#quality time is something i'll never take for granted

[cosmicdreamgrl]

it's already may 1st back home (still tuesday here though, we love timezone differences) and all i can think is this is the first anniversary we've celebrated together since he first enlisted in december. goodness.

[lizzaneia-elizalde]

Hi I'm back. How are you?

How about... A yandere that has had a bunch of lovers and either killed them because he got bored or broke their heart beyond repair? But them he meets the reader and something changes?

Idk it seems like a fun dea.

Yandere! Male! Player x gn! Barista! Reader

Uh ohz, here is the player 🙄 there's a little twist to the request, meowing! I hope you don't mind. (Another Greek mythos twist. Not as blatant as Hades though. Only a bit of the Greek mythos is grabbed, not all.)

I'll see to it how can we break this little man

ヘ(￣ω￣ヘ)

AND, I AM GOING TO STOP TAKING NEW YANDERE REQUESTS! But, I am going to take asks about the existing yanderes now!

Yandere! Player name: Amor

A resounding slap echoed throughout the bustling cafe, silencing the people talking to each other. The woman, tear stricken and angry, looked at the man in front of her.

"We're over!" She yelled before stomping away from the cafe, leaving the man behind.

The people started to gossip amongst each other, but one particular action by the man stunned them.

He just sat down, took out his phone, and called somebody.

"Hey, fancy meeting tonight? I just know of this nice cafe. Date, my treat."

Shameless, the people thought as he chuckled and ended the call with a lazy smirk, stirring his coffee and sipping it.

Amor. Extremely handsome man. Charming, always knew how to get the ladies.

That's what made him full of shit since being handsome is his only redeeming quality.

He's arrogant, a bastard, selfish, has a pride taller than the Eiffel tower, and a total player.

He juggles women left and right, flavor of the day, who's gonna be my girl for the morning, afternoon, and night?

Why do people flock to this man again?

Ah, because the Gods favor this bitch.

What did he do in his past life that women love this man?

Well, in his past life, he's a boring nerd.

His family loved him dearly, and wanted him to succeed in life.

So, attending academic camps, prestigious schools, goddamn Kumon? He got it all.

Awards, upon awards. He collects them like pokemon.

Did it make him interesting?

No. All he knew is academics, and no outside skill.

He's book smart, not street smart.

Poor guy wasn't even attractive. So, when he finished University in an Ivy League Uni, he's lost. He doesn't have charisma to charm employers, he doesn't have the confidence to do public work...

Well, that, and NASA already hired him.

What? He is not street smart and has a hard time finding a job himself, but that doesn't mean he doesn't have connections.

In short, he's a Nepo baby.

At least he's a genius so NASA made sure to use him thoroughly.

But, he felt... Bored.

He wanted more from this life of his.

He wanted a girlfriend for fuck's sake!

So, by some stupid and desperation he himself never thought of doing, he turned to the old gods.

The old Gods, surprised by a sudden influx of eager and desperation of faith from only one man, decided to entertain them.

"PLEASE! WHEN I DIE, MAKE ME EXTREMELY HANDSOME AND HAVE WOMEN LEFT AND RIGHT!"

Oh... That's not...

He's really superficial....

Did the Gods care though? Nah. He's really entertaining. Awakening old Gods just for... Women?

So they granted his wish.

When he died of old age (unfortunately for him.), He woke up to another wealthy and loving family. But this time, he's the son of a world renowned Kpop idol, and a Miss Universe.

"This is overkill." Amor thought to himself as his mother cradled her. "But damn, ain't I happy!"

Growing up, even as a kid, girls liked him. He felt like on the top of the world. He retained his memory, so he's practically a gifted child. No, perfect child even!

Except that he's actually a foul kid.

He became arrogant, a snob. Someone who viewed himself too highly for people.

But do his parents care?

Eh...

They spoil the kid a lot. And turn a blind eye to his lack in manners.

Again, went to prestigious Universities, to Kumon, academic camps.

Everything was a breeze for him now.

He got a job as a model immediately. He decided to not go down the academic path, but use his parents' connections once more to climb up the showbiz ladder!

He's still a Nepo baby in this life.

Well, again, his handsomeness is almost too good to be true (work of the goddess of beauty), so his model career is skyrocketing in success.

And women.

Countless of them.

He cycles through them like toilet paper. Throwing them away once he's got his fill.

Yet, people don't care.

He somehow built a reputation off of being a player. When people say that "he broke somebody's heart again!"

"Eh, what did you expect from being in a relationship with Amor?" They would say with a shake of their head and a smile.

That's how much the Gods intervened with his life.

Once he sets his eyes on someone, he 100% would get them.

Unless....

"Tsk. Where can I go now..."

Amor paced around the street, turning heads left and right as this man sculpted by the gods had a worried look on his face.

The cafe he frequents closed down, now he needs a new place to take his women to dates to.

He's about to get his phone when a flyer hit him directly on his face. With an irritated glower, he grabbed the flyer.

"ow! What the f... Oh?"

He stopped, seeing the content.

"new cafe open?"

It looks like a generic cafe. But what was interesting was that the cafe is located in an indoor garden. Like a greenhouse.

"This is interesting. Women love flowers, don't they? And a garden of all places!" He laughs, making the gods stir from the sudden new cafe they got.

They all fuzzed, saying that this would be a good place. But, the goddess of Beauty stirred. Saying she got a bad feeling about this.

"relax, nothing will happen."

And when he got inside the cafe, he immediately got shocked by the barista, you.

Has there ever been an ethereal beauty like you? Someone... Someone who rivals even the goddess of beauty herself?!

The goddess stirred again, shackles raised. She never made you, so why are you this attractive?

Then, the goddess whispered on his ear.

