#oh and that purple guy's son is the protagonist

[kraviolis]

oh no seeing the new teaser image of matt lillard as The Purple Guy has actually somehow piqued my interest in the fnaf movie

[suchine-toki]

Okay, was anybody going to tell me that the official music video of the 6th opening of Yorinuki Gintama-san has strong gintaka vibes or was I just supposed to find it out myself?

First I would like to show the lyrics of two specific scenes in the actual opening:

A silver-haired guy is looking for a place to return home

following the memories of a time that can't come back

We didn't get to see each other, but we're not apart.

With this we realize that this part of the song is from Gintoki's point of view, who's feeling homesick. The first scene shows him remembering Shouyou, Katsura and Takasugi in his childhood, and then Sakamoto, Katsura and Takasugi again during the war.

Someday when we've gotten to meet,

I'll surely shout aloud "I'm home!"

So that you won't be laughed at

by those who are even now watching from somewhere.

In the second scene, Takasugi is seen putting on bandages under a cherry tree, when Bansai, Matako and Takechi arrive to look for him. The lyrics could be interpreted as Gintoki being the one who greets Takasugi so that he doesn't have to do it in front of those looking at him or the other way around.

Now let's see what the official music video (今日もサクラ舞う暁に) by CHiCO with HoneyWorks) shows:

At daybreak when the cherry blossoms were dancing,

we were having dreams.

Wow Wow Paint them in the sky and run.

Go my way

A silver-haired guy is looking for a place to return home

following the memories of a time that can't come back.

We didn't get to see each other, but we're not apart.

The memories of us laughing and crying are even now, even now

living right here.

As you can see, the story of the protagonists of the video has several similarities with that of Gintoki and Takasugi. At the beginning, a silver-haired boy is shown remembering his childhood and noticing the absence of a purple-haired boy who is no longer by his side. But when they were together, he was his friend and rival.

At daybreak again today when the cherry blossoms were dancing (Wow oh oh)

we found our dream.

Wow (Wow) Wow (Wow)

On your mark, run! (Go my way)

So that you won't be laughed at

by those who are even now watching from somewhere,

Wow (Wow) Wow (Wow)

paint your dreams and run.

Go my way

The video includes speech bubbles in some scenes (which I didn't consider for aesthetic purposes), but it's very curious that at one point the purple-haired boy mentions that he has won 56 consecutive times, in the same way Takasugi kept track of his victories and defeats against Gintoki.

My burning wounds still make me run,

holding onto the memories of that time I want to go back to (Wow)

I superpose myself with how I used to be and laugh.

As I was that day when I hid my weakness, even now, even now

I'm right here.

The purple-haired boy is later shown with who appears to be his father. Here both the tone of the song and the visual effects change to demonstrate greater seriousness in the scene. The lyrics seem to indicate a change in perspective towards him, who also longs to return to those days. It's striking because it expresses similar feelings to Takasugi, in addition to showing a complicated relationship between father and son.

At daybreak again today

when the cherry blossoms were dancing (Wow oh oh)

we grasped hold of our dreams.

Wow (Wow) Wow (Wow)

On your mark, run! (Go my way)

The event that broke the video kids' friendship was basically the purple-haired boy beating up his friends at the dojo without any explanation (strangely similar to a little samurai doing dojoyaburi), which caused the silver-haired boy to confront him.

If we can restart,

and find a place with them,

Wow (Wow) Wow (Wow)

draw your ideals, and run.

Go my way

I'll say goodbye over and over many times.

I found the only one truth.

Though getting more and more wounded, the past stays the past.

I reach my hand out to the glaring answer.

We didn't get to see each other, but we'll always be connected.

The memories of us laughing and crying are even now, even now

living right here.

The silver-haired boy questions if their dreams couldn't coexist. It isn't until many years later that he understands the actions of his friend, and he decides to go look for him. The purple-haired boy is under a cherry tree, reminiscing about the past. There were 4 friends, and in addition to the protagonists of the video there was a boy with long hair and another who is the tallest in the group, which reminds me of Joui 4.

At daybreak again today when the cherry blossoms were dancing (Wow oh oh)

we found our dream.

Wow (Wow) Wow (Wow)

On your mark, run! (Go my way)

Someday when we've gotten to meet,

I'll surely shout aloud "I'm home!"

So that you won't be laughed at

by those who are even now watching from somewhere

It's after all this that they meet again. The silver-haired boy throws a bokuto at the purple-haired boy and they clash their swords at the beginning of a friendly combat that symbolizes the reconsolidation of their friendship.

Wow (Wow) Wow (Wow)

paint your dreams and run.

Go my way

I think it's important to highlight the use of cherry trees during the song and, well, in the title itself (At This Dawn When Cherry Blossoms Are Dancing Again). Gintoki once said that the darkest time of the night is just before dawn, and he and Takasugi have been depicted together using cherry trees in the manga, anime, and the final movie. So this could be another poetic way of showing how they would be at their worst before meeting again, a reunion that has a happy connotation for both of them.

[azzysecondary]

Sooooo uhhhh….. guess who liked the second game so much they immediately started playing the first after they finished >w>

Anywho I have first impressions of all the protags so far, from the perspective of someone who played the second game first!!

(TLDR: I’m enjoying the game so far,Cyrus is my favorite, and I dub my first four the sillies -w- )

(spoilers for the first chapters of everyone,and for a few mentions of Octopath 2 in here, nothing big for 2, just mentions of characters and chapter 1 tiny spoilers )

Ophilia- 7th in the party

“Que the first shakesphere reference!”

.She’s so wholesome and sweet I love her;w; she’s like a warm presence in her snowy town and I love that for her!! I adore her design and can’t wait to draw it sometime~ it feels really weird hearing the cleric actually and genuinely praise the sacred flame after all my time with Temenos though- I also adore her relationship with her sister it’s so fluffy and wholesome-w-. Overall can’t wait to see more of her!

Cyrus- 3rd in the party

“Prose before Hoes”

He’s my favorite so far- up until his chapter I was wondering why everyone around the protags had an accent and then we reached him and went “HE’S BRITISH *insert keyboard spam*” he’s so silly and goofy and I love his story so far, it intrigues me (´▽｀) （I love a good mystery) also he’s an Aro king from my impressions so far, and I love that for him!!

Therion- Protag

“Purple shadow the edgehog”

He’s giving tries to be tough, but in reality he’s a chihuahua . My Boyfriend said I should chose him as my protagonist , because of the purple chests and I do think that was an excellent idea, because he is carrying my party strategy with steal Sp rn - I think he is also very silly, in a way that he tries so hard to be edgy kinda way- also his laugh is very goofy and chuni, I quite enjoy it! His story also interests me, I wanna see more of his edgy rouge backstory! Also I find it funny both games have thieves with the T spot, that are also purple-

Olberic- 5th in the party

“Oh he has lots of baggage-“

His story seems like it’s gonna be sad so far- my guess is he’s gonna be the party dad, as his father figure- son relationship with Phillip is really sweet;w; I hope we get to see more~I’m intrigued in his relationship with Erhardt because there is SO much tension there too…… I love a good agnsty lovers to enemies, and that’s the vines they give, so much angst (that would make two warriors who have a “comrade/best friend” who betrayed them:( ) ! Overall, I think his vibes are “gentle giant, but will not hesitate violence”!

Primrose- 6th in the party

“ insert everytime I said a variant of “gross” or my jaw dropped in her first chapter”

Primrose needs happiness……. It’s interesting to see how similar her type of revenge is to Osvald’s, yet different. I feel like she’s gonna be as a flirt as a coping mechanism and…… I just want her to eventually become happy, the way people treated her in her first chapter was so awful. I gagged almost every time she was called “kitten” (ew I hate quoting that), and the one person that did treat her with kindness was killed in front of her eyes for it- her “Master, go pleasure yourself line.” was really good though! Overall, rooting for her to get her revenge!! (Also I really like her design it’s so pretty-w-)

Alfyn- 4th in the party

“He’s just a normal guy!”

I love how normal he is, like seriously he’s just a sweet guy, and for that I dub him silly! If Therion is a chihuahua, he’s a golden retriever, and I love his whole wholesome story vibes in general! He’s probably gonna be in my top 4 by the end of the game- I love wholesome characters……. And green ones- also Zeph totally has a crush on him that he’s completely oblivious to (´▽｀) can’t wait to see more of his chill and wholesome vibes!

Tressa- 2nd in the party

“Who is this sassy lost child?”

She’s giving stubborn little sister vibes, and I am HERE for it! Her story seems super adorable so far too! Also love a good back twice a character’s size (gosh that’s gonna be a pain to make/ find when I cosplay her._.) speaking of her bag….. is that thing a bag of holding? How did she carry that barrel to the cave ?!??! Overall 10/10 character can’t wait to see her bickering with Therion in their travel banters, I’m theorizing they’re gonna act like siblings 030

H’aanit- 8th in the party

“Que the other Shakesphere reference”

I love how they used Shakespearian English for her! I actually quite enjoy reading/ the performing of Shakespeare, and I wonder if they’ll use Shakespearian themes in her story. The rhythm of her speech is close to the rhythm of Shakespeare without sounding unnatural, because she’s not actually a Shakespeare character, I can’t wait to see more of it (I’m also hoping perhaps she may call someone a sponge for the full Shakespeare experience -). Anywho, enough of my geeking out about Shakespeare, what interests me about her story is her somber theme. I don’t know what has happened to her master so far, but I’m wondering if this will be a tragedy based on it’s bitter sweetness. Also love how eloquent her voice is, it was a pleasant surprise!

Anywho that’s all for now! Sorry for the long post, and if you’ve read this far thank you! Now I’m gonna go get back to work on my art and stuff for awhile-

[polysyndetonaddictsupportgroup]

📓

For BNHA I have an All Might/Inko Fake Bitter Divorcees fic that I’m unreasonably fond of.

Effectively what happens is this:

Midoriya goes to the UA Entrance Exam

He has a new Quirk

He has never used this new Quirk in his fucking life

He cannot fucking tell people this fact

This is a foolproof plan nothing will go wrong this will all be FINE

Who’s this blonde boy clapping him on the back what do you mean his Quirk is that he steals Quirks oh fuck oh god wait no

A child

EXPLODES

In the UA entrance exam

(Yes I know Monoma can’t steal OFA because it’s a stockpile quirk but I planned this before they revealed that in canon so let’s all just pretend.)

In an act of stunning teamwork, Midoriya keeps Monoma from bleeding out, some random purple haired guy with a mind control Quirk keeps him calm, and Iida Tenya runs to kidnap Setsuna, a girl who canonically regrows limbs with her Quirk, which Midoriya knew because he met her earlier that day, from the recommendation entrance exam. They manage to keep Monoma alive and regrow his arm and are only slightly horribly traumatized.

The school won’t let them leave until their parents come get them for legal reasons.

THE PROBLEM:

Everyone knows that izukus quirk was the one that made Monoma explode

He didn’t HAVE a quirk this morning

No one here can know that fact

His mom doesn’t know he has a quirk and he CANNOT let her find out like this.

So he frantically texts all might begging him to come get him instead because he cannot tell his mom like this she will have a heart attack and die and he’ll be an orphan, leaving him to succumb to the fate of shonen protagonists everywhere.

Izuku: “you don’t have to call my mom my uh,” completely unrelated adult man who meets me after school every day without parental knowledge or permission because he told me not to tell anyone. you do NOT want to call the police on this man “dad is coming to get me.”

Aizawa: we already called your mom since she was your only emergency contact.

Izuku: ohgodohno.exe

Two parents show up for Izuku.

Izuku does not HAVE two parents.

His mom KNOWS this fact.

Aizawa, who met Small Might at a meeting: … so you must be Midoriya’s father

Toshinori, sweating: … yes

Inko, who knows this is not the father of her child: I—

Izuku: HI DAD

Izuku decides the only way out is through they just have to go with this. He manages to convince his mom through a combination of whispered pleas and facial expressions to not immediately raise the alarm but that combined with the sheer animosity radiating off inko convinces everyone that Inko and Small Might are extremely bitter divorcees who have given up trying to keep it together for the kid and are just fucking at each others throats.

Shinsou is just sort of sitting in the room feeling kind of awkward that he’s a part of this. They forgot he was there.

Inko: my son doesn’t have a quirk

Toshinori: well uh, dear, you know that my side has a history of late bloomers

Inko, with enough acid to dissolve the bones of a fully grown elephant: did I know that sweetheart? Or was I just expected to somehow know that when I walked into this room?

Toshinori: … at least he has his quirk now!

Inko: ONE THAT EXPLODES ARMS?

Toshinori: I’m certain it does other things too

Shinsou, also here: :o

Izuku leverages the awkwardness to dragging his “parents” away for a family meeting in the bathroom wherein 1) they all come clean about the entire OFA business and 2) they decide that they have to just commit to the story that Izuku is all mights child and inko is his angry ex wife because if anyone ever does find out about the connection between them “I inherited his Quirk because I’m his literal biological son” is a lot better for them all than “I inherited his Quirk because it’s a highly secretive transferable quirk from the dawn of superheroes that has grown to be the most powerful quirk in history that you may be able to have too if you torture me into giving it to you.”

Also Featuring:

Shinsou, plagued by knowledge of All Mights torrid family life, because he accidentally walked in on their family meeting while all might was still in his powered form. He did not want to know these secrets. He will not be sharing them. Please go away and let him go back to not knowing things.

Iida, Shinsou, and Izuku friendship pre UA accidentally discovering the past users way sooner because shinsous practicing his Quirk on Izuku and Izukus like “hey who are those eight shadowy figures who watch me from the dark when you use your quirk on me” and shinsous like “the fucking what.”

However they conclude that izukus obviously extremely haunted and has eight angry ghosts living in his bones that they must find a way to exorcise or appease. This is in no small part because the past users are hazing the newbie. It’s okay Iida is extremely productive they will start with exorcisms from all major religions and go from there

(Iida: well if you couldn't manage it here then I don't see what "going to the Vatican" will do--I, sir, sir. If you're going to be uncouth then I'm going to have to block your number. Sir you may tell the bishop whatever you please--I--good day sir *hanging up* the nerve of some people. The Catholic Church was a wash but I’ve made contact with a Taoist Fashi for the upcoming week)

Meanwhile Inko and All Might are trying to gaslight select people in their lives into believing they were married to each other when they absolutely were not married to each other. It has varying success.

[died-but-not-dead-propaganda]

Michael Afton Propaganda

The main protagonist (at the very least for the first six games), turned into a rotting corpse because of remnant. The son of William Afton AKA the Purple Guy, they want to attempt to right their father's wrongs by truely killing William and setting the ghosts of Will's victims free.

