#it's not like he's ever been happy to see him in the manga thus far

[troius]

Sorry but I think you are seriously underplaying Ichigo´s and Byakuya´s bond.

Maybe they didnt interact much but its the quality of the interactions that matter. Ichigo shocked Byakuyas entire world view, he saved his sister and hes immensely grateful for that. Since then he became Ichigos silent ally, always supporting him in his own way, like when he abused a loophole to let Rukia and Renji go back to help Ichigo rescue Orihime. Or when fighting Yammy he indirectly told Ichigo he trusted him to deal with Aizen.

Saying Ichigo would be happy not having to speak with Byakuya again is just wrong. In this arc we saw Ichigo have dreams about Rukia, Renji AND Byakuya. He got so fucking pissed when it looked like the quincys killed Byakuya.

Byakuya could beat Tsukishima because he valued his bond with Ichigo over the bond Tsukishima userped.

Im not saying your version with Rukia doesnt have more value, but what we got with Byakuya doesnt lack value.

I don't think I am? Here is a summary of Byakuya and Ichigo's canonical interactions, up to this point in the story:

Byakuya abducts Ichigo's close friend and mentor and nearly kills him in the process, insulting him the whole time.

They briefly confront each other in Soul Society jail before Yoruichi stunts on them both and drags Ichigo away.

Ichigo rescues Rukia, provoking a civil war among the Soul Reapers, and Byakuya decides that killing the guy who saved his sister's life is a bigger priority then fighting any of the many traitors running around. Ichigo finds this immensely stupid and isn't shy about letting Byakuya know.

Ichigo and Orihime jumped into his hospital windowsill to ask Renji where Rukia was that one time. Notably, they didn't ask him, even though he's her brother...

He did help Renji and Rukia get to Hueco Mundo, but in the moment it seemed like he was doing anything but. And considering he didn't come until later, it's pretty clear he did it as a favor to Rukia and Renji, not Ichigo.

Finally, he does tell Ichigo to go fight Aizen, but in a weird way that is less "I trust you" and more a combination of "I don't need your help", and "saving Karakura is your job". The actual motive, as Unohana later explains, is just "you're the only one who's not under hypnosis".

So they've spoken six times. Three of those times Byakuya was trying to stab Ichigo with his sword. And in their interactions since, he's never said anything to Ichigo that another captain wouldn't have said in that same position.

Now, does Ichigo care about Byakuya? Sure! He understands that Byakuya is very important to Rukia and Renji, and wishes him well for their sake. But he's got no personal investment in the man himself.

And it's the same for Byakuya. Byakuya doesn't beat Tsukishima because of his strong personal affection for Ichigo, he beats him because Byakuya, at one point, was going to execute his own sister, and Ichigo stopped him eliminating the one avenue he had to start building personal relationships and making himself whole again.

Tsukishima, with his power, spent way more time with Byakuya than Ichigo did, considering he knew all of Byakuya's sword and kido techniques. But Byakuya didn't care, because the principle that Ichigo conveyed to him in Soul Society is worth more to Byakuya then his relationship with a man (he thinks) saved his life. He doesn't kill Tsukishima because he's closer to Ichigo, he kills Tsukishima because he trusts Ichigo's sense of right and wrong, and values those principles more than he values his own life, including the personal relationships within it. So if Ichigo is fighting Tsukishima, he must be the enemy.

Which is very flattering to Ichigo! But it's not really a sign of friendship, as much as moral admiration.

[chronicoverthinker]

I think nobody pointed it out yet but in yesterday’s chapter we can see that “Hikaru” was reading some interesting books. Two of them were “the little mermaid” and “Frankenstein”

Now of course we all know that in the little mermaid , she wishes to become a human to be with the man she loves. In the Disney version she is able to live the rest of her life happily ever after WHILE in the original tale the little mermaid ends up turning into sea foam because her love isn’t corresponded.

I know you guys could say “but wait , how do we know we should take into consideration the original version of the tale?” And the answers is because of the second story.

Frankenstein seems to perfectly parallel what’s been going on in the story so far and let me tell you , that is not good.

In the story a doctor is able to sew together parts of dead bodies to bring it back to life, much like the great brainsnatcher was able to put back Hikaru’s body after his fatal fall and bring it back to life.

The monster is actually a very gentle creature , much like “Hikaru” seems to see the world with childlike wonder and innocence , but at the same time both of them get shunned away for different reason.

The monster doesn’t understand that it’s appearance is frightful to humans , and once it tries to mix in with them they run away terrified. While with “Hikaru” he’s unable to understand the concept of human life and this doing actions that scare others (Yoshiki) even tho his intentions are somehow good (to carry out Hikaru’s dying wish of protecting Yoshiki and making him happy in his place)

The problem is that the monster from the original story , with no love left for humanity , asks to his creator one last wish before completely departing to live in solitude (much like “Hikaru” keeps talking about how he should go back to the mountain). He asks for the doctor to make him a female counterpart , a lover , to share his life with. And doesn’t that sound just like what both Yoshiki and “Hikaru” have been saying? With “Hikaru” purposely reminding the viewer that even if he doesn’t express it , Yoshiki is his. He belongs to him , and as long as he doesn’t have to give up this borrowed humanity of his then he won’t have to bring him back to the mountain with him.

While Yoshiki is ready to give up his everything if it means that “Hikaru” can find a place to live as he pleases.

We could also add in the fact that in the manga it’s been said many times that Yoshiki is mixed with “Hikaru”, starting to become the same as him.

In the story the monster’s counterpart gets killed by the doctor himself , thus making the monster decide to seek revenge by hunting its creator. The story ends with the monster killing it’s creator and then committing suicide.

Let me know what you think cuties 😘

[senkusphone]

Happy Stone Day, everyone!

On this day, when celebrating the onion man is what most people indulge on, let's also turn our eyes to the fascinating civilization that is Ishigami village, in this mini post (compared to what I usually do anyway).

Starting with the reason I am doing this in the first place, Stone Day. It is a celebration from Ishigami Village that takes place in January 4th, which happens to be Senku's birthday, likely an easter egg left by Byakuya in the hundred tales. Unfortunately we weren't shown anything regarding what this celebration involves.

As the manga itself points out, Stone day is significant in several ways, for one, 1/4 is i-shi in japanese, which also means Stone. It is Senku's birthday (and if you've been following me you'll know that the day Senku was born in, January 4th 2004, was the day that Nasa's Spirit rover landed on Mars).

Another tradition is of course the grand bout, which there isn't much left to say about since it was explained in detail in the series, even down to its specific rules

Rule 6 is the only one that wasn't relevant in the series as far as I can tell.

It's been also vaguely implied that there are other fighting tournaments that take place in the village, which makes sense, since why would you keep an open arena just to use it once very 20 years or so?

(Sideways to save vertical space, Suika will pray for your neck)

However it's never explained how this tradition started to begin with; did it exist in treasure island and disappeared after the Ishigami branched off, or did it start with them in the mainland?

The society structure of contemporary treasure island is substantially different, with a number of small villages that are all (at least in theory) managed by a centralized government composed of the master (or "head" much to our amusement) and the prime minister, where most power is held by the master, who also serves as the main religious figure, being the one who largely keeps the hundred tales, which are passed from generation to generation along his lineage.

In Ishigami village things kinda flipped and thus spawned a system that is at least half matriarchal so to speak. Now political power is split between the chief and the priestess, where the chief holds most executive authority while the priestess holds most of the religious power, and it is the lineage of the priestess that keeps the tales and that power in-family, with the chief being some allegedly suited rando from the village.

Even though it's the obligation of the priestess to marry the chief, she is rarely if ever shown as a subordinate to him and both can be seen directing the village, which I think it's very interesting. The anime went as far as expanding on this, by implying that it was Ruri who told Kokuyo to abdicate his position to Senku.

Sneakily she gets to keep being the priestess without having to be engaged, and we see her taking leading roles from then on.

Now I've talked about religious figures but what is their religion to begin with? Hard to tell, we know that they believe in multiple gods who control the forces of nature such as lightning. Similarly it's also been shown that prior to Senku's arrival, they believed themselves to be the only humans on earth, at least some of them believed the earth was flat, and most bizarrely, they believed the moon was something akin to a floating lake, owning to its small apparent size, however that works.

Perhaps they took note of how water tends to form spheres due to surface tension? This reminds me of how some scientist a few centuries ago (but idr who at this moment) believed the moon to be a solid mass of congealed air.

The last thing I want to bring up is the Ishigami village rope, reportedly made with a special technique that's unique to them.

It is also said that the rope reflects rank and profession somehow, but this is not reflected in any noticeable way on the series itself. Boichi probably hadn't been told about this when he designed all 40 known villagers in the span of one week.

The rope is worn somewhere around the body, and it contains a single red thread spun into it, serving as a symbol of kinship among them.

For now I'll leave it at that, as it's getting pretty late in the day, and pretty much all of this is written on the wiki article to begin with. Hope you enjoyed it, I'll see you all some other day.

[idyllic-affections]

I see that you do tbhk! If you could can I request friendship hcs for nene, hanako, and Kou? Ty in advance :)

general friendship hcs.

summary. general friendship headcanons with the main three.

trigger & content warnings. references to death.

tropes, pairings, fic length, & other notes. fluff. yashiro nene & reader, hanako & reader, minamoto kou & reader. 0.8k words. no pronouns for reader.

author's thoughts. hello dear!!!! yes ofc you can.... the tbhk fans have been finding me recently and it makes me so happy helshsjghfh that's my comfort manga (i say, knowing it is the most horrible, gut-wrenching, soul-crushing manga i have read thus far)!!! i COULD say that this is my first time writing for tbhk, but that would make me a liar, because it's not! my first reader insert longfic was a tbhk one on quotev way back in 2021. i'd say i've improved a lot since then.

