#it's not what Screecher says

[gray-skiess]

over-the-ocean call | j.p.

summary: you and james tried to make long distance work

inspired by over-the-ocean call by lizzy mcalpine

warnings: no war au! , fem! reader , swearing , fluff to angst , maybe a resolution ??? , a vague understanding of how collect calls work, bad writing (probably), unedited, use of 'y/n' a couple times

i do not in any way endorse or support j.k. rowling

word count: 3.9k

masterlist

---

third year

“Before we begin please make sure your partner next to you has properly secured their earmuffs”

Professor Sprout circled the rows of desks as students turned to one another, chatting for a bit while they waited for the next set of instructions. In the back of the classroom James Potter laughs at something Sirius Black says then looks at his own partner. He hadn’t had the need to speak to you all year, but all of the sudden there you were and he couldn’t think of a single reason why he hadn’t tried.

“How loud do you reckon they actually are?”

You’re pulled out of your daze, shifting your eyes to meet the hazel ones of your partner. You knew of James Potter and his friends. You were lucky enough to have never been subject to their merciless pranks, but heard tales of the four’s reputation and their seemingly reserved seats in detention. And now here James Potter was, asking you about Mandrakes and ‘how loud you reckon they are’

“Not louder than your mum in bed last night” Sirius interrupts in the background, James whips his head around and grimaces, “Gross mate, really?” Sirius shrugs, cackling to himself, and moves into conversation with Remus beside him. You laugh once and the ice between you and your tablemate is broken at long last. James smiles at the sound of your laugh, mentally making a note that he should hear it more.

“Sorry about that-” James starts but is quickly interrupted by Professor Sprout resuming her instruction.

“And now once you’re sure your ear muffs are on- grip the mandrake by the stem and pull firmly.”

Students all around lift their mandrakes and re-pot them according to the professor’s specific directions.

It wasn’t until after the class ended that James had the opportunity to speak to you again.

“That was some handiwork with those screechers.” You turn to him as you close your textbook. 

“What can I say, I guess I’m a natural” you muse and James’s smile only grows.

“I’m James by the way. Potter” he offers a smirk but not in a way where he expects you to be impressed but more in a genuine boyish way.

“I know who you are. I mean- everyone knows who you are. I’m Y/N. L/N.”

---

“Lily I mean it- he blew up the poor bird, it was awful.” You walk next to Lily Evans between classes, a normal occurrence but somehow never dull. The two of you had been friends since first year, finding solace in being the only two of your roommates with any connection to the muggle world.

“Evans! L/N!” Sirius Black shouts down the hall. The pair of you stopped short, silently agreeing to continue your conversation later. Sirius, Remus, James and Peter pick up their pace to meet the two of you.

Months had passed since your first interaction with the marauders and since then you found yourself around them more often than not. You didn’t complain though, it was nice to have a secure group of friends at hogwarts, especially if it meant you didn’t have to awkwardly squeeze between random students in the great hall.

"To what do we owe the pleasure of your company?" You jest. James eyes you fondly, taking note of your warm smile. You met James’s eye and your own heart began to race. A moment of silence passed before Sirius stepped forward.

“Nothing at all, lovely L/N. Dearest Evans, will you accompany Remus, Peter and I on a stroll through the courtyard” Sirius winks at Lily, a mischievous glint in his demeanor. You looked between the trio and your friend, confusion taking over.

“But we were just-”

“Of course, Black. Let’s be on our way. I’ll catch up with you later,” Lily patted your shoulder once before leaving you in the hallway. You watched them walk down the hallway, a shortlived sense of betrayal overcoming you.

“Uhm- hi.” You looked back to James who watched Sirius and the other’s walk off just a moment longer. When he looked back to you a soft smile overcame his face.

“Hi.” James offered back then continued, “uhm I wanted to ask you something”. Your eyes widened slightly at the stutter in your heartbeat. You and James have spent loads of time together in the past. Why was now any different? Was it related to your sudden longing to run your fingers through his dark curls? Or the giddyness you felt whenever he called you something sweet?

“Yeah of course,” You shook your head and brought your thoughts back to the present conversation, “What’s up?”

“Well, you know there’s a Hogsmede trip coming up,” James started, his head dropped to watch the shuffling of his feet, “I was- well I thought maybe you’d like to, uhm, come with me? To the three broomsticks or anywhere else?” James didn’t meet your eye again until he finished his statement. He brought his hand up to rub the back of his neck. Your eyes brightened and you took a step toward the boy.

“Like a date?” You asked, hopeful. Jame’s features lit up. “Yeah, like a date.”

---

seventh year

The marauders sat in the Gryffindor common room, celebrating finally being done with their N.E.W.T.s. While Lily cradled a bowl of popcorn in her lap on an armchair, Peter played a card game Remus and Sirius watched his boyfriend with adoration, you and James sat on the couch in complete bliss.

The past few weeks had been stressful on everyone, studying for exams and keeping up with classes meant very little time to galavant around the castle or even converse with friends for more than a few minutes. Exams finally being over was the best thing to happen to your friends. Relief washed over not only you and your friends but the entirety of Hogwarts. Where once the libraries were full and free spaces were sparse- now that same population was found out on the green or near the Black Lake.

“I am so glad we’re finally done. It feels like I can finally breathe” You let out a sigh, playing with the few rings on James’s fingers. Sirius nodded enthusiastically and Peter looked up for a minute, missing the jack that had just been laid down and thus losing that round of cards.

“I think it’s best for all of us that we are never given a test again” Peter concludes and sits back on his knees, taking a few chips from one of the bowls of snacks placed around the floor. Lily hums in agreement.

“It’s strange to think that we’re almost done with our studies altogether” Remus comments, “Hogwarts feels like my entire life”. It was James’s turn to nod now. “Now is when the rest of our lives begin.” Dorcas and Marlene walked into the common room then, swinging the fat lady portrait open, Mary not too far behind them. The three girls joined the group in front of the dormant fireplace. Mary ruffled Sirius’s hair then stole a handful of popcorn from Lily. 

“So, how are we celebrating?” Dorcas grins, leaning against the back of the couch where you and James are sat.

“This isn’t celebrating?” Peter asked, his eyebrows raising slightly.

“Heavens no!” Sirius jumps up, “We have to take on the town, we are done with the last ever standardized tests we will have to take! We don’t have to worry about remembering the ingredients to whatever bloody potion Slughorn demands ever again!” James laughs at this, having had to study particularly hard for the potions exam.

You look up at your boyfriend, quickly pecking him on his jaw then looking at the rest of your friends.

“I’m out, I still have muggle studies tomorrow” Remus sighs, beginning to put the card game away.

“Booo” you exclaim.

“Speaking of, Y/N, aren’t you supposed to leave after we graduate? For America or something?” Peter inquires. Eyes are suddenly on you. Your neck grows hot at remembering your father’s request to join him in America to get in touch with your muggle half.

“Uh, yeah…” You trail, finding your thumbs twiddling more interesting than anything else in that moment. James slings an arm over your shoulder and rubs it comfortingly, pressing a kiss to your temple.

“What’s your guys’ plan for that? Surely long distance?” Sirius swat’s Remus’s thigh at his statement. 

James looks down at you, a certain fondness having never left his eye since that first day in Herbology. The two of you had held off on talking about life after Hogwarts. You had tried to bring it up to James, but the boy deflected the topic each time- ‘we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it’- but now the bridge was a mere few feet away and no plan had been made.

You were nervous, scared even and if James was too- he didn’t show it.

“We’ll work it out.” He was terrified.

---

months later

You stopped in the middle of the airport. Your friends rallied behind you, not quite ready to say goodbye but ready to see you move into the next point of your life.

You turned to face your friends, a suitcase on either side of you. Lily took a step forward and was the first to bring you into a tight embrace.

“You have my number- please call. I don’t care how much it costs, I can't not talk to you ever again.” She muttered so only the two of you could hear. You wrapped your arms around the redhead and tears pricked at your eyes. Before now you and Lily hadn’t been apart for more than a few months over 7 years. You didn’t know what you were going to do without her.

After a moment Lily stepped back, she wiped a few tears from her vibrant eyes. Remus and Sirius were the next to step up.

“Good luck out there Y/N, it’s been a pleasure.” Sirius put a hand on your shoulder and you laughed at his serious expression. “I’m not going off to war, Black, I’ll be back to visit soon enough.” you pulled the boy into a hug. When the two of you broke apart you turned to Remus. You and him hadn’t been very close, but he was still a very dear friend in your heart.

“You’re going to do great things, Y/N.” He offered a small and sad kind of smile. You nodded “You will too Lupin. You’re one of the smartest people I know.” You and Remus hugged each other, he patted your back a few times then went to join the group.

Your remaining friends- Peter, Dorcas, Marlene, Mary, even Regulus (though you were sure he was there because his brother was his ride)- said their goodbyes, and with each hug from your loved ones, it became clearer to you how hard this was going to be. You couldn’t believe you were leaving. It didn’t feel real and you didn’t want it to be.

James stood at the back of the group, taking a few steps forward. His eyes still puffy from your joint crying session the night before.

“I- I don’t know where to begin-” he started, in front of you now. You took his hands in yours, trying to keep yourself from sobbing in the middle of the airport. 

“We’ll be okay, James. I promise. I will call and write and I’m looking for times I can come visit.” You sounded like you were trying to convince yourself. Hogwarts had been your entire life, you didn’t think you’d ever truly be prepared to leave. You lifted a hand to brush the side of his handsome face, pulling lightly on a stray curl.

“I know.” James responded and moved his hands to wrap around you. One last hug. You squeezed the boy for what seemed like forever. James pulled back for a moment and dipped his head down to yours, capturing your lips with his. One last kiss. This kiss was made of eagerness and uncertainty. You wanted to believe you would see him soon, that you would see all of your friends soon but the only thing you were sure of was that you couldn’t be sure of anything.

When the two of you broke apart you looked up at a clock on a wall and dropped your head. Your flight was leaving in an hour and a half and you still had to make it through security. Sorrow swallowed your heart, and you couldn’t bear to look up at your boyfriend- it would only make it harder.

“I have to go.” your words were soft, barely above a whisper and even if James didn’t hear you, he could’ve caught the message.

“What if I came with you-” Your head sprung back up, meeting James’s eyes once more. Your brows furrowed, “What-?”

“I can still buy a ticket, probably. I’ll come with you, I’ve always wanted to go to America.” James grabbed your hands once more and tears pricked your eyes.

“James…” you trailed and the boy nodded in understanding. His head dropped and he nodded. James knew he couldn’t go with you. Not now as he is starting his quidditch career. When he looked back up his eyes were glassy, leftover tears threatening to fall. He couldn’t cry though, he knew it wouldn’t do anything in the grand scheme.

“I love you,” He whispered, rubbing his thumb over your knuckles. You sniffed, smiling sadly.

“I love you too. I’ll call you as soon as I can find a phone.” You pulled your hands from his and took your suitcases. James took a single step back and watched you take a deep breath and begin to walk towards the security line.

It took everything in you to not look back, because if you did, you knew you’d never make it to America.

---

approximately two months later

You knew it would be hard accommodating to your new life, but you didn’t think you would be so immediately homesick. The culture shock wasn’t even the worst part. You could get used to the different accents and driving on the other side of the road but what you couldn’t get used to was your roommate.

Lydia seemed nice, she really did, and you tried your best to get along with her when you initially moved into the university dorms. She just- wasn’t around much. Constantly partying and going out with her American friends meant you were alone most of the time in an unfamiliar city.

You tried your best to keep in contact with your father but his job left him unavailable as well for most of the day.

But by now you had established a routine- go to class, stop by a little cafe on the way home, study, call whoever was awake back home, go to sleep, repeat. Tonight you called Lily.

“So your roommate is out again?” Lily sat on her own couch, the chord of her phone stretched almost to capacity in an effort to catch some privacy from her family in the other room.

“Yeah, I don’t even know how she finds something to do every night. I mean- it’s Wednesday, there can’t be much open tonight.” You laid your head back onto your pillow, staring up at your ceiling.

“I mean, it sounds like she’s got wicked stamina,” Lily joked. You laughed with her. You missed her knowing smirk whenever she joked with you.

“Yeah I guess so. Hey, have you heard from James recently? I keep trying to catch him but haven’t been able to get through.” Your smile fell a bit, hoping Lily would offer some reassurance about your missing boyfriend.

“Uh yeah- him, the guys and I went out the other night to a pub- that’s why I didn’t pick up Saturday. I thought he would’ve called you afterwards.” Your frown deepened. You knew Quidditch was going to eat up his time but you didn’t think he wouldn’t have any time at all for a quick catch up.