So basically he started the franchise off by being his brother's bully, who bullied him to death. Not fun. But it's because of this that Mike's father decides to kill his business partner's daughter, which leads to him discovering this Remnant (metal that keeps things alive forever that's created by "heavy emotions"), making him kill even more kids and put them in metal animatronics to farm that sweet sweet Remnant. And so Mike follows his father to every restaurant location that he kills in as the night guard.

After his father accidentally kills himself by getting peer-pressured by some dead children, Mike decides to go to where his dead sister (NOT his fault, unlike his other sibling) is possessing one of the robots. Well she ends up tricking him into going into the "scooping room" where she and a bunch of other dead kids merged into one, scoop out his innards with a glorified ice cream scoop and become his new insides.

After the incident his little sister is like "uh sorry my dude here have some Remnant" and he's like "oh cool I'm not dead" except they're British so it's probably a bit different. Oh yeah btw, the main characters are British yet they live in Utah. Weird, but oh well. The robot spaghetti leaves his rotting ass to hide in the sewers because they already escaped the facility they were held in.

He goes and lives as a semi-dead corpse guy for a while until his father comes back, as his own possessed animatronic. So Mike follows him again and tries to burn his ass down. However, apparently his father had other plans and escapes. So because there is a bunch of dead people in robots just hididng out in the sewers, both Mike and the buissiness partner with the dead daughter team up to lure them into a new restaurant. Which gets burned down at the end. And everyone gets the ending they deserve. The end ;) (his father comes back but that doesn't matter lol). (Sorry for the rant this guy is what my 3 braincells focus on)

they scooped his organs 👍but it's fine he got better

Mans got his organs scooped out, worn like a sock by his equally dead sister, and then lived for forty~ years as a rotten corpse tryna fix his mistakes, dies in a fire, and possibly(?) comes back AGAIN as Glamrock Freddy (if we're talking Glammike) So he's died once, and maybe even died TWICE and come back.

I don't even like fnaf, but I just think this guy is neat :)  

[saldziakrauje]

weird splatoon zombie au dream

i had a dream about a splatoon zombie apocalypse au but most of the pre-existing cast wasn't there, it was just agent 3 and agent 8 (s2 era versions of them) (3 was the protagonist). there was a lot of other new characters but i cant remember most of them. i know there was:

purple anthro bird #1, mother of #2.

creepy old guy, implied to have killed or gotten #1's husband/#2's dad killed.

purple anthro bird #2, son of #1. killed the creepy old guy after he and 3 both found out the truth. 3 started stabbing him first out of anger (in the back), then #2 pulled 3 away, angrily demanding to let him have this kill, thrn #2 brutally kills him, his left eye popping out at the climax.

literally just kenny from telltale's the walking dead. he was responsible for taking care of the teenage 3 and 8.

oh and after #2 kills the guy he and 3 accidentally detonate a small nuclear bomb in the nearby town they're camping out at and 4 people in the group (exact number) die #2 survives (unapologetic) but agent 3 is missing the cliffhanger is agent 3 and agent 8 in the woods alone talking about something ? then i woke up

[sour-n-salty-citrus]

I'm screaming,,please talk more about aftoncest!! When you mentioned fnaf and shipping, I thought you were talking about Gregory and glamrock freddy

AHAH, i have seen gregory and glamrock freddy around (which looks very 👀👀👀 might i add), but I haven't gotten onto security breach quite yet.

Yes, it's true, the ship i was vagueposting about was aftoncest! I figured it was time i got back into fnaf (the last time i was "into" the series was... oof, 2016 probably?) so i looked up a lore guide. I knew afton was the child killer at this point due to osmosis and occasionally hearing something, but I wasn't aware he had kids! (I remembered the crying child from fnaf 4- and very very vaguely knew about the girl from sister location). I saw Michael's sprite and was like "oh hey, he seems like the oldest- Michael, huh, wonder how he fits i-" and then it went "the Mike Schmidt who's the protagonist of fnaf1" and I was like he's THAT MIKE????

I was curious to see if he had any voice lines so i looked it up, found a video on the SL cutscene(?), played it, and immediately heard,

"father."

...

And yup, that did it for me, I was 100% sold. I already figured Michael and William probably had a twisted relationship (i mean it's the fucking purple guy and his son akdhajdhaj *wheeze* how could they not) but then I read more of the lore and wow. WOOOW. These two uh- they have... well they have a relationship-

It's really interesting to me! I mean, from what I remember of michael in fnaf 4, the kid was kind of a bully (RIP crying child lmao)- even if I'm sure he didn't actually mean to ever hurt Evan. It makes me wonder, what kind of a parent Afton was to his children- was he so absent that this behaviour went unchecked for so long? Did Michael just think that it was okay- that teasing and bullying was a natural part of showing affection (just think about those implications for a second oh no-). Maybe Michael took the brunt of all his father's bs, and that's why he lashed out at Evan, in the form of pranks and teasing (even if it crossed the line)- maybe on some level he hated how free Evan got to be, he still got to be a crying child, blissfully ignorant, whereas Michael was more grown up, was less illusioned to the reality of what went on inside their house- not to project or anything, but as the eldest lemme tell ya, we absolutely get the brunt of any issues with our parents. Maybe Michael wants his father's love and attention, but also sees the truth behind who is father is (even without the child murdering ajdgsjdhsjdhsj)- which makes their relationship delightfully complicated.

Michael becoming an adult makes it even more interesting. Michael still clearly respected William enough to do what he said without question seeing as, well, not just anyone will do you a favour and go put your dead daughter/their sister "back together", endangering and dying themself in the process. It makes me wonder about how close they must have grown. How the absense of Michael's mother, Elizabeth and Evan must have affected their relationship, how it might have twisted from already unhealthy to codependent. Michael suddenly overlooking all his father's flaws and mistreatment out of guilt and desperation to keep him around. William growing obsessively attached to the only person he has left. I feel like William is attached to Michael, too- he's the only person he trusts, and, well, when someone is willing to do almost anything for you, you're going to feel fondness for them (as twisted as it may be). I like to think of it as a really fucked up lowkey servent and master dynamic- Michael is William's favourite little tool, whom he can use and abuse but is strong enough not to break under it (until he does- but its fine, because he can always pick up the pieces.)

(He's good at that. Breaking things and putting them back together.)

Just hnghfnfhfnfhdhd these two! Ah! They're basically the protagonist and antagonist of the series, and you know i love me some hero/villain ships sometimes. Its so delicious, you get to add a whole extra topping of manipulation and inseparability and obsession and all kinds of spice to the mix with this ship! The familial ties making it so that they'll always be connected to one another, the attachment, the history! *mwah*, brilliant, 10/10.

[sometimesrosy]

Rosy that's fantastic news for your book!! I'm really happy for you. And just seeing "bellarke consum their love and even have grandkids" makes my heart full. Bob and Eliza said tthey were disappointed that 1/the charaters couldn't have kids in the end and that 2/ there was no hope. I totally agree with their interpretation of the end. Some people said the ending was super cool, and inkeeping with the whole show, and somehow hopeful. HOW WAS IT HOPEFUL?? the human race gets wiped out...

People said the ending was “super cool?” How?

Wait. I need to wrap my head around that. What are they looking at that seems super cool?

I actually don’t have a problem of the concept of transcendence that they worked on all season, nor Cadogan, the fake-spiritual, love-your-fellow-man-but-also-sacrifice-them-because-they-mean-nothing cult leader who favored his daughter, used his son, tossed his exwife into the apocalypse and killed Becca because she had power and knowledge beyond him.

Like, that could have been super cool if they’d kept him the villain, the antagonist, but instead they made him the protagonist who was, somehow, right about transcendence as if it wasn’t just another fucking doomsday cult that wanted humanity to end. I mean, it WAS just another fucking doomsday cult that wanted humanity to end, and the aliens vacuumed up humanity and allowed for no dissent. Here, have your perfect happy transcendence...but your body dies, the world ends, and humanity is gone. That is EXACTLY what ALIE did, and she was a villain. Perhaps a well meaning villain, but a terrifying villain.

How did the SAME story, get switched around to being some sort of victory for the state of humanity? How did the end of humanity, no chance to continue on, because they removed their ability to have children and carry on?

Why couldn’t they just fucking stay on The Ring if that was going to happen. At least they could have a small community up there.  But no. Without the info that our heroes brought, they wouldn’t have reached transcendence. 

That wasn’t transcendence. It was judgement day. Transcendence means you have worked your way to a higher state, and yes, it might be condescending and elitist, but you at least worked for it. And it wasn’t really a judgement day because they just took everybody, despite the fact that those idiots were fighting for no fucking reason. It was a PUNISHMENT day for Clarke, one of the only people who was actually TRYING to be better and do better. 

What was cool? The way the aliens brought back the people they cared for? Yes, that was cool. It wasn’t them of course, but some people would be impressed by the alien dressed up in the costume of their fav. I could see that being considered super cool. But honestly... that’s a story line that would have worked better in season 3 and in fact DID work remarkably well in season 3 when Lxa showed up in the COL. And it was ACTUALLY her, not some facsimile.

Was it cool to take away the agency of the hero of the story who we’ve been following for 7 years? Was it cool to erase the personality and motivation of our dual protagonist? Ok. So lets say you didn’t love Clarke or Bellamy. Octavia’s character was erased and she didn’t have a thing to do until the final battle, and then she got a romance that frankly made me uncomfortable but that’s taste. Echo was erased and she didn’t have a thing to do until the final battle. Raven was also erase although she got to be the one to convince the aliens that they weren’t totally awful beings. That was cool, but it seemed like a patch put on top of a story that had failed. The story being about how Clarke saves humanity, and Bellamy saves Clarke, which has been THE STORY FOR SIX YEARS. We spent six years building up a team with these two heroes who have been through so much shit and made the CHOICE to be the good guys, and in the end, Bellamy gives his power over to a charismatic obsessive leader (also happened in season 3 with Pike who was a great character and FAR better than Cadogan and actual sympathetic awful villain who thought he was saving his people while doing evil.) And Clarke actually becomes THE BAD GUY, who loses her sense of reason and commits violence due to loving too much-- a really tired, misogynistic storyline. Give women power and they go crazy. The hysterical woman. THIS DOES NOT FIT WITH CLARKE GRIFFIN. Also, we saw her go through that trauma of fear for her daughter, and she DID NOT GO CRAZY. Ruthless, yes. And then she worked through what she had done and recognized she was wrong and promised not to do that again. I honestly don’t know why she did it again.  Even if Bellamy betrayed her again, it didn’t make sense that she couldn’t work through it.

They had to keep the two characters apart in order have that ending happen. Why? Because Clarke acts as the center to Bellamy and Bellamy acts as the Center to Clarke. This season is the story of the FAILURE of the duo protagonists of the show. They separated them and broke them individually, and this meant they were unable to save the universe. 

Is it cool to make a show about heroes and then destroy them in the last season? But frame that destruction and the end of humanity as a VICTORY and positive ending? Maybe if you hate those characters and humanity and think there’s no hope for us anyway, so lets just burn it down.

Oh wait. I’m trying to figure out what’s SUPER COOL about that ending.

The purple sparkly aliens. Ok. How is that cool? That there’s actually an omnipotent alien out there that has the ability to just snap a whole race of people out of existence or into their big ole stew pot of consciousness.

1. Why? 2. How? 3. Where did that power come from? 4. Who are they? 5. What do they get out of erasing races and basically eating them?

Okay, putting aside the questions about how these omnipotent gods aliens came to be... is it possible they can be see as “super cool?” Let me go through.

1. Omnipotent aliens going through the universe, deciding when life forms were “ready” to be judged and then either wiping them out totally, or wiping them out totally but accepting their consciousnesses into their massive consciousness where they don’t want any “bad” lifeforms, which makes them now a higher lifeform but not at all what they once were. 

Cool/Not Cool. I dunno. Kind of seems like some sort of puritanical god who willy nilly decides if people are worthy of heaven. Will He, Nil He. That’s what that means. If we’re gonna get aliens at the last minute, I want aliens. I want to know who they are and what’s up with them. THAT’S the story. Those alien guys. Instead, the story was about the flotsam and jetsam at the end of humanity, either getting swept up into the god-form in the sky or being pounded to bits on the rocks. The heroes of our story have no say in what happens. They’re toast either way. Oh you mean we can be erased into nothing or erased into your hive mind? The only way this is cool is if you like nihilism. Which, yeah, some people do. NONE of their struggle over the past six years meant a damn thing. None of it. Their beliefs, their sacrifices, their mistakes, their heroism. It al reduces down to whether those sparkly purple aliens like them or not. That’s some bullshit. 

Not cool. 

2. Cadogan. Cult leader from the first apocalypse who conned the bulk of his followers and left them shady shelters that let them die. Kept the good stuff for his “best” followers. Paternalistic, obsessive, ruthless, megalomaniac framing his leadership and personality as “Love for Humanity,��� while discarding every human who he deemed unworthy. Including his own family. Actually. Pretty cool.  AS A VILLAIN. Ending up at his cult colony in space hundreds of years later with thousands of years of development in time dilation. Cool. They’re creepy but make some bit of sense. Ok. Waking him up and then making him this fucking GURU who preaches love for humanity but sacrifices 99.9% of humanity all so that he can reach his mythical transcendence which is really the eradication of all humanity.... well, that’s actually cool. AS A VILLAIN. But somehow in the last season, Cadogan turned out to be the one who was right all along, and the story seemed to accept HIS concept that transcendence was the best thing that could happen to them, because humanity sucks and they always fight so they should be erase by paternalistic omnipotent gods. CADOGAN’S choices were the ones that were enacted. Bellamy gave his will to Cadogan and made CADOGAN’S choices, not his own. Never before in all the seasons did Bellamy “need it all to make sense.” He fucking KNEW it made no sense and he didn’t want to make those choices any more. And he did it to be a better person and make better choices and keep his family safe. The excuse they used for our hero to side with Cadogan did not fit. CADOGAN became the protagonist in the second half of the season. CADOGAN made all the choices that furthered the story. Our heroes were reduced to either brainwashed followers or ineffective, hysterical messes, our really not wanting anything to do with anyone’s salvation and just interested in their love life. It left Raven, Echo and Octavia to scramble around in the end and try to convince the purple sparkly gods not to erase them out of existence, just erase them and swallow them. :/ Cadogan as protagonist bringing humanity to “transcendence.”, Our supposed heroes as useless flotsam and jetsam floating around on the wreck of humanity whose choices and actions make no goddamn difference.

NOT COOL.