YASHIRO NENE—

being friends with nene means getting dragged into all of her supernatural adventures. if you're close enough to her, that is.

she, without a doubt, rants to you about her crushes and asks you for advice! she'll also complain about hanako to you, if you so happen to know about him.

she's super supportive. she's always cheering you on and encouraging you! and also, if you want advice or want to rant to her, she's completely open to that.

she rants to you, so you should be able to rant to her too. it's only fair. she does admit, though, that her advice might not be that good.

also i think nene would be physically affectionate. always hugging you, maybe giving you a lil kiss on the forehead if you're comfortable with that! hand-holding is also common with her.

she would be SO happy if you shared her interest in gardening or cooking! she'd love to have another friend to do those things with. if not, that's okay too! she doesn't want her friends to feel uncomfortable or forced to participate in any way.

she cares about you so so deeply and genuinely would be devastated if you ever got hurt because of her.

if you're a ghost, i don't think your dynamic would change much at all, actually. i think she would still treat you the same!

tell her she is pretty!!!! do not let her insecurities get to her!!!! reciprocate her supportive energy!!!!!

she might actually cry if a friend of hers were to support her so passionately.

HANAKO—

like nene, being close enough friends with hanako means you end up getting involved in things you probably shouldn't be involved in LMAO

i don't think he MEANS to get you involved, because he does worry about your safety, but it just sort of... happens. you end up involved regardless.

dude follows you everywhere, 100%

it's like what he does with nene, just without the romantic subtext LMAO

if you're human? he's sitting in your classes with you. he does it mainly for two reasons: one, because it reminds him of when he was alive, and it's strangely comforting. two, because he loves you and wants to annoy you <3

he's generally very clingy, and if you happen to be a ghost? ohohoho it's FAR worse.

he's always touching you in some way.

playing with your hair, fidgeting with your hands, hanging off of your shoulders... he's very touchy. poor thing is so touch starved.

personal space? he has no idea what that phrase means!

(he does, and if you seriously ask him to, he will respect your personal space and boundaries.)

it doesn't come from a bad place. he just finds it grounding. reassuring.

hanako also generally won't come to you with his problems.

he's not keen on being an open book. if you've known him for long enough, he would absolutely be more open to being honest with you, but if you haven't known him long at all? yeah... he's not cracking. trying to forcefully pry him open wouldn't help either.

MINAMOTO KOU—

he will absolutely, without a doubt, make you cute little homecooked meals.

we all know he's the only one out of his sibling's who is both old enough to use a stove and competent enough not to burn the kitchen down, so of course he would spend time making you a lunch!

especially if he felt like you weren't eating enough or you needed something extra to get you through the day. he notices the little details like that.

he's an acts of service kind of guy. he does little things to show you that he cares.

btw. if you're close enough friends with him? tiara and teru will both know you by name. you'll become like another member of their family <3

(tiara would get so excited every time she gets to see you, practically bouncing on her heels.)

i like to think he's a lil protective!!!! he worries about your safety and worries that supernaturals might want to hurt you bc of his involvement with you :c

teru would smite them before they got the chance, though, so kou really doesn't have much to worry about.

if you're a ghost, i think this dynamic would be very fascinating.

teru would try to kill you. yeah... sorry.

kou wouldn't let him though!! he would believe wholeheartedly that you're good and have no intention of being harmful, and because teru isn't really interested in ruining his relationship with his brother... you get to keep living your afterlife!

(please don't betray kou's trust.)

also if you're a little bit older than him, or if you just seem wiser, i think he'd ask you for advice on a bunch of things!

he doubts himself a lot. be sure to reassure him that he's doing the best he can for someone so young.

please consider reblogging, it helps me out quite a lot!

[tariah23]

I wanna know why you're still reading JJK not because it's bad but bc I love seeing you rant about things you love

NATEjajajaaj tbh, I complain about everything I like and everything that I’ve said thus far about JJK, I still feel strongly about because I KNOW that it used to be written way better before but despite all of that, I can honestly say that I still enjoy it a ton. It’s so fun!? I can’t look away?!? I haven’t felt this way about a manga, especially a shounen of all things, in… I really don’t know (I kind of don’t like to count csm since it’s still a seinen to me…). Jjk is joining the ranks of my love for Naruto 🙈……. As absurd as that might sound, it makes me feel nostalgic despite not being that old!!!

It definitely deserves all of its praise as well and I’m not just saying this just because I’m a fan. If it didn’t, I’d definitely say otherwise. I’m glad that everyone is fucking with it! It just made the  Guinness world book of records the other day, I kind of want to throw up 😭. Knowing how Gege’s been writing the story lately, he probably doesn’t give a shit. He just wants to finish JJK as soon as possible so that he could get back to doing fuck all. Well… good for him. But, I’m genuinely glad that I got into it! The fans are annoying but that’s to be expected from a mainstream shounen unfortunately. It’s so nice ignoring them though. That’s the only way you’ll be able to enjoy something as big of a series like this tbh.

All of the characters that I’ve liked or loved never got to the point where they were written horribly like, I can say that Gege has remained pretty consistent in the characterization department, which is a plus, since whenever I get into stuff, I tend to pay a lot of attention to things like this especially. Yuuji is still Yuuji, Sukuna is still that petty old bitch, Gojo remained as silly and courageous till the very end (even tho I still wished that Gege could’ve focused more on Gojo’s trauma… it would’ve been nice to see him overcome the burden of being the apex of the jujutsu society… he was so much more than an idol and he still died believing that that was all that he was. Someone who was so far removed from humanity that he continued to tell himself that this would be all that he ever was and that even if his friends and peers truly did love and respected him, they’ll never learn to “understand,” him because he’s so much more powerful than they were. Their lives would never be the same. And he could never make any of them truly happy in the end. I really HATED THAT Gege let that man go to that DAMN airport still holding onto to his loneliness like this 😭😭😭… and then when you think back to that one scene in the story where various other characters were asked about their feelings towards Gojo, and all most of them had to say was that “he’s the strongest,” I just… :(… Obviously, he’s well respected despite his personality but 😭… Gege, you will burn for this-

I do enjoy how ridiculous JJK can get as well. People can talk badly about it all they want but you can’t say that it’s predictable lmfao. This looney toons ass plot 😭!!! I’m kind of here for the shenanigans. It’s been pretty repetitive as of lately though. Mainly the whole Sukuna vs everyone thing that’s been going on starting from Kashimo (his dumbass) right after Gojo’s death… but it’s okay. Outside of my favs being slaughtered left and right 👎🏾☠️. You can tell that Gege is just rushing through the story now though :/. I kind of can’t wait for it to end but I’m still enjoying the ride until the wheels fall off! I want Yuuji and the rest of the gang to be able to enjoy the rest of their lives, man… Gege wrote JJK with a chip on his shoulder 😭.

[innerchorus]

Ahead of this month's chapter of Arslan Senki, some predictions/theories (that I meant to post weeks ago).

We've all been wondering how Arakawa is going to tie everything together, especially how Zahhak will be integrated into what's going down in Ecbatana. Personally, my theory is that the Worst Coronation Ever™ is going to get even worse, in that following a defeat by Arslan (who as I've said before, I believe will be shown to be wielding Rukhnabad at this point), Hilmes is going to get kidnapped. I'll briefly outline some reasons for why I think this below.

Although the plot has been racing towards its conclusion, so far it has felt fast-paced but not rushed. To have Zahhak simply burst in on the coronation confrontation and be summarily defeated by Arslan there and then would feel rushed and, in my opinion, anti-climactic. But to have one event lead into another would be exciting!

We know Zahhak's body (Kaykhusraw) is vulnerable and starting to disintegrate. We can assume this is why it withdrew from attacking Team Arslan before, as the body took damage from arrows. It's clear that Zahhak is following some imperative to reach Ecbatana, likely related to the head jars. It makes sense to me that these will be used for some kind of ritual to transfer Zahhak to a new host body and bring about the full return of his consciousness.

Hilmes being yoinked (either right after shit goes down at his coronation or from the dungeons shortly afterwards) could result in Team Arslan seeking to locate Zahhak below Ecbatana and defeat him once and for all. Sure, most of Team Arslan would probably be quite happy if Hilmes just fucking died, because it's one more problem out of the way and he hasn't exactly endeared himself to them with his actions thus far, but do you really think Arslan would feel like that? Despite everything, I like to think that as well as defeating Zahhak, he would also try to rescue Hilmes if possible.

And don't you think this would be the perfect opportunity for Team Arslan and the (defeated) Team Hilmes to work together? Don't you think Sam would volunteer himself to go down there too? Don't you think Zandeh would be so desperate to save his Denka that he'd manage to put aside his grudge against Daryun to do so? I'm kind of rambling now but this sort of 'circumstances force opposite sides to work together' thing is 👌👌👌

I honestly think this would be a positive thing for Hilmes's future, too. My biggest hope/theory is that in Arakawa's manga, he will relinquish his claim on the throne of Pars and go to Maryam with Irina. Just being defeated by Arslan wouldn't be enough for him to accept this and become a good neighbour for Pars, in my opinion. But if he sees Zahhak for himself, and faces the full horror of what he has helped facilitate combined with the personal horror of the fate that Team Zahhak have planned for him, then if he survives it then I think he'll be so shaken that his perspective might change, especially if he sees Arslan wielding Rukhnabad to defeat Zahhak. One of the things that also might shake him is witnessing the death of one of his followers.

