown by Mammon's behavior in the past two lessons, the full force of each sin hasn't taken over all of them just yet. In fact, Mammon's greed has come out in a dangerous, powerful way as he becomes more of a demon.

It remains to be seen what, if any, relevance this has with MC losing their connection to the OG boys, but we know how they've changed by OG Season 1, where they fully embrace their sins.

We'll just have to wait and see!

[mamanbou]

i truly say this with no malice in my heart but black butler fans who think the series peaked at book of circus/that the circus didn't deserve their fate........... are 7 times out of 10 not really black-butler-as-a-whole fans and are very unwilling to engage with the main themes and characters of the series as a whole. BoC was a fantastic high and had tons of engaging characters but I've met people who still hate ciel bc he had doll killed and that is CRAZY. to love a side character so much that it renders you unwilling to let the main/objectively most complex and important character into your heart at all. I'm sorry that the circus died but even though they loved each other they were also child murderers- in doll's case she still is LOL- and their most important narrative role is their impact on ciel/snake (whose plotline ties back to ciel's ideas about lies becoming the truth, so still a ciel thing ultimately). anyways the best arcs are Green Witch because it's good and Book of Murder because it's funny

[yumeka-sxf]

After what seemed like an eternity, we're finally having another Yor/Garden arc! And even though it's only been one chapter, so many major reveals have already happened...

First off, it's revealed that the SSS has been working with Garden, seemingly giving them undercover jobs on behalf of the prime minister. I always thought that Garden could potentially be one of the SSS's targets, similar to WISE, since both Garden and WISE are doing their own form of shady dealings without government authority. But this reveal completely changes that...now we know that the already corrupt SSS and government have a working relationship with Garden to do their secret dirty work.

This makes my previous thoughts from chapter 114 about a potential Briar sibling reveal even more intense, since now we know that the two organizations work together and intermingle on a somewhat regular basis. It doesn't seem like Wilker knows that Yor is part of Garden, since the assassins' identities are kept a secret, but a chance encounter with Yuri definitely seems more likely now! I wonder if lower ranking SSS members like Yuri know about the boss's dealings with Garden.

We also learn a lot more about Shopkeeper in this chapter. He appears to be someone who treasures the "old ways" of the country. He speaks fondly about the 16th century mansion that Garden has their meetings in and seems exasperated by all the East-West friction happening in the current times. He makes it clear to Wilker that Garden's main purpose is to protect the nation, not do whatever petty job a politician gives them. He rejects a job to interfere with a soccer match against the West, but eagerly takes on Wilker's other job that involves what Shopkeeper calls "imperial lands," and the deer they're told to protect "divine beings." So yeah, it's pretty clear he values tradition and the past culture of the nation, which is a good thing to know about a character who's been shrouded in mystery for so long.

Another thing we learn is that Belle, the seal from chapter 103, also has a connection with the SSS and prime minister. The way Wilker talks about her to Shopkeeper gave me the impression that they had spoke about the topic before, so maybe Garden was involved too? When does the corruption end, lol.

And the other big reveal in this chapter is...new Garden members!

There's Gympie (who appears to be an actual child and my first thought upon seeing him was "I don't remember this kid from among Naruto's classmates" 👀) and Hemlock, who has some kind of antagonism with Yor. Another member, Thistle, is mentioned though doesn't actually appear. It's interesting how all the Garden members' names are related to plants somehow. Guess it makes sense for an organization called "Garden" 😅

By the way, in case anyone is wondering, Hemlock is a man. I wasn't sure at first, but he uses the male pronoun "ore" in the Japanese version.

Also undefeated assassin Yor being afraid of bugs but not a ladybug...guess we all have things we're weak to even if it doesn't always match our skills 😂

Good call here from jules about Mitera being the same place where Damian and friends did their treasure hunting in chapter 104. Could Yor's mission somehow lead to more Anya backstory on top of everything else?!

But out of everything that happened in this chapter, Hemlock intrigues me the most - I wonder why he has such a thing against Yor, and why Shopkeeper had to specifically remind him that they're supposed to protect the deer and not harm them. I look forward to learning what his deal is in the coming chapters. Perhaps some backstory about him and Yor in their early days at Garden? And of course, having Yor do a job with a male coworker who seems to be close to her age, even one who doesn't like her, opens up the potential for jealous Loid maybe? Not likely since I doubt Yor or Hemlock would allow themselves to be seen by anyone on their job...but it's nice to dream 😅 Regardless, I haven't been this excited for the next new chapter in a long time! Cruise Arc 2025, let's go!!!

[senseandaccountability]

the narrative that could have been

Having mulled over the game for a couple of days I have realised that the main problem for me is that Veilguard is good based on the premises they ultimately choose, but not based on the set up and promise of what was there before. I know this isn’t a unique take by any means and yes it’s all about the Evanuris and the Veil and Solas. 

Replaying really emphasises how incredibly little the game convinces me of its original main quest - to prevent Solas from doing his ritual. This is a problem as a long-term player because for three games we’ve had build up for a great crescendo tackling the overarching themes of the (restrictions and oppression of) magic, of tears in the Veil, of religious tyranny and oppression based on myths about the Black City and the temptations of flawed humans, we’ve seen and deconstructed the elves quite a bit, we got started on the dwarves and in DAI your Inquisitor can openly ask Solas if it wouldn’t be better if the Veil came down because then spirits wouldn’t be separated from the living and risk becoming demons. Cole, whose function is to reflect the plot, talks endlessly about the old songs wanting to be sung again, about how it hurts to be cut off from part of yourself, how the templars feel it, how the mages feel it, how the elves and the dwarves feel it. The Veil as a prerequisite for life has been deconstructed, the Fade demystified, the gods have mostly fallen. The Veil as an actual wound inflicted on this earth has been presented as a theory and not been convincingly rejected by the narrative. 

The game actually gives no explanation whatsoever as to why the Veil coming down would be worse than what Rook causes in the beginning and what the escaped gods then do to the entire Thedas. The entire south falls to the Blight because Elgar’nan and Ghilan'nain are let loose. The Wardens are more or less wiped out. There’s enormous political turmoil. The game gives us Solas saying “thousands” would die when he brought the Veil down, but that he had a host of spirits there to help. (Yes, I know, his sole function in this game is to Trick and Deceive so who is to say if he’s lying, HUH, but even so, THE ENTIRE SOUTH FALLS TO THE BLIGHT IN ROOK’S VERSION OF THINGS.)

