#not actually but i love showing how the web impacted him

[st7arlight]

you may recognize this color pallette- some buddies and i did a color pallette challenge with the general theme of tma! i thought id try something new :3

[aihoshiino]

Hey there! Love your analyses of Ai and ao3 fanfics! They're so good and you always bring interesting points to the table! I want to know your thoughts on something (it's possible that I sent this ask a while back but I have a feeling it never came through lol, my Tumblr/Internet be broken sometimes): In chapter 140 (not 100% canon, but I think the brought up subjects still resonate), page 5, Hikaru says that the student should come to the teacher, while Ai says don't just invite a man to your house. Do you think this has a link with their traumas? It also makes me wonder why exactly Ai would say something like that. Could it have a link with Ayumi's boyfriend (="man") that ogled her? I would like to know your thoughts on how this boyfriend would've affected Ai, her image on men or just relationships/sex in general. Would it even have a big impact on those factors? Thank you for your thoughts!

Thank you so much! 💜 Looking at my inbox I do think Tumblr just ate it the first time you sent this….. Functional webbed site……………..

Honestly it's so hard to know what to make of those HikaAi movie scenes in general but especially off the back of Hikaru being like "fake and gay lol" about it. The characterization feels additive and consistent with the real Ai and Hikaru but at least one of these scenes was written by an author who had literally never met them. And while they do communicate things to us about their respective baggage, it's complicated by the fact that this is in-universe fiction written by an in-universe author. So it's like - is this characterization Aka Akasaka is trying to communicate to us or characterization Yoriko Kichijouji is trying to communicate to the audience of 15 Year Lie? Both? It's a mess!

THAT SAID, Hikaru's "fake and gay lol" is explicitly challenged and undermined by the narrative and the whole point of the confrontation is slapping him with the fact that (among other things), he doesn't understand Ai half as well as he thinks he does. With that in mind and given that it doesn't directly contradict anything else we know about the real Ai, we can probably treat it as true enough for the purposes of using it as jumping off points for discussion.

I don't think Kamiki's line is super important on its own as its really just the setup for Ai's response - so the talk as a whole is really more about communicating things about Ai to us, through Hikaru's POV. And I think strictly in this context, Ai's line there is less to do with her mom and her experience growing up in Ayumi's house (I actually got the impression that the movie barely touched on that stuff? but I could be wrong) and more about her like… responding to other people's expectations without necessarily fully understanding them. I do think the specific way she phrases it is probably parroting something Ayumi may have said to her though - similarly to the way she calls her past self a 'nasty brat' in the Da Vinci interview which was just like… so pointed and unkind I can only assume it was something Ayumi called her in the past that just burrowed its way into her brain forever like that shit does.

Overall, it's part of a much broader pattern of behaviour on Ai's part of, as I've described it to friends, performing normalcy to the point of abnormality. She imitates the end of the "normal behaviour" process tree without understanding or following any of the steps that get there. I can't believe I'm reaching for this reference lol but I was rewatching a bunch of CJ the X vids last week and in their essay about Cat Valentine from the show Victorious, they describe some of the (certainly accidental) neurodivergent coding in Cat's character in a way that really pinged me as also speaking to the way Ai is also (much more intentionally) coded:

"[…] There's a big difference between following social procedure naturally and Attempting To Behave As One Might Act. […] She mimics convention, while fundamentally misinterpreting what part of convention is important in the first place."

That's really the cornerstone to a lot of Ai's behaviour - the combo of her social isolation and her neurodivergence means that she does not have the same frame of reference that most other people absorb from their peers and families as they grow up. So instead she just sort of… looks at the people around her, figures out what successful social interactions look like from the outside, and tries to replicate that to varying degrees of success.

Her argument with Nino is probably my favourite example of this - Nino is all but screaming at her to have a normal fucking human being conversation with her and Ai just sits there like ^_^ Nooooo don't be insecure your so sexy aha. no wonder nino wanted to kill her with a brick HGSJSSKS. And like - from an outsider perspective, you can see exactly why this happens! This is basically Ai short-circuiting because none of her usual scripted responses are resolving this situation. She defaults to the fawning response because she doesn't know what else to do, even though it should be clear it's making the issue worse.

It would be sooooo easy to just make this a one sided instance of Nino being cruel to her but it's really just the inevitable and unavoidable conclusion of Ai's instincts towards avoidance and fear of vulnerability. And it's not Ai's FAULT she's like that. it's learned behaviour. she is the way she is because allowing herself to be sincere and vulnerable only ever gets her hurt, but it still hurts her and the people around her as a result (like with Kamiki).

oh my god i'm like 5k words in and i haven't even touched the question you directly asked LSKDJKSSK. I MEAN, I ASSUME AT THIS POINT PEOPLE SEND ME ASKS LIKE THIS KNOWING THE RISKS OF GETTING AN ESSAY IN RETURN…

ANYWAY, I definitely think Ai's experiences growing up in Ayumi's house (incl. ayumi's pedo boyfriend lmao) were a huge part of why she ends up with such an utterly fucked concept of love and relationships. When I see people talking about this aspect of her character, I feel like it gets downplayed because the series itself is more about her life as an idol but her childhood is the literal foundation of everything that follows - Ai becomes an idol because she wants to know how to love people and be loved in return and the reason she's never experienced that is because of how Ayumi raised her and how she failed to protect Ai from and properly respond to Ai's narrow brush with that type of victimization.

It's hard to really say exactly how this specific incident impacted her with how little we know about how all that went down, but I definitely think it was part of a pretty consistent pattern in her childhood of having failed/toxic relationships modeled for her - there was All That with Ayumi's boyfriend but we also know that Ai's biodad was not in a relationship with Ayumi at the time Ai was growing up and that she saw him pretty infrequently. It's not hard for me to imagine that Ai's kind of wishywashy confusion as to wtf marriage even is expressed in 45510 is the result of seeing dogshit relationship after dogshit relationship fall apart in her formative years. And I definitely think The Incident (& Ayumi's reaction to it - she herself admits her behavior escalated as a result) probably planted the seed in Ai's brain of her being like… more aware of sex than she should have been at the age she was?

In fact, ironically, Hikaru's line about 'giving your body to body to receive love' was actually how I've always interpreted Ai - pretty much the entire time I've been brainrotted about her, my interpretation has always been that Hikaru was not her first boyfriend or sexual partner and that she had probably run through a couple of extremely fast burning short term relationships before they met.that escalated to physical intimacy very quick and burned out just as fast.

I don't necessarily have a ton of capital-E Evidence for this other than a line or two in the series and also just Vibes. Not only can abuse and neglect in childhood lead to premature sexual behaviour in teens (as a sort of attention/intimacy seeking mechanism) but Akane specifically pegs Ai as having obvious emotional imbalances typical of a person who engages in this kind of early sexual behaviour, but then notes that it settled down after she turned 15 and notes 'did she meet someone nice?', implicitly tying her improvement in behaviour to Kamiki - but then of course, that means her destructive behaviour can't have been the result of sleeping with him. In addition, the TL that was available for the manga when I was getting back into the series had Ai refer to Kamiki as an ex during their phonecall, implying she had more than one.

This is one of those things where like… if you are normal about this character it probably doesn't really matter but unfortunately for everyone else i'm insane ;SKFLSNMSLSMKA So stuff like this is really interesting for me to dig into. One of the things I find really fascinating about Ai that mostly exists in subtext and idk how intentional it even was on Akasaka's part is this sense of internalized shame and even disgust she has directed at her own body and sexuality. She calls herself 'dirty' and 'impure', and her final words to Ryosuke are her more or less apologizing to him for that - and idk, I think that aspect of her character (and OnK's ongoing refutations that Ai being 'dirty' in this way is in any way something she should have been rebuked or punished for) is that much more interesting if all that is the case vs the more straightforward and "pure" (for lack of a better word) version of events where she met Hikaru and they fell in love and had sex… if that makes sense.

