#let him have it chief

[scarletooyoroi]

❝ do you wish to hear my opinion on the matter? ❞ / mona!

Opinions at this point could be considered genuine kindness. There was no easy way for this news to be laid upon Thoma after traveling far to seek her wisdom. Not that it was the only reason to delve into Mondstadt's great walls once again. The aged look upon the astrologist's features offered a hint of pity, at the very least, it seems to be the case after what her mystic arts divined for him. Simply put, his future holds the grim promises of having a veritable hell be his trials if he wants to pursue this instinct that shimmers and glows within his heart.

In short? There's an incredible chance that pursuing his current path will have him cut close with the idea of or just outright facing oblivion, many, many times.

Being met with bitter truth certainly has a way of dwindling down whatever slapped together hopes he was attempting to temper. To meet this call is to accept that longevity for his lifespan remains in constant risk, that losses in terms of prices and sorrows would be violently escalated compared to accepting a branch of life that requires him to accept the realms of safety. The distinct awareness that his actions within Inazuma has tailored together a band of infamy within darker circuits... Couldn't be surprising.

Leaning back upon the offered seat as he stares at the old age infrastructure of Monstadt's brickwork houses and cobblestone streets, for a fleeting moment it brings him back to earlier days that held nothing to do with this. Where his genuine, innocent laughter flocked alongside fairy tale dreams of being that beloved knight in shining armor.

Even then, that wasn't taken too seriously. Witnessing Jean's efforts were both an effort he supported.. but also couldn't help but envy, Mondstadt's style didn't awaken what was needed.

And the home that did, Inazuma, came with great prices to balance the scales of the great strengths he'd obtain.

A tension filled hand couldn't help but grunt in resignation, drifting a gloved touch along his blonde curls as stomach dropping ideas comes to mind involing what she possibly has to say.

"An opinion to be tailored alongside a truth? Haha, can't help but feel like that's really unexpected.." Granted, for all the bitter reality of what's to come, he holds heart, that light within his eyes a stubborn forged flame that refuses to fade into obscurity. Glancing towards the Hydromancer, his features steel, prepared-ness set to receive suggestions he certainly may not be happy with.

"Come what may, Astrologist Mona. Tell me what runs within your mind."

@starsdescent

[cubbyhole-for-flea-bee]

additional work doodles on stolen printer paper ft. Jiang Cheng meeting various dog breeds

cuz I feel like it would be a hoot watching this guy react to the ecclectic variety of pooches the world has to offer

[lavenoon]

@naffeclipse I have nothing to say for myself, looming Eclipse got away from me

*self insert is not a girl (he/she)

og detective au by sunnys-aesthetic!

[artiststarme]

Road Rage

Here's just a little thought I had after someone cut me off yesterday. Enjoy and please leave your thoughts in the comments!

~*~*~*~

Imagine if Eddie didn’t hate Steve because he was a rich jock that symbolized everything wrong with society or because of his entitled behavior in high school or because he was jealous of hearing about him from the kids. What if he really hated him because he was the only guy in town that matched his level of road rage? 

Steve fucking Harrington, the only douche in town that would attempt to one-up his violent bird-flipping and periless driving maneuvers. He matched his tone in yells, obscene gestures, and speed whenever Eddie tried to zoom around him. 

The real reason he put that broken bottle so close to his carotid artery in the boat shed wasn’t because of fear or panic. No, it was because that bastard made him get a ticket for reckless driving and he still hadn’t forgiven him for it. However, after the Upside Down, Eddie takes a seat in the Beemer’s passenger seat and they drive off into the sunset, road-raging together and leaving fear in their wake.

And when the kids ask them about their horrible driving habits, well, they just don’t know what they’re talking about (regardless of what Hopper says). 

[lilapplesheadcannons]

Nie MingJue, the unintentional kidnapper

Or that time A-Yuan almost got adopted into the Nie Sect

Nie MingJue is starting to get slightly uncomfortable. Sure, it has been decades since HuaiSang was a toddler (two decades, to be more specific), but surely toddlers need to blink more? The child is looking at him like he is the most mesmerising vision it has ever seen in its entire 4 years on earth.