It's to make you fall in love with a monster. Someone ugly, a beast... Anything to get your status down! Nobody can be as beautiful as her!

Envy filled the goddess as she gave Amor arrows to hit you with.

Now, assigned with the task of making you fall in love with what the goddess call a 'monster', he sets off to your house in the middle of the night. With the help of the other Gods, he became invisible and flew on to your balcony.

With a creak, your balcony doors opened. Making him shimmy inside through the small crack.

Yet, fate tempted him as the moonlight hit your form. In a vulnerable state, your androgynous beauty is amplified. Your long eyelashes, your skin... Your figure...

Truly, your beauty rivaled the goddess. No, you were more beautiful than her.

His throat dried, eyes glazed over.

Gods, are they tempting him?

It would be a waste for you to fall in love with an ugly guy.

His fingers twitched, trying to grab the arrow.

"OW!"

He seethed, doubling over as he clutched his finger. It got pricked by the arrow.

He somehow forgot a crucial information.

'whoever the first person the pricked sees if the arrows only pricked one, they will fall in love with the first person they sees.'

And, as his eyes irritably looked at you, overwhelming love filled inside him as he gasped in the sudden influx of emotions.

He kneeled down, eyes wide.

He's rigid. All he could see is your form. Lovely and so bright.

And hid eyes softened. A dull light in it as his lips twitched into a lovesick smile.

He was already attracted to you before, and now, pricked by the arrows, he's utterly obsessed with you.

With a twitch of his hand once more, he grabbed the arrow and stabbed himself fully to the thigh.

"GAGH!"

He doubled over, gasping, twitching for air as his heart pulsed through his ears. His eyes frantically finding your sleeping form before letting out a shaky moan from the satisfaction.

It was like a drug. Everytime he sees you, he gets overwhelmed with feelings of affection.

Is this what love is about?

And before he knows it, the arrows are all used up.

It was morbid, seeing this man stabbed with so many arrows.

But his face says otherwise. Like a drugged up man, overdosed on ecstacy, he was in a drooling trance from the addictive feeling of love for you.

The arrow is effective enough by one arrow, and now this?

Well, let's just say...

"I count, right?" He shakily asked the gods. "I'm a monster, somebody who breaks women's heart left and right."

He trembled, standing up.

He walked over to you, legs unsteady as he dropped to his knees once more and planted his lips on your own.

It tasted, you tasted so sweet, divine upon his lips.

He wants more, but he can't risk waking you up.

"Goodbye, my love. See you tomorrow." Amor whispered, grabbing your hand and dragging his nose on your skin and inhaling your scent. Exhaling shakily, he stood up and flew away.

Let's say, the goddess of Beauty was really angry at him.

But her condition, a 'monster', fits him. So, what can she do?

She gritted her teeth and looked at him with hatred, yet complacency.

You're so pretty, it hurts.

"Welcome to the Psyche cafe! How may I help you-- oh hello, sir Amor! The usual?"

Amor slowly nodded, clearing his throat.

"yes. The usual."

It's been weeks since then. And he made sure to make himself a regular in the cafe. He stopped going on dates, and pulled a lot of strings to somehow burry the player accusations. He knows he can't really burry it all.

So he made (threatened) the women he dated to be positive about him.

He wants to fly on your radar, spot on the middle, so bad.

So, with the invisibility power he got from the Gods, he always followed you. Even up to your home.

At first, his heart pounded like crazy. What if he suddenly appeared? Will you be freaked out? Surprised? Will you run away--

No, you can't run away.

Like you can, anyways.

He knew of your favorite food, fashion sense, hell, your taste in men...

He slowly changed himself into the man of your dreams.

Like a persona he integrated into himself, this sudden change shocked the people. But, they welcomed this change.

"Is he in love, that's why he's changing?"

More than that.

He's making himself into the perfect boyfriend for you.

Now, all he needs is you!

"Here's your coffee, sir!" You greeted with a sweet smile that he swore he had to grab his soul from leaving his body. "Enjoy!"

He gently grabbed the coffee and as usual, gave you 200$.

"sir..." You grimaced.

"Please, just accept it." He smiles. "You've always been a pleasant person to talk to, y/n. So, just see it as a generous tip. That I frequently give."

You looked down at the bill and smiled. Warmness spreads through your chest.

"thank you s--"

You looked up, and froze from the look he's giving you.

Deep, crazed...

Obsessed.

You shivered in fear.

Sensing your eyes on him, he coughed loudly, averting his eyes before returning to the man you knew.

Or did you actually know him?

You don't even know anymore.

But hey, he gives huge tips.

"Thanks again for the coffee." Amor smiles, trying to sweep what happened under the rug as he waved at you.

He went to his usual table. Somewhere secluded, yet has a clear view of you surrounded by flowers.

He observes you. Plans on what to do next.

He knew he can't just waltz in and whisk you away. That's barbaric.

But he's not opposed to the idea though...

He smirks.

He can probably pull tons of strings for you to end up in his arms.

He loves you, don't mistake that.

But, a little bit of... Force would be good.

He's an impatient man.

Also, did he mention that he's a selfish asshole?

How about, making your life so miserable. Getting you kicked out of this cafe, your family suddenly getting a huge debt...

Something he knows you can't pay immediately.

And his family would coincidentally sponsor you by giving you a condition of marrying him!

Anything to be with you, really.

Or, just steal another arrow and hit it with you. That's also plausible.

But, the goddess is pissed with him. So that's the last resort.

He sips his coffee and crosses his long legs.

He's favored by the Gods anyways.

His eyes narrowed slightly as you interacted too amicably with your coworker. An obvious blush on the coworker's face as he got too touchy with you.