The game puts emphasis on Solas's questionable methods and past horrors but it doesn't ever explain why his goals are despicable here and now. It doesn't convince us that tearing down the Veil with lots of safety measures in place and after considerations is a bad result, all things considered - save for Varric’s initial yelling about demons. (We even learned in DAI that the Veil itself creates demons because it restricts the passage of spirits, come on.) Because three games have suggested it's not, not ultimately. Trespasser especially nuances this, just as it nuances Solas’s view of this current world state. Right after his long nap he would have nuked it all, I’m sure, but the whole point of character arcs is that things happen in them and what happened to him is that he was shown layers and angles he had not considered and adjusted his mindset and ultimately his plan accordingly. That is where DAV should have picked it up. That's where the build up was headed. But, now he must serve the narrative solely as the God of Treachery and Lies which means that previous build up is washed away for the most part. (In no way do I think he is OOC in DAV, I just want to point that out so nobody thinks I’m a sappy fangirl or whatever. I think he is perfectly in tune with his inner Dread Wolf, but that is also all he gets to be, because of the narrative, and I’m always much more interested in when roles and personas clash.) Again. The main problem is that the narrative cannot explain why bringing down the Veil would be the worse option than the shit we see unfold on screen. Instead it gets a bit lost in the past.  And I have Issues with that, as well.  Like, the dumbing down of the war against the Evanuris. The war that started because the leaders of the rebellion - who previously had to carry out terrible orders so the Evanuris, the upper crust of the Elvhenan, could play gods - decided that the Evanuris was a threat to them all. And the game gives us what, a depiction of how the rebellion ended up crossing lines, too? No shit.

Like, I am fully on board with the individual theme of regret on Solas’s part and he ought to be wrecked with guilt but I wish the game could be less all over the place with what sort of things he ought to be wrecked with guilt over. Saying fuck you to the Evanuris is the best and brightest of his character, I suppose I just don't want it dragged down to the same level as him breaking the Titans. I suppose I would have wished for a narrative that also worked on a systemic level when depicting things like, you know, war and revolutions and subjugation. But we don't have that, because DAV is only about personal choices. The Lighthouse crew flippantly writing the hierarchical and violent power struggle off as being about love and betrayal is on my shitlist forever. 

No, Taash et al, it was not about pussy, it was about feeling compelled by superiors to commit heinous war crimes and being lied to about the actual purposes of your damn war in the first place. The elves shouting at Elgar’nan and Mythal in this painting aren’t driven by love and sex they have been lied to by their ruling class. It was never about freedom or ending the wars, it was always about Elgar’nan jerking off to ultimate godhood. The writing even suggests betrayal here is to be understood as Netflix drama betrayal, maybe some juicy porny plot but it’s ABOUT THE BETRAYAL OF THE ELVES BY THEIR OWN KIN.  ((ETA: I would have wanted my Dalish mage to be allowed to be furious, NOT WITH SOLAS, but with the fucking Evanuris for betraying her people and being so fucking vile that the only option that remained was to create a world where she's a second-class citizen. I would have wanted the game to recognize that not all causes are equal and that Elgar'nan's cause for godhood was objectively more vile than Solas's cause for freedom because as it stands now, there are some really iffy vibes of "both sides are equally bad" and other things authorities tend to say when comparing destructive regimes with uprisings.)) I’m sorry, this shit hits me on a personal and political rage level. 

I also can’t help but mourn a game where the Trickster God fulfilled his trope’s duty and shook the stagnation apart with his actions - for good or ill, the way trickster gods are wont to do - and where Rook was tricked into helping and then, a more complex game about its consequences could have unfolded. The Evanuris could still have been the bad guys, if they wanted big villains frothing at the mouth. There could still have been numerous unplanned consequences, like all of Solas's plans have. Maybe other ancients awake as well. Maybe ancient evils who aren’t elves, who knows. Point is - the Veil should have come down, at least in some form, at least in some outcome. THAT is what they've been building up to. In this game that never was, Rook could be an actual interesting character where we could mold her as either accepting of this trickster role (which fits perfectly for a blank slate with no ties) or set to overturn it and enforce status quo, with some vanilla option in the middle. Maybe the Veil doesn’t come down until the very end of the game, ancient magic takes time after all, maybe a lot has happened by then. But ultimately, Rook’s choice in the end should not have been about siding against Solas because he’s lying to you or because he did horrible things in the past or siding with him because you want him redeemed. The narrative should have provided those options either way. The narrative should have been brave enough to suggest that hey, maybe Solas isn't wrong at all - his methods maybe, but his goal, no. If they truly wanted mirrors between Rook and Solas, Rook should have tackled the issue of actively bringing down the Veil herself, not because it's a roses and sunshine-outcome but because it might very well be the lesser of two evils. Gods, that would have been interesting. It should have been a choice about what sort of world Rook and the Veilguard wants to see in the future. It should have been about the people, the world, not how angry Rook is that an ancient elf has tricked her. 

That would have been the game I wanted to play.  This story doesn't really give anything new to the world of Thedas, which a world without the Veil would have. It accomplishes closure for our favourite trickster god and bless them for that, but as for the plot and the world-building it ends on a meh because the narrative isn't about the people unless they're brought up as being endangered. This is why I can feel satisfaction regarding the thematic conclusion to certain character arcs, the trickster becomes the healer with the bloodiest hands, the wolf submits willingly to his trap and so on and so forth, and I can have fun with the characters and their arcs but also really mourn the game that was there, in subtext and build up over three previous games and in several tie-ins.

[shouts-into-the-void]

I think its super interesting how much complexity we're starting to see in the characters this season.

Thus far, the misfits have been the pretty uncontested "good guys" while the clusterfucks have been the clear "bad guys."

However, this season, we start to see that the division is much less black and white.

Ada tackles a super dangerous monster to save Annabel. Annabel doesn't leave her behind even though it's obviously impeding her escape and sacrifices her engagement ring to save the three of them. Prospero immediately books it for Ada as soon as he realizes she's in danger and tries to reassure her that him not being into her has nothing to do with her worth as a person. Meanwhile the misfits immediately scatter and start arguing amongst themselves.

It's highlighted extremely clearly in the confrontation between Eulalie, Pluto, Duke, Will, and Montresor. [SPOILERS for fast pass ahead btw]

While it's really easy to see the initial argument on a surface level (Goatman trying to pick a fight and using Will to do it, Eulalie coming to Will's defense because she sees him being mistreated) and while that is what happens, a closer inspection shows a lot more going on in terms of character morals.

The argument starts because Montresor, hurt, disabled, and having had his pride/ego dented, is lashing out and gets fed up with Will. (I do think its super interesting that as soon as Will flinches, he switches gears from insulting him to telling him to stop letting him walk all over him, albiet in a harsh way) Eulalie responds by asking him to stop being mean to Will, and offers to take Will into the group. Pluto and Duke reject the idea, completely ready and willing to abandon someone who for all they know and have seen, is being bullied and manipulated by someone they all know is capable of horrific violence.

And while Will ultimately chooses Montresor because he's a gay disaster the real display of just how much the characters words and alignment don't match their actual morals comes when Will gets gutted by the stag.

Hes still alive, bleeding out on the ground and begging for help. And the misfits leave him there to die. With a couple flippiant lines no less.

Meanwhile Montresor, resident scum of the Earth who's loyal to no one and delights in the suffering of others? Hesitates maybe a second before jumping into danger to save him. Not only that, he's actively comforting and reassuring Will the entire time.

And I think this is what makes me the most excited for the rest of this comic. Your fave would let a man die if that man wasn't on their side. The most monstrous character in the series couldn't abandon someone who can't defend themself.