And if you're wondering how Team Arslan will even be able to find where Hilmes has been taken and where this ritual is taking place? Here is my other prediction!

Team Arslan will capture a mage!

In the last chapter, the presence of the owl felt like a hint that one of Team Zahhak is watching them. If my guess about Arslan wishing to return Rukhnabad to Kaykhusraw's mauseoleum is correct, that mage is likely to follow them there and interfere somehow. Remember Isfan apologising to Narsus for not managing to take the mage in Peshawar alive so they could find out who he was etc? After seeing Zahhak, they're even more certain to want answers. And a captured mage, brought with them to Ecbatana, will be able to lead them down into the Dark Temple.

Also not to be salty that Arakawa already killed Gurgin YET AGAIN but wouldn't it have been perfect for this mage to be Gurgin? This would have been the perfect opportunity for Farangis to recognise him! We could have had backstory! Also yes I did just want to see him fuck up and get captured lmao

[neonscandal]

Hi, Neon....Are you free now? If yes, please read this BL manga : Loss Time ni Hanamuke o by Cocomi...

It's not the sweetest but it's the one of the most realistic BL that I've read until now. It's an angst with a happy ending. And somehow I got SatoSugu vibes from this couple (sorry if I'm wrong). Like they love each other but lack of communication became their problem. It's a break up come together again story...

If you have read it, can I ask your opinion on it? Thanks.....

ANON. ANON. 🧡

I hadn't read it but prioritized it at your request and so, so Satosugu. Haha I wonder if I'd have noticed that had you not framed it up but at the same time, even visually, the long hair and Suguru's own mane... it was bound to happen. Also, don't apologize for your thoughts or interpretations! I definitely don't and I'm sure I've been loud and wrong before (and will be again✨). I appreciate you sharing your thoughts with me and thank you for recommending this!

OPINION

There was something so nostalgic about it. Not just because, unlike most stories, it begins at the tail end of a relationship. But to see what's clearly established affection cooled by the disconnect of miscommunication and a lack of appreciation... I think everyone can relate. It wasn't a sad, traumatic story. But it was a bitter and rueful story that could still evoke tears if you've been in a similar situation. That situation, of course, being one that proves that sometimes love is simply not enough.

Two perfect pieces don't fit together one day and call it happily ever after. Four years in and the couple still struggles with selfishness, with the idea that sex is the same as intimacy or honesty. That someone who can be unilaterally focused on their words, to the point where personal care falls to the wayside, can come up so short when they really matter.

This felt like a really honest (and short!) insight into what broke Tsukushi and Toui apart but also what made them work. In fact, this ask reminded me of another ask wherein I kinda lamented that BKDK or STSG-esque dynamics would be hard to find in something short. But here we are, you with the ultimate sauce and me eating my words. 🏆

We don't know if Tsukushi and Toui end up staying together. Returning to one another with the promise of change could very well be short lived regardless of how earnestly they want to be with one another. But the idea of love spoiling into resentment, especially in the presence of what are clear acts of love being taken for granted do feel SatoSugu-esque in nature. We know there's More (TM) to their story, of course, but this almost shows us that, even if they weren't child soldiers, there would still be a point in their relationship where Geto's overly caring and accommodating nature may want more than catering to Gojo who is so closed off in his own little world. In JJK universe, he's driven by his own identity as The Strongest regardless of how he drags Geto into that entitled status that it blinds him to Geto's own withering mental condition. Moreover, this fundamental idea of Understanding being a necessary part of love is a huge point of contention between SatoSugu that was so disheartening, as well. Thus far, it feels like we only get Gojo's interpretation of events but this story gives voice to Geto's as well which makes him snapping and breaking away from Gojo slightly less uncharacteristic but rather justified when he lacks critical support.

TL;DNR: This story wasn't an emotional rollercoaster fraught with traumatizing drama. Instead, it was a quiet reminder of the love that lingers when things don't end in a bang but rather a whisper. Two lovers desperately huddling their hands around the flickering flame of what once was, uncertain why things simply don't work between them any longer. Relatable pining, would recommend. Especially if you're looking to get a whiff of SatoSugu in another flavor.

[enruiinas]

Headcanon: (Repressed) Survivor's Guilt

We are having Big Thoughts™ on Law & repressed survivor's guilt and not being a "good person" tonight. Rambling and some Law Novel spoilers below.

Survivor's guilt for Law is actually not something I've done a lot of digging into thus far - which is surprising, because my initial draw to him from the manga alone was, y'know... dark/broody/angst vibe (or: my type). I figured I'd dive in and find him angstier than hell and bristly being his constant state of existence, and that I would have fun with that (and I would have).

But then I read the novel and it gave me this entirely new, different read on him - like, different enough that I was like "Wow, what HAVE I been doing, what was I even thinking writing him these past few months without this I WAS SO WRONG ABOUT STUFF-" Why? I think in my head, it took Law a while to get to the point where he truly appreciated/understood what Rosinante did for him. I thought he had years of doom and gloom and guilt and despair, and when he left the North it was not a place he'd ever want to go back to because of how much bad had happened there.

I did not appreciate until reading the novel that Law realized pretty much immediately what Cora-san had done for him. We see him in the very beginning of the story, just days after everything happened at Minion Island, having this (to steal the phrase from @code01746) Trauma Soup™ meltdown, in which he's grateful to be alive, grateful for everything Cora did, grateful for Wolf finding him and taking him in and just... everything. From the moment he walked away from Minion Island, forcing himself to walk through the snow cold and weak and hungry and injured for three solid days to get to that "next village over", Law was already telling himself "I have to do this. I have to keep going. I can't fall down here, or everything my benefactor did will have been in vain." He lacerates his own arm when he gets tired, because he's so close to just collapsing in the snow and knowing he's not going to get up again. And yeah, he's still scared as hell of people and their judgement and how they can hurt him. He's terrified Wolf is going to hand him back over to the Family. And when he doesn't, we see him reflect on how it's because of Cora-san he was able to see the good in people again, and find joy in the world around him, and enjoy those three years with Wolf and the OG3.

He does have a few years of just taking it easy and appreciating the comforts of a normal day-to-day life in Pleasure Town. It's not until later that he decides he has to go out and finish what Rosinante started/avenge his savior. But well before, as soon as Rosinante told Doflamingo that Law was free, Law realized he owed it to his savior to live his life, try to be happy, keep going, all of that. Did I think he was entirely devoid of survivor's guilt? No. He mentions it in passing several times throughout the novel, if I recall correctly - both with Flevance and with Cora-san having to die so he could live. I did, however, think that Law leaned harder into that and forgave himself for a lot because it was what he owed Rosinante. And I think he thinks that, too.

It hasn't been until very recently that I've started realizing the survivor's guilt isn't as "not there" as I thought. It's there - it's just buried extremely deeply out of necessity.

Law has always, always, always told himself what he needed to be. A leader, strong, brave, a reassuring voice for his sister. In this case, he needed to BE free, because that was what Cora-san said he was, so that was what he became. Free as in physically out of the Family's grasp and free as in "past" the guilt and grief that would keep him from using the life Rosinante saved.

I'm mostly discovering this in romantic ship contexts, but I'm sure it's there too if I sit and focus on my familial/platonic connections and his day to day life as well, but I think back to 13-year-old Law's insistence that he had "never been a good person anyway", and how he still thinks that and has a tendency to self-sabotage / backpedal / "chicken out" of things he thought he was interested in because he on some level thinks he doesn't deserve them or will ruin them in the end, and it's only been in light of very recent ooc chats and thinking about how he'd respond to thing or why he sometimes acts ways even he doesn't understand and the conclusion is this: he's still a lot more screwed up about things than he's let himself think about all these years. He didn't let himself dwell, or lament things not being fair, or linger long on the "why them and not me"s because he could not. He told himself he had to be what Cora-san died to make sure he was, and it's felt fundamentally wrong to betray that/not be okay. He knows on a rational level the things that happened to him and his family were not his fault, and he knows he technically couldn't have changed a lot of them, but that doesn't mean there hasn't been some part of him full of grief and regret and wishes that has never forgiven himself, and I absolutely think even though his "goal" was fulfilled he's due for a 'not okay' breaking point and time to really sit down, actually acknowledge things he's been ignoring for a very long time, and properly grieve/mourn/rage - for himself, for his family, for Cora, for all of it. But it will be a rocky road to get there, and this is probably not a thing he's even going to realize is going on until something makes him acknowledge it. (For non-romantic ship interactions, I can absolutely see this all coming up in light of current arc events, so this is not something exclusive only to his ships. I'd love to explore it more in general. T_T)

[also me thinking about all the Family kids probably reaching this at some point in their lives and am definitely looking forward to exploring it from a Baby 5 standpoint one of these days when I get to actually writing on @spiritedawake.]

[banazirgalbassi]

I realize that if anyone reads this, they will come at me for my negativity, and seeing all the other peoples' opinions on the latest chapter has proven to me that I am definitely in the minority here, probably even the only one who took it so negatively. But I desperately need to vent somewhere, and I have no one to talk to about this.

If I hadn't been curious to see where the plot is going, I would have dropped BSD entirely at this point, because it's more than I can take, and the heartache is unbearable. For three years my only solace in life has been the character of Fyodor, whom I saw as a role model and admired him for his strong will and endurance.

