#it would be nice with more active players on the realm but it is what it is :3

[windfighter]

I also added another game to our gaming district :3 Those of you who watched the hermzitslympics know what this is!

The redstone underneath it is my own though and I'm very proud of it!

[christian-oc-tournament]

Please vote based on the picture AND the description!

Valentina Lucia Helsing [Rangers @ladyaster]

Great grandniece of the legendary nemesis of Count Dracula, Valentina must uphold the Van Helsing legacy and become an active Ranger (a mediator between the world of man and the world of magic, ensuring the safety of both realms while defending them against all manner of monsters and miscreants) in lieu of her MIA older brother, who was already a remarkable Ranger in his own right. It is not a job she is particularly fond of: she's terrified of the concept of becoming monster food and would much rather be looking after horses or spending time in the theater, and the shoes she needs to fill are incredibly large as is, but with a wounded father and her younger sister being only ten, it is a mantle she must don nevertheless. Now, she travels from town to town until she can reach London, where her brother was last seen, and in the meantime does her best to help the locals - man and fae alike - with their problems. Sometimes it may be a spiteful faerie plaguing a human family, other times a group of humans might be desecrating territory sacred to the fae, and other times, both may be plagued by any manner of vampire lycanthrope, or warlock. While very much on the anxious side, Valentina's sense of compassion overrides her fear, especially when civilian lives are on the line, and while she's still nervously learning the ropes, she has the potential to become a truly great Ranger both on the diplomatic and combative front with enough time. As an older sister, she has plenty of practice being comforting and good at reaching a compromise for avoidable situations. As a fighter, she is resourceful with a blossoming sense of courage and justice, and well versed in the study of miscellaneous monsters. Off the job, she may be mostly introverted but easily gets starry-eyed over various sights and activities, and enjoys the newly budding cinema industry, opera and stageplays, current fashion trends, learning about animals (especially horses and cats) and making confections. Hanging out at hole in the wall establishments can prove useful to get the word on the street regarding any strange goings-on in the area, but she'd be lying if she said that she didn't enjoy visiting them just for some nice time off and talking with fellow Rangers who wish to join her (particularly her childhood friend Rafail, a changeling in the same business who is tagging along with her on her journey given they're both new to the job and figure working together will yield the best results).

Wendy Darling [@kazoosandfannypacks]

Wendy is a level-headed leader and always has her feet on the ground, which clashes with her roommates at uni, the outgoing card player, Alice and the quiet follower, Dorothy. The three girls soon realize that they may not be as different as they think: all three of them took childhood journeys to magical lands. What's more, these magical journeys left them with powers, like real life superheroes. Wendy can fly magic she learned while journeying through Neverland.

[adrianasunderworld]

More Isabelle doing Isabelle things

@mangacupcake @marrondrawsalot @writing-heiress @the-weirdos-mind

Isabelle: Are those guys playing poker over there?

Jade: Yes, they like to play every Friday here.

Azul: Excellent customers. Though obviously not a word of their activities to the staff.

Isabelle: They must bring in a ton of cash.

Jade: Oh yes, all of them come from wealthy families.

Isabelle: Hm...Do they ever take new players?

Azul: I never took you for a gambler.

Isabelle: It's not gambling if you know what you're doing.

Isabelle: It's nice having tea with you like this,Trey.

Trey: I'm glad, you know you're always welcome. And I've been looking forward to having someone taste test these biscuits.

Isabelle: I'm happy to help. You know I have a friend,Luke, back home that loves to bake as well. And his mentor was the best baker in all the three realms.

Trey: Really? I would love to learn from someone like that.

Isabelle: I think you'd like them. Barbatos, really loved tea too. I remember he mentioned a tea that he always wanted to try, but it's pretty much impossible to get

Trey: Really? Didn't you say Barbatos was some ancient demon, I can't imagine a tea he'd be unable to get.

Isabelle: Yeah, something about it being brewed from the flowers in fairy rings. Fae don't really exist in my world, at least not anymore.

Trey: I see. Maybe the guys at Diasomnia can make it happen.

Isabelle: Huh. You might be on to something.

Vargas: Come on, Rosa, give it your all!

Isabelle on a broom: I'm *jump* ugh! *Jump* trying! *jump* ARGH!

Classmates: *snickering*

Vargas: Alright, Listen, I know you got it in you. Just focus. Visualize yourself flying.

Isabelle: Okay. *deep breath and focuses*

Classmates: She's doing it...!

Vargas: That's it you're getting it!

Isabelle:

AAHHH!

Vargas: .....Well it's a start. I'll go get her.

Isabelle: So do you guys make fairy rings? Is that a thing here?

Lilia: Oh yes, though I will say, you're more likely to find them after some festival days back home.

Isabelle: Do little flowers ever pop up in them?

Malleus: Occasionally, yes. Why?

Isabelle: I was remembering a rare tea brew someone told me about back home and you used the flowers from fairy rings for it. I kinda want to try it.

Malleus: Well, you're not likely to find them here. So all the more reason for you to come visit Briar Valley soon.

Lilia: (so proud of Malleus) Yes, we insist you come for the next holiday.

Crowley: Let me get this straight. A giant fight broke out in Mostro Lounge because you hustled a group of students at cards?

Isabelle: How was I supposed to know they were going to be sore losers?

Floyd: It was hilarious, you should have seen their faces!

Crowley: Not the point!

Lilia: What do you have there?

Isabelle: A journal of all the magic I know and am figuring out. It helps me to keep a record of what to know.

Lilia flipping through it: Ah, so a homemade Grimoire. You don't see much of those nowadays- *finds a page in the back full of scribbles and doodles. Some of which being stuff like Malleus name surrounded by hearts* -and what's this?

Isabelle: *snatches it back* Nothing! A uh... manifestation...page...? Shut up, I got bored! Do not breath a word of this to anyone!

Lilia: My lips are sealed.

[that-wizard-oki]

This turned into a big autism info dump so have at it kids:

There’s obviously a couple like. ‘Wizarding school’ franchises out there, big and small, but I think what makes Wizard101 stand out compared to so many others in the “genre” is that it is set exclusively it’s own universe. Something I personally never liked about the world of say, Harry Patta, was it’s connection to a distinctly “human” or non-magic realm.

While our wizard is stated to be from earth in much later established lore (something i personally am not a fan of but that’s just a me thing i think), I really liked that, when the game was first established, that yea, it was hinted that you were from “a world that does not even believe in magic”, but NEVER clearly stated. 

I liked the IDEA that the Wizard COULD be from Earth. Maybe they’re not. It was always up for the player’s interpretation, and i do think having it be canon now a days makes the Spiral’s lore feel a bit more stiff. 

I like when The Spiral let certain things be ambiguous or unexplained- I think that’s part of the charm. Not that complex magic systems are bad (heck one of the reasons i also love the game so much is it’s unique magic system), but when you start establishing things more concretely, you inherently make it les flexible, and in some cases less imaginative in certain ways.

I always found myself being able to imagine things with Wizard101′s lore. There was always an interesting IDEA, and it was up to the player to draw their own conclusions. I think generally this is still held up pretty well in the current lore’s establishment, but yea that 2008-2014 time stamp for lore hit a nice sweet spot of being specific enough to establish it’s own ideas, yet still let the player build their own relationship with what was given to them. 

Anyway this is to say that I think a LOT of this has to do with the absence of earth/a non-magic realm- because frankly, I am never interested in the non magic realm in these genre’s. I always would much rather see how our protagonists explores the magic world, the other world. 

In Wizard101′s case especially, It makes for a more interesting plot point in terms of the hero’s journey- in the fact that we can never actually complete that journey. There is never a “return” for us to go back to our “home” because the spiral, at this point, has become our home. 

I also think the absence of “backstory” for the wizard, or rather, the incredible vagueness of it, is that it lets ANYONE relate to this character. They are nameless outside of their literal function as The Wizard, The Savior. The player, the one who literally DRIVES the wizard, creates their own ideas. We literally create alongside what others have created for us, and if that’s not so beautiful and so personal and so MAGICAL i don’t know what is. 

I also think that’s why the game is so successful as a GAME- you can’t quite create alongside a book or a movie- yea you can make fan art, fanfiction, but a game you are actively part of, like you literally play a hand in experiencing the story by having to complete actions to carry you through to the next stages. 

Anywho. Wizard101 is, in my opinion, one of the best and most interesting “wizarding school” pieces of media out there and you can quote me on that.

[finnhc]

Prism Review!

So since I'm always trying to find new Minecraft servers to play and there's far too many to pick from so! I have decided to start making proper reviews for different servers. Now these reviews will look at multiple things such as their webstore for in-game things, ranks, unique features, builds, community etc.!

So onto the review of Prism (A Minecraft Survival/Creative Server)

Prism has a very well-made Survival spawn. The main building has a very simple interior to explore, showing some basic information like staff, a world map and some very simple decorations!

It's not crowded with text, NPCs or other material as to not overwhelm a new player!

Instead of crowding the main spawn, they have a rather large city! Where you can find the crates, PVP arena, shops and pretty much everything! Promoting exploration of Spawn and for players to hang out and be more centralized.

Another cool thing about these buildings is it also used them for player shops. You can go onto the discord, open a ticket, and you'll be able to get a shop!

Having these player shops at spawn instead of having an /AH or Admin Shop is a way better approach to facilitate trade! As it makes, the server have more character and life for it. 

They also have a few other note able buildings in Spawn such as... a PVP arena (Picture on the Left) and a Drop Party maze (Picture on the Right) Both of which are really gorgeous buildings! that both really fit the theme of Spawn!

They also have Crates! Which can both be obtained via buying a rank (We'll come to that later) and voting, these crates don't give anything to crazy as to break the game and since you can't just buy the keys it luckily doesn't try to promote gambling in anyway.

Now these crates offer your typical stuff but they also each have custom armor/items in them, I would say similarly to over reviews the best way to make your custom items stand out amongst the crowd is to use a CIT pack to give them a unique look and more collectable and sought after.

One great feature this server offers is Player warps! allowing people to share rather impressive towns and buildings such as an amazing Museum full of all the custom events and items the server has had or an amazing zoo to explore!

I should also mention, they have a rather nice tutorial setup to help players get acquainted with core features and rules! The only thing I would say… When you walk around each part a command block is triggered and some text gets posted into chat. that wouldn't be an issue, but the text is spammed way too fast!

Making it kind an overwhelming to read and understand all the information being given to a new player, a better approach to do this would be to make use of pressure plates or buttons to activate the text as to prevent spamming and allow players to go through it at their own pace.

I won't talk to much about the Creative realm on this server due to it being still in beta, but I will give my brief opinions on it along with the Event realm.