And before you say it, yes Montresor abandoned Ada and a lot of him saving Will has to do with the fact that he actually cares for him. But I think the reasoning has more to do with the flashback we see of Monty and the dog. Disregarding that Ada is the reason he's spiraling out so bad right now and the animosity he feels due to her making him confront his religious trauma, he knows that she is perfectly capable of defending herself. Meanwhile Will has trouble defending himself in any setting, and is currently mortally wounded and being torn to shreds by a pack of dogs.

I think this season is setting up for a character arc for the clusterfucks and a reverse character arc for the misfits. I believe that Lenore is going to get closer and closer to the person Annabel remembers as her bonds with her friends weaken and her memories return, while Annabel is going to start forming the support network she desperately needs to cope with her various issues. This will leave the two of them in a role reversal, with Lenore determined to do anything and burn any bridge to save the two of them, while Annabel is desperately trying to figure out a way to save all of them. It would be most interesting to me if the season ended with Lenore going lone wolf and the rest of the cast teaming up to form an escape plan and get the old Lenore back.

[thinkingotherwise]

Lately I've become interested in Study Group, because of the k drama that's airing. And I thought about a story idea for Gamin.

It's headcanons only for now, but I'm thinking of writing it out and expanding as the series go.

It's written with the drama ver storyline in mind (I started reading webtoon to have an idea what may happen in the future but if I do write more it'll most likely follow the drama)

HC Yoon Gamin x fem! reader

- (Y/n) who has good memory and she doesn't necessarily need to study because she remembers most stuff

- (Y/n) who went to Yuseng because she didn't want to go to the same school as her classmates, so she picked one she knew they wouldn't choose

- (Y/n) who wants to create a game, so she's learning coding and spends her time playing games and collecting info about certain arcs and tips trying to find the best one for her game

- (Y/n) who while spending all her free time planning out the game and learning coding doesn't have time for social interactions 

- (Y/n) who wants to have a boyfriend to find out why all of her previous and current classmates claim it's great to have one, and also not to be a laughing stock when they find out she haven't had a boyfriend yet

- (Y/n) who finds out there's library in the school and goes there to check if they have some books about coding and/or story writing

- (Y/n) who hides when the study group enters but when they talk about a math question and the not-so-great way to solve it, she laughs at their inability and the questions one of them asks

- (Y/n) who after getting caught easily tells them what they need to do to solve it and even writes down the solution 

- Gamin who asks for her name with wide and sparkling eyes

- (Y/n) who after telling her name is then reintroduced by HeeWon as the top 1 student in first years

- Gamin who is excited and immediately asks if she'd join the study group 

- (Y/n) who says she's a little busy with her project and rejects him

- (Y/n) who after some time and more pestering finally agrees to be in the study group but only if they help her find a boyfriend

- Gamin immediately agrees but doesn't know where to start with her part of the deal

- after joining the study group (Y/n) gets robbed of her notes where she had her game plans as well as Gamin's study materials

- (Y/n) who sees Gamin fighting and immediately wants to do a fighting game about someone like him

[quietplace26]

'Soulmate-esque au where certain Earthlings are drawn to certain Teyvatians for various reasons' - @arn9tails

Once again, thank you @arn9tails for another lovely idea for your Genshin au~

Warnings: OCness, cringe, mentions of head wound and blood as MC gets hurt but she's fine.

Soulmate au. Where your Soulmate's voice can resonate with your soul mark over your heart, signaling that they were your soulmate. These types of soul mates are call Soul-Hearts

Zhongli

To be honest, MC didn't have much interest on Genshin Impact when it first came out.

It was just something that existed and that was that.

But then she heard of the next nation that had been released. A nation called Liyue, and for the hell of it, MC decided to watch some clips on YouTube about it.

Liyue was pretty, with its clear Chinese roots and lore. And the Archon was apparently based on a eastern Dragon? Cool!

Feeling invested now, MC watch through various gamers playthrough of Liyue, sucking up the story and such, but one thing oddly stood out...

Rex Lapis. Something about that name... resonated with her. It made MC's Soulmate mark throb over her heart... But that- no, she was overthinking-

MC actually screams when she sees the Geo Archon's body fall out the sky and crash to the ground during the Rite of Descension cutscene.

The whole thing messed with her emotions, made her cry. Her Soulmate mark burned, her HEART burned... before settling down again.

What... What happened?

MC grips her hand were her Soulmate mark was, checking it to see if was still there. It was... But that didn't explain the emotional pain you felt when a game character died!

It wasn't like someone who wasn't real was your soulmate... Right?

MC decides to ignore what happened and continue watching the game play out...

Only she couldn't ignore it any longer when a new handsome character was introduced called Zhongli.

An odd, but mysterious consultant at, of all things, a funeral Parlor?

The more MC heard this man talk in game, went on his fetch quests, and enjoyed his company, the more her soul mark pulsed...

MC's mood actually drops when Zhongli left the Traveler to finish their quest... Really, what was wrong with her?!

One of her hands grips her shirt, rubbing the area where her heart and soulmate mark was.

Glaring down at the area, MC makes a note to make an appointment with soulmate specialist to have hers checked out cause why was it acting like this?

Eventually, MC watches the whole Liyue arc, which leads her to eventually learning Zhongli was actually Rex Lapis, Morax, or better known as Liyue's Geo Archon.

...The same one she randomly cried for earlier in the story because her soulmate mark acted up.

MC shuts her computer off then. She... She needed some air...

...MC never did gather up the nerve to go to the soulmate specialist. It... She didn't know why, but she just didn't.

Maybe she didn't want to be look at like so weirdo for having her soulmate mark act up because of a video game character...

Also... She started Genshin up in her PC. And would you look at that, Zhongli was on one of the current banners...

MC even got lucky and pulled both the Geo Archon and his weapon in only one 10 pull each.

She immediately starts to grind him up and begins to play Genshin for real.

...Cue a few years later, and it's after the 5.5 update. With a level 90 Zhongli as her main, who was also at bond level 10, MC was obsessed with him.

Over the years she also stopped trying to deny it the truth... That Zhongli was apparently her soulmate.

It was something that was never heard of before. A video game character, a fictional character, being a real person's soulmate. Absolute garbage!

...or at least that's what MC used to think in the beginning.

She finally gave up denying it when she happened to meet Zhongli's voice actor at a con a year or so ago.

Unlike when Zhongli talk in game, Keith Silverstein didn't make her soulmate mark react. Which was honestly fine as the man was married to his own soulmate, but still-

... MC's Soulmate, her other half... Was a video game character. He wasn't real and yet this god was her other half...

When it finally truly hits her, MC cried. She cried long and hard.

It wasn't fair... Why did this have to happen to her?! She wanted her Soul-Heart...

But even so... She never told anyone, making up the excuse that she wasn't interested in soulmate which was fine as not everyone could find their destined partner.

But it hurts. She knew who her other half was but couldn't do a thing about it. He was untouchable.

And she was going to have to live with these facts for the rest of her lonely life...