Honestly Ai's relationship with like, sex and intimacy and sex in the context of a loving relationship being healing and reclaiming for her is one of those things I have so much fun writing in the context of RP and stuff but if I continued rambling about it here I would go on all day lol and this post is already so long. IN ANOTHER ASK, PERHAPS……..

[strawberrylollipop26-blog-blog]

Movie/Show Round UP

I haven't done one of these in awhile. As always, my thoughts are short and to the point. I don't go in depth. I'm not a professional reviewer, just my thoughts.

Under the cut there are reviews for Fly Me to the Moon, Inside/Out 2, Despicable Me 4, A Quiet Place: Day One, Dune Part 2, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, Bad Boys: Ride or Die, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, The Fall Guy, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, Civil War, Madame Web, Argylle, Abigail and The Bikeriders. TV shows: Legend of Fei and Halloween Baking Championship.

Fly Me to the Moon: I saw this movie during a three show day at the theater. It was the middle movie and the biggest question mark. Turns out, the whole 'did they or didn't they' land on the moon theory was actually interesting. While I have zero interest in a rewatch, definitely worth attempting for first time viewers.

Inside/Out 2: This movie was exactly the same as the first. There's nothing new here except for possibly children experiencing new emotions. As an adult, I was bored.

Despicable Me 4: Cute. This film added nothing.

A Quiet Place: Day One: I thought it was nicely done. Still, didn't knock my socks off like the first one. My spouse wanted to know exactly how people learned to be quiet. I tried to tell him that they showed it in the second movie. He wanted more of a show. He was also annoyed that we know nothing about the aliens and it's the third movie. Slight spoiler, I wish we didn't know something about a certain character because it would've made the ending decision so much more impactful.

Dune: Part 2: Well, he tried to warn them about what would happen. I like the action that happens even though it all folds into a pretty box.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire: I barely remember this movie. It was sort of reminiscent of the previous one. A typical unite to defeat the super evil blah blah blah.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes: Disturbing T!k T0ks regarding the leads aside, this movie was enjoyable. Although, I had no idea a new movie series was starting. There were quite the few holes left so I'd see the second one.

Bad Boys: Ride or Die: I saw this before the previous one so I was quite confused in certain parts. All in all it was enjoyable. There are some funny moments. I've had the urge to watch again.

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire: I haven't seen this in awhile. From what I remember there's a side character hero in here that's pretty funny. Pretty textbook, you know what's going to happen before it does.

The Fall Guy: I've heard people talking about this one and disliking it. I thought the whole purpose was to have an outrageous fun movie showing crazy stunts the doubles do. Is it the best movie? No, but if you like action it's worth a watch.

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga: I'm an action girl. I highly valued the first Mad Max. This movie is obviously character based therefore slower to catch the stages of development (it's even told in chapters). I was bored. All the story shows in the normal character faced adversity, lived a hard life, finally goes for their revenge. Zero interest in a rewatch. I'll turn on the first one again.

Civil War: A weird movie full of numerous holes. A waste of my time.

Madame Web: I thought it was okay even though this movie was review bombed. There's nothing special about it, but it's not the worst movie that people complained about. Then again, to each their own.

Argylle: Another movie that was review bombed. I also guessed the likely story in this one. I think this movie suffers mostly from trying to be too many things. It goes for serious, yet wild and fun, yet logical. I think if the movie with the effects stayed 'out there' then people would've found it more enjoyable. Maybe.

Sidenote: My husband is always surprised that me (comedy hater) loves Rat Race and Joe Dirt. My response is always the same. Both movies are unapologetically insane. They don't take themselves seriously at all. I think Argylle should've done this as they had moments before deciding to become a serious spy movie.

The Bikeriders: First of all there's a narrator to this movie. Threw me off a bit at first, I normally don't watch those type of movies because i feel it leaves off clues. The movie's okay. Practically a drama in a bikerider setting. There isn't much mystery so another one that's easy to read.

Abigail: I enjoyed this movie until the ending. Not much I can say without spoiling.

Legend of Fei: I finally finished this show. Took me forever as it has good episodes, and others I cared less for (admittedly skipped scenes). Some characters were so annoying. Thankfully, Fei stopped passing out which was killing me. Xie Yun is my absolute fave. I might be biased, but all his scenes were so much fun except for the ones where he's sick :( . I've read reviews where people say they can watch this repeatedly, I'm not one of them. One and done. Sort of reminded me of WoH main storyline.

Sidenote: I love the one scene where he's reminiscing the past in his dreams and he no longer has money. The way this man kept opening up his pouch and dumping it over to make sure there were no coins. So relatable in my younger days.

Halloween Baking Championship: An era has come to an end or at least caught up in the seasons. I really like this cooking show. I hope people have some out of the box creations in the new year coming up.

[mdhwrites]

The Problem With Aventurine

Penacony Spoilers:

I saw someone talking about how even someone who wishes for the education of all and tries to speak as if he's enlightened like Aventurine still treats him with prejudice. Still mocks him for his enslavement. Still brings up his past and his race. Still calls him an idiot, things others will do too.

The problem is that Aventurine IS a fucking moron.

Sparkle describes his race's stereotype, explicitly to point out that he's keeping to it, and it's effectively DESCRIBING HIM, at least presented so far. Ratio actually DID want to still work with him. When Aventurine pushed back on him, he asked what his plan was and Aventurine just decided to be a cryptic asshole to his ONE ALLY. So when he then whines "Guess I'm alone again," it rings false because OF COURSE Ratio wasn't about to go along with someone who had no plan and wasn't willing to give him information, WHY WOULD HE!?

And worse yet, I never get the impression Ratio is wrong in his assessment in this entire patch. As a manipulator, Aventurine just fucking blows. He has little charisma, only ever tries to use leverage against others and is far too blunt about it instead of actually creating a web to ensnare someone in, resorts way too quickly to straight up intimidation and threats and rarely ever brings up what the other person actually stands to gain. It's just "You're going to be useful to me! Or else." Stuff like that... Makes me agree with Ratio. If you don't have your magic devices and your cash gifts to bribe people, why would ANYONE here listen to you?

The only person in the entire patch who does gives their reasoning for this says this:

"I trust him because he is a good businessman and they deal in contracts and honesty."

And that caused me to just kind of stare at the so far smartest character in the patch like she'd suddenly lost every brain cell she ever had. Black Swan has almost certainly had to deal with people telling her about scammers, loopholes their bosses took in order to fuck them over or simply unfair contracts they were forced into because a 'good businessman' needed the extra profit for his shareholders. What in god's name possessed the writing team to include this line, especially in a game that loves to poke fun at capitalism and capitalists?

There's two things this causes him to come across as: The first is that he hasn't had to actually negotiate with others in like a decade. He's used to finding someone he can bribe, throw so much money at them they'll ignore the issues with the offer and move the fuck on. He literally tries to buy our friendship if you talk to him as an optional objective to a quest. That's not a joke or overexaggeration even. If you turn down the money, he throws twice as much at you and you ACTUALLY GET IT. And this is BEFORE he has explicitly tried to threaten, and seem one second from potentially drowning, you in your own dream pool just because you're being slightly difficult.

The other thing it makes him come across as is someone's favorite character. Someone on the writing team has SO MUCH confidence about Aventurine. They made him the main character of this story. They made him have every answer, to the point where he knows a place made of memories better than the MEMOKEEPER because Black Swan implies she doesn't know whatever secret he's keeping. He gets to quote himself SUPER AWKWARDLY (you do not quote a paragraph of yourself for a big reveal. It's slow, it's meandering and it has no impact very quickly, let alone when the lines aren't that interesting) before showing how he's going to unravel EVERYTHING... Because he was lucky enough to stumble upon a corpse that absolutely shouldn't be there and has been dead for at least ha;f an hour probably.