He tries to glance through the door without being too intruding. He understands there is a touching reunion happening somewhere inside, and God knows he doesn't want to interrupt the Jiangs screaming and crying and hitting and hugging their wayward prodigal demonic cultivator, but surely someone else can take the child? Is it not a cousin of the Ghost General and her terrifying sister? Now he thinks about it, he is not so sure they are very fit guardians if they are willing to abandon their charge to any random cultivator. And the worst part is A-Yao, the person best suited to deal with this situation, has left with them, presumably trying to find a quieter resting place for the Wen remnants away from the chaos that is the 100 days celebration of the newest Jin baby.

He flinches when a soft finger cautiously pokes his cheek. The child grins guilelessly at him and says, "Pretty gege!"

Nie MingJue blushes to the root of braids. That's it! This child is obviously surrounded by unreliable people who would teach him utter nonsense or dump him in the middle of enemy territories, so as a responsible adult, it is his solemn duty to adopt the child (a boy? It is dressed as one, but who knows with Wei Wuxian?) and take it to Qinghe. He stands up with the child under one armpit, the child seemingly unbothered by being dangled like a sack of potatoes.

"He's mine!"

Lan Xichen's baby brother looks just as angry as he did on the day they first met, when he ended up biting HuaiSang. Except now he is almost as tall as MingJue, and he has already put the tip of his finger on his sword.

Rude!

Nie MingJue, a sect leader and the chief cultivator, is an older brother first and foremost. How can he resist ruffling Lan Er-Gongji's already ruffled feathers even more?

"I didn't know Wangji had a child."

Wangji bristles even further, reminding him of the time he accidentally stepped on Second Mother's cat's tail.

The child waves at him from his precarious position, "Rich Gege!"

Does Wangji's eyes soften a little? Nie MingJue can swear he saw a crack of smile in his lips. Surely, he is just hallucinating. The child chirps out again, "Pretty Gege!" pointing at MingJue. The room temperature plummets several degrees.

"GIVE HIM TO ME!"

If Wangji doesn't want to take over from Lan Laoshi, he can easily earn his living teaching enunciation to rich masters. Nue MingJue heard every syllable distinctly, including the single exclamation mark at the end. Is he serious?

Nie MingJue stares at him. He has heard rumours. The light bearing lord! The war has done awful things to the cultivators. Once kind, just men have been reduced to butchers with enough trauma to last a few lifetimes, but surely it hasn't changed the upright young man in front of him to such an extent that he was willing to...

He moves the child from underneath his arm and settles him down on the ground behind him.

"Look here, Wangji, he is just a child..."

He gets interrupted again by the same clear, obstinate tone.

"Give him to me! Now!"

Has Wangji lost it? Does he want to kill a child, practically a baby, to avenge his father and his sect? Does he really think he can get away with killing the adopted child of Wei Wuxian when Wei Wuxian himself was just a few doors away? Not to mention the Ghost General and the Jiang sect leader in the vicinity?

You can probably cut the tension with a blunt sabre. That's the first thing Lan Xichen notices when he walks in, the second thing being his brother and his best friend locked in a staring contest. Wangji looks like he is ready to start a fight, and Da-Ge has that little mocking smile, which means he is happy to indulge. Behind him, little A-Yuan is studiously examining the pattern on the carpet.

Wangji breaks the stare first. He turns to his big brother and says, almost petulantly,

"He's not giving A-Yuan back!"

Lan Xichen smiles and shakes a deprecating finger at MingJue in mock sensor,

"Now, now, what do you mean by not handing over my nephew to my brother? Da-ge! If you indeed want a child,..."

Wait a second! The jibe about the child being Wangji's, that was purely a taunt. Is it true? Did Wangji really have a child? A 4 years old? But, he begs your biggest pardon, Wangji is a child himself! How can he have a child? When? With whom?

Having his sympathetic brother on his side seems to encourage Wangji to speak further.

"A-Yuan called him pretty!"

If only people could see their Light bearing Lord pouting! Xichen tuts.

"For shame, Da-Ge!"

But before Nie MingJue can demand explanation, A-Yuan decides he has had enough of the carpet and stands up, then walks over to Lan Wangji in a brisk, businesslike manner, who bends down to pick him up without breaking eye contact with Nie MingJue and pointedly kisses the child's forehead.