No, everyone in the cafe is enamoured with you. Your beauty too good for this world.

He gripped the handle of his cup.

But first, let's get rid of potential rivals, yes?

You are only his.

What is there to fear? He has the resources in his hands to make you his.

You didn't know yet, but your fate is already sealed, tied, and shackled to him.

You don't really have a choice.

[wood-white-writer]

"Didn't mean to make your heart Blue" || [5/...]

“Where I'll be looking in their eyes when they're down, I'll be there on their side. I'm losing by their side.”

— Mitski, "Bet On Losing Dogs"

Pairing: Buggy the Clown (Live action) x F!Reader

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 6

Summary: You were an apprentice of Gol D. Roger’s crew in your youth, long before his eventual demise. Along with the Red-Haired Shanks and Buggy, you were a formidable trio; the embodiment of a new generation of pirates yet to come. But times changed, and so did you and your friends. 

It's been a few weeks since the events in Orange Town, and Luffy notices something that others do not. So, he decides to ask you.

Warnings: Canon typical violence, LA!Verse, No (fully bodied) Buggy this chapter, Luffy being the precious cinnamon we all love and must protect above all else, flashbacks about Shanks, past discussions, Luffy and Reader have a heart-to-heart.

A/N: I was initially going to write them going to the Baratie this chapter, but it became too long so next one for sho.

Taglist:@kurinhimenezu, @carpinchootaku, @ay0nha, @teh-vampire-bunny, @lokiscure, @internationalsuper-spy @detectivesparrow , @yuriwk, @notyuralycat, @angeli-fucking-cat, @machinema7k (If you want to be tagged for this story, just send me a message or leave a comment :))

You're sitting by the table in Party's bar, nursing a cold glass of rum against your cracked lips as you observe to the kid - Luffy - demonstrating his newfound Devil Fruit powers without any regard for poor Makino's furniture. 

You don't get him, at all. Then again, you don’t get kids. 

You've never thought of yourself as someone who easily got along with them ... or people in general. Shanks has always been the better-suited one for that kind of work. Whereas he is smiling and grinning at the kid’s mischief, you've barely offered him more than a glance at most.

Your crew has been positioned in Foosha village for the better part of the month, stacking up on resources and food in preparation for your next job. Incidentally, the Red-Haired Pirates also happened to be in town for similar excursions. You rarely see Shanks nowadays since you parted ways several years ago, but whenever you happen to come across one another, you share a drink on his tab.

While your crew is around and about, replenishing their strength and vigor for the work to come, you're content with just sitting here at your leisure. When you're not plundering or fighting or attacking Marine bases, you can't find it in yourself to do much of anything anymore. 

Nothing adds any purpose to your life save for what keeps you fed and clothed, which in the life of a pirate, simply means pirating.

"I've heard you had good fortune on your latest heist," Shanks says from where he's sitting opposite of you. "For your efforts, the Marines have granted you among the highest bounties in all of the East-Blue."

You hum noncommittally in response, not offering much to the conversation in terms of merriment. "The quality of the Marines has been in decline. It says more about their effort, or lack thereof, than mine."

"Do you know what they call you nowadays?"

"They call me a lot of names, you got to be more specific."

"'Cross-Hairs, the Beast of the East'. It's got a certain ring to it, don't you think?"

"Sure."

Shanks smiles the kind way he always does. Always has done.

"Gum-Gum Pistol!" 

The sound of yet another chair breaking has you rolling your eyes without even looking, and poor Makino ages ten years in seconds across the bar counter. 

"Luffy!"

"Sorry!"

Shanks laughs heartedly at the display, only to cut it short upon noticing Makino's even glare sent his way from across the bar. 

"You were careless," you state matter-of-factly and take another gulp from your drink. "You should've kept the fruit hidden more securely."

"Now, in my defense, I didn't think the lad would searching through my loot."

"Well, you should've." You slam your glass down, strong enough to leave a dent in the wooden surface. "What kind of captain leaves his loot undefended and unsupervised? Especially when it contains a Devil Fruit?"

Shanks doesn't argue with your statement and settles with taking a gulp of his own drink, letting your words simmer in his head. "You're right, I should've been more observant. Now, it'll be more difficult for him to achieve his dream."

"His dream? Of what? Becoming the King of the Pirates?" Try as you might, there's no suppressing the snort that escapes through your nose. "There's only ever been one King, and we all saw what happened to him. What do you think is going to happen to a kid who can't even swim?"

"Oh, come off it!" He gives you a playful nudge to the rib, which you reciprocate with a glare. He remains undeterred. "You mean to tell me you've never thought about finding the One Piece? Not even once?"

"I have no interest in whatever plunder Gol D. left behind." 

"Then, what does interest you?" He rests his elbow on the edge of the table and leans over to your side. "What is your dream?"

You grit your teeth under your lips, a flash of blue circulating in your head. "Dreams are for fools and children," you point your head to where Luffy is currently sitting, trying to put the chair back together with a half-empty tube of glue and little luck. 

"Come on, I know you better than that. Surely there's something in this world you want more than anything?"

"What I want is ..." You have half a mind to tell him the truth, whereas the other half wants to push the idea further down to the bottom of your chest. "Is another bottle of rum."

You raise your arm to Makino to gesture for another one, but Shanks is quick to lower it with a gentle shove of his arm. You flash him a scowl and brush off his hand, but unlike your crew or anyone else, he's not afraid.

"The point which I'm trying to make before you're completely pissed," he starts. "Is that no matter how much opposition one faces, it's that dreams are never out of reach if you have the will to reach for them."

He inclines his head over your shoulder, and you turn around to see Luffy successfully putting the chair back together. You don't know how he did it - it looked pretty busted minutes ago - but there it is, wholly intact.