...Or at least, that's what she originally thought as before an odd phenomenon happens and shakes the foundation of earth itself.

Out of the blue, the Seven nations of Teyvat literally spawn into existence on earth!

And if things couldn't get even more insane... It turns out the size difference between Teyvatians and Earthlings were very much different...

Those from the Seven nations were absolute giants! Why were they so big?! In the game it never showed them being giants!

Was it because Teyvat had magic and it effects the humans and the environment there differently?

MC wasn't sure. All she could think about is that her soulmate was real now. He was in her world!

...And even still, so very far out of her reach.

Because come on! Why would Zhongli, Rex Lapis, Morax, the God of Contracts himself, and the Geo Archon, ever want a weak, tiny earthling soulmate?

With these thoughts MC was honestly thinking of keeping quiet but then there's word that a conference was going to be held in her country in a few days.

Apparently, a few of Teyvat's Gods were coming to meet with world leaders there, and Zhongli would be one of them.

MC doesn't think. She grabs her keys and wallet and runs out her house and starts her car...

"...Maybe this was a bad idea..."

MC glances around timidly as she tries to fight through the crowd of curious people surrounding the sports stadium the world's officials were using as a meeting ground with the Teyvatians.

It was the only place big enough where the once video game character could stand at full height...

Currently MC was in the stands trying to get to the lower levels closer to the field so she could actually have a clear view of the conference... and Zhongli.

The closer she got, the more her soul mark burned as the Geo Archon's voice rumbled through the air as he talked with the earthling political leaders.

Her body felt on fire! She wanted to scream and shout that she was here! That she was his soulmate, but both the crowd around her and her growing anxiety was stopping her...

At this point she was considering giving up and going home when bumps into the wrong person, who then shoves her away violently... and she falls.

MC's panicked scream echos around the stadium as she lands awkwardly and harshly on the ground, roughly smacking her head against the hard concrete. As she curls up into a ball of embarrassment and pain, she never notices how the whole place grew eerily quiet... and that earth shaking footsteps start walking over to MC's part of the stand.

MC, who was futilely fighting down the urge to cry as her head began to ache horribly, barely noticed the people around her scrambling away from her curled up form in a panic. But she does notice her soul mark was absolutely blazing on her chest now!

So, as she finally gathers the strength to lift her head, a shadow covers her.

A massive shadow that shallows her whole form.

Blinking tears away from her eyes, MC glances up in confusion, only to freeze as her gaze meets a pair of familiar amber colored eyes that glowed gold every now and then.

Zhongli...

MC tries to stand but immediately starts swaying as her vision blurs. She feels something drip down her face... is that blood? Why was she bleeding? Did she really hit her head that hard? Did she have a concu-

Large, gloved hands quickly, but oh so gently surround MC as her legs gave out from under her, and lifts her carefully up from the ground, bringing her up to Zhongli's face.

Wow... He was even MORE handsome now he wasn't a video game character. Truly he wasn't being fair to MC's poor little heart...

Hm... why was he frowning like that? And why was the world spinning? Ugh... Her head hurts so much...

"H-hurts... Soul-Heart... I-it hurts..."

In any other situation, it was rude to immediately call your Soulmate something like 'Soul-Heart' on first meeting, but MC was hurting, and she was scared.

She wanted her soulmate, HER Soul-Heart!

Choosing that perfect moment to black out from her definite concussion, she misses both the sight and feeling of the Geo Archon shivering at the sound of her voice and eyes widening in pure shock, then both understanding and delight, and then finally, rage.

"...Tell me,"

Elemental energy crackles around the stadium then, making the other Archons stand on edge as particles of Geo energy began forming around Zhongli as he protectively held MC's unconscious form.

He was sheading more and more of his human form. Looking less like the mysterious Funeral consultant and more like the War god he once was.

"Which one of you earthling mortals hurt MY 灵魂伴侣 (Soulmate)?"

Extra Notes

Zhongli thankfully didn't cause a mass Earthling massacre as Venti firmly reminds him that his Soul-Heart was hurt.

Venti: "Your Soul-Heart needs medical attention and YOU. Not you going off and smiting some earthling mortals for her, you Block-head."

And even then, it takes more firm coaxing from Venti to even pry MC from the now growling and more dragony Geo Archon's hands/claws.

Zhongli of course didn't trust any earthling healer with HIS soulmate and instead rushes to return back to Liyue despite the earthlings sputtering that the conference wasn't finished yet!

One quick visit to Bubu Pharmacy and Baizhu, and Zhongli sweeps a now healed and sleeping MC off to meet with the other Adepti, as not only did he need to introduce his new wife and Soulmate to his friends, but he also needed to ask Cloud Retainer a favor...

That favor basically being 'Hey, can you please shrink some clothes down for my new soulmate/wife? My thanks.'

And leaves the Adepti demanding what do you mean 'New wife/soulmate?!' Lord Rex Lapis-

MC would later wake up to not only being in a new place, in new clothes, but also realizing she had been sleeping on a shirtless Zhongli's chest!!!

The resounding squeak that erupts from his Soul-Heart's mouth, along with a blush that rivaled Jueyun Chilis, will forever live rent free in the Geo Archon's mind. His new wife was so adorable.

The Geo Archon would then gently pry small hands from his Soul-heart's face and tug her back over to original spot on his chest. Right where his own soul mark laid... over his heart.

Despite the sheer overwhelming feeling MC was feeling at the moment ('Oh my god I'm touching Geo daddy's chest-'), her own soul mark pushed her to be closer to her Soul-Heart.

She literally curls up over his heart, sighing as the first time in YEARS, since she first saw and heard Zhongli in Genshin Impact, the burning feeling she constantly felt from her soul mark settles and a proper Soulmate bond clicks together...

She knew the two of them, both she and Zhongli, had a LOT to talk about... but this man wasn't making things easy.

Not with the fact he was humming a soft tune, gently stroking a finger down her back, unknowingly rubbing possessively over the spot on her new clothes that had the GEO symbol on it and starts to drift back to sleep.

Ah... but she couldn't. Not yet.

Maybe it was rush of having a now COMPLETE soul bound, or maybe she was still tired and loopy from her near concussion, but MC felt oddly brave. She HAD to do this.

MC yawns sleepily, lifting her head enough to gaze at Zhongli's face before crawling upwards. She ignores his curious look as the God silently helps her on her mission, cradling her small form with one hand.

Once close enough to his face, she places a lazy kiss to his cheek, causing him to freeze... and he immediately starts purring! The fanfics were right! He does purr! And, oh, his eyes are dilating like a cat as well! He was happy!

She, a run of the mill earthling human, nothing special about her at all, was making Zhongli HAPPY!

MC giggles when Zhongli refused to let her move after that, letting the massive God nuzzle his cheek against her tiny body as he purrs out words. She was pretty sure it was the Liyuian equivalent of Chinese but couldn't make head or tails of, however they sounded nice in her ears...

But then he switches back to English, which MC faintly guesses is Mondstadt's own version of English, and he murmurs,

"Mine. My Soulmate. MY Soul-Heart. Finally, you are here with me... I waited for you for a very, VERY long time..."