With most servers in my opinion they go with a super basic spawn for Creative, nothing to creative or interesting but Prism does have a Massive and gorgeous spawn and layout for the Creative world.

They do offer some rather average features like world edit! I would recommend to help improve the creative mode.. I'd highly recommend adding a Voxel Sniper plugin and the Axiom plugin to spice it up more

Moving right along to the Event realm, don't got much to say since they had no active events at the moment but the spawn for it was really nice!

Along with the Event realm they do have a hub world which is very cute, colorful and bright! with not to much crowding the main spawning platform.

But now we need to talk about one of the most important elements of any server. Monetization it's something all servers must do in order to keep running, unlike what some may think. Running a server isn't free, you have to pay for the server host, plugins, devs, builders, artists all kinds of things in order to make a good running server

Firstly we have Ranks which there are 9 of in Total but 7 are permanent and 2 are yearly subscriptions. The Permanent Ranks start at Quartz Which is ($5.00 USD) and ends at Topaz which is ($45.00 USD) These ranks gives you typical things like more homes, flight command, more plots in creative and weekly kits! The two Rank subscriptions starts at Iridium which is ($60.00 USD) and ends at Prism which is ($120.00 USD).. Which gives you the same perks as the regular Iridium which is ($5.00 USD) and Prism at ($10.00 USD)

Having a subscription based ranking system is always doomed to fail since most people won't want to shill out a yearly payment to a Minecraft server, sure does that help operational costs? Yes but its better to just make Ranks one time purchases than to do a subscription based model.

Next we have bundles which I do have very mixed feelings about first we got a Survival Money Boosts which is ($10.00 USD) which gives everyone Online $5,000 in ingame currency. There is also a Rank Bundle Boost which starts at ($10.00 USD) and gives everyone Online 2 Rank Bundle Keys.. The reason I have a slight issue with these is being able to add that much money into the games economy by just buying it is destined to completely destroy a servers economy eventually! its best to make ingame currency only available by playing on the server wither that having a jobs plugin or at a player market or even voting!

Along with that even though this isn't to crazy of selling crate keys, I still don't think promoting gambling in Minecraft is very good. again having crates isn't necessarily bad but if you have to pay real money for them even if it goes to everyone is still bad. Its better to just have them earnable while playing or via voting!

Now to wrap this up with the Extras which offers you RGB Nicknames starts at ($2.50 USD) which isn't to wild. Under the Donations tab there is a ($1.00 USD) option which is also totally fine as it just helps the server run!

So in conclusion this server ranks A for me! it has some flaws but it also offers a lot of really good features, builds and other things to enjoy! This server has a great community and nice staff! So if they keep working hard it will pay off in the long run!

But don't take my word for it go play the server for yourself!

Ip: play.prismparty.net

Disclaimer: Just know these reviews aren't personal or anything and don't take anything I have to say for law, its just my silly opinion! So with that being said don't send any hate towards the Owner, Staff or the server that I review! Lastly if there is a server you wish for me to review feel free to drop me an ask and I will try to review it

Keep on mining!

[jackoshadows]

i was wondering what do you think is going to happen with the vale plot? it feels so disconnected from what’s happening outside of the vale. particularly i think sweetrobin will die due to poisoning and negligence, i don’t think the maester can do anything to save him and i think a harry/alayne marriage will happen without consummation for whatever reason. a sort of twice a miss, third a hit deal.

The Vale feels so disconnected because we have only Sansa's POV there and she's a very insulated character who only gets her information through Littlefinger info dumps and exposition and Littlefinger is secretive for a reason. GRRM deliberately does not want the readers to know of his plans.

We get more information about what is happening in Westeros and Essos in Arya's chapters in Braavos because she is going out and getting information and hanging out on the docks and hears what the sailors and visitors are saying. Jon Snow keeping himself updated on events south of the Wall means we can connect the events happening at the Wall with whats happening in the rest of the realm.

For example, it's Jon Snow who thinks of the food stores in the Vale that can come in use because the Vale is fertile and sat out the WOT5K. Sansa is in the Vale and despite observing a price gouging scheme has no thoughts on the food scarcity in the rest of the realm - no thoughts, head empty. Bran is the only other POV who is completely disconnected from everything else that's happening.

The Vale's food stores have been mentioned more times than not for it to not have plot importance. Come the Long Night, I think we will see more and more of the Northerners fleeing south for food and shelter. And places like the Vale and the Reach will be essential to feed the populace.

[Note: As an aside I just read one of GRRM's short stories called 'Guardians' . There's a lot of similarities between the Sea Monsters in that story and the Others/White Walkers in Asoiaf. In the story there is an Island called Vale Areen which is a fertile land and helps out with food supplies when Namor is under attack by the sea monsters. A fertile Vale Areen... Sounds similar to the fertile Vale ruled by the Arryns doesn't it?]

There's a chance SweetRobin survives. I would love it if he survives and finds out what Littlefinger and Sansa are doing and turns the tables on them. That's a long shot however - kid is suffering from epileptic seizures and being constantly drugged with dangerous levels of Sweetsleep that the Maester has warned will have long term consequences.

SweetRobin is doomed and Maester Coleman is going to be framed for the murder and get arrested - similar to how Marillion was arrested and executed for Lysa's murder. It could be that his death is what is going to be a wake up call for Sansa.

Sansa has to get her hands dirty to be any kind of effective player of the game. I find it hilarious that her fans think she will be some kind of Disney princess in the North or an 'embodiment of hope for the future' because she has good manners and says please and thank you. LF and Varys didn't get to where they are by being nice. Sansa will have to do shady stuff and will be hurting innocent people to play the game - like she's already doing when she threatens the Maester to drug SweetRobin despite it affecting his health.

At some point Sansa has to actively affect the plot - the way Jon, Arya, Bran, Dany, Sam, Arianne, Theon, Asha and all the other youngsters do. Thus far she's just following orders and simply moves wherever the tide takes her. The only plot consequential action she took of her own volition was when she secretly went to Cersei and tattled all of Ned's plans, way back in AGoT.

Sansa has more freedom in the Vale right now than ever before. There are servants under her. She can try to form her own networks, try to figure out what's happening. She has information at her finger tips - for ex what Lysa and LF did to Jon Arryn. Use it. Put out feelers about the Vale Lords.

The TWoW Alayne chapter was disappointing in that regard. I am expecting maybe 2 or 3 Alayne chapters in TWoW and hopefully there's long awaited character growth and development there for Sansa.

Will a Harry/Alayne marriage happen? Again, I am not sure if Littlefinger is telling the truth about his plans to Sansa. Littlefinger is all half truths and manipulation and until Sansa takes the initiative and tries to figure out what's happening that's all we have.

Sansa Stark is still legally married to Tyrion Lannister. Everyone knows this. That marriage has not been annulled. How is it that Harry and Alayne can get married and Sansa unveiled as Sansa Stark? Makes no sense. As the king Jon Snow supports points out, she's Sansa Lannister. Surely Littlefinger knows that it's going to be hard to rally the Vale to go North, amidst sea and snow storms, in order to get Winterfell for Sansa Lannister?

There's also the mountain clans headed by Timett son of Timett who are possibly gearing up to attack the Bloody gate. There's a tournament where Ser Shadrich the Mad Mouse - who is seeking Sansa Stark - has arrived. It's possible some of the people in the Vale know that she's Sansa Stark. Who knows maybe the Hound may turn up there.

So yes, SR is most likely doomed. And no, I don't think Sansa is getting married anytime soon.

[tetsunabouquet]

I just started playing some random hentai game because I was bored and the art looked nice. The art isn’t just nice- when playing it I noticed there were some characters who bore resemblance to some re-occuring characters from Valkyrie Crusade, like the alchemist.  And now I’m in gamer mourning mode. To those of you who don’t know, Valkyrie Crusade was a card battle JRPG for Android and IOS, but it was dying and got taken down for the lack of active players. So now I’m in nostalgic mode, and remembering where it all went wrong. I mean, for fuck’s sake I was playing Valkyrie Crusade before it got taken over by this other company.  To me, there are several reasons as to why Valkyrie Crusade got shut down. 1. The pay to win problem was getting out of hand, but considering it was most glaringly obvious with their updates to the game overall, I’ll talk more about that when talking about the terrible updates. 2. New rarities. I heard OG fans say that the game started out with the normal-rare-SR rates, and that they later added UR. I started playing during the UR-era.  The company that took over Valkyrie’s previous owners, were a little too liberal as they added not one, but two new rarities across the course of time, LR and VR with VR being released not even a year before the game got shut down.  Now, with each rarity, older rarities obviously become less important, unless they have some OP skill. An example of that would be my best team, which consisted out of 4 GLRs and 1 GUR- all of the passion element. In the final days of the UR-era, I was getting around to building a decently strong deck but nowhere near those of top players who paid for extras, so I saved up a bit to make sure I could get into the top 2000 when there would be some really good card in the game, and then the Halloween event came around.  During the Halloween event, there was this vampire card and if you got into the top 2000, you’d get her cape and by amalgamating it with the vampire card, her special skill would become unlimited- which was maximum damage to all enemies.  Considering I had her decently maxed out, she had a great number of soldiers too. If she immediately jumped into awaken burst at the start of the battle with the level 999 Archwitch, her henchmen would be immediately dead and you could get right into the battle with her. She was definitely one of the few GURs that still had some use in the game with the higher rarities coming out.  3. The events. For some reason I’ll never understand, they changed pretty much every event! The original Alliance event got changed into a bingo battle game, and whilst I never heard much hate towards the bingo update and neither did I personally hate this change, every other event change was a total NO; and pretty much every player I spoke with seemed to agree about it! Like the main game, got scrapped at all. Like, it was totally useless. Even what they did with the maps afterwards- changing them so you could obtain past archwitches, were totally not changed enough in terms of line-up so there was virtually no reason to keep hunting them. And nobody liked the Demon Realm or the Tower events. Especially the Demon Realm. Because the Towers event was first introduced, and was switched up with the old main events so there was enough variation that people weren’t actively hating it. Then the switch up with the old main events were replaced, and now it was a switch up between the Towers and the Demon Realm events.  And people HATED it. Because both events rely heavily on units from the same element, and to get into the top rankings you’d need 4 team units.  With the main events, you only need to win with 1 team with max 5 cards, and it can be comprised out of cards from varying elements- having a number or the entire team consist out of the same element merely gives it a bonus. With Towers & Demon Realms, you need 4 teams with max 20 cards and it all has to be the same element. There are 4 elements in the game so unless you’re sitting out all the other events you’d technically need that for every element. Try to gather 80 decent cards for battle and doing that whilst new rarities getting introduced around every 2-3 years all for free in a game with an over-reliance on RNG.  They tried to get free players to keep playing by giving out more extra free rewards, but usually they didn’t had great skills, or in the case of the VR awakening needed so many materials that even if you regularly hunted it was just discouraging to keep going.  Sometimes, especially during the Demon Realm as Towers was easier to begin with- I would just log in for the give aways, perhaps commence a hunting and then I would put the game down again. Hence why the game died. It was HELL, but at the same time, some of the cards were genuinely beautiful.  Like the Holy Night Calamity card that I’ll never own T-T

[thegaminggladiator]

My Latest Warzone Gaming PC Activities

After spending countless hours in the peaceful realms of Minecraft, I recently found myself yearning for something more intense, something that would get my heart racing and my competitive spirit soaring. That's when I decided to jump back into Warzone—a game that, for me, offers the perfect combination of adrenaline-pumping action and tactical gameplay. There's just something about the fast-paced environment and the thrill of outsmarting opponents that I missed dearly. In this article, I'll take you through my latest Warzone gaming activities, why I returned to the game, and the top five things I love doing when I'm fully immersed in the world of Warzone.