3. Character Storylines

Clarke’s storyline. NOT COOL. Bellamy’s storyline. NOT COOL. Octavia’s storyline. S.A COOL. S.B NOT COOL. Raven’s storyline. COOL. Echo’s storyline. S.A COOL. S.B NOT COOL. Murphy’s storyline. SUPER COOL. Emori’s storyline. SUPER COOL. Indra’s storyline.  COOL. Hope’s storyline. S.A COOL S.B NOT COOL. Jordan’s storyline. NOT COOL.  Diyoza’s storyline. COOL Gabriel’s storyline. COOL. Madi’s storyline. NOT COOL The grounders. Fucking morons. You really shouldn’t make a whole culture’s choices based around being absolutely too stupid to be allowed to live. EVEN when you get past xenophobia and learn about who they are and why they do things. NOT COOL. The culty people. Cool set up and world building. The society was dumb and had too many plot holes. MIDDLING SHEIDHEDA. NOT COOL. pointless plot device just used to make everyone forget everything they learned from 6 seasons. CADOGAN. COOL AS A VILLAIN. But he was the protagonist. So the ruination of the entire show and universe they created. NOT COOL.

SEASON A COOL OVERALL.  SEASON B NOT COOL. TOTAL SEASON NOT COOL

I think if people think the ending was supercool, they’ve never heard of a deus ex machina, and how that’s a BAD ending that is really just a cheat because you can’t figure out a way to get out of the story mess you made. 

I really hate post apocalyptic fiction that ends with no hope for humanity. JR kept telling us there was hope. I mean narratively, not in interviews, although he did that too, and in the last half season, he switched it around so they wouldn’t have hope, not even just our heroes, but all humanity. It was a bait and switch I did not appreciate. And I’m not talking about ships, I’m talking about the essential genre of the show. 

PS. thanks. I love my book and I hope someone picks it up so you all can read it. It also has elements of Han/Leia and another couple, Brashen/Althea from the Live Ship Traders book by Robin Hobb. They are, however, less traumatized than the characters in The 100. 

[writing-frenzy]

I Wouldn’t Risk It (SVSSS Fic)

Summery: In which one annoyed Shang Huan does not know why he puts up with a certain Demonic Cultivator- “I owe you.” ah, that’s right.

Warning: some Violence and blood, and cursing. All good things to be found in svsss canon~

(In which @hamelin-born is a terrible, wonderful enabler, thus this is how it came about.)

EDIT: Part of Wager verse, first Part HERE

----

“Welcome to- oh wait it’s you.” Shang Huan started to greet some incoming customers, only to give the pair that came in a flat look instead.

“Greetings Uncle Shang!” Cao Mei, an actually adorable raven haired girl, her purple eyes so dark one could almost think they were black if it weren’t for certain lighting here and there. Puberty was obviously treating her well, seeing she must have been 19 at least, was developing some curves, her baby fat also finally melted off. But despite this, Shang Huan was unmoved, as for one, he wasn’t a fucking pedo, and two, he could easily see that same matching intelligence and calculation she inherited from her grandfather’s own dark purple eyes.

As expected of Wife #45; not only a knock out beauty in the making, but even had more IQ points then most, along with a more developed character and backstory then a lot of his later wife plots.

Though, he could admit he was taken off guard with her story then most; the cause of that being one certain person-

“I see the place hasn’t burnt down yet; congratulations for that.” was huffed by said anomaly, making Shang Huan focus his deadpan face on the other.

“Thanks, my kitchen staff is always trying though.” and no sooner were the words spoken, then what sounded like multiple firecrackers going off in said kitchen... He could even swear he saw what looked like a blue firework of a bird fly out from there, before one of his handy golems ate it as it passed...

Closing his eyes, Shang Huan counted to three, before opening them once more; he would never be able to count as high as he really wanted, but time was rarely on his side, so three it was. Hazel eyes once more opening, Shang Huan was able to look at a source of many headaches, one Dark Poison Sect Leader, Cao Xiaowen, a true doting grandfather who still looked like he was only in his late 20s, his blood red hair peppered with black from all the resentful energy surrounding him, and greys from stress of life actually catching up with him.

And a character that was never in Proud Immortal Demon Way, but yet again from one of his other stories; a Demonic Sect Leader that had just been a random background character, just to flesh out that world a bit more. He had only named because while he could get away without naming the Sect the guy made, it wouldn’t make sense to have Cao Xiaowen be nameless, seeing as he had bullshited a whole bunch of techniques this infamous and well known demonic cultivator was supposed to have made...

Making a face at that smiling face before him, Shang Huan felt some regrets; just some more to add to his pile stashed in his closet and under his floorboards, but what can one do? Especially with a story that seems to make sure he can never forget any of them, always seeming to push willing to push cheery, willful mistakes into his face.

i.e. the Demonic Sect Leader before him.

But then again, to see these two characters, Cao Xiaowen and Cao Mei connect here, in this living world of PIDW and other mash ups, was honestly rather amazing, just with Demonic Cultivation and the same last names... It was as fascinating as it was paranoia inducing. Cao Mei had been just another revenge wife plot, the young woman wanting vengeance against her Mother for killing her loved family members along with trying to kill her... as well as to save her young baby brother, who their Mother was trying to mold into her perfect image of Sect Leader. The girl had only been able to survive for as long as she did because one of her dying relatives had sacrificed themselves, turning themselves into her Spirit Familiar and protecting her...

.... And as for Cao Xiaowen, when he had mentioned how he went down in his end in his own story verse, Airplane had only said that it was due to betrayal and sacrifice, that being the only ending he gave the character...

(How many other fucking throwaway lines does he have to worry about ohmygodwhyisthishislife-)  

“...So, why do you choose now to darken my doorway?” Shang Huan asked, the unspoken ‘I-know-you-hate-this-place-much-less-willing-to-bring-your-beloved-granddaughter-with-you.’ not said, but easily heard.

“... You would be glad to know, but I must now introduce you to Sect Leader of the Dark Poison Sect, Cao Meihui.” Cao Xiaowen introduced as he motioned to the young girl. Shang Huan stared for but a moment before closing his eyes once more, even as whispers broke out all around them in his place, from the gambling tables to even the bar and restaurant.

This time he allowed himself to count to 10, as a treat.

“Follow me this way, Elder Cao, Sect Leader Cao.” and with a simple hand motion, a few of his workers already getting things done, the Ruby Room already to entertain his ‘guests’. It didn’t take to long after all, with his standards and staff precision, but he needed to make sure there was nothing to spy on in this conversation.

Because oh, does he have a lot to say right now.

Once the door was closed and all the silences spells and talismans in place, Shang Huan rounded on the now sitting pair, letting his hands slam on the service table before him.

“Can you not?!” Shang Huan seethed, even as Cao Xiaowen grinned, his heir now leader beside him shifting ever so slightly beside him, smartly making some space between them.

“Why, Shang Huan, what ever do you mean?”

“You politic in my place again and I will make sure to show the world just how much I can beat you into the ground.” was practically growled, Cao Xiaowen smartly raising his hands in surrender as he did. “Why the hell did you even need to do that, didn’t you already get the stalker bitch killed and dispersed last year? I distinctly remember being there for the mad ramblings.” 

-Urgh- he never wanted that much TMI into someone’s deluded sexual fantasies, especially rounding around this who-me? Demonic Cultivator! Body stealing and marrying the guy’s son just to get a possible chance at him, and then killing him and half his family when she still couldn’t get what she wanted to spite him?

Shang Huan doesn’t move, but that still doesn’t mean he’s not fighting a shiver of repulsion at the thought. Seeing the way Cao Xiaowen grimaced at the reminder, Shang Huan was actually starting to feel in a better mood. 

“While she and most of her supporters are now gone, traces of those who still hold sympathies for her and her ideals still remain.” the man scowled, even as he took out a small sachet, handing the small plain back over as he did.

Hmmm, spicy roasted melon seeds; say what you will about the man, he did know his bribes at least.

“They’re also trying to push my little didi to be the next Sect Leader, even though he never wanted it in the first place!” Cao Meihui scowled in turn, taking out a beautiful, yet still deadly battle fan to fan herself. “Really, he has suffered enough under that woman’s ‘care’, he should be able to choose however he wishes to live in life!”

Shang Huan doesn’t even wince at those words, even as he thinks on the poor fate of canon fodder Cao Yun, a young boy desperate to leave his harsh home circumstances, even joining a certain Righteous Sect set to be doomed and destroyed, loosing his home once again and setting him in turn on a doomed quest to stop Luo Binghe...

Well, considering the boy had left home at 15, and had only just turned that this year, maybe that path could be prevented; there were still plenty of other Sects still up and running when his protagonist came into power, maybe he could join one of those?

Still though, maybe he should give the kid a transportation talisman for his birthday; you can never have too many of those after all.

“That still does not explain why you had to announce Young Mei right in front of my store.”

“Please, it’s the perfect place too; not many completely neutral places around anymore, what with Hua Hua Palace trying to police everyone and dragging the other Righteous Sects into it... Speaking of which, they haven’t bothered you after last time, have they?” Cao Xiaowen asks, with what looks like could be actual concern in his eyes.... Ha-

“I’m pretty sure they won’t forget my warding anytime soon; not to mention the rest of the towns folk’s farewells.” Shang Huan replies dryly, remembering just how all those golden pricks were beautifully thrown from his store, some of his staff even joining in on the beatdown the protection brought forth. If he remembers right, it soon became a whole town wide event to run them all out. 

And when you have a whole town seemingly a melting pot filled with Spiritual beings, humans, and demons, they definitely are going to have their wounds to lick.

“But again, my place is, as you said Neutral; so why are you bringing in politics here? Announcements of a new Sect Leader should be only at official events or places that one is already allied with after all.” The Owner of the Gilded Plane asks lightly, those hazel eyes taking on a deadly touch, like molten liquid gold is taking over bronze, a sunset of colors being the last of the sky you will ever see, easily to see it all reflected in the blade at his side.

(Ah, how terrifying, seeing the threat of Fortune’s Favored all out to bare, Dujin Xue at his side, the spirit weapon willing and bloodthirsty to take out any threat to its master.)

For a moment, all is silent, before finally, the red haired cultivator takes from his sleeves, a few boxes simple in their decorations and yet obviously of the finest Jade.

“I almost forgot; I have with me some of the finest of Blight and Poison Talismans with me, not to mention my newest creations; a Pipa made with Blood Drain White Wood and using heart strings of an abyssal creature, painted with curse residue.” Cao Xiaowen motions to an opened box with said black and purple instrument with white accents, truly a work of art and power, even unbound as it is, no master to really work those deadly strings just yet.

Another box is soon opened as well, revealing a twin pair of daggers, their blades white with a beautiful red handle for a hilt. “Not to mention these Ancient Necromancer’s Bone Daggers, recently uncovered in an old tomb, plenty of resentful energy and dark desires just waiting to be unveiled in any upcoming battle, madness in but a cut to be delivered...” the former Sect Leader says, a bit of sweat coming from his brow, those dark eyes uneasy even as he hides behind his bluster and charm. His granddaughter, Cao Meihui watches intently, her own dark eyes worried even as she is awed by her beloved grandfather’s work, and the man who can make him so nervous. 

The one Fortune’s Favored watches and listens, and waits, even as he is showcased all the wares most people would die to get their hands on, each item worth more then most lives to some.

“... I will give you a warning and you will be Marked for it; there will be no next time if you try and pull this stunt again, you hear me Xiaowen?” Shang Huan allows, eyes turning back into that warm and soft hazel, even as he sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose as he does. Well, at least he now has more good things in store for his gambling patrons, who will no doubt go crazy for these goods.

(Never noticing how the familial pair relax, a breath of relief taken for their own that this gambit actually worked, even if they are now Marked by all the staff.

Best behavior is a must for now at least.) 

-----+----- 

~15 Years ago~

Cao Xiaowen, once just regular Cao Xiao, was a man most would never dare cross; as a Demonic Cultivator, you wouldn’t even be able to escape through death. He had cultivated carefully along his chosen path, having no talent for what was Righteous roads, so turned down to darker paths and alleys to get what he wanted. He had been smart about it, and equally talented for Demonic Cultivation, becoming a Bounty Hunter to be able to hide just what practices he used.

Not only did it get him much needed gold, but the resentful energy and blood of the wicked were quiet useful on his path. Unlike other Demonic Cultivators that sought to take in the energies as fast as possible to form their Obsidian Cores, killing innocents, and eventually needing Cauldrons in the end to balance themselves and to go farther in their Cultivation, Cao Xiaowen went for a more steadfast pace.

He first started with crafting items of Resentful energy, talismans and amulets to get a better feel for the delicacies of the energy he chose to work with. With time and effort, along with plenty of meditation and blood on his hands, he found a cultivation path that suited him rather well, untraditional as it was for the usual brutal force most Demonic Cultivators usually went. His path was like a slow acting poison, letting the wicked energies ever so carefully, ever so gently gather into his meridians, building up a steady foundation before he ever focused on building his Core.

And the results for it were astounding; when compared to traditional Demonic Cultivators, not only could Cao Xiaowen hold his own with those stages above his own, he could beat even those whose Cultivation that was said to be an entire level above him. Not to mention just how devastating his spells and attacks were against those of the Righteous Sects.

It was no surprise that when he founded his own Sect, he had plenty of disciples to chose and pick from...But he wasn’t stupid.

He knew he had plenty of enemies all around him, some just jealous of his power, others hateful of just how he got it, being a Demonic Cultivator was a sin for some even if he only went after criminals. That he was a rather attractive even as his red hair was peppered black and grey, and even a few tigers acting like pigs to be fatten all came for him in the end. He knows people were waiting in the shadows, eager to take him down and steal everything he worked for, salivating over his abilities and life work...

Though despite it all, he never expected the betrayal to come so close to home.

“P-papa.” was stuttered out by his honestly rather adorable Granddaughter, the young four year old sobbing as she reached for him; his daughter in law smiling all the while even as she held one of his crafted knives to the little girl’s throat. He had to give it to her, not many women could still look so devastatingly beautiful, covered as they were in their husband’s blood. He never expected the raven haired woman to be so ruthless, honestly sure the woman loved his son.

Looks like he still has errors in his judgement, even at his age; taken off guard on what he though would be a simple material gathering mission, only to be crippled and threatened by a woman he thought he could trust even as she slit his beloved child’s throat before his eyes.

“You really shouldn’t have refused me all those years ago; this all could have been avoided if you had just agreed to be mine... oh well, too late for regrets.” The woman mourns softly, making Cao Xiaowen feel his brow crinkle, dark eyes confused.

But trying to parse the words of the mad woman was not something he had time for, seeing as his lovely little granddaughter was suddenly in his arms, the both of them finding themselves being pushed off a cliff, and into the Broken Jaw Ravine.

Using what remained of his spiritual energy in his blighted Obsidian Core, Cao Xiaowen was fully prepared to become his dear granddaughter’s Familiar Spirit to protect her...

When in the end, it turned out unnecessary; they ended up landing in a Spirit Capture Net. And judging by the pure color and Qi he could feel running through it, a high quality one at that. Feeling how it blocked him from using any of his spiritual energy and Qi, he looked to his darling dear grandchild, the (forcibly) retired Sect Leader couldn’t help but feel so relieved to see her shaken, but well at least in body.