(For those curious as to why: Aventurine has no leverage on us or anything to reveal until he has his truth. As such, he wouldn't have talked to Black Swan about grabbing us until then. The LATEST he could have talked to her for that is between our first encounter with Death and when we talk to Black Swan with Himeko. So yeah, Robin has been dead, somehow, for that entire time despite Firefly instantly popping. I know it's drama but if you dislike Firefly's death AT ALL, it only cheapens Firefly and Robin even more because you'll spend the micro-second thinking about this.)

He is only a mastermind, with JUST the right ally, because the writers say so. This doesn't even get into how his biggest character quirk, being a gambler, is straight up untrue so far. A gambler takes risks. One of Aventurine's proudest lines is "I don't make deals I'm going to lose." THEN YOU'RE NOT A GAMBLER. You're just a very safe businessman. But supposedly you only got here because you're willing to take 100:1 odds that no one else is but good luck ever seeing that happen.

He is too much guided by the hand of the author and too much of an asshole for me to enjoy. I'm not even going to say there's nothing there. Parts of his presentation are good. I like that people actually can hurt him emotionally. That he is trying to be a good manipulator, he just needs a wake up call. I actually mostly liked Aventurine... Until the game said "No. Aventurine is actually as good as he thinks he is."

And sorry but that's not who you wrote and Star Rail thinking it's writing really smart characters who are actually dumbasses is a problem with it I'm already getting tired of.

======+++++======

I'll admit I didn't include enough evidence with some of Aventurine's issues. This blog fixes that, going in deep on how he leans into the stereotype we are told of his people, how his actions are stupid, etc. like that with a lot more proper referencing back to events.

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead. If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

A Twitter you can follow too

And a Kofi if you like what I do and want to help out with the fact that disability doesn’t pay much.

[quitealotofsodapop]

If the Lego Monkie Kid gang with Nezha and Ao Bing from Nezha (2019) were celebrities, what kind of celebrities would they be? Authors, cartoonists, comedians, actors, singers, DJ, directors, Youtubers, streamers, magician, models, dancer, talk show host, American Ninja Warrior, acrobat, fire eater and performer? Maybe athletes?

Sorry if this was late! Got ill mid November and am going through my inbox! ^_^

MK I feel would be someone who does goofy things for the odd youtube video. Maybe the rare cooking video where he tries recreating a recipe from a game/show he likes. Does the art for Tang's graphic novel. He's recently gotten attention for a web cartoon pilot he created single-handedly - an actual studio wants to pick it up!! He's so excited!

Mei is already an established celebrity in universe as a vlogger and racer. She does a lot of stunt videos and live chats. Loves doing crossovers with other celebs, even through 6-second tiktoks.

Red Son is more like a person who builds insane stunt cars and robotics. Just someone you know is a genius at these things. He has very blunt and informative mechanic and car-maintenace videos available online. Has built something odd like a Robot who Screams unironically and has a ten hour video of the process.

Pigsy definetly is like the chinese Gordon Ramsay of the demon cooking world. Loud, easy to anger, but calm and understanding with children and people who honestly dont know better. Gladly goes on a media blackout whenever he feels like it.

Tang wrote a really popular book/graphic novel inspired by the "Journey to the West" and is just loving the attention. He shares a lot of concept art online and sneaks his ideas into fanfic sites under a pseudonym. He always grins whenever someone argues that "Tang would never have done X to that character!!!" while writing as GoldenCicadaYumYum. Also does a foodie travel blog on the side under the same pseudonym.

Sandy is like Jeremy Wade from "River Monsters" mixed with Jackson Galaxy. He accidentally gets attention because he recorded some really good fishing and cat behavior videos, and he gets contacted for a travel channel-type show where he investigates the role of cats and their impact in different parts of the world. He loves his work, though his producers keep telling him to stop adopting every stray he finds in his travels.

Nezha in both the LMK & Nezha (2019) verse would start out as infamous "pranksters" celebrity before trying to shrug off fame entirely. Becoming a mechanic or a taxi driver. Keeps getting recognised and hates it.

Ao Bing I feel does something phyically beautiful but demanding. He's a famous ice/figure skating prodigy, having successfully won a bronze medal for China at the Olympics at his first ever competition. Is currently struggling how to juggle all this new attention now that he's training for the skating Grand Prix.

thats the most I can think about right now

[theblacktiecacti]

can you walk us through ur thought process for each sow character design? im actually genuinely so intrigued

OH MY GOSH MY SECOND ASK! Hello hi yes I would love to talk about my thought process in why I draw them the way I do.

I’m gonna put this all under a cut in sections though cause. I kinda wrote/drew a lot.

General Stuff

So generally, when I’m coming up with how I want a character to look, Pinterest is probably one of my biggest tools. I usually just look up “aesthetic [item of clothing they said the character had]” to find ideas and get solid visual reference for a lot of the clothes that I picture the character wearing. I also have a Pinterest board that’s just called “interesting faces” which I scroll through to find the face that I think matches what I picture the character like the most, then hop between suggested pins until I find the right one. I’ve also got one just saved with different body types to do the same thing with. I feel like I still struggle a bit with same face/body type syndrome, but doing this has helped a bit.

Most of the time, the ideas for character appearances come from other characters who have similar vibes or from whatever aesthetic a character associates with. Also, I try to incorporate shape language to indicate character personality in their designs!

Zephrael

I really wanted to lean into the spindly spider theme for him! I tried to keep his limbs pretty thin and his outfit with a lot of protrusions like spider limbs. I might have overdone it on the spider webs a little bit lmaOooo.

Alongside that, I wanted to make him very pointy and sharp. Cause he’s always. on edge. ba dum crash.

I wanted to make sure he had a white cane to assist his blindness! Alongside that as an accessibility device, when I pictured him at first, I imagined him with crutches, but when I was drawing, I couldn’t quite figure out how to get those to meld. My thoughts were either to combine a crutch with a cane, which would cause even more stress on the wrist by having to twist the crutch to feel with the cane, or to have him in a wheelchair with the cane, which IDK how well those could combine if you move with your arms and are holding something. Though he could probably have a powered one with his status. I think if I add the wheelchair at some point, I’d want to make sure it’s still creepy crawly like the wheelchair that Sun Spider had in Across the Spiderverse.

Zeph was actually the only one whose reference photo I saw beforehand, Shout out to the bimbofication Grizzly character chart.

Argentum

When I imagined Argentum, I pictured a cross between Raine from The Owl House and Venti from Genshin Impact who I’ve seen a bunch of times but never actually knew their name until I just looked it up.

When they got described with gray hair, my mind just went “Okay, so they’re older.” Not to mention, if they’ve written a bunch of books, they have to have taken the time to do it.

I wanted to add a bunch of book shapes in their design just to show off their Writerness.

Still don’t know how to add hints to the little grimbly in their head that I do not know much about yet.

The Wall

Oh The Wall, how you challenge me to draw armor.

I wanted to go heavy on the blocky, big shapes, but I wanted to make sure he still felt comforting rather than scary. He’s a knight and a protector, but he’s on our side.

Senshi from Dungeon Meshi is all I could picture while listening to the show. Like if Senshi and Sans from Undertale had a huge knight baby.

I still need to figure out ways to hint more at his heritage rather than just having his connection to Zeph as a forefront.

Phoenix

His name is Phoenix. We have to give him wings; it's the only option.

All I could picture after the hair was described was Casey from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Who is surprisingly similar.

Scarf! I love it when characters have scarves.

He’s so upside down triangle. Just the way he says things without thinking and is kinda snooty and is very kid-ish and immature. Only placed in a position of power because his mentor is busy. He’s very imbalanced but by god is he doing stuff.

Sunder

I had the hardest time with Sunder and it’s definitely pretty obvious.

I originally pictured him more like his actual image which I've now searched.

But after listening to him talk a bit, because I’m bad at placing accents, I just went “Is he Scottish?” and from then on, Sunder was just David Tennant in the baftas, even after I was like hmmm the accent isn’t Scottish, is it.

I also gave him a hat cause his head looked boring. Probably would not have done this if I heard he had horns. Audio listener moment

[broke-art]

M.k x Spider Queen's Daughter

"Mom, I brought food." You called as you tried to navigate down the steep slope. Unfortunately, your foot caught onto a rock and your were sent flying forward.