But before we dive into the gameplay, I want to share a bit about the gaming PC that's been my trusty companion during these Warzone sessions. I've been using a Warzone gaming PC from 3B Systems, a company that offers affordable yet powerful gaming setups, and I can't wait to tell you all about it!

Back to Warzone

For a while, my gaming time was dominated by the blocky, creative world of Minecraft. It was a nice break—building, exploring, and surviving without the pressure of fierce competition. But after a while, I started to miss the rush that only a fast-paced FPS like Warzone could provide. There's something incredibly satisfying about outmanoeuvring opponents, landing that perfect shot, and feeling your pulse quicken as you’re the last player standing. So, I dusted off my Warzone skills and dove back into the battlefield. Here's how it’s been going.

Why I Missed Warzone's Competitive Edge

Minecraft is relaxing, no doubt about it. But Warzone offers a completely different experience. It's all about quick thinking, sharp reflexes, and a keen understanding of tactics. Every match is a test of skill and strategy, with the added bonus of that ever-present adrenaline boost that comes from knowing a single mistake could end your run. It's this mix of challenge and excitement that kept pulling me back. I craved the high-stakes nature of Warzone, where every decision could mean the difference between victory and defeat.

The Role of My 3B Systems Warzone Gaming PC

To make the most of my Warzone experience, I knew I needed a gaming PC that could keep up with the intense demands of the game. That’s where my PC from 3B Systems comes in. I was pleasantly surprised by how well it performed, especially considering the affordable price point. For as little as £1000, 3B Systems offers gaming PCs that are not only fast and reliable but also capable of running all your favourite games, from Minecraft and Fortnite to Baldur’s Gate and beyond. My Warzone sessions have been smooth and lag-free, with stunning graphics and quick load times, allowing me to focus entirely on my gameplay.

Customer Reviews of 3B Systems

To give you a better idea of what others think about 3B Systems, here are some customer reviews:

John from London: "I was sceptical at first, but 3B Systems exceeded my expectations. My PC runs all my favourite games without a hitch. Best £500 I’ve ever spent!"

Sarah from Manchester: "As a casual gamer, I didn’t want to spend too much. 3B Systems provided the perfect balance of performance and affordability. Highly recommended!"

Tom from Birmingham: "I’ve been using my 3B Systems PC for months now, and it’s been flawless. Warzone runs smoothly, and the graphics are top-notch."

Emily from Leeds: "Great customer service and a fantastic product. I’ve been able to play everything from Fortnite to Baldur’s Gate with no issues at all."

Chris from Glasgow: "If you’re looking for an affordable gaming PC, 3B Systems is the way to go. Mine has been running like a dream."

Alex from Bristol: "Fast, reliable, and affordable. What more could you ask for? My 3B Systems PC handles Warzone perfectly."

Five Things I Love Doing in Warzone

Now that you know why I returned to Warzone and the awesome gaming PC I’m using, let’s talk about what I actually do in the game. Warzone is packed with opportunities for excitement and strategy, and here are my top five favourite activities:

1. Dropping into Hot Zones

One of the most exhilarating parts of Warzone is the initial drop. I love choosing the hottest zones on the map—the places where I know the action will be intense from the get-go. There's nothing quite like the rush of landing amidst chaos, scrambling for weapons, and immediately engaging in combat. It’s a test of both skill and nerves, and it sets the tone for the rest of the match.

2. Mastering Loadouts and Strategies

Warzone isn’t just about quick reflexes; it’s also a game of strategy. I spend a lot of time fine-tuning my loadouts to make sure I have the right tools for every situation. Whether it’s a long-range sniper build for those tense standoffs or a close-quarters SMG setup for when the fight gets up close and personal, having the perfect loadout can make all the difference. I also enjoy experimenting with different strategies, like deciding when to engage and when to retreat, which routes to take, and how to best use the environment to my advantage.

3. Engaging in Epic Squad Battles

Warzone is fun solo, but it’s even better when you’re part of a well-coordinated squad. I love the teamwork aspect, where communication and strategy come together to outsmart the other teams. Whether we’re planning an ambush, providing covering fire, or reviving a downed teammate, the camaraderie and shared victories (or losses) make these battles some of the most memorable moments in the game.

4. Exploring Different Game Modes

One of the things that keeps Warzone fresh is the variety of game modes available. From the classic Battle Royale to Plunder, Resurgence, and more, each mode offers a different experience. I enjoy switching things up and trying out new modes, each requiring its own set of strategies and skills. It keeps the gameplay dynamic and prevents it from ever feeling stale.

5. Chasing the Victory Royale

Of course, the ultimate goal in Warzone is to come out on top. The thrill of being the last player or team standing is unmatched, and it’s what drives me to keep improving my skills. Every victory feels earned, a result of smart play, quick thinking, and a bit of luck. That moment when the screen flashes "Victory" is always a highlight and makes all the effort worth it.

3B Systems: Affordable and Reliable Gaming PCs

Before I wrap up, I want to give a special shoutout to 3B Systems. As I mentioned earlier, this company offers some of the best deals on gaming PCs, making high-performance gaming accessible to everyone. For just £500, you can get a PC that’s not only powerful enough to run games like Warzone, Minecraft, Fortnite, and Baldur’s Gate but also built to last. The systems are fast, reliable, and backed by excellent customer service, making them a fantastic choice for gamers on a budget.

The Thrill of Warzone on a Powerful Gaming PC

Getting back into Warzone has reminded me why I love competitive gaming so much. The excitement, the strategy, and the sheer joy of a hard-fought victory are experiences you just can’t get from more casual games. And with a reliable gaming PC from 3B Systems, I’ve been able to enjoy all of this without any technical hiccups. Whether you’re a seasoned Warzone player or someone looking to jump into the action, having the right setup makes all the difference.

And that's why I love playing Warzone. Stay tuned for more content!

[bluepoodle7]

#MonsterxMediator #ZableFable #ZableJackson #Fable #MyThoughts#PoodleArtMyArt

If Zable Fable was a MonsterxMediator oc I just want the human character looking monster character that doesn't fight back unless the player character fights back to unlock another character.

Maybe have it play off that humans are the real monsters.

Then have the player "kill" the human half to swap with the monster half then try to talk to both parties equally to get both stories on how they ended up in their room.

Maybe have Fable in Zable's vessel body try to make a diorama of the outside to leave but it's wrong.

Have Fable in Zable's vessel body tell the player can you please describe the outside or take a picture of the outside to show Fable to make a authentic version of the outside to leave.

Any outside will work like outside the room or just the outside with the person with the gun at the beginning.

If it's the very beginning then Fable will swap places with the person shooting the player to be in the room then leave this realm

If tricked with a badly taken picture of the outside this will make Fable angry then will teach the player how to take a really good picture of all the art supplies scattered around the room.

If you destroy the camera then in Fable in Zable's body would snap and make a random dream move appear to either destroy the player, have everyone be in danger by the move, or a B movie silly ending attack that doesn't make sense.

Fable in Zable's vessel body eyes are closed and is sensing the place with the player while Zable's eyes are open.

Fable will taunt by taking off Zable's eyes which are the glasses of the character leaving a blank space where the eyes would be.

You can try to trick Fable into trying to wake up Zable by ignoring Fable and not attacking the ghost shifter monster which would push the shifter back into the necklace to make Zable freak out why the character is in this strange room.

Distraction, be nice, and being weird is the key to save yourself.

If the player dies then Fable will take their physical body to be in the waking world and Zable will be normal not knowing what happened unless Fable decides to explain if the player was trying to harm Zable.

And that Fable would say they were protecting Zable.

Like have Zable's human form wonder how they got here and have Zable's body be male, female, or any but when you reboot the game the art will change but once you save it you keep that Zable art style will stay the same until you finish but have the last part if the dream move activate change the art randomly like this part is breaking down with a laugh track and all.

The liking the character pet name would be "My Muse".

There would be a ton of artworks of the other monster residents here and the ones that are well drawn are the ones Fable likes but the ones not well drawn are the ones that Fable doesn't know well yet.

Fable uses descriptions from the other monster residents to draw each room character the right or kind of right way and the best they could draw if they been their for along time.

Seems like Zable was stress out and fainted then just let Fable fully take over the human body like autopiloting a flesh mecha.

Zable might want to interview the player character first to get to know them better but if you ignore the interview then the character might ask one more time then just give up then try to open the door but can't.

Seems like both parties want to leave but can't.

[mageoft4t]

[S] Jade: Wake Up Commentary

The book absolutely does not do justice to [S] Jade: Wake up. It's a much more "experiential" Flash than usual. Though nothing actually really "happens"? We get a glimpse at what it's like to have a Dark Nap, that is, to dream without a living dream self. I.e. the experience that Karkat was so upset about. It's a journey through madness. Kind of an audio-visual nightmare, with an obnoxiously escalating wall of noise. Probably a decent cinematic comparison would be when Willy Wonka took everybody through his weird tunnel of psychotic lunacy for some reason. But as you can see, it all starts out pretty nice.