“He didn’t- but I’m sure he’s fine. I’ll try him again a bit later” You and Lily talked for a while longer before she had to leave for work. You checked the time- you should get to bed soon but you couldn’t without trying James one more time.

Ring. Ring. Ring. Ri-

“Hello?”

“James? Finally- I feel like I haven’t heard your voice in forever.” You smiled.

“Love, I am so sorry about not picking up- I know these collect calls are a lot- I’ve just been busy with quidditch and work-”

“Hey no- I get it. I’ve been pretty locked in too.” You sat up, turning to look out the window next to your bed. “I’m just glad I got through to you.”

You and James talked for what seemed like forever, though in reality it was only an hour or two. When you two finally hung up you felt a sense of relief wash over you. In the back of your mind you were worried James might have been avoiding you for whatever reason. 

Yours and James’s calls became more frequent after that- even if it was just a quick call to say “I love you”. You even started going out with your roommate- maybe she finally caught on to your loneliness and started inviting you out with her and her friends.

Things were looking up. For a while.

You had originally planned to return home for the winter holidays, wanting to check in on your mother and friends, but as work picked up you began to doubt that you would make it back. For some reason your professors believed it was a good idea to assign a ton of homework for the winter break- and your father began insisting on you getting a part time job to fill some of the empty spaces in your life.

“James I-”

“No I understand- you’re still adjusting over there. I just thought it wouldn’t be this long until I saw you again” James was pacing in his kitchen. Euphemia and Fleamont watched their son with worry. They had never seen him so distressed.

“I know darling, but I didn’t think I would be this busy during the holidays.” You were sat on the edge of your bed. A stack of paperwork waited for you a couple feet away. “And I’m really busy right now so could we just- talk about this later?” You felt yourself getting a little choked up- but held back any tears.

“Yeah- yeah whatever. Talk to you later y/n.” James sounded defeated as he slammed the phone back on the hook. He grabbed his coat and walked out the front door.

You on the other hand tried to get your bearings together because no matter what the state of your relationship was- your homework wasn’t going to wait.

---

You and James didn’t talk much after that. You didn’t know how to talk to him since it looked like you would be in America for longer than planned. The next time you called him you were on spring break.

“Hey James.” When you spoke your voice was nervous. You didn’t want to fight with him again.

“Hi lovely.” There was a moment of silence before he spoke again. “Uhm, how’s school?”

“Good, it’s good. Lot’s of work, per usual. But… good.” It was awkward. It was never awkward. Not with James.

“That’s uh- good to hear. Quidditch is going well. We won this past weekend and everyone came to see it. Remus got trashed at the after party if you can believe it,” You smiled at this. You knew he would be doing great things. You wanted to be there for him more than anything.

“That’s amazing,” You wanted the best for him, and since your last talk your mind has been racing. In the back of your mind you knew you needed to let go before it was harder for both of you.

This was the farthest thing from what you wanted to do.

“Jamie,” James stopped his ramble about how the weather had been recently, “James, I-” you started tearing up. Despite your best efforts your voice began to betray you.

“What’s wrong lovely?” Oh how you wanted one of his famous James Potter hugs right now.

“I- it’s been really hard being so far from you all. And all I want- all I’ve ever wanted is the best for you. I just- I don’t think-” You stopped to take a breath “I think we should break up.” 

“What? Y/N what are you talking about?” James swore he could feel his heart shattering.

“I mean think about it James, we never have time to call- who knows when I’m going to make it back over there. It’s just- it isn’t realistic for us to stay together. It’s hurting us both. I want you to go far in your career and you can’t do that if you’re staying up until the crack of dawn to talk to me” It took everything for you to not break down. “I don’t think this is working anymore.”

James was quiet for a moment, on his end of the line he was in shock. He knew things had been hard and the two of you had been distant recently but nothing could have prepared him for this.

“Is that what you want?”

No.

“Yes.” You squeezed your eyes shut, a single tear rolling down your cheek. You ran a hand over your face before speaking again. “I love you so much James, I think I always will. But this is too hard on the both of us to prolong the inevitable any more than we already have. I hope we can still be friends but the pressure of a relationship from so far away and so much uncertainty on when we’ll even be able to talk to each other…”

James was quiet again.

Fleamont had walked into the kitchen where James was sitting on the counter next to the phone. His son had been worried about the state of his relationship- even going so far as to inquire about plane tickets to America but he couldn’t find a good enough time.

On a certain level James knew what you were talking about. He was only getting busier the more he practiced for quidditch and looking for a place to move out into now that he had a steady income.

On a certain level, James agreed with you. He just didn’t want to.

“We can work it out. I’ll call more and- and I can come visit you-” You shook your head even though he couldn’t hear you.

“James…” You trailed off. Just like you had at the airport when you left. He knew that you had made up your mind. “This- calling every night, and then having to do work after, it’s- it’s exhausting. I’m so tired of giving myself hope that a relationship over the phone will work forever.”

“You’re-” James sniffed, his own tears forming in his eyes, “You’re probably right.”

With that you hung up the phone, finally allowing yourself to break down. Your roommate came in, stunned when she saw you hunched over and crying. She sat next to you on your bed and held you. You sobbed into her shoulder for the rest of the night.

After you had hung up James didn’t know what to do with himself. He hung up the phone and walked past his father and out the door. He soon found himself at Sirius and Remus’s apartment a couple blocks away and when they answered the door it’s like they could tell what happened.

An over the ocean call is how I told him ‘this isn’t working anymore’...

part 2 (ish) here; over-the-ocean call ending request

[oceanlipgloss]

These 4-71+ battles are tickling my temper

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I understand that the battles should be harder because the story is progressing, but my God, all in moderation. I'm stuck on 4-78 now and man, it's NOT fun. The battles are annoying and they're longer than my lifespan and there are 45+ angels at least and 60+ at most and they don't die fast and there are no means for proper distribution of team members and everyone in my team is popping to death and

GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

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16.1.2024

edit 1: you. I want to squeeze your eyeballs out with my fingernails and feed them to Shrek

edit 2: I have no idea how many times I've repeated this godforsaken battle since yesterday, I believe, but I just finally beat it with half my team dead, and Satan on the brink of death now onto the next nightmare

edit 3: MWAHAHAHA HERE COMES 4-79 WITH 66 ANGELS! FIRE ATTRIBUTE UNFAVOURABLE! Andre nooooo this is gonna suck

edit 4: just as expected. Screw u and ur eyeballs, angels🖕🏼

edit 5: at this point I'm just admiring the chibis. Look at his little handdddd I want to fluff his hair too, it's so curly and cute

edit 6: and look at the puffy sleeves and tiny boots pls change them in your sprite version and tiny teddies if you can look past the pic quality and pls just look at how big the teddy bear on his head is in comparison to his body. Leraye's chibi model is one of the cutest lol

edit 7: he angy. Me too, bby, me too. I am once again saying that I love him Sneak a peek at that small hand <3 'that angel! Kill it!'

edit 8: almost won with 7 angels left but then Satan was out and idk whether to feel upset because Satan died on me when his ultimate meter was just about maxed out (so he would've rid me of the remaining angels) or feel hopeful because I killed 59 angels/66 and almost made it to the end with most of my team still intact...

edit 9: lost again with 2 angels left this time BECAUSE SATAN DIED ON ME AGAIN

edit 10: I stopped trying my hand at the battle. I just do not have the energy to deal with it anymore for now. I'll stick to doing daily tasks for tonight. I love collecting the rewards lol

edit 11: I'm bored. I may or may not think I'm going to buy 30 keys with pancakes to actually SPEND this time. Not for hoarding. The pancakes are bountiful, the anticipation is a pleasant kind of fun definitely not shading the battles, and I might get something of use to me, so...here we gooooo

edit 12: OH MY GOD BEEL BEEL AND YELLOW SPARKLES ON THE PULL SCREEN I KNOW WHAT THAT MEANSSSS AAAAAAAAAAH LEMME SEE

edit 13: he really finally came home this time🫶🏼he's so beautiful <3 I also adore the 'I am everywhere and nowhere. But when you're around, I think it's okay to stay.' I didn't quite expect a line like that—it sounds poetic and romantic to me. I'm going to try my best to unlock his story. I can't wait to see what having him in Secret Club would be like too, obviously

edit 14: the glee, the gleeeeee lol my love transcended the screen This pull also gave me Eligos, he's so cute (edit: tf is that ultimate, bro? It's on par with his description from before the game was launched, but ok) And through a greater key pull earlier today gotta get pancakes I got Glasyalabolas, I love himmm his chibi and coffin look so extra, too lol but Ronové, when is it going to be your turn?

edit 15: I don't believe it. I PASSED. Only Satan and Mammon survived, but Beel's ultimate is a banger. The wonders he would do at level 89...

edit 16: screechers and spike-shitters again! Hallelujah also wow Leviathan sent his guys to kidnap MC. Meaning she will meet him soon, meaning I might get to see Glasyalabolas soon lol I AM EXCITED just let me make it past even one of these horrific battles first

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17.1.2024

edit 17: Beel's expressions in Secret Club GOD I KNOW YOU DON'T APPROVE OF ME PLAYING THIS GAME BUT HELP ME My God my God my God my—

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18.1.2024

edit 18: no but his thighs tho kinda want to hug them like a koala bear just him in general <3

edit 19: Valefor's H-scene CG looks edible, no? watch Tumblr flag this I wonder if his scene will come first and next one would be Leviathan's. And if I tell you how much I'm looking forward to interactions with Leviathan, and to his H-scene...

edit 20: would you look at that! What perfect timing. The difficulty is probably going to stay hellish hardcore, more so with the one lvl 89 L card of mine, but still, does this mean that I may have a sliver of a chance? It's better if I don't hope too much that I'll make it out of Chapter 4 any time soon tho. I will have to do the best I can to avoid spoilers

But PrettyBusy is amazing, honestly—just as a good company should be—they listen to players, constantly try to integrate feedback and opinions into the gameplay, and come up with ideas to better it too. They fucked up bigtime with the Pancake Shop though, ngl. BECAUSE HOW TF AM I GOING TO STOCK UP ON KEYS AFTER IT GETS REMODELLED?

edit 21: they're helping us 'prepare' for the Attack of Kings event from now, aren't they? Pffff, like I didn't know the cards would be limited

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25.1.2024

edit 22: I stopped trying to get past that battle because first, it got too annoying and two, PB said that the difficulty of battles before Chapter 5 would be reduced in the latest update, so I waited, updated the game today, and... I CANNOT BELIEVE HOW MUCH EASIER THEY GOT. Honestly, I thought the difficulty would only be lowered a lick, but wow, it really was taken down a BIG notch fr fr. THANK YOU PB! I made it to Chapter 5, finallyyyyyy :D Also, Leviathan at the end of Chapter 4 made me really like him for the exact reason a number of people dislike him: his attitude and how he deals with MC. To be honest, everyone coddles her too much and blindly encourages her excessive tendencies, so there must be at least one person who sets boundaries and scolds her when she goes overboard—and that someone seems to be Leviathan (hopefully). I'm aware that he will end up feeling attracted to her at some point too, but he will obviously give her a hard time nevertheless and I'm all for it lol Anyways, I'm going to avoid spoilers like I avoid milk, yoghurt and cheese I hate almost everything dairy until I finish Chapter 5, so...yup!

[a-corndog-named-schibbs]

Star Wars: Visions season 2

Sith: I spent the first five minutes thinking “what the fuck am I looking at” which is exactly what I both expected and wanted from this season

Screecher’s Reach: Not satisfied with making the greatest piece of werewolf media ever, Cartoon Saloon has branched out and made the greatest piece of Star Wars media ever

In the Stars: Kubo and the Two Strings, but with more imperialism

I Am Your Mother: Every other studio: Here’s some trauma!  Aardman: Here’s a cute silly story about a baby lesbian and her mum!

Journey to the Dark Head: Wow okay this sure is the studio that animated Voltron- EUGENE LEE YANG!?!!

The Spy Dancer: Yes, Star Wars is at its best when it says “fuck imperialism” but it’s also at its best when it says “man is this family fucked up or what”

The Bandits of Golak: Sandpiercer

The Pit: Someone at D’Art Shtajio watched Holes and went “Nice, but you know what would be even more fucked up?”

Aau's Song: Autism be damned this teddy bear is Force-sensitive!