"Ahh!" You yelped covering your face but before you made impact you felt an arm around your stomach that caught you. Looking up, you saw Syntax placing you down carefully.

"Oh thanks, Syntax." You smiled at him gratefully.

"In the future be more careful, my princess."

You cringed at the title.

"Eugh don't call me that." You picked up the bag of  food which you had dropped.

"He should call you that!" Your mother interjected entering the room. "I am the Queen! You are my daughter and that makes you -"

"A princess, uh huh, we've been over this." You mumbled reaching into the bag and offering her a bowl of Pigsy's noodles.

"Oh, don't mind if I do." She agreed taking the bowl and chop sticks you offered.

She always got hangry around this time of day. So, to spare innocent victims, you brought her food and worked at a normal job above ground. 

Your mother had insisted that she would rule the world one day and that you would rule by her side. Despite the fact that you had zero interest in ruling anything or anyone in anyway.

"Mom, what would you say if I...met someone?" You asked as you offered Syntax a bowl of noodles as well. He lit up and took the bowl with a nod of thanks.

"I would have to meet the someone." Your mother warned with a look.

You bit your lip feeling a blush beginning to bloom on your cheeks.

"He's kind, and funny, and he's super strong." You listed feeling your heart flutter at the thought of him. "Mom you'd love him!"

Spider Queen hummed.

"How'd you meet?" She asked sipping on the broth.

"Well he uh.....he saved me from being mugged a while ago." You admitted with a guilty smile.

"You were mugged?!" Spider Queen demanded as you gave Huntsman his food as well. "I told you to bring huntsman or Syntax!"

You shrugged a bit.

"They were busy."

"Busy with what?" Spider Queen rounded on them but you stepped in the way.

"They were following orders. And I didn't want to get them in trouble."

Both Huntsman and Syntax released a breath of relief when you intervened.

Spider Queen huffed and waited for you to continue.

"And he came and just helped me out." You finished simply.

"Well he seems to have good taste." Spider Queen mused.

You beamed. You had actually met M.k about three weeks ago. But you weren't sure how your mother would react so you had kept it to yourself. And yet you were just about ready to introduce the two of them, you were hoping it would go well.

(Aheh heheheh oh boy you guys)

Meanwhile

"M.K!" Mei shouted running over with her phone as M.k walked from Pigsy's noodles.

"Oh hey Mei how's it hanging?" He waved with a smile.

"M.k Y/n is in Spider Queen's lair!" She shouted.

"What?!"

Mei showed M.k her phone and he could see through a camera that seemed to be around Y/n's neck.

"I attached a camera to her since she's kinda like part of the gang now and she's in spider Queen's lair!"

"We have to save her!" M.k declared summoning his staff.

"Heck yeah!" Mei pulled out her sword and the two took off to find Y/n.

You laid in your web hammock your mother had made you and stared at the glowing green orbs all over the ceiling. You weren't sure what they were for, and Syntax nor Huntsman were allowed to inform you. Your mother simply refused to.

You assumed they had something to do with her schemes but you didn't dare interfere. The last time you had messed with her plots she had tied you up and left you in your room for a month.

Of course she still fed you and what not. But the mean time was frustrating to say the least.

Slowly, you swayed the hammock back and forth and slipped off to sleep.

Spider Queen watched you fall asleep then closed and locked your door from the outside. Next, she turned to Huntsman.

"I want you to find this boy she is so enraptured with and bring him to me. We will see if he's good enough for my daughter."

"My Queen." Huntsman knelt before her and walked towards the exit.

Just then Monkie kid punched in the wall.

"Eugh! Of all the lairs why did it have to be Spider Queen's? Why, why?!" He whined.

Spider Queen grinned.

"Come to play Monkey boy?"

Meanwhile.

You lurched up in your hammock hearing a loud WHAM. You raced over to your door but it was locked from the outside.

Panic bloomed in your chest as you began to think of all your mother's enemies. She may be a villain but you didn't want her hurt.

"Mom?! Syntax! Huntsman! What's going on?"

Explosions and slams sounded from the other end of the door. You rattled the doorknob and tried to break down the door, but it was obvious you didn't have the strength.

Finally you sat on the floor and buried your face in your knees. If you were trapped you would just have to wait until someone let you out.

"Y/n?! Y/n where are you?!" M.k's voice seeped through the door and you perked up.

"M-M.k?!" You called. What was he doing here?

Suddenly your door broke flying backwards and M.k rushed into the room. He looked worried but when he saw you his face lit up.

"Y/n! You're ok!" He hugged you tightly.

"What do you mean? What's going on." You looked over his shoulder at the door.

"I've come to save you!" M.k declared proudly.

"Save me? This is my home."

"Wait wha-?" M.k looked extremely lost. Suddenly, it hit you exactly what had caused the explosions.

"Mom!" You rushed past him into the throne room. "Mom?! Syntax? Huntsman?"

Mei stood over a tangled up Syntax and Huntsman was knocked unconscious. Her jaw dropped at your entrance.

"Wait. Spider Queen's your mom?!" M.k followed you looking just as shocked as Mei.

You whirled on him.

"Where is she?!"

M.k put his hands up in surrender.

"I don't know she escaped."

You caught your breath at that news. M.k and Mei seemed to be waiting for an explanation.

"I was going to tell you." You sighed. "She keeps trying to do the whole, 'take over the world thing' and I keep trying to talk her out of it. I didn't mean for this to all blow up you know?"

M.k and Mei shared a glance and M.k walked over to you, putting his hand on your shoulder.

"I'm sorry Y/n. I had no clue she was your mom-Wait does that mean you're part spider?!" He shouted ripping his hand away.

"What?" You giggled. "No, I mean I can talk to them but I'm not a spider."

M.k stared at you.

"But Spider Queen's-"

"Always standing on a mech." You clarified. "She isn't actually a spider."

You knelt next to Huntsman checking his injuries.

"Ooooooh." Mei and M.k said in unison.

"But we had best go find her....or." You looked back at M.k. "Maybe I just should. But -" You kissed his cheek. "Thank you for trying to be my hero."

M.k burned scarlet and smiled shyly.

[unlikelywrestlingfan]

Elle’s Unsolicited Commentary on BOSJ 30 Night 1

WHAT A SHOW. BELOW LIE THE COMMENTS I RANTED INTO MY PHONE AS I WATCHED, HOPEFULLY PROPERLY EDITED THIS TIME XD

Match 1 - Clark Connors vs. Kevin Knight: okay so my first thing is that when the bullet club music and it wasn't Ace I was sad because like my mind is just triggered to react to the "BULLET CLUB 4-4-4-4-LYFE" being Ace and Bey because I am an Impact girlie at heart. Also I'm sorry I still can't take Clark Connor seriously in Bullet Club mode. Will I get there are some point? TBD. Why is Kevin Knight's title upside down also how do he and Kushi see in those sunglasses. The way that members of the crowd laughed at Clark when he shouted "WHAT?" at them - it was a fun moment,  good fun heel work, ya know? Clark winning this match makes sense because it boosts his credibility as BC's newest member. Gedo, oh Gedo, why must you introduce a chair. Also why didn't Kushi come help Kevin :(?

Match 2 - Taiji Ishimori vs. Ryusuke Taguchi:  Taiji, I love you, I do, but that hat and the mask are just not it (to me, to each spider their own web). Yes I love Taiji but I am rooting for Taguchi to win unironically. Can't be mad at Taiji for winning, but rooting for Taguchi in the next one. I'm surprised he kept his promise longer than 30 seconds this year...