Jade first imagines she sees a candy-coated version of this disturbing eldritch abyss. Literally: it's a Trickster facade. Squiddles canonically are known to be Trickster Horrorterrors. A perception of the beasts that is friendlier and more comprehensible to mortal minds. The illusion doesn't last long, though. This is probably the first visual indication that the concept of dream bubbles exists. They don't usually look like this one, which is a low-fi pixel bubble in keeping with the fantasy it projects inside for Jade. Horrorterrors blow these bubbles, each of which serves as a little phantasmal oasis floating freely through the infinite, existentially unforgiving desert of the Furthest Ring. They stabilize a temporary realm of illusion for mortals to exist in without having to engage with the eldritch abominations just outside or the bleak expanse in which they live. So this is establishing the foundational basis for the afterlife in Paradox Space—not an eternal continuum like heaven or hell, but a purgatory of a more dubious nature, one that is actively maintained by vast, ancient monsters through a network of trillions of relatively small ephemeral bubbles. They pop, they get blown again, ghosts can drift freely from one to another.

When we understand the broader cosmology of Paradox Space in this way, it starts to seem reasonable to begin thinking in terms of "bubble-based reality structures," which means that Sburb sessions freely floating through the abyss could also be seen as a kind of bubble. But a very special kind, which has the nucleus of Skaia in the middle, and thus is endowed with this all-knowing spark that can beget a stable, physical existence contained within a universe the players create inside of it. Do horrorterrors blow these bubbles too? IT IS UNCLEAR. This animation, aside from accomplishing the worthy goal of totally freaking everyone out, also serves the purpose of acquainting everyone more closely with the existence of horrorterrors and their greater relevance to the cosmos and the story.

Dave was recently urged to take his glasses off, and also to try listening to these beasts and see what they have to say to him. This is the "boon" which Derse dreamers have, and which Prospit dreamers don't. On Prospit, you have access to Skaia and all its cloud visions. On Derse, you have access to the grumblings of these distant monsters. Great consolation prize, huh? Skaia can inform Prospit kids what they need to do, and Jade enthusiastically embraces its counsel. But horrorterrors can somewhat play the same role, and provide mysterious instructions to both Rose and Dave that they have to parse. Their murmurings to Dave here carry a message of urgency, as he'll say later, and this starts laying the intel groundwork for the melodramatic suicide mission hatched later.

Also, this shot confirms Dave's eye color pretty unambiguously, continuing a trend in the story where this very specific piece of info gets confirmed for each character, beginning with that strangely over-detailed portrait of Rose. For whatever odd visual thrashing that style added to the story, one thing it definitely established was the story's ability to focus with much greater granularity on the presentation of characters who for the most part are only "ideas" of people. Their abstracted presentation usually tends to communicate that "This is just an idea of a character, for whom many specific attributes are vague or variable." But by intensifying the presentation, and then highlighting it with one notable point of specificity, we can come away with some confidence that Rose's eyes are literally meant to be purple, rather than it just being another stylistic tick. Having established that, I think we can safely do the same for Dave here, even without the overly intensive rendering style.

It's hard to even really describe what's going on with this page without the weird music that everything plays off of. Nothing is really going on with it? Hey, here's an idea, let's just ignore this page and move on. There's Feferi over there. She's worth talking about, right? Remember that Feferi is presently grimnapping. "Presently" doesn't mean much, because the timelines are out of whack relative to each other, but "presently" from the STORY'S perspective usually does mean something. Remember the conversation Eridan just had with Rose, where she blew up his computer, and I ignored the conversation to talk about something else because he sucks and who cares about him? Well, I still stand by that decision, he sucks and who cares. But there was another purpose served by showing that conversation at that moment. "Eridan's computer explodes" is one of those key moments on the troll timeline we took note of during the recent RPG game. And linked to that moment is Feferi's dark nap. You could see her in the panel there near Eridan, sleeping on the horn pile, with a dark bubble over her. This reminds us that's what she's doing "now," just like Jade, and here they are, rendezvousing in this freaky dream bubble. Which, if there's one really important role Feferi plays, it's this: establishing "first contact" between trolls and humans through the dream realm, a.k.a. the afterlife. Feferi is quite chipper about it all and wants everyone to know there's nothing to worry about.

That's pretty easy for her to say, though, since her mom is one of these monsters. But then, maybe that's how she knows they really aren't as bad as they seem. Okay, see, this thing with THIS page is, um…the really IMPORTANT point to make would be, uhhhhhhhhhhhhh. All right, you got me. There's nothing to say here. The thing about this animation is, for all the story-relevant things I've been saying about it, it's also just kind of a big shitpost. What's really going on is the bubble-based illusion is starting to unravel, and then insanity ensues. Jade is worried, Feferi isn't. She's just completely unflappable when it comes to this eldritch bullshit. There's a moment in the song that makes it clear something is now very, very wrong.

That's where we're at. Probably the best way of looking at this in a non-abstract way is, this is the moment when Jade and Feferi's shared dream bubble pops. The illusion is over, and now their dream ghost projection-forms are hurtling freely through the abyss at great speed, before their phantom bodies (another weird concept in Homestuck that probably bears elaboration on, but much later) start to dissolve outside of the confining environment of the bubble that keeps them stable, causing them to wake up. Then we go nighttime dumpster diving in the alley behind a bargain seafood restaurant. I mean, no we don't, this is all scary and serious and stuff. But there is sort of a running gag later where Dave and maybe some other people keep referring to these things humorously in terms of seafood analogies. But of course you don't eat these things, they eat YOU. Okay, that probably isn't true either. Although they do have huge, nasty mouths, as you can see. Which makes you wonder, what do they eat? What's even out there in the void? Smaller horrorterrors? That's probably it. There's likely just an entire diverse ecology of horrorterrors, with smaller ones very plentiful and larger ones more scarce, to keep the food chain balanced. Other than that, it's a complete free for all.

I'm just literally making all this shit up right now, if it wasn't clear. I said in an earlier book that these eldritch beasts were only imported into Homestuck because of their presence in Problem Sleuth, which used them in a much goofier way. It didn't really take their horrifying nature or the Lovecraftian tradition of them seriously at all. But the way HS starts blending them into its greater cosmology does seem to take them a little more seriously as literary devices from the horror genre. I never read any Lovecraft and don't really care about these creatures in respect to them being specific elements of his work. They were siphoned into the PS/HS lore from the wider pop-culture melange that has elevated the notion of an eldritch abomination into something transcending the original source material to become a more widely recognized fantasy trope.

So this is the nature of their utility here, something touching on a more universal principle of alien horror which says that some alien life is so unfathomable and unsettling to us that even contemplating them is a gateway to madness. Neither good nor evil, their existence utterly eludes definition or judgment on mortal humanoid terms. They rule the infinite expanse of the Furthest Ring, where seemingly no other form of life exists except for them. And corporeal life as we understand it exists within this medium as a tiny subset of its total volume. It's implied, as I mentioned a few notes ago, that all comprehensible realities to us (such as dream bubble illusions, or Sburb sessions containing entire universes) actually are confined by little bubbles that these beasts whimsically blow, probably for no humanly comprehensible reason. This suggests that this godawful abyss and its gruesome inhabitants are the default reality. And the much more stable, relatable realms we enjoy, such as "a universe," are actually the rare exceptions: totally anomalous, dreamlike fields of experience that exist only briefly relative to the lifespan of these monsters, as the confining bubbles swell and pop.

This animation finally crescendos at the moment when you begin to think you can't take another goddamn second on Wonka's shitty boat. And then everything is okay. Except not really, because we float by one more awful monster, which has been wonderfully illustrated to make sure you realize, under particular rendering conditions, that these aren't all just a bunch of cartoon goofballs, but actually super-duper grotesque and scary entities. Good thing Jade's dream ghost projection-whatever is "sleeping" soundly through all this, otherwise she'd probably be really scared if she saw that thing. Except this rendering probably isn't literal? It might be a shot of what she's seeing through her mind's eye as she sleeps. In which case she is really scared right now. But it's fine, Feferi will reassure her and tell her all these space monsters are actually great. Some of her best friends are space monsters. Her MOM was a space monster. Don't be a bigot, Jade.

Jade finally wakes up. She went to sleep at some point in Act 4. It's tricky to pin down exactly when she fell asleep by casually skimming through the archive, but she's been asleep for well over 1,000 site pages. This is the nature of Jade's role in the story. She spends huge amounts of time being asleep, or compromised in some way, like being brainwashed. At one point, she even gets put to sleep while being brainwashed. But for now, she's finally awake and ready to play a more active role in the story. Her relevance starts snowballing from here and peaks during [S] Cascade, i.e. the midpoint of the story. I probably said this before, but the shape of her arc is a huge bell curve, rising slowly from the fog of her sleepy marginalization, peaking right in the middle, then gradually tapering back off as she starts getting compromised in different ways. Everyone's views on this may vary, but I always thought that for a story with a big ensemble cast, it was more interesting to have a wide variety of arcs of different shapes, sizes, focal points, themes, and peak moments, rather than somewhat artificially trying to make sure all the major players' arcs peak right around the same time at the very end. This aspect is a little bit underscored by what Jade does in [S] Collide. Her role there isn't about kicking ass, it's about having fun. And then, finally, about getting punched in the face for One Last Nap.

-Andrew Hussie

[merryfortune]

Movie Night in Märchenland

Written for the Winter Holiday Bingo

Prompts provided by @sweetspicybingo

Prompt: Warm Blanket

Title: Movie Night in Märchenland

Ship: Miyuki/Wolfrun

Fandom: Smile Pretty Cure

Rating: T

Word Count: 1,031

Warnings: None

Tags: Post-Canon, Fluff

   As the credits rolled to twinkly music, Miyuki finally gave up and let herself nod off. Something she had not wanted to do as this was her favourite movie and she didn’t want to miss a thing. Even if she did have it memorised to the last stage direction in the script.

   And for what it was worth, Wolfrun thought Miyuki had done quite valiantly to stay awake as long as she had given that her bedtime was what? One hour and seventeen minutes ago. Also yes. Even retired Pretty Cures, saviours of the Human World and the realm of Märchenland had bedtimes. 

   But good thing she had Wolfrun as even being a bad guy turned good guy and he was more than happy to provide her a place to crash to shirk those silly things like bedtimes. Or brushing her teeth. Stuff like that.

   Being a Pretty Cure who had successfully defeated the Bad End Kingdom, rehabilitated Pierrot’s henchmen, and protected the royal siblings through thick and thin, Miyuki was free to waltz between the worlds as she pleased. Same for the other girls. It was all part of their Pretty Cure privileges. They were to be celebrated and cherished, adored by all the inhabitants of Märchenland and yet, for reasons beyond Wolfrun, Miyuki wanted to spend time with him.

   He didn’t really get it. Why hole up with him in a small hut on the edge of town? Especially after everything he did but Miyuki just smiled because it just made sense to her. Of course, she would want to spend time with the big bad wolf! Who wouldn’t?

