#mt started with 1 kid

[princessblue135]

incorrect quotes part 4

featuring king's many kids

[ryin-silverfish]

A Guide to the Chinese Underworld (and what it isn't)

As many FSYY and fox posts as there were on my blog, I am actually a huge fan of the Chinese Underworld mythos. Mostly because I was once a morbid little kid that loved reading about the excavations of ancient tombs, and found the statues depicting hellish torture in the Haw Par Villa "super cool".

Apart from the aesthetics, the history of its evolution is also fascinating. Most of us, Chinese or not, only know the most popular version of the Underworld——the "Ten Kings" system, yet that isn't always the case. So today, I'll start off with a short summary of that.

In pre-Qin era, there was already this generic idea of a "Realm of the Dead" called the Yellow Spring, Youdu, or Youming, but we know very little about it.

Then, in the Han dynasty, two ideas start to emerge: 1) the Underworld is a bureaucracy, 2) the God of Mt. Tai ruled over the dead.

This early bureaucracy might not function as an agent of punishment; the main focus was on keeping the dead segregated from the living so they wouldn't bring diseases and misfortune to the latter, as well as using those ghosts to enforce collective punishments upon people for their lineage's wrongdoings while they were still alive.

Post-Han, after Buddhism entered China and took root, its idea of karmic punishments and reincarnation and the figure of King Yama was merged with folk and Daoist ideas of the Underworld bureaucracy, and, came Tang dynasty, resulted in the "Ten Kings" system that first appeared in Dunhuang manuscripts.

It was very rudimentary and far from well-established, as seen in Tang legends, with some adopting the Ten Kings system, some sticking to the Lord of Mt. Tai and some favoring King Yama, and overall little agreements on who's in charge of the Underworld.

But the "Ten Kings" system would become the mainstream version from then onwards, used in Ming vernacular novels and made even more popular by folk religion scrolls like the Jade Records (Yuli Baochao).

As such, most points in the following sections will be based on the fully matured "Ten Kings" system of the Underworld, as seen in the Jade Records and JTTW.

What happens when you die?

(This is a fictionalized walkthrough of the posthumous fate of souls under the "Ten Kings" system. I try to stick to the very broad progression outlined in the Jade Records, but many creative liberties are taken on the details.)

Let's say there's a guy named Xiao Ming, and he had just died of a heart attack. Bummers. What now?

Well, the first thing he saw would be the ghost cops.

There isn't really an unanimous agreement on who these ghost cops are: they may be a pair of ghosts in white and black robes, wearing tall hats (Heibai Wuchang), they may have the heads of farm animals (Ox-Head and Horse-Face), or they can just be generic ghost bureaucrats. For convenience's sake, let's say it was the first scenario.

"Who are you guys and where are you taking me?"

"Glad you asked!" The taller ghost cop, being the cheerful one of the pair, replied. It wasn't very reassuring, considering that his tongue was dangling out of his mouth way further than it should. "I'm the White Impermanence, my sour-looking colleague here is the Black Impermanence, and we are taking you to the City God's office."

This City God, a.k.a. Chenghuang, is just like how it sounds: the divine guardian of a city, who also pulls double duty as the head of the local Dead People Customs Office. They are usually virtuous officials deified posthumously, and in JTTW, they fall under the category of "Ghostly immortals", together with the Earth Gods a.k.a. Tudi.

So Xiao Ming went with the two ghost cops——not like he had much of a choice, made his way through the long queue at the City God's office, and was now standing in front of a gruff old magistrate in traditional robes.

"Name?"

"Wang Xiao Ming."

"Age and birth dates?"

"21, April 16 2003…"

After he was done asking questions, the City God flipped through his ledger, then picked up a brush, ticked off Xiao Ming's name, and told him to go get his pass in the next room. More waiting in a queue. Wonderful.

"I never heard anything about needing a pass to get to the Underworld," the girl in front of Xiao Ming asked the ghost cops, who were standing guard nearby. "Is this a new policy or something?"

"Yeah. In the old days, we'd just drag y'all straight to the Ghost Gate." The ghost cop in black said, then muttered to himself, "Fuckin' paperworks and overpopulation, man…"

(This "Dead People Passport" thing was popularized in the middle-to-late Ming dynasty, as shown by the discovery of such documents inside tombs in southern China. )

(It might have evolved from similar passes to the Western Pure Land in lay Buddhism that recorded their acts of merits. Which, in turn, might be traced back to the "Dead People Belongings List" of Han dynasty, to be shown to Underworld bureaucrats so that no one would take away the dead's private property down there or something.)

Anyways, after he received his pass, Xiao Ming departed together with the rest of the bunch, to be led to the Ghost Gate. It was like the world's most depressing tourist group, where instead of tour guides, you got two ghost cops in funny hats, and the only scenery in sight was the desolation of the Yellow Spring Road.

They weren't the only travellers on the road, though. Xiao Ming noticed other groups moving in the far distance, behind the fog and the flickering ghostfire, led by similar figures in black and white.

It made a lot of sense; realistically, there was no way two ghost cops could fetch hundreds of thousands of dead people all by themselves.

(SEA Tang-ki mediums believed there were multiple Tua Di Ya Peks——Hokkien name for the Black and White Impermanences, working for different Underworld Courts.)

At last, the Ghost Gate stood in front of Xiao Ming, guarded by two towering figures. Normally, they'd be Ox-Head and Horse-Face, like what you see at Haw Par Villa's Underworld entrance.

However, older Han dynasty works like Wang Chong's 论衡·订鬼 also mentioned two gods, Shenshu and Yulei, as guardians of the Ghost Gate, who would use reed ropes to capture malicious ghosts and feed them to tigers, making them possibly the earliest incarnation of "Gate Gods".

So here, they were what Xiao Ming sees, standing side by side like proper doormen, silently watching herds of ghosts being funneled through the entrance.

The place was more crowded than a train station during the CNY Spring Rush; the ghost cops had already said their quick goodbye and left to fetch the next group of dead people, leaving the resident officials of the Underworld proper to maintain order and quell any would-be riots.

Now you started seeing the Ox-Head and Horse-Face guys, poking at unruly ghosts with their pitchforks and dragging away the violent ones in chains. Among their ranks were other monstrous beings, blue-faced yakshas and imps, but also regular dead humans who look 100% done with their jobs, like the lady who stamped Xiao Ming's pass when it was finally his turn.

After this point, Xiao Ming had entered the Underworld proper, and his next destination would be the First Court, led by King Qin'guang. Here, his fate should be decided by what is revealed in the King's magical mirror.

If Xiao Ming was a good guy, or someone who had done an equal amount of good and bad things in life, he'd be sent straight to the Tenth Court for reincarnation. However, if the mirror, while replaying his life events, had displayed more evil deeds than good ones, he'd be sent to one of the 2nd-9th Courts for judgment and then punished inside the Eighteen Hells.

Each of the Ten Kings was also assisted by ghostly judges. Many of them were righteous and just officials in life who had been recruited into the Ten Courts posthumously——Cui Jue from JTTW is one such example, while others were living people working part-time for the Underworld, like Wei Zheng, Taizong's minister.

We decide to be nice to Xiao Ming, so, after reliving some embarrassing childhood incidents and cringy teenage phases in front of a bunch of dead bureaucrats, he was found innocent and sent to the Tenth Court.

The queue here was almost as long as the First Court's, stretching on and on alongside of the banks of the Nai River. King of the Turning Wheel made his judgment without even lifting his head when it was Xiao Ming's turn:

"Path of Humans, male, healthy in body and mind, ordinary family. Next!"

Exiting the Tenth Court building, Xiao Ming saw the Terrace of Forgetfulness, standing tall before six bridges, made of gold, silver, jade, stone, wood, and…some unidentified material. Before he could get a good look at them and the little dots moving across those bridges, he was hurried into the Terrace by the ghostly officials.

Now, both JTTW and the Jade Records mention multiple bridges across the Nai River. In the former, there is 3, and the latter, 6. The bridges made of precious materials are for people who will reincarnate into better lives, as the wealthy, the fortunate, and the divine, while the Naihe Bridge is either the common option or the terribad shitty option.

However, the Naihe Bridge proved to be so iconic, it became THE bridge you walk across to reincarnate in popular legends.

Anyways, back to Xiao Ming. He found himself standing in a giant soup kitchen of sorts, with an old lady at the counter, scooping soup out of her steaming pot and into one cup after another.

This is Mengpo, the amnesia soup granny; according to the Jade Records, she was born in the Western Han era, and a pious cultivator who thought of neither the past nor the future, only knowing that her surname was Meng.

Made into an Underworld god by the Jade Emperor, she cooks a soup of five flavors that will wipe the memory of the dead, making sure they do not remember any of their past lives once they reincarnate.

It tastes awful. Like what you get after pouring corn syrup, coffee, chilli sauce, lemon juice and seawater into the same cup.

Such was Xiao Ming's last thought, as he gulped down the soup, and then he knew no more.

Things you should know about the Chinese Underworld:

1. It's not the Christian Hell.

Rather, the Chinese Underworld functions somewhat like the Purgatory, in that there are a lot of torment, but the torment's not eternal, however long the duration may be. Once you finish your sentence, you get reincarnated as something else, though that "something else" is not a guaranteed good birth.

Other people can also speed up the process via transferring of merits: hiring a priest/monk to chant sutras and perform rituals, for example, or performing good deeds in life in dedication to the dead, or they can pray to a Daoist/Buddhist deity to save their loved ones from a dreadful fate.

Interestingly enough, a thesis paper I read mentions that, whereas Buddhist salvation from the Hells was based on transference of merits——you give monks offerings and pay them to chant sutras, so they can cancel out the sinners' bad karma with good ones, Daoist ideas of salvation tend to involve the priest going down there, sorting it out with the Underworld officials, and taking the dead out of the Hells themselves.

(The paper also stops at the Northern-Southern and Tang dynasties, so the above is likely period-specific.)

2. Nor is it run by evil demons.

Underworld officials are not nice guys and look pretty monstrous and torture the sinful dead, but they are not the embodiment of evil. Rather, the faction as a whole is what I'd call Lawful Neutral, who function on this "An Eye for An Eye" logic, where every harm the sinner caused in life must be returned to them, in order for their karmic debts to be cleansed and move on to their next life.