Nie MingJue is pretty sure he is having a Qi deviation right now. Ah well, there are worse ways to go, he supposes.

[carnelianwings]

Something I find really funny is how for all the rumors that Seed’s staff/writers don’t like Cagalli, Orb under her leadership just keeps ending up in a better (political) position with each addition - Seed Destiny ends with Logos wiped out, Blue Cosmos severely hampered, and the entire Seiran family wiped out, including Yuna. This leaves Cagalli with almost no political opposition in Orb (since the second Battle of Orb would’ve flushed out a majority of the Blue Cosmos/Logos sympathizers within the government/military), along with giving her a boost in popular and military support thanks to her actions and field leadership during the battle.

(Cutting for me just rambling on a bit about the in-universe politics after Seed Freedom)

You can tell with how much she’s managed to get done in the years between Seed Destiny and Seed Freedom - in that short year and a half to two years, she was able to propose and found COMPASS, secret away and upgrade the Impulse, Destiny, Strike Freedom, and Infinite Justice, arrange for ties between Orb and Terminal to investigate/exchange intel (Athrun and Meyrin), and put into place all the evacuation/defensive protocols in case of another attack on Orb (as seen vs Foundation and Requiem, even if she needed Kira to pull an “I lived, bitch” to Aura 😅).

And it doesn’t end there - thanks to Foundation, Cagalli arguably has an easier time internationally now, because the Eurasian Federation leadership also got hit and the Eurasian Federation, while not necessarily Blue Cosmos sympathizers like the Atlantic Federation, was very staunchly anti-PLANT, which I think would’ve caused some problems for Cagalli, especially post Seed Destiny with Lacus joining her for that broadcast.

I actually think Orb probably has fairly decent diplomatic relations with PLANT (I think Chairman Lament mostly cut off that call after everything went south in Eldore because of the whole nuke situation), especially since Lacus is COMPASS’s inaugural president, plus the time both Dearka and Waltfeld (I’m not sure if he’s in Orb or PLANT as of Seed Freedom since his silent cameo has him helping to stop the coup in PLANT in Seed Freedom) spent there. And we have a very prominent all-Coordinator team with the Yamato Team - truth be told I actually wonder how much the Earth Alliance invested into COMPASS because everything we see on screen is either contributed by Orb (Archangel, Murrue and crew, Kira, Mu, and the Murasame Kais), PLANT/ZAFT (Millenium, Konoe and crew, Heinlein, Shinn, Lunamaria, Agnes, Gelgoog, and Gyan), or arguably both (namely, Rising Freedom and Immortal Justice). Unless I missed a minor crew member along the way. Which is possible.

Also pure speculation on my part on this - but the fact Seed Freedom has Athrun going into intelligence with Terminal (which we first see as having a presence in the PLANTS) from the Orb side and Yzak and Dearka going into intelligence from the PLANT side can’t be a coincidence. I want to think the three of them decided on it together because being in intelligence/covert ops gives them the chance to work together without having to force anyone to change their current loyalties - I don’t think Athrun can be truly loyal to anyone except Cagalli after Seed Destiny, and Yzak was always loyal to PLANT, and if Dearka hadn’t been captured and made to realize how extreme PLANT had become under Patrick Zala he wouldn’t have switched sides to Orb/Three Ships Alliance during Seed either. Which also indirectly feeds into Orb and PLANT having better political relations than Orb and Earth Alliance.

Which brings me to my final point - I would be very surprised if Orb isn’t the primary target for the antagonists in a Seed Freedom sequel. At this point Orb’s capable of doing too much with the limited resources it has as a small nation with too much military strength at its command. And there is room for a sequel (setting-wise) because while Earth Alliance took another major hit with during the Foundation Conflict, the ideologies that led to the First and Second Earth Alliance-PLANT wars still exist - even if Blue Cosmos lost another leader, even if the believers of Coordinator Supremacy lost another leader (in Jagannath) those ideologies still fundamentally exist. All the Foundation Conflict did was serve to take down the military leadership of those ideologies - even if the public on both sides see those views negatively it doesn’t make them go away.

[aforgottenthing-in-space]

Ok so. Miles Edgeworth is trans. Gregory was definitely a trans affirming father so when Miles told him he was like “sure son. What name do you want to go by?”