   Well, in this particular instance, Wolfrun wouldn’t complain that someone wanted to be his friend. Maybe even more than that but he really shouldn’t assume just because Miyuki was nice and cute and friendly and was famously villain crazy. Because just look at him. He wasn’t exactly strutting around at six foot eight anymore. Still, Miyuki liked him for him. The inner him who had been found again after corruption.

   It was just a shame she had weird tastes. Not even just company (him being the point blank example) but in movies, too. 

   Movies were a wonderful invention, actually. The DVD and video player and television set were great. Märchenland was more than happy to welcome them. Recorded reproductions of famous stories to play and replay, they were fantastic. They didn’t replace oral tradition or theatre but instead breathed new life into these revered art forms. The human girls were always bringing their favourites around, it truly seemed there was a genre for everyone.

   And this movie wasn’t too bad. Not really. Even if it was another smarmy fairy tale where the hero defeats the villain at the end of the last act. Aside from that, it had flashy action on the high seas and gawky jokes. It was pretty good but the fact that it was Miyuki’s absolute, all time favourite elevated Wolfrun’s opinion on it overall from pretty good to rather excellent.

   Miyuki, meanwhile, was completely enthralled in contrast to Wolfrun’s mild amusement. He was more beguiled by the novelty of a TV set in Märchenland than anything else but her favourite movie was, of course, nothing less than perfection to her. Perfect paced, witty dialogue, gorgeous animation: it was all poetry in motion to her.

   She didn’t want to miss a thing. Especially since Wolfrun was experiencing the escapades of this movie for the very first time beside her but… She was oh so sleepy.

   Prior to their movie night, Miyuki had had a full day of school and after school activities. She had even wanted to pregame Wolfrun by showing him another of her favourite movies first but time had just gotten away on her. She was too much of a creature of habit. Bedtime was ten o’clock sharp. No exceptions.

   So, for all her bluster full of praise for her favourite movie, Miyuki had been eyes glazed over - but gallantly open - and head slumped forward. Her commentary getting sparser and sparser as she traded whispered observations for hushed yawns. It was rather adorable, Wolfrun found.

   They were both cuddled up on his “lounge”. Furniture conventions between the human world and Märchenland weren’t one to one so Wolfrun’s lounge was a fluffy, comfy hidey-hole in front of the television where they could both hole up. Miyuki was propped against the wall, padded with blankets and pillows and Wolfrun was in her lap. It was all rather idyllic, actually. Soft and cosy, hidden away so they could enjoy themselves in the bliss of entertainment.

   “You can go to sleep now, glitter puff.” Wolfrun murmured.

   He was ready for bed, too, actually. He hadn’t started his night in Miyuki’s lap, rather sitting beside her but as the movie session went on and on, he found himself leaning more and more to the left until flop. He was all over her lap.

   “Thans, Wolfrun…” Miyuki mumbled, getting her words all mushy.

   “Y-Yeah, you can get up an’ use my bed, I don’t mind.” Wolfrun said.

   “S’fine, I like it here.” Miyuki said and she chittered contentedly to herself.

   She practically melted into the soft fluff that she and Wolfrun had been sitting in. She smiled and ran her hand through Wolfun’s fur. Her fingertips sent shivers down Wolfrun’s spine and he quivered.

   “You’re like a warm blanket, it's really… nice.” Miyuki said.

   Wolfrun’s lips pursed together. His ears flicked and he felt flattered to hear that. Miyuki slumped forward another inch and already she was deep asleep, her hand still in the thick of Wolfrun’s fur. He smiled to himself and buried his snout in his paws. Wolfrun closed his eyes and inhaled deep Miyuki’s smell of saccharine body spray. He got comfortable himself then… flomp.

   Miyuki couldn’t keep herself upright anymore and in her sleep, she curled up around Wolfrun’s body. She kissed up against the side of Wolfrun’s face, she nosed through his fur and whiskers and hugged him tight. His heart raced and yet, this was the happiest he had felt all night enjoying Miyuki’s company so he closed his eyes and went to sleep, too.

[freyayuki]

Final Fantasy Record Keeper Final Fantasy XV Realm Banner

Every 15 days that players log on to the Final Fantasy Record Keeper (FFRK) mobile game, they get 1 Realm/Elemental x 11 ticket.

These tickets can be used on Realm and Elemental banners for a 10 +1 pull that guarantees at least 1 relic that’s of 5-star or higher rarity. These tickets can also be obtained as special rewards from campaigns and limited events and the like.

For now, I’ve decided to throw any and all Realm/Elemental x11 tickets that I get on the Final Fantasy XV Realm Relic Draw banner. 

This banner contains only relics that belong to chars from Final Fantasy XV (#ad).

Normally, I would have just gone for the Final Fantasy VII Realm Relic Draw banner but I already have lots of FFVII relics and the rates on this game are trash. 

If I’d pulled on the FF7 banner, it was very likely that I’d just end up being disappointed by getting a dupe or something useless. I figured I was better off pulling on another banner.

I talk more about this in another post but I ended up choosing to pull on the FF15 banner. Since I’ve been throwing all my tickets on this banner, already managed to get a lot of Final Fantasy XV relics. 

Still need more to complete the kits of these FFXV chars though and make them usable in end-game content like the Argent Odin and the Cardia Dungeon fights.

The latest Realm/Elemental x11 ticket I threw on the Final Fantasy XV banner gave me 2 disco orbs. Unfortunately, Dr. Mog didn’t make an appearance. 

And I didn’t get an Awakened Arcane Soul Break (AASB), which sucks. But at least the 2 items I got were new.

One was Iris Amicitia’s Ultra Soul Break (USB), Moogle Trouble. 

Have her Synchro Arcane Soul Break (SASB) and her Glint+ Soul Break (G+) so this one was nice to have. Without her AASB though, I don’t see myself using her, certainly not for difficult fights.

The other item I got was Ignis Scientia's Chain Soul Break (CSB), Regroup. 

This one activates a Final Fantasy XV Realm Chain, which is kinda useless since I can just borrow the FFXV Roaming Warrior Chain if I’m doing FF15-related quests that require that kind of Chain. 

If I’m gonna get a Chain, I prefer to get the elemental ones since those are way more useful.

Another ticket I threw on this banner gave me nothing more than a dupe of Noctis Lucis Caelum’s AASB. Ugh. 

Very disappointing. Made me wish I just used this ticket on another banner instead. What a waste.

Another ticket gave me 3 golds - Noctis’s Overstrike Soul Break (OSB), Noctis’s Arcane Overstrike Soul Break (AOSB), and Iris’s Awakened Arcane Soul Break (AASB).  

The OSB is new but meh. OSBs have been powercrept by now. The AOSB is a dupe. Bleh. 

At least Iris’s AASB was new. Already have her Sync and one of her Ultra Soul Breaks as well as her Glint+ so it’s nice to get her Awakening to go with these other relics. She’s definitely usable now.

Another ticket gave me Noctis’s Critical Link AOSB and a dupe of his Limit Break Overstrike (LBO) or Limit Break Over Flow (LBOF), Ancillary Link-Strike. 

The AOSB is new but was still super pissed with this pull. Was so glad when I saw Dr. Mog, only to be horribly and utterly disappointed when he gave me a dupe. 

Argh! Why’d I have to get a dupe? So freaking pissed that the one time Dr. Mog actually showed up, it was just to give me a dupe. Eff this game!

Conclusion

So what about you? Which banners did you use your Realm/Elemental x11 tickets on? How did your pulls go? What do you think about the rates on FFRK? Feel free to share your thoughts and opinions by leaving a comment below or by reblogging or replying to this post.

Notes:

screenshots are from my Final Fantasy Record Keeper game account

[inhuman-obey-me]

On Simeon and what it means to be an angel

The beautiful, gentle angel who can smile through just about anything. But what's underneath the ever-present smile of his? Is he really just pure, sweet, and kind?

Not at all. Simeon can be very mischievous at some times, and scarily wrathful at others. Some of you may be thinking, just what kind of angel is someone like that? Well, let's talk about that.

(includes spoilers up to lesson 52)

Starting with the idea of what angels are supposed to be like - the common, pop-culture characterization of angels is that they are pure, merciful, peaceful beings who can only do good and are horrified by anything dark or bad.

And admittedly, Simeon doesn't seem to quite perfectly fit that mold.

[Disclaimer: Neither mod of this blog belong to the Abrahamic religions, so this is purely from our own research]

In terms of how angels have been described in various scriptures, however, this isn't actually what they are like. Angels act on behalf of God, and are usually not meant to have any free will of their own. The thing that separates angels from demons is not a tendency towards kindness and purity, but that their actions are aligned with God's desires rather than their own. What this means in effect is that, both in actual scripture and in the game, angels can and will do things that are a lot less pure and peaceful than their modern mainstream depictions would suggest.

For example, there is a part of the Bible (at least in various versions) where it is mentioned that an angel was ordered by God to kill one hundred eighty-five Assyrians, leaving their camp full of dead bodies in the morning.

The poet Rainer Maria Rilke states in his The Duino Elegies - "Every Angel is terror".

Seraphim - which is what OM!'s renditions of Simeon and Lucifer both formerly were - are basically six-winged snakes. Cherubim, as OM!'s Beelzebub formerly was, are actually multi-faced humanoid-lions with wings. "Do not be afraid," is a line angels often say when they meet humans because they are just as scary-looking as demons - just they're, you know, the "good" ones.

Actual descriptions of angels aside, even in-game, we are presented with example after example that angels are not perfect "pure and good" beings either. The game itself emphasizes this point at various times - if you upset Simeon during Surprise Guest interactions, one of his displeased lines is: "Just because I'm an angel doesn't mean I'm all forgiving." In lesson 51, though he initially says he left Satan to be with the Angel versions of his brothers for Satan's benefit, if MC actually agrees that he was just being kind, he is surprised that they really believed him.

It's not just him, either. Similar to Simeon's upset reaction, if you give Luke a present he doesn't like, he says, "I know I'm an all-forgiving angel and everything, but even so, this is a little too much..." When MC briefly lands in the past, the brothers actually describe Simeon as the least intense of the seraphim. Back when the brothers were angels, Lucifer was still known for being strict and arrogant. On the more extreme end, Raphael was known for keeping the angels in line via the pointy end of his spear, as Asmodeus fears will happen to him as punishment for going to a party. And Michael himself, the top-ranking leader, who one might think should be the most angelic of angels, is described as a sadist. In the Angelic Demons event, Michael even gets Simeon to give the demon brothers cursed bracelets that temporarily turn them into angels. It's not a very nice prank to pull on them, as it makes the brothers miserable to be converted back to their old forms, not to mention that the curse goes so far that they are turned into the caricature of overly nice and polite angels - but as it could be considered more in line with pulling them towards "God's will," this would actually be considered a good angel thing to do.