They can absolutely be corrupt and incompetent and take bribes——Tang dynasty Zhiguai tales and Qing folklore compendiums featured plenty of such cases, but that's a very mundane and human kind of evil, not a cosmic/innate one.

This is just my personal opinion, but if you want to do an "evil" Chinese Underworld? It should be a very bureaucratic evil, whose leaders are bootlickers to the higher-ups, slavedrivers to their rank-and-file workers, and bullies who abuse their power over regular dead people.

Not, y'know, Satan and his infernal legions or conspiring Cthulu cultists.

3. The Ten Kings are not Hades.

Make no mistake, they still have a lot of power over your average dead mortal. But in the grand scheme of things? They are the backwater department of the pantheon, who only show up in JTTW to get pushed around and revive the occasional dead people.

When Taizong made his trip to the Underworld, the Ten Kings greeted him as equals——kings of ghosts to the king of the living. If they see themselves as equal in status to a mortal emperor, then, like any mortal emperors, they are subordinate to the Celestial Host, and the balance of power is not even remotely equal or in their favor.

Also, it isn't said outright, but under the Zhong-Lv classification of immortals JTTW is using, Underworld officials will likely be considered Ghostly immortals, the lowest and weakest of the five types, much like Tudis and Chenghuangs.

Essentially: they are ghosts that are powerful enough to not reincarnate and linger on and on, spirits of pure Yin as opposed to true immortals, who are beings of pure Yang.

It's pretty much the shittiest form of immortality, the result you get when you try to speedrun cultivation (the Zhong-Lv text also made a dig at Buddhist meditation here), and if they don't reincarnate or regain a physical body, there is no chance of progressing any further.

Oh, and fun fact? In the Song dynasty, commoners and literati elites alike believed that virtuous officials in life would get appointed as ghostly officials in death.

However, the latter viewed it as a punishment. Which was strange, considering how they still held the same position and the same amount of authority, just over dead people instead of living ones, so there should be no big losses, right?

Well...it was precisely the "dead people" part that made it a punishment. See, a lot of the power and prestige they had as officials came from the benefits they could bring to their families and kins and native places, as well as the potential wealth and reputation bonuses for themselves.

A job in the Dead People Supreme Court would give them the same workload, but with none of those benefits. Since all the dead people had to reincarnate eventually, they couldn't have a fixed group as their power base, or keep their old familial ties and connections. At most, they could help out an occasional dead relative or two.

Like, working for the Underworld Courts was the kind of deadend (no pun intended) job not even living officials wanted for themselves in the afterlife. That's how hilariously sad and pathetic they are.

4. In JTTW at least, they aren't even the highest authorities of the Underworld.

That would be Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha, who is technically their boss, though he seems to be more of a spiritual leader than someone who is actually involved in running the bureaucracy.

Which makes sense, since he has sworn an oath to not attain Buddhahood until all Hells are empty, and his role is to offer relief and salvation to the suffering souls, not judging and punishing them.

Now, historically...even though Ksitigarbha in early Tang legends was still the savior of the dead, he seemed to be unable to interfere with the judicial process of the Underworld, merely showing up to take people away before they were judged by King Yama.

However, in the mid-Tang apocryphal "Sutra of Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha" (地藏菩萨经), he had evolved into the equal of King Yama, with the power of supervision over his judgements. By the time the Scripture on the Ten Kings came out, in artistic depictions, the Ten Kings had become fully subservient to him.

5. Diyu usually refers to the prison-torture chamber part, not the courthouse, nor is it the entirety of the Underworld.

And for the majority of souls that haven't committed crimes, they'll only see the courthouse part before they are sent to reincarnation. That's why I personally don't like, or use the name Diyu for the Chinese Underworld: I prefer the term Difu ("Earth Mansions"), which encompasses the whole realm better.

Also: even though historical sources like the Scripture on the Ten Kings and Jade Records seem to suggest that the dead were just funneled through this Courthouse-Prison-Reincarnation pipeline with no breaks in between, in practice, that isn't the case.

According to popular folk beliefs, after the dead were done with their trials/sentences, they stayed in the Underworld for a period of time and led regular lives, while functioning as ancestor spirits and receiving offerings.

Which would imply that the Underworld had a civilian district of sorts, populated by regular ghosts, making the whole realm even less of a direct Hell/Purgatory equivalent.

6. It is located in a different realm, but still part of the Six Paths and doesn't exist outside of reality.

In Buddhist cosmology, like the Celestial Realm, the Underworld is part of the Realm of Desires and thus subject to all the woes of samsara.

The pain and misery of the Path of Hell may be the worst and most obvious, but becoming a celestial being isn't the goal of serious Buddhists either: despite all the pleasures and near-infinite lifespan they enjoy, they are not free from samsara and will eventually have to reincarnate.

So if, say, the world is being destroyed at the end of a kalpa, all beings of the Six Paths will perish alongside it, leaving behind a clean slate for the cycle to start anew. The dead won't all end up in the Underworld and face eternal damnation.

7. The Black and White Impermanences would not appear in the Underworld pantheon formally until the Qing dynasty.

The concept that when you die, you get fetched to the Underworld by petty ghost bureaucrats is already well-established in Tang legends, but these were just generic ghost bureaucrats in all sorts of colorful official robes, with yellow being the most common color.

The idea of there being two specific psychopomps in black and white would only become popular in the Qing dynasty. Mengpo is kinda similar: although she existed before the Ming-Qing era as a goddess of wind, venerated by boatmen, her "amnesia soup granny" incarnation came from the Jade Records.

[miquella-everywhere]

Rating the Demigods based off their Homes

Technically Leyndell is not Morgotts house but his moms, which he inherited after escaping the sewers she threw him into, but he also runs the place like the navy runs a ship, so everything is in perfect working order. Nobody has any clue who he is and I appreciate his commitment to the bit. 8/10 really cool scenery but could definitely use some dusting and giant dragon corpse removal.

The Moghwyn Dynasty is every health inspectors worst nightmare. General unsanitary setting and blood swamps, Albinaurics captured and forced to assimilate against their will, along with several war medics, and also Mohg has the body of his shriveled up half-brother in his freezer. But overall the ancient civilization that lived here before Mohg had pretty okay taste, especially since they built their city under an underground starry sky. 10/10 but only because the health inspector died and Mohg forged the health report.

Godrick snuck in after his failings at the Shattering and just straight up claimed the place as his own, so Stormveil technically isn't even his house. Also his presence alone is so rank that thorns have started festering outside of the castle. 8/10 to the Stormlords cause they've got sick sense of style, but 2/10 to Godrick because he is a literal home invader.

Radahn does not give two shits about architecture, he clearly made Redmane based off of every other fort in the Lands Between and chose function over fashion, which is fair I guess, but also kinda boring. At least he strung up the all of the swords in Redmane and gave it some flaire. 4/10 because Redmane is so basic, plus minus 1 point for the tetanus hazard.

Raya Lucaria had an architecture course as an elective and Rykard committed himself to his GPA and developed his own aesthetic. He graduated top of his class and Rennala baked a cake for him. Best day of his life. Then he went up to Mt. Gelmir and was like, "I should totally make this place my house," and then he did because nobody had the balls to stop him. 10/10 for his commitment to the blasphemy aesthetic. And props to Tannith for doing a great job keeping the foyer the cleanest place in the Lands Between, but also 1/10 for the backyard being a general crime against humanity.

Ranni follows the rule of, "if it aint broke dont fix it," which is exactly why she broke everything else in the world and then returned to her childhood home after the Shattering. Caria could definitely use some bedrooms though because where the heck does everyone sleep?? Or do anything else for that matter???? Caria: Bathroom? Never heard of it. 6/10 because the sparkly magic bits in the air are super cool but Caria Manor definitely should've been a legacy dungeon.

Miquella attended both Leyndell and Raya Lucaria architecture classes, excelling over everyone and beating Rykards score in the final exam by exactly one point, and yet has no idea why Rykard is so pissed at him. Then after disowning his dad he had the great idea to try and build a treehouse but grew his own tree first because he's an over achiever and has gifted kid syndrome. 10/10 because the aesthetic is elegant and immaculate, and everyone who has depression is trying to get there for free therapy.

Malenia went to architecture school with Miquella because she had nothing better to do and slept through every class. The most she did there was break up Miquella and Rykards final exam squabble and also couldn't care less about architecture because she's fuckin blind. Rates the Haligtree architecture 10/10 because even though she's blind, she's sure that Miquellas sense of style is very pretty. But also rates it a 2/10 because Miquella keeps stubbing his toes and tripping on the carved stone flooring even though he insists everything is fine.

The Land of Shadow is less of Messmers house and more of his eternal timeout corner. He temper-tantrumed too hard one day and Marika put him there then completely forgot he ever existed. -10/10 because the parental abandonment is so real

[fandomwonderer]

Evidence of Pearlina PT. 1

Otherwise known as a masterlist of every queer interaction between Pearl Hōzuki and Marina Ida

Pearl: Because the knight is all the better? He feels like he’s fighting to protect everyone

Marina: Ehehe, then I’ll be a witch because I’ll be protected by senpai!

Authors note: in the Japanese version of the game she refers to Pearl as the honorific of ‘Senpai’

Source: Witch Vs Knight Splatfest dialogue Japan

—————————————————————————————————————

Dialogue: “what is the best gift you’ve ever received?”

Pearl: The chance to meet Marina

Source: Exclusive Japanese Inkpolife Magazine interview

—————————————————————————————————————

Pearl: Marina! What’s the appeal of using a brella on this stage?

Marina: protecting my precious pearlie at all costs!

Source: Assorted Stage dialogue English version

—————————————————————————————————————

Pearl:You know I love you.

Marina: I'm so happy right now

Pearl: It's me and you against the universe.

Source: Chaos Vs Order Post-splatfest dialogue

—————————————————————————————————————

Marina: What? Acht, come on! You can’t seriously be hitting on Pearl in front of me

Source: Splatoon 3 Side order DLC assorted dialogue

—————————————————————————————————————

Pearl: Ooooh. Marina Look how the Ferris wheel flashes and sparkles!!

Marina: But it doesnt compare to your eyes!

Source: Assorted Stage dialogue English version

—————————————————————————————————————

Pearl: She's the DJ. Im the rapper is what

I'm saying. Cap! What don't you get about this??