[padawansuggest]

Hey so we can all assume that the Sith mother in Screechers Reach (Star Wars Visions S2E2) was probably wearing a mask, but does anyone else think that she looks kinda like a Gen’Dai in their humanoid armor (slim edition)??? Cause. If so. Then. That is probably the most terrifying Sith (or bounty hunter) to exist because their bloodlust is literally planets of devastation. Like I only know about Gen’Dai cause I like researching random species to put in the Jedi or Mandalorian societies to really drive home that they are melting-pot peoples, and I read about Durge and how their species has an attitude of absolute blaze uncaring before they end up bloodthirsty and I thought ‘wouldn’t it be cool to have a Mandalorian raised doctor Gen’Dai who’s trying to find the cure of their bloodlust because he was raised in a community that prides itself on caring for others’ and like I thought that was a cool idea so I went with it but now I can’t stop looking at the Sith mother’s overall shape and her mask and it looks like a stylized version of a Gen’Dai (and I mean a non-canon depiction because we all know that some other media will go off-canon if they do a different style like how jacked Anakin looked in the 2003 series and the tattoos that turned out not to be there in the movie and how Shaak Ti looked… like that… I’m not saying I hated it but I really hated it) and I’m wondering if you guys got any other ideas of what species she might have been.

Also now that I’m thinking about it, the styles was closer to the 2003 series but like… good… lol.

[skylarkking]

To Heal a Mockingbird

A TFA Ratchet x Mech!Reader

Word count: 1.4k

Chapter 1: A Decepticon's Decision

A/n this story takes place partially pre-series before going into the series.

------

'War raged across the planet, just like our lord wanted. Death, destruction, chaos, all of this was his doing.

And I was one of his soldiers.

But how far can a soldier go before he begins to break? Before he crumbles? Before...'

"This is stupid." I muttered to myself as I stared at the datapad in my grip and the words I had written on them. I ended up turning off the data pad and returning it to my subspace before flopping back onto the cold berth of my quarters.

I stared blankly at the ceiling with crimson optics and a tired gaze, my mind running and racing despite not having a proper recharge in a very long time.

War had been raging my homeworld for Primus knows how long, a war I once thought was justified.

But with recent events, my loyalties and morals had begun to come into question.

"Y/D! Report to the Nemesis! Now!" My commanding officer, Starscream, shrieked over the comlink.

"Yeah, yeah, calm your circuits, Screecher." I grumbled in response.

"GET TO IT OR-" He started to bark before I cut him off by hanging up, my frame slowly rising up from the berth with a stretch of my wings and a satisfying round of pops from my joints.

I made my way out of my quarters and into the hall of the barracks I resided in, several other Decepticons looking over to me with suspicious glances before returning to their usual business.

I ignored their gazes and turned down the hall towards the take-off strip. My form shifting after a running head start sent me into the air. I cut through the skies with the grace and speed of a true Seeker, something that I was proud of but was far less vocal about compared to my C.O.

I eventually made my way towards the Nemesis's flight deck, where my forms shifted again as I landed. Almost as soon as my pedes made contact with the metal plating, Starscream came out and began to lecture me about 'being disrespectful' and 'uncooperative'. I tuned out most of what he said, at least until he said something that actually caught my interest.

"We have an Autobot prisoner for you."

Starscream's words caused me to perk up curiously, my optics meeting his as a result.

"Sir?" I asked. "What do you mean you have an Autobot prisoner?"

"Well, if you had been paying attention -"

"Aaaaand here we go again." I muttered to myself, cutting the second in command off.

"As I was saying," he continued with a growl. "We have an Autobot prisoner who may know the location of a great power source. However, I believe he needs some.... convincing."

I sighed in annoyance and waved my servo in a way that conveyed my distain for the whole affair.

"Like I told Lord Megatron, I'm no longer practicing nmemosurgery."

"Yet you still have the probes." Starscream said, followed by a smirk. "Surely they aren't there for show."

"Look, I don't think it's a good idea, okay?" I said firmly with narrowing optics. "But... I'll see if I can coax the information out of this bot."

Starscream sneered with a dark chuckle and motioned for me to follow. I reluctantly complied and followed the seeker inside the Nemesis, where we weaved through the various corridors to the brig. Inside one of the cells was a bot with a red and white paint job who looked no older than I was. His frame mildly dented and scratched from what I inferred was a struggle. Judging by the markings on his frame, I could tell he was one of the Autobot medics, something I did not like.

"This is the bot you want information from?" I asked Starscream with a hint of disgust in my tone.

"He knows where the power source is. All you have to do is make him talk." Starscream growled.

"Both you and Lord Megatron know that I do not harm medics!" I snapped. "It's dishonorable!"

"You and your stupid sense of honor!" Starscream barked. "Just shut up and do it! Unless you want me to get Lugnut to tear your sorry paint job apart!" I flinched in fear at the thought of the hulking mech, a shiver running up my spinal strut and causing my wings to fold tightly against my back. "That's what I thought." Starscream huffed. "Now get to it!"

"Y-yes, sir." I stammered out as I entered the code to the cell and retracted the bars. The medic scooted back and away with fear as I entered, his baby blue optics practically staring into my spark.

It made me nervous.

"Commander, please leave us be so I can focus on my work." I said to the seeker.

"Ugh, fine!" Starscream muttered. "Don't screw this up!"

Once Starscream was out of audial shot, I knelt down by the injured medic and carefully took his more injured arm into my servo, my optics quietly inspecting the dented and cracked metal

"What's your name?" I asked as I ejected out one of my various repair tools and got to work on fixing the medic.

"Wh... why do you care?" He asked with a quiet voice.

"Because I like to know the names of my patients." I said, not even looking up from my work. "My name is Y/D if you'd care to know."

"I... I'm Ratchet." The medic said with an increasingly confused expression on his face.

"Ratchet... I like that name." I said nonchalantly. "It suits you."

"Oh, um... thanks?" There was a long silence as I repaired the medic before Ratchet spoke again. "Why are you doing this?"

"Hm?" I questioned as I looked up at him. "Doing what?"

"Helping me. Why.... why are you helping me?"

"Morals." I said flatly. Thankfully, that answer seemed to satisfy the medic, and I was able to finish the repairs to his frame.

"Thank you." Ratchet said with a strange sense of awe.

"There is no need for niceties." I said. "But nothing comes for free, and you know what I wang."

"You want to know the location of the energy source. Well I can't tell you."

"This energy source must be powerful if you are willing to hide its location from me." I said.

"Listen, if Megatron gets ahold of this, everyone and everything on Cybertron will be destroyed." Ratchet said with increasing earnest. I studied his expression for any malicious intent or falsehood, but I could not find any on his face or in his optics.

"This... power source you Autobots are hiding. If it is this powerful, why have you not used it?"

"Because using it would be the death of us all." Ratchet said grimly. "And.... it wouldn't be right to use a source of life for a weapon of death."

Those words clicked in my mind, telling me exactly what the power source was in an instant.

"The power source," I said with an urgency in my voice. "What is it?"

"I... I shouldn't - "

"Please." I practically begged barely above a whisper. The medic paused a moment before sighing in defeat.

"It's the Allspark."

The energon in my tubing practically froze in place, my optics widening with an increasing fear.

"No, it... Megatron wouldn't dare...." I whispered. "He wouldn't.... would he? Sure, he's strong-willed and stubborn, but... this..." I was so shocked by this revelation that I ended up staring blankly at the floor.

"You didn't know that was what he was after, did you?" Ratchet asked. I shook my helm, and in that moment, I truly began to question my loyalties.

"He never told me anything." I said quietly. "I... I can't let this happen. I won't let this happen." I stood up and offered a servo to the medic. "Come with me, I'm going to get you out of here."

Ratchet took my servo, and I pulled him up on his pedes, the pair of us quickly darting through the halls and towards one of the shuttle bays. I shoved the medic inside and forced it to deploy, the medic and shuttle drifting off into space.

"TRAITOR!" I heard the bellow of Lugnut roar, my helm whipping around to see him, Megatron, and Starscream all aiming their weapons at me.

"I KNEW HE WAS A SLIMEY AUTOBOT SYMPATHIZER!" Starscream shrieked. I ejected one of my blades and held it defensively, my focus entirely fixed on the glaring warlord.

"Is it true?" I snarled. "Are you really planning on using the Allspark as a weapon?"

"Of course I am." Megatron growled as he drew his own blades. "Too bad you won't be alive long enough to see it come to fruition."

"Then I'll just have to stop you."

--------

Next Chapter: Here

[ms-scarletwings]

Every Dredge Aberration (2023), Part 11

Twinned Eels

Encyclopedia #139

Aberrant form of longfin eel

Description:

Endlessly pulling away, but torn apart they would surely perish. Two spiteful siblings splitting at the seams.

Comment: A bond stronger than will alone, and yet so short lived. Another creation of the Deep unfit for life in the old world. One way or another, their wish will be realized soon. I wonder if it was intentional for how easily we could compare this visual to the a most famous relic from the Aztec civilization, the double headed serpent.

How to catch: The elusive longfin eel feeds at night, gathered in the thick of mangrove water.

Nightwing Catfish

Encyclopedia #140

Aberrant form of catfish

Description:

Hooked barbels seek out prey in the twisting mangroves. A once sluggish fish given haste upon crimson fins.

Comment: Alarmingly, there is not included mention of the catfish’s own venomous spines. With those bigger fins comes ample danger in handling this river monster.

How to catch: Exactly as the above eel, with the minor advantage of a suitable trawl net being able to bag catfish.

Effigy Crab

Encyclopedia #141

Aberrant form of horseshoe crab

Description:

Wisps of yellow light flicker within this ghastly shell, a screaming skull with a spinal tail.

Comment: I wish I could just dissect the little mutant to find out exactly what’s ticking inside that bone armor. Whether flesh, gem, or fluid, the whole animal will be needed as one of the pigments making up the Golden Treasure paint selection.

How to catch: Simply set crab pots about the Twisted Strand, specifically at water no deeper than 10 meters.

Mire Screecher

Encyclopedia #142

Aberrant form of giant mud crab

Description:

A lashing yellow tongue whips around a mouth of flattened teeth. Two humanlike eyeballs burst between dripping claws.

Comment: When a wise man once remarked that he had fought mud crabs more fearsome than you, perhaps he had been referring to these. Take one of them down to Little Marrow to complete the requirements for a beautiful new paint job.

How to catch: With enough space, these are probable to also turn up in the same pots as your horseshoe crabs, but their full depth range runs between 5 and 25 meters.

Ossified Searobin

Encyclopedia #143

Aberrant form of armormed searobin

Description:

Chittering mandibles scythe the air in front of this deep-dweller, its small body encased in a suit of thick bone.

Comment: The first abominable spawn of Devil’s Spine makes for a fine greeting to the volcanic region’s gritty underbelly. A similar boon as the bony wreckfish, but accepted in grace.

How to catch: Pack a rod, and or your net, and sail the shallows at Devil’s Spine. They spawn by daylight.

Infernal Eel

Encyclopedia #144

Aberrant form of cusk eel

Description:

Grown fat from countless corpses that rest in the deep. The harbinger of a sick mercy for lost souls.

Comment: There is nothing I can say to add on to the poetry of that description, but I appreciate that this eel wears a big smile.

How to catch: Get ready to take the heat. They can be hauled or trawled, but only with the proper heat-resistant equipment… oh, and only after dark.

[jedi-order-apologist]

Did ya watch Visions V2 yet? And if so, what was your favrotie short? (Mine was Aau's Song)

I just finished watching! (The episodes, at least. I'll watch the behind-the-scenes filmmaker interviews later).

But it's really hard to pick a favorite, Visions is consistently top-tier and I enjoyed all of the episodes. This really is Star Wars at its best, so I'll just talk about what I enjoyed about each one:

"Sith" - I loved the way color was used in this, it's clearly the focus of the animation and it was done very well. The story of the protagonist rejecting the Sith and pulling herself out of that on her own was good, the way she had to acknowledge her darkness in order to move past it and fully reject the Sith was a great moment.

"Screecher's Reach" - The environment was beautifully drawn, very atmospheric. It's an unsettling one (in a good way!), and reminds me of the previous season's "Akakiri" in the tone of its ending.

"In the Stars" - The particle effects and especially the water was beautifully animated. The story here is strong, with the conflict between surviving and fighting back, with both sisters having good reason for their caution/risk-taking, respectively, and the love they have for each other and the people who were cruelly slaughtered by the Empire.

"I Am Your Mother" - this one is probably the weakest of the bunch in that it didn't really grip me and I don't think it had as much to say, but it was by no means bad! It was fun and I got some laughs out of it. The race looked great, too.

"Journey to the Dark Head" - Another one with beautiful environments, and I found the setting very compelling and full of potential; I was left wanting to see more of it and the Jedi of this era. The approach to the Force is a little video-game-y in my opinion but they do nail the aspect of fear being the root of anger and hate.