And so all Manfred von Karma knew was that Gregory Edgeworth had a son. When he gains custody of Miles, he just. Does not realize that the kid he’s now in charge of is a trans boy. (Maybe Miles already had a name change. Idk. Somehow legal name wise, von Karma just. Does Not realize.)

So Miles grows up being raised as a boy and von Karma just. Doesn’t realize. Until puberty begins.

And he notices something, that Miles isn’t experiencing puberty the way he would have expected and he’s like hmmm. I am not sure what is happening.

And then like preteen Miles, incredibly nervous, comes to him and he’s like, “excuse me, Mr. von Karma, sir, but would I be able to start puberty blockers please?”

And von Karma’s just like “WHAT!”

He’s so caught off guard and so used to thinking of Miles as “Gregory Edgeworth’s pathetic son” that he just… kinda lets Miles medically transition bc he’s so caught off guard by the realization.

And for his entire life, Miles is like. Unable to wrap his head around von Karma being surprisingly trans accepting???

[bonefall]

You may have answered this before, but how are you handling characters that don't believe in starclan, like mothwing and cloudtail? Personally I thought it was interesting when reading the books, considering cloudtail, but only to a point because it's very hard to write atheist characters in a setting where there's undeniable proof of the gods/spirits/etc. Like, how did they explain the literal forces of heaven and hell battling on earth??

As An Atheist Myself ™ I have a lot of feelings about the two of them. I think the short answer is just that in a setting where gods are literally undeniable facts of life, "Atheism" looks more like Dystheism, the belief that they exist, but are not worthy of worship.

That seemed to be the conclusion at the end of Mothwing's... i forgor the name of her novella 💀Mothflight's Blaspheme Boogie. It's actually why it's one of my favorite novellas, I really like the way it closes out with Mudfur trying to sales pitch StarClan's goodness to her, she doesn't buy a fucking penny of it, and ultimately concludes that the comfort it provides to her Clanmates is valuable to them but doesn't have to be for her.

So that's how I want to handle them. They have an outsider perspective to the fact that this is a theocracy, based on gods that can be vindictive and vengeful. Scourge/Iceheart is also joining these two, he actually is going to have a minor but important role in Squirrelflight's Horror as a ghost basically giving insight to what happens when you don't worship StarClan when you die.

With him and Mothwing I really know what I'm doing. Mothwing is insight to Leafpool, especially in TNP where she is now a POV, and observing how the though of StarClan influences the behavior of the cats around her. Scourge is killed in the Great Battle and serves as a ghost to witness their trial. Cloudtail...

Cloud's still evolving. He's going to be a supporting character with Ferncloud in her SE and exploring the feelings he has towards Ashfur, now his apprentice, becoming a villain. How he did his job perfectly, raised him with a deep respect towards the warrior code, and that lead to the person he is today. How he couldn't have done things "better" because this DID raise him the way his society expected him to.

But his dystheism is kind of secondary to that. I think the story I've got for him is fine so far, but it needs more of an 'ending' that I can't decide on until they finally kill him in the main books.

[httpiastri]

my prediction of the night is that. patrick will have a good game because my best friend had a good game today and she’s number 15 too... makes sense, no? 😶

[queen-scribbles]

I KNOWWWW, even with Vikkari I wanted shake him after the whole "well, I wasn't useful while being ripped apart internally by demonic forces, so you must hate me now :) " thing bc sir. SIR. You are a party staple for me. You crit on EVERYTHING, and it's almost all one shot kills. I can't count the number of fights against smaller/mid-size mobs where my melee fighters didn't even get to hit anything bc Lann(and Arue) had killed everyone by the time they reached the enemies. xD Even if I didn't love his jokes(I do) and like him as a character(I do), he's one of the most useful party members.