And then he heard the cursing.

“What in the fuck you soggy old vulture of a corpse! Curses on your fucking clothing to never be nice and pristine, to always stub your toe on the corner, to be miserable even when you have your favorite food! Do you know how long it took to make that net?! Could you have fallen somewhere else? No, of course the skies would decide to shit on me with some young man in my beautifully crafted net! Probably jumped off for the heck of it knowing how fucking dumb most Demonic Cultivators are! ARRRHGGGG YOU DAMN WALNUT!” was practically ranted below them, a young brunet man yelling up at him, who couldn’t be more then in his 20′s. (Though rather impressively at the Peak of Core Formation from what he could sense.)

As it was, two pairs of dark eyes could only give the ranting rouge a wide eyed stare, even when, in the end, the young man let them down, hazel eyes narrowed in on them. He raised one brow at his child that was with him, but easily narrowed them back onto Cao Xiaowen’s own.

Ah, he could probably sense his power (use his weakness).

“So, this is how it is going to go down. I’ll help heal you and your kid, won’t even leave her in debt... tho your ass is mine; I say jump, you better do it and ask if this is high enough. You will owe me till the end of your day and then some, and in return I will benevolently help you out. You agree or should I leave you and the kid here for any unpleasant fates?” was the rather grumpy, if smartly given offer, Cao Xiaowen finding he can’t help but respect it, even as crudely as it was put. Looking down to his innocent little Cao Mei, the grandfather could only nod at the offer, no other recourse that could ensure his little gem a better chance at life.

And thus marked the first meeting between the terrible and powerful Dark Poison Sect Leader Cao Xiaowen, and the Rogue Cultivator Shang Huan, who would one day have a title even greater then his own.

Amazing really, how some things start (and others end).

-----

:D Here we are, another story from this verse; it was really fun! (even if I actually had to create a damn timeline to make sure everything was straight TTxTT)

Anyways, here is an ally of Airplane! Their relationship can be described as.

Shang Huan: Why do I put up with you again?

Cao Xiaowen: Because I have the best gifts bitch. *Inwardly sweaty*

But Also-

Cao Xiaowen: So... Demonic Cultivating involves a lot of... Dual Cultivating huh... And are those innocents being brutally murdered over there?

Rando: Yeah, ain’t it great? :D

Cao Xiaowen: ... *proceeds to make a cultivation path that involves as little Dual Cultivation as needed while also being one of the nicest ironically* Ah, that is better, better get more wicked blood~

These two were really fun to write together, and with PIDW, I can make as many ocs as I want~ So much to do, so much to play with~

Oh yeah, Shang Hua’s blade, Dujin Xue means Gilded Blood :3

Cao I picked for being a common last name, while Xiaowen means red skies. Mei means red gem, but for Meihui I liked the meaning of monstrous/demonic beauty~ As you can see, I had fun~ 

[greyswritingagain-ohhell]

𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔊𝔬𝔩𝔡𝔢𝔫 ℭ𝔬𝔪𝔭𝔞𝔰𝔰

*yeets this at you and runs* PRINXIETY FAIRYTAIL SOULMATE AU-

The compass… What a beautiful creation. Burned into one’s little arms at birth, the red pin always pointing at destiny. Destiny one must travel to, a type of destiny named love.

Roman Sanders X Virgil Sanders

Word count: 2,393

TW: Blood mention, vague mention of sex (i guess?), threats, mentions of an unhappy father-son relationship. Msg if there is more.

★-----☾-----❍-----☽-----★

The compass… What a beautiful creation. Burned into one’s little arms at birth, the red pin always pointing at destiny. Destiny one must travel to, a type of destiny named love. The blissful romance of twirling skirts and melodic laughing from a young story of either woe or contentment. Though destiny is not entirely glitter and kisses, it is and will never be the work of fiction we all wish it be. It is also a raging storm against a raft in violent gunmetal waters, smashed plates and wine glasses once filled stained with tears and tragedy as cries and whimpers fill the lonely grey room that withheld an untold tale of sorrow.

Destiny, as mystifying as it is, can be merciless.

Though… maybe not in this case. Maybe not in the case of the poor little prince in his depressing creamy marble balcony. His glimmering jade eyes were devoid of the usual passion and joy they once shined with. Passion and joy were replaced with longing and unfulfilled urge. Urge to find his soulmate. His soulmate. He has built a reputation for himself for finding his citizen’s one and only, why couldn’t he find his? Why not a quest for the brave prince with a promise of a fairytail ending?

Simple. His father. The man who insisted he stay locked up inside, only seen when needed, only for the fair young maidens to coo and swoon at upon sight. All his services had been classified, hidden away within the palace walls, never to be dug up. But of course, that was only dust on his shoulder that he will eventually brush off. Because the one thing in his mind was them. His rare focus was on what he had considered will be his best achievement. His missing piece. The one he will treat like royalty then proceed to make them royalty.

His soulmate.

Though their meet was delayed many times, today, he was finally going to find them, see their sparkling eyes twinkle in the natural warm sunlight, witness their face contort from confused to… hopefully something positive. Today he will set off to the depths of the unknown and finally, finally, without any form of hesitation or restraint, be free from the chains of the limelight of their watchful gazes on him. Because as much as he loved his kingdom, he didn’t mind the morning breeze flowing through a woodland cottage as his love lied next to him, breathing softly and peacefully like an angel sent from the heavens. He didn’t mind the playful ribbons of the sunset reflecting on the diamond windows, endearing touches slowly becoming a burning sensation that lasts midnight when the stars bless their love.

But alas, father dearest must foil his plans once more when Roman Kingsley heard the familiar thudding of leather boots on the porcelain tiles, not even an attempt to sneak up.

“Father?”

At the unceremonious acknowledgement, his father came closer, crossing his arms as his eyebrows furrowed, “Roman.”

Roman only heaved a heavy sigh, his brown hair teasing his forehead as he ran a hand through them to tame the flying strands. They seemed to shine in the sun, glowing a divine gold over the hues of brown, a halo of a prince. A prince fit for the role of a protagonist, a hero in fiction. Too good to be true, too perfect for such an icy hell called Earth, a forgery for the monsters and myths. A place of fire and ice, uniting to let their twisted gift see the light, the most merciless craft of the gods all creation feared as their result of boredom wrecked havoc over the paradise they so generously provided. And yet there he was, gleaming gold and red, a divinity in the midst of the madness.

Gold in the sand dunes, he'd say.

“What do you need from me, father?” He pondered, raising an eyebrow. There was no denying the slight hurt bubbling in his chest. The weight that rivalled Earth itself was pressing down harshly on his tired shoulders, a warning like defying gravity to never let go. Handling pain had always been his forte, a duel of clashing bronze and gold in the air. But dealing with muffled, inconveniencing pain from someone he had once considered his own father? He'd rather be thrown to the wolves.

“Morgana's at it again. This time worse than usual.”

Contrary to popular belief, he was rather fond of the treacherous shape shifter. Sure, they both had their moments of malice and graceful of fiction-worthy battles, but nonetheless, she was one of good company. Maybe even a friend. Though Roman was positive she'd never admit it. She always struck up a conversation, even the first time they met. Throwing blasts of flames and questions about him and then proceeding to vent to him about the stupidity his father must’ve had to send a 15 year old to “slay” a dragon. His agreement and addition to the topic had unknowingly blossomed a purple and red friendship, flourishing in the snow while dripping vicious, warm blood on the contrasting temperature. If anything, he was thankful his father had sent him on those missions.

But one thing stuck out from his father's sentence.

Worse than usual?

“Will you take care of her?” He deadpanned, placing a large, heavy hand on his shoulder. It was of the most brief displays of what his father called “affection”. Please. Even the stalactites in the dark of the caves nearby loved him better. That is, if constantly falling and almost gifting him a concussion is loving in one's words. Which apparently was to the stalactites. But what did he expect? Kisses on foreheads and ‘we love you's?

“You know I will.”

Its not like he had anything better to do.

Well, there was one mystery at hand. Er, wrist. Because no matter where he turned, the compass pointed the tip of the silver dagger north. It didn’t, not once, change direction. A cliché, yes, but one can only assume his soulmate takes solitude in the brutally icy snowy mountains, freezing for their own life. Or maybe thriving. Who knows, this fair lass or lad may be a hunter, shooting silvery bits of moonlight to puncture any stags nearby. A life they see worth living over their humanity. It was grave, yes. But Understandable. It was ironic, really. Because north was where Morgana set camp that day. Just his lucky day.

The trot of the thoroughbred echoed widely in the evergreen willow forests, tiny little warm white stars shining and illuminating the strip of a path towards his usual Sunday evening. Towards the steep, rocky mountains of Ragana. Could’ve done a better job at naming the damn thing but hey, it's her mountain after all. He had no jurisdiction to interfere with her property.

But the peak of the mountain showed way, standing in all its shimmering glory in the afternoon sun.

“Morgana? My dear, I appreciate the need to see me, but I am on a quest! I must find my soulmate! Can this please wait?-“

“What do you want with my mother?”

He froze, his begging paused. His hands grow stiff as a tree in the air, his hair brushing his forehead teasingly against the cold wind the white snow tinted. The voice had slightly shocked him, foreign and quite… mystifying. He says foreign, through there was a silver lever snapping in his mind, saying it is a familiar melody in his ears. Dark, surely a male's, unwavering, and very, very attractive. How does one tell if another is attractive through their voice?

Another detail caught his attention. His compass, rock solid. Normally a compass' pin will vibrate, jitter, yet still keep its direction clear. The silver end was ice, now burning his arm once more ever since the day of his birth, the tip of the pin now locked on the engraved N. He never recalled any but one knowledge of the compass freezing mid-encounter.

The compass speaks.

Was this young lad his bound? The end of the red string…? His.. Destiny…?

“Hey! Prince guy! I was talking to you-“ the voice died, now silent. The only thing that passed his ears were the slapping of the drooping Willow trees nearby that served him a dreamy backdrop and the blowing winds, gentle and smelling of the oddly comforting breeze of winter.

His body regained its motioning state, his hand dropping to his side, brushing his white blazer. His eyes scanned the scene, remembering the direction the voice came from. It came from under the dark overhang of stone, untouched by the snowflakes. Morgana's humble abode, he'd say. And since when did she have a son? Assuming it’s a man.

“I-She's been wrecking havoc amongst Acelina. We cannot afford any more wreckage, we cannot spend money so carelessly to clean up her messes. She must be stopped.” He said, his head held high. One could take one look at his poised form and think that he was actually confident, brave as he faced the man. But no. His head was screaming. His legs felt like stiff jelly. He was weak for just a dark and mysterious voice. Sue him.

“And? Must you kill her? What proposes that need?”

He squawked in surprise and offend, “I never said she must perish! I simply need to talk-“

“Oh? Then why a sword? Why the need to bring a rash weapon when all you need to do is talk?”

If this was his soulmate, his guards better prim his deathbed soon for this hiding man will be the cause of his delicate demise.

Everything evaporated into the wind, a heavy silence falling and pressing on their slouched shoulders, a force like defying physics. And as every second ticks by in the hourglass, the weight started to gain, pound by pound as they helplessly watch themselves almost get wordlessly sink into a rabbit hole of deep tension.

Almost all else was lost into the marine depths of the Pacific till Roman heard footfalls against the 2inch thick snow. Till the small clouds of breaths from the other brushed softly against his flushed cheeks. Till he felt something cold and sharp press against his chest.

Oh no.

“Listen, prince, I don’t care who you are, what you want, or what your intentions are, all I want you to do is to not—touch—my—mother.”

Though the icy silence was the only solace he could’ve confided in, he had to reply. And he had to do it carefully. One wrong spin, one wrong puff of air, one wrong gesture, and the dagger drives violently through his panicking heart and he will be left to die in the clutches of the dark, mysterious lad without even a glimpse of his face.

“I have no intention or need to hurt your mother. She and I are… acquaintances. And I wish to speak to her.”

The lad lifted his head, his purple velvet hood now falling off as Roman was sure his heart had stopped and screamed at the sight…

His eyes. Those wretched, silver and coffee eyes will be the death of him. Sunlight flooded in them, the numerous similar shades of iron and dirt violently popping against porcelain skin. His hair was a tint of purple, blending in with midnight spikes flopping on his head. His lips were tight and sealed, a menacing scowl stretching his sharp features.

“Acquaintances, huh?-“

“Virgil!” a new voice broke through the sharp silence, stern and feminine. They both recognized it immediately.

“Mom?”

“Morgana!”

The woman was insanely beautiful, he had to say, what with the curled umber hair and the piercing gold eyes against equally pale skin as her son. The threaded hem of her slim burgundy dress was damp against the snow, her black velvet cloak waving against the wind.

“Virgil Anxolia Black, what on earth were you about to do?” she loudly proclaimed, pulling him by the arm and releasing the tight pressure ‘Virgil' so graciously put him under. He released a breath, swallowing lightly. Virgil, however, looked outraged, a cold, hard determination in his eyes. His gloved hand seemed to tighten around the knife the second Roman began to speak.

“Fret not, Morgana, he was simply-“

The knife was raised, another step falling onto the snow as he heard the crunch of it under Virgil's boot, “what’d I say about my mother?!”

Perhaps it was the strong tone of his voice or the alluring gleam of his wide, steely eyes, but Roman had just felt his heart skip a sobbing beat. His beauty was radiant, a rose against the crowded leaves, a lit candle amidst a hurricane, a stray shadow in the room of light. And with a knife pointed and a lethal scream of his heart, Virgil Black was truly an unmistakable Adonis in his jade eyes.

The scene went still, a brush of the wind setting tiny movements for the three. A chill ran down Roman's spine at it. Silence was never an area of expertise of his. Silence turns into tension, tension into impulsiveness, impulsiveness into absentminded decisions that lead to blood being drawn and late night regrets to weep for. He was not a fan.

But alas, before tension turned into a form of impulsiveness, the woman in the cloak stepped forward, gently taking her son's wrist, “your compass…”

Virgil raised an eyebrow, taking his wrist down, therefor lowering the knife and allowing Roman a few seconds of oxygen, “what’s wrong with it…?”

His mother huffed in gleeful disbelief, her golden eyes glimmering, “its still! Your soulmate must be in your presence!”

Contrasting the unusual cheery expression of the shape shifter, Virgil stilled, his hand once again a lethal grip on the bronze dagger, his eyes flat with no emotion, “someone's here.”

This only made Roman's skipping heart seemingly beat faster in lovesick adrenaline as he slowly connected the dots.

Mine doesn’t work either…

And it was clear that Morgana thought the same as she dragged Virgil's wrist forwards closer to him, careful not to impale the flinching prince, and took his own wrist, lining both their compasses up until both North and South are parallel points.