"The Spy Dancer" - If I absolutely had to pick a favorite, it might be this one by a slim margin. I loved the fluid dance/fight scenes, and the characters are so compelling. The protagonist's trauma is heartbreaking; there's no shying away from how evil the Empire is. And the reveal of who the Imperial officer is was built up very well, I had already guessed by the time the episode confirmed it. The hopeful ending implies a future where he will break away from the Empire and the horrible things it made him internalize about himself.

"The Bandits of Golak" - Completely unsurprisingly (given IGN's backhanded recommendation), I loved this one a lot, and could easily pick this one as my favorite too. The lightsaber fight here was my favorite in this season, and the environment was lovely. Of course, the sibling bond is the real heart of this one, especially in him letting her go (which I believe was the plan all along).

"The Pit" - Loved this one too, the Empire's brutality is, as common with the other shorts, unflinchingly depicted here. Which makes the contrast with the average citizens all the more poignant, and my favorite part about this is how readily they're willing to look into the matter and help once they've heard what's going on. It's such a positive depiction of humanity and community and I really loved that.

"Aau's Song" - Beautiful, vibrant environments here, and the characters look so soft, like they're made of felt. I liked the Jedi character a lot, and I like that the protagonist decided to go with her in the end. The scene where the kyber is healed is stunning. I can definitely see why this episode would be someone's favorite!

[keikotwins]

STAR WARS VISIONS SEASON 2 STARTERS & PROMPTS Change and alter as needed! Feel free to add your personal rules when reblogging!

Sith

AU idea: Character has left everything behind and tries to process trauma via art therapy. One day, someone from their past finds them again…

Bend reality in your fist

Steps that turn the floor black

No matter what you do, It always returns

“This is why you left?”

“I found my own path.”

“You belong by my side.”

“I can paint my own destiny.”

Screecher's Reach

AU idea: Character has heard about a dangerous mystical trial. As they cannot stand their boring daily life anymore, they decide to face it…

The beauty of a poisonous flower

In darkness, something is breathing

Who gave you the light guiding you, again…?

“Don't look back.”

“Please… Give me strength…!”

“What did you do?” “I was strong.”

“I heard the ghost isn't a thing you can touch. You see it in your mind.”

In the Stars

AU idea: Only survivors of their people, characters struggle to hide and live. While one wants to fight the oppressor, the other wants to keep everyone safe…

The poison that hides the stars

Courage is what your ancestors left you

Stay invisible, learn all their weaknesses

“They hid us to keep us safe.”

“I almost had it!” “No, it almost had you.”

“This is all we have left, and you are wasting it!”

“If they had not fought, they would still be here.”

I am your mother

AU idea: A team competition is coming up and Character tries to hide it from their annoying potential teammates!

Their pride is your shame

This race was made for you two to win

How many references and fanservice can fit in a single piece?

“I've learnt a lot from you.”

“Second place is last place!”

“Don't you have work?” “It's all right, I'll make up the hours!”

“This old piece of old junk is embarrassing! You! You are embarrassing!”

Journey to the Dark Head

AU idea: Characters have a theory: if they can cut the root of evil directly at the source, they can perhaps save their world.

Red incense that calls danger

The unfathomable face of the gods

A stranger can be the one catching you

“There is so much precious knowledge tangled within the fabric of this place.”

“War and conflicts are constants. They are both built on the sands of time, which will continue to ebb and flow for all eternity.”

“What you're saying is that, by breaking the mirror, we may stand a chance to alter what the mirror reflects.”

“We are always caught in the tide of uncertainty, but the next wave carries as much hope as it does despair.”

The Spy Dancer

AU idea: During a conflict, characters hide their underground activities under a pleasant and welcoming attitude towards the enemy.

Art skills used in war

Mesmerising the enemy

Their eyes reflecting yours

“To the ones we've lost.”

“Let me do more!” “You're not ready yet.”

“I'm not a stargazer, I just want to move on.”

“All these years, I thought they were lost. Now I have a way back to them, and they have a way back to me.”

The Bandits of Golak

AU idea: Running away from their devastated village, characters desperately try to keep each other safe.

Your culture will always show through; don't hide it this time

The only thing they left behind

The games only you two understand

“What are they doing on the roof!?”

“That way! I saw it myself: they have special powers!”

“They've burnt everything. What do they even want?”

“You have shown tremendous courage reaching here. You'll have to let go of them now…”

The Pit

AU idea: Enslaved characters are forced to perform a task threatening their life… Until one has an occasion to break out.

Digging one's own grave

Simple issue, complex solution

A single trace of forgotten heroes

The push that changed everything

“They'll do the right thing if they follow their light.”

“We helped build this city, and now we need your help!”

“How do you know they'll help us?” “I'll bring them here.”

Aau's Song

AU idea: Character has a secret power as great as dangerous. One day, a loved one is in peril; will they risk everything to protect them?

A protective traveller

Corruption of beauty

A voice too dangerous to be heard

“Hmm… They call to you.”

“It's very unstable. Very dangerous.”

“Sometimes they have more curiosity than sense.”

“It is a gift. And I can help you nurture it, but you would have to come with me.”

[puppybytes]

She was a dog / they were giant

Could I make it any more obvious?

It barked a storm / she ate some gays

What more can I say?

She was a creature girl / she said to the screecher girl / "hey what if you choke on my fur"

It had a muzzled face / and an aquired taste

She needed to add to Kroxa's girth

[nobody-expects-the-inquisitorius]

Masterlist

Hello there, and welcome to the fabulous catastrophe that is my blog! I primarily post Star Wars-related content and I'm an Inquisitorius lover at heart, so expect a lot of screeching about my favourite evil blorbos. Sometimes Good Omens, SWTOR, Riordanverse and other fandoms make a brief appearance too. Heads up, I do occasionally post/reblog NFSW content, so you have been warned. Aside from that, you'll find OC headcanons, overwhelming affection for fictional villains, digital artwork, snippets of upcoming projects and maybe some actual fanfiction once in a blue moon. I'm always happy to chat, especially if it's about fandoms, so feel free to drop me a message any time! Enjoy!

[linktree]

Frequently used tags:

#my art - exactly what it says on the tin

#morgan is horny on main again - general nsfw tag, not a comprehensive list

#morgan's live slug reaction - liveposting books/shows

#headcanons - OC ramblings, meta, fic commentaries, etc

#incorrect quotes - comprehensive list of incorrect Inquisitorius/TBB quotes

#cosplay - cosplay stuff

#join the dark side we have shitposts - also what it says on the tin. shitposting and memes

#morgan speaketh - personal tag

Taglist

OC Masterpost (coming soon)

My Artwork (posted on AO3 for better quality)

Star Wars Drabbles

Eye To Eye Ahsoka Tano is no ordinary prey.

No Way Out One way or another, this ends today, and Kino Loy knows that.

New Dawn In Ferrix, time answers to one man, and one man only.

Silver and Gold The Jedi Temple Guards are nameless, emotionless, to all but those amongst their own ranks.

Far Above, Far Below The son of Dathomir reflects on his past losses.

Hold On Tighter A lightsaber wound to the stomach would be enough to spell the end of most people. It’s a good thing that the Grand Inquisitor is certainly not most people.

The Promise Of Freedom Daal isn’t the first to haunt Screecher’s Reach, and she won’t be the last.

Stars On The Dark Horizon | Bad Batch Drabbles

Drifting On The Winds Even the most intelligent member of the Bad Batch sometimes loses his way.

(Don't) Hold Your Breath Crosshair has been moments away from drowning twice in his life. And the second time, it's the hand that had first reached out to catch him that's holding him underwater.

[pixelated-whump]

@ailesswhumptober Day Twenty-Four - Hunted Down / Too Exhausted to Keep Running

TWs: Misgendering, Deadnaming, and Transphobia

Contents: Usual disclaimer that they're all freaks and mature at different rates, I'm super fucking tired leave me alone

Characters are Varyll (Elf, Age 120, 5'10, albino, He/Xe pronouns), Rabies Ratbite (Kobold, Age 6, 2ft, gold eyes, blue and white scales, He/It pronouns), and Screecher (Kenku, Age 12, 5'1, purple eyes, pink legs and beak, pale grey and purple feathers, He/Him pronouns)

Also posted on Ao3!

Varyll is fucking exhausted.

Paranoia has kept xem awake for far too long. Xe hasn’t really had much time to rest, and any of that downtime has been spent away from civilization.

So when xe makes it to a tavern in a city xe can’t be bothered to remember the name of, xe’s on the verge of passing out from sheer exhaustion.

Varyll knows xe can’t trust anyone, not now, not ever. But xe also knows xe can’t stay awake forever, as much as xe’d like to.

Xe’d normally use a spell to disguise xyr form, but xe’s too tired, so xe sticks with simply hiding xyr face with a mask and a hood. It’s simple, but effective.

Xe watches two armored soldiers enter the tavern, and xe can tell that they’re looking for xem. They look like soldiers from xyr kingdom, so xe listens closely as they begin to speak to the entire fucking tavern.

“We are soldiers from the kingdom of Askalia, we’re looking for Princess Viola, though she may not be using that name. She is an albino elf, so she should be easy to find. If you have any leads, please let us know.”

Whispers erupt around the tavern, and Varyll barely keeps xemself from flinching at the use of xyr deadname. Xe adjusts xyr mask and pulls xyr hood further down, trying to hide xyr appearance.

Varyll overhears a conversation from two adventurers, both sitting at a table next to xem.

“You hear that? A fuckin’ princess is missing,” A blue Kobold says, leaning back in its chair. “How in the Nine Hells do they lose royalty?”

A pale greyish-purple Kenku leans a little closer to his companion. “From what I’ve heard, she’s a runaway.”

The Kobold scoffs, taking a sip of a drink that it looks way too young to be drinking. “Who would run away from being one of the highest people in power? It just doesn’t make sense.”

Varyll has personally had enough of the gossip and gets up to leave, though xe wonders if xe even should. Those guards are sure to recognize xem if xe gets too close, but xe can’t stay here, the barkeep might rat xem out.

Regardless, xe is too tired to even think logically at this point, so xe leaves the tavern, shivering from the cold. Xe should be used to it by now, but xe isn’t.

Xe looks around, trying to scan xyr surroundings for any signs of those soldiers. When xe breathes a soft sigh of relief, someone grabs xyr wrist.

Xe freezes, not daring to turn. “Excuse me, do you have any leads on the whereabouts of Princess Viola?”

Varyll shakes xyr head. Xe turns, and the soldier holding xyr wrist doesn’t let go. “It seems you’re a liar, then.”

The other soldier grabs her sword, grabbing xyr other wrist. “You’re coming with us, Princess Viola.”

Varyll grunts, trying to pull away from the soldiers, but xe’s too tired, too weak. So, xe screams. Loudly.

As xe does, those two adventurers xe saw earlier exit the tavern, and the Kobold, who is no taller than two feet, draws a shortsword. “Hey! Let ‘em go!”

The Kenku draws a longsword, and while he doesn’t say anything, he delivers a threatening glare.

One of the soldiers points his sword at the two adventurers. “We are under the orders of King Curralcia to bring her back to Askalia. We ask that you... citizens... step back.”

They’re distracted. Varyll’s eyes glow ever-so-slightly as xe casts Sacred Flame on the female soldier. She stumbles backwards, and Varyll punches the other one in the nose, scrambling away from the soldiers and behind the adventurers, preparing xemself in case xe has to fight any more than xe already has.

The Kobold charges forwards with a “battle cry”, if you can even call it that. Honestly, it just sounds funny. It barely looks threatening, but it also starts beating one of the soldiers’ faces in with the hilt of its shortsword, so maybe it has some skill.

Meanwhile, the Kenku starts slashing at the other while Varyll watches, slightly dumbfounded. Why would these two save xem? Neither of them have a reason to, as far as xe knows.

When one of the soldiers stops burning, she lifts her companion and takes off, swearing under her breath. The two adventurers give each other a high five, smirks on both of their faces.

The Kobold turns to look at xem. “What did those two jackasses want with you, anyways?”

The Kenku stares for a moment, eyes widening in realization. “Are you...”

“Varyll,” Xe interrupts, rather curtly. “I don’t use that name anymore for a reason.”

The Kobold tilts its head, and the Kenku whispers something to it, which he has to crouch down to do. It’s almost comical.

A look of realization crosses the Kobold’s face. “Oh. Wait, so... you’re the princess?!”

The Elf rolls xyr eyes. “I’d correct you and say prince, but I have no desire to return home. They can’t make me go back.”

“But...” Varyll can almost hear the gears turning in its head. “Why would you leave?”