Source: Splatoon 2 DLC Octo Expansion Chatlogs

—————————————————————————————————————

Marina: Anyway. I know we talk a lot of smack on the show and all. but I just wanted to say thanks. For everything.

Source: Splatoon 2 DLC Octo Expansion Chatlogs

—————————————————————————————————————

Pearl: I suddenly slide out of the wall with my Dualies! Pew pew pew pew!

Marina: You're too cute when you're hiding in the wall!

Source: Assorted Stage dialogue Japanese version

—————————————————————————————————————

Marina: You're so adorable,Pearl

Source: Assorted Stage dialogue English version

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Marina: Watch out, Inkopolis! Here comes my Pearlie!

Source: Assorted Stage dialogue Spanish version

—————————————————————————————————————

Pearl:Sorry... I mean, I always knew you were different, even if we never talked about it. I always figured...you know... with the jokes and stuff...


Marina: never knew how to talk to you about it. Do you think...


Marina: Do you think I'll still be welcome in Inkopolis? Once everyone knows I'm an Octoling?


Pearl: ARE YOU KIDDING? Of course you will! everyone loves you!


Marina: Thanks, Pearlie. ;__;


Pearl: OK stop it with the waterworks before I change my mind

Source: Splatoon 2 DLC Octo Expansion Chatlogs

—————————————————————————————————————

Marina: Haha, remember when we first met, Pearl? I had just come to the surface, and I didn't understand Inkopolis at all. You taught me everything I needed to know.

Pearl: LOL yeah. I remember thinking you were some country bumpkin when we first met on Mt. Nantai.

Marina:I went to Mount Nantai every day for a week, just hoping you would show up again.


Pearl: Bahaha yeah, I thought you were a stalker. I remember you singing when I showed up and then out of nowhere you were all like "LET'S START A BAND!"


Marina: I just had a feeling about you. I guess it worked out, cause look at us now!

Source: Splatoon 2 DLC Octo Expansion Chatlogs

—————————————————————————————————————

Pearl: They're a pain but not really scary. Fighting Marina in that first tower was WAY scarier.

Marina: What?! R-really?

Pearl: Obviously! Wondering if you were stuck that way forever, never going back to normal... I was scared!

Source: Splatoon 3 Side order DLC assorted dialogue

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Marina: can't help it! Pearl's just too precious. She's fearless at the core and adorable on top!

Source: Splatoon 3 Side order DLC assorted dialogue

—————————————————————————————————————

Pearl: Yeah! Our world tour finished without a hitch, but we haven't gotten that "us time" I promised! I wanna get this over with so we can go have some REAL fun.

Source: Splatoon 3 Side order DLC assorted dialogue

Other:

• Pearl is portrayed as very handsome and knowledgeable, similar to shōjo love interests when drawn by Marina (Dear Pearl Manga)

•A large amount of sparkles and flower petals are present in almost every panel that features Pearl that Marina Draws (Dear Pearl Manga)

•At the end of the manga, it is revealed that Marina is writing a confession letter to Pearl, which likely contains the title in its greeting. Alternatively, the manga as a whole may be intended as a love letter to Pearl (Dear Pearl Manga)

•Marina: "[she is] so small...but [she is] so big." In the panels showing the letter that Marina is writing, she muses about wanting to shout out "these feelings [for Pearl]"(Dear Pearl Manga)

•In the Japanese version of the Splatoon Base website, Marina was labeled as a "maiden in love" in her feelings towards Pearl (Dear Pearl Manga)

•They both refer to each other by nicknames such as “Pearlie” and “Rina”

•Hisashi Nogami stated that the final Splatfest was not based on Pearl vs. Marina because unlike the Squid Sisters, who had a form of a rivalry between them, Off the Hook is based on Pearl and Marina being together, with their bond being the strongest part of them.

•in Side Order, where Marina frequently uses heart emojis when speaking about Pearl in her dev diaries and compares herself to a "storybook princess" at the top of a tower who "brave Pearl" must rescue.

•after hearing the Squid Sisters sing the Calamari Inkantation. According to witnesses, her only comment was "This changes everything." She escaped to Mount Nantai, even though she didn't know a word of the Inkling language. While there, she met an Inkling named Pearl, who was practicing singing. Growing on each other, Pearl then taught Marina about Inkling culture and customs. After this, Marina came back to Mount Nantai every day for two weeks, hoping to find Pearl again. When she did, she showed Pearl her musical abilities through her demo of Ebb & Flow and Pearl immediately agreed to them starting a band that they decided to call Off the Hook. (Splatoon 2 DLC Octo Expansion chat logs)

•When discussing with Cuttlefish about Marina's technological achievements, Pearl finally discovered her history as a member of the Octarian army, and despite being deeply shocked, she promised to remain friends with her. (Splatoon 2 DLC Octo Expansion chat logs)

This is just the text based evidence. Tumblr has a ten image limit so I plan to attach those in a different post. I am making this for those who try to deny the queer aspect of Pearl and Marina’s relationship. Please feel free to DM or reblog with additional evidence that can be added, and if possible please attach the source. They will be added if I can validate the information as authentic. The rest of the information can be found under the tag #pearlina evidence masterlist

[lustrousims]

ᕙ Lustrousims - all world save file

check out some of the world residents here

at last, the long awaited save file is here!

THE SAVE FILE WILL INCLUDE MODS IN A FOLDER TO ENHANCE GAMEPLAY, BUT DO NOT DOWNLOAD IT IF YOU OWN THE WEREWOLVES PACK!!! IT'S NOT REQUIRED TO USE THE MODS, BUT HIGHLY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!

!!!! PLEASE READ THE PDF INCLUDED IN THE DOWNLOAD !!!!

all worlds are completely done except for moonwood mill.

all the sims are by me, except for one family in newcrest which was created by @aheathen-conceivably and except for some NPCs which I downloaded from the gallery. the lots are all mostly from the gallery and lots ive had sitting in my folder for years, finally found some use for them.

!!!! DISCLAIMER !!!!

i have all the packs, if you do not own some, some sims may be nude and bald when you start up the file, but I also made a few households dress only in gase-game clothing/hair just so they're not all in need of TLC.

ᕙ ᕙ ᕙ ᕙ ᕙ ᕙ ᕙ ᕙ ᕙ ᕙ ᕙ

if you want to see more info on the lots & what's included, check under the cut! theres a lot to do in every world regardless of which packs you own

world info

Willow Creek

16 homes - 10 open, 6 occupied

1 park

1 museum

1 lounge

1 cafe

1 wedding venue

Oasis Springs

16 homes - 9 open, 7 occupied

1 rental

1 large park

1 kids/teen hangout park

1 large cafe

1 retro diner restaurant

1 bar/bowling place

Newcrest

11 homes - 7 open, 4 occupied

1 pride park

1 restaurant

1 small cafe

Magnolia Promenade

1 outdoor gym/basketball court

1 restaurant

1 cafe

1 wedding venue

Windenburg

13 homes - 3 open, 10 occupied

1 kids summer camp

1 swimming pool

1 vet clinic

1 restaurant

1 bar

1 cafe

1 library

1 community garden

San Myshuno

16 apartments open, 7 occupied

1 rental

1 park7

1 cafe

2 restaurants: 1 rooftop & 1 regular

1 art center

1 karaoke bar

Forgotten Hollow

5 homes - 2 open, 3 occupied

Brindleton Bay

9 homes - 5 open, 4 occupied

1 rental

1 small park

1 museum

1 vet clinic

1 small restaurant

2 bars

Del Sol Valley

6 homes -

1 couples park

1 lounge

1 nightclub

1 gym

1 museum

Strangerville

6 homes - 3 open, 3 occupied

1 library

1 bar

1 camping park

Sulani

6 homes - 4 open, 2 occupied

2 rentals

2 beaches

1 bar

1 restaurant

1 spa

1 nightclub

Glimmerbrook

4 homes - 2 open, 2 occupied

1 bar

Britechester

3 homes - none open

6 university housings

1 bar

1 park

Evergreen Harbor

8 homes - 4 open, 4 occupied

2 restaurants

1 skating rink park

1 eco cafe

1 community landfill

Mt. Komorebi

7 homes - 4 open, 3 occupied

1 cafe

1 bar

2 rentals

1 spa & bathhouse

Henford-on-Bagley

9 homes - 6 open, 3 occupied

1 rental

2 restaurants

Tartosa

4 homes - 3 open

1 rental

1 wedding venue

1 community garden

1 restaurant

1 resort hotel pool

Granite Falls

1 rental campground

1 vacation home

1 small rental trailer

1 wellness resort/spa

1 b&b restaurant

1 large rustic wedding venue

Selvadorada

5 rental lots

1 bar

1 temple ruins

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[please PLEASE read the PDF before you ask me any questions!]

[sketching-shark]

I was curious to know, is there a specific adaptation of JTTW that you particularly enjoy? Whether its good or accurate isnt important but more like in your personal taste

AUGH going to be honest @seasonalsummers in that I don't feel like I can pick just one...there's so many excellent retellings! But I will take this opportunity to present some of my favorites.