Then for Trinne you throw in that she likes him quite a lot and loves his jokes and thinks he's cute and is determined to single-handedly help him work on those self-worth issues of his. xD So he pulls the "I'm no good to you, guess I'll just go.." crap and she's grabbing his arm and digging in her heels like "The hell you will, GET BACK HERE"

[inloveanddepth]

i am completely normal about how snow moon morgana & varus' splash arts are of the same scene from different perspectives

[blusical]

anyways this is a harrison butker hate blog /hsrs

[much-ado-about-luke-alvez]

#UnitChiefLuke2023

[libidinous-weeb]

every time a female character in a male written anime/manga decides to quit fighting or being a “tomboy” for a shitty boring male protagonist, another far right incel is born

[chibi-pix]

”Why can’t we pilot the lions full time, too?” I love Realities Collide AUs where VLD Pidge is blind. I love her like that, making her even sassier and even making Daniel a bit more jealous upon meeting her because he really wants to be a pilot. Through someone liking it and bringing it up out of the depths, I was reminded of this older piece and thought “Hey, what if I revisit it, but revamped?” So, I got part of it and set up like a screenshot. Sorry, no Vince or Alluras for this one. But. I think it turned out well.

Anyway, I hope y’all enjoy this one. Until next time!

[ronsenburg]

it’s gotten to the point where I write 400 words and then have to celebrate because that’s FOUR HUNDRED WORDS and better than nothing:

This is the way it ends—at least, this is the way Sylvain remembers it. 

The bridge is washed in a flood of unnatural red light; the sirens have been wailing in the background for so long now that Sylvain has stopped hearing them all together. He’s on the floor, staring up at a ceiling he doesn’t think he’s ever actually looked at before. There’s not much to see, just seamless panels of smooth, shiny metal arching out of sight, until—out of the corner of his eye, the flash of a combadge, golden shoulders, jet black hair. 

Sylvain turns his head just a fraction of a degree to the left. It hurts. 

He can’t move his right arm. He hadn’t realized until now, in this exact moment, when the only coherent thoughts he can manage rapidly bounce between the aforementioned oh god pain and, even less helpfully, how unfair it is that Felix is still managing to be so goddamn beautiful with sweat and grime plastering his dark hair across his forehead. Sylvain wants so badly to reach up and tuck the one long piece back behind Felix’s ear, maybe wipe away that streak of soot from under his left eye. Something romantic. Instead, his fingers twitch uselessly somewhere near his side. 

And that should make him panic, shouldn’t it? A limb not responding the way his brain asks it to? 

“So it’s that bad, huh?” It comes out clumsy, barely more than a mumble, like someone has shoved a bag of cotton balls under his tongue. And that feels just like the kind of really bad hangover he hasn’t had since he gave up Aldebaran whiskey. Head injury, too. Got it. 

Above him, Felix’s eyes are stretched so wide that he’s looking about five years younger for it. He looks furious, which, for Felix, means scared. Another bad sign. “Don’t try to get up.” 

“Wouldn’t leave you even if I could, sweetheart,” Sylvain laughs—so rough that it sounds more like a cough—and begins wiggling the fingers in his left arm experimentally. “Which I can’t, by the way. Right arm is shot. Maybe if I—“

“Stop moving,” Felix snaps with enough ferocity that Sylvain does just that. The high pitched whine of a medical tricorder rises above the sound of the sirens. Felix has never been one for combat first aid; his frustration shows in the clench of his jaw and the way he slams his hand against the badge on his chest before biting out, “where the fuck is the med team.”

 It’s shock, probably, that keeps Sylvain from grasping the severity of the situation. 

“Small blessings, Felix. If  I die now, they won’t have to court-martial me for killing the captain.” 

“You didn’t—“ Felix starts, frowning even further when he glances up to meet Sylvain’s eyes, “he’s stunned.”

And Sylvain isn’t far gone enough to miss the relief that pours through his veins at those words, like a river’s worth of guilt bursting through the seams of a derelict dam. 

Sylvain hadn't checked, then. There hadn’t been time for even the thought. He remembers Dimitri, eyes narrowed and dark, powering weapons at the tactical station. And Felix, collapsed on the floor beside him, strangled sobs of agony escaping his shaking form as he’d clutched at his head. Ingrid had been shouting something, while the Professor flitted past in his periphery. But Felix, and his pain, had been the only thing Sylvain could focus on. There was no thought, only action. He’d grabbed for the phaser at his hip. He’d fired. 

Back in the present, Sylvan drags his eyes away from Felix in favor of blinking up at the ceiling. There’s a stinging in the corner of his eyes. He releases one long, shaky breath. 

“Don’t think that’ll make much of a dent in a mutiny charge, but. That’s good. I’m glad.”