“Did you not hear them blatantly deadname and misgender me?” Xe asks, getting frustrated.

“Oh.”

The Kenku speaks before things can get even more awkward between the three. “I’m Screecher, and this is Rabies,” He explains, examining Varyll closely. “You... look like you need sleep.”

“Yes, I do,” Xe sighs, rubbing a hand over xyr tired face and ignoring their odd names.

Screecher grabs xyr hand gently, leading xem back to the tavern. “We rented a room! You and Rabies can sleep, and I’ll keep watch.”

“I suppose I’m in no position to argue,” Varyll sighs, letting him lead xem into the tavern and to a room upstairs.

Rabies plops down on a bed before xem, and Varyll takes off xyr hooded robe and mask. Xe lays down, and pretty much knocks out right after.

Maybe these two aren’t so bad.

[strykingback]

On nearly every monitor throughout the governments of Remnant, only the words, "REPENT." would be featured on the screens of many. Systems were being hacked if only to send a message to the people.

And then a voice was heard.

It was the voice of an elderly man, though his voice held the strength and resolve of a resilient force, a force that would signal the coming apocalypse for this unfortunate world.

"And yet, after all these cycles, you still find yourself screaming in terror into that void where no one would ever answer you. No one but me. For I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness. I am the alpha and the omega. The possibilities within me are beyond anything you can conceive. Yet you still insist on resisting. Yet you refuse to submit your guilt to me. As if you could atone for it in a way that matters."

Unidentified spacecraft and ships would be nearing the system.

Each of them resembled massive, cathedrals, houses of worship when in truth, these were devastating machines of war. The number of these ships would cause the unprepared to faint if they saw into the deep reaches of the cosmic void.

One thing was certain though: This would be the beginnings of an apocalypse never witnessed before by anyone.

Would the people of Remnant be ready for what would become the fight of their lives?

Only time may tell.

The cycle of guilt cannot be broken,....

Across Remnant people would see this as they all listened with horror wirtten on their faces even as now Remnant had survived one horror after the other. And just when it seemed they were finally healing something no someone just had to stand in the way... but.... does that mean they are not prepared. No.... they are always ready.

OST: Guardians Of Light (Autoplay Warning)

In Brumel, King Rodrigues and the Council of Brumel agreed for the first time that this was a threat to Remnant he would say only one thing to everyone including the Atelier Paladins and the Hunters across Remnant.

"Arm yourselves..... for Brumel and Remnant Stand as one!!!"

Across to that of Ruins of Light in Mistral, Exaltia for the first time could feel the oncoming darkness that was coming one that could rival even her brother Imperius. Walking out of the Ruins of Light and looking up to the sky and taking an inhale in she would release a Titan Call..... calling any and all Grimm Titans to awaken and fight.

The Neo-Shinbaori would hear of this as well thanks to Mizunami and his influence in the Mistrali government as Masamune would rise holding his Katana and nod at his trusted allies.

"It is time to fight.... not just for our lives but for the fate of Remnant in its entireity"

While above Aelius would release a screeching roar flying above with draconic grimm following them, with that of wyverns, gryphons, screechers, and even chimeras following the Titan King of the Air as he flew above the main city, which left everyone fearful but what they noticed was Aelius was keeping them in check and even releasing a few chirps to make sure they dont harm a human or faunus... keeping a silent vigil of Mistral...

In Argus, Perseus and the Atlesian Military along with many Sea-Dragon Grimm were patrolling the seas with the Titan rising from it looking up at the sky and angrily giving a glare... to what was coming.......he wanted to be ready this time....

In Vale, Hades was running through the mountains holding his War Axe which he looked up at the sky as well throwing the Axe down and slamming his fists against his chest before he released a loud roar of defiance....

Then in Vacuo Hideyoshi would prepare the Desertwalkers along with many bandits who had saw the announcement..... they lost their home to war once.... they were not going to lose it again........

And lastly the Scions of Salem.... Salem would look for the first time worried.... but this was the time to fight.... it was time to throw away her plans...as she too had a connection to Remnant whether if it was good or bad... as finally... she turned around to look at all them.

"TO ARMS...."

FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER..... REMNANT WAS UNIFIED... UNDERNEATH ONE BANNER..... EVERY CREED, RELIGION, AND RACE WAS UNIFIED TO FIGHT

[twinkyssideblog]

Episode 2: Complications

Yeah... I pretty much hate myself, because I wrote this chapter, then published it, then I realized it was full of flack that didn't further the story along, plus, it dragged the chapter out too much. If I had left it as it was, there would've been enough to split it into two chapters. So... I rewrote it. 😅 I'm actually much happier with this version.

Read on Ao3 || Season Masterlist || TMSC Directory

Warnings: Mentions of injury and death, but nothing graphic. Brothers being brothers and messing with each other.

A/N: Go here for a layout of the Mariden Station. I haven't drawn either the Nocturns or the Screechers mentioned herein, but if you have any questions about them, shoot me an ask! :) Honestly, if you have questions about anything here, hit me up! And now to the story.

Taglist (if you want to be added or removed, just let me know!): @chaoticvampirejedi @monako-jinn-stories @cross-my-heartt @jedipoodoo @amyroswell @254th-legion

“It’s a kid!”

Sarge stood frozen in shock as Visor's words echoed through the main control room. He cast a glance at Claptrap, who was sitting at the computer consoles. The surprised confusion on his face matched what Sarge was feeling. Did Visor just say what they thought he said?

“Come again, trooper?” Sarge asked into his commlink, struggling to hide the shock in his voice. “Did you say it’s a kid?”

“Yes… Yes, Sarge, he did,” Dagger answered, his own voice shaking as well. “And, well… He’s not wrong.”

“Is this a joke, Dagger? Please tell me that this is a joke and I promise I’ll laugh.” A normal civilian crashing onto Mariden was one thing, but that civilian being a child brought a whole new set of complications to the table. And to be honest, Sarge wasn’t sure how to handle those kinds of complications. 

“I… I wish I could say we WERE joking, Sarge,” Visor’s voice came through the comms. “But… But it IS a kid. A human female, it looks like.”

“And tiny,” Dagger added. “VERY tiny. She’s smaller than a first-year cadet!”

“This is not good,” Sarge mumbled in aggravation. No amount of training simulations could’ve prepared him for this. “Was there anyone else in that pod?”

“Negative, Sarge,” Visor said. “She was the only one I felt.”

“There was only one life sign, Sarge,” Claptrap commented. He pulled up his readings from earlier when the ship was falling. “Yep, just the one. Looks like she was all by herself.” 

Sarge scowled. He wasn’t angry at Claptrap, but his frustration at the situation was quickly mounting. “Kids aren’t supposed to be by themselves!” He shouted. “She’s gotta have parents or a guardian or something! And if she’s here, then where are they?” Holding up his commlink again, he asked the rescuers, “Boys, is the kid hurt?”

A pause. “Uh… I can’t tell, Sarge,” Visor answered. “Its too dark out here to see much.” 

“Then you’d better bring her back here. I’ll let Rocker know so he can take a look at her as soon as you get back.”

“Roger, Sarge! We’re on our way.”

Sarge nodded to himself and turned to Claptrap. “Clap, contact the GAR. See if they can find any reports about a missing child in this area.”

“You got it, Sarge.” The trooper jumped up, ran around the lift tube in the middle of the room, and slid to a stop by another set of computers to send the message.

“And I’d better go tell Rocker what’s going on.” With a sigh, Sarge ran a hand through his curls as he marched out of the room. “Man… This is turning into one heck of a night.” 

***

Visor and Dagger ran as fast as their weary legs could carry them through the forest. Visor kept glancing down at the child in his arms, worry gnawing at his stomach and toying with his mind. Every fiber of his being begged that she would be okay, and somewhere deep inside his soul, he knew that she would be. Still, doubt was a cruel tormentor. 

Finally, they broke out of the woods and into the clearing surrounding the station’s landing platform. Ignoring their aching muscles, they scrambled up the platform’s stairs, into the hangar, and then through the short hallway that led to the main control room. 

"There you are!” Sarge exclaimed as his troopers burst through the doors. “We were getting worried.” 

“Yeah, what took you so long?” asked Scrap, the station’s all-around handyman and inventor, who stood beside Sarge. 

Dagger carefully pulled off his helmet and shot him a weak glare. “You… You try finding… finding your way… through… through those… those woods,” he gasped. As if the run TO the lake hadn’t been hard enough, the treacherous dive to save the kid and the run back to base had exhausted both troopers. Visor was about ready to pass out, and by the looks of it, so was Dagger. 

“It doesn’t matter how long it took them,” said Rocker, the station’s resident medic, as he took the little girl from Visor’s weary arms. “They’re here now and that’s all that matters. Scrap, I’ll need a hand in the med bay.” 

Scrap nodded and followed his brother towards the doors. “You got it, Doc!” 

The two sped out the door on the far left of the room, leaving Visor and Dagger with Sarge. He turned to the two of them with concern on his face. “You boys okay?”

“Yes… Yes, sir,” Visor panted. “Just… Just worn-out.”

“Well you two had better sit down, then.” Sarge nodded to some empty chairs sitting by the computer stations. Visor and Dagger obeyed, collapsing into the chairs closest to them while Sarge continued, “Now boys, I know you’d rather be heading to your bunks, but I need you to tell me everything that happened out there, while the details are still fresh in your minds. I’m going to need to report this to the GAR as soon as possible.”

“We’ll do our best, sir,” Visor assured him, finally catching his breath. Dagger nodded his agreement. 

Sarge smiled as he leaned back against one of the consoles. “I expect nothing less.” 

***

“…and then we just picked her up and got back here as fast as we could.”

Sarge rubbed the beard stubble on his jaw as Visor and Dagger finished their story. “Wow… I’m impressed, boys. That couldn’t have been easy.” 

“Thank you, sir.” Visor leaned back in his seat and tried to calm his mind. Going over the details of their adventure was filling him with adrenaline all over again, which in turn was throwing his thought patterns out of whack. 

“I’m proud of both of you, boys. You did a good job and you saved the kid. And I’m pretty sure you didn’t learn to do that from anyone on Kamino,” Sarge joked with a smirk.

Dagger chuckled. “As if we ever actually learned anything from those long-necks.”

Sarge shrugged. “Well… It wouldn’t hurt you to have learned at least one thing from them.”

“Yeah, like what? How to be cruel and sadistic?”

“I was thinking more along the lines of how to follow orders.”

Dagger’s smirk vanished. Visor held his breath. The pointed look Sarge was giving them was worrying. A lecture was imminent, they could tell. 

“Tell me, boys,” Sarge said, crossing his arms over his chest. “What’s the most important rule we have here?”

Dagger and Visor glanced at each other. “Uhh… ‘Don’t allow Scrap unsupervised access to the cleaning closet’?”

“’Claptrap and Rocker aren't allowed to bring in any bundle or box that squirms or make animal noises'?”

“’No painting the computer consoles’?”

Sarge pinched the bridge of his nose and groaned. “No, no, and no.” He took a deep breath. “Those are all valid rules, but I was more thinking of the rule that very specifically says, ‘All troopers are to stay INSIDE the base after sunset.’ You know, the rule at the TOP of our list?”

“Oh… THAT rule.”

“Boys, we have that rule for a reason: to keep you all safe! There’s all kind of monsters that roam these woods at night, and most all of them are out to eat us if we so much as step one foot outside these walls after the sun goes down. And our DC’s are basically useless against the most dangerous of them! The Screechers dodge the bolts like it’s a game and the Nocturns practically eat our shots!”

Dagger winced at the mention of the Nocturns and subconsciously rubbed a nasty scar on his jaw and neck. Visor cast him a sympathetic glance. The Nocturn Attack was a touchy subject, especially for the one who had been attacked. 

Sarge noticed the way Dagger’s eyes fell. He flinched. “Sorry, Dagger.” 

“Its fine, Sarge,” Dagger mumbled, too tired to put up a fake smile like he normally would. 

With a sigh, Sarge continued, “Look boys, like I said, I’m proud of you for doing a good thing and helping the kid. But, you both put yourselves in danger, disobeyed base rules, AND you ignored my direct orders when I told you to come back. And I can’t just let that slide.”

“Yeah, we know.” 

“We’ll take whatever punishment you have for us, Sarge,” Visor added. 

Sarge nodded to them. “Thank you. But, if I’m being honest, I’m a little too overwhelmed to think of any disciplines right now. So why don’t you two hit the bunks and get some rest? We’ll see about punishments tomorrow.” 

“Sir, yes, sir.” Dagger rose from his seat and stretched. 