Everything seemed to click in the two men's minds, mismatched eyes meeting jade.

Oh boy, this will be a ride.

★-----☾-----❍-----☽-----★

[treasurestation]

You & Hyunsuk are strangers, the whole world seems to think otherwise.

In his last year of high school, Hyunsuk makes the mistake of accidentally confessing to the wrong person. That's where everything goes wrong.

·

“Excuse me,”

Turns to find you. And a boy.

“Do– do you need something?” Your smile is unbearable, the kindness in your eyes bright and blazing on your face. Head tilts, the boy's head does the same – synced in a way that doesn't mean friendship, deeper than it looks. More.

“I... Um!” Turns to your locker, stares at it – heart drops, chews on his lip. Bites hard.

“... Ask if he's okay,”

Hyunsuk feels the burn, your eyes and the boy's – searing at the back of his neck, seeping into his skin, bones, to his heart. Feels the red bloom of embarrassment grow on his cheeks.

“Are you okay? You look like you're sick–”

Hyunsuk runs. Wants the ground to open up and swallow him – he made a mistake. Accidentally gives you his love letter for someone else – he makes a mistake, and he doesn't know what to do.

Hyunsuk makes a mistake and runs.

·

“Maybe it's a bomb –”

Yoshinori leans close to you, stares over your shoulder at your locker. Steals a glance at your face, before he bumps your shoulder gently with his, says, “– or a very lovely love letter,”

“Or maybe, he made a mistake and accidentally put it, said love letter, in my locker,”

“That only happens in Shoujo manga...” He pouts, bottom lip jutting out. You shrug, looking to him, a smile blooms on your face, “my life could be a work of fiction, you never know, Yoshi.”

“I'll believe it when I see it,”

You begin to taste something bitter in your mouth. Wondering if it is a love letter, or if it's a mistake, or it's – you dwell on your thoughts. Feels a hand ground into your shoulder, kneads through the layers of your uniform. Presses soft, too gently on you – “it's okay to reject people, you know.” Nods his head, brings you back to reality.

You nod, open palm moving to cover his hand, “It's okay to reject people,” you say back. Repeating his words, more to yourself than to anyone else.

“I'll go get us milk, you'll wait here for me, right?” Waits until you hand him over a few coins from your bag, fingers brushing against his. You nod, “obviously,” you say quietly. He smiles before he's gone.

You stare after him. Feel the heat burning in your gut, you inhale. Swallow the world and feel something heavy on your shoulders.

You open your shoe locker, stare at the letter above your outdoor shoes. Stare and stare, until realization hits.

This could be for you, or it could be for someone who isn't you – you don't open it. Not until after lunch, after mouthfuls of rice, after your strawberry milk, after Yoshinori walks you to class, and goes to his.

Once you sit in your desk. Placing the pink envelope in between the folds of your notebook. Tearing it open, and placing out the parchment paper in your schoolbook, in the folds again.

Parchment paper between fingers, scratches against your forefinger. Draws blood, seeps into the corner of the paper.

You whip your fingers against your woollen sweater, red staining brown. Before your heartbeat quickens.

You looked beautiful today. I wanted to talk to you, ask you if you liked the color green – or any colors, you probably like colors. I chickened out, felt like I wasn't enough to be beside you. But you looked beautiful today. I like the way you look. Your hair, the way the sun catches it – I wonder how your hair will look green. Probably wouldn't match you, maybe it would. But I like the color green, I wanted to ask if I should dye my hair green. I probably won't. Too chicken for that. Just like I'm too chicken to talk to you – I want to write poems about you, expect I don't know how, and my friends think that's weird because I can't spell correctly when I'm expressing myself. What do you think? Am I good at writing? Grammar really shouldn't matter, right? If it does– I'm rambling, can you do that through pen and paper? Anyways. I think you're beautiful. I like the way you look – I just like you. There's no one like you. I hope one day you like me just as much as I like you.

Your not-so secret admirer, Hyunsuk.

Then your heart stops. Your knees knock together.

The letter smells like strawberries.

·

Hyunsuk sits with Jihoon. Watches Bang Yedam make his way to them, Asahi following close behind – they've been attached by their hips when someone swore that they were too awkward with one another, Yedam's face grew red and Asahi had said, “we aren't, you just don't see us together often,” – let's Yedam press close to him when he sits beside Hyunsuk. And Asahi stands, stares at students eating their lunches, while popping the joints in his hands.

“I messed up.”

Jihoon is sighing, face twisting in confusion, “in what way? The kind of way that means cleaning up after you, or the kind of way that means–”

Hyunsuk interrupts him, voice barely a voice, “I gave the letter to the wrong person...”

Yedam is leaning up, staring at the side of Hyunsuk's face, and Asahi has stopped the popping. “Are you alright?” It's cautious, too low for anyone to hear, Hyunsuk nods before he drops his head, hands coming to curl around the back of his neck. Still feels the burning of your stare there, “I'm just so embarrassed. Like, why would I do that like that? I'm so – oh my god, there's that guy that was with them!” His voice squeaks, draws attention. And he's pushing himself behind Jihoon, who stares at the boy with eyes wide.

Asahi says, “That's Yoshinori.”

And Yedam is humming, nodding along in understanding. “He's always in the music room with class 1's [reader],” And suddenly realization hits. “You confessed to [reader], didn't you?” And Asahi is walking away despite Jihoon calls for him. “There he goes. Our son is growing up,” Jihoon says jokingly, and his smile snaps away when Hyunsuk's face turns purple, like all the air in his lungs has been pulled away.

Asahi stands behind Yoshinori as he buys two milks from the vending machine, talks to him. Hyunsuk watches as he smiles at Asahi, soft. Pulls the corners of his mouth gently, lightens up his face. Wonders if you two are together – Then Yoshinori is waving awkwardly at them, smile soft. Cheeks reddening. Asahi is shrugging as his mouth moves.

Then Yoshinori is leaving, stealing glances at Hyunsuk. Just Hyunsuk. Only Hyunsuk – and Asahi is coming back.

He says, “he's in the manga club with me.”

A breathe escapes Hyunsuk's mouth, “I'm so dumb...”

Yedam hand rubs Hyunsuk's shoulder awkwardly, “maybe they'll both forget about it.”

“He wrote about how he wonders what their hair would look like green,” Jihoon says, mouth twitches. Hyunsuk is sighing, “I was just wondering...”

“... Why would you even wonder that?” Asahi questions. Brows narrowing at Hyunsuk, and Jihoon laughs, hand covering his mouth. Makes it muffled.

“I don't want to be friends with you guys.”

“I'm trying to make you feel better, hyung!”

·

After school, after club practice, after Yoshinori leaves the school early to catch his bus – you're alone.

Left by your shoe locker switching shoes, White cotton socks on wooden flooring. You shrug off your woollen sweater, folding it before shoving in your bag. A student walks by, nodding his head to you as he leaves, “be safe,” you say quietly. Watching as he leaves. You stare absentmindedly at the sky, before the door closes. You continue to stare once it's closed.

“Um. Hey.”

A voice startles you. You jump. Knocking your bag over, your things spell out, along with the letter.

Hyunsuk stands. Hands reaching out, unmoving. Still.

“I– I'm so sorry!” He's bowing. Head hung low.

“You just scared me, it's alright.”

He's kneeling, grabbing your stuff. Sliding it across the wooden floor. Toward you. They sit at your feet, before you kneel to. Knees pressing atop the floor. The crevices of wood holding skin. “You shouldn't do that. I could have punched you,” You smile at him, but he keeps his head low.

Strangely, you don't like it.

“Can you take a confession back?”

He asks. Your heart begins to hurt.

– No, this is the first boy to ever like you. He's thinks you're beautiful, he likes your hair, and you. And you don't know him, but for the first time – you don't know.

“I don't know you. I don't like you. Like– like that. I think you should dye your hair. I think green is nice, but I like black because it's ever color. I don't know you... And I don't want to know you. I'm not looking for romance. Not now.”

For the first time you look at him. Think you see, see you. And he does.

You hope he does. But you also don't.

“I... Okay, but can you answer my question.”

You smile, your head tilts and you say thoughtfully, “You can't, not once you've already confessed.”

He nods. Your cheeks begin to burning. Palms becoming sweaty. You swear he's beautiful. “I'm sorry,” He apologizes, “But I–”

“There you are!” A friend of his appears. Eyes on you and the contents of your bag on the floor. “I was looking for you, you weren't in class.”

“I was... I was just apologizing to [reader].”

You nod, beginning to grab your things. Hand touching the letter before you slide it to him. “Be careful next time.” You say, because he's taking his confession back and he nods. Cheeks reddening.

You're shoving your things in your bag, standing up in a hurry. “See you both,” Grabbing your shoes, and slamming your locker with more force then intended.

Your eyes blur, and you wonder if it means you aren't enough.

It isn't that, you just don't know.

·

“They looked upset.”

Hyunsuk is staring, the letter by his knee. Torn open, pink suddenly doesn't look like it should. It doesn't feel like a lovely color anymore.

“They were.”

A realization hits – you wanted the letter to be yours.

(He doesn't know that there is a girl listening in, hands curling around her books, mind swirling – “[reader] was confessed to by Hyunsuk!” she gushes the next day to a few other girls. “They rejected him! Why would they even do that?!”)

·

#main protagonist: hope you're home safe and sound, can we have lunch with a friend tomorrow? (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*.✧ [06:48]

#readerchan: i am! and of course, anything you want! ^_____^ [06:50]

You're changed, pajamas soft your skin. You finish up your homework. Settling in your bed, phone in your hand.

#main protagonist: yeah, a friend from the manga club asked if i wanted to meet his friends, he invited you (´⊙ω⊙`)！[06:53]

#readerchan: that's weird... [06:53]

#main protagonist: it is weird! i was like !, and then he was like ?, but i said yes [06:54]

#main protagonist: that guy who was by your locker is his friend (๑•﹏•) [06:54]

#main protagonist: i can decline, make up an excuse like i got sea sick and forget about his invitation lol [06:55]

#readerchan: you're so weird~ [06:59]

Sighing, you lay down and stare at the ceiling. Eyelids closing over irises. You picture a cow jumping over the moon, feeling your heart heavy in your gut.

You sleep and dream of the boy you barely know.

Hyunsuk, Hyunsuk, Hyunsuk, Hyunsuk – you wonder how he'd look with green hair.

·

Hyunsuk is walking to school. Bundled in a coat, the morning air bitter against his skin.

Closing his air as he walks down an emptied street, listens to a song that makes his body ache – pull it together, we could love you, forever and ever – sees you hopping in the bus, coat buttoned up, woollen sweater in your arms along with two bags. A brown paper bag, and aged leather. Watches you fade into bodies on the bus through glass.

Realizes you live down the street from him.

Then he continues walking. Wondering if he should buy Yedam lunch.

·

At school, Yoshinori is waiting patiently by your shoe locker, already talking to someone. You recognize him as the boy from yesterday, the one who isn't Hyunsuk – “– you heard that? From a freshman? I don't think that's true–” Yoshinori stops talking, face turning red at you. And the boy stares, and stares, and stares. Until you redden. “Wh... Um, hello.” You bow, and he smiles. Lifts at corner, before it spreads across his face. And Yoshinori waves. Awkward, like he has something he shouldn't tell you.

“You're [reader]?”

You nod, smiling. Shuffling between feet. Standing awkwardly in the hall.

“Uh. There was –”

“There is.” Yoshinori says, low. Quietly. The boy continues, “There is a rumor. It's about you. And Hyunsuk. And Yoshinori.”

Your face twists. “... Hyunsuk?”

Your voice expressed regret over embarrassment. “Um. I didn't accept his letter.” You're looking at Yoshinori. Forgetting about the boy for a moment. “I couldn't.”

Your heart hurts.

You walk cautiously to your locker. “They should fade, they won't last – tell Hyunsuk not to worry.” You smile. And it looks bitter on your face.

The boy nods. Smiling, “See you later.”

His hand pats Yoshinori on the back before he's gone.

“Why didn't you accept? Hello, Shoujo romance is cheesy, you should have –”

“It's also cringy, Yoshi.”

He sighs, hand going to his pants pocket, holding a manderine out. An open palm and a smile too soft – you grab it slow, fingertips brushing against his palm.

You don't see Hyunsuk watching. Feeling the low unsettling burn of something in his gut – eyes on your face, your cheeks, your fingers – realizes you don't want a letter from him, but from Yoshinori.

·

Hyunsuk walks to class after putting his things away. Thinks of Yoshinori and who he is – and why he doesn't like you the way he should.

“What are you thinking about?” Yedam is by his side, books in his arms. Face lightening up at him.

“Yoshinori. Do you know him?” Yedam slows, thinking. Brows furrowing, lip going between his teeth. “Only that he's in the manga club.” Shaking his head softly.

“Manga club...” Hyunsuk stops, sees you walking down the hall with Yoshinori. “What do you know about [reader]?”

Your head turns and you don't see him. Your cheeks are tinged red, only seeing Yoshinori who doesn't see you in the way you want – “they're really nice. I talked to them once,”

Hyunsuk decides, why not – and vows to make Yoshinori jealous. For you. Only you.

That's his second mistake.

·

You peel the manderine during break. At your desk, atop notebooks and schoolbooks. Fingers pull the skin, tearing the flesh of the manderine.

Your fingers softly ground into the pulp, pulling the piece apart and laying them on your tongue. Chewing slow, feeling the warmth of happiness bloom in your chest.

Until Hyunsuk walks into your class looking at you with a smile.

You begin choking, grabbing your water bottle and chugging.

“Are you okay?” He's suddenly in front of you, concern written on his face – “I shouldn't have come, I'm so sorry, I clearly almost killed you–”

And you laugh, because he's rubbing his chin. Forgetting about you.

It snaps him back into reality, looks at your face, red discoloration seeping into your skin. You look different without Yoshinori.

You look beautiful.

“You almost killed me twice already,”

You say, softly. And you don't notice eyes watching you both. All you can see is him.

He gestures towards the empty desk beside you. “May I sit with you?” You nod.

“Did I really almost kill you?” He questions. It's cute, makes your heartbeat quicken. You don't feel it, you don't feel the pink crawling up your neck.

You and Hyunsuk talk. You give him a piece of manderine and watch his entire face redden when your fingers brush his palm.

A friendship blooms.

·

“I talked to [reader].” He tells Yedam. Whispers it, like a secret. It is.

Yedam nods, looking at him to continue. “They're nice.” Yedam is humming, makes Hyunsuk's gut jump. He agrees, low and quiet. Smiling.

They wait for Jihoon and Asahi. By a bench near the school doors. Yedam's lunch in plastic containers on his knees, tells Hyunsuk, one is for Jihoon. And Hyunsuk pouts, “None for me?” Yedam is pushing him, softly with his shoulder.