Match 3 - Dan Moloney vs. Bushi: skipped (no hate to either, I just only have so much time to fit nooj in)

Match 4 - Douki vs. Kushida: I just let out the dreamiest actual chin resting in hand sigh when Douki came out - the silver and black look on him is just chef's kiss I just WOW. Kushida, I'm so sorry you know that I love you but I must root for Douki. Very important Douki update THERE ARE SPARKLES ON HIS PANTS. Also I should probably mention the onion? That is part of commentary today? The crowd cheering for Douki has me emotional also it does appear we may have disheveled-hair-out-of ponytail-Douki, so I must thank Kushida for that. Douki's reversal on that submission! Avert your eyes his nosey is out I repeat HIS NOSEY IS OUT and he's in a double wrist lock so he can't cover it back up! This just in Douki is actually trying to kill me at the end of the match where after he gets the pin he rolls back and there's a close-up shot of him with disheveled hair like coming out of his ponytail while dramatically moving his arms in victory which emphasizes his biceps and also looking like he's suffered. Post match, first of all I love the little lyrics with the Just Five Guys song that's hilarious, second, DOUKI VICTORY 😭😭😭

Match 5 - Akira vs. Wato: Commentary mentioned Ace Austin and it hurt me stop mentioning Ace if you're not going to give me Ace. I'm not saying the timing of me saying that into my phone and then Ace posting on Instagram is like a thing but it is kind of funny. Also my son  Wato should be allowed to kill anyone he wants. We have the Young Lions acting as human guardrails which is a like that makes sense and glad they're doing it hope they stay safe also kind of adorable and funny and also also because Kyle Fletcher has a feud with guardrails does this mean he has to fight the Young Lions? The reversals and counters at the end of this match were really really fun also I love a win for my son.

Match 6 - Lio Rush vs. Sho: Sho coming out with the definitely not a wrench in a handkerchief. Classic. Also, I appreciate his dedication to the Yugioh card aesthetic with that jacket. Two things - first, Sho immediately breaking his promise to play things clean? Hilarious. Second, Kevin Kelly going "YOU LYING ASSHOLE" or whatever like that's me, XD. I ended up skipping to the end of the match but I do love that Lio won.

Match 7 - Yoh vs. Robbie Eagles: ZSJ's son coming out with Robbie Eagles is very cute. Said son also needs to stop with his cute little smile. Was not ready for sassy Yoh was not ready for sassy Yoh WAS NOT READY FOR SASSY YOH. Yoh's calves are visible his calves are visible why can I see his calves??????  Okay he just took his ring jacket stuff off and he's wearing shorts made entirely of Jean Pockets I think and also cute little fringed armbands. Yoh doing the air guitar and then throwing it to Tana was very cute. My poor Yoh :(

Match 8 - TJP vs. Titán: skipped Good for Titán on the win!! Also I am shocked that TJP gave him a high five (most reluctant slap of hand when offered a handshake ever but STILL).

Match 9 - El Desperado vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru: Commentary mentioning that Suzuki-gun is no longer a thing hurt me deeply. I knew that watching New Japan again would force me to recognize that this has happened instead of being denial like I have for the past several months but it still hurts.

Match 10 - Speedball Mike Bailey vs. Hiromu Takahashi: Chris Charlton is so correct: "I am blinded by his smile and his positivity." I'm so here for Chris fanboying over Speedball, he's SO RIGHT. Hiromu, dear strange cat man, this is going to be so good. CHRIS' DESCRIPTION OF SPEEDBALL'S PRESSER SPEECH IS SO ON POINT NOT ONLY FOR HIS SPEECH BUT SPEEDBALL IN GENERAL, THIS MAN WILL SMILE HAPPILY WHILE DEAD SERIOUSLY SAYING HE WILL DESTROY HIS OPPONENT AND IT'S SO. Speedball going for the handshake bow hug combo and then Hiromu pulling him in for the attack! Speedball's purple and gold gear is everything. THIS MATCH GOES HARD, AS EXPECTED. OH MY GOSH SPEEDY ACTUALLY WON I'M FREAKING OUT I DID NOT EXPECT HIROMU TO LOSE HIS FIRST MATCH IN THE TOURNEY BUT THIS IS SO COOL ALSO SPEEDY LOOKS SHOCKED TOO. Speedball, sitting next to Hiromu and reaching his hand out with the most desperate expression I'M FEELING EMOTIONS. HIROMU TAKE HIS FUCKING HAND. OKAY GOOD. OH WAIT, HE HELD UP A FINGER. HM. OH SPEEDBALL IS GONNA SAY WORDS NOW. AW I LOVE THE CROWD CHEERING FOR HIM. Speedball casually flexing Japanese, French, and English in the opening of his speech before going into English aldkjaldj. He's such a darling bean and I love him.

Post matches -  "The onion and I have standards." -Kevin Kelley XD

[chocolatey-umbreon]

TMA Season 5 Live Blog

Episode 172 - Strung Out

I don’t have much to say about this one. I find the Spider intriguing but in terms of emotional reactions I don’t have much of that when she shows up in a story.

Once again love the format choice. It was probably the easiest one to decide since a puppet show is just fitting for the Mother of Puppets. I like that, despite how literal it could get with the spider pulling the strings moving Francis, it still tried to blur the line between what was actually the Spider and what was Francis’s own cooperation. For example with how though she’s pulling the strings, it’s Francis’s movements that get them caught in the hooks. I think that’s the scariest part of it, like Martin and Jon have talked about, the difficulty in telling apart what actions are “your own” and which aren’t. And also (even more scary, in my opinion) when you know they’re all technically your own but you still feel no power to change them.

I think the reason I didn’t feel very impacted by this episode is that I personally feel it’s scariest when you can’t see the Spider or the strings. When you think you can’t control yourself but not because there’s an external agent that could have some visual representation, but because the spider is you, or at least everything that makes you you, like your upbringing, your context, your genes, your previous choices, the people around you, etc. So being able to picture her and identify her actions and words would make it easier to say no. I think. Like that’s why psychologists say it’s helpful to imagine the voices in your head as people you can stand up to. Of course them being a terrifying giant ugly monster makes it harder, but I think the hardest is when it’s nothing more than your own voice coming from inside your head. It also doesn’t help that with this format the perspective is of the audience, removed from the situation, so you have to be told by Jon and the Spider that Francis does want some of it, instead of actually feeling the conflict as Francis. In this regard it was good that at the climax the last hook somehow came from their own words. It is a hook and string forcing his hand to the bottle but it is his own desire, too. Like I said at the start, I do think that the element of blurring Francis’s cooperation or lack of it was done well I just guess for my own personal impression the emotion of it wasn’t as impactful as other episodes. I loved the ending it was disgusting and horrible, just perfect.

Outside of it, I find Jon’s apparent amusement from the shows very fun. The fact that Martin had to stop him from staying for another act. I’m really really excited about what all this is building up towards. How Jon is changing or manifesting this part of him and what it will mean for the ending of their quest.

They bring back and make clear this idea that the issue with the Spider is that its web is so complex that even if you see it, you can’t see it, you cant know it. Both how Martin and Jon can’t check if every single thought an action by them or by anyone or anything in the world is influenced by the Web and how. Once you do know the Spider, the fact that she exists, that uncertainty is where the real fear is.

[akae47]

Barriers to Filipino Intercultural Communication

The beauty of movies is in how they mirror society. So I chose two whose scenes really stuck out to me.

Teddie saving face in “Four Sisters and a Wedding”

SYNOPSIS: In the movie "Four Sisters and a Wedding", the youngest and only son, CJ, convinces his four older sisters, Teddie, Bobbie, Alex, and Gabbie, to return home for his wedding. Throughout the movie, his family, the Salazars, and his fiancée's family, the Bayags, engage in a series of altercations to stop the wedding - from the Bayags forcing CJ to sign a prenuptial agreement, up to the Teddie attempting to get dirt on the Bayags' massage business. Their conflict reaches an all-time high at a charades game to determine which dresses will be worn, when the Bayags began to heavily insinuate that Teddie is a maid. Their mother, Grace, felt insulted and ended the game to confront Teddie about it.

Teddie reluctantly reveals that she lost her teaching job abroad, so she secretly took up two jobs as a waitress and as a maid to continue sending money to her mother. She explains that she only did that to maintain her family's perception of her as successful.