But Visor gave Sarge worried look as he stood up. “Go to bed? But what about the kid?”

“She’s fine, Visor,” Sarge assured him. “She’s with Rocker now. He’ll take good care of her.”

“But—”

“If anything happens to her or she wakes up, one of us will come get you. Okay? Now go to bed before you pass out.”

Visor opened his mouth to protest, but sighed instead and saluted. “Yes, sir.” 

“That’s more like it. Now while you go do that, I’ll go see how Rocker and Scrap are getting along with her.” Sarge patted Visor’s shoulder before he strode out through the door at the far left of the large, circular control room.

Dagger shuffled towards another door at the back of the room. He paused to look back at Visor, who hadn’t moved. “You comin’, Vise?”

Visor stared at the door where Sarge had just walked out. He knew what Sarge had told him to do. And it wasn’t like he didn't WANT to go to bed, however… something in the back his mind kept nagging at him to go see the kid. He wasn’t sure if his tiredness was getting to him or if he was more of a worrier than he previously thought, but he couldn’t chase away the concern building up in his gut. He had to see her, if only for a minute. He just had to know if she was okay. “Uh… You go ahead, Dag. I’ll, uh… I just want to check on the kid real quick.”

Dagger quirked an eyebrow. “Didn’t Sarge say that he would let us know if something happens with her?”

“Yeah, he did. I just want to see her for myself.”

Dagger shrugged and yawned. “Suit yourself. I’m going to bed. See ya.” 

“Night, Dag.”

“Night, Visor.” 

Having made up his mind, Visor trudged out the door, into the hallway and towards the med bay. Just one peek at the kid. And then I’ll head to bed, he told himself. 

Once the door to the med bay hissed open, he poked his head in. There was the kid, lying on one of the medical cots lining the far wall. She was still asleep, but at least Visor didn’t see any casts or bandages on her; she must not’ve gotten hurt too bad after all.

“Visor?”

The trooper whipped his head around to see Sarge, who stood at the other end of the elongated med-bay with Rocker. Sarge gave him a curious look. “Didn’t I tell you to go to your bunk?”

“Yes, sir, you did. I just, um…” Visor stepped into the room, his eyes darting back and forth between the kid and his sergeant. “I just wanted to see her again.”

“Visor…” Sarge laced his tone with a warning, giving Visor a pointed look. 

“Please, Sarge. Just for a minute?”

Sarge studied his trooper with scrutiny. “You’re making a nasty habit of disobeying my orders, soldier.”

“He wouldn’t be bothering her, Sarge,” Rocker said. He threw a wink in Visor’s direction. Visor offered a thankful smile in return. 

Sarge sighed in surrender. “Alright, alright… But I still want you to try and get at least SOME sleep tonight. Alright?”

Visor grinned. “Yes, sir. Thanks, Sarge.” 

He trotted over to sit on the bed beside the girl's bed. Looking up to Rocker, he asked, “How’s she doing?”

“Pretty good for a kid in a ship crash.” Rocker stood at the foot of her bed and went over some scans on his datapad. “No broken limbs, no internal damage. The worst I can see is a bruise on her forehead hiding under her bangs there, but as far as I can tell, that’s just surface damage. A little bacta and that’ll clear right up.”

“No concussion?” Sarge asked, coming up beside Rocker.

“Unfortunately, I won’t be able to tell that until she wakes up. But if she does have one, it’ll be minor; nothing time can’t fix.” 

“Good, good. Any idea when she’ll wake up?” 

“Not a clue.” 

“Some doctor you are,” Visor teased. 

Rocker rolled his eyes and smirked. “Technically, I’m just a medic. If you want to know the exact second she’ll wake up, go see a fortune-teller.” 

“I might just do that. They’d be more accurate than you.” 

“Haha, you’re hilarious.” Rocker swatted Visor in the back of the head before jumping out of his reach. 

Sarge shook his head at the antics. “I assume its better to let her rest than to try to wake her up?”

Rocker nodded. “Yep. Since I can’t see anything that requires immediate medical attention, its best to let her sleep until her body decides she’s had enough.” 

“Alright, then. Let us know when she wakes up, will you?”

“Will do, Sarge.” 

Everyone's attention was pulled away by the sound of the door hissing open. Claptrap slipped in, with Scrap right on his heels.

“Hey, Claptrap. Got any good news for me?” Sarge asked.

“Well, I have news, but I’m not sure how good it is.” 

“What did you find?”

“Unfortunately, Coruscant says that there’s always missing children reports, but our kid doesn’t match any descriptions they have. The guys at headquarters said they would notify us if they found anything, but I highly doubt that they’ll remember.” 

Sarge groaned and rubbed his face. “Well, so much for that idea…” 

“So what do we do now?” Rocker asked. 

“I don’t know,” Sarge sighed. He ran his hands up his face and through his hair, leaving his fingers tangled in his curls while he thought. “That was the only idea I had. The GAR never taught what we were supposed to do with lone children that crashed on your planet.” 

“Speaking of the GAR,” Claptrap said, “when I reported the situation, they said they would want a more detailed report from my commanding officer. And unless someone suddenly jumped the ranks here, I’d say that’s you.” 

Sarge snorted. “Yes, unfortunately that is still me.” He let out another sigh. “Oh, well… Might as well go let them know what’s going on. Rocker, you’d better come with me so you can give them an update on her condition.” 

Rocker offered a nod and a grin. “Sure thing, Sarge.” 

As the three of them moved to leave, Visor reluctantly rose to his feet. If they were giving reports, then he should probably be there to give his side of it. He didn’t want to leave the kid yet, but common sense told him he should go with the others. 

But before he could follow them, Sarge laid a hand on his shoulder. “Visor, why don’t you stay here?” 

Visor’s face twisted in confusion. “But… Shouldn’t I tell them what happened at the lake?”

“Did you tell me everything that happened?”

Visor rolled his eyes skyward in thought. “Uh… Yeah, I think so.”

Sarge nodded. “Okay, then. I can tell them for you. Besides, we need someone to stay and keep an eye on the kid. Sound good?”

A weary but grateful smile spread across Visor’s face. “Yeah, that sounds good. Thanks, Sarge.” 

Sarge smiled and threw him a wink before patting his shoulder. He marched out of the med bay with Rocker and Claptrap, leaving Scrap and Visor alone with the kid. Scrap sauntered over to the foot of her bed. “Wow… So that's what a nat-born looks like, huh?”

“That's what this nat-born looks like anyway,” Visor said, taking the opportunity to study the little girl. This was the first time, he realized, that he had a moment to actually absorb her appearance. Up until now, his mind had been preoccupied by a mix of adrenaline and chaos that didn’t allow him to focus on much. But now that she was safe and he had had a chance to calm down, he allowed himself to be fascinated by the first nat-born he had ever seen in his life. 

Dagger was right when he said that she was tiny. Rocker and Scrap had switched out her wet clothes for a dry body glove, and the shirt alone seemed to swallow her up. They had rolled the sleeves up so her hands were free, but that just made her look even smaller. Visor reached over and tenderly brushed some of her rich black hair away from her youthful face, shocked by the contrast between her dark hair and her pale skin. He was so used to the dark skin and hair of himself and his brothers; he had never really thought about how different nat-borns were from them. 

Brushing his gloved fingers against her cheek, Visor felt ready to burst, but he didn’t know why. There was just something… Something about the kid’s size, about the peaceful look on her face, about the way she almost leaned into his touch in her sleep… It all played his heart like a fiddle, and it stirred up emotions in his soul that he couldn’t quite name. The only thing he could tell for certain, was that he would either see this kid safely home or die trying. 

“Y'know…” Scrap’s voice broke Visor from his thoughts, “being stationed here, I never thought that we would get to see an actual nat-born. And I especially never imagined that we would get to see a kid.”

“A bit crazy, isn’t it?”

Scrap nodded. “Crazy doesn't even begin to cover it. Where do you think she's from, anyway?”

Visor shrugged and let out a sigh. “I wish I knew. Her family must be worried sick about her.”

“Eh, don't worry. We'll find them and get her back before you know it.” Scrap flashed him his signature optimistic grin. 

A hopeful smile played at the corner’s of Visor’s mouth. “I hope you’re right.” He was going to turn back to the kid, but he caught sight of the bundle in his brother’s hand. “Hey, Scrap. What’s that?” He nodded to it. 

Scrap glanced down. “Oh! This? I… I really don’t know.” He held it up and unraveled it, revealing a beautiful blue-green scarf and a golden medallion on a chain. Visor recognized the scarf; the kid had had it wrapped around her waist. But he didn’t remember seeing the medallion. “The kid was wearing this—” Scrap wiggled the scarf. “—around her waist, but this was in her pocket.” He dangled the necklace a little higher. “It fell out when I went to hang up her clothes.” 

“Can I see?” Visor held out his hand. 

Scrap shrugged. “Sure. Here.” He dropped both items into Visor’s grasp.

“Wow…” Visor carefully set the still-somewhat-damp scarf on the bed beside him, admiring the elegant gold stitching that ran along the edges of the silky fabric. But the medallion was what really caught his attention. It was beautiful! A bright white gem, about a half an inch wide, was embedded in the center, and 6 smaller, blue gems were planted around it. The rest of the medallion was covered in intricate carvings and etchings, and Visor gazed at it in awe. He loved to carve and whittle designs into wood, but he could only dream of making something THIS detailed and exquisite.

“Amazing…” He breathed as he studied every facet of its design. 

“Sure is. Do you think that’s real gold?”

“Looks like it to me.” Carefully, Visor gently laid the medallion on top of the scarf. “Where’s the rest of the kid’s stuff?”

“I have it hanging in my workshop. I set up a heat lamp, so they shouldn’t take too long to dry off.”

“Why'd you bring these back in? The scarf’s still a little wet.”

“I don't know. They just seemed really fancy compared to the rest of her stuff. Something told me she'd want them back when she wakes up, so I thought I'd bring them back now.”

“Hm… You’re probably right.” Visor picked up the scarf and carefully folded it. He set it down on the stand beside the kid’s bed then laid the medallion on top of it. “I guess we'll just leave them here, then.”

“Works for me.” Scrap grinned wide, but then he frowned. “Y’know… Now that I’m thinking about it, I should probably go check on the rest of her clothes. The last time I tried to use the heat lamp to dry my body glove off, I almost burned a hole in the front.” 

Visor’s eyebrows shot up. “Then why are you using it for her clothes?”

Scrap shrugged as he moved backwards towards the doors. “If I’m careful, her stuff’ll be fine.” 

“If?!”

“I’ll be back!” And with that, Scrap left. Visor stared after him for a moment before shaking his head and heaving a sigh. 

“Oh, Scrap…” As inventive and clever as Scrap was, he didn't exactly have a reputation as a careful trooper. On several occasions, his experiments had caused near-disaster because he didn't think things through all the way. But despite his mishaps, the boys on Mariden couldn't imagine life without him. He really was a brilliant trooper, and his successes far outnumbered his failures.

“Mmm…” 

Visor jumped, startled out of his thoughts. What was that?

“Mm…”

Wait… Was that coming from the kid? Visor focused on her face as she began to stir in her sleep. Relief washed over him. Finally!

“Kid?” He called softly, reaching out to brush her hair away from her eyes. “Kid, can you hear me?”

She didn’t answer. But her face slowly turned towards him and her eyes fluttered halfway open. He sucked in a breath at the sight. Her eyes were the brightest blue he had ever seen!

Ignoring the rapid beating of his heart, Visor offered her a gentle smile. “Hello there,” he whispered. “Nice to see you awake, kiddo.” 

“Um… Hello,” the girl croaked. She licked her lips as her gaze slowly traveled around the room. Visor waited patiently, letting her absorb her surroundings. “Where… Where am I?”

“You’re in the med bay of the Republic’s Lookout Station on Mariden.”

“Oh…” The girl looked around again. She seemed a little out of it, but Visor wasn’t surprised. He’d be groggy, too, if he’d been knocked unconscious. “Um… How did I get here?” she asked. “I thought… I thought I was…” Her voice trailed off.

“Your pod crashed in a lake not far from here,” Visor explained. “My brother and I—” 

The girl’s eyes went wide at the mention of the crash. She whimpered and buried her head in her pillow as her whole body shuddered. Visor flinched. Of course that would be a touchy subject. Crashes were scary for anyone, and it was probably much worse for a child. He reached out and squeezed her hand. “Hey, hey, don’t worry. You’re safe now,” he assured her. “My brother and I got you out of there. Its all over now.”