As the game points out, being the least intense doesn't exactly make Simeon easygoing, either. In fact, we have seen at this point quite a few examples of Simeon's rage. As a play director, he berates the brothers so much over any mistakes that they call him a dictator. Not to mention, the reason they are in the play in the first place is because the entire previous cast quit because they couldn't deal with him.

Later, when he and Luke are running the Angel's Halo, he drags the brothers into helping out. Though he is shown still smiling, everyone agrees because they are terrified of his menacing aura. Even Diavolo, when on the home screen, remarks about hiding because he made Lucifer mad again, but it's Simeon who he calls "the one person in this world I don't want to anger."

On a much lighter note, some of his less "angelic" behavior also comes from his playful, mischievous side. As referenced earlier, he is surprised if MC believes he was just being nice, but if the player says they thought he was pranking Satan, it gives intimacy points with him, and he says:

He also joins in on the teasing of Luke, having his name as "Luke (Chihuahua)" in his D.D.D. contacts. Multiple of his home screen lines also show how much he loves messing with Luke in general:

"I'm free right now, so I think I might go and tease Luke."

"Luke is like a Chihuahua who thinks it is a German Shepherd. Cute, huh?"

"I'm back! I was so excited to meet you that I left Luke behind."

"If you don't eat enough breakfast, you'll turn out tiny like Luke."

Plus, in dance battles, one of his chibi poses is him teasingly scaring someone, while Luke has a corresponding scared pose, suggesting that he may be meant to be scaring Luke in particular.

He also gets MC to mess with Belphegor when they are looking for him, instructing them to kick the tree that he knows he's probably asleep in as hard as they possibly can.

However, while none of those things make him any less of an angel, there is evidence to support that he is, in fact, a "bad" angel in a different sense.

As the two Celestial Realm exchange students, Simeon and Luke represent two opposite ends of a spectrum of angel attitudes. Luke, having still been very young when the Great Celestial War happened, has been taught to have very uptight views of the demons, insisting that they are evil and should be avoided at all costs. When he first arrives in the Devildom, he is terrified at the idea that the two of them could get corrupted by the demons and fall. This is the prevailing attitude taught in the Celestial Realm: that demons are wicked, and that angels are inherently better than them.

By contrast, Simeon does not hold this view at all. He is happy to spend time with the demon brothers, and doesn't look down on them for falling. On the home screen, Luke complains, "Simeon is too sweet to demons! He's sweeter than a cake from Madam Scream's!" In the Rain, a Fire and Simeon Devilgram story, Simeon even talks about how he actually prefers the hustle and bustle of the Devildom, feeling that the Celestial Realm feels too quiet now.

This difference between him and Luke is not only expressed in his fondness for the demons, either. Simeon understands the nuances of good vs evil, and he himself seems to operate in shades of grey at times, rather than being perfectly aligned with Michael's (and by extension, it's implied, God's) wishes. More than once, he displays quite a flippant attitude towards following the rules, such as his very hand-wavey dismissal when MC asks about his lying.

Luke also calls him out on his disregard for rules, saying that Simeon is just too loose about following them:

However, this glib attitude should not be taken to mean that Simeon doesn't know exactly what he's doing. When it seems the only solution to restore stability to the three realms is for MC to sever all their pacts with the demon brothers, he quickly realizes that the other option, the Ring of Light that used to belong to Lucifer, must be hidden among Michael's things rather than lost to time as everyone thought. He tells Luke that he needs to go back to the Celestial Realm to take care of something, but he is firm that Luke should not come with him - because he is going to steal the ring from Michael, a risky, rebellious move that he doesn't want Luke to get involved in. He is perfectly aware of what he's doing, and actively chooses to do it anyway, consequences be damned, because he wants to do what he feels is right.

When Michael does confront him about it, he's not the least bit sorry, either. In fact, he sasses him and talks back, unafraid to show disrespect to God's top angel.

We also know that he's been demoted at some point. Luke tells MC that Simeon is an archangel, making him one of the Celestial Realm's warriors, or as Simeon himself has jokingly described it, a "low-level grunt" who is overworked by higher-up angels like Michael. However, during MC's time travel back to the Celestial Realm, we learn that Simeon used to be a seraph right alongside Michael and Lucifer. It is again referenced during the fairy incident, when he makes the low-level grunt joke again but is then reminded that he was a seraph at this point in time. We're not sure yet why he was demoted - there's a lot of speculation on this point, and we can't draw any definitive conclusions yet - but if we take that being a "good" angel means being obedient to Michael and God, we start to get a far less rosy picture of Simeon's good standing as an angel.

What does this mean? Is he a "bad" angel? Kind of, but not for the reasons some may think. His mischievous, devious, and playful side is not what makes him less angelic. It is his more rebellious, nonconformist way of doing things that actually opens up the possibility of him gradually getting further and further away from being an ideal angel, and potentially putting him on the path of falling from grace.

[asingleheart-shapedbraincell]

Obey Me Brothers and Misc. react to MC having their coffee order memorised

GN!MC

Prologue

You go to a coffee shop. Human world or devildom, doesn't matter. All that matters is after waiting in line you order for you and Ya Boi bc you have their order memorised and they get flustered because every single one of them is a ✨massive softie✨

This is also just me headcanoning their drink orders while I take a break from my dissertation.

(I'm referring to the undateables as Misc. because I don't want to call the the datables bc Luke is a child. He is not datable. That is my son.)

Lucifer

This man would take his coffee in an IV if he could and you can't convince me otherwise

Probably asks that they put as many extra espresso shots in the drink as they're legally allowed to

Anyway, he's very touched that you have his order memorised. He has yours memorised to.

Appreciates that you pay enough attention to him to know his order

Low-key blushing about it and will think about it next time he makes himself coffee

Might even end up making you one to if he isn't working late

Definitely goes for coffee with you more often (definitely not to spend more time with you and also to show that he has your order memorised too 👀)

Mammon

This man is destroyed by any kind of casual affection (pls hold his hand)

I mean, of course you know the great Mammon's coffee order! You were his human weren't ya?

If you're ordering for him, that means you're paying, right? 👀

He do be blushing tho (if you also pay he'll blush even more)

And since you bought it, I GUESS you can have a sip...definitely doesn't just want the casual and domestic intimacy of sharing the same cup

Wants to get coffee with you more often (so he can drink from your cup)

Levi

How did you know the code to order the Ruri-Chan Loveheart Surprise Latte off of the secret menu??????

Oh, you knew it because you listened to him order before and memorised it????????????

Hes not crying, you're crying

No but really, the proof that you actively listen to him when he's talking about his interests has his heart skipping a beat

Hes bright red and trying to cover his face with his hands

Wants to get two straws so you two can sit opposite each other and share a drink but is WAY to shy to ask 🥺👉👈

Will end up buying matching reusable coffee cups that have 'player one' and 'player two' on them

Satan

For the most part he’ll order something basic like an Americano or a flat white UNLESS you're at a place that does latte art.

Then he ALWAYS gets cat themed latte art

Like the little 3D ones they make out of foam and then draw little faces on???

Yeah, he loves them

He think they're so cute

They're in most of his devilgram pics next to whatever book he was reading at the time

One of his favourite things to do is visit cat cafe with you and if you remember his order he'll be very touched and he'll thank you with a blush and a smile

Has your order memorised as well and orders for you next time

Asmo

Changes with whats fashionable but anything ✨pink✨

Pink drink, peach lemonade, strawberry and white chocolate mocha they're all acceptable

But is delighted when you remember his order- it means you've been paying attention to the trends he's following!!!!!

Did you see the drink on his devilgram story????? Isn't it cute!!!!!! You should get one to match and take a selfie together!!!!

Thinks its really cute to go on coffee dates and hear you order for him

Like, yes, they know my order 😌 we're that close 😙✌

Beel

Just hand him a basic Americano, but in a Big Gulp cup

Is touched that you remembered his order, even if it is simple. He just kinda blushes and thanks you (maybe asks if you want to go out dinner that evening).

Make sure he’s fed, or has food available bc if you don’t he will eat ✨The Beans✨

He has done this before and you DO NOT want to see Beel when he has enough caffiene in his system to give a mortal cardiac arrest

He’s already the most athletic brother. You won’t catch him. No one will.

You know Taz from Looney Tunes? When he just...spins super fast in circles and eats stuff??? Yeah, Beel’s like that.

But if he doesn’t eat straight-up coffee beans, he’s just as chill as normal

Just enjoys spending some quality time with you (and yes, he will definitely have your order memorised too)

Belphie

Must!!!!!keep!!!!this!!!!!boy!!!!!awake!!!!!!!

If you remember his order he’s gonna blush, but do his best not to react. But he may also feel the need to Hold Hands later in the day because you’ll have him feeling ✨soft✨.

Has a black coffee but puts, like, 5 sugars in it

He’s basically drinking espresso syrup

and it does NOTHING

Caffiene does not affect this man AT. ALL.

It’s almost scary - he can down 3 espressos and then nap for five hours afterwards

Doesn’t love going on coffee dates because if you’re too caffinated he has trouble keeping up with you, and you won’t feel like having a nap with him. But if you’re just having one coffee, or a tea or something, he does like how chilled out the date can be.

Diavolo

I get grande iced machiatto vibes, and I can’t tell you why

Loves that you remember his order and isn’t shy about it. Will blush at first and then break into a massive beaming smile

He’s paying for the coffee (he’s literally royalty, he’s paying for the damn coffee)

Makes him feel like you two are close and he may attempt to hold hands later if the vibe is right.

Constantly asks you out on coffee dates afterwards - loves spending time with you and loves how informal and relaxed it is

Will also remember your order and make sure that Barb knows how to make it for when you visit the Palace

But still prefers the actual act of going out to a coffee shop with you

If you bring him his coffee order when he’s working, however👀👀👀...blushing mess.

The fact that you went to get coffee for him...even though he knows that you know that Barb is perfectly capable of making him coffee...that you got coffee and thought of him...and bought a coffee for him...and brought it to him...the casual affection, the softness, the thoughtfulness. 😳😳😳 he’s destroyed. BLUSHING. He’s literally so touched. Gonna commit hand holding crimes. Will think about it all day. Will miss you 3x more than normal just because. May even end up doing some light ~pining~ 🥺🥺🥺

Barbatos

✨Tea✨

This is the Undisputed King of Tea

He knows every blend of tea that the shop offers and has the menu memorised.

Will also tell you about the different tea blends if you ask, describes how they taste, what they’re ingredients are, where they’re from, etc.