ANALYSIS: Teddie "saving face" is a good example of a common barrier in intercultural communication. Oftentimes, Filipino households prescribe its members with social roles and identities, resulting in power dynamics between them. As the eldest daughter and arguably the favorite child, Teddie felt a responsibility to live up to her mother's expectations of her, and to serve as a role model for her younger siblings. Thus, she spun an elaborate web of lies just so that her family will not look down on her. However, when Bobby revealed that she actually saw her working at a bar on her visit abroad but chose not speak to her, nor tell her mother about it so that she would not feel embarrassed, Teddie realized the love and respect her siblings had for each other that transcended their socioeconomic status.

"I'm not perfect, but I am your mother. I will always love you in the best way I know how."

This barrier may be resolved through positioning, wherein people acknowledge and address their power dynamics, social roles, and identities in intercultural communication. In the movie, each of the children confessed their shortcomings as a sister/brother, and as a daughter/son. Even their mother, Grace, apologized for unknowingly treating them unfairly, and promised to become a better mother to them.  By recognizing their own positions and the impact of their actions on each other, they were able to overcome their conflicts and rebuild their relationship on a new slate. This shows how effective positioning is in resolving conflicts and enhancing intercultural communication within families and even broader social interactions.

The Tragic Tale of John Denver in "John Denver Trending"

SYNOPSIS: In the movie "John Denver Trending", John Denver's life turned upside down when he was accused of stealing his classmate Makoy’s iPad. His classmates, who have been bullying him for a long time, took his bag and went through his belongings despite his innocent pleas. Enraged, he beat up Makoy, while another classmate recorded the fight and uploaded it on Facebook. He became a social pariah overnight, and was subject to national scrutiny with the school, the police, the town mayor and the DSWD who were all trying to get him to wrongfully confess to the crime, despite the lack of decisive evidence. Unbeknownst to everyone else, his classmates were plotting to take him down by spreading rumors around the school, posting false testimonies against his character online, and even lying to the authorities.

ANALYSIS: Even before the viral video circulated online, John Denver’s reputation was problematic- his father left his family, he owes his neighbor money, and he has multiple disciplinary records at school. Thus, despite the lack of decisive evidence pointing to him as the thief, the entire school, town, and even the country were so quick to condemn him because he fits the negative stereotype of a juvenile delinquent. Knowing that he had no way of defending himself, his classmates posted dirt on him online- how he steals food from his classmates and beats up people when he gets angry, among others. Thus, the community's prejudice against John Denver was fueled by their preconceived notions on what they saw on the viral video and social media posts by his classmates defaming him. As a result of harmful stereotypes and prejudices against him, John Denver was discriminated against by his peers, the school administration, the local government officials and the police. Despite his innocence, he was treated unfairly because of the misleading viral video that failed to communicate the whole context.

"Mahirap lang ba ang pwede magnakaw ng iPad?"

This barrier may be resolved through reflection, wherein people examine and reflect on their cultural biases, opinions and behaviors and take action to rectify these through intercultural communication. In the movie, the school principal met with John Denver, his mother, Makoy, and Makoy’s mother. Each party tried to understand the other, but their arguments came to a stalemate with neither side backing down. The situation worsened when the bullies showed no remorse for their defaming of John Denver, and went as far as to falsify evidence just to punish him even further. In the end, when John Denver was cornered by so many people who pressured him to admit, he took his life. Ideally, these people should have reflected on how their thoughts and actions affect others, especially since the victim is part of a marginalized sector of society. By engaging in introspection and self-reflection, people could develop a better understanding of their point of view and that of others, thus fostering empathy and creating the potential for more meaningful and effective communication.

[musicgoon]

Book Review: Jesus Through the Eyes of Women, by Rebecca McLaughlin

What did women see in our Savior? In Jesus Through the Eyes of Women, Rebeca McLaughlin writes on how the first female disciples help us know and love the Lord.

In 6 chapters and just under 200 pages, McLaughlin shows aspects of Jesus through those whom you may have overlooked. I was amazed as McLaughlin showcased the many women who interacted with and were personally impacted by Jesus.

Women Who Risk it All

Fitting for the holiday season, Chapter 1 looks at Prophecy and the important roles that Mary, Elizabeth, and Anna play in the Christmas story. McLaughlin hits hard, stating that like Mary looking for Jesus in the temple, we often forget who Jesus actually is. We fail to recognize his rightful place of worship in our lives, and his rightful rule on the throne in our hearts. But like he cared for his mother until the end, Christ never leaves us forgotten.

What I was most pleased to see was how Jesus enters the world of women from all different types of backgrounds. Whether Jewish or Samaritan, rich or poor, virgins or prostitutes — Jesus does not discriminate. In Chapter 2, McLaughlin explains how “Joanna, the wife of Chuz, Herod’s household manager” becomes a disciple of our Lord. She was a member of Herod’s court — the same Herod who beheaded John the Baptist. She left her high social status to become a friend of the enemy. I resolved to risk it all for Christ as well.

Women Who Find Forgiveness and Freedom

Chapter 3 and Chapter 4 speak of Christ’s nourishment and healing, respectively. We see that Jesus is the one who truly satisfies, and he is the only one who can make us whole again. The book includes many discussion prompts at the end of every chapter, as well as Bible study questions to help you go deeper in the text. This book would be perfect for a small group or Sunday school class.

I was most moved in Chapter 5, seeing the radical forgiveness of Jesus. McLaughlin is a gifted writer, and she helped me better understand why prostitutes in the kingdom of God was such a scandalous thought. These women were not valued, “seen as almost literally worthless.” Jesus loved and cared for them in a way that shifted the entire society. And with the woman caught in adultery, McLaughlin makes an incredible statement that many Asian Americans can relate to: “In the 21st-century West, we tend to see guilt as an unhealthy feeling ot be shed, and forgiving ourselves as more important than seeking forgiveness from others. But Jesus does not minimize our guilt. He takes it form us.”

Women Who Witness the Resurrected Christ

The fascinating and inspiring book closes with a look at how the first eyewitnesses of Jesus’ resurrection were women. After seeing Jesus through the eyes of women, I am left with a bigger and clearer picture of my King. I am eager to re-read their stories with open eyes. And I have a fuller heart, both for how Jesus sees women — and how they help me see Him.

I received a media copy of Jesus Through the Eyes of Women and this is my honest review. Find more of my book reviews and follow Dive In, Dig Deep on Instagram - my account dedicated to Bibles and books to see the beauty of the Bible and the role of reading in the Christian life. To read all of my book reviews and to receive all of the free eBooks I find on the web, subscribe to my free newsletter.

[autumn-sweet-fae]

I just imagine that once Akari says that Ingo is a warden, people just look up Warden Ingo online and find like stuff about him from the past and pictures in historical websites that include him and akari (the hero) and this is the point when people are like, oh jeez these are timetravelers aren’t they O.O Those Pokémon really do belong to them. And the internet/news sites become chaos

At the time that Ingo and Akari arrive in the present, what written and photographic evidence that does exist of them and has also survived to the modern day of Sinnoh and has been well kept and maintained in a Museums archive is very sparse. Ingo had only stayed with the Pearl Clan for three years, and Akari had only been with the Galaxy team for about 7-9 months let’s say. 

Granted they had left an enormous impact upon the societies they lived with, but how well that impact is translated into the historical records and what biases and ignorances future historians may have when choosing what to preserve of their story, could result is a near unrecognizable telling of who they were and what became of them.

There might have been people in the Pearl clan who were bitter that Ingo had run off with one of there nobles. Akari and her love of Hisui Zoroark and later vanishing could lead to her inspiring a few ghost stories. Some may interpret Irida’s later life journal entry musings on what became of this ‘Ingo’ to be a lost love of her youth who had returned to his homeland with his young sister.