So first up we have the 1986 Journey to the West tv series. It is in many ways very goofy and gaudy, but there's just as many reasons why it's considered one of the best retellings out there, from its genuine heart to the adherence to the og classic. And needless to say its Sun Wukong really set a standard for cheeky scheming monkey behavior. You can start watching it here:

Next up is 2016s The Monkey King 2. While this film is one of those retellings that gives the White Bone Demon a lot more prominence than she has in the og classic--and definitely has its own silly stupid moments--it also stands as one of the very few retellings that directly addresses the paradox of Tang Sanzang's mission: that he's trying to get the sutras to help mortals achieve a state of peace all while abhorring violence, and yet its only because of the violence of his disciples, especially Sun Wukong, that he's able to right a number of wrongs or simply go from day to day uneaten. You can watch it here:

And now it's time to give kudos to 2015's Monkey King: Hero Is Back. While this film is FAR from a faithful retelling and (usual refrain) has its own silliness, pretty simple plot, and gross-out humor, it also has so much heart and stands as a wonderful embodiment of the dad Wukong characterization. One also has to give it credit for its main child character, Jiang Liuer, being a genuinely charming kid who's wonder at the world and desire to do good drives the story forward in a sincerely lovely way. You can watch it here:

More recently--and in a work that is at best only loosely following the plot of Xiyouji--is 2022's Lighting Up the Stars. This film follows the story of a Li Nezha coded little orphan girl Wu Xiaowen and a Sun Wukong coded funeral director Mo Sanmei as they go from a very tense relationship to a genuinely loving father-daughter relationship. While there are moments of this film that feel kind of overwrought, it's an honestly wonderful exploration of what goes into dealing with death and the importance of love in all its many forms during life. I also have a soft spot for Mo Sanmei, who from what I've seen is the very peak of explicitly shitty cringefail loser who then genuinely works hard to become a better person Sun Wukong out there. It can be watched here:

Turning away from film and animation for a moment, I simply have to give proper kudos to Chaiko Tsai's comic The Monkey King. Between the gorgeous art, fun character designs, a good sense of how to translate many of the stories of Xiyouji into comic format, and a resolution to the Sun Wukong vs. Niu Mowang fight that I actually prefer above that in Journey to the West itself, this is definitely a comic worth going through! You can purchase it here for about $30.00

And last but certainly not least, one simply has to give due credit to 1964's Uproar in Heaven. It's an absolute gem of stylized Chinese animation, a work with the very rare allowance on the Monkey King getting to go full grandpa for tons upon tons of monkeys at Mt. Huaguoshan, and it's very faithful to the first half of the og classic with the difference that here Sun Wukong does his havoc in heaven and gets away with it. All around its a really fun work to watch and does have a lot of importance from both an animation and a historical perspective. You can watch it here:

So those are my favorite adaptations of Journey to the West! It's but a fraction of the adaptations out there, but I hope other people found these as fun as I do.

[amethyst-halo]

can you tell us more about the popdwap au?

yea sure!!!

the gist of it is that it's a floyd doesn't leave au to start. when the bros break apart and stuff he can't bring himself to set out right away, and then he just sorta never gets to leaving until rosiepuff gets taken by bergens. when she does, he gets a little freaked out about his ability to protect branch on his own, and decides the two of them should leave the tree. he's been saving up to take on a solo career, and doesn't make the choice lightly; he doesn't know if and when the escape tunnels will be finished and he doesn't feel like they can stick around anymore.

floyd and branch spend a while traveling around the troll territories, meeting the different trolls around as floyd figures out his solo career's details. most of the other trolls are a little skeptical of them, since they're pop trolls, but they either leave them alone or warm up to them since they're just kids. they end up settling in the rock kingdom for a little while, where floyd makes his start, to give branch some stability.

it's very much a shitty position, though; floyd is 14 when they set out on their own, forced into a single guardian position and essentially losing his teen years. it doesn't help that branch is struggling to understand why their brothers left, often asking floyd where they went and if they really loved them and stuff like that. the first time he asks one of those, floyd decides he isn't forgiving his brothers, at least not easily. this attitude rubs off on branch very quickly, alongside the growing guilt as he comes to realize how fucked up it is that they're living that way so young.

meanwhile, clay returns to the tree just in time for the escape. he quickly finds viva, who doesn't know about floyd or branch's whereabouts, but she does know about rosiepuff being taken which she relays. they stick with everyone and get out the other side, helping trolls as best as they can. when peppy comes out, viva asks immediately about poppy.

peppy reaches into his hair, and finds that poppy is missing. viva immediately bolts back into the tunnels with clay right behind her.

she calls for her sister to no avail for a while, and clay starts trying to urge her back out because he knows they won't find her, but viva refuses. until the ceiling begins to crumble, and clay has to shove her out of the way, getting hit on the head in the process. with no way forward and a definitely concussed friend, viva turns back.

poppy's okay though!!! she gets found by a troll and ends up as a putt putt troll :)

clay and viva help start building the new pop village, leaning on each other since they both "lost" their siblings. viva becomes queen sooner than poppy, since she's 12-13 years older, so she's already queen by movie 1 timeframe. this is sorta where i haven't figured everything out yet; ik the movies happen but i dont have details ;v;

viva is definitely a lot like poppy; she's excitable and loves to throw parties and scrapbook, and braiding hair is still her way of telling others she likes them. since she has more time to be queen by the time the movies hit, she's a little more settled into her role and a little less sensitive to criticism.

clay steps up as her right hand man, helping her organize plans and keeping track of literally anything involving numbers and safety. he's still very set on being the serious one, but he can't help but be a little silly here and there. in his free time, i think he'd like to write books!

at sooome point floyd and branch end up moving to mt. rageous for both floyd's solo career and branch's restarting music career. they end up rooming with my oc rosewood! she's chill she's also a solo artist lmao

at another point floyd and branch end up going to a gig at vaycay island, only to discover bruce runs the biggest restaurant there with his wife. bruce is excited to see them, but they aren't that happy to see him considering he'd left them. their interactions are short and cold at best. still deciding on if floyd gets to rip into him about leaving bc he definitely deserves to

floyd does still get caught by velvet and veneer; branch is also almost caught, barely getting away in time. he enlists rosewood's help in finding a way to get to him, which he does, but he figures out he can't get floyd out of there without help. after spending an agonizing month or so trying to come up with literally any other plan, branch gives in and goes looking for his brothers for the perfect family harmony. he gets clay first, then john dory while on the way to bruce's. they get lost on the way back to mt rageous and end up by the golf course, where viva finds poppy is alive!

eeexcept she doesn't remember viva at all. and when viva starts to explain what happened, the memories flood back and overwhelm her, causing her to flee.

but poppy isn't in charge of the putt putts, it turns out. it's actually a much older grandma rosiepuff, who managed to escape the bergens and wound up with the separated trolls. of course, clay and bros are ecstatic to see her, clay and branch especially, and she asks about floyd which they fill her in on. rosie's in no shape to help save him, so she makes them promise to come back once they get him out of there.

on their way out, poppy comes back and decides she's going with them. she's apprehensive, and insists to viva she wants to figure everything out at her own pace, which viva is all for.

when the brothers start fighting on the road, branch is quick to get angry, saying he thought they'd have better priorities after 20 years. viva sides with him quickly, especially getting at clay for wanting his brothers back for 2 decades only to start fighting again almost immediately.

and againnnn i don't have anything else figured out but its kinda this a/b/c plot with viva and clay to branch and floyd to poppy over the course of like. 20+ years!

yea thats what i got so far!!! wahoo!!!!!

[fluffypotatey]

Consider an au with the soul mate identify trope of your writing on your skin showing up in the skin of your soulmate. Obviously shadowpeach are soulmates . Would them during their nemesis Era use that to torment/taunt the other(insults, threats,etc) or would they pretend it didn't exist

gonna be honest with you, anon, i am super picky with my soulmate AUs (out of love, i love them so much !and this has made me a harsh grader for them)

anyway

i don't think Macky would use their "link," so to speak, as a means to torment or taunt (not including swk because it was honestly Macadoodle who was the instigator and provoker throughout their nemesis dynamic in lmk). and i feel like Wukong's punishment under the 5 Phases Mt. would cut off their communication the fastest because even if Macky wrote on his arm, Wukong would never see it or be able to write back (which Mackarell is very aware of). after their fight, neither would be able to write back an apology or even scribble some sweet drawing if they still can't find the right words. so, it's possible that because of this 500 year pause of communication, their old habit of scribbling and writing notes on their arms faded pretty quickly.

and then Wukong is free. his arms are no longer fused with rock. his arms are bare, obviously. he feels that old itch to scribble or write something on them, but he doesn't follow through with it. he can't. not after what the both of them had said to each other. sure, centuries passed but how would Wukong know if Macky would be happy to learn he's okay, that he's free. the last thing Macky even said to him was that he was tired of being dragged along by Wukong, so....maybe Wukong shouldn't drag Macky along any further.

and then they meet again, and Macky is pissed. whether at Wukong or for him, it's hard for the monkey king to tell because Macky is mad and bloodthirsty and he is hurting Wukong friends. he is impersonating Wukong, trying to steal his journey--not even his, it's Tripitaka's, his master's-- trying to fool everyone into think that Wukong is nothing more than a demon who desires for nothing but to consume the world of its power and reign as the greatest there's ever been-

then Macky is dead. everything happened to fast, but there the monkey lies on the ground, arms bare. they have always been bare ever since the war they started with Heaven centuries ago. Macky's arms are bare and so are Wukong's.

when Macky wakes up/is revived the memory of their link and broken bond is still fresh, but for Wukong, it's been a long, long time.

Wukong has grown to become used to the scribbles and ink on his arms to never be reciprocated. he doesn't even write or draw on them that much, just when the itch to do something is strong but he's got no spare paper or spare mural room. he even allows his little Suns write or scribble on him just for fun or when they're bored. he even allows MK, who's arms are always filled to the brim with scribbles by the time the kid arrives for training.

Macky did not expect to ever wake up one day and find his arm full of ink. he clawed it at since washing it off didn't work. there's a strange sort of limbo Macky's mind seems to go into whenever he considers the reason for why Wukong is still scribbling, still adding life to their link. all throughout seasons 1 to 3 Macky figured it was because Wukong had eventually moved on enough to stop caring.

and yes, Wukong did move on. but he never stopped caring. Macky hadn't believed that until he was with MK in that scroll.

and it's strange. to find out that the person you once loved still loves you (how much or how different is still unclear). it's even stranger when you realize that you, yourself, do not still hold love from the past but for the present, for the future.

after Azure's defeat, there's some new scribbles on both of their arms. Wukong swears he didn't change his style, so obviously it must be Macquackity himself who'd done it (then he starts to smile while holding his arms tightly to his chest). Macky just huffs and claims that it's better than boredom (then draws on a sun and a moon on the wrist of his arms).

[morally-grey-girlbosses]

Annabeth Chase artwork courtesy of @viria.

POLLRUNNER'S NOTE: Unlike other artists whose work is used in this tournament, I have not spoken to the artist whose art is used for Annebeth Chase here personally, but her FAQ states her art may be used for projects with credit. That said, I will remove this art if requested to by the artist.

Propaganda under the cut.