He’s very grateful if you remember his order, but if you then bring up some of the trivia he’s shared about that tea?? Blushing.

Very touched that you not only remembered his order but the things about it that interest him. The fact that you clearly paid attention when he was talking about tea.

Thinks of you as a very considerate person and will offer to share

He’ll also invite you over for tea a the palace more often now that you’ve shown an interest in Tea Trivia (even if that interest is only based in your interest in him)

Will also invite you to come with him when he needs to go to the market to restock the Palaces tea supplies and may even...h...hold ur hand...😳😳😳

Simeon

This is a chai latte man, don't come for me

Will test out how it tastes with different syrups, particularly likes either hazelnut or vanilla

Can also do his own latte art

When you order for him??? And have his order memorised????? He's delighted.

Its not uncommon for angels to remember each others orders, but he's touched nonetheless (yes that does mean he has your order memorised)

Will tell you that he's touched by your consideration

Just gives him the warm fuzzies and it also kinda reminds him of home

Offers to do latte art in your drink if he can

Would also be the kind of person to bring you coffee in class, and he'll do latte art on that so you can take off the lid and see a little foamy heart and the like ❤☕

Luke (platonic)

No coffee!!!! He's a child!!!!!!

You order him a puppychino hot chocolate

With whipped cream and cinnamon which is his preferred topping and a slice of cake

Hes definitely super happy about the fact you remembered how he likes his hot chocolate

Tells you that your so nice and should come back to the celestial realm with Simeon and him instead of staying down here with a bunch of no-good demons who don't deserve you 😤

Plus the celestial realm has the best hot chocolate!

You also let him have SMALL sips of your coffee but ONLY so he can scope out which beans to use in his next coffee and walnut cake!!!!!!!

Solomon

Probably has some awful sounding custom drink like a fruit tea with pumpkin spice syrup and milk in it 😣

Or a peach lemonade with a shot of espresso and marshmallows 🤢

So its super unique, but he's still surprised you remembers the specifics

Offers to let you try it

DON’T

Will take you out to get coffee together more often, partly to spend time with you and partly to horrify you with his drink choices

[zettaiunmeis]

HI THANKS TO @raventrigonsdaughter LETTING ME KNOW THAT OG GAME CARMEN AND JULIA USED TO BE PARTNERS BEFORE CARMEN WENT ROGUE, LET ME PROPOSE: VILE!JULIA.

details under the cut because this got Long

jules is part of the either the same class the ~infamous~ black sheep

and they don’t? really like each other? like julia is still kinda Serious and she doesnt really appreciate the vile squad goofing around and tossing water balloons or whatever and black sheep finds julia a little too uptight even if she’s interested in a lot of the same things (history, etc.)

black sheep’s speciality is Being SLick, as we know, but julia’s is patterns (and also historical artifacts)

ok but the important part of this is that bc julia’s is patterns, she ends up being like a scout or smth along those lines bc she can analyse patterns and report back to help plan the caper

and that basically means that when she graduates, she ends up in far more long cons than any of the others

anyway, after black sheep gets in trouble for the water balloon thing, the faculty decide she’s far too mischievous, and so, they assign her a partner — julia

(side note: its kind of the same thing that ends up happening to jean-luc and antonio a bit later on, but thats more because they work well together, and less bc either one of them needed a grounding influence)

anyway black sheep and jules again. do not like each other. but that doesnt mean they dont work well together — julia’s got an eye for patterns, and black sheep has every thieving trick in the book ready and waiting up her sleeves (alongside an instinct for thievery)

slowly, as they are forced to work together more and more, they kind of reach a less tense partnership and then one day black sheep makes a history joke and thats how they become friends

like julia is still very pointedly Not friends with the rest of the vile squad bc they’re still very reckless and immature, etc

but shes sort of seen black sheep when she’s been more grounded and less hyper/feral and she?? kind of doesnt mind??

bc grounded black sheep isnt constantly trying to prove that she’s The Best and grounded black sheep isnt trying to prove that she’s more than just the teacher’s pet — she’s kind of just having fun with julia and julia’s been so serious about her training that she hasnt really made any other friends and…. its nice

its nice to have black sheep loudly slip into the seat next to her and and tease julia about whatever recent historical discovery she’s researching and pull her out of her own head once in a while

and its nice to have black sheep glance over in the middle of class when sheena — sorry tigress — whines about something or the other and roll her eyes in the same way julia feels like doing, even if something strange sticks in her throat when carmen does the same with gray

she can’t pinpoint the exact moment, but at some point, she starts thinking of black sheep as her friend and it’s an exciting enough thought that she’s got a little smile on her face next time black sheep slips into the seat next to her in professor maelstrom’s class

and at some point julia stops being just julia to black sheep, and starts being jules because we’re in a school for thieves, but we’ve already got plenty of ~jules~ right here and thats sincerely the worst joke i’ve ever heard and oh really ~jules~? bet i could find an even worse one

and like all the usual stuff is still happening in the background — shadowsan-black sheep rivalry, gray and the Squad being black sheep’s friends, the phone and player, etc.

its just that now, black sheep has a bit of a calming influence and that does help!

and they work well enough that most people assume that julia and black sheep will be partners after graduation 

even crackle acknowledges it — despite the jealousy he feels at the knowledge

so things continue and all this happens, but then comes finals.

things go the same. black sheep gets perfect scores in all of her exams, except stealth 101

julia — now the historian — can’t help but check for whether black sheep graduated too and just as she does, she hears crackle say it: she didn’t pass

and she wants to go to black sheep and ask if she’s okay because everyone knows how much black sheep’s wanted this, how much she’s been working for it, but by the time gray’s been dragged off by tigress, black sheep has disappeared and julia has no idea where she’s gone

so she waits for a bit in the cafeteria and in the dorms and anywhere else she thinks that black sheep would be and she sees… nothing

and about twelve hours after the results, the faculty pulls her for her first mission (for context, this is before the whole,,, hear the true name of vile thing) which is basically being a plant for the morocco mission, by pretending to be an archaeology phd student from oxford who’s come to study the findings in the excavation

and she’s busy enough with that that she barely gets to think about black sheep or graduation or anything other than the near-overwhelming anxiety that comes with the horrifying ordeal of potentially being Known but she just manages to figure out like,,, guard rotations, as well as the exact objects that are at the site for the vile squad to steal

and then she’s out before they even get there — julia’s pattern recognition and historical knowledge made her pretty useful when it comes to planning capers so it meant that she’s always travelling around the world ahead of each caper, but would also make her a pretty invaluable asset to vile, so they can’t afford to get her caught

julia doesnt hear about black sheep nearly messing up morocco until much later, and even then, she doesn’t have all the info

all she can do is wonder why the hell the faculty would fail someone who somehow managed to sneak out of vile island without anyone realising until much later

and yes, maybe a part of her misses her old partner, but she knows that it wouldn’t matter anyway — she was the mole, and she’d barely get to work directly with carmen so.

but then cut to a year later, when a vile counterfeit operation in boston is suddenly sabotaged

cut to the moment when, julia, despite not having seen her in a year, is still able to somehow recognise black sheep’s work

its Slick. its the Slickness that tips her off, and part of her is reluctant to tell the faculty who it is, but her allegiance demands it and she tells the faculty and she hates herself for it when she sees the murderous rage on each of their faces

and somehow, that — her ability to recognise this carmen sandiego — gets her in a new position, as a mole in interpol, passing on the information they get as they try to track the scarlet super thief as well

and then one day, in poitiers, julia sees her

its black sheep. it’s undeniably black sheep under that red trench coat and julia wants to go and talk to her capture her and bring her in to vile but her new partner ~chase devineaux~ is everything that once made her turn away from her interest in law enforcement and he orders her to call for backup while he tries to stroke his own ego

she does, of course, but maybe she delays it a bit, if only because she’d rather let carmen sandiego get away than have devineaux’s ego get any bigger

and the rest of the season goes much the same except after julia ends up in acme, she reports to vile about everything that’s going on, and they no longer suspect devineaux of helping carmen etc etc

and she can’t help but somewhat sympathise with what carmen’s doing — she’s returning invaluable historical artefacts and julia’s always loved history and- it’s just… altruistic. and that’s admirable. and that’s the only reason i feel so torn about helping vile. that’s it, that’s the only reason.

and then comes the chasing paper caper

what was originally the first real conversation between julia and carmen goes completely differently

(note that most vile operative outside of jules’ graduating class do not know of her existence bc she barely interacts with most of them since she’s more a spy/mole who’s out of the picture by the time anyone else gets on the scene)

carmen still needs to be able to spy on paper star without anyone noticing, so she still goes for the seat right in front of the cute short-haired girl sitting alo- and oh my god jules?

and its the first time julia has heard that nickname in over a year and oh God they were just friends this should Not hit this hard what the Heck

and carmen still sits down and just quietly grills her as to what the hell is going on bc she Knows that jules is a always a mole and never an active part of a caper and she doesn’t?? understand??

and jules is kind of in a daze, but she’s been Trained so she feeds carmen her cover story:

she defected from vile when she saw how they were treating historical artefacts — melting down gold, selling priceless works of art to the highest bidder, etc. etc. — and that since then she’s been silently helping interpol with taking down vile ops, etc.

and it takes a bit but carmen kind of starts to believe it — she knows julia loves history with all her heart, and she’s… well, she’s never been the kind of recruit that carmen’s expected to see in vile anyway, so. it’s not out of the realm of possibility, is it, for julia to be a defector working against vile? after all, isn’t she the same?

so she starts looking around, while waiting for paper star to make a move, and she ends up noticing the briefcase in the seat next to her, and for some reason, those initials — clearly chase devineaux — make her want to scowl

“new partner?” “oh… its… well, work. work... partner” “oh.”

uhhh anyway i might actually. write this? idk don’t count on anything lmaooo.

[preciseprose]

From Nightmares to Dreams (Part 1/3)

Fandom: The Owl House

Chapter synopsis:  Luz has a horrible morning which Amity helps remedy.

Author’s note: This fic is the first long-form work of fiction I have written in five years and would not have been possible without the encouragement and support of @sterling-jay​.  This fic was inspired, however, by @notbirdofprey​ who asked me: “How do you think Luz and Amity will get together?”  Please be aware that my answer to this question involves a lot of angst on both Luz’s and Amity’s part; and, as a result, this fic is relatively angsty.  I hope you enjoy it.

- - -

Luz jolted awake, feeling dizzy and uncomfortably warm.  She threw her blanket off her and sat up to rub her face.  It was slick with some sort of wetness.  “Oh,” she groaned.  She must have been crying in her sleep.  Again.