(The entire events of the rifts would become a fantastical myths to future generations, while historians struggle to find logical meaning behind the records and writings of that time. )

A few negative plates from the Photo Studio depicting Akari and some of the wardens may have survived to the modern day thanks to pokemon photography historians. But they won’t entirely understand who they have in there photos regarding Ingo and Akari. (There’s one with Ingo and Akari smiling professionally at the camera and another of them both doing the pointing pose.)

History is weird and how history is preserved and archived can be even weirder. So at the time when Akari tells a trainer that Ingo is a warden, doing a web search of ‘Warden Ingo, trainer class’ is just gonna get them a ‘did you mean Subway Boss Ingo?’

It’s not until folks who have or have had physical access to the actual historical records and pieces start connecting the dots and sharing their discovery and proof does every one start to fully believe that time travel did indeed happen.

But let me tell you, once that certified negative of the two them in the pointing pose is made public online it just takes over the internet. And then when Akari provides the ACTUAL PHOTO, in mint condition, along with what ever others she’s kept, the photograph historians go wild.

Oh! And I have the adorable headcanon that Hop and Leon’s family still have Professor Laventons camera in their possession. They also have the last photograph taken of Ingo and Akari along of half the village and the Pearl & Diamond clans. It was from when they all were saying goodbye to the two. So when a Champion of Galar shows up with such evidence everyone pays attention.

[strwberri-milk]

Baizhu, Dainsleif and enjou (seperately ) x reader where they go on a date but have to save the reader from danger ? Or reader surprised them by being a badass and gets a vision of their element ? Fluff plz

a/n - i'm honestly in love with this trope its totally ejfaofawef let me save my favourite boy. also i just realised how emo dainsleif's starts i promise nothing bad happens. also also i wrote this close to midnight all at once and it feels pretty coherant but if it isnt uhh sorry aeowafwaiof

Dainsleif is a protector at his core.

As the failed protector of Khaenri'ah he struggles on a daily basis to come to terms that he's a survivor. Those he led under his hand died eons ago and the weight of their lives sits on his shoulders.

Of course, this will to protect extends to you.

So, when you ask him out on a simple date he's still wary. He'll never fully relax, instead choosing to focus just a little less on his surroundings so he can give that attention to you.

The second something feels out of place Dainsleif is surprised because he's a second too late.

Something comes flying at you both and he can only think to grab you roughly, reaching out and staring at his empty hand in confusion and panic.

You're gone and he braces for impact but nothing happens.

Instead, a complex web made of purely elemental energy surrounds him. He blinks a few times and hears you walking up from behind him, an easy smile on your face.

"Where did you go?" is his first question for you, brows furrowed in confusion when you present to him some sort of dagger.

"I felt something coming towards us from my direction and had t push myself out of the way to buy a couple of seconds. The force blew back the dagger someone threw at us and I didn't feel a second approaching but just in case I made this little thing."

The web glows in the light of the sun and it looks beautiful. Sure, it's a strange thing for him to notice when your lives were both almost threatened just a minute ago but you've been an anomaly to him ever since he's met you. This falls perfectly in line with that.

"I didn't know you could even do that." You shrug in response to his words.

"I haven't had a reason to show you. Of course I don't want our dates to end in battles for our lives," you laugh easily, making him smile softly.

"Next time let me help you out."

The playful smirk on your face takes him aback as you wink.

"Let me take care of you, okay?"

Dainsleif decides he will, shaking his head slightly as you lead him to the perpetrator for a much fairer rematch.

Enjou didn't mind getting you both into slightly sticky situations.

It's just his nature to mess around a little, figure out what he can and can't do, what kind of things might get him in trouble.

Just because you were in his life now it didn't mean that was going to interrupt his carefree way of doing things.

After all, he truly does believe that the ends justify the means, whatever those means may be.

He's become just a little bit more careful if you're with him, choosing not to actually actively do something that he knows could kill you. He'll save that for himself - after all, he can take it no problem.

It does also mean that he's fully ready and aware of the consequences of his actions, willing to deal with them however it is that he may have to.

"And what do we have here? Are you trying to show off or something?" The gravelly voice out of sight from you that's typical of an Abyss Lector would normally terrify anyone, especially someone in your position right now.

You somehow got separated from your lover, getting distracted by a flower you decided you just had to get for him even if he wasn't the biggest fan of such trivial little things. He still took them if it was from you.

Now, you were staring down an incredibly cocky-looking member of the Fatui who seemed to not want to let up on your identity. Unsurprisingly, Enjou seemed to have taken you to a spot that was considered off-limits and a Fatuus hotspot.

The Electrohammer Vanguard raised his arm, ready to slam down on you despite the voice of a Lector behind him. You knew you had nothing to worry about, your thoughts proven when the hammer is broken with a swing from Enjou's hand, his Lector form finally scaring off the Fatui member when he turned to face your partner. When he leaves you hear Enjou sigh, shaking his head slightly as he changes back to his human form.

"It's clear that I must keep a better eye on you," he says good-naturedly, not minding in the least.

Baizhu's not necessarily a fighter by any means.

He's never really had to but he's confident that he could take on a person or two with his skills successfully.

Or at the very least he could lead them to a death via poison. A little less detectable, and much less messy. But very inconvenient, especially right now.

Thankfully he's able to stay calm and clear-headed even as the Treasure Hoarders try to bully the two of you out of the few possessions you've brought with you for the picnic the two of you were planning.

He's sure that if he's able to speak to them a little more he'll be able to get the two of you out of this situation, about to speak more and begin with thinly veiled threats when you simply just rear back and punch one in the face. Hard.

The other is about to fight back but you don't give them a chance when you kick them down, the two of them effectively knocked out with just the two blows.

"I must say that was most certainly not on my list of thing to expect from you," he says with a bit of a laugh.

After the whole predicament the two of you headed back over to Bubu Pharmacy, Baizhu wanting to check you over for any surprise wounds you may have sustained.

"They were threatening us. Of course I'd have to do something," you huff, obliging when he wordlessly gestures for you to move your hand or foot in a specific manner.

"At the very least I didn't want to give them the..." Comedically you begin to rifle through your pockets with a free hand and proudly present the few coins you have.

"Two mora? If they got that then all hell would break loose wouldn't it?" he laughs with you, the two of you able to make the most out of a situation that could have ended much worse.

[psid99]

Delusion Puppets Crumbs

At the end of the puppet show, The Executioner is the criminal himself. Diluc-Jack Ketch, Fatui’s Executioner. Aka Hangman/Headsman.

  Tragical comedy of Diluc and Ajax. Diluc and Tartaglia sometimes work separately, and when alone, Diluc usually play as the Executioner since his weapon and Delusion ability is beneficial for the job. The puppets are an exclusive force for taking care of particular tasks, so Diluc and Tartaglia live together, but independent from the rest of the Fatui Soldiers. They were usually called "Fags" by the soldiers because the higher up/ Harbingers refer to them as Gli Innamorati.

Tartaglia wont stop breaking prosthetic eye after every god damn missions and Dottore was so sick of having to replace it everytime that instead of an eye with supervising systems he put in a regular porcelain eye. Ofc Tartaglia did it on purpose.

Childe when he met Zhongli again in Liyue because he had to escort a particular individual. Zhongli wasn't a bit surprise, he only asked Childe to share a drink.

 The side stories should be focusing on showing different aspects of their life as puppets and romances 🤧 in which do not have major impact on the main plot but to help support the main plot . I go web layout for the side stories and comic book layout for the main stories so its easier to distinct them haha 

Diluc is only half conscious so most of the time he talks with an illusion of Childe, his savior but also the one who ruined his life? 

How to notice the Dilucs: The Puppets always had his face covered by bangs or with mask, the original has his face on full display, and the last... usually only have 1 eye being shown. Identity reveals soon haha.

Their relationship is actually very bad, Diluc go to sleep every nights wishing Childe would have had let him die. He never get to know the real reason why Childe didn't. More like the reason is too human-like and Diluc just doesn't see Childe as one.

They have a bond (woo hoo) Giving me omegaverse vibe haha except this one got nothing with love... more like a cuff instead of rings. 