The reason for this is that I am a person with many chronic illnesses, and to see a manga character who lives with a chronic illness, even such a relatively minor one as anemia and overall weak immune system, has still inspired me so much and pushed me to go on. It didn't even matter if he was a villain or a good guy, just that he was human, physically susceptible to disease and hardships, and that he endured them day to day and still accomplished so much.

It was the contrast between his fragile sickly body and his genius sharp mind that made him such an interesting character for me, one I've grown emotionally attached to and actually worried about his fate. To me his supposed humanity and frail health meant everything, and now I just feel robbed and betrayed knowing that it was all a lie, that he is not physically human, but some immortal indestructible entity that can't be killed and is immune to all wounds and hurts.

My last hope is that it is one of his past lives that is shown in this chapter, and a different body, not the one with which he was born in the present timeline. I am clutching to this one possibility. Please let it be his past incarnation, and he is just a human who remembers all his past lives. Or that somehow he fabricated false memories in his head for Sigma to read, and he is not immortal after all. Even time-travel would be a good option, just not... THIS.

Because that would mean that he was probably never a child, he doesn't require food or drink to stay alive, sleep deprivation or cold weather won't harm him, and he is not afraid of dying. He certainly doesn't suffer from any health conditions, because it's likely that all the cells and organs in his body can constantly regenerate, thus making it impossible to get sick and cease to function. Even if something can kill him, he won't stay dead and would revive sooner or later. That sure explains every strange thing regarding him in the story that I ever wondered about.

If losing a favorite character to death was bad enough, then losing him to immortality is infinitely worse, as much as I'm happy that he's alive.

I was hoping he would somehow be saved and survive the helicopter crash and recover gradually in an ordinary way, I was even prepared to accept his death. But it turns out he never even needed saving in the first place, and nothing ever threatened his life, there was no risk for him to die from the poison injection, no risk from all the wounds and the explosion, and he will grow back that torn arm, if it was even really his. He will just revive and come back to life like nothing happened.

Yes, I'm taking it way too seriously, and I should lighten up, it's just an anime story, and it's just an imaginary character. But he was my reason to get up in the morning and keep struggling. Now this reason is gone, and I'm completely crushed. My heart is broken. My worst fear about Fyodor's backstory reveal has come true. He was my comfort character and my coping mechanism, and now I have nothing left to hold on to.

Nothing suggested to me in the plot so far that he was not human, quite the opposite, I was led to believe that he was a regular person, with all his purposeful mentionings of his bad health and anemic constitution, other characters repeatedly calling him anemic, him saying he was afraid of catching a cold, etc. Now I understand it was all done deliberately to camouflage his true nature, and I should have seen all the subtle hints that I preferred to ignore.

I thought he had a complex and tragic childhood back in Russia that shaped his personality and motives. Now, regardless of what his motives are, all the depth and mystery to his character are actually gone for me, as he stopped being relatable to me altogether. The circumstances of his life are different, his mindset is completely different to ordinary humans, and he is now as far from all my headcanons as can be.

I thought that one of the main themes in BSD was the human struggle, exploring what it means to be human, the human psyche, and the ability to persevere in the face of any hardships with the help of friendship. In the case of an invincible character like this there is nothing to overcome, other than loneliness and boredom throughout the ages, but that, too, is different from what a mortal would experience. Even the overpowered Chuuya is still mortal and faces risks, even the regenerating Atsushi and the self-healing Yosano can still potentially be killed.

Why, of all the characters, Fyodor had to be the one to turn out immortal and inhuman? We already have Lovecraft who is definitely not human, Bram who is arguably not human, as well as Chuuya and Verlaine who are questioning or denying their humanity, but who are eventually proven to be human despite everything. So I hoped that at least Fyodor would be left out of this non-human otherwordly creatures category. Moreover, everything now seems to lead to him being revealed as the Antichrist or the Devil himself, which makes it all the more frustrating.

Here I was, simply hoping for a character I could relate to and symphatize with his daily struggles. Now it all feels like a big joke and a farce. All I thought I knew about him has been a lie from the start, it was just a fable I made up in my head, and I have only myself to blame for it. For taking it too close to my heart, for having such a childish and petty way of thinking, for exagerrating the importance of a fictional character in my life, for overreacting to this whole situation.

Yes, it's all my fault and my personal mental issues for which I need to seek professional help, I am aware of that. I will just have to learn to live with this pain and utter emptiness, the hole in my heart where there used to be some hope and comfort.

P.S. I sincerely apologize for all the harsh words and my bad attitude, and I hope it didn't trigger anyone too much. I will probably delete this post later.

And I know that I'm just jumping to conclusions and being judgemental when a huge part of the plot is still unrevealed, and I will be the happiest person in the world to be proven wrong in subsequent chapters, but so far I have the feeling that not much will play out differenly to these assumptions.

[swampstew]

Thank you @thus-spoke-lo for the tag in this fun self-recommendation game! I always feel a bit awkward posting reminders and announcements when chapters are ready for reading, but I'll take a moment to hype myself and the words of my labor up. Here are my 5 favorite things I've written so far!

What's the Magic Word? - So I love how One Piece is this giant fantastical world where pirates are a real threat and mermaids, dragons, and magic quite literally exist. I thought it was odd that there wasn't a witch character at all, especially with how well it would fit into the universe, and what type of role/responsibility power like that would look like. Rowena my baby was born. It's everything I've ever learned while practicing the craft, enjoyed seeing in pop culture media, and inspired by cultural lores that I participate in or have great respect for. I wanted to create a character that could believably exist in the One Piece world and then have her do a bunch of fun and cathartic things (that may or may not be a reflection of real life). Falling in love with Eustass Kid was not on my radar (is falling in love ever?) - in fact the first draft of the story didn't have the Kid Pirates at all. Nope, just my witchy girl and the Straw Hats having adventures. Then I got to the Sabaody Archipelago and I saw him. I thought it would be fun to put these characters in a situation where they weren't friends or enemies but rather temporary witness protection body guards with a powerful ass witch as their protectee. Plus the smut. Love the smut and romance always. Its my first writng project I've done since college and I'm so happy to be back in the writing sphere. This book will have a sequel :)

Turn Back Time - This was a random dream that turned into a 20+ multichapter fic and I'm not even mad about it. In this one I took a fun approach to the story by centering it not just on the OCs but the Kid Pirates themselves. My first fic didn't really acknowledge many of them until the editing stage but this fic is entirely about the Kid Pirates and what it's like being in their crew. Especially as the love interests of some of the scariest, beefiest dudes that end up just being touch-starved men who are fully capable of vulnerability and love. It's been fun and I am excited for the upcoming themes and trials they'll go through! There will only be the one book but it will follow the journey of the Kid Pirates up until the very recent events in the manga.

At First Sight - this was a one shot that turned into a mini-series and I surprised myself with how much I packed into it. I didn't want to or expect to make it into a series but after giving it maybe a whole day's worth of thought and effort, I feel like I pulled a pretty good fic out of what was originally a stand-alone porn trope collab story!! This one is also on the Kid Pirates cause they're my comfort characters and again its been a fun way to put a spin on these murderous pirates when they're engaging with someone who's neither foe nor friend. Not a frenemy but a familiar with benefits! I lowkey based Y/N's badassery on Beidou from Genshin Impact.

KillerCook - I saw a hot dude make brownies on Instagram and thought 'what if Killer.' That's it. I wasn't sure how I was going to present it so I settled for creating a social media experience and I'm pretty sure I delivered. I'm a Kid Pirates loyalist, if you want something else you can check my Swampstew Bedtime Stories but my bread and butter are these anarchist psychos. Now comes with accessories such as: baker's hat and apron, and also a set of gold body piercings! The response has been supportive and excitable, and it's inspired me to do another modern social media influencer monetization fic, coming soon 😏 on Friday actually!

Oh Yandere! series - I wanted to give myself an opportunity to play around with some dark content and found myself really enjoying it. Especially in the noncon/dubcon vein. I've been too meek to do anything more than head canons but I have recently been inspired to explore some truly deplorable characters if I pick this series up again. If not, I might do a short series on Yandere Eustass Kid that has some...inspiration from another popular fandom that may or may not piss some people off. ANYWAYS! Live Laugh DarkContent

Tagging for funsies but def no pressure - I just think every author should get a chance to fluff themselves up and talk about their works that make them proud!

@abysscronica @cebwrites @goldenandhappy @zoros-sheath @kenruu @creamsickle-writes

[nagirambles]

Rambling about Fairies - Manga Chapter 170

Honestly, I love the wonderful and tragic implication of Lisanna being alive in Edolas. it’s great it turned out to be Lisanna and the reunion with Mira and Elf is so beautiful, but I fully understand people who don’t like it too. 

There just wasn’t any meaningful buildup to that reveal before we were suddenly given whiplash at the end of the arc. It felt like a shock for the sake of shock, especially since Lisanna doesn’t do anything meaningful narratively after she returns. 

I’ll say it first. I love Lisanna a lot. A LOT. But only in flashbacks and as my fan version of her. In canon, Mashima chucked her aside and sometimes I almost wished she stayed dead because I loved her as who she was in the flashback, as someone so kind and meaningful to everyone. After she came back, Mashima stopped caring about her character, and everything I once loved about Lisanna just stopped happening and was replaced by another face in the crowd. I wish she continued being a wonderful and hailed character, and Mashima should have stopped before he ruined her. 

Often I wonder how it all would have been with a Lisanna that truly wasn’t ours. If this truly was Edo-Lisanna instead of Earth’s. I love how tragic the Nali story is, similarly to how I love how tragic Jude and Lucy’s story is. It just adds so much depth around Natsu’s personality and dynamics with other characters, and I feel that is a bittersweet note of growth and development for him. 