And those words alone proved to her that she was going to be ok.

[zeta-in-de-walls]

A quick timeline of Tommy and Dream's friendship.

Dream and Tommy streamed together and they had a good time so Dream invited him to his server. Tommy streamed on the DSMP server and there's where he and the server both started to really blow up. Tommy and Tubbo were 16 and Dream was 21. (Tommy was on around 250k on youtube when he joined the server and Dream was at like 4 mil).

Dream gave Tommy a bunch of youtube advice around this time as well and they got into lots of long night calls as they were both pretty hardworking and interested in making it big on youtube.

When Tommy and Dream streamed together their streams were very popular. Their comedy seemed to mesh really well but there was some underlying friction. Tommy is hugely sarcastic and plays minecraft very ironically. He would at times like to misinterpret what people said and then remind them that he's a minor. Some of these jokes were funny. A few were more grating for me personally (Eg I never liked the 'what's the worst word you know' jokes). But yeah this was purely comedy and Tommy loves to take the mick out of his friends. Also sometimes Dream and his friends did make the odd inappropriate joke.

Eventually the server and the fanbase got really big and people got super invested into the minecraft roleplay. Tommy and Dream's exile arc where Dream played a cruel villain and Tommy his victim was particularly notable creating a huge narrative around their characters' dynamic.

Then Tommy started to get burnt out on the server. Everyone was a bit. Dream was also rarely ever online not to mention other things going on. Whatever the case, the DSMP was coming to an end.

There had been plenty of drama amongst the CCs and Dream had been through plenty. The most famous was the speedrunning cheating scandal. There was also the manatreed thing. But allegations started coming out that Dream could not ignore. He'd apparently been sexting a minor. A few other stories came out too. And fans began distancing themselves from Dream. There was pressure on the CCs too.

However, Dream had convinced the server of a new vision: Dream SMP season 2!! Reset the server and do it all over again. End all the current plots as best you can and get ready for more!!! So they made a terrible ending of them blowing up the server.

And then a lot of CCs spoke out and said they didn't want to do DSMP season 2. It didn't feel right. Maybe because of the allegations, maybe because the plot sounded bad.

So Dream pulled the plug on the idea. Tommy was probably not best pleased that season 2 tanked so soon after the dark ending.

But Dream came up with a new idea. THE USMP. It would be an international server with live translation or something. All we know is that he had gotten Tommy on board and Tommy was excited by this. Tommy wanted to do another server with Dream still.

But yeah, the allegations hadn't gone away and a new drama surfaced. Quackity had plans for his own new SMP he was passionate about and Dream was threatened as it sounded so similar to his own plan. (They happened to have come up with the ideas independently.)

This erupted into drama as Quackity left Dream on read and didn't engage with him.

And Dream's server.... didn't happen. Again the server he'd promised Tommy didn't seem any closer to being realised. Just like in the DSMP, Dream wasn't shown to being much good at organising anything. The ending of the DSMP was badly managed because communication was so bad.

So as USMP wasn't happening, Tommy had been seeing what was happening, seeing both sides and wrote a skit. If youtubers were honest which made fun of Dream's response to Quackity given everything. Tommy was likely mad at the USMP's failure to manifest and also the internet was really turning against Dream. CCs in general didn't want to associate with him. Partially the allegations, but also he is a difficult CC to work with and Tommy was likely very aware having organised big videos and vlogs himself.

Dream was shocked by this video. He felt betrayed at Tommy and thought Tommy was being two-faced. Being sweet in private but milking him for views in public. So he became antagonistic towards Tommy.

At this point, Dream sent a DM to Tommy's mother complaining about him. Yeah.

Seeing Dream's crazy responses and also facing more wake-up calls about his teenage years with hindsight and the Wilbur situation, yeah Tommy was very happy to cut ties with Dream.

He didn't make a huge deal about it but he stopped making content with him and he and his friends would sometimes joke about him negatively, sometimes on his podcast, sometimes just jabs here and there. He and his community were both anti-Dream though he'd never made any public statements about it, or what happened. The history was fairly private.

Until now, Dream saw Tommy making fun of xQc and decided to lash out at him and his fanbase and air out every issue he's had over the last few years. Tommy responded, and made it very clear he's blocked Dream and they're done.

[rooniearts]

Metal Wins Asks 1: Initial Reactions

YALL TORE ME APARRRTTTT IN THE ASKBOX LOL THANK YOU FOR ALL THE RESPONSES!!! I'm glad to see that the AU has been well received despite it all! :'D I already have enough asks about it (TWENTY SEVEN!!!!!!!!!!!!) to justify a longpost, so here goes!

Any trigger warnings that pertain to the Metal Wins AU are gonna apply here in the discussion, just so you're warned. You can find the warning under my pinned post

@railway323

IM SORRAYYYYYYY,,,, IT HAD TO HAPPENNNNN,,,,

@zezodacol

yeahh,,,, yeahhhh,,,....,..,

@akaneenaka33

Unfortunately, it's gonna have to be cruel and unusual punishment for now :') This AU works differently from my other ones in the sense that this one has a bit of a running story to it, so I can't tell you much without spoiling things.

The basic premise is that this incident happens and everyone has to navigate how they cope with it, Metal included. Some find their way through, while others continue to spiral downwards to rock bottom.

MY BABY BOYYY!!!!!!!!! MY LITTE GUYYYYY!!!!! AUUGHHHHH

@niyana-the-ambiguous-mobian

The true answer is that I just thought Metal looked really cool whenever I put blood on him and then it just kinda went downhill from there </3

So. Metal killed him and brought him there to mess with Sonic. That's about the lore I can give you about it for now unfortunately, except for the few other bits and pieces throughout the rest of this post :')

@sanicdetails

YOU KNOW WHAT. Good point. All crimes have been forgiven <3

@sparkyboi

NEVERRRR!!!! IF SEGA CAN KILL TAILS THEN SO CAN I!!!!!!!

BWUH,,,, Tails nation please don't publicly execute me I would be so very sad

@disgruntled-rat

YAYYY thank goodness...... I may rejoin my people..............

@thatbirdguyy

Unfortunately for our little guy, it is by decree of the author that he Must suffer. It is simply inevitable for any Tails enthusiast to put him through the wringer </3

ALSO YO?? I love your art and au sm! :D I'm so glad you find mine interesting too!! <3

@thecustomcosplayed

HE DID NOTHING WRONGGG THATS THE WORST PART,,, MY POOR LIL GUY DOESN'T DESERVE THISSSS

Ohohhhh yess ! I too love me a good whump au or two

Oh, he was long gone before Metal even showed up with him :( There was nothing they could've done

@cheeseburgerhelper

See, Metal wanted an efficient kill, but the problem is that Tails isn't about to go down without a fight. That's why he got so brutal, and also why he's sporting some scuffs and dents.