Lady Bone Demon:

she committed So Many Atrocities (possessing an innocent child to puppet her body around, direct murder, attempted omnicide, and Being Mean To My Favorite Little Guy), but it was all for the sake of creating a perfect world where people wouldn’t have to suffer

The Lady Bone Demon hated to see corrupt people make the world imperfect and the people within it suffer. She thought that she could at first sway emperors onto what she thought was a better path, but realised the only way to ‘cleanse’ the world of suffering was to start completely anew. She wanted to completely destroy the mortal realm to have a ‘clean slate’ to shape her new world how she saw fit and almost succeeded. She is also perhaps a little insane. She possessed a character and made him turn against his own protégé. She also has this way of getting into our protagonist’s head and feeding his doubts and insecurities that made my skin crawl the first time I watched it.

Annabeth Chase:

Annabeth Chase is an intelligent worrier. She knows that she doesn’t need to rely on others for everything, but she understands that sometimes she needs help (not that she’ll ask for it). Her fatal flaw is pride, which will deplete her self preservation skills veryyyy often. Some of her achievements are Holding up the Sky, being the first child of Athena to hold the Mark of Athena and survive the test (fighting off and winning against Arachne), dating Percy Jackson (she needs a lot of patience for that, and will to fight both of their parents’ rivalry), doing well in school despite her ADHD and Dislexia, and surviving Tartarus. She ran away from home at age 9, trained at Camp Half Blood until she was 17, then traveled the world with other Demigods in order to defeat Gaea. Annabeth is the only Demigod who has biological ties to another mythology’s deities. She also designed most of the cabins at CHB, and part of Mt. Olympus. She is currently attending college with Percy. She has aspirations to do great things with architecture, and I believe she’ll do just that.

[everythingwasalreadypicked]

I got a very disturbing Pjo idea after watching TBOSAS trailer and since nudging the people in the Ta server wasn't enough for me, I'm putting it out here.

(Very excited for that movie btw)

TW: Dehumanisation, murder, child death, general things you would see in THG

Okay so you know how THG was inspired by the Thesus and the Labyrinth myth?

And you know how the Games were started to punish the Districts for rebelling?

And, and what army was technically a rebellion? That’s right. The Titan army demigods.

So, what if instead of massacring the Ta kids; the gods put them thorough similar games. I mean Hephaestus TV is a thing, they canonically watch demigods as entertainment. Wouldn't be the first time they made them fight for entertainment either. Remember Bachus?

"After all, if they're so willing to raise up arms against their fellow demigodkind killing their friends and fellow comrades shouldn't be that hard, right?" — Zeus (and Kai thanks for the dialogue)

So those who didn’t immediately joined back the camps gets rounded up and imprisoned somewhere before they got thrown into the arena to fight monsters and eachother to death.

All the while the gods are watching their new family entertainment. Hey, it's free :D

Apollo takes it upon himself to do the interviews (like Ceasar) which half of it has to get censored before it reaches Zeus.

"Hecate, your son fucking bit me!"

"Good." — she's not happy about the situation at all.

Of course, they would group the kids and do more than one run: Prolongs their fun and the traitors's suffering.

Not that all of the kids are sent to fight. The Olympians who have children there are more likely to spare their favourite ones and hold it over their heads for the rest of their life. (And leave the ones they don't like to die)

Sponsorships still happen, it's an effective way to break the comradeship. You're more likely to receive one if 1) Your godly parent is an Olympian and/or 2) You’re more willing to put up with whatever the gods throw at you without a fuss.

The current run is broadcasted to the imprisoned demis as a further way to break their spirits, and so they can see their friends kill eachother, sometimes without hesitation.

The winners gets paraded around Mt. Olympus. They're free now that won the gods's bloody bullshit, right? Wrong. Sure they're being "celebrated" for killing their friends but they're nothing more than shiny trophies. Just props for entertainment :)

Of course, with the way things are broadcasted to the other members of army make it seem like one of their own being treated like a celebrity for turning on them, which further drives wedges between the victors and them.

The winners gets to watch their own run, too. They can't turn on Olympus if they're too busy self-loathing :)

The kids are prepped up before their interviews, a courtesy of Aphrodite (so what if some of her own children are there, they should've knew better than treason), but they’re sent to the arena with basic white chitons. The Olympians get nostalgic all right, they’re old. (And it does make the Ta demis feel even more degraded and patronised.)

The Arena itself is really pretty, too pretty for what's happening inside. I'm talking about polished marble Greek columns, giant statues of the gods, intricate carvings of silver and gold.

[It is of course designed by their newest architect. Not that Annabeth knows what it's going to be used for. They petition for "a shiny arena for godly games" and she does it. Not knowing it's going to be used for demigod bloodshed. She can't be imprisoned like her half-brother Daedalus however, they can't have either of the camps know about what's going on. (Those in Ta who knew her recognises her work, however causing them to think the Camp is on it) So, Hera kindly takes it upon herself to wipe the memory. She needed practice for her future exchange program anyway.]

"Why are you protesting that "we're forcing you to kill eachother" Torrington, we aren't the ones who are holding weapons."

[I will reblog with art later]

[isaksbestpillow]

The World Happiness Report is out, Finland is #1 at the top, why do you think that is from your perspective who grew up there?

Good question, but I'm not sure I have an answer to that. For whatever reason, year after year an average Finnish person seems to consider themselves more content with their life than an average person in other countries at least in this particular report. Every year when the report comes out, Finnish people are like this must be rigged lol. My personal relationship with Finland is a bit tumultuous at the moment because I feel like our current government is taking us to a dark place. We say on lottovoitto syntyä Suomeen, to be born in Finland is like winning the lottery, and we call our country lintukoto ('bird home', a mythical place in finnish folklore at the end of the world where everything is very small and safe), but I don't know how much truth there is to it anymore.

I'm not a sociologist, but many articles have been written about this report over the years, and the view here is that Finland has excellent infrastructure for a happy life. Finland is ranked as the freest and the most stable country in the world. Finnish people trust all institutions including the police. Finnish people are also the most trusting people in the world in general. Life is pretty safe and simple. Differences in income aren't as palpable as in some other countries. There is more room to fuck up and start over. We have very little hierarchy. History of bloodshed has cultivated a culture of compromise (which now seems to be changing with the introduction of far-right movements). Public services are accessible to everyone, including childcare that is considered the child's right. The mayor's kid and the sanitary worker's kid are in the same class in school. School meals are free. People work shorter hours than in many other countries. Most of the country is covered in forests, and people enjoy wandering and spending time in nature. Finnish people are some of the most active library users in the world. Superficial values are generally frowned upon, though I feel like with Instagram and Tiktok it has become less of a taboo to flaunt your wealth or looks or get cosmetic procedures. There isn't much to do or see outside of the few cities, but people enjoy a boring life. This became extremely clear to me about ten years ago in Japan when we went to a cottage near Mt. Fuji and there was a game center in the area, it was such a shock to me as a Finnish person.

Finland isn't a particularly glamorous country. The climate is dreadful, there aren't many historic sites because we were a remote piece of land ruled over by mightier powers, we've been preparing for a Russian invasion ever since the last one ended, the country is very sparsely populated, there is a lot of interpersonal violence, we have an increasing drug problem, a lot of racism, clannish attitudes, a mental health crisis among young people. So it's not an utopia, it's just a country, but having lived abroad, I do feel that the pace of life in Finland is slower and there is more room to breathe.

[kaycode1999]

Techno-Organic Reader x Earthspark Bumblebee

This was a request from @technoorganicmic

Important information:

As a techno organic, Y/N can be either human height or grow to the size of bot (tall enough her/his/their head comes to Bee’s Autobot insignia). She/he/they have a blaster arm and a shield arm. She/he/they were created when one of the military scientists working with the Autobots came into contact with a protoform.

15 years ago ( a few days before the end of the war)

Y/N and Bee sit side by side on the edge of one of the ledges near the top of Mt. St. Hillary just as the sun begins to set. “ Bee?” Y/N speaks up, breaking the comfortable silence that had settled over the two. Bee makes a hum of acknowledgment turning his head to face her/him/them, “ I’m worried” Y/N says. “ About what?” Bee questions, “ GHOST” Y/N explains. “ Why? Did something happen?” Bee asks, “ Not exactly. But I’ve noticed they’ve been getting more and more secretive lately. Like there’s something they don’t want us seeing” Y/N says “ I don’t have any proof but I can’t shake this feeling that they’re up to something bad. Even Optimus doesn’t seem to trust them completely, I mean they aren’t allowed anywhere Tele-traan 1 and he is very careful about who he picks to work with them”.

“ Now that you mention it, I’ve noticed the same thing” Bee agrees. “ And now that Megatron has joined us- the war is nearly over. Something tells me is won’t be in my favor to be a techno organic that isn’t under their thumb” Y/N says, Bee gets a sad look on his face before taking Y/N’s hand. “ Are you saying you’re thinking of leaving?” Bee asks, “ It’s either that or I might end up like the Decepticons they plan to lock up. I’ll stay until the war is over…. But the second it ends I have to disappear. And you should think about doing the same” Y/N says. A look of pure heart break flashes across Bee’s optics which causes a lump to form in Y/N’s throat, “ Bee” Y/N says giving his hand a squeeze “ We’ll see each other again. I promise”. Bee gives her/him/them a sad smile and nods, the two slowly get to their feet and Y/N throws her/his/their arms around his neck in a tight hug. After a few moments she/he/they slightly pull away just enough to place a kiss on Bee’s cheek. Y/N then steps away just slightly, chuckling at Bee’s shy expression. “ Come on, let’s go meet up with the others” Y/N says, and the two head back down to the Ark and the other Autobots.

Present Day

Y/N lays across the couch in her/his/their apartment reading a book when the weirdest thing happens. Her/his/their eyes start glowing as a message from some middle aged brown haired man with strange eyebrows and two cybertronian arms starts to play.

“ My Terran troublemakers” he starts (and Y/N notices to two young kids behind him who look terrified as they are surrounded by several spider bots) “ as you can see, I have taken your human siblings. All five of you will meet me at the Witwiki race track at 5 o’clock this afternoon, and I wouldn’t try to get help from anyone or- Well, I think you can imagine what happens to poor Mo and Robby if you don’t follow my instructions”

The man gives an evil smirk before the message ends and everything goes back to normal. Y/N gasps and sits up on the couch with eyes widening in surprise. She/her/his mind starts racing for several moments before one thought comes through stronger than the rest.