This moment was a powerful climax to Lisanna’s so long buildup of existence. I just wish more was done with it in Edolas before she just returned home. Did she even need to return home? Like, even if it wasn’t to bring her home, what was the point of reintroducing her in Edolas if she wasn’t to become an important/semi-vital part of the Edolas narrative like Edo-Lucy? It would capitalize on their similarities one last time, you know? 

I wish more was done with her potential in Edolas, because just look. Natsu was about to cry. Lisanna being here actually brought a genuine, emotional tear to Natsu’s eyes, and as I’ve mentioned, we don’t usually see that in the manga.

I wanted to see more of this. More of Natsu figuring out how to deal with Lisanna being alive here. I want a dilemma of him not knowing if he should care for her, if he should ignore her, if he can ignore her. Not just Natsu nonchalantly moving on to the serious issues, that makes no sense. (Even if you don’t ship Nali romantically, please, you’ve got to understand, his long-dead childhood friend showed up alive. Who just moves on like it’s nothing?) There was so much buildup to how much Lisanna meant to all of them, so Mashima not following through with it upsets me just as much as the Mystogan-Wendy situation. 

Heck, not just Natsu, I want Happy to react! Natsu is strong enough to hold back, Happy is lost and confused and there’s no better opportunity for him to run to Lisanna for comfort because someone he thought was dead is alive. 

So you know, I will forever despise how Mashima turned this situation comedic for no reason. It’s just so tone deaf to the buildup thus far. Even if that wasn’t their Lisanna, Natsu deserved a moment to actually be vulnerable and express his damn emotions without being thrown into a comedic light. 

Like, I just want Natsu and Lisanna to interact. How ridiculous is it that they don’t ever interact? Literally Lucy and Gray gatekeeps him from it, they can’t even share a greeting before Lisanna is whisked back into being nothing, the plot captures them, and they never interact again. 

This is the stupidest way to end their old friendship without any closure, and I can’t believe anyone could justify this horrible writing. Even the fucking Mystogan-Wendy reunion had more substance to it and that is also rock bottom. 

[whiskeysmulti]

G O K U D E R A for… you guessed it, Gokudera ((OOC: Vday meme btw))

(     *     VALENTINE’S DAY ALPHABET   !  - accepting!

.Whiskey.

G : GIFT. is your muse good at gift - giving or do they struggle to get it right? I think if he was tasked to do it alone he'd suck at it? If that makes sense. Because I feel like he'd over think it too much and not realize that Haru loves him enough that just spending time with her makes her happy.

O : ODE. does your muse have a way with words? Oh we've seen just how colorful his vocabulary is sometimes. Honestly, I don't think he's that good with his words, as we've seen with all their fights in canon, but as far as our ship development, he's learning I feel to be a bit softer and more patient sometimes.

K : KISS. is your muse a good kisser? why / why not? Fun fact, I always headcanoned that he sucks at it at first because she's his first and he doesn't know what he's doing so they need some practice together, IE: making out. U : UNREQUITED. has your muse had their heart broken? -gestures vaguely at the anime for making him look like Tsuna's lost puppy- verse dependent as I've mentioned I do RP him as bi or at least curious, originally I had a headcanon that he might have had feelings for Tsuna at some point and not been able to freely express it. But reading into the manga more it came across clearer that it wasn't romantic it was loyalty to his Boss as we've discussed, he's very ingrained with mafia culture and heavily yankee coded (the rebel, the bad boy, the street smart kid, etc.) and Mafia code is actually really homophobic in a lot of cases so I scratched the whole Tsuna was his first love thing in favor of there possibly being a girl in Italy once but it was like first unrequited crush when he was just a kid kind of thing or possibly a girl he met when he was still on the streets and it wasn't too serious, but like that feeling of admiration because she might have been the first to treat him kindly. Haru thus far is the first girl in our verses that he's ever been serious about as we've seen how he reacts to his fan girls and others like Shittopi.

D : DATE. what is your muse’s ideal date? where / who with / etc? NGL he's old fashioned so it would probably be dinner and watching the stars or something with Haru, just something relaxing and peaceful as I don't see him being too big on crowds like at bars and such. He's more likely to invite her over to have dinner and watch conspiracy theory videos in our verse for them honestly.

E : EMBRACE. does your muse like hugs? what are their hugs like? Not in public, as we've discussed on discord, he's not big on PDA. But when they're alone, whoo boy. He's a cuddle bug and will hold her for hours if she needs him to, it's just the macho persona he puts on that makes him kinda "later honey, not in front of the boys" about it. But when they're alone he's the one clinging to her. I even headcanon if he's away from her he takes an extra pillow with him to hold at night because he's used to cuddling her and can't sleep without holding something.

R : ROMANCE. is your muse a romantic or a cynic? Cynic turned romantic if that makes sense. Didn't believe he'd ever be like this until he did get into a relationship. Always thought she was stupid for being such a dreamer, and chasing the 10th, which we revealed in our threads as far as plotting goes was because he wanted her all along and was jealous.

A : AFFECTION. how does your muse show affection? As mentioned, he can be a little slow to catch on and rough with her when people are watching, but when they're alone he's holding her, kissing and cuddling, running his fingers through her hair, gazing in her eyes and so on. Absolute putty in her hands.

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 320: Deku vs. Class 1-A

Previously on BnHA: Flashback!Kacchan was all “fuck Deku and fuck his stupid goodbye letters, I need to speak to somebody in charge.” Endeavor was all “hello, I am Somebody In Charge.” Kacchan was all “listen up asshole, you need to let us go out and collect our wayward nerd because you stupidly left him alone with All Might and that’s a fast track to disaster right there.” Endeavor was all, “[self-incriminating silence].” Rat Principal was all, “okay sure, have fun kids.” Back in the present, class 1-A was all “hi Deku” and Deku was all “I’M FINE!!!!!” and Kacchan was all “THAT’S WHAT I THOUGHT YOU’D SAY YOU DUMB FUCKING NERD” and so the kids all got ready to fight, because OF COURSE they’re gonna fight. Sorry guys, but yeah it’s happening.

Today on BnHA: Kacchan is all “what’s up Deku you look like a possessed Rorschach test, so anyway how are the new quirks coming along.” Deku is all “they’re coming along like THIS” and uses Smokescreen to try and get away. Kacchan is all “PHASE ONE COMMENCE”, and Kouda, Sero, Jirou, and Ojiro leap into the fray to shower Deku with heaps of love and violence, because this is a shounen manga and kicking someone’s ass while simultaneously proclaiming your undying admiration for them is just how it’s done in these parts. The KoudaSeroOJirou squad then passes the baton to Satou, Momo, Tokoyami, Kaminari, and Shouji, who are all “fuck this mask” and do a bunch of stuff to tear Deku’s mask off because they’re the real heroes. Shouto is all “LOOK AT THE LITTLE CRYBABY, THAT’S RIGHT, GO AHEAD AND FUCKING CRY and by the way let us share your burden please,” and once again I swear this is all very deeply moving and touching within the actual context. The chapter ends with Tsuyu being all “look at me. I’m the cliffhanger now,” and damn.

lol what

I don’t think anyone was expecting that. I mean, not that I’ve got anything against Tsuyu or anything. anyways it’s a very nice cover and I love the colors and I hope this means Tsuyu’s gonna do something badass

also, “Deku vs Class A” -- pretty much the expected title, but it’s still got me hyped nonetheless fuck yeah let’s go

IIDA ANGST

Iida Tenya really said “fuck the uniform code, we’re leaving the helmet at home today.” sorry kids, prim and proper C-3PO Comic Relief Iida has left the building. can I interest you in some Serious Iida

meanwhile Kacchan is all “sup Deku, I heard you got a few more quirks, and might I just add that you look like the Snyder Cut of Detective Pikachu”

“you look like a tarred and feathered squid” okay easy there Kacchan. I mean it’s all true of course, but still

“thank you all for coming” OH EXCUSE ME SON, WERE YOU PLANNING ON GOING SOMEWHERE. LET’S JUST SEE HOW THAT PLAYS OUT

yep and there’s Smokescreen, right on cue

okay Horikoshi, I leave it in your hands. hopefully you can come up with some more interesting combos than my dumbass predictions lol

LOL THIS ISN’T A COMBO AT ALL

“explosions solve everything” -- Horikoshi Kouhei, 2021. something something shockwave, something something handwave ta-da no more smoke. lol okay then

oh, ouch

he would know, wouldn’t he. nice application of one of your many hard-earned life lessons, Kacchan

by the way you guys, just as an experiment, I’m going to try to anticipate some of the discourse this week in the hopes of preemptively addressing it and thus saving myself some time later on lol. so here’s our first test run!

ANTICIPATED DISCOURSE: “oh my god what a fucking hypocrite can you believe this fucking guy”

PREEMPTIVE REBUTTAL: it’s precisely because Kacchan has been in this exact situation himself that he’s able to recognize his past self in Deku now and call him out on it. just because it took him sixteen years to get it through his head that he can’t accomplish every single thing completely by himself doesn’t mean Deku has to go down that same path. so yeah, maybe it is a bit hypocritical, but if you insist that the only people qualified to call out stupid shit are people who have never done a single stupid thing in their own lives, then what you’re basically saying is that absolutely no one on earth is qualified lol. so yeah, I’d have to disagree

and one last unrelated note, I’m willing to bet the whole “you didn’t even say a word before you ran off” thing is possibly the first thing Kacchan’s said in this whole encounter that actually does stem from genuine hurt rather than his tough-love-harsh-truths strategy. I’M TAKING NOTES HERE HORIKOSHI. at this rate it’ll take twice as many chapters as DvK2 for them to hash out all the stuff between them, geez

anyway so I gotta say, so far Deku vs. Class A is looking an awful lot like a DvK3 wearing a hat, trenchcoat, and sunglasses lol

OH SHIT I TAKE IT BACK??