The little girl slowly opened her eyes. The terror and sadness swimming in them twisted Visor’s gut. He had to get her mind off the crash, so he smiled at her again and asked, “Hey, I think you might be here for a while, so it might be nice if I knew your name. That way I’m not just calling you ‘kid’ all the time.”

She stared at him. The she whispered “I… I’m Twilight.” 

“Twilight?”

She nodded. 

“Well, nice to meet you, Twilight.” He held out his hand to her. “I’m Visor.” 

The sadness faded from her face. She put her hand in his and let out a tiny giggle as she shook it. Visor almost melted at the sound and how small her hand was in his grasp. “Nice to meet you, too,” she said, her voice still quiet and soft. 

“So, Twilight, how do you feel?”

“Umm… Fine, I guess.” She eased herself up into a sitting position. “My… My head kind of hurts.” She held her forehead and winced. 

“I can imagine,” Visor said with a nod. He adjusted her pillow so she could scoot back against it. “You’ve got a pretty good sized bruise up there. You must’ve hit it hard. Does it hurt bad?"

She paused and chewed the inside of her cheek. A serious concentration fell over her face. “No. Not really.”

Visor let out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding. “Good. That’s good. Rocker said you might have a concussion, but if the pain isn’t too bad, then you probably don’t.” 

“Who’s Rocker?”

“He’s the medic here.” 

Curiosity flashed across Twilight’s expression. “What’s a medic?”

“Uh… Its like a doctor, but for the army.” 

Twilight’s eyebrows shot up. “Army?” she squeaked. 

“Yep. We're all soldiers, here."

“S-s-soldiers?”

He chuckled as he motioned to his armor. “You didn’t think this was the latest Coruscant fashion, did you?”

“Well, no, but… Why am I in the army?”

Another chuckle escaped him. “You’re not in the army, kid, don’t worry. You’re in an army base. We didn't have a regular hospital to take you to because we ‘re the only people on this planet.”  

“The only people? How come?”

He shrugged. “That’s just the way it worked out. This planet’s pretty deep in the Outer Rim, so there’s not a whole lot of people who even know about it.”

“Oh.” She looked down at her lap and played with the edges of her shirt sleeves, concentration clouding her expression again. “I always thought the Outer Rim was full of pirates.”

Visor snickered. “Oh, there's definitely a lot of those, but it probably depends on where you go in the Outer Rim.”

“Yeah, I gu—” She froze. Suddenly, she straightened up as she held her arms out in front of her. 

Visor’s brow furrowed in concern. “What’s wrong?”

Twilight stared at her sleeves, then looked down at her shirt. Her wide-eyed gaze spun around to Visor. “These aren’t my clothes!” 

Oh, that’s all it was. He smiled, somewhat relieved. “Yeah, I know, but your stuff was all wet, so we had to get you into something dry. Scrap has your clothes hanging in his workshop right now, don’t worry.” 

Her eyes grew even wider, if that was possible. “Is my scarf there?” The sudden desperation in her voice was almost overwhelming. “And my necklace! Please, I need them!” Tears pooled in her eyes, filling Visor with worry.

“Uh, do you mean these?” He scooped the items off the stand beside her bed and held them out to her. Apparently Scrap was right that she would want them back, but Visor didn't expect her to be this anxious about them.

Twilight immediately snatched them from his hands and hugged them to her chest. The tears slowly began dripping down her cheeks and her shoulders began shaking with quiet sobs.

Visor panicked. “Hey, hey, hey!” He jumped off his bed and stood over her, resting his hands on her small shoulders. “Shhh, shhh… It’s okay! What’s the matter?”

She straightened her back enough to look him in the eye. Visor’s gut twisted in dreadful concern at the sight of her tear stained face and quivering lips. “Th-this… This was M-Mama’s s-scarf…,” she sniffled. “And D-Daddy’s…” She hiccupped. “Daddy’s n-necklace.”

“Oh.” Why would that make her cry? Carefully, Visor lowered himself down beside her. He gave her shoulders squeeze. “Don't worry, kid. We’ll get you back to them, okay? You’ll be out of here and back home with your parents before you—”

Twilight's tears returned like a shot. She threw herself into Visor, holding the scarf and necklace tight as she buried her face in his chest. Visor wasn’t sure what to do at the sudden gesture. It wasn’t like he had any experience in handling upset children. But his heart ached at the sound of her sobs, so he tenderly wrapped his arms around her. With one hand, he cradled her head, and with his other hand he rubbed circles on her back. “Shh… Shh, kid. Its okay.” 

“N-no… It’s n-not o-okay,” she cried between hiccups. “Its not… I’m n-never g-gonna…” 

Visor gave her a gentle squeeze. “Never going to what? C’mon, kid, talk to me.”

“Mama… Daddy…” 

“We’re going to get you back to them, Twilight. I promise.” 

“No… No, you c-can’t.”

“Why not?” Visor reluctantly pulled away and held her at arms’ length. She refused to look him in the eye, instead gazing at the scarf and the necklace through her tears. “Twilight, please… Why can’t we get you back to them?”

She sniffled. Slowly, she turned her gaze up to Visor. His heart nearly failed him at the complete despair swimming in her eyes. And what she said next shattered his mind. 

“They’re dead.”  

[taking-your-hand]

I really wanna start streaming on twitch and making Minecraft roleplays on YouTube (my main inspirations are Nihachu and Aphmau) but I’m really scared of people seeing that I’m a comshipper and trying to cancel me for it. I know how bad it can get, I’ve seen people leak faceless’ streamers address’ over petty drama and I’ve seen others snooping through youtuber’s Facebook just because they like them, I can’t imagine how much worse it would be if they disliked the person. I’m super scared of that happening to me because I’m openly comship. Not to mention the amount of people who’ll go around and call me horrible names, I once saw a Vtuber refer to Venti as a shota and they were called the dirtiest most gut-wrenching names. I’m already really sensitive so I don’t think I’d be able to handle it :(

Oh goodness, I have very similar fears myself. >< I am working on some projects that I intend to publish as original works that I do hope people will enjoy and be inspired by, but I'm always fearful of the people who will try to drag my name through the mud because I'm very openly defensive of The Bad Kinks™ and much more aggressively on my main than on here too, heheh!

I've seen... horrible things happen to artists, especially when they already have little power in society and the people with more power find it much easier to just kick them instead of standing up for them.

It's bizarre to me that I have yet to be so viciously targeted, and I really wonder if it comes down to popularity. Anti-kink people don't particularly care about me because I'm just a small Tumblr user, but on the other hand, god help me if I explode in a fandom one day or make a beloved game/show/etc. THEN, I'll face their wrath for daring to seek out success and happiness for myself, because I'm "tricking" or "manipulating" fans who don't realize how "problematic" I am. -_-

And certainly, some of it comes down to luck as well, because lots of small artists also get targeted. 😔

I don't think I have THE answers, but... I can tell you what I try so hard to internalize myself.

First of all, you have every right to the space you occupy as everyone else, regardless of your kinks or views on such. Contrary to what some people will claim, you are not intruding and you are not falsely advertising yourself. It's important to always keep that in mind. The idea that comshippers hurt people by being in their spaces is like saying they hurt people by standing in the same line at McDonald's pff. It's unrelated and ridiculous.

Secondly, as sad and perhaps pessimistic as this is, there will NEVER be a person or property that these extreme, one-note, closed-minded bullies won't target. No matter how much care you put into a story or presentation, there will be someone ready to twist it into something negative, or try to gatekeep your own fans if they do think you're on "their side" and "would never support these bad ships", etc. And here is the silver lining to that: Because this attitude is inevitable, you need not try to sand down your work to please such people. Anyone who would put so much energy into hating and tearing down someone for their art: their opinion of you is absolutely worthless. It's best to skip the needless pain and doubt they'll cause, and worry about the opinions of people with something of merit to say. People who criticize you in good faith, not the brainless screechers who just can't stand their own existences.

I feel like there is certainly more, and perhaps even better, advice out there for you, but I hope this was at least a start. As I said, I struggle with this fear too, and I think I have yet to fully embrace my own solution, especially since I haven't yet put out my projects heheh.

But either way, hope it helps. <3

And of course, I welcome any further advice from others on this! Lord knows I need it too haha.

Real quick, note that my rather vitriolic language is directed specifically at harassers and abusers, not at all self-identified antis.

[smokeybrandreviews]

Smokey brand Reviews: Force Sensitivities episode II

I shill for Star Wars hard. I have for years, easily since i was a wee lil Smokey. I say that every time i start one of these essays or reviews because i want to be completely transparent about my bias. Darth Vader is easily one of, if not the, best cinema antagonist, ever, in my opinion. I love this cyborg asshole and everything about him. That first introduction in the beginning of Episode IV was everything. The second James Earl Jones' brilliantly dubbed voice boomed onscreen was it for me. Darth Vader as my dude and my love affair with the franchise began. I say all of this because i am part of the Fandom Menace. Absolutely i am. I cherish Star Wars so watching Kathleen Kennedy decimate my galaxy far, far, away in the name of her own ego, is practically debilitating. And it’s not even like i am averse to the ideas of her changes, you know? I like the idea of Rey. I loved Adam Driver and his Vader-lite, Kylo Ren. I love Oscar Issac so his Han Solo replacement, Po Dameron, already had my heart and Boyega's Finn had all the hallmarks of being something really special. And then Kennedy let Rian Johnson f*ck that sh*t all up.

And then she f*cked up Solo. And then she f*cked up Rise of Skywalker. And then she f*cked up everything else. So little of Star Wars has been good or original on Kennedy’s watch and it’s insane to me people defend this chick because she IS a chick. Bro, she is, objectively, bad at her job. It’s a wonder anything good has come out of Lucasfilm in her tenure. One of those things was Sear Wars Visions. That sh*t slapped hard and, coming off Netflix’s excellent anthology series Love,Death, + Robots, Visions was primed to ravage my senses. And it did. I just found out that the second season dropped to little fanfare, probably because this isn’t really a Kennedy production, much like he first, and her ego refuses to acknowledge anything that doesn’t have her name on it. Anyway, i finally got to check out these brand new takes on an old myth that is struggling to survive.

Sith

What a way to start off your anthology! This one was much stronger than The Duel from last season, in my humble opinion. I loved the use of color and negative space. The combination of such a vibrant palette against those stark whites, or the subtle contrast by those blacks at the climax; Simply brilliant. More than that, the sound design went a long way to setting the tone of this short. It did so much heavy lifting, i was flabbergasted, especially considering how dope the animation turned out. Seriously, Sith is a work of art and masterclass in tension. I was on the edge of my seat with that final duel and it was less than i expected but much more than i needed. El Guiri Studios really gave us something special. Here's hoping Hollywood takes notice and let's these cats really do there thing with a proper budget and creative license.

Screecher's Reach

Another banger right after the first? Yessir! Admittedly, while I like the aesthetic of Screecher's Reach, it was nowhere near as beautiful as The Sith. That said, this one had much, much, more emotional impact. That short, thirteen and change, gave me some of the best character development I've seen out of Disney Star Wars to date! That's not to say the animation and art design wasn't lovely. Cartoon Saloon really brought their A game with this one. The overall short was gorgeous and far more impactful than it had any right to be. Plus, that twist ending! Yo, I don't know who or what that Sith was at the end but I love the look! So deceptive. So insidious. I feel so bad for Daal but so glad I got to see her story.

In the Stars

Not gonna lie, I didn't care for this one. I respect the gumption, for sure, to make a claymation short because they are always so fun to watch but there are several practical limitations to creating animation this way. I'm immediately struck by the lack of color and fluidity in the overall animation. Coming off the first two shorts, this really took away from my viewing experience. On top of that, there is a lot of “Tell, don't show” in this fifteen minutes. Way to much exposition dumped early on. It's like Punkrobot Studios didn't trust the audience to infer all of that from the natural plot progression. It doesn't help that our main protagonist, the one we're supposed to be rooting for, is a reckless ass child. It's such a stark contrast the kids in Screecher's Reach. Yeah, there are merits to In the Stars, they're just not for me. I know this is supposed to be a metaphor of colonialism or whatever but it's just so poorly executed. Plus, I mean, everyone is still dead, the f*ck?

I Am Your Mother

And as if to drive my point home about the claymation thing, I am Your Mother comes along and absolutely puts In The Stars to shame with the same goddamn technique! Aardman really put together something4 special with this short and I mean short. I Am Your Mother is only ten minutes and change but it uses every second of that run time to tell a really heartfelt, coming-of-age, narrative. The overall plot might be a bit derivative but I'm a softy for these types of narratives so I had a great time with it. It's nuts because this is basically the same, overall, plot as In The Stars but Mother does it so much better. More than anything, this feels like Star Wars. You can plop this thing right in with the Prequel era of films and it wouldn't feel out of place at all.