And when the boy smiles, it's so vibrant and full of joy that it's almost blinding. He proudly runs over and shows the repaired chair to Makino, who proceeds to pat his head and hand him a plate of food.

"See?" Shanks grins. "Nothing is impossible."

"You can hardly consider putting a chair back together the same as achieving an impossible goal."

He shrugs. "Maybe not, but you won't know unless you try. All it takes is a little spirit."

You watch Shanks for a couple of minutes in silence, processing his mythic words, then shift your attention over to Luffy who's preoccupied with shoving an unholy amount of food into his mouth. If this is to become the future King of the Pirates one day, then it'll be an interesting future indeed.

"A little spirit, huh?" 

— — —

You're sad.

Luffy first notices it when you leave Orange Town, and it lingers throughout your voyage. 

For as long as he's known you, you've always been a person of relatively few words; never speaking unless you feel the situation requires it, and only acting when necessary. Even following the Kuro situation™, getting the Going Merry, and adding Usopp to his crew, he can tell that you're not all there anymore.

Not to be mistaken, you're not conspicuous with the way you behave. You still act like usual, talk like usual, however little, and commit yourself to your work on the ship, almost to an excessive extent. 

All in all, nothing’s changed about you. However, he’s gotten used to your face and general lack of expression most of the time, and though it doesn't seem to alter, he still catches onto the fact that you're sad. 

"Hey," he asks the group and props himself in the kitchen, legs crossed atop his seat. "Do you think she's any different?"

"Who? Your friend?" Nami asks, raising an eyebrow. "How so?"

"Well, I think she's sad."

"Doesn't look any different to me," Zoro supplies while polishing his swords on the table. 

Usopp's in the middle of munching a piece of loaf, and answers with his mouth still halfway occupied. "Dunno how she usually is, but she's kinda terrifying if you ask me."

"No, she's not," Luffy dismisses lightly. 

"What's her position on the ship, anyhow? How'd you come across her?"

"She's always been with me," Luffy answers without any thought. "And she’s a good fighter.”

Zoro — to everyone’s surprise — nods his head to this in concurrence.

Their Captain claps his hands together to get the subject back on track. "But anyway, I just think she seems kind of down now."

"How can you even tell? With eyes like these, —” Usopp puts both of his index fingers at the crow’s feet of his eyes and draws them back to imitate yours. It’s borderline shameful, truth be told. “— I can’t tell for shit what she’s feeling or thinking.”

“I just can.” Luffy shrugs.

“Has she said anything?” Nami asks. “Anything to make you ask?”

“No, not really.” He heaves a sigh and props his hand under his chin, contemplating. “But she's been different since we left Orange Town.”

"If you ask me," Zoro speaks up. "You should ask her about her relationship with that fucking clown."

"Who? Boogie?"

"Buggy," Nami corrects. "Didn't you notice that at the end? They have a history, it's obvious. They know each other, and I don't know what pirate customs are like nowadays, but I doubt you'd touch the face of an enemy unless there was something going on. Has she said anything about it?"

Luffy shakes his head. “No... but then again, she never does tell me much about anything unless I ask.”

The tangerine-haired girl blinks as if the answer to this whole predicament is obvious. She quickly comes to realize that, to Luffy, it’s not.

“So…” she prompts slowly.

“So…?”

She rolls her eyes at his inability to catch her drift. “Go ask her.”

It’s like the thought never even crossed Luffy’s mind in the first place because truth be told, it hasn’t. He lights up like a candlestick on the spot. “Yeah, I should just ask her!”

“Ask me what?”

The members of the Straw Hat pirates (save for Zoro) withdraw in various unique positions, having not heard you make your entrance before you speak. 

You’re standing in the doorway to the kitchen, eyebrow slightly quirked at the Baroque-esque scene in front of you. Deciding not to address the display, you simply ask, “Anything I should know about, Captain Luffy?”

Usopp doesn’t even dare to answer, because he knows you sure as hell don’t see him as a captain in general, much less your captain. He swears he notices you briefly look in his direction at the mention of the title, and a shiver runs across his skin. Like static electricity in the air.

“Oh, yeah,” Luffy turns to you, not an ounce of fear in his eyes as he pops the question. “Are you sad?”

You blink once, then twice, like the inquiry on its own is of unfathomable origins to you. “Do I look sad?”

The boy in the straw hat nods. “I think you do.”

“Then I’m not.” It’s not only an answer, but also a sentence that marks this subject as finished on your part. One that does not permit any subsequent additions.

You incline your head to the deck above. “We’re going to have company soon, likely Marines, and they seem to be in supply of heavy fire this time.”

———

The situation with the aforementioned opponents temporarily distracts the crew, yet Luffy maintains a close eye on you, taking note of anything that can point him to the source of the unknown problem. You talk relatively little with the other crew members, but you seem to have developed an amicable enough relationship with them compared to when you first met. 

Before, you could care less about getting to know them. Now, you’re actively going out of your way to ask Nami about her cartographic skills, even giving her tips for additions to her geographical detailing. You provide Zoro pointers on self-developed defensive techniques and ways to paralyze opponents in certain spots (which he seems appreciative of).

You even give Usopp a short nod when he tells you one of his fantastical stories, even knowing that they’re full of shit.

Luffy’s happy, but he still sees that you are not.

It’s all in your eyes. They’re hollow somehow, like the end of a barrel. He doesn’t know how he knows, only that he knows, and he’s known for a good while now.

So, that night, Luffy finds you in the kitchen by the windows, absentmindedly snacking on a red apple while you gaze into the dark nothingness outside. He also discovers that he’s subconsciously become quite observant of your habits as of late. 