“ those kids. I have to help those kids”

Y/N quickly grabs her/his/their phone looking up the location and rushing out to her/his/their car taking off for the race track.

5 o’clock

The Terrans walk through the entrance into the Witwiki race track where the evil scientist man and his spider bots have Mo and Robby. “ Right on time, just as I suspected” the man calls as the Terrans walk closer before being surrounded by the spider bots. The red drone Terran tightens her grip on her swords with an angry expression. “ we did what you said Mandroid, we’re here and we didn’t tell anyone. Now let Mo and Robby go” she says, “ Yes…. That was what I said, wasn’t it?” The man says says smiling darkly before snapping his fingers and the spiders bot’s suddenly shoot out some blue cords from their “ mouths” attaching to all of the Terrans. The cords instantly have a sparking electric current start through them shocking the Terrans who cry out in surprise and pain before falling to the ground, “ but you see…. Now that I have you. I don’t really have any more use for these two do I?” He says. Two Spider bots walk up to Mo and Robby holding their sharp claw like arms over their head readying to slice, a look of horror washes over the Terrans face as they realize what is about to happen.

The spiders bring down their arms, and just in time Y/N blasts them before stepping out from her/his/their hiding place catching everyone’s attention. “ Ok… I don’t know who you are” Y/N says taking several steps forward while keeping her/his/their blaster aimed at “ Mandroid” “ but let these kids go now!”, “ and who might you be?” He asks asks narrowing his eyes at Y/N as she/he/they step between him and the children. “ Oh, see it’s interesting. I’m-“ Y/N starts before blasting mandroid in the arm knocking him to the ground. She/he/they then throw her/his/their shield slicing the cords connected to the Terrans before they catch it when it comes back to her/him/them, the Terrans quickly get to their feet and rush to Y/N’s side just as mandroid gets up.

“ Get your siblings to safety!” Y/N orders, Y/N rushes Mandroid as the white motorcycle Terran and the red drone Terran grab Robby and Mo taking them several feet away out of danger while the three other Terrans take on the Spider bots. Y/N and Mandroid exchange a few blows before Mandroid pins Y/N down, “ is that really the best you can do?” He snarks. Y/N smirks before growing to her/his/their full height towering over the (mostly still human), “ What do you think?” Y/N asks before punching him sending him scattering several yards away. He slowly gets back up with a rather surprised look on his face. “ What are you?” He asks, “ Wouldn’t you like to know” Y/N snarks before blasting him back into the woods and the remaining spider bots run after him.

With Mandroid gone, Y/N turns to the Terrans and two human kids walking up to them. The kids all look at Y/N in awe as she/he/they brush her/him/ them self off, “ Are you all ok?” Y/N asks in concern. The Terrans all quickly crowd around Y/N as a flurry of questions come out, “ Who are you? How did you do that? What are you? How did you know where we were?”. “ whoa whoa whoa” Y/N says “ I’ll answer all of your questions, but first let’s get you kids somewhere safe”.

Y/N follows the kids to the Malto’s farm in her/his/their car, and the kids all run to hug their parents who are waiting in front of the house as Y/N parks the car and starts walking their way. The two parents give Y/N a kind of questioning look making her/him/them stop just a few steps in front of them and give them a shy smile and wave, “ Hi” Y/N says “ I’m”. Just then movement from the barn catches her/his/their eye as a familiar yellow and black bot steps out. “ Bee?” Y/N says in disbelief, “ Y/N?” Bumblebee says in surprise. “ Oh my God” Y/N says growing to her/his/their full height and running toward him nearly tackling him in a hug which he quickly reciprocates. After a moments Y/N pulls away smiling at him, “ I-I can’t believe it, it’s been so long” Y/N says. “ too long.” Bee agrees with a shy smile, and Y/N hugs him again. “ It’s so good to see you.” she/he/they says quietly.

“ Wait, Bee- So you know this, um” the mom starts failing to find a word for what Y/N is, and the two separate turning toward the others. “ Techno-organic” Y/N says. “ I do” Bee says with a smile “ everyone, this is Y/N. Y/N, these are the Malto’s”, he then introduces each member of the family. “ its nice to meet all of you.” Y/N says smiling at the kind family, “ What did you mean by Techno- organic?” Twitch asks. “ Well, basically I’m part Cybertronian and part Organic” Y/N explains, “ That sounds like what we are!” Hashtag says excitedly “ Does that mean you’re like- Our sibling?”. Y/N chuckles at the Terran’s enthusiasm, “ Not exactly” she/he/they says “ more like…. Uh, Cousins? That’s probably how I was able to receive the message from that Mandroid. He must have broadcast it on a frequency only beings like us would be able to receive. Too bad for him though, he didn’t know about me.”. A flurry of more questions come out from the Maltos and Bee puts an arm around Y/N directing her/him/them toward the barn, “ Come on guys, Y/N can explain everything in the dugout” he says and the whole family follows after them.

[autisticgoten]

[Image ID/transcript under the cut]

Goten over the years! These are some concepts for a Super rewrite thing a friend and I have been working on :)

Goten is the main character along with Trunks... To expand on what Toriyama sort-of set up in DBZ, Goten and Trunks are intended to be the new generation full of promise, and take a much more important role in the story and conflicts than Super as it is.

There's a lot here and I've been drawing a lot of concept art regardless so I'm sure I'll expand on some of this stuff later haha. Goten and Trunks' fusion training on Metamor in particular is something I've been having a lot of fun with...

[Image ID.

Image 1: A digital artwork of three full-body depictions of Goten, lined up next to each other against a blank background, at different ages. The first age, labelled '>7' at the top, shows a young Goten in his gi as he appears in Dragon Ball Z, smiling at the viewer. Handwritten notes around him read:

Makeshift gi made by Chi-Chi for his training

No tail... yet (removed at birth)

Chi-Chi & Goten can't cut hair very well so it became a Goku-esque bird's nest

Lives simply and happily with his family, but becomes uncomfortable when he feels like something is being kept from him or he is missing something

Semi-frequent excursions to West City to see the Briefs -- his world is Mt. Paozu and Capsule Corp

Partners-in-crime with Trunks -- though this is actually the phase of life they see each other the least. Their partnership is also less equal at this time with Trunks taking the lead more & Goten deferring to the older kid.

The second age is labelled '11', and shows a visibly older Goten, over a head taller than the last age. He is dressed in the outfit he wears for most of Dragon Ball Super, and now as a tail hanging by his side. He is smiling at the viewer and holding up a peace sign. Handwritten notes around him read:

Super timeline starts

Grew back tail from the stress of Beerus's threats (along with Trunks) -- they were so excited their parents didn't remove them again (so long as the moon stays destroyed)

Struggles with loneliness when Gohan marries Videl & moves out, and visits him regularly, often without warning

Motivated to train more seriously with Goku -- wants to protect Earth and his family

The third age is labelled '14-15', and is also visibly older. He is wearing his outfit from the 'Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero' movie and has a sheepish smile on his face while waving at the viewer. His tail is curled up by his side. Handwritten notes around him read:

Now attending Blue Hal School with Trunks -- they are getting a lot closer

Getting very serious abt training -- now doing fusion training on Metamor with Trunks

Increasingly feeling the toll of Earth's safety beginning to be entrusted to him

Gets along very well with most ppl at school but struggles to form deeper connections -- a bit of a social drifter

In his spare time, video games are starting to be a major form of escapism

More assertive around people he knows well, but struggles with acquaintances

Realises he's bi :)

Image 2: A digital artwork of three more full-body depictions of Goten, continuing on from the last image. The first age is labelled '16-17' and shows an older Goten in his school uniform from the latest manga arc of Dragon Ball Super, holding his school bag with his other hand on his waist, smiling confidently at the viewer. His tail curls inward towards his legs. Handwritten notes around him read:

More involved in the community -- operating as a hero with Trunks, forming deeper bonds at school

Keeps himself busy with a variety of extracurriculars, parties, casual dates, and odd jobs for cash

Learns instant transmission!

Still goes with the flow but now more confident in his independence

Some of his activities take him away from Trunks but even apart they are close -- always texting

Official video game addict

Training is still very important to him but just one factor of his schedule & interests

The next age is labelled '19'. Goten is dressed in a loose-fitting purple shirt with Sonic the Hedgehog on it, with a black undershirt under it, loose yellow pants, and large black boots with red soles. He is stretching his arms and looking to the left with a dazed expression, and his tail is wrapped around his left leg. Handwritten notes around him read:

Has moved out & is living with Trunks in a bid for independence

Attempted uni for a semester, quit, still doing odd jobs -- a tiny bit directionless

No longer operating regularly as a hero but sometimes helps Gohan

Dedicated to training as a lifestyle, much like Goku, but does a lot of other things

He and Trunks are attempting to be financially indepedent

Sometimes suffers burnout

Apartment is in Central City, but frequently visits home and Gohan with instant transmission.

The next age is labelled '22+', and shows Goten in a gi very similar to Goku's during DBZ, complete with the 悟 ('go') kanji, with chunky blue boots. He is smiling broadly at the viewer, and has hair similar to Goku's except much longer -- going down past his chin. Handwritten notes around him read:

Runs a martial arts/swordsmanship school with Trunks!

Still messes around with odd jobs but the school is his main focus

Also runs community programs through the school

He and Trunks are two of the major Z Fighters on call in case of emergency

Image 3: The last two images put together, except without the handwritten notes.

End ID.]

[jungle-angel]

Out in the Middle: Part 1 (Rhett Abbott x Reader)

Summary: You and Rhett decide to spend some time with some old family friends and let the kids run loose. The trip turns out to be some of the best memories you ever make

Tags: @fanboygarcia @nobody7102​ I know you guys probably haven’t seen Yellowstone yet but I couldn’t help myself and this is only part one (lol)

Bozeman, MT

8:30 am

October 2022

You and Rhett could hardly wait to see the looks on the kids faces when you finally reached your destination. You had all gotten up at the crack of ass, loaded the kids all up into the truck and schlepped it on off to Bozeman to beat the rush of traffic on the highways.

But you knew the trip would be worth it in the end. 