The hair on Hyunsuk's neck stands when he sees you trailing after Yoshinori. Hair blowing in the breeze that passes, hand pushing it away. The other hand clenched tight around a brown paper bag.

Doesn't notice his heart burning.

“You look beautiful in the sun.”

He says, and he smiles. Watches you freeze. Face flushing, before you say, “...You too?”

Thinks it's true. That you look beautiful in the sun.

Doesn't notice you staring at Yoshinori. Doesn't notice Yoshinori staring at him.

·

You sit beside Yoshinori and Yedam. Across from Hyunsuk.

You pick at a jelly sandwich, listening to Yoshinori talk about Shoujo manga and the recent adaptation of his favorite manga with Asahi – you think of manderines and if they remind Yoshinori of you, or if he's just a good friend.

Your gut starts becoming uneasy. Emptying out.

Would Yoshinori ever like me?

You think. Chewing the inside of your cheek until Hyunsuk hands you a strawberry, smiling at you.

Yoshinori stops talking. Stares at you. Stares at Hyunsuk.

You think, but rejection is okay, if Yoshinori doesn't like me, other people will. And you take it, pretending you are in a Shoujo manga. Just like Yoshinori said.

You smile. And Yoshinori frowns.

And Hyunsuk's heart burns.

·

Hyunsuk stares at your smile. Feels the burn, remembers that you aren't the one he likes – remembers that it could change.

His heart begins to burn. Searing against bones.

His breath catches.

This is his third mistake.

·

Hyunsuk asks Yedam about it days later, if it's okay to move on quickly, and if it's okay with like you – “people move on differently, it depends on the person, it depends on you. Everyone has their own process.” Smiles at Hyunsuk and continues walking. Meeting Asahi again, this time with Yoshinori.

Yoshinori isn't Yoshinori without you, that's what Hyunsuk thinks. Doesn't realize you and Yoshinori walk different paths in life.

Trails behind.

Until he sees you.

Leaning against Yoshinori's shoe locker. With two containers in your hand. And two strawberries milks atop them.

Face brightening up at Yoshinori. Heart burning, wishing it were him. You hand Yoshinori the container, fingers pressing tightly around it. Releasing it into his hands.

You give a strawberry milk to Hyunsuk.

You sit between them, and Hyunsuk watches the way the sun catches your hair when it shines bright in the sky. Heart aching, he decides to write you a letter – but this time, it isn't for someone else. This one is for you.

·

“Do you like Hyunsuk?” Yoshinori asks quietly.

You're sitting across from him. His eyes are tender, too soft to hurt you. Your hand curls tightly around your pencil, biting the side of your cheek, something bitter tinges your tongue. “W– what do you mean?”

His head tilts, drops to the chest. “You didn't give me milk today... That sounds childish saying it out loud.”

You smile, but it feels strained. Your gut recoils, and you feel strange.

It's been weeks since the letter. It's felt like days – the more you think about the letter, the less you think of Yoshinori.

Instead all that fills your head is the smell of parchment paper that held the scent of strawberries, and Hyunsuk and if he'll ever dye his hair green.

“I don't... I don't know.” It's quiet. And Yoshinori stares, “you should tell him.”

Your breath hitches. Face twisting, you become upset because – because... You like Yoshinori. You do. You want him to be with you. You do. But Hyunsuk is there, here, he's everywhere. Hyunsuk makes you feel warm and fuzzy and Yoshinori – “I liked you, Yoshinori.”

His face pales. He stiffens, and you know. Like you've always known.

You begin collecting your things. “Don't say anything, okay? I know. I always knew. I... We were always just friends.”

Your eyes dampen when you walk away.

You think of Hyunsuk and wonder if he'll ever dye his hair.

You think of Hyunsuk and wonder if he'll ever hold your hand.

If he'll ever just make a move.

You think of Hyunsuk. And he's all you can really think of lately.

·

Hyunsuk writes you a letter.

He feels his heart ache and burn.

Thinks of your hair and your hands and you.

·

You're almost at the school gates when Jihoon notices you.

You remember parts of him – he likes dancing, drawing, and he's good at those things. His excitement rolls onto everyone around him, and he can make you smile and anyone else. You remember he's friend with Hyunsuk and he's easy to get along with – “Goodmorning!” You bow slightly. And it makes him laugh a bit.

“That felt so formal... Never do that again.”

Your voice stutters. Chin ducking, hitting your chest. “... Am I really that formal?”

“Try extremely reserved,” He jokes, it makes you smile. Face reddening, hands curling around your bags. “What's for lunch?" His chin lifts, gesturing to your brown paper bag.

“A sandwich."

You shuffle between feet, hearing him mumble quietly, “Aw.”

“You should go, the bell will ring soon, don't want to take up your precious time!” He wraps an arm around your shoulders, pushes you gently through the gates.

You wonder about Hyunsuk.

“Jihoon... Um... Hyunsuk, is – do you think... Do you think he likes me...?”

Your chewing your lip. Staring at the way his head tilts, at the way a smile grows on his face.

“Why don't you ask him?”

You ‘oh’ softly, taking slow steps backwards. Nodding, before you twist around.

“... Ask him?”

·

He catches a glimpse of you at lunch.

Eating outside, sitting on a bench. Cherry blossoms fall, and it's heart pounding. Smiles a little at your fingers pulling back the flesh of a manderine.

Opening the door, he walks to you. Maybe too quickly. Too rushed. But his heart is pounding loudly in his ears, his chest burns and wildfire is spreading across his body.

He practically throws the letter at you. It's in a light green envelope. A sloppy drawn heart at the centre, slanted.

Eyes shut tight. Face tinged pink.

“I love you [reader]!”

That's his fourth mistake.

He likes you. But that works too.

Then he's running. Towards the entrance doors. Pulling it open and letting it slam shut.

You face bursts into flames. Your heart swells and your stomach flutters.

His hair is green. A very bright green.

·

You read the letter during your last period.

There's an extra layer of timidness in your fingers when they tear open the envelope.

Your whole body seizes. Your heart drums, and your fingers are running over his writing.

You look beautiful every day. My first letter, it wasn't for you – but I'm glad I gave it to you. You like green. I did it BTW, dyed my hair. You'll probably see, or have seen? I talked to you, I know you. Or at least, I like to think I do. Here are some things I know – 1. You like fruit, you pull the skin off of manderines slow, and you eat strawberries like they're too sweet 2. You like the color black, because it's every color. I think 3. You're more reserved than anyone I've ever met, you remind me of an old person, in the best way 4. You look beautiful, that's a given. You've always been beautiful and I've just never noticed 5. You're everywhere, I'm just blind 6. You might like me. I don't know. Not yet. I hope you do. If not, that's okay too. I'll understand. But. I think you're beautiful and I think I'm a bad letter writer? See. I don't know how to write.

You look beautiful every day. I like you. I think we'd go sweetly together. Let me walk you home.

Your not-so secret admirer, Hyunsuk.

Your knees knock together. Your heart bursts and your stomach knots.

He didn't like you, but he does now. You think that's okay, and you also think, maybe it isn't.

Your heart has already decided.

You're walking home with Hyunsuk.

·

He waits. At the school gates. Starked off in his uniform. Waits and waits. Feels a quiet nervousness swirl in his gut.

Doesn't notice you walking toward him. Two strawberry milks in your arms and the letter in between your fingers.

“... Hey.”

The world slows down for Hyunsuk.

“Will you walk me home?”

Hyunsuk's heart pounds and he smiles. Nervousness fading away, ebbing into less.

He nods, watches you hold out a strawberry milk. Takes it, fingertips brushing against your palm.

“Okay... I'll walk you home,”

What he means is, I like you so much.

·

Hyunsuk walks you home.

Kisses you slow. Tastes like strawberries. Reminds you of Summer.

No – you lean in first. Eyes closed when your lips touch. Your hand twisting at the fabric of his shirt, palm warm over his chest. Pulling away slow.

“... Are you okay?” You ask, hand covering his. “I... Just really like you.” Face flushed red, you smile. Kiss him once more. Tasting of strawberries. Reminds you of Summer.

(#readerchan: i'm sorry :(

#main protagonist: finally, i thought you were never going to apologize

#readerchan: WHY DIDN'T YOU APOLOGIZE THEN

#main protagonist: I didn't want to <3).

·

In his last year of high school, Hyunsuk makes mistake of accidentally confessing to the wrong person. Everything turns out okay.

[thanksjro]

Dark Cybertron Chapter 2: Going from Zero to Antichrist Real Quick

Bumblebee and his camp buddies are trying to figure out what to do with the Titan who just popped out of the ground like a prairie dog, as the sky looks like a Lisa Frank notebook thanks to the portal to the Dead Universe. It’s honestly very nice, we should should get more pretty apocalypses like this.

Bumblebee starts throwing out orders at everyone, much to Slag’s chagrin. When Slag brings up the point that they probably can’t do much of anything to a guy roughly a hundred times bigger than they are, Bumblebee tells him to shut up and do as he’s told.

Yeah, I had about the same reaction, Slag.

So the Dinobots do their thing. Swoop, who I think is the only guy here who can fly, goes up to see what the Titan’s doing. It’s not much, other than looking really upset. Oh no, what if he’s afraid of heights? Poor guy.

Even if the Titan isn’t moving, the mere presence of the thing is jamming signals, which is kind of an issue. Ironhide’s ready to shoot it in the foot, and Arcee will help, because she’s a team player now. Bumblebee has a minor crisis over whether this is the same Titan that told Starscream he was a prophesied son of a gun, but Prowl doesn’t seem to think that it is.

Prowl, who has been suffering from short-term memory lapses over the last several months or so because a bug-man was controlling his mind.

Yeah, let’s maybe take his opinion on the matter with a grain of salt, even if he is right.

Over at the Lost Light, Orion Pax is visiting Brainstorm’s workshop, where everyone’s favorite science man is admitting to having studied the Dead Universe’s effects on the living and interviewing people who had been to the area.

Man, I sure hope that guy signed a waiver, otherwise Brainstorm’s going to be in a spot of trouble.

Then we get a quick rundown of what the Dead Universe is: an omnicognizant parallel universe that functions on fundamental principles that differ from our own and wants you to die. So, obviously not a place you would want to go to. Still, we gotta, because that’s where the plot is the Dead Universe is gonna vore Cybertron if we don’t.

Brainstorm agrees to cook something up to make the trip through the Gorlam Prime portal easier.

Back on Cybertron, the Titan looms in the distance as we check in on an oddly pristine-looking Iacon. Rattrap tells Starscream to come out of the closet, because the Titan still hasn’t moved and doesn’t seem like it’s going to anytime soon. Starscream does come out, but it’s with his arms full of weapons of Autobot design that he appropriated from the ruins of Kimia, because he doesn’t trust that Titan to not start some shit. Rattrap suggests that they maybe get a second opinion before they start murdering people for standing in a barren field.

Back on the Lost Light, there’s a little shindig going down at Swerve’s, everyone staring down the table where Optimus, Rodimus, and Ultra Magnus are seated. Swerve takes the opportunity to do what everyone else is probably really wanting to, and snaps a few photos of them for his scrapbook. As soon as he’s done, we get to the Emotions portion of our issue.

Rodimus is letting himself be vulnerable in front of the man he idolizes, and I think that’s very brave of him.

Nobody’s feeling super great about the situation they’ve been presented with, but there isn’t a lot that can be done about it now. Just gotta work with what they got. Rodimus asks Optimus how he feels about Starscream being elected leader of Cybertron.

But I thought that freedom was the right of all sentient beings? You know, like the freedom of choice in our government officials, even if they aren’t the best option we could possibly have, because at least they’re better than the guy who had bombs planted in people’s heads for crowd control purposes? Are you saying that it only counted when the concept of freedom could be manipulated so you could go kick Megatron’s ass, and that actual freedom of choice doesn’t jive with your personal sensibilities as much as you’d like everyone to think it does? No wonder you’re going to try to overthrow the entire Earth’s government system to get humanity annexed into Cybertron’s bullshit in a few years’ time.

But perhaps this Starscream thing is actually the work of Megatron! What will Orion do then?

…I mean, do I even have to say it?

ORION, THAT’S GAY.

And I thought we’d already figured out what to do with Megatron back in “Chaos Theory”, where you spent three issues waffling on the subject until the man himself told you to execute him, because even he was sick of your crisis of self. The only reason you didn’t get to act on it was because Megatron disappeared after Vector Sigma blew up and then you fucked off into space without even bothering to check if he was actually dead.

But enough of Orion promising to kill/kiss Megatron, it’s time to see what Brainstorm’s cooked up. It’s not much, but to be fair, he’s only had a few hours to pull something together- our ship’s genius has made a few forcefield generators, using nothing more than some forcefield generators and juice he squeezed out of a bug. Science truly is amazing.

And I bet Trailcutter hates this invention too, for multiple reasons this time!

Cyclonus, who is looking especially purple today, agrees to join the excursion to the Dead Universe, even though it’s pretty clear he really, really doesn’t want to. Hardhead seems in better spirits than our resident space jet, though maybe that’s just bravado macho-man bullshitting on his part.

With our team put together, it’s time to jump out of the spaceship and into a place that quite literally wants them dead. But first Rodimus has a little chat with Ultra Magnus about his feelings. A lot of sharing this issue.

Magnus doesn’t feel fit to be in charge while Rodimus goes off to save the day and maybe die, because he doesn’t have that special something that makes a leader a leader. Charisma? The ability to think on your feet? The ability to see people as people and not numbers? Not having people know you’re actually a much smaller man running around in an Ultra Magnus suit? Whatever it is, Rodimus seems to think that it’s trumped by a mysterious something in his hand, and that Magnus will do just fine.

While Team -Imus goes into the murder reality, Magnus and the Lost Light will be going off to find Jhiaxus, because they need something to do while our protagonist and his absentee father go on their own adventure.

Back on Cybertron, Starscream’s visiting prison, and wants to talk to a very good boy without the guards overhearing. Jazz makes a very vague threat about what will happen if any harm comes to the prisoner, then steps away.

Let’s talk about how to sell toys for a second.

This issue of “Dark Cybertron” had a cover featuring Scoop, the very good boy I’ve mentioned before, because it was paired off with his Generations toy. We know from reading RID that Scoop is the leader of a group called the Construction Patrol, and he likes to help simply for the sake of helping. Sounds like a nice, if generic, character. How is this issue going to introduce people to him? Will he bust out of prison to save the day? Fight evil through heroic sacrifice? Do anything besides talk?

No, he’s going to tell Starscream he’s a herald of death that was foretold in the robot bible.

Yeah, that’ll move some fucking product!

This isn’t even the most batshit thing Scoop’s going to pull in this event, but it is what they decided to put in the issue that “features” him.