For example, you specifically pick red apples above any other color when they happen to dock someplace, not even paying any mind to the green or yellow ones. Just the red ones.

“Hey,” he positions himself next to you on the bench, a piece of loaf tight in his hand. “Why are you sad?”

You turn your head just a fraction to the side to look at him, not annoyed, but not appreciative of the focus he’s settled on as of late. "Shouldn't I be asking you that? The Vice-Admiral looks a little weary as of late, after all. Are you sad about it?"

"Nope."

“So why do you insist that I’m sad?”

“Because you are,” he states like it’s obvious.

You huff humorously and return your attention to the window that supplies no real view. “How can you tell?”

“I just can.” He takes a generous bite of his food and continues talking, oblivious to the crumbles that fall while doing so. “When I’m sad, I—”

“Eat?”

“Well, yeah.” He swallows the bite down. “But I also like to talk about it with someone I trust. Shanks used to say that true friends are the kind of people you can share your heart with and not get hurt.”

This annoys you, that much he can tell. A nail digs into the apple you’re holding, leaving a crescent-shaped indent on the red skin. “Shanks said many things, and not all of it's true.”

This doesn’t deter him from pressing on the matter. “If you keep all the hurt inside, it’s going to turn bad. You know, Makino said that if you leave a piece of ham in the fridge too long, it’ll get sour and people can’t eat it.”

“Only you could find a way to compare this sort of thing to food.” You withdraw your finger from the apple and end up leaving it alone altogether. A minute or ten of silence waves between you, laced with unspoken questions and denied answers. “Tell me, Luffy, just how much did Shanks tell you about his past?”

He thinks for a moment, mimicking your movements by putting his loaf aside. “Just about his adventures with the Red-Haired Pirates, and a little about the time you served with him. Is it true you were strong enough to throw a three-hundred-pound man to the ground when you were thirteen?”

He swears it’s a snort that he catches leaving your throat, but it’s hard to differentiate it from your more-than-usual scoffs. “He exaggerated.”

“Really?”

“The man was two-fifty, at most.”

Luffy grins with genuine admiration, so much so that your face tilts back slightly, being overwhelmed by the mere brightness that is him. “Wow! You must’ve been quite a beast when you were a kid!”

He notices it again, the sadness that latches onto your eyes like insects to sour meat. Whatever brief smile adorned your lips moments ago disappears like it was never there at all. Thinking he said something wrong, Luffy prepares to apologize when you speak again.

Your voice is soft yet faint like you’re afraid speaking too loudly will make something bad happen. “It wasn’t just me and Shanks, back then, you know.”

The Captain of the Straw Hats thinks it’s almost unnatural of you to be this demure, but he doesn’t interrupt you.

“Buggy was there, too. It was the three of us, together.”

“Oh, yeah.” He remembers it now. “He did mention that in Orange Town. You served the same crew.”

“… He did, did he?”

“He said you and Shanks betrayed him, but I didn’t believe him.” Luffy knows you and has known you for longer than he’s known a lot of people in his life. You’re one of the few permanent people he’s had, and he knows with a certainty that you’re not the kind of person who leaves anyone behind, not without reason. 

Even if you did have a reason for leaving Buggy, it must have been a good one.

Your mouth opens and shuts several times in the span of a minute like you’re hesitating to talk about the past. You’ve never been one to talk about it, except to share some details about your time as captain, and even that was limited to the bare minimum.

Still, Luffy, being in no hurry for you to reach an answer, waits patiently by your side until you do decide to talk about it.

Talk about what he believes is the reason for your sadness.

“We were close back in the days,” you begin slowly. “Me, him, and Shanks. It was us against the rest of the world, and we were going to sail together to the end of the seas one day. It was our dream.”

“Then, what happened?”

You put your palm over both your eyes and rest your elbow on the window frame, heaving a sigh that resembles someone who’s spent too much of their life working and working and working without catching any breaks. Pure, simple exhaustion weighs you down, Luffy can tell. 

When you speak next, you sound tired too, and perhaps a little strained. He can’t see your eyes, and so, he can’t truthfully tell what you’re thinking now. “The thing is, I don’t know what happened. All I know is that he decided he didn’t want to stick around.” You breathe through your nostrils. “Our captain was gone, and so was the crew, but we three were still together, and I thought we were going to stay together.”

“But you didn’t.”

“No … We didn’t. I don’t know what happened, but one day when I was talking with Shanks about what to do next, Buggy came in, and it … He looked at me like … Like he hated me.” You exhale. “He did hate me, and I don’t know what it was I did, but he practically told me that we were done … And then he left. I never saw him again, up until Orange Town.”

Luffy doesn’t require your eyes this time to tell that you’re sad now because you are. You’re so sad that it’s destroying you from the inside, and even that is an understatement on its own. There are no tears trickling down your cheeks, no quivers or thickness to your voice, no nothing to base his assumptions on, but he knows.

He stays silent for a short while, doing nothing but look at you. You’re one of the strongest people he knows. He’s seen you fight; seen the strength you possess, the fire in your eyes. You’ve stayed with him ever since Shanks left Foosha Village, you’ve looked after him from the sidelines when you thought no one was watching. 

You’ve been with him throughout everything, and seeing you like this makes him feel blue on your behalf. You don’t express it yourself – you never do. You carry your weight with the same kind of strength you always do, never letting anyone see you beyond just that, and sometimes, he wonders if you’re lonely because of it. 

At least, now he knows why you’re so sad. You’re heartbroken.

He’s never been acquainted with the feeling himself, has never felt any particular inclination toward it, but he can tell it’s your heart that’s hurting now, and it’s not as easy to heal as that cuts he received on his chest from the butler.