Three of the kids rode with you while the other three rode with Royal and Cecelia and Amy with her dad. You were grateful that the littler ones would sleep the whole way through, but you pitied Royal when Tatum and Tanner would start playing the “stop-hitting-yourself” game. The first time around, Rhett had almost dislocated his shoulder trying to discipline the two little monsters.

“We almost there?” you yawned. 

“Almost there darlin,” Rhett told you. “One more turn off and we’re there.” 

“Oh thank God,” you sighed. 

One more turn off and the destination began to approach. As soon as you saw the sign that read: Dutton Ranch, 5 Miles, a heat of excitement began to well up inside you. “God, the kids are gonna freak when they see their cousins,” you remarked. 

“Which oughtta be good seeing as they’ve been locked in a car for six hours,” Rhett chuckled. “But I hear you. It’ll be good to see John and the others again.” 

You couldn’t have agreed more. Even just the thought of the kids running around on that vast expanse of property, completely free of all the problems of the world made you happier than you had ever been. 

When at last the land came into view, you and Rhett let the others follow behind you as the trucks made their way up the drive to that imposing log house at the top of the hill. God, Bozeman was gorgeous in the fall, the trees burned bright shades of orange, red, yellow, green and brown, the pines looming and towering into the bright blue field of sky. The mists of early morning rolled over the hills and mountains like the tails of ghosts wisping their way across the crests. 

At last you pulled to a stop, waking Hannah and your second set of twins, Franklin and Harvey. God, they were getting big, already two and a half and getting into everything. Hannah of course jumped from the truck when she saw John, Beth and Rip all making their way over. 

“PAPA JOHNNY!!!!!!!!” she screamed. 

John laughed as he scooped her right off the ground. “How’s my favorite grandniece?” he laughed. “You and your brothers and sisters up to no good?” 

“I solemnly swear I’m up to no good!” Hannah answered. 

“That’s what I wanna hear!” John said proudly, high-fiving her and shooing her off to the barn before the other kids nearly football tackled him. The other cousins came charging up from the stables, eager to see everyone and cause as much mischief as they could. 

“You two thought you’d get away without me coming to see you?” John joked. 

“Hi John,” you chuckled as he caught you in a tight hug, the smell of leather, hay and horses lingering in his jacket. 

“Uncle John, good to see you,” Rhett said before he too was caught by his uncle.

“Heard you had a hell of a rodeo before comin up here,” John remarked. “How’s the shoulder?” 

“A little bruised but I’ll live,” Rhett laughed half-heartedly. “How’s everybody else?” 

“Can’t complain,” Beth answered. “Kids are all driving us up the wall. I went to go and get Evie and Joey after work from school and all their teacher did was complain that they were covered in mud.” 

“Oh c’mon, let the kids be kids,” Rhett scoffed. 

“Oh! Oh-ho now, do we hear a Rhett and (y/n)?” a woman’s voice asked, coming from the porch. 

You screamed when you saw Monica running to you with her arms open and Kayce holding a four month old baby girl in his arms. “You told us you were gonna call before you got here!” Monica exclaimed.

“I promised no such thing!” 

“Yes you did!” 

“No I didn’t!” 

You and Monica bantered back and forth before Kayce came over to greet Rhett while John did the same for Royal and Cecelia, the two of them shooing Amy and the other kids off to the stables to play with their cousins. “You slimy little son of a bitch,” John chuckled. “How are ya?” 

“Not a complaint in the world,” Royal answered. “Still fightin with that bitch, Carline Warner?” 

“Yeah, Beth had it out with her about two days ago,” John answered. “Thomas did too but he kept it a little quieter.” 

“Is he here?” 

“Comin by with the grandkids around eleven,” John told him. “We’ll have more midgets on the property than we’ll know what to do with.” 

Royal laughed as everyone made their way into the house to catch up, yourself brimming with excitement at the fact that you, Rhett and the kids would get to spend an entire year here. 

[changingplumbob]

Nishidake Household: Chapter 5, Part 1

In this part the Nishidake household hit a few roadbumps with the inclusion of the health mods.

Back to Mt Komorebi where the Nishidake household sleeps. Last rotation they got the news that Kaori’s grandparents had left a large inheritance for her and her wife. The Nishidake family are the guardians of the mountain, a mantle which requires loyalty to the region. Specifically you can go somewhere on holiday, but if you take steps to move away you will die. At least according to a bunch of dead ancestors who tried, including Kaori’s parents.

Charlie: We better get up

Kaori: Clover’s belly is not the boss of us

Clover: *barks hungrily*

Kaori: Who am I kidding? Her belly is totally the boss of us

Charlie: *laughs* I can go feed her if you want first shower

Kaori: Please. I had a not great fall yesterday and my muscles are still aching

Charlie: You should have said, I could have given you a massage

Kaori: I’ve maxed my snowboarding skill, I’m not meant to have falls

Charlie: Everyone has falls *to Clover* Come on my honey pie, who wants biscuits?

Charlie: Did you get back in your pyjamas? *kisses cheek*

Kaori: Yeah, they’re comfy

Charlie: Remember we need to go to the doctors first thing

Kaori: Why? Since when

Charlie: Mum text about a new mod. Apparently we need vaccines and to go see a gynaecologist

Kaori: Char only one of us got a bio degree

Charlie: Oh, they just look at our pixel parts and tell us if we’re healthy

Kaori: What? I don’t want some stranger looking at my pixel parts

Charlie: We don’t have a choice

Kaori: Sure we do! We just don’t go. It’s not like we’re going to get pregnant or one of us is sleeping with someone who has a pixel parts infection

Charlie: We don’t need to be trying to get pregnant for our reproductive organs to stuff up and explode

Kaori: *suspiciously* You’re just being gloomy right? Our organs won’t actually explode…

Charlie: Guess the only way for you to find out is to come with me

Kaori: *rolls eyes* Fine. How much will it set us back

Charlie: Don’t worry. All players on the team get health insurance, we’ll be fine, it won’t cost as much

Kaori: Brilliant! We could use the savings on a new couch

Charlie: Umm, I don’t think that’s how savings work. And we hardly ever sit on the couches anyway

Kaori: Doesn’t mean we shouldn’t have nice ones. And I’m not suggesting we use the inheritance on ourselves, but you and I do get income we can spend. You knew you were marrying a shop-a-holic Char, I like nice things

Charlie: Am I included in these nice things

Kaori: Only if you take a shower

Charlie: Oh, she burns!

Kaori: Shut up, you know I still have a fear of fire. I’ll get the dishes, you shower so we can get these medical visits over with

Clover: *barks* Hope I don’t have any medical visits

Kaori: We survived!

Charlie: Heck yeah. Now, about what the doctor said…

Kaori: Char she said I’m neurodivergent, it’s not like we need to be worried or sad or whatever

Charlie: I’m gloomy, I can’t help it. Do you want me to go to the psychiatrist with you

Kaori: Nah, I’ll be sweet. Can you get started on the chores for me though?

Charlie: Does gardening count

Kaori: So long as you don’t let Clover track the dirt through the house

Charlie: I won’t. But I know you enjoy vacuuming so… I’ll leave that for you?

Kaori: *laughs* Guilty! Okay, I’ll vacuum when I’m back

Charlie gets started on her indoor garden. She learned how to garden during her biology degree with Rahul, not that she’d tell her dad that she’d ignored his many attempts to teach her about soil types and fertiliser strengths. She’s calling out to Clover every so often when she realises Clover is barking differently than normal.

Charlie: You better not be inviting around the hound dogs

Clover: *barks to the hound dogs*

Charlie: We’re getting you spayed so don’t even think about it

Kaori: What’s all the noise in here

Charlie: You back? How’d it go

Kaori: Did you say we’re getting this precious angel spayed

Charlie: I did indeed yell that

Clover: *barks in love*

Kaori: But... Charlie... puppies could be so cute!

Charlie: No

Kaori: Why not? You got her and Allie as puppies

Charlie: Over population K. There’s enough strays out there without adding to the surplus

Kaori and Clover go to the garden room where Charlie is fighting a temporary bug invasion.

Kaori: But what if... we kept the puppies

Charlie: *sighs* K, pregnancy is hard and labour is rough. Yes you may end up with cute puppies but think about what Clover would have to go through. It’s not right for us to put her through that when we can get her fixed

Kaori: *pouts* Suppose

Charlie: I don’t want to be pregnant. You don’t want to be pregnant. Why would we make her do something we’re not willing to go through ourselves huh?

Kaori: You’re right, I know you’re right. She just really seems to want to make puppies

Clover: *barks in love*

Charlie: It’s hormones. Should calm down when she’s fixed. Now what did the psychiatrist say

Kaori: That I have… wait he did write it down somewhere for me…

Clover: *barks in love*

Charlie: Honey pie mummies are talking right now

Kaori: Oh, I kept it on my phone. I have this thing called… Dysgraphia? I think that’s how it’s pronounced

Charlie: I haven’t heard of it before

Kaori: Yeah me neither

Charlie: Do they think we need to be worried at all

Kaori: No. It’s just why I have trouble writing neatly and getting stuff from my head onto paper

Charlie: Did they want you to start anything like meds or tutoring or something

Kaori: Depends on how much I’m bothered. Like I have the film and literature hobby but I enjoy experiencing stories more than creating them you know. I’ll see how I go

With the garden tidied Charlie gets into her uniform and heads off to work.

Kaori: Good luck playing Char! We'll be listening and watching

Charlie: Thanks. Hey Clover, I’ll see you when you have less organs

Clover: *whines*

Kaori: Here we are, standard vets. I’ll go sign you in for a spay, come on Clover

Clover: *whines in love*

Kaori: Let’s see… do we have an account here? We should do, we took Allie here after all

Bartholemew A. Bittlebun, Snr.: *meows* Lady you’re in my puddle

Kaori: Spay… spay… spay! Here we go, all signed up

 Bartholemew A. Bittlebun, Snr.: *meows* The service here is terrible

Kaori: I’m lucky this screen lights up. Why is it so dark in here?

Clover: *barks* Puddle! I must jump in as tribute to Peanut

Bartholemew A. Bittlebun, Snr.: *meows* Make your own puddle to play in

Clover: *barks* But this one is right here and I need to roll

Bartholemew A. Bittlebun, Snr.: *runs from the scene of the crime*

Justin: Hey lady, your dog is making a mess! All over the floor

Kaori: Maybe you should wait for the vet outside Clover

Bartholemew A. Bittlebun, Snr.: *smirks in victorious cat*

Cora: Clover? Clover?