FUCK YEAH, YOU GO KOUDA. and I guess he ditched his mask as well! excellent

so far the strategy here seems to be “Kacchan says all the mean tough love shit while the rest of 1-A balances it out with warmth and kindness”, which actually works pretty well imo. Deku is one of those people that doesn’t usually need a Kacchan Translator anyway, but just in case, this is very efficient

mm but of course Deku is slingshotting himself away with Blackwhip. all right then, who’s up next!

FUCK YEAH

okay but seriously you guys, what is going on with Sero’s face in these last couple of chapters though, it’s really starting to unnerve me. is he trying to emulate Kacchan’s whole asymmetrical facial expressions thing?

in fact let me just quickly hit pause here because,

ANTICIPATED DISCOURSE: “SERO IS TOGA??!”

PREEMPTIVE REBUTTAL: no

oh snap looks like Jirou’s getting in on the action too!

poor Jirou probably spent days racking her brain trying to think of something she could bond with Deku over. is Horikoshi doing these in reverse order of the kids who have had the most interaction with him? that would explain why poor Kouda didn’t get a flashback lol

omg. well that answers that

so by my count, Satou and Hagakure are the only ones remaining in this first tier of kids who Still Appreciate Midoriya even though they’ve barely ever spoken two words to him in their lives lol. so they’ll probably be next, and then we’ll get to the next tier of kids who are pretty good friends with him but not quite besties. and then we’ll move on to the IidaRokiRaka trio, and then lastly, to the boy who is in a tier all his own

BUT FIRST, A WORD FROM OUR SPONSOR

and by “sponsor” I mean the Dekuangst. just in case that wasn’t clear. indeed, many thanks to the Dekuangst for making this all possible

(ETA: okay so this whole “take me away” line seemed pretty weird to me, and sure enough it’s yet another one of those cases where only the verb is specified, and the object is left to the reader’s interpretation. so even though the translation says “take me away”, I’m pretty sure that what Deku’s actually saying is “take you away” -- as in, his loved ones will be taken away by AFO.

and that is literally the way he phrases it, though -- the verb used is “奪う” (ubau), meaning “to snatch away; to dispossess; to steal.” which, god, that hurts my whole goddamn heart though, because for him to say it like that?? not “AFO will kill you”, but “AFO will take you away from me.” he can’t have nice things anymore because of AFO. he can’t be around the people he loves because AFO will hurt them. he can’t have happiness because AFO will take it away from him. anyway so where the fuck is AFO right now, motherfucker I just want to talk.)

by the way can Ojiro just extend his tail to whatever fucking length he wants or what because it’s like twelve feet long in this panel lol

WOOO FUCK YEAH TOKOYAMI

YOU LOVE TO SEE IT!! BUT WHERE’S YOUR FLASHBACK? YOU’VE HAD A BUNCH OF INTERACTIONS WITH HIM, THAT’S NOT FAIR

okay so now Satou’s stepping in which is back to my anticipated order, so maybe Toko will finish his little moment afterward

dskfjfkk

“REMEMBER THAT TIME DEKU BORROWED SATOU’S FOOD COLORING” Horikoshi says, sweating. “AND REMEMBER THAT TIME HE, UM, SMILED IN HAGAKURE’S GENERAL DIRECTION”

actually I am curious about what Hagakure’s part will be because, you know, the whole traitor thing lol

(ETA: funny how we just skipped right over it huh. can we get a traitor reveal countdown started here? definitely getting close to that time.)

whoa lol wtf

MOMO??? THIS HAS MOMO WRITTEN ALL OVER IT DAMMIT

-- SWEET MOTHER OF FUCK

“SORRY MIDORIYA-SAN, I LEFT MY FUCKING CHILL AT HOME IN THE LOCKER NEXT TO IIDA’S HELMET” holy shit lmao

and here I thought she’d get a flashback to her time on the Baku Rescue Squad or something. but nope, no flashbacks from Momo, only terrifying sci-fi torture devices

poor Dark Shadow is such a trooper omg

“why am I the only one who has to make prolonged contact with his smelly disgusting self” taking one for the team there DS

FUCK YEAH KAMINARI NO JUTSU

THE PRICKLY BASTARD WHISPERER STRIKES AGAIN!! don’t suppose you brought any clean clothes you could sneakily force him into huh Kami

okay here we go, so now Shouji and Tokoyami are joining forces

um excuse me this is fucking awesome

wonder how he’ll break free? don’t think he’ll reveal Fa Jin until the end of the chapter, so maybe Air Force or something? idk

TOKO GETS AN EXTENDED MOMENT BECAUSE HE IS A TIER TWO PATREON REWARD LEVEL FRIEND YAY

WHY IS MOMO MAKING THIS FACE LOL YOUR THING WAS WAY WORSE

and Shouji just casually hitting him with what is easily the best comment from anyone yet. too bad Deku’s just gonna ignore it. you deserve better Shouji

KAMINARI OMFG

it only just occurred to me that Kami is currently trapped inside Dark Shadow right along with him lmao omg. realest one in the entirety of BnHA, right here. we will never forget your sacrifice

aaaaaaand Deku’s yeeting himself

do you really hate the thought of taking a bath that much my dude

oh shit the mask!!

-- oh shit the feels

o(TヘTo)

fuck. and I mean, we knew he was crying, that was a done deal. but still, to see him in this much pain is just...

and the acknowledgement that he knows they’re worried about him, but that it doesn’t change his mind one bit. this, right here, is why they have to be a bit harsh with him, you guys. because they’re up against the full, unbridled stubbornness of Midoriya fucking Izuku, and if they don’t match that stubbornness with an equal stubbornness of their own, they basically don’t stand a chance

(ETA: quick note that there is apparently another mistranslation here -- rather than saying that his friends are oblivious to the danger, what Deku is actually saying is that none of his friends have activated his Danger Sense once throughout this entire fight. which I had been wondering about, and it turns out Horikoshi actually confirmed it. so basically none of the kids bears any ill intent toward him, and there’s literal proof right there.

incidentally, as @class1akids​ pointed out, this also casts an interesting light on this chapter in terms of who hasn’t fought Deku yet. not to play the Hagakure Traitor Music for the billionth time you guys, but I’M JUST SAYING lol.)

anyway, but the good news is that they all seem to understand that. and the even better news is that we have reached the tier 3 friends!!

“OR ELSE” lol, great to see Shouto wielding his friendship just as aggressively as Deku once did towards him. I do love a good role reversal

p.s., ANTICIPATED DISCOURSE: “why is Shouto being so cruel to Deku can’t he see how hard this is on him”

PREEMPTIVE REBUTTAL: this is a callback to the classic “even heroes cry when they have to” Shouto line from chapter 137. Shouto is clearly following Kacchan’s lead here and going for the more ruthless approach, knowing that the gentle approach isn’t getting through to him (if anything it’s only making him more stubborn as we saw on the previous page). basically it’s his way of pointing out that even heroes are still only human, and so is Deku last time he checked

ah okay, and there Tsuyu is at last

okay real talk, I get why Tsuyu is included in the tier 3 friends, because she was one of the first people to team up with Deku going all the way back to USJ. but that said, this probably would have had more impact if their most recent interaction hadn’t been like 150 chapters ago

but anyway though it’s still a good speech. maybe not quite a cliffhanger-level speech, but a good speech nonetheless. in a way though, I’m glad to see that Horikoshi seemingly didn’t give a fuck whether he ended this on an actual cliffhanger or not for once

and that “headed toward the climax” part has me excited too, ngl. because if we really are getting to the so-called climax this soon, that makes me even more certain that there is indeed a DvK3 in the forecast. so I presume that next week (or I guess two weeks from now) will be the tier 3s along with the remaining tier 2s like Kirishima and Aoyama

and then after that, well... [orange and green banners being hoisted] [sound of screeching airhorns and vuvuzelas in the distance] [sound of All Might approaching in his car which I didn’t notice until I looked back at this page a second time whoops] THE PROPHECY WILL NOT BE DENIED

[completeoveranalysis]

~

Warning! This post contains spoilers up to chapter 170 of Tsubasa (and Chapter 71 of xxxHolic). Please skip this if you have not read that far.

Please also make no comments about what happens after that point in either manga.

~

SO here is the other splash image that really stuck out to me:

This time not because of the Seresu arc but because of how the Infinity arc itself ends.

Here's the link to the original post the image is from if you'd like the full context, but the particular quote from that post I want to use as a reference is here:

"Syaoran also sits on the throne - which as far as I can tell, isn’t his. ... The only one ever wearing the crown they’re all wearing [on their clothes] is Sakura. Now, does it make sense that Syaoran has usurped her throne? Heck yeah! He’s stolen everything from her. He’s stolen her journey (they’re following him now, always a step behind), he’s stolen her feathers, and he’s stolen the person she’s in love with."

Where I was kind of on the right track but couldn't have possibly guessed what all the chess imagery was ultimately feeding into. Looking back now the initial liveblogs for all of these Chess-related splash images are such a big mix of different iconography, so it’s very fun reading through all my old guesses back then. I think I did a really good job of trying to decipher some of it, especially the Cinderella and Snow White imagery in Chapter 140, but the Chess was a bit trickier.