His hat seems to itch the harder he thinks about it, as if there’s something digging at his scalp through his hat. He thought Nami patched it up for him. He tries to scratch at it, but for some reason, it doesn’t cease. Maybe he’s got lice? 

He ignores it. “It’s weird. Bunky seems to think you were the one who left him for Shanks.”

“I didn’t.”

“I know. You’re not that kind of person.” He says it so easily, without a smidgen of doubt or hesitation. You look at him through your peripheral vision, and your eyes slightly widen at his statement. “But, do you know what happened between them? Shanks and Bonky, I mean?”

“No, I don’t.” You admit with a shake of your head. You’ve tried to figure it out for years, and at some point, you decided to give up. “Shanks never told me, but whatever it was, it was enough for the stupid clown to leave for… He chose a childish rivalry over me.”

“Then, there you have it. It’s all just a big misunderstanding, so why don’t you just tell him if you meet him again?”

“You seem awfully defensive of the guy who destroyed an entire village and almost drowned you.”

“Yeah, but talking about him seems to make you happy.”

You freeze for a bit, snort, and turn your back to the window frame, leaning back and crossing your arms across your chest in silent resignation. “I tried to explain things to him back in Orange Town, and a fat load of good that did. Like I said, he hates me, and he’s sure as hell not my favorite person at the moment. If we do meet again, it likely won’t end any better than it back in Orange Town.”

“You know, –” Luffy takes another bite of his bread. “It didn’t sound like he hated you.”

“Hmm?” You raise an eyebrow, halfway curious and halfway skeptical. 

“He still remembers that you like red apples and that you hide knives in your shoes. Is that true?”

You raise both your eyebrows and look at Luffy like he’s just grown a second head. Without a word, you pull your left foot up until it rests on the bench, and withdraw not one or two knives, but four. Small and subtle, hardly enough to turn any heads, but in a flash, you throw it across the kitchen until it lands on a specific spot on the opposite wall. 

Bull’s eye.

“We used to have knife-throwing competitions,” you reminisce idly, staring at the knife lodged deep into the wall. “I was good, but Buggy was better.” Your lip tilts up an inch or two. “We made bets, and whoever lost would have to steal a bottle of whatever liquor we happened to find in the next town we docked at.”

“Oh?”

“I ended up snatching quite a lot of bottles, but once every blue moon, he would have to snatch one instead.” You smile. It’s an actual, genuine, honest smile this time, and Luffy can’t help but marvel at the sight. It’s a rare thing for you to smile like you’re doing now. It’s usually brief or sarcastic and never seems to reach your eyes. 

This one does.

He thinks you look pretty when you smile. It’s your smile, and it’s so warm that he wishes you could do it more often. He tells you as much, and a red color falls over your cheek. You promptly turn your face to the other side to save face, and it makes Luffy think.

When he thinks about his dream of becoming King of the Pirates, he can’t stop himself from smiling ear to ear. So, that begs the question: “What is your dream?” 

What makes you smile?

“My dream …” You reach for your apple and hold it against your face, the uneaten side of it shining against your face. “Is unattainable.

“I don’t think it is,” Luffy says without missing a beat and takes your hand in his, determined to make you see that. “I think that no matter how much stands against us, dreams are never impossible if you have the will to reach for them. All it takes is a little spirit.”

He doesn’t know where those words come from, but he’s heard them from someplace, and judging by your staggered reaction, you’ve heard them too. 

“A little spirit, huh?”

“Exactly! So, please tell me, what’s your dream?”

You look straight ahead into the room, resting your elbows back on the window frame without a word. He thinks you’re about to decline his question or ignore it altogether. However, he’s surprised to hear you actually answer this time, truthfully too.

“My dream was to sail the seas with him again.”

Suddenly, the itchiness on his head stops, and it stays that way.

[sxfterhearts]

cafe crush

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ jiung x reader (+ side co-worker!theo) ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅

♡ genre/warnings: just fluff!!

♡ word count: 2,371 words

♡ summary: 88. “I'll see you later.”

♡ author’s note: i have not written in literal YEARS. but this is a quick one that i whipped up due to a) my ongoing obsession with p1harmony, b) that cursed gif of jiung in the purple hoodie asdfghjhkld, c) my own experience (aka this is heavily based on my cafe crush HAHA) and d) a sudden itch to write?! i'm so rusty, so expect nothing. enjoy!!!! ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡

//

“Just ask for his number!”

“Oh my goodness, stop it!” You hissed at your co-worker, Theo, elbowing him in the ribs. “You’re being so obvious.”

“Oh, shut it.” He retorted, trying to defend himself. Mere seconds ago, Theo was teasing you and laughing boisterously, attracting the attention of some other café patrons. “Not nearly as obvious as when you ogle at him as if he’s your prince charming or something.”

“Not true!”

“So true!”

“Who’s next?” The barista called out from behind the counter. You nudged Theo forwards in response, hoping to linger at the end of the line for a bit longer to catch a glimpse of your prince charming.

Well, okay, you were being dramatic.

He’s not technically your prince charming. He’s not your anyone, really. But he is the super-hot-waiter-who-works-at-the-café-you-frequent-with-your-colleagues-everyday (you figured prince charming was a shorter and more convenient name).

It all started out as an innocent crush – someone who piqued your interest, really. You noticed a month or two ago that there was a new face at your regular café. He was probably around your age, perhaps slightly older, with strikingly silver hair. The first time you laid eyes on him, you nearly choked on your iced latte. He had the kindest eyes that turned into little crescents and a bright smile on his perfect face as he spoke calmly to the café’s never-ending patrons and urged them to write their names down on the waiting list. You even saw him put out a bowl of water for a cute corgi like a true angel, all while taking pictures of it using his phone.