@humble-introvert0808

LMAOOO NOO MY GIRL AMY 😭 I do really enjoy this response to seeing me kill off my blorbo baby boy being "ooohh do mine next!! do mine next!!" bcus it's so so real

I prob won't do anything like that anytime soon, but rest assured that Amy's a MAJOR player in this AU and gets to be sad asf a LOT <3

@anactualfuckingnerd

Well. Yes. But I get the feeling that it's not what the most of y'all are looking for rn because Metal does, in fact, NOT get obliterated immediately :'D

Sonic WISHES he could've pulverized Metal on the spot, but no, he lost the fight and Metal got away. Sure, he was mad, but more angry =/= better at fighting

The next part (which I'm currently working on!) will go over this, but basically it was a fit of jealous rage. A "if I can't have this, then you can't either" type of thing.

But you're right. The real Sonic would NEVER have done that. Metal's realization of this fact is the basis that sets off his character arc and exploring that is what half of this AU is all about :]

(I use any pronouns for my version of Metal! I tend to mostly use he/him before character growth, and mostly they/them and she/her after, but y'all can use whatever)

YEAH they are fighting an uphill battle for that redemption arc after this one :') They fucked up BADDDDDD and they KNOW it.

LMAOOASDFGH,,, It's definitely a slow climb for her :'D All will be revealed in due time!

HELP NOOOO NOT THE BLAME SHIFTIIINGGG!!!! HES THE BLAME SHIFTER!!!!!!

I think he might have, like, a twinge of resentment towards him about it, but on some level he does understand that Silver had no earthly chance of knowing even if he is from the future. That, and Silver's like one of the only people who are willing to go along with his murder death revenge quest, so he can't afford to piss him off lol

Even still, I'm sure it comes out as snide remarks once in a while though :')

@i-only-created-this-to-read

The Tornado is fine! It's probably just sitting in Tails' hangar, collecting dust. No one can bear looking at it right now.

And oof. That's actually hard to say! I don't think I can accurately place it in a specific game timeline, unfortunately. But I can say that Sage isn't here nor has she been created yet (as much as I love her </3 but my co-auther hasn't played Frontiers) Eggman will behave much like he does in IDW, if that gives you a good reference point.

Eggman is very much alive, and we will see him! But no, he's NOT happy about any of this. We'll see this explored later, but yes, he absolutely sees Metal as a liability now that he's gone and painted such a HUGE target on their backs. And also little mad that he acted autonomously and took away a potential asset/victory from him.

From what I've heard, he needs either the real or fake set of Chaos Emeralds to do that....??? And right now he has neither, so no, unfortunately not :') He's never once allowed near any of the emeralds, because his friends know he's crashing out and will hurt himself and others if he goes super/dark. They spend the whole time playing Emerald Hot Potato to keep them from him lol

Sonic absolutely drops his whole being the better person shtick IMMEDIATLY though, at least regarding Metal. He's gone too far, and now there's no more second chances for him. As far as Sonic's concerned, Metal is to be destroyed on sight.

YES! Or, at least, Shadow tries. He tries to reach out, and he tries to help him cope, but Sonic just isn't open to it. He's not in a headspace to be able to receive any advice at all.

@i-only-created-this-to-read

Honestly, I like to think Amy probably came crying to him and told him about it pretty much immediately, and that he becomes one of the biggest comforts to her during all of this. He seems like he'd be a great listener and give some top tier advice <3

@anactualfuckingnerd

LMAOOOO yeahh,,.,,, Valid reaction

[midnight-in-town]

My take on Sir Crocodile's past, including the possibility of the CrocoParent theory

(Because I can't help thinking about it, in the midst of Kuma and Bonney's heart-wrenching flashback...)

Crocodile is one of the few Warlords we still hardly know anything about, but we're bound to know about his past at some point (same for Mihawk with whom he's currently working, as well as Moria who stole like half (?) of the Rocks Pirates' corpses), starting with the panel that launched all the theories, back in Impel Down :

Thanks to Kuma's flashback, we know Ivankov used to be a slave to the Celestial Dragons up until God's Valley. As for what happened at God's Valley, we don't know the full story yet but what we know is that...

...the Rocks Pirates were defeated and disbanded by the alliance between Garp and Roger. Some (?) of them were cloned by MADS (like Stussy for a still unknown reason) and Roger then became the next biggest threat of piracy.

Their leader's name was Xebec and other people have already explained that it possibly is related to Sebek/Sobek, an ancient Egyptian deity represented either in its form or as a human with a crocodile head. And, as we all know thanks to the Alabasta arc, Sir Crocodile is strongly associated with Sobek/Sebek too.

From there, it's not a stretch to imagine that Sir Crocodile is Rocks D. Xebec's child and was also present on God's Valley, which is how Crocodile and Ivankov possibly first "met". Ivankov witnessed Rocks' defeat as well as his child's survival...

...probably thanks to Whitebeard. Because, considering how the government tracked Ace and Luffy because of their dads, it's clear that any child of Xebec would be hunted by the government just as much and, like he did for Ace, Whitebeard probably saved and offered shelter to Xebec's kid for a while.

Whitebeard saving Croc as a child on God's Valley could be the reason why Croc seemingly hated Whitebeard so much : Whitebeard saving him instead of avenging Rocks, his captain, on God's Valley and then later probably defeated Crocodile, when Croc decided to become a pirate and went after the One Piece, could explain the animosity that we saw during Marineford.

Anyway, because of God's Valley, this could be the secret Iva knows about Croc: he's the surviving child of Rocks D. Xebec, thanks to Whitebeard.

Whitebeard choosing to save him rather than his Captain and then later defeating him could also explain why Croc has strong issues when it comes to trusting others :

Another hint that Croc is related to Rocks is Blackbeard. A popular theory/understanding in the fandom is that, while Luffy inherited Roger's Will, Blackbeard inherited Rocks' (leading to the idea that Rocks vs Garp & Roger will be paralleled with Blackbeard vs Luffy & Koby). This is especially interesting, considering that Blackbeard replaced Croc as a Warlord after he was defeated and sent to Impel Down, which is when they met :

Crocodile also has a lot of "mannerisms" hinting he's a D. He's strongly interested in the Void Century, poneglyphs and the ancient weapons.

Additionally, upon learning during Marineford about Ace's and Luffy's being hunted by the Government because of their fathers, he intervened to protect them...

These acts, outside of the CrocoParent theory (see below), can be explained by Croc's own experience of being hunted because of who his father was, but also by what Ivankov said to Law, who's also a D :

To conclude, I'm a strong advocate that Sir Crocodile is actually Rocks D. Crocodile and he obviously couldn't keep his father's name, in order to avoid being hunted during his entire life by the Government.

But what about the CrocoParent theory?

Well, as much as I'm an immense and dedicated fan of this theory (full explanation here), a part of me doesn't trust Oda to be brave enough to go down that road, even if I'm also eagerly waiting for him to. :D

Whether Croc was afab or amab though, the theory that he's Rocks' kid still applies. The only difference is that, if Croc was afab, then on top of knowing about who his father was, Iva also helped Croc with transitioning, thanks to their devil fruit.