Clover: *barks* That’s my name, don’t wear it out

Cora: You’re a nice doggy, right

Clover: *barks* Why do you look scared

Sick Non Fox: *barks* Get out of my way!

Clover: *growls* You get out of my way fire feet

Sick Non Fox: Why hasn’t the vet taken you in yet? Do you have rabies

Clover: *growls* I do not have rabies

Kaori: So do you have a cat or-

Brant: Three dogs, the youngest one seems to have something wrong with his feet. Luckily we live nearby

Kaori: Oh man I live all the way in Mt Komorebi, but this is pretty much the only vet clinic in the world

Brant: Tell me about it

…

Cora: Nice doggy? Want to play

Clover: *barks* at least that rhymes with spay

Sick Non Fox: You’re getting your organs taken out? Loser. I can breed free

Clover: *growls* I pity any offspring of your ridiculous looking self

Cora: Here we are. If you could just get her to sit on the treadmill

Kaori: Clover, sit. What was the delay?

Cora: Oh, you know, just wanted to check some things

Clover disappears into the machine…

Kaori: What do you mean? What things

Cora: Not to worry. This is my first time doing a spay but I did learn how to tell the difference between the uterus and the bladder

Clover: *whines*

Kaori: Is she okay in there

Cora: She’ll be fine. Now the procedure does fit her with a cone. We recommend *thinks hard* that it stay on for the rest of the day

Kaori takes Clover home feeling less than confident in the nurses abilities but Clover seems fine apart from the cone. Charlie will be working until 9 but the fridge is almost empty so Kaori starts on dinner.

Kaori: I’m sorry we won’t have puppies Clover, they would have been cute. Maybe in a few years mummy will let us get another puppy huh?

Clover: *barks dejectedly*

Kaori: Of course, we could always just go adopt a puppy as a surprise

Clover: *barks questioningly*

Kaori: I know babykins, you’re right. Rescue pets do not make good surprise gifts

Kaori turns on the radio while she eats so she can tune in to Charlie’s game. She’ll watch it properly when she’s eaten but she likes to catch the start. It’s a rough game for Charlie’s team, they don’t win, and Charlie gets subbed out ten minutes before then end. She returns home gloomier than usual.

Kaori: Do you want a massage

Charlie: You watched the game huh

Kaori: I did

Charlie: I hate when coach subs me out at the end. I’m the best on the team for the penalty shootouts

Kaori: I suppose you can’t win them all

Charlie: This stupid reporter-

Kaori: Hey, have some food while we talk. You look pretty wiped out

Charlie: You left me the last of the Pho?

Kaori: I had to cook so I figured I’d let you have it

Charlie: Aww thanks K. You’re sweet

Kaori: Now you mentioned reporter

Charlie: *sighs* So it’s post match press and this guy calls the loss one of the worst ever to happen in soccer. Which I get, it was a rough end. But he was asking me who was responsible? Did the dude not see I wasn’t even on the pitch for the end?

Kaori: Did you tell him off

Charlie: I thought about it, but I didn’t want to throw coach under the bus. Then she’d have even more reason to bench me. So I spouted some nonsense about teamwork. I swear they target me with the tricky questions because they know I’m gloomy and they’re searching for a soundbite

Kaori: Come here, I love you and your gloominess. It keeps me and my cheerfulness grounded

Charlie: *sighs* I suppose so. I guess I should do the dishes

Kaori: No, I got them. I think somebody wants their cone off

Charlie: Oh Clover, Honey pie? Who wants to be free again?

Clover: *barks* Have mercy on me

Charlie: Does my brave girl need a hug, huh? Do you need a hug?

The tired trio head to the bedroom together and fall asleep.

Previous (Foster) ... Next

[ryin-silverfish]

Lotus Lantern: The Summaries, Part 3

Part 1

Part 2

Xinke Baolian Deng Jiumu Quanzhuan(or, "Lotus Lantern 1.0") 

-This one follows the same story beat as the previous two, so I'll just list the differences + expansions.

-After the Third Lady of Mt. Hua saw Liu Junchun's poem, she went to what was presumably the local dragon king to borrow some shrimp and crab soldiers and chase the cheeky bastard down.

-Qiu'er still took the fall, but unlike in the Epic of Prince Chenxiang, here, his mom didn't even object to it. Chenxiang's dad also got in trouble for his crime, and had to be rescued later.

-Chenxiang's master was the Thunderclap Immortal, who taught him 72 axe moves and 73 transformations. No divine power-ups were involved.

-After learning all these cool skills, Chenxiang immediately went to save his dad, Qiu'er, and Qiu'er's mom, whisking them off to the safety of a temple.

-Erlang actually lost the shapeshifter duel, and had to go to FFM to ask Sun Wukong for help. The plan Wukong came up with? 

1. Transform into fake Chenxiang

2. Pretend to rescue the Third Lady

3. Stuff her into a stone chest

4. Throw the chest into a well

5. Lure Chenxiang into the well

6. Cover the well with a stone slab, then set it on fire

-Yeesh. 

-So the rematch became Chenxiang vs. Erlang + Wukong instead, and because this version's Chenxiang was OP as hell, Wukong was forced to flee back to his cave, while Erlang got tied up by a red sash that, despite the uncanny resemblance, wasn't Nezha's signature weapon.

-Chenxiang was ready to axe his uncle after freeing his mom, but the Thunderclap Immortal persuaded him to spare Erlang.

Xinbian Baolian Deng Huashan Jiumu Quanzhuan (Or, “Lotus Lantern 2.0”) 

-This version is probably the closest to modern Lotus Lantern adaptations. First, Erlang's own mom-saving story is canon in this universe, and the story kinda started with a summarized version of the Precious Scroll of Erlang.  

-After Liu Xi proclaimed his crush on the Third Mother, her attendants were pissed off on her behalf, and summoned a giant serpent to scare the mortal to death. On her way back, the Third Mother came across the half-dead scholar, and saved him with some magical elixirs.

-Thus began the start of her own crush on Liu Xi. After returning to her temple, she was quite mad at the attendant who summoned the demonic serpent, and was ready to execute him for his transgressions, before she was interrupted by the Old Man Under the Moon and Gold Star of Venus with a message that Your Relationship Is Divinely Ordained, and maybe spare the guy too.

-It wasn't the Peach Festival she couldn't go to because of her pregnancy, but Erlang's birthday. Sun Wukong arrived fashionably late to the party, and suggested a self-penalty of three cups of wine.

-Erlang was like "Dude, how can you still be late with your cloud somersaults? Three cups' too easy on you, how about a whole jar!"

-He'd deeply regret those words in about five minutes, for SWK got instantly drunk and started rolling around the bed, asking "Hey, y'all have some fine Birthday Wines, can I get more at the wedding tomorrow?"

"...Whose wedding?"

"Your sister's, of course!"

-Annnnd the cat's out of the bag. Erlang stormed out of Guankou and headed straight for his sister, who fled towards the Celestial Realm, hoping to seek shelter from their divine parents.

-When Erlang caught up to her, she used the titular Lotus Lantern to shield herself from the blows; however, it could not protect her against the Immortal-binding Rope, and soon, she was captured.

-Interestingly, the Third Mother did tell him the marriage was divinely ordained, to which he responded with "If it wasn't, you'd be dead, and even so, the Yang family code would not permit it!"

-Thus the Lotus Lantern was taken, and the Third Mother, thrown into a cave under the mountain and watched by the local Tudi god.

-Said Tudi god was not unreasonable, tho, and agreed to take baby Chenxiang to his dad. Soon, the kid grew old enough to attend the local school, where his schoolmates bullied him for not having a mom, with some even calling him a demon's child. 

-Tearfully, Chenxiang demanded an answer from his dad, and when his dad finally yielded and told him the truth, he decided to sneak away to find his imprisoned mom.

-The same Tudi led the kid to her after he cried long enough under Mt. Hua; mother and son had a heart wrenching conversation through the rock gaps, until they were interrupted by someone's arrival.

-That someone was not Erlang, as they feared, but the Thunderclap Immortal, taking a leisurely stroll in the mountains. He took Chenxiang in as a disciple, and told him a way to free his mom: the same magical axe Erlang used to cleave open their grandma's mountain prison way back when, now stored in the Guankou temple.

-Then Chenxiang just...walked up to the temple gate while Erlang was out hunting, and asked one of the Seven Sages of Plum Mountain if he could borrow the axe.

-Funnily enough, the Sage in question was Yuan Hong, yes, the exact same as that white ape demon Yang Jian killed in FSYY, and he was like "Nope".

-So Chenxiang decided to take the sneaky route, transforming himself into four immortal maidens delivering peaches and wine into the temple, got Yuan Hong drunk, then turned into a butterfly and entered the inner sanctum. Just as he was fumbling with the locks, Erlang returned from his hunting trip, forcing him to flee.

-After questioning Yuan Hong, he decided to err on the side of caution and add eight more celestial soldiers to guard the temple. Chenxiang bypassed that security measure by turning into a little insect and crawling inside, but the axe was nowhere to be found.

-Suddenly, a flash of red light flew into the room and led him to a single chest, where the axe was stored. However, there was a new problem; the door was still locked, and Chenxiang couldn't take it outside, so he came up with another plan; transform into a rat and lure the guards into opening the door for some pest extermination.

-The guards inform Erlang, who saw right through it. He told them to keep the door shut, then transformed into a cat and entered the room, forcing Chenxiang to flee again.

-So Chenxiang was pretty disheartened, until he thought of a third idea: transform into his own divine grandparents, Yang Tianyou and Princess Cloud-Terrace, and call Erlang out on his bullshit.

-That filial piety card worked wonderfully. Erlang had no choice but to take out the axe and free his sister, at which point Chenxiang transformed back into himself and battled with his uncle.

-As the Third Mother watched anxiously from the side, who should show up but the Gold Star of Venus, delivering Jade Emperor's divine cease-fire order?

-Happy ending, yay. Sidenote, Erlang actually sighed after seeing the order, acknowledged Chenxiang as a formidable member of the younger generation, and picked him up and called him a good kid/baby ("乖乖!" "宝宝!" 叫个欢).