The café you frequented nearly every single workday (and sometimes, even on non-workdays) was super popular. On most days, there was a long line of people waiting for a table at the entrance, and a small group of customers huddled around the takeaway station. You weren’t surprised. After all, the café was in a popular suburb, and they brewed coffee using well-sourced beans they freshly roasted in-house. The coffee always hit the spot for you, whether it was an early Monday morning, or a midday pick-me-up.

Throughout the weeks, though, you found yourself making the short ten-minute trip to the café more often than usual. You used to go to other cafes in the area. Granted, this suburb was filled with many high-quality coffee houses. However, you would be lying to yourself if you said you didn’t go to the café just to catch a glimpse of your favourite barista.

Slowly, you started to find solace in your little café trips. What used to be an obligation to get a shot of your daily caffeine, transformed into a little bit of me-time when you had the luxury of making the trip on your own. It gave you an opportunity to walk around the neighbourhood, or even walk the office dog when she was in (which got lots of attention from the locals along the way). You couldn’t explain it, but the anticipation of looking for something (or rather, someone) and finding them exactly where you expect them to be, brought you a sense of pure satisfaction.

Seeing him there, standing at the entrance greeting customers, or balancing three plates of brunch on his long arms, or even taking orders with a big smile, brought you a sense of calm and familiarity.

Your mind flashed back to one particular Friday, where the weather was ominous outside the office, and you were periodically nodding off at your desk. Something about the gloomy weather made you want to go home, crawl under your covers and take a nap. Just as you were re-reading the same sentence for the nth time, you decided to make a trip to the café. After briefly checking the time (you were lucky – it was only 1:30pm), you headed out with your umbrella in hands.

The moment you stepped outside, you momentarily regretted your decision. The skies had just opened up, and rain started to fall. You hesitated but decided that there was still four hours left of the workday, and there was no way you could get through it without a proper hit of caffeine from your favourite café. So, you braved the wind and the cold and made the trip down, clutching your tiny umbrella tightly in your fists the entire time. When you arrived there however, the rain reduced to a tiny drizzle, and the wind appeared to calm down as well. Just as you rounded the corner, you caught a glimpse of the familiar purple hoodie. With your heart thumping in your chest and a bright smiled plastered on your face, you took a quick glance towards the owner of said hoodie (who was busying himself with introducing the signature brunch menu to a table of first-time customers) and headed towards the takeaway counter.

“How can I help you today?” The barista at the counter broke you out of your trance as you reached the start of the queue.

“Hello! Can I get a cold brew please?”

“Of course! Our cold brew is self-serve. Do you know how to work the taps?”

The cold brew and batch brews were served in coffee taps in this café. It was a favourite amongst your colleagues in the office. When it was sunny, everyone flocked to the café to get a cup of their cold brew.

“Yes, I do.” You chirped in reply and proceeded to pay and thank the barista, wishing them a good day.

As you made your way to the coffee taps, you caught a glimpse of your favourite waiter in the corner of your eye, filling up a bottle of water on the sparkling water taps behind you. You held your breath as you scooped a bit of ice into your takeaway cup and placed it under the tap. He was only five steps away from you, and you struggled immensely to keep your gaze fixed on the coffee instead of him.

While it was certainly fun to self-serve your own coffee, the lids always proved to be a challenge for you and everyone else. Theo himself spilled one too many cups of coffee at this exact spot, just because he couldn’t get the lid on the right way.

When the coffee finished pouring, you grabbed the cup with clammy hands and took a lid off the pile. “Here goes,” you breathed, feeling the eyes of not only the waiter but also the other baristas on you as you attempted to put the lid on.

Your tongue stuck out in concentration, fingers pressing around the rim of the cup. Your breath hitched when you felt the cup bend slightly under your touch. This was probably not going to end well.

“Do you need some help?” A voice spoke from in front of you.

You paused, heart nearly beating right out of your chest from the nervousness. This was the first time you’ve ever had any sort of interaction with the waiter, and for some reason, his velvety voice made your knees a bit weak. It was smooth and deep, like a cup of perfectly blended and roasted coffee.

“Ah…” You laughed, slightly embarrassed. Looking up, you flashed an unsteady smile. You were close enough for once to read off his nametag – Jiung. So that was his name. “I’ve got it, Jiung.” You said, determined.

You looked down before a shy smile appeared on his face at the sound of his name rolling off your lips. You took a breath, and tried again, this time with a slightly different approach. You got half of the lid to catch on the cup, finally, and just a little bit more until you got it secured, and you were so close, just a little bit –

“Ah!” You gasped in shock. Turns out, you pressed a little too hard and the cup folded in on itself, spilling half of the drink on the countertop.

“I saw this coming; you should’ve let me help.” Jiung teased in a light-hearted manner, hands already armed with a cloth to clean up the mess you made. He handed you a paper towel. “Here, did you get any on your clothes? Clean up and I’ll get you another one.”

“Ah, no.” You did a quick check and thanked the heavens that your grey sweater was safe from the coffee damage. “I’m sorry…” You said sheepishly, cheeks turning pink. “I swear I did it properly last time.”

“What’s taking so long? Ah, Y/N, you did it again.” Theo peered over your shoulder and shook his head in disapproval.

“Again?” Jiung questioned, trying to bite back a smile.

“Shut up, Theo!” You whipped your head around and shot daggers at him with your eyes. “It’s fine, I’ll meet you back at the office.” You squinted and stared at him, trying to communicate with him non-verbally to leave you alone with your café crush.

Thankfully, Theo was smart enough to get the message. “Alright, I’ll tell Keeho you’ll be late to the meeting because of your little accident.”

“Go!” You hissed, threatening to throw your used paper towel at him. His arms shot up in surrender as he backed away and walked back to the office.