Of course, it's probably through meeting Iva that Croc then came to meet some members of the Revolutionary Army, like Dragon. He gave birth to Luffy, transitioned afterwards with Iva's help and his actions at Marineford (protecting both Ace and Luffy) are not only because he used to be hunted as Rocks' kid, but also because he just learnt that Luffy is Dragon's son and thus his own child. :))

After all, to quote Dragon in the latest chapter of Kuma's flashback...

... "a child is their parents' weak spot" seems to ring to the same bell as Croc's "if you want to protect something, do it right" (like giving up on raising Luffy and leaving him in a remote village of East Blue, to avoid him being hunted by the World Government).

Anyway, long post, sorry about it! I hope we'll know soon about Croc's past. Let me know if I missed some hints ! :D

[beaulesbian]

One Piece Live action season 1 + hints or similarities to future One Piece moments (specifically after East Blue saga)

- part 2: episodes 3 - 5 [part 1 here]

Again putting this small explanation here: This post isn't meant to be a comparison between the live action and the animanga during Blue East arc, but more so seeing these added/modified scenes that differ from the manga at that current arc, and instead seeing how they fit into future arcs and scenes, have similar parallels or even just choices for characters, and overall bringing these small details of their personalities from later arcs into the show now. (I just think it's neat.)

Luffy + food = classic. Food being very important instant strength and healing factor for Luffy, so that he even puts it in his pockets for later. || opla ep 3 // anime ep. 258.

Luffy & Going Merry - in opla, when Luffy first sees Merry, he thinks she's talking to him - already maybe a small hint what's going to happen (many arcs) later on. Then in this scene with Kaya, Luffy mentions how a ship is another crewmember - another friend to him // in anime the connection between them is especially shown with Usopp and more focus on it begins around Skypiea arc, but I felt Merry coming to rescue the Strawhats at the end of Enies Lobby was even better parallel to show here. She is their crewmember and friend, and they can hear her, thanking her as she saves them. || opla ep 3 // anime ep. 310

Zoro being stuck in places (or going to wrong places) happens so much, and somehow it never gets old. || In opla it's basically the whole episode 4 // in anime during episodes 246-254

Luffy & poison... there's a lot of it for future Luffy :') It's interesting that OPLA decided to add that so soon, & it could be seen as the beginning of Luffy starting to build up all the poison resistance he will need later... || Opla ep 4 // anime ep. 436

Luffy & Usopp's 'arguing' over the captain title. In opla it was a small scene meant purely in the joking way, just like a small scene in the animanga in East Blue arc, but I still wanted to add this as some sort of possible foreshadowing about their dispute/argument during Water 7 saga.|| opla ep. 4 // manga ch. 331

Zoro being directionally challenged. (much like Luffy in part 1 of this post, they think a little differently about the world directions). Not much else to say about this, just that it's still pretty much always funny.|| Opla ep 5 // anime ep 652

Luffy signing his name on the check/ bill for food - in the manga they showed something similar with a IOU on the bill, a future pirate king treasure tab, as Luffy was running from his first shenanigans with Ace and Sabo, so it was fun to see OPLA adapt this as a sort of continuation of Luffy always doing this. Love it. || Opla ep 5 // manga ch. 585

Garp talking about not wanting to be a fleet admiral or rising ranks any higher than necessary because it would take away his choices/freedom. - (Always an interesting opinion to see/hear from someone who 'raised' Luffy). It's mostly in the animanga before Wano arc, but it discusses the Akainu vs Aokiji duel that took place after the Summit war arc. Sengoku describes the same ideals Garp had about (not) being promoted, which is another interesting thing that opla moved already into s1. || Opla ep 5 // manga ch. 957, anime 958

[bluentear]

Hi hi how are you?

I’m really interested knowing more about Azrael!

I saw an Ask that Azrael has more connection with Leander! Can I know what perked his interest to Leander? Also what are Azrael thoughts on the remaining Cast members too? ❤️ thank you 🫶

Hi hi!! IM FELLING GOOD!!! 2 Anonymous people sent similar questions so I decided to answer with a long post.

The Truth is that Azrael is my MC, but he is still his own character. I made him free to go and enjoy all the routes if he wanted to because I like all the characters in the game hehe.

What makes Azrael interested in Leander is the feeling of that something isn't right, a fight of manipulation that attracts him. It seems like a fun route to take with Azrael. After the update on the Demo, things seem a bit different 😈

So, Azrael will be like a classic MC, I intend to show his interactions with all the characters in a way 😆... For this I wanted to show his thoughts on the characters! I Also made some drawings for this... Maybe I could do a part 2 later to show more of characters that didn't showed up that much (I was busy to draw a lot so I rushed everything 😭)

Azzy ended up fitting as an Asexual character, which was a surprise to me while building the character, I'm also an Ace person, so I thought it would be cool to explore stories to show that Ace people still can be in a romance! It's interesting thing that he is Pansexual and Asexual.

KURAS (Unified health system: SUS)

To Kuras: "I wondered if others also noticed that he is the most suspicious! The doctor doesn't seem honest, no one is that kind. But I'm still grateful to him anyway, even if I still don't understand his gossiping tactics."

LEANDER (No more Alejandro)

To Leander: "A little dramatic for his own good, Leander is immune to my touch and to me it shouldn't have happened. He seems to know things he shouldn't and I should end it but I can't, I feel like I'm going to enjoy this... He It's not the only danger, I just won't let him know"

VERE (Favorite Fox)

To Vere: "Has sharp tongue and a good face, Vere deserves compliment for sure but wouldn't wave my trust! I'm sure he tried to kill me and i don't need more foxes around, there's enough chaos chasing me."

AIS (Jack Sparrow arc)

To Ais: "He tests my patience and I just return it in kind and I hate how I still have respect for him, the most intriguing part is his presence, I must say that the additional soulless around him make a difference."

MHIN (Kitty danger)

To Mhin: "What a puzzle of person, so hard to read, should I confess they're kind of cute? Mhin has a somewhat tempting indifference, knowledge and power... but it's for the best to let untouched what is hidden."

EXTRA + Creator's comments

The first kiss drawn for Azrael was with Vere!! Thank you so much for all the bets sksksks For Azzy this type of act is not a necessity but not bad either, he understands it as something that is desired and if it would make the other person happy he can grant a wish 😘

Kuras saw Azzy in a vulnerable state and charged information! So he found kuras a bit gossipy, but as kuras also gave him good clothes he accepting. Notes: he is stressed because he didn't wanted to be saved by others.

Azrael was interested in Leander's ways but knows it's better to keep alert and distance himself. Leander also touched on sensitive topics for Azrael, so azzy thinks about getting revenge somehow... I think he is hiding feelings guys skdkdj

He liked Vere's vibe, but Azrael's problems with his fox master make him run away just from seeing him. However, I'm sure he really does have a crush.

Azrael thought he could intimidate Ais, but currently Azzy is pretty much weak. Seeing how Ais treats the soulless, Azrael felt respect and then realized that they are in a similar situation in some ways. ("Respect= To like")

Azzy thinks Mhin is like a cat, the thought is basic but it affects his brain. Despite everything, he prefers to keep his distance despite unconsciously seeking approval.