Suddenly aware of herself, she looked down at her feet.  King wasn’t there and her door was closed.  He must had left at some point during the night.  She laid back down.  “At least he didn’t see me this time,” she said quietly.

She prodded around her cot for her phone, finding it after a few moments.  She sniffled and wiped her eyes again before powering the phone up.  The right-top corner of her lock screen stated the obvious: “No Service.”  After hesitating for a few seconds, she opened her messages.

She spent a few minutes reading through old conversations with her mom.  It didn’t make her feel better.  If anything, it made her feel guilty.  Her mother’s messages were caring and warm.  She asked if she was having a good evening, if she liked that day’s camp activities, if she was enjoying the food, if she was looking forwards to tomorrow, and so on.  In contrast, Luz’s replies were generally short and impersonal.  A lot of yeahs, yeps, and nopes.  An occasional emoji.  Few genuine responses.

She put her phone down and looked up to the ceiling.  Even with the moonlight streaming in from her window, it was hard to make the beams out.  After a few minutes of holding back, she let herself cry.

“I’m sorry, Mami.  I’m sorry I can’t tell you that I’m okay.  I’m sorry I can’t tell you that I’m safe.  That I’m not missing.  That I didn’t run away.”  Her tears grew heavier.  “I’m sorry I lied to you.  I’m sorry I’m making you worry.  I’m sorry for being a bad daughter.  You’ve always tried to be a good mom and you don’t deserve this.”

Luz cried until her eyes burned.  When she destroyed the teleporter door, she had thought Eda might be able to send her home using magic or by taking her to some special place on the isles.  But several weeks ago, Eda had sat down with her on the roof of the Owl House and explained the gravity of her situation: that the door was the only way she knew of to travel between the human realm and the demon realm, and that without the ability to cast spells she wasn’t sure if she would be able to send her home.

She had only barely stopped herself from breaking down.  It helped that Eda had taken her hands and, looking directly into her eyes, promised that she would do everything in her power to try to return her home someday.  And she had kept that promise so far, spending several hours every other day pouring over books with Lilith.

She wished Eda’s promise was enough to keep her fears under control, but it just wasn't.  She kept a decent face up when around Eda and her friends.  But when she was by herself, she couldn’t keep the act up.  The idea that she might never see her mother again was overwhelming and terrifying.  But even worse was the possibility that her mother might think that she disappeared on purpose.  

Eventually, her eyes ran dry.  Dawn broke soon after.  

“I guess I should get up,” she thought.  After a few minutes of sniffling and wiping her eyes, she rose from her cot, activated a few light glyphs, and dressed herself.  Once done, a realization hit her: “My eyes!  Crying makes your eyes puffy, right?”

The closest mirror was in the bathroom down the hall, but she couldn’t risk running into Lilith or King.  If she ran into either of them, they would ask questions, and Eda would find out and start worrying about her again, and she didn’t want that.  “What do I do?  What do I do?” Luz repeated to herself.

She activated another light glyph to help her think.  The light reflected off a small object lying nestled in the blanket on her cot.  Her phone.  “My phone!” she exclaimed in a hushed voice.  She walked over to her cot, snatched her phone, and unlocked it with a swipe.

“Okay, how bad could it be?”  She opened the front-facing camera.  Her stomach clenched.

Her eyes were bloodshot, and it looked like someone had filed the skin under her eyes with abomination goo.  “No, no, no, no, no.  This is bad, this is so bad.”  She pulled and pushed at the fleshy mounds trying to get them to recede.  Her attempts did nothing.

The morning sun was already starting to brighten.  She needed to act fast.  She would need to leave for Hexside within the hour and there was no way she could avoid everyone on her way out.  “What do I do?  What do I do!”

Luz had no idea how to do anything involving her face.  She had never been very interested in make-up and even she had been she didn’t think she could just slap some concealer on her face (not that she had any) and call it a day.  She needed help, fast.

“Okay, okay.”  She looked to the phone in her hand.  “No that’s not going to help, I don’t have service here.”  She tossed the phone on her cot and started pacing around the room.  Muffled sounds began to emanate through her bedroom walls.  The other residents of the Owl House were out of their rooms.

“Oh, I know!”  Luz ran over to her school bag and dredged out the small scroll Eda had given her for her birthday.  “Penstagram!”  She tapped on the scroll and it bounced out of her hand and into the air, unfurled and glowing faintly purple.  She grabbed it, thinking about her next move.

“I can’t ask Gus or Willow for help,” Luz thought, grimacing.  They were already worried about her enough.  Just yesterday, Willow had pressed her about why she had been especially quiet lately.  It took their entire walk home to convince her that she was just stressed about homework and helping Eda learn glyph magic.

She didn’t think she could ask Viney or Skara for help either.  She had gotten to know each girl better through classes at Hexside, but she didn’t really know either of them that well.  And this was a bit too personal to spring on either of them.

That left Amity.

Luz blinked and took a long breath.  She had been spending more and more time with Amity lately.  On one of her better days last week, she had convinced Eda to let her, Amity, Gus, and Willow to have a “Azura Movie Night Sleepover Extravaganza!” at the Owl House after Eda found a DVD player in a trash worm.  She and Amity had ended up cuddling on the couch under a blanket.  And it felt so nice.  

Amity was warm, and soft, and her hair smelt like wildflowers and sea salt, and Luz had been terrified that her heart was going to jab through her chest and explode on Amity’s back.  But eventually, somehow, she managed to fall asleep with her in her arms.  But when she woke up, Amity had already dressed in her day clothes and was eating breakfast with Eda.  Every time she had tried to talk to her since then Amity had kept the conversation short or turned her head away and said she had something she needed to do or gave some other reason to leave quickly.  Luz didn’t know what to think of it.

But that was then, and this was now.  Luz had no one else to turn too, and out of all her friends she figured Amity would be the most likely to know how to deal with her situation.  She pulled up Amity’s profile and sent a DM.

@glyphwitch (07:03:51): Amity I need your help!!!  IT’S URGENT!!!!

@witchchick128 (07:04:27): Luz, what is it?  Are you okay?

@glyphwitch (07:05:11): I don’t have time to explain but I need to get rid of these HUGE bags I have under my eyes (don’t ask please) and I have no idea how to deal with them but I need eda to not find out about them and I don’t know what to do and I thought you might and I just don’t want to worry eda about me so please help me

Luz snaped a picture of her face to Amity and dropped herself onto her cot.  One minute passed.  Luz heard Eda and Lilith having some sort of argument in the kitchen.  They were constantly arguing about one thing or another these days.  Another minute passed.  The argument was now a three-way shouting match between Eda, Lilith, and Hooty.  Based solely on volume, Hooty was winning.

Suddenly, the scroll vibrated against her leg.  She snatched it up and tapped it.  Again, it sprang to life.

@witchchick128 (07:08:34): I’m so sorry, Luz.  Mother pulled me away for a tuft of my hair...

@witchchick128 (07:09:13): So, are they like that because of a magical or non-magical cause?

@witchchick128 (07:09:32): You eyes, I mean.  Sorry, I wasn’t clear.

@witchchick128 (07:09:43): Your*

Luz laughed despite her situation.

@glyphwitch (07:10:12): non-magical

@glyphwitch (07:10:39): I was, uhhh.  crying.  a lot…  but I’m okay now!  really

@witchchick128 (07:11:16): Okay.  Do you have any abrasion ointment from the Healing Coven?

@glyphwitch (07:11:42): no.  I can’t leave my room or the others might see me

@witchchick128 (07:12:15): Alright.  Let me think.

@witchchick128 (07:12:58): You haven’t discovered any glyphs that cast any illusion spells yet, right?

@glyphwitch (07:13:09): no, not yet

@witchchick128 (07:13:41):  Okay, so you can’t conceal your eyes with magic.  But I’ve seen you summon columns of ice before.  Can you use your glyphs to make a bunch of small ice cubes?

@glyphwitch (07:13:53): yeah, I think so

@witchchick128 (07:14:38): Okay, do that.  Then get two of your shirts and use them to make two cold compresses.   Hold them under your eyes for five minutes.  It should make the swelling disappear.  If anyone asks you why your eyes are red, just tell them you were up late reading and only got a few hours of sleep.

@glyphwitch (07:14:56): oh my god, thank you Amity!!!

@glyphwitch (07:15:09): you're the best!

Luz shoved the scroll in her bag, then pulled out a pencil and piece of paper and got to work.  After a few-second’s thought, she drew a moderately-sized plant glyph surrounded by three inter-connected tiny ice glyphs.  She activated the ice glyphs first, creating three tall but slender pillars of ice.  Then, concentrating her intent into her hand, she activated the plant glyph.  A thick vine with several stems emerged from the paper and wrapped its tendrils around each ice pillar, crushing them into small pieces.

“Yes, it worked!” she said joyfully, impressed with herself.  “What next?  Oh right, the shirts.”  She dashed over to her dirty clothes pile, grabbed the two least objectionable shirts visible, then dashed back over to her cot.  Working quickly, she made two compresses using the ice littering the floor, lied back on her cot, and pressed the compresses onto her eyes.

A minute passed without interruption.  Then Luz heard her door handle jiggle, followed by a quiet thud.  She heard it a second time, and then a third.  The fourth time she understood.  King was trying to open the door.  Before she could call out, she heard a solid impact with the door, followed by a metallic click and a final small thud.

The door began to open.  “Luz, get up!  It’s almost time for…”

Acting on pure instinct she streaked out of bed and flew against the door, slamming it shut and screaming, “King, don’t come in!  I’m naked!”  As she spoke, she heard something hard impact the wall across the hall.

“Ow!  Jeez, I get it!  Gross!  How was I supposed to know!?” King shouted through the door.  “I get that you wanted to protect me from a potentially scarring experience, but did you have to slam the door so hard?  I can feel my brain spinning around inside of my skull!  All I wanted to tell you was that breakfast is almost ready!  Sheesh!”

“Sorry, King!  I’m uh, just.  Really self-conscious!  I didn’t mean to hurt you.”  She paused and looked behind her.  In her panic, she had strewn ice everywhere.  She rolled her eyes, sighed, and looked back to the door.  “I woke up a little late, okay?  I still need to get ready.  I’ll be down in like ten minutes.”

“Ten whole minutes!  Really!?”

“Yes, really!  And if you keep talking to me it’s going to take me even longer!”

“Ugh, fine.  Whatever, just hurry up, will you?  I’m starving and Lilith cooked today so breakfast actually looks good for once!”

She heard his little footsteps trod away.  When she was certain he was gone she locked the door and got to work reassembling the cold compresses.