...

[queercodedmoss]

little ableist things (microaggressions?) the mcyt community does to its creators:

wilbur infodumping is not weird. it’s not annoying. and he’s not weird for whatever topic hes hyperfixated on. he also not weird for irrational and inexplicable hatred towards things. that’s just how being ND works sometimes. also, he’s obviously uncomfortable talking about being diagnosed or talking about showing ND traits. stop mentioning it in donos and chat.

techno is not emotionless and completely monotone. he very genuinely isn’t, his voice is just deep. his tone actually fluxates a lot when he’s speaking, and he absolutely shows how he feels. he emotes fine, you’re just ignoring it. also, he probably has RSD, which is rejection sensitive dysphoria, a common thing for ADHD folks. it would explain why he tends to passively resolve drama (privating old videos, doing a charity stream, etc) instead of confronting it and apologizing. it doesn’t give him an excuse, but it offers an explanation.

dream doesn’t need a caretaker for his ADHD, stop trying to assign george the role like it’s a cute romantic trope. it isn’t. its gross. he’s a functioning adult. stop infanitilizing him for showing ND traits. and when hes vocal stimmed before (on an old george stream, on tommy’s stream) people were so fucking weird. also, stop reducing dream to his ADHD, he’s a whole person that exists outside of neurodivergency. him being ND doesn’t exclude him from having to own up to mistakes, stop trying to give him excuses. let him grow.

tubbo doesn’t need a caretaker in ranboo/tommy. when they correct his spelling it isn’t “aww cute look at them looking out for tubbo”. and when tubbo messes up spelling it’s isn’t “aw adorable”. that’s infantilizing. it’s just dyslexia bro, stop being weird. you guys make it sound like it’s a trait that’s attractive to you and it’s weird as hell. tubbo isn’t a soft childish person, stop trying to make him into one because he’s dyslexic.

ranboo repeating phrases/words or stuttering, or having any irregular speech pattern, is not something he needs to correct, nor is it something you should attempt to correct him on. it’s just how he speaks. leave it alone. it’s actually super engaging for ND folks to listen to.

karl has said he’s ND before and people ignore it for some reason. i can’t even begin to touch on all the ways people infanatalize karl dude. i really cant. also, for the dumbass who said “he’s just on the spectrum” on twitter, the autism spectrum is not a sliding scale from functional to nonfunctional. it’s more like a web graph of different strengths and things that are impacted. he literally shows ND traits all the time, like constantly moving, playing with his hands, etc.

tommy hasn’t said anything about being ND, but he does have ND traits so i’ll include him here. him being loud and having bursts of energy isn’t annoying. him talking fast isn’t annoying. him making noise constantly isn’t annoying. he’s probably hyperverbal. tommy has very little filter which is also an ND trait. all of the things people hate tommy for are reduced to traits used to diagnose ADHD.

my point is, our community is not great to neurodivergent creators.

people are so ready to support neurodivergency and educate themselves until ND people show traits in real life. you’re all fine when it’s people behind a screen talking about their experiences, but when real life people show those traits you’ve read about online, you find it annoying.

and maybe i should’ve phrased some of it better than “it’s not annoying” because yeah, it can be. but think about why you find it annoying, and think about what it’s based on.

also for the love of god stop trying to force creators to talk about being ND, or showing ND traits. it’s actually really fucking weird and an invasion of privacy to talk about their mental health and diagnoses. if i was a big streamer and people asked me to talk about being ND, i’d ignore the questions because 1) it’s uncomfortable and weird and i wouldn’t want every soul on the internet to know how i function and 2) because as soon as a creators says they’re ND they’re either reduced to their diagnosis or it’s ignored completely.

i get it. you like hearing about creators that share experiences with you. it’s comforting to hear these big cool people talk about stuff you’ve experienced negativity around. but it’s not your right to know about that shit. let creators have personal lives that don’t involve their fans. let creators have privacy.

[araminakilla]

Day 44: Sensacine 🎞 🌟 my beloved (part 3)

Yep, the same page from before, Sensacine, has released some new images from the upcoming movie. Since there are a lot of them (more than 40) I would only show those that caught my attention. You can see the rest of them in their web page.

Spoilers coming:

Ah yes, the greatest creation of all time, the Wi-Fi! Love how Mummy get excited with modern stuff. Also it looks like he tries to cheer up Tad in the second picture, albeit he can come as innocent incensitive again like the sequel. Be glad you have someone to lean on Tad, you may lose him in a blink of an eye.

Top 10 photos taken before disaster plus "Ah! My face! My beautiful, beautiful face! I have the face of a stinking gator *whines harder* GATOR FACE! 😭"

If you got the reference, I'm very proud of you.

This scene may occur after the plane incident. It was not a good experience for both of them. Poor Belozoni. Jeff gets to fly and him? I pity the parrot.

I suspect the place is the back of the Louvre Museum, just because they got a plane to fly towards it.

In life Mummy is me. I am Mummy.

When it comes to the time I spend on my cellphone at least. Dude, this is not the place nor the time to use the Tiki Taka, there's an object to find!

I wonder what Ramona will think of that place. It looks great, but it's just a replica of what her culture used to look.

These images are very interesting, and concerning, especially the second one. Who is that woman and why she gathered that group of people?

Tad & Mummies were close to being captured, Ramirez is following Mummy's account to know his current place and Pickles seems done already, with that towel on his head and eating a croissant while drinking coffee.

He reminds me of a distant parient of Carl Fredricksen from UP, maybe it's because of the square chin or his "so tired of this adventure" attitude.

A nice journey before the disaster, glad to see Ramona is enjoying the trip. Mummy doesn't look like he is in the trip but maybe he's there, just hidden.

Again, I pity Belzoni. That poor parrot.

Many things to point out here. Why are the three mighty archeologists smiling? Is this before or after the curse is broken? It seems like Ramirez is the one who lets Tad and company go while Pickles, poor tired Pickles is like "WHAT!? You let them go!?" and I really want to know the context here.

I may be wrong and they never would acknowledge this, but maybe because Ramirez is mexican, she can understand the importance of mummies in Latin America and around the world and doesn't want them to be hurt or moved to a international facility.

Pickles, who is most likely from Chicago, doesn't think the same.

That mountain looks like the one from Sara's map on the promo where the camp of the mighty is located. There's another bike race taking place on Egypt.

You know what that means?

🎶"Another one bites the dust"🎶

I'm gonna laugh hard if Mummy calls the camel "A big, deformed llama" since camels and llamas are actually related.

I love his Egyptian outfit, purple looks good on him. I also love that he keeps the Inti symbol most of the time.

Mummy here is channeling his inner Freddy Marquez and doing an exhibition of Ramona while the trio is ectastic at meeting her and began to "do that archeology stuff" to her.

In the last image Ra-Amon-Ah be like:

"I'm surrounded by idiots"

Presenting, from Ancient Egypt...

Ra-Amon-Ah the Ammit whisperer!

Seems like this mummy lady knows how to keep Mummy calm in times of the curse, better than Tad may I add. He almost got to be Ammit's food/toy.

Maybe this is how Ramona gets to bond with Mummy, going from "Eugh" to "Awww" at the end of the journey.

Never thought I would see Ramona holding that rubber chicken, but here we are, taming an Ammit Mummy.

Speaking of Ammit Mummy, let's finish this analysis with this single, impacting picture:

Why is Mummy there? He looks like he is in control of his actions by the way he is standing, putting a paw infront of Tad and Sara as if saying "Wait" or "Don't come closer"

Maybe this is the moment he realizes there's not hope for him and he is better far away his friends?

Also who does the truck belong too? Victoria? the trio of archeologists? Agents Pickles and Ramirez?

There seems to be bars behind Ammit Mummy. Are those part of the truck or is that a broken cage?

So many questions...

Well, that's all from the moment. There are more images I want to talk about but that's for tomorrow.

Btw, today is the release of all the books from movie 3 online. Hope someone posts a page or two.