Which, like, understandable, because the chess game that was happening in the chapters was stressful as heck and did not end well, but there is a nice conclusion to it with this image which is easier to read now - especially in regards to Sakura. Because it's made very clear to the viewer that the symbol of the Queen piece is in reference to her; both in these splash images (where she wears the crown at one point, and every character wears the symbol in ways that reflect their allegiance to her) and in the plotline, where she functions as the Queen of the battles taking place. Here is another good example of the symbol being used for Sakura with it right there on her throne, and the two Syaoran's wearing the symbol in smaller ways to represent their relationship to her. But with that all in mind? I had no idea what it was really getting at with Syaoran on Sakura's throne here.

BUT NOW I DO.

If you go back to that example I just gave with Sakura sitting on her throne? It's a different throne! It still makes it very clear that she's undeniably the Queen piece, with the symbol in gold actually being a key part of the throne itself.

And the throne Syaoran sits on? It has the crown symbol as part of the decoration, but it's not representing him, it's just a small symbol to show that matches Sakura's throne. This throne is his own.

He's the King piece.

(And, important distinction; the throne is not Lava Lamp's, but our original plotline Syaoran who is now in Autopilot mode.)

This wouldn't have occurred to me the first time through because I was focused so much on what this might mean for Sakura, and how she related to everyone else, but the way the Infinity Arc ends really hammers this home. After all, Sakura is the mastermind in this arc - everything that happens is according to her plan. She's not playing chess just during the literal chess matches, but during the entire plotline, moving every character and circumstance into place to enact her final plan; to activate both Chi's at once, absorb both their feather's, and trigger Fai's curse - resulting in her pseudo (if purely physical) death. But like we see in the plotline, this isn't a loss - it's a win. It's exactly how she planned things to unfold, and it will lead her to winning the game.

Just in case anyone isn't familiar, in Chess the queen is the most powerful piece capable of the widest variety of moves - but the queen is not the endgame goal. You can lose the queen piece in any game and (besides losing a powerful piece) it's not the end of the world. You can still win the game without the queen piece. It's the King piece that's the Win/Loss condition. The King is the piece you have to keep safe at all costs, even if you lose other pieces in the process. The second the King dies, the match is over. You've lost.

And this matches exactly how Sakura played the series events. She was the Queen in control of every move, and Syaoran was the Win condition she was focused on. She foresaw Fai killing Syaoran in the future - which, for her, is the Losing Scenario. She planned everything to avoid this, and she succeeded! She lost the Queen piece (ie, her physical body) but won the ultimate goal of keeping the King safe. She won the 3D future chess game that she was playing by herself, and positioned herself in the place that would have the most benefit for the victory at the end. (Which I still haven't seen, but she was VERY confident about this having a better result than Fai killing Syaoran.)

I'm also super happy that this ties in really well with the fairy tale allusions I talked about back in Chapter 140, but in ways I wasn't aware of back then either.

I talked about Snow White and how the apple (that shows up in a lot of the splash images in Infinity) may have been referring to Sakura's tendency to sleep a lot. What I didn't realise was that Sakura was essentially about to pull the Big Brain Snow White maneuver on herself to ultimately win her chess game. While in Snow White the poison apple is a trap, here Sakura sprung the trap intentionally. Fai is the apple she bit into deliberately - she arranged it so that killed her body, breaking his own curse, and sent her to the World of Dreams (and thus, she is asleep) which also placed her in a Glass Coffin (aka The Jam Jar of Dreams - Im sorry I have no memory of what it's really called). So the Snow White metaphor is now complete.

But also Cinderella! In the image for 140 Sakura is trying on a glass slipper - so she's Cinderella figure as well. But at this point in the plot the clock hadn't struck midnight just yet - like Cinderella, Sakura knew the exact time limit she had to work with, and for her the timing had to be PRECISE. She spent all of Infinity stressed out of her mind about this plan she couldn't trust anyone else with, knowing full well that if she missed the window even slightly it would ruin absolutely everything and they would all lose. Which, funnily enough, makes Yuuko the fairy godmother, since she provided Sakura with the magic she needed to make her plan happen (via wishes). This also means that Fai stabbing her with the sword is the exact moment the clock struck twelve - and like the spell finishing, Sakura could finally drop the act and explain what she had done, even as all the magic disappeared (ie, her luck being traded away). There's even a detransformation sequence of a sort, with her body and soul going in two different directions. But either way, the Cinderella metaphor is also complete!

And with all that done the last part I want to talk about is back in the image of Syaoran on the throne. He's framed on either side with the curtains that portray the chess board, and they're tied back by chains with him in the very centre. He is visually chained to the board - which, like, of course he is. With his Autopilot programming in place he's essentially just a chess piece without any will of his own - a winning piece, for sure, but he's still being moved around without his choice. He's playing the game on auto, making the moves that will lead him to the winning gambit, but without his individual soul he has no choice but to keep playing until the game is over. The goal he's working towards isn't even his - it's Evil Wolverine's. So in the same way that everyone else was a chess piece in Sakura's strategy (if, sort of, willingly), including Sakura herself, Syaoran is a piece being moved around in Evil Wolverine's favour - though if he dies, it's game over for Sakura's side as well.

I'm unclear if Syaoran dying would be a game over scenario for Evil Wolverine, but at the very least it would end the game he is currently playing.

So, in the hyper future 3D chess game that Sakura was playing by herself she couldn't properly win the game for her side by taking out Syaoran because he's her king piece too. Syaoran is the piece at the centre of everything, and will be the key to winning the game for either side. We just have to wait and see if Sakura's gambit will pay off in the way she thinks it will.

[h3l10tr0p3]

MANGA CH. 284 SPOILERS

OF REDEMPTIONS AND ATONEMENTS:

We all been knew, man. We all knew this was coming.

And godDAMN does it fucking HURT. (oh the sweet sweet angstfest this whole chapter is, just *chef's kiss*)

But i legit cannot put into words how deep the choice to 'Atone' cuts on my bleeding bkdk heart. Let's first take a step back and see how Katsuki went from DvK2 to here- that one keystone moment that has given us this beautiful chapter: And I meant ALLLL the way back to Chap. 252

I have already written a whole-ass post based on this panel, which you can check Here.

TL;DR Katsuki was actually paying real close attention to Endeavour in this part. He came to Endeavour to learn exactly what he was missing as a Hero, but he learnt so much more.

This scene in particular left a momentous impact on Kacchan. Here, Natsuo is resistant to the idea of forgiving his father for all his sins just because he is more involved in their lives now. And Endeavour had been dreaming for a while about a Home where he is not present with the rest of the Todoroki's which ultimately gave him the idea of buying a house for the others to live in apart from him. This is HUGE. This is what actually drove Endeavour's Redemption home- the perfect understanding and the perfect compensation, the two elements of a brilliant Redemption Arc. NOT THE FORGIVENESS, just as Enji says it. It is NEVER ABOUT THE FORGIVENESS.

Endeavour understood that it was his presence that caused his family distress, and although he dearly wanted to be a part of his family again, was even making efforts towards it by being cordial and accepting of Shouto's friends, inviting them to a family dinner, etc. etc. Endeavour realized the only way he can compensate/atone was to give up something that would cause him suffering, and them happiness. The idea that your family doesnt want you, when you just started to show some effort and HOPE that they might see you in different light, maybe forgive you and then to just terminate those ties entirely, punting yourself into a void where NO ONE CAN COME IN AND SAVE YOU FROM YOUR SUFFERING, is exactly what Endeavour did. He is actively shutting down the ONE window through which his family could see that he was suffering, and miserable, and wanted to be a part of the family again. Endeavour CHOSE to not be forgiven. To writhe with the knowledge of his sins day in and day out with only the shrine of Dabi Touya to haunt him every waking minute.

I cannot explain just how much determination it takes to do that, man. It's just- WOW.

Excuse me for ranting on Endeavour in a bkdk post, but I swear this has a point. And All Might says this the best:

This is the fanlation, the official release (which I couldnt get my hands on) also mentions that "When I meant you were like Endeavour, I meant the Change"

This here is an important bit that AM has caught onto.

In the 252 panel, where Endeavour says 'It's not like I want forgiveness' (Because Endeavour understands he cannot be, should not be, forgiven) "I just want to make up for everything I have done" (and to back this up, Endeavour shuts down the one communication link that could have offered him forgiveness, and thus salvation from the weight of his sins and his guilt)

Katsuki understood Endeavour's idea of redemption very well here, although he might not be shown with that light-bulb moment. He may have already known this wayyy before Endeavour said anything, but those words lent a solidity and to the path he must persue to acheive redemption: And it's Not forgiveness.

Let me tell you why I think Atonement is the greater factor here, even greater than Redemption itself. Redemption has an end-point: Forgiveness. But Atonement doesn't. Atonement has no expiry date. Atonement is purely propelled by the understanding of self, and the weight of guilt the self bears, whereas a Redemption is All About The Forgiveness.

Forgiveness is an external force, it may or may not be given to you and that is completely up to the person who has been wronged. Atonement is self-imposed, it is a meditation of the soul to forgive itself against the guilt it carries.

If Redemption is a marathon with a banner at the finish line, Atonement is trying to drag a twenty pounds of rocks through the Sahara desert without water, food or a compass- it's endless, hopeless.

And this is why Atonement is greater than Redemption.