Over with Shockwave, we’re treated to some renewed friendships, as Nova Prime and Galvatron reveal that they don’t hate each other after all, but have a mutual respect based in subjugating those weaker than them.

I’m guessing this is a contrast to their previous relationship dynamic in older publications, but I’m not going back to comb through the likes of Heart of Darkness to check, because it really doesn’t matter.

There’s a bit of a snag in Shockwave’s plan to bring Galvatron and Nova Prime back to the Not-Dead Universe, as the space bridge in the Titan burnt up when it got there. Gee, that sucks. I guess all those “Prelude” issues about getting the Titan from Gorlam Prime were sort of a waste of time, weren’t they? Love it when I’m told I wasted my time reading motherfucking Ramondelli issues.

Speaking of Ramondelli, it’s Dead Universe time.

Sigh. Hello, public domain pictures of space on the overlay layer option in Photoshop. It’s nice to see you.

No, it isn’t. I lied.

I’m sorry, public domain pictures of space on the overlay layer option in Photoshop, this isn’t your fault.

So we’re here in the Dead Universe, and it’s looking pretty wild and crazy, though the characters are likely thinking this for a completely different reason than we are as readers. It turns out, the Dead Universe… is dying.

…MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM THAT’S SOME GOOD WRITIN’ RIGHT THERE

Also, Cyclonus has disappeared, not that anyone actually gives a shit, because they’re too busy dealing with the giant space leeches that just showed the hell up. Dang, why’s that happening?

…That only happens as a form of population control, or if the young in question are sickly and have a low chance of survival, not just because the mama rabbit got a bit peckish between lunch and dinner, you stupid fucking robot.

Half of this writing team won awards a couple years after this was published, I want you to remember that.

They fight the cyberwraiths for a bit, things look like they’re getting dicey, then suddenly they fuck off as Cyclonus shows up, probably fresh off the end of a goddamned panic attack because he’s back in the Dead Universe. Then he proceeds to vomit up some black energon. That’s a fun thing, glad you made me look at that.

Rodimus is concerned that one of their team members has got the Hollywood Tuberculosis cough, but Cyclonus doesn’t want his fucking pity. The fellas decide it’s time to get a move on, seeing as they’ve been here a grand total of 20 seconds and been attacked, so they need to get this over with ASAP.

As Team -Imus flies off in a ship I don’t remember them bringing along, someone decides that they’re going to stick their finger in that puddle of vomit.

Nightbeat you fucking idiot, there aren’t any sinks in the Dead Universe! Now your hand’s gonna be all gross for the entirety of this event! He’s not even analyzing it, it’s just on his hand! Why is Nightbeat having zero concept of personal hygiene a running theme in the things I read? Fuck!

You may be wondering what Nightbeat’s doing in the Dead Universe, or even where he’s been for a good chunk of IDW. We’ve seen him in flashbacks from before the war, but not during or after, least not within anything I’ve covered. So, what’s be been up to?

Fuck you, you’ll have to wait for a later issue to be told what Phase One bullshit you’ll have had to read to understand why this dumbass is here.

Back on Cybertron, Prowl is telling Bumblebee that he sucks because he’s not acting. I’m not exactly sure what he expects Bumblebee to do about the Titan who’s just standing there. It’s not like issuing a loitering ticket is going to do anything. Then the Decepticons attack them, among their ranks being the scariest fucking Ravage I’ve ever seen.

Why do you look like that? Rojo’s supposed to have the cutesy style on this team, why the fuck did he turn the kitty cat into one of the terror dogs from Ghostbusters? 

Anyway, that’s the end of the issue. Sure hope you’re invested enough in trying to figure out what the fuck Nightbeat’s deal is to snag Robots in Disguise #23.

[celestiteflowers]

[Taikyoku Denki] Analysis of Fuduki Kai (part 1)

As on the title, here are my theories, thoughts and feelings about Taikyoku! Kai in this stage 10. Details are below:

1. Personality

Kai first appeared in the scene when the children returned, while everyone was skeptical and scared of Kakeru, Kai did not hesitate to sit at the same table and introduced himself to him.

Kai first appeared in the scene when the children returned, while everyone was skeptical and scared of Kakeru, Kai did not hesitate to sit at the same table and introduced himself to him.

Since Kai also has a huge passion for food, the blond gokuzaku was attracted to him and the two of them quickly became friends. After that, they happily sang the duet "I'm so hungry". Although Iku knew that Kakeru was not an enemy, he couldn't help but worry and scold his seniors "Why are you so easy to trust people ?!"

Kai is a typical "straight forward" type. He won't scare to tell his opinion no matter who the opponent is and it makes him became the only one who has done things that no one has dared to do before! For example, he dared to tease the grumpy higher demon (Haru) and did not hesitate to scold Hajime when he saw the patriarch's son pretending to be tough. He is also the only human who does not hesitate to say that the "king" of the gokuzaku- Shun "lives up to his title".

Accompanying that righteousness is the virtue of responsibility and loyalty since Kai is one of Hajime's two "guardians". Kai always tries to ensure the purple-head man safety at all times, although he doesn't as strong as him. Even when both of them were seriously injured, Kai tried to drag himself as a shield for the person he considered a "younger brother", he ignored his wound, told everybody not to worry about him, and took care of Hajime instead. He was indignant and remorseful about his worthlessness when the person he had vowed to protect was wounded, even though it was not his fault. Nothing was foreseen on the battlefield and at that time, Kai had to deal with some higher demons too so he couldn’t support Hajime. Furthermore, just as Hajime said, he has to take responsibility for himself, not Kai.

2. Strength

People will say that Kai is the type of character that specializes in causing laughs and does not know how to put forth his strength as the supporting character due to his humorous debut and other "recklessly" actions, right? Although Kai is a funny and somewhat bold person, he definitely not a weak minor character. Moreover, Kai is not only a protagonist, he is also so strong that even gokuzaku must be wary of him.

[Hajime: If you want to go out during the full moon then at least ask me or Kai to come along.]

Hajime is the "yang" of the world, someone with innate superior strength said not just himself or someone else? That's right, Hajime admitted that apart from himself -the strongest human- only Kai could beat gokuzaku and this also implied that he was the second strongest man of the mankind. That is the reason why I believe that Hajime trusted Kai's abilities to let him do the probe Kakeru task. Because even though the blond was introduced by the children, they have never seen a higher demon that is not intended to harm them before. Hence, Hajime needed to make sure that Kakeru didn’t fool them.

After Shun, Arata, and Kakeru introduced themselves, showing that they weren't as brutal as the other higher demons. However, If Kai was surprised at them by 1, Shun must have amazed him by 100.

[Kai: You guys are indeed different, I have encountered a few gokuzaku before and only their presence were scary enough.

Shun: Oh a human that had confronted with the higher deamons before and can still standing at this place to chat now. I don't know whether to call you very lucky or skilled]

The White Demon Lord, who has lived for over 3000 years, must have witnessed many things but when Shun heard about Kai's battle experience, he couldn’t help but opened his eyes widely. If the one who told Shun the tales was Hajime then everything could be explained immediately (the “yang” of the world), yet the person standing in front of him was just an ordinary young warrior. Kai was not only defeating a low-level demon, but also had smashed some of the highest-level demons and returned undamaged and this unprecedented feat stunned the White Demon Lord. Thus, If the higher demons reach a specific standard, they can endure Hajime’s yang energy and also want to be closed to it, like the gokuzakus in our party. Shun is the strongest of the strong in all of the higher demons and he chose Kai to be his contract partner. Besides the interested in Kai of Shun, I believe that Kai is also have enormous “yang” energy too and it attracted the latter.

When Kai and Hajime are chased by Doutaku’s party at the first time, Haru surprised "Are these two humans ?!" And You must also uttered the same sentence to Kai as he struggled with the latter attacks. Kai is not only can slash the gokuzaku like slashing mud, but also use his bare hands to lift it and slam them to the ground. When Kai said he had encountered the gokuzaku before and won, he wasn’t lying to show off. It is simply the obvious fact.

You can see that Kai is still very young right now, which means that the first time he fights gokuzaku he was even younger. Assuming the ages of the human characters in this stage are taken to be the same as the originals, Taikyoku Denki was released in AGF 2016 so Kai is 21 years old which means he was already able to defeat gokuzaku in his adolescence. After many years of practice, Kai came up with a method how to defeat the higher demons and he passed on to his juniors.

[Kai: No matter how strong and fast the gokuzaku is, there will be a time when they are within our reach. Just calmly and patiently waiting for that pivotal moment, we can do the counterattack]

Kakeru couldn’t help but sweated while Koi and Iku reported about Kai's teachings. Hence, the blond told Rui “Scary, they're even scarier than the gokuzaku I've met before."

That is not a complicate tactic and it seems very simple at first glance, but not everyone can do it. Don't forget that gokuzaku is at the top of the food chain, and humans are at the bottom. So it was understandable for Kakeru to be horrified when hearing a human could say lightly about how to kill gokuzaku.

After the peace returned, Kai made a contract with Shun and accepted the "Must play with me every day" condition of him. The word "play" of the White Demon King certainly cannot be normal and it was shown in the sentence said by You "Isn't that very difficult to fulfill?". Shun used to be bored so he slept all day, now he stays awake all days and live happily. Thus, there is no sign of "boredom" on Shun’s face so he definitely having lots of fun with Kai and the latter was not only survived but also found the joy in it!

3. Conclusion

Kai is the second strongest warrior of humanity is undeniable, but he is not arrogant because of it. We can see that Kai is also a person has a wide heart like the sea and his personality just like the sunshine. He happily played with the kids and was even able to make friends with the gokuzaku. So it is not difficult to explain why everyone around like him.

*Note: the part 2 is about some of highlight and funny moments scenes of Kai~

https://celestiteflowers.tumblr.com/post/640922973979770880/taikyoku-denki-analysis-of-fuduki-kai-part

[sebastianshaw]

And I’m sure Snowbird getting a happy ending had nothing to do with her being a blonde white woman and Haven being a dark skinned woc

I don’t think it was THE reason, but I would not rule it out as a contributing factor.

The major reason is that Snowbird is a hero and a major character, whereas Haven was an extremely minor character and a villain. So it’s pretty standard in that regard for Snowbird to get a happy ending, and Haven not to. Especially considering that, while Snowbird was not a character that “belonged” to anyone in particuliar, Haven was the creation of DeMatteis and when he left the book, so did she. That’s why her story just ENDS so abruptly after her confrontation with Charles, even though it seems like it should just be getting starting---her creator took off, and the new writer wasn’t interested in her.

She pops back up in the annual a year or two later to die, and I strongly suspect this was due to readers writing in and asking what happened to her; I can’t confirm this for fact, but TV Tropes claimed that fans actually refused to root against her because she was so sympathetic and benevolent, so I imagine a lot of them wanted to know where she went and this was to get them to shut up.

(It kind of reminds me of when this webcomic writer wrote a character he meant as despicable and twisted, and she was, but she was also way more deep and interesting than the 2D mouthpieces the protagonists were, so fans kept asking when she’d come back. He got so fed up he drew her dying in a gross and humiliating way. So yeah, if people were indeed asking “what happened to Haven and her evil possessed fetus?” and writing her dying in the mud giving birth while a goddess victim-blames her was the response...yeah. Again I cannot be for sure this is what happened, it’s just a GUESS.)

But yeah the big reason is Snowbird is a heroine and important, Haven was a flash-in-the-pan villain that only one writer wanted to write and had to be gotten out of the way when someone new came in. Nothing deeper than that. But the WAY that Haven’s story played out, especially compared to Snowbird’s...that’s got a lot of sexism and quite potentially racism there, yeah. So um, let’s get into that. Under a cut for length because I doubt people following a Shaw blog for Shaw want to see a bunch of non-Shaw rambling.

Haven’s story, as I have written about MANY times on her blog, is REALLY UNCOMFY in its sexism, racism, and xenophobia. Let me say, I do not think DeMatteis intended this. He writes Haven as a very kind, well-intentioned person even at her worst, and I happen to know he has a genuine real-life interest in Indian spirituality, which I think is definitely what inspired her. Unfortunately, these good intentions didn’t stop Unfortunate Implications galore: - Our first Indian/Hindu/Zoroastrian character is not only a villain, her “evil” philosophy is taken directly from real-world Hindu beliefs - She is opposed by a team comprised ENTIRELY of white people who work for the US government who scoff at those beliefs and refer to them as “New Age” (aka a white hippie movement that appropriated a lot of actual Hindu ideas but certainly did not invent it!) - The US government says she’s a terrorist. Polaris raises doubts, because Haven’s actions at that point have been nothing but benevolent (she saved Polaris) whereas the same government making these accusations has been malevolent (the people trying to kill/capture Polaris were US agents, despite Polaris working for the government, who attacked her because she had the same energy signal as Magneto) When they go to see Haven in person, she’s preaching peace between humans and mutants. Havok opens fire on her---so basically, a law enforcement officer shooting without warning at an unarmed WOC who isn’t doing anything threatening and they don’t even know has superpowers yet--and Haven has to hit the deck. Despite her own great power that we later learn she has, she never retaliates. But we find out that yes, actually, everything the government said about her is true, she’s leading a terrorist death-cult, and so it’s a-okay that our white government cop FIRED A FUCKING PLASMA BURST AT HER WHEN SHE WAS JUST STANDING THERE. The moral of her story is seriously “this brown woman with a funny religion is a terrorist because the government said so, no matter how nice and gentle she seems, and thus any excessive force against her was definitely justified even if we didn’t know that at the time” like it’s CHILLING. - Haven herself actually has very questionable agency in all this. She’s actually been pregnant for twenty years; her unborn child is permanently in the first trimester and possessed by the powerful demon known as The Adversary (which doesn’t make sense timeline-wise, but I have no doubt this thing can time travel, its entire point is to fuck the rules of universal order) We don’t know exactly how much it can influence her or perhaps even control her, but we do know it’s been talking in her head from 20 years and came on at a time she was REALLY messed up and vulnerable, and manipulated her at the least. I personally think it probably was controlling or influencing her at a very deep subtle level, but that’s just my interpretation. At the least though, again, talking in her head for 20 years, that’s the supernatural equivalent of schizophrenia and we wouldn’t blame her for THAT, right? - Oh, and about it appearing when she was at her lowest, most vulnerable point? Know why she was at her lowest, most vulnerable point just when she happened to be pregnant? Haven’s story is she was born extremely rich but was so passionate about using her privilege to help the poor that she ran away from her parents---philanthropists themselves, but who wanted to protect her from the outside world too---to go work directly in the streets, bathing lepers and cradling dying babies. She got her name “Haven” because she used her wealth to renovate a children’s hospital of the same name, I’m serious. She was literally a fucking SAINT. And then she fell in love with a man, and he used her, knocked her up, and ran off. She was DEEPLY ashamed and berated herself not only for her loss of “purity” but also for being “selfish” and forgetting the children. This is...so sad, and so DEEPLY entrenched in how women, ESPECIALLY women of color in a colonized culture, are considered “selfish” and “evil” if they don’t utterly sacrifice themselves 24/7 to care for others and dare have wants/needs of their own. So she fell into this deep despair and that’s when her fetus starts talking to her and filling her head with twisted lies that preyed on both her devout spirituality and her desire to help others.