Journey to the Dark Head

So I really, really, liked this on. I think I liked it as much as The Sith and that's saying a lot because that one is probably my favorite of the season. Dark Head is the first traditionally animated short and Studio Mir really put their best foot forward. This f*cking thing was epic! I'm a sucker for anime and, while this technically isn't proper anime, they pay solid homage to that aesthetic. It feels a lot like Avatar in that way and lord knows I love me some Misadventures of Aang and Friends. Probably because Mir is the studio who did Korra. My affection for Korra is much less but I'd be lying if I said that animation wasn't solid. This one was the longest of the lot so far, eighteen minutes, but they used that time to tell a strong story. It's wild to think they'd be able to pack in so much character development, in such a short amount of time, and entire, theatrical length, Star Wars films can't do the same. Rogue One, I'm looking at you.

The Spydancer

Yo, what the f*ck was that?! Holy sh*t, was that solid storytelling! Look, the emotional weight of this sixteen minute was incredible. I mean, of the top, I love the look of the art. The animation was fluid, particular the dancing, and the sound design was everything but the goddamn story, man! How the f*ck did Studio la Cachette do so much, in much little time? Seriously, this was a straight up roller coaster of emotion and I didn't expect that at all. I thought Journey to Dark Head told a complete narrative but The Spydancer does all of that and so much more. Seriously, it's hard not to put this up there with the best of Disney Star Wars and thy did it in sixteen goddamn minutes!

The Bandits of Golak

Another miss for me. Look, I love the Indian inspiration and the CG animation is solid but I don't particular care for the story being told, especially coming off something as emotionally weighty as The Spydancer. Still, 88 Pictures really made the most of their sixteen minutes. I can see why so many people enjoyed this short, even if I, personally, didn't really care for it. That final duel was solid as f*ck, though.

The Pit

Black folks in Star Wars? Let's go! Seriously, there is a distinct lack of color in a galaxy far, far, away so anytime I can get some melanated representation, I'm all in. What do we have so far? Mace, Finn, and Lando? Three prominent black characters over, what is it now? Four goddamn decades? Almost five? Motherf*ckers should be ashamed of themselves. Still, The Pit goes a long way to bridging that gap. Now, I support the f*ck out of D'ART Shtajio but I'd be lying if I said this wasn't the weakest of the shorts in season two. That, and I kind of really hate the Lucasfilm co-sign. None of the other studios needed it. This feels like a Kennedy thing. Gotta take as much credit for the diversity hire as possible, you know? If you didn't now, D'ART Shtajio is the first black owned anime studio. Thy do a lot of support animation for a ton of anime series but this is their first stab at a recognizable franchise like Star Wars where they are allowed to fully do their thing. All that said, The Pit is easily the weakest entry into this season. The narrative is solid and it does a great deal with it's sixteen minutes but this thing doesn't leave nearly the impression of every other short the anthology. Seriously, this thing has a strong message that is kind of undermined by the lack of quality when stood against the rest of the shorts presented.

Aau's Song

Auu's Song closes out this season's entries and, just like the opening, it was a strong choice. Aau's Song feels like a quiet story, intimate and personal, awash in a sea of stars. We  should be fortunate that her tale was told to us with such reverence and respect by Triggering. I was a little suspect at first, being that the two other stop-motion entries were hit-and-miss, but Auu's Song was definitely a hit. I am in love with this aesthetic. It feels like Final Fantasy IX and, if you know me, you know IX is top five for me. I loved the look, but I loved the sound design even more. Auu's song was lovely. Just the vocalizations, alone, were enough to catch my attention but couple that with the underlying tribal drums when sh*t got hairy, and you have a complete story told through your ears. Seriously, you can close your eyes and just listen to this story without missing a narrative beat. I find that absolutely amazing. It's wild to think that Aau's Song can be so god with absolutely no conflict. There are no Sith here, no Empire, no malevolence, just redemption and I kind of love that. The Sith, and to a lesser extent the Empire, were so prominent throughout this season but arguably the second strongest short of the lot, was devoid of anything resembling the dark side, outside of bled Kyber. Absolutely spectacular watch.

[smokeybrand]

Smokey brand Reviews: Force Sensitivities episode II

I shill for Star Wars hard. I have for years, easily since i was a wee lil Smokey. I say that every time i start one of these essays or reviews because i want to be completely transparent about my bias. Darth Vader is easily one of, if not the, best cinema antagonist, ever, in my opinion. I love this cyborg asshole and everything about him. That first introduction in the beginning of Episode IV was everything. The second James Earl Jones' brilliantly dubbed voice boomed onscreen was it for me. Darth Vader as my dude and my love affair with the franchise began. I say all of this because i am part of the Fandom Menace. Absolutely i am. I cherish Star Wars so watching Kathleen Kennedy decimate my galaxy far, far, away in the name of her own ego, is practically debilitating. And it’s not even like i am averse to the ideas of her changes, you know? I like the idea of Rey. I loved Adam Driver and his Vader-lite, Kylo Ren. I love Oscar Issac so his Han Solo replacement, Po Dameron, already had my heart and Boyega's Finn had all the hallmarks of being something really special. And then Kennedy let Rian Johnson f*ck that sh*t all up.

And then she f*cked up Solo. And then she f*cked up Rise of Skywalker. And then she f*cked up everything else. So little of Star Wars has been good or original on Kennedy’s watch and it’s insane to me people defend this chick because she IS a chick. Bro, she is, objectively, bad at her job. It’s a wonder anything good has come out of Lucasfilm in her tenure. One of those things was Sear Wars Visions. That sh*t slapped hard and, coming off Netflix’s excellent anthology series Love,Death, + Robots, Visions was primed to ravage my senses. And it did. I just found out that the second season dropped to little fanfare, probably because this isn’t really a Kennedy production, much like he first, and her ego refuses to acknowledge anything that doesn’t have her name on it. Anyway, i finally got to check out these brand new takes on an old myth that is struggling to survive.

Sith

What a way to start off your anthology! This one was much stronger than The Duel from last season, in my humble opinion. I loved the use of color and negative space. The combination of such a vibrant palette against those stark whites, or the subtle contrast by those blacks at the climax; Simply brilliant. More than that, the sound design went a long way to setting the tone of this short. It did so much heavy lifting, i was flabbergasted, especially considering how dope the animation turned out. Seriously, Sith is a work of art and masterclass in tension. I was on the edge of my seat with that final duel and it was less than i expected but much more than i needed. El Guiri Studios really gave us something special. Here's hoping Hollywood takes notice and let's these cats really do there thing with a proper budget and creative license.

Screecher's Reach

Another banger right after the first? Yessir! Admittedly, while I like the aesthetic of Screecher's Reach, it was nowhere near as beautiful as The Sith. That said, this one had much, much, more emotional impact. That short, thirteen and change, gave me some of the best character development I've seen out of Disney Star Wars to date! That's not to say the animation and art design wasn't lovely. Cartoon Saloon really brought their A game with this one. The overall short was gorgeous and far more impactful than it had any right to be. Plus, that twist ending! Yo, I don't know who or what that Sith was at the end but I love the look! So deceptive. So insidious. I feel so bad for Daal but so glad I got to see her story.

In the Stars

Not gonna lie, I didn't care for this one. I respect the gumption, for sure, to make a claymation short because they are always so fun to watch but there are several practical limitations to creating animation this way. I'm immediately struck by the lack of color and fluidity in the overall animation. Coming off the first two shorts, this really took away from my viewing experience. On top of that, there is a lot of “Tell, don't show” in this fifteen minutes. Way to much exposition dumped early on. It's like Punkrobot Studios didn't trust the audience to infer all of that from the natural plot progression. It doesn't help that our main protagonist, the one we're supposed to be rooting for, is a reckless ass child. It's such a stark contrast the kids in Screecher's Reach. Yeah, there are merits to In the Stars, they're just not for me. I know this is supposed to be a metaphor of colonialism or whatever but it's just so poorly executed. Plus, I mean, everyone is still dead, the f*ck?

I Am Your Mother

And as if to drive my point home about the claymation thing, I am Your Mother comes along and absolutely puts In The Stars to shame with the same goddamn technique! Aardman really put together something4 special with this short and I mean short. I Am Your Mother is only ten minutes and change but it uses every second of that run time to tell a really heartfelt, coming-of-age, narrative. The overall plot might be a bit derivative but I'm a softy for these types of narratives so I had a great time with it. It's nuts because this is basically the same, overall, plot as In The Stars but Mother does it so much better. More than anything, this feels like Star Wars. You can plop this thing right in with the Prequel era of films and it wouldn't feel out of place at all.

Journey to the Dark Head

So I really, really, liked this on. I think I liked it as much as The Sith and that's saying a lot because that one is probably my favorite of the season. Dark Head is the first traditionally animated short and Studio Mir really put their best foot forward. This f*cking thing was epic! I'm a sucker for anime and, while this technically isn't proper anime, they pay solid homage to that aesthetic. It feels a lot like Avatar in that way and lord knows I love me some Misadventures of Aang and Friends. Probably because Mir is the studio who did Korra. My affection for Korra is much less but I'd be lying if I said that animation wasn't solid. This one was the longest of the lot so far, eighteen minutes, but they used that time to tell a strong story. It's wild to think they'd be able to pack in so much character development, in such a short amount of time, and entire, theatrical length, Star Wars films can't do the same. Rogue One, I'm looking at you.

The Spydancer

Yo, what the f*ck was that?! Holy sh*t, was that solid storytelling! Look, the emotional weight of this sixteen minute was incredible. I mean, of the top, I love the look of the art. The animation was fluid, particular the dancing, and the sound design was everything but the goddamn story, man! How the f*ck did Studio la Cachette do so much, in much little time? Seriously, this was a straight up roller coaster of emotion and I didn't expect that at all. I thought Journey to Dark Head told a complete narrative but The Spydancer does all of that and so much more. Seriously, it's hard not to put this up there with the best of Disney Star Wars and thy did it in sixteen goddamn minutes!

The Bandits of Golak

Another miss for me. Look, I love the Indian inspiration and the CG animation is solid but I don't particular care for the story being told, especially coming off something as emotionally weighty as The Spydancer. Still, 88 Pictures really made the most of their sixteen minutes. I can see why so many people enjoyed this short, even if I, personally, didn't really care for it. That final duel was solid as f*ck, though.

The Pit

Black folks in Star Wars? Let's go! Seriously, there is a distinct lack of color in a galaxy far, far, away so anytime I can get some melanated representation, I'm all in. What do we have so far? Mace, Finn, and Lando? Three prominent black characters over, what is it now? Four goddamn decades? Almost five? Motherf*ckers should be ashamed of themselves. Still, The Pit goes a long way to bridging that gap. Now, I support the f*ck out of D'ART Shtajio but I'd be lying if I said this wasn't the weakest of the shorts in season two. That, and I kind of really hate the Lucasfilm co-sign. None of the other studios needed it. This feels like a Kennedy thing. Gotta take as much credit for the diversity hire as possible, you know? If you didn't now, D'ART Shtajio is the first black owned anime studio. Thy do a lot of support animation for a ton of anime series but this is their first stab at a recognizable franchise like Star Wars where they are allowed to fully do their thing. All that said, The Pit is easily the weakest entry into this season. The narrative is solid and it does a great deal with it's sixteen minutes but this thing doesn't leave nearly the impression of every other short the anthology. Seriously, this thing has a strong message that is kind of undermined by the lack of quality when stood against the rest of the shorts presented.

Aau's Song

Auu's Song closes out this season's entries and, just like the opening, it was a strong choice. Aau's Song feels like a quiet story, intimate and personal, awash in a sea of stars. We  should be fortunate that her tale was told to us with such reverence and respect by Triggering. I was a little suspect at first, being that the two other stop-motion entries were hit-and-miss, but Auu's Song was definitely a hit. I am in love with this aesthetic. It feels like Final Fantasy IX and, if you know me, you know IX is top five for me. I loved the look, but I loved the sound design even more. Auu's song was lovely. Just the vocalizations, alone, were enough to catch my attention but couple that with the underlying tribal drums when sh*t got hairy, and you have a complete story told through your ears. Seriously, you can close your eyes and just listen to this story without missing a narrative beat. I find that absolutely amazing. It's wild to think that Aau's Song can be so god with absolutely no conflict. There are no Sith here, no Empire, no malevolence, just redemption and I kind of love that. The Sith, and to a lesser extent the Empire, were so prominent throughout this season but arguably the second strongest short of the lot, was devoid of anything resembling the dark side, outside of bled Kyber. Absolutely spectacular watch.