And do you think someone as stubborn as Kastuki will ever find himself atoned of his deeds? No. And That, my friends, is The Point. In 252, when Endeavour says, "I dont want forgiveness" it's not just him saying it- it's also Katsuki. "I just want to make it upto you", is also Katsuki.

And to prove it, Katsuki will never ask for forgiveness. A verbal apology will be nice, sure. Especially since dumb-ass, gay-ass, 'Kacchan-sugoi' ass Izuku Doesn't even See it as Atonement. He is just #Blessed that Kacchan and he can talk almost-naturally again. And that is also Katsuki's intention- because the moment Izuku knows, he won't be able to atone this way anymore.

So, as much as I HATE to say this, the chances of a voluntary verbal apology are slim. If allowed to go on like this, Kacchan with continue to shadow Izuku through his life, worrying about him, LOSING SLEEP OVER HIM :

LOOK AT THOSE BAGS UNDER HIS EYES. /*shoves panels in yo face*/LOOK

Can you believe this bitch-ass gremlin who goes to sleep at 8:30 got bags just from stressing over his Deku??????

LOOK AT HIM DOING A HECCIN' MAJOR KOKORO-STOPPING CONCERN.

(He is flipping his shit because he worries, and he worries so much, and has worried for him for a long LONG time.)

- Katsuki will continue on this path of being Izuku's support.

Forever if it takes.

Forever, he hopes, it takes-

Because the only way he will stop is in death, either his own or Deku's.

This is his Atonement: To undo everything he once did, to support Izuku's dream instead of squashing it; To help him get stronger instead of perpetuating the narrative on his weakness; To protect him from all harm, when he once hurt; To be on his side when the whole world is against him, because once he was all, but, for him; To save Izuku as he wins, to win as he saves.

And, To deny each oppurtunity of forgiveness even as he desperately longs to be unburdened of his guilt.

Because Katsuki knows:

He knows Izuku is that one of a million, he is kind and humble and considerate and loving to a fault.

Katsuki knows that Izuku will forgive him in a heartbeat. That is just the kind of selfless, beautiful person he is.

Unlike Endeavour, who had no guarantee to forgiveness, Katsuki does. And that is what makes Katsuki's Atonement more powerful than Endeavour's. He recognizes it is in his grasp, just an arm's length away...

....Just an arm's length.

And Katsuki will deny himself that. Because he does not believe he deserves it. He hasn't atoned enough for it.

"Keep At Arm's Length"

He says. Because this is the critical distance between them. Not "Stay an arm's length away", because Katsuki doesn't wanna run away from Deku, and he doesn't want to be too far away to protect him, nor does he want to get too close to finally recieve the forgiveness that will give him salvation.

This is the fine balancing act Katsuki must maintain indefintely till he believes he has acheived his idea of atonement. (And when has he ever been happy just the bare minimum?)

I know I said Katsuki will never ask for forgiveness, and a voluntary verbal apology is very unlikely, because in it's very nature, it is inviting a forgiveness from Izuku, which we have established, Katsuki wants to avoid. And if this were any other manga, we would have been doomed to this conclusion. But, there is a scenario when Katsuki might issue a verbal apology and that is when Katsuki knows there isn't enough time to be forgiven in turn, or, hasn't atoned enough and can no longer continue to.

Like when Katsuki launches off, to deliver a final kamikaze blow to a villain, and he has only enough time to tell Deku a short "I am sorry", but not enough time to wait for a reply. Or when Deku is dying and at his final moments, when Katsuki knows however much he has atoned isn't enough and isn't how Deku should leave, without closure.

Whatever the future may hold, my dear readers, Katsuki still has a long, long way to go. And I hope to see him live through everything, to be there -

To survive these wars with Deku, To fight alongside him, To protect him. To win. To save.

To Live.

To hear Deku say "I had forgiven you a long time ago";

and ofcourse,

To forgive himself.

[dragonsareourfuture]

Mello/GN! Reader — Shower Thoughts

I’m reading the death note manga for the first time and I recently got to that part where Mello’s just kinda. Waitin’ outside the shower for Halle bc they cant talk anywhere else without being heard by bugs. I think its really funny but I couldn’t help but imagine that same scene happening with someone with a completely different personality. So have a small thing I wrote about it. Basically the reader likes to be annoying and uses humor to deflect from serious situations. I’m not self-projecting what do you mean.

“So.” You haven’t shut up since Mello pointed the gun to your head. It’s like he’s forced you to spit out an essay of the dumbest shit he’s ever heard and you were giving him material for an ‘A+’. He has no idea if this is your way of panicking during a stressful situation or if you just like to irritate him. He just knows he’s annoyed as all hell and has the power to silence you…but he wouldn’t do that. He needs you to get to Near. Unfortunately. “How was your day?”

His eyes bore into the sink, as if willing the faucet to start up and fill the room with water so he can drown. “Are you fucking kidding me right now?”

“You’re right, you’re right. I guess that wasn’t the best question, huh? Sorry.”

Mello hums. He’s staying as still as he can. It’s not like he thinks that any movement will prompt you to talk again, but that’s what the paranoid part of his brain is telling him. Silence. He just needs a few moments of silence—

“Ah, shit! Soap in my eye! I got—ahhh fuck – I got soap in my eye…”

“Great. Think you can suffer any more quietly?”

“Wow. No sympathy.” You pout, and the tone in your voice is genuinely upset. Most likely because he’s not playing along and not because you’re so offended that he’s being cruel to a poor, soap-blinded person. “Gevanni wouldn’t treat me this way.”

“If he could hear you I’m sure he’d want to blow your brains out, too.”

You bark with laughter. Mello hears a soap bottle fall.

“Aren’t you so cute! I certainly don’t mind if you stay here a little longer, yellow Mello! We could build you a nice lil’ pillow fort in the bathtub.”

Mello’s rubbing his temples, letting out a labored sigh. He is legitimately getting a headache from you. He thought that was just something people claimed happens when they’re being dramatic but he is actually getting a headache. But again, he needs you. And you’ve been an incredible help thus far. Despite your mannerisms and attitude, you’re actually a pretty serious and loyal person when it counts. These are all things Mello tells himself as he’s counting down from one hundred – and old anger management trick that he was forced to learn back at Wammy’s. He has found that it has little effect.

“Hey,” you call, as if bothered by the short bout of silence in the room. “I’m- shit…I’m sorry, okay? I don’t like this situation either. But I guess…I’m trying to make it a little better?”

For once, you let only the patter of water on porcelain fill the room. He can almost hear your breathing, and it sounds calculated. Mello’s headache wains.

“Thanks.” It’s all he can think to say. He knows you mean well, he always has. “I appreciate the effort.”

Your relieved chuckle bounces off the walls. It’s a sound Mello is happy to hear.

“M’glad.” And he can tell you are, as the smile you wear can be heard in your voice. “I’ll be done in a minute, I promise. I just gotta wash my hair so I’ll give you a play by play of what I’m doing so you know just how ‘almost done’ I am.”

“(Name), please don’t—“

“I’m grabbing the conditioner.”

“I swear if you—“

“I’m squeezing some onto my hand.”

Mello can feel his headache creep back into his skull. “I literally have a gun and you’re gonna make me wanna—“

“I’m putting it on my hea-AHH!” your riveting narration is interrupted by a screech when Mello punches the shower curtain right next to your face. “JESUS!”

He goes to tell you off when his eyes flit to the bathroom mirror and his words are caught in his throat. The sight that greets him is different for two different reasons. The first reason makes the second reason even more curious. Firstly, Mello has learned to accept that his face will never look the same again. His eyes wander around his left side, trace the pattern of the scar melded into his flesh like a searing reminder of how he’ll always be stuck where he is, never progressing, never rising above. But the scar has more than mental drawbacks; it also limits the physical movements of his features. Its stiff, like stone has begun to creep over the expanse of his face. So why, then, was he just able to smile so effortlessly without even noticing?

As annoying as you are…you’re the most fun Mello’s had in a while.

“Alright, I’ll stop! I’m sorry!”

“Yeah, Yeah. Just hurry up.”

“Oh right, we’ve gotta deceive my boss in a few.”

Mello snorts at how nonchalantly you say it. “I doubt he isn’t aware of us already.”

“’Us’?”

“That we’ve been conspiring.”

“Oh, right,” you chirp happily, but a tense pause follows. “For a second you made it sound like…”

“Like what?”

“Pshh, I don’t know!” you do know. “Now I’m about to get out so look away or I’ll throw soap in your eyes.” Ah, changing the subject. A classic method of avoiding embarrassment and a tactic you’ve grown so used to using it’s practically an unconscious choice by now.

But luckily, Mello doesn’t seem to want to dwell on it either. He instead focuses on your last sentence, responding by clicking his tongue against his teeth. “We’re both adults here.”

“I know that! I’m concerned that if you get a look at my godly self you won’t be able to control your adultly urges.”

“’Adultly’s not a word.”

You’re able stick your tongue out at him once you pop your head out of the shower, grabbing a towel from the rack.

“Taking the high road, I see.”

“Oh, shush. I never take the high road.” You flick water at Mello as you step out of the shower. “Alrighty. Time to go pretend to be a hostage while you threaten my boss. Oh, clothes first!”

“I’ll be here.”

After sending an affirming thumbs up, you exit the bathroom, a swirl of steam trailing behind you.

He’ll be here…It honestly is a shame he can’t stay here any longer. But it’d be suspicious. Near would find too many connections between the two of you. But…there are ways to avoid that happening.

Mello finds himself seriously considering the bathtub pillow fort idea.