There is no more sympathetic villain setup POSSIBLE, you’d think Haven would be a SHOE-IN for a redemption arc or at least being saved from her own “child”, but she gets neither. She dies alone in the mud, having only now realized as the birth is coming just what it is she’s about the bring into the world. Roma, the Omniversal Guardian Goddess and eternal foe of the Adversary, appears to watch. Haven begs her, not to save her own life but to stop the Adversary from the terrible things it’s going to do to the world. To her last breath, her concern is others. And Roma tells her “I would weep for you, but you brought this on yourself.” So basically, Haven, who is the most wonderful person in the world and who VERY much fits expected gender roles (gentle, maternal, loving, non-violent even when attacked, long hair, pink and purple flowing clothes, literally SPARKLES) has sex ONE TIME and she’s punished for it in the worst fucking way while the guy who impregnated her gets off scott-free. It’s just...it’s the worst narrative, in terms of sexism AND racism AND just in general. That’s not even getting into, say, the really uncomfy way her meeting with Xavier is handled, eesh. Compare, Snowbird. She’s actually far LESS the “perfect” woman than Haven is, she’s very cold and aloof and she even contemplates LETTING HER SON DIE so that her ties with mortality will be severed and she can join her divine family in paradise. But she had that son within the confines of MARRIAGE to a mortal man, and she only got married after her duties were done, unlike Haven on both counts. And her loss, and the loss of her child, are deeply mourned by those around her, she has a very dignified and beautiful funeral with Snow White style glass coffins, and we see the spirits of herself, her husband, and her child all ascend to the Inua paradise together, the gods having decided to let them in even though mortals have never been allowed before. She gets divine exception, Haven gets divine condemnation. She gets a beautiful funeral surrounded by loved ones, Haven’s corpse is probably still rotting in the jungle and her brother likely still has no idea what happened to her. To be clear I in no way resent Snowbird for her better treatment in a similiar story, I like Snowbird, but it is very disparate in how differently these seemingly similar situations---possessed baby and such---were handled, and the specific ways in which Haven’s were handled so badly ARE very much the product of bigotry that Snowbird didn’t suffer in part due to her being a white or white-coded character (in addition to being, again, a heroine and a major character, which helped her a lot too) Also, is it just me or is Marvel like...weird around childbirth/babies/motherhood and mixing that with demons/evil spirits/possession? Because in that same vein we’ve also got Madelyne Pryor and Wanda Maximoff who also go through demonic possession that’s related in some way to being mothers of babies. That’s a very strange pattern to have and something’s going on there.   As a note, it bugs me that Snowbird’s human disguise as “Anne McKenzie” is a BLONDE WHITE WOMAN. Like, yes, her human father was white, but her mother Nelvanna is one of the Inua, the ancient gods of Canada from LONG before white people showed up and WHO LOOK LIKE FIRST NATIONS PEOPLE, Snowbird herself is constantly emphasized as a child of these lands, she is literally magically BOUND to these lands and can’t leave them without weakening and dying, she was raised by an indigenous shaman, and she can only turn into animals that are INDIGENOUS to Canada. She is very unsubtly the embodiment of pre-colonial Canada, so it’s just...asinine to me her human form is that of a colonizer. I get they probably didn’t think further than “let’s give her human form blonde hair so it’s recognizably her” but like, that’s the problem, they didn’t THINK. Also I feel like her being mixed would really thematically fit her, since a strong part of her story was struggling between her divine and human heritage and being forced to try to “pick a side” which is something I’ve heard (I’m white) that a lot of irl mixed people deal with. It just would make more SENSE.

[benisasoftboi]

In Which I Explain The Entirety of Star Wars, Despite Being Very Much Unqualified To Do So

I have only seen one Star Wars movie - it was The Last Jedi. I saw it, with no context, two years ago in theatres when it first came out. I was very surprised to find out that it made a lot of people very angry, because I quite liked it, as did the friends I saw it with. I can’t say I remember much though.

All the rest of my Star Wars knowledge comes from its generally inescapable nature in the pop cultural zeitgeist. I might have seen a bit of Episode 6, which I don’t know the name of, when I was round a friend’s house once, but I was very tired, and it was about a decade ago anyway.

That’s just some context for my lack of qualifications to do this. My friend said I should still do it anyway. I will not be looking anything up as I write this, so all spelling mistakes and other general errors are mine. 

So anyway - The Entirety of Star Wars:

Original Trilogy 

There is a guy called Luke. He is played by Mark Hamill and he is George Lucas’s self insert. He lives on a planet where there is only sand, because in this universe all planets have only one terrain, I think. He drinks milk. The milk might be blue.

A guy played by Liam Neeson finds Luke. I think this guy’s name is probably Obi Wan Kenobi, but I might have that wrong. At some point he will die tragically and it will be formative for Luke, but then he will also come back as a ghost. Ghosts exist in this universe. 

Possibly Luke has known this guy for a long time or possibly he is a stranger, I am not sure. Somehow they end up on a spaceship.

Luke needs to learn how to use magic powers called the Force, which seems to be mostly telekinesis, and also lets him use a really fancy but probably impractical sword called a lightsaber that shoots blue or sometimes green or sometimes red light. This is called Jedi training. Jedi Knight is a religion. You can claim to be one on the census in the real world. They seem to be really serious people despite having a silly name.

Everyone also has guns that go ‘pew pew pew’ and nerds get really mad when you make fun of that.

Luke will meet many colourful and interesting people on his journey. These include:

A woman played by Carrie Fisher who is also his twin sister but he doesn’t know that until after they kiss. Her name is Leia or maybe Laia. She has silly hair. At one point she wears a slave bikini because she’s enslaved to a gelatinous blob because that’s just how it goes when you’re the woman in a 70s sci-fi movie

A guy called Han Solo because he is Edgy and Does Things Solo. He and Leia have a romance and it’s Drama. He also has a spaceship that people will build very impressive lego replicas of. He dresses like a cowboy. I’m 90% that he is played by Harrison Ford

A bunch of walking teddy bears called Ewoks who can kill you and live in a jungle

A guy called Lando Calrissian who I think wears fancy clothes and that’s all I know about him, he might actually be a villain I’m not sure. He might die?

A little blue robot who hid behind some rocks one time and then in the re-release he hid behind more rocks than before and the fans got Mad

A big gold robot who is nervous and gay and might be gay for the little blue robot, like they might be married but that also might be a meme I’m not certain

A weird green goblin thing called Yoda who makes Luke carry him around and speaks in broken English that annoying people have spent the last thirty years imitating. He dies, but then is a ghost so it doesn’t matter really

A guy called Boba Fett who is a bounty hunter. I genuinely have no clue how he fits in to all of this. He might not actually be from Star Wars, maybe I’m mixing him up with something else. 

Luke is also trying to fight the Evil Darth Vader who works for an Evil CGI Emperor of the Evil Empire. They live on a big spaceship called the Death Star and it looks like a moon but isn’t and people think it’s funny when you point that out for some reason. They are the Dark Side, which makes them easy to root against because they’re just cartoonishly evil I guess. I think they are also bureaucrats. They have Stormtroopers, who might be brainwashed people or might just be robots, or might even be clones. They all wear identical white armour with helmets so people don’t care when they get shot. Kinda like fencers.

Darth Vader is actually Luke’s father and this is a twist except not anymore. This means he is also Leia’s father, I’m not sure if she knew. Also Luke loses his arm. Darth Vader gets redeemed and then dies but also takes down the Evil CGI Emperor with him.

I don’t know what happens in any of the movies, but I know that the first one ends with them getting plans for or from Leia, not sure, the second one has the dad twist, and the third one has ghosts. Also they blow up the Death Star by shooting a garbage chute really hard. 

Prequels

These movies are widely disliked. The first one has too much bureaucracy. They are about Darth Vader’s backstory. He used to be a guy called Anakin. He will Become Evil. He will also meet many colourful characters. They include:

His love interest, who is called Padme. She wears a silly hat and dies of a combination of Childbirth and Sadness. I saw this bit happen one time when I was a kid and I was stuck round my mum’s friend’s house and her son was playing through this part in the LEGO game. It was sad

A guy with a red face whose name might be Maul and has robot legs? 

A guy called Jar Jar Binks who everyone seems to simultaneously hate and feel a desperate need to make sex jokes about 

Angry Jedi People

Probably some robots

Anakin hates sand and is pretty but grumpy. His hatred of sand is what will prevent him from finding Luke in the original movies. He falls in a volcano and gets turned into a robot man and it’s very dramatic. He has an angry red lightsaber. He murders a bunch of children by executing Order 66. Or maybe that was in the first set of movies I don’t know. I’m not sure how they made three of these movies, there doesn’t seem to be much to them.

Also there is something called ‘mitoclorians’ and I don’t know what they are but they make nerds Very Mad.

Expanded Universe

There was an expanded universe, but Disney said it wasn’t canon when they bought the rights, so now it isn’t. If I were a Star Wars fan, I would not take this lying down, because what right does Disney have to say what’s canon? Why is it up to the copyright holders? They are a corporation, not a writer. Expanded universes are always really fun and full of wacky nonsense that would never get put in the mainline stuff. I don’t like it when people try to dismiss them. 

Stand Alone Movies

When the new trilogy started, they also made some stand alone films. They were called Rogue One and Solo. Rogue One is about a woman named Gin or Jinn or Jin or Ginne or - I wish I hadn’t restricted myself to not looking anything up - Urso. The spelling doesn’t matter because she dies. So does everyone else. Then Darth Vader shows up.

Solo is about Han Solo and his friends and they have an adventure and there’s a robot who wants robot rights but she dies so no one has to address the slavery thing. Also apparently it was going to be a comedy but got reshot as a drama. I hope I never watch it because that sounds terrible, even as much as I like Donald Glover who I think is in it probably. I think his character might have been in love with the dead robot.

Sequel Trilogy

These movies are about a girl called Rey. She makes nerds mad by existing and being the protagonist. She is Space British. She is a scavenger and is friends with a really cute little orange robot. Somehow she ends up in space. She starts hanging out with Older Leia’s crew, which include a pilot named Poe Dameron and a guy called Finn, but I don’t know why he’s there. People ship them with each other, and also with Rey. 

The other person people ship Rey with is Kylo Ren, who I call Space Zuko because when I saw The Last Jedi, he showed up and I was like ‘oh, it’s Zuko from Avatar: The Last Airbender but in space’, because he has bad hair and is angry about his Daddy Issues. I hope in the next movie he gets better hair and fewer Daddy Issues like Real Zuko did. A lot of people get really angry about Rey and Space Zuko being shipped together, but they’re still the most popular ship on AO3. So no matter what happens in the next one, nerds are going to be mad about it, and I am not looking forward to it.

Kylo Ren killed his dad, Han Solo, because he was radicalised to be evil for reasons I don’t know. The guy who runs the New Evil Group, which is called the First Order, is an ugly CGI guy called Snoke. It was apparently a Big Twist that Kylo kills him Last Jedi, and it made nerds really mad. I don’t understand why people were surprised, because when I saw the movie, I saw that guy and was like ‘oh he’s gonna get killed by Space Zuko because that would be Drama and also from a production standpoint having a guy who needs lots of special effects is much more difficult than just having Adam Driver wear a scary mask’ and then I was right so maybe I’m smarter than all the nerds. 

There is also a guy called Hux and he is a ginger. I think he is evil.

The other thing people got really mad about was that Rey’s parents were not established characters. People wanted her dad to be Luke, I think, who is in Last Jedi. I was happy about this because I like Mark Hamill. He spent the movie teaching her about the force while they hang out on an island with a race of merchandising opportunities called Porgs. He dies at the end but he might be in the next one as a ghost anyway. 

Also there was a girl called Rose and people decided that not liking the character meant they could be mean to the actress, which is not true and everyone who was mean to her should be ashamed. There was another woman as well, but I don’t remember her name, she had purple hair and was serious and I have no idea if she was good or evil. 

Kylo Ren’s real name is Ben which is not very sci-fi. Maybe that’s why he changed it.

Though come to think, Luke isn’t a very sci-fi name either. 

Anyway, that’s everything I know about Star Wars.

Feel free to ask me questions about Star Wars and have me try to answer.

Do not, under any circumstances, try to actually explain Star Wars to me. I’m much happier as is, thank you very much

[humaudrey]

How about Mal for the question game thing?

How do you feel about this character:

Oh. Boy. Here we go.

So the very FIRST time I watched D1 (prior to reading the books, mind you), I didn't mind her. The only thing I didn't like about Mal then was that she DIDN'T APOLOGIZE TO AUDREY (which was the whole reason D3 happened but I'm not turning this into another pro!Audrey post because that's the last thing you guys wanna read, I have plenty of em). But other than that, I didn't mind her. I always found myself interested in everyone else, and I liked the other Core Four members more (then Uma came along and took the favorite VK spot from Evie).

Then I read the Isle of the Lost and went "Yikes". But...if the books and movies take place in the same universe, Evie seemed to forgive her, despite the lack of apology so I was somewhat okay.

It wasn't until Rise and Return to the Isle of the Lost when I realized this girl is/was a bully. Huge yikes. Then D2 happened and she came off whiny and I'm just like "ugh, where's Audrey and Uma?"

D3 made her just a bit more likeable, but overall, I'm not crazy about this girl. I don't dislike her or hate her, I'm just disappointed and barely tolerate her. She's supposed to be the main protagonist and yet here I am wanting to know everyone else's story and see their development. I like fanon Mal better and I believe she can be redeemed. She tried to half-ass an apology to her victims so I guess it's a start?!

All the people I romantically ship with this character:

Jay (blame Tumblr, The Isle of the Lost, and all three movies)

Evie (even though it's a bit problematic when taking everything into consideration, sue me, again blame Tumblr and Space Between)

An OC of mine who's the son of Fauna in my Barriers Fanfic Series (not yet published)

Jane

Anthony Tremaine (just a bit)

My non romantic OTP for this character:

Mal/Uma or Mal/Evie

My unpopular opinion about this character:

I think Mal should have horns (not insinuating she's the devil or anything. I think it'd be cool 😶😈😂), and I think her signature color should be green (so Evie and/or Uma can rock the purple as they're supposed to)

One thing that I wish would happen/had happened in canon: AN ACTUAL APOLOGY TO UMA AND AUDREY YOU COWARD!!!!

Character Ask!