[deramin2]

A Quick Guide To Getting Caught Up On Critical Role Fast

This guide is for people who want the fastest way official to get caught up on all 3 Critical Role campaigns without seeing the full actual play episodes. They're all made so that the AP will still be enjoyable later even if you know what happens. There's no "right" way to get into the series, and already having an idea of what happens can even help make the APs more enjoyable and easier to understand.

Summary:

The Legend of Vox Machina

Crit Recap Animated

Exandria: An Intimate History

Critical Role Abridged

Guide:

Campaign 1:

The Legend of Vox Machina on Amazon Prime is the animated adaptation of C1 by the same creators. Sam Riegel said the creative approach is this was the version in a later play. All the important bits are there, but they get to those moments differently.

The Legend of Vox Machina has 3 seasons out now that cover events up through at least episode 85. A 4th season is in the works and will probably cover the final arc.

Campaign 2:

An animated adaptation for Amazon Prime called "Mighty Nein" is in the works, but not out yet.

Crit Role Animated is an older comedic summary series presented by their Lore Keeper that covers the whole campaign in 10 videos. Great if you want the gist.

It's like a history crash course history video meant to get you curious to learn the full story later. Great way to get a sense of who people are and what they've done. Available on YouTube and their streaming platform Beacon.

Exandrian History Review:

Exandria: An Intimate History is a timeline review of key events in world history, starting from the creation.

It was released before Campaign 3 as bonus content. It represents what the average person in Exandria knows about world history up to that point.

Campaign 3:

Critical Role Abridged is the Campaign 3 AP condensed down into 1 to 1.5 hours. It mostly cuts down combat to the narrated results and reduces table chatter and indecisiveness. It's a great way to experience the full campaign.

Critical Role Abridged is coming out 1 a week at a time on YouTube and 2 a week on Beacon. YouTube is currently up to episode 25. Beacon is up to episode 47. The AP is at episode 109. At some point you'll have to switch to full episodes to catch up.

Wiki:

There's also 2 world-class wikis where's you can look up extensive and meticulously cited information about anything you need. I prefer The Encyclopedia Exandria.

Viewing Notes:

An important thing to know about "continuity" in Critical Role is that it takes a more realistic view of how history is passed down through the ages and even dedicated academics will never know the full story or be fully correct. They know versions colored by in-world biases and lost knowledge.

Which is great for you the viewer because any campaign you comes into, the characters don't know most of what happened in past games. What they actually know will come up in game. The players have above table reactions and some subtle in jokes, but try not to act on meta knowledge.

It's structured a lot like reading one history book and then wanting to go back and read more about past events that set the stage for all those things to happen. They've tried to make it easier to come into the story happening now.

I certainly enjoyed watching the full APs from the beginning, and I think you can get a deeper understanding of the story from them, but it takes thousands of hours to catch up on the story that way and it isn't realistic for everyone. Each series builds on the consequences of past events more than they rely on unexpected twists, so already knowing what happens just helps you notice all the little things that led to them. Similar to how Shakespeare's plays are often more enjoyable to watch unfold if you already know the basic plot points going into them.

Happy viewing, and I hope this helps you or someone you know get into this very rich and interesting story!

[ladylannisterxo]

... the one where spence takes an interest

Pairings; Spencer Reid x fem!Reader

Words; 0.6k

Warnings; one use of Y/N but this was written back before I stopped using it lol but other than that, none, just fluff!

Summary; {requested} "Not to pester you, I had this thought and wanted to share is all, but could you imagine talking to Spencer about something you're really excited about (like a movie/tv show/game or something) and the next day he starts talking to you in length about it, and it turns out he went home that night and read/watched everything he could on the subject."

A/N; goodness, I wrote this years ago on another blog and since I've been rewatching Criminal Minds, I figured I'd go ahead and post it again (cause why not?)... the one and only thing I ever wrote for Dr. Spencer Reid ajdhsakdshak

{ masterlist }

You didn't plan this. Really, you didn't. But you know how it goes when you start binging a new tv series: just one more episode... and then before you know it, it's 2:00am.

Now you're sitting in the bullpen. It's 8:00am and you're constantly rubbing at your tired eyes and chugging coffee like your life depends on it.

And Spencer is wearing a curious expression, already extrapolating possibilities as to what could have kept you awake last night.

But he doesn't mention it. Not when the team is discussing the new case, not even on the jet en route to your destination. He waits until it's just you and him, paired off to go talk to the medical examiner about the latest victim.

"Are you okay?"

"Hmm? Oh yeah, just a little tired."

He smiles warmly, offering you an amused glance before fixing his eyes back on the road. "I gathered. What kept you up?"

"You know, I just..."

But then you realize you don't want to tell him, not really. To you, staying up super late to watch a tv show seems embarrassing when compared to how he most likely spent his night.

You imagine that he read around six books, most of which were probably in a language you didn't understand. Or maybe he called his mom to check in with her. Or maybe he had nightmares himself and so he thinks that's exactly what happened with you...

Any scenario you think of infinitely sounds better than oh, you know, I just stayed up super late watching some trashy guilty pleasure tv show because I have no self control.

"Nothing really," you settle on, "it's dumb."

"Try me."

So you cave, mostly because you're too tired to fight. He listens intently as you tell him about the new show you found, how it's completely ridiculous but it allows you to step out of your life for a bit and relax.

He doesn't say much, just nods along as you talk and before you know it, you've arrived at your destination and it's back to work.

Spencer actually doesn't mention your conversation again for the remainder of the case and finally, the unsub is in custody and the team is back home to enjoy a nice, long weekend.

You don't see or hear from Spencer during this time but first thing Monday morning, he's greeting you as you step off the elevator with a cup of coffee and a bright smile.

... and then he tells you he spent the weekend watching the first season of the show you mentioned and to his surprise, he really enjoyed it.

To say you're confused is an understatement but you listen as he discusses every character and what he thinks of the current story arc.

"Spencer," you laugh, resting your hand on his arm and halting his speech. "Not that I'm not thrilled to talk about this but I really wasn't expecting you to go home and watch an entire season of a show just because I mentioned it."

He smiles sheepishly, eyes lingering on where your hand still rests on his arm.

"You were really excited about it though."

"And?"

"And it seemed important to you... so it's important to me."

A smile pulls itself across your face and you open your mouth to respond when you're both interrupted by Garcia letting you know there's another case.

"Hold that thought," you inquire.

"It's impossible for me to forget it."

And just like that, you're discussing trashy tv with Dr. Spencer Reid during any downtime that you're granted. You gush about your favorite character and he theorizes future story arcs while simultaneously pointing out behavioral inaccuracies.

"People do not speak like that in that kind of situation, Y/N."

"It's tv, Spence, it's supposed to be unrealistic. That's what makes it fun."

+ Bonus: if it's a series that is currently airing, you both come into the office the next morning and excitedly discuss every single thing that happened and then theorize on what could possibly happen next.