“Your coffee.” Jiung said, presenting you with a perfectly covered cup of cold brew. “Next time, don’t be afraid to ask for help. You’d be amazed just how many people have done that.”

“But you guys make it look so easy, I thought I could do it too.” You pouted, accepting the drink and slightly brushing over his fingers as you did so. Your body tingled at the short-lived moment of skin-to-skin contact.

Jiung laughed at that. “You’re forgetting that we do hundreds of these a day. Let the experts handle it, okay?”

“Jiung, lunch!” One of the chefs yelled out from the kitchen.

“In a sec!” He yelled back. Turning back to you, he said, “I’m gonna go on my lunch break soon. Anything else I can help with?”

You gnawed at your bottom lip for a few seconds and played with your fingers which were interlaced around your cup coffee. Jiung couldn’t help but to watch and stare at your lips as you did so, hypnotised. “Actually, there is…”

“Oh, were you waiting on takeaway food? If you’re in a hurry I can check with the back if you – ”

“No, actually,” you interjected softly. “I was wondering if… I could get your number?” You asked, uncertain. “Only if you’re single, of course.” You took a sip of your coffee to calm yourself down. Clearly it didn’t work because you started to ramble. “But who am I kidding, you obviously have a girlfriend. Anyways, I’m late for a meeting so I should just go…”

Just as you were about to turn around and walk away and hide at your office desk, Jiung waved his hands out to stop you. “Wait!” He said belatedly, after opening and closing his mouth for a minute too long. “I- I- I don’t.” The two of you locked eyes, remaining silent for a few seconds to let his words sink in. “Hold on, you just- I just- I -” He shook his head and heaved a sigh. “Sorry, just give me a sec okay? I’m on my lunch break, I’ll walk you back.”

You couldn’t do anything but nod at his words as he turned around and raced back to the kitchen to grab his lunch. The minutes felt like hours as you waited for him, sipping on your coffee, and allowing the cherry and chocolatey notes to invade your tastebuds. You felt a bit numb after your confession that wasn’t really a confession, yet your heartbeat refused to stop thudding against your ears in anticipation. You really couldn’t tell how this would end.

“Hey, sorry I took so long.” Jiung said, breathless, as he came around the other side of the counter, dressed in a black cap to match his black hoodie. Now that he was standing in front of you, you realised just how tall he was. “Do you work around here, Y/N?”

You shivered at the way his voice wrapped around the syllables of your name. You could only look up at him and nod and point in the general direction of your office.

“I thought so, I see you here all the time.” Jiung continued, slowing his footsteps to walk at the same pace as you as you lead the way.

“You noticed me?”

“Of course, how could I not?” He replied, hands coming up to rub the back of his neck as an embarrassed grin paints itself on his features. “I’m always waiting around to catch a glimpse… of you…” His voice got softer and softer and trailed off towards the end of the sentence.

“You do?” Your eyes turned as wide as saucers.

“Yeah, seeing you is the best part of my shift.” He says, as plain as day, as if he was stating a well-known fact, or reading out the weather forecast, or answering a math question.

“Seeing you is the best part of my day.” You countered.

“Are you sure it’s not just the caffeine?” He teased, bumping your shoulders as you walked with matching steps.

“That too,” You admitted, lips pulling into a small smile. “But seeing your smile in the middle of a boring workday makes things a lot more bearable.”

“That’s…” Jiung trailed off again. “So cute.” He burst into an uncontrollable fit of laughter in combined fascination and disbelief, and you thought that nothing, not even the sounds of angels singing at the gates of heaven could be better than this. “Oh, here.” He stopped and pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket. He reached out for your hand, and dropped it into your palms.

“What’s this?”

“My number, silly. What are you doing tonight? If you’re free, let’s grab dinner?”

You couldn’t hide the pure excitement and joy seeping out of your body. It took everything in your power to not jump up and down on the spot. “Yeah,” you breathed out, still unable to believe that shooting your shot actually worked for once. “Yeah, I’ll see you later at 6.”

[once-in-a-blood-moon]

Okay imagine Solomon being upset and jealous that MC doesn’t have a mark of his own on their body, MC notices this fact and gets the mark of Solomon tattooed onto their body. I’ve been so obsessed with this idea ever sense Solomon became my no.1 favorite character ever.

Ooh, yes, I've seen this floating around as well!

Solomon would be pleased on the outside, absolutely thrilled on the inside. I think having his own mark would satiate that jealousy, because now having his own mark on your body shows the world that you have a strong bond of trust and care. Just as you do with the brothers, if not more so.

I know many people have different headcanons about where each of the brothers' marks are on their MC's body, which usually have some sort of meaning. I suppose it's up to preference where you'd want to be permanently tattooed, but what if you got it in an area that was special to both of you?

Trying to be as inclusive as I can to everybody's headcanons of the brothers' marks, so take these with a grain of salt or come up with your own! :)

Perhaps Solomon has disclosed with you a certain part of your body that he just adores, an area he often touches in moments when it's just the two of you. Rubbing your knuckles or kissing the back of your hand when watching movies together, caressing the small of your back while you read over a passage from one of his spell books, right behind your ear where he rubs soft circles as you drift off to sleep in his bed, or brushing his lips against your shoulder as he holds you from behind while you make dinner.

Getting his mark in an area he dotes over, one that he never fails to touch or lavish with kisses in those near ritualistic moments, would be the ultimate gesture. Because for him, it would be an indication that the small things he does in the time he is granted with you mean something to you. They're special to you too.

That's the fluffy, sentimental version. Now I kinda want to explore the logistical or rational placing of his mark.

I was looking at the seal of Solomon, and noticed two things: the symbol for Saturn (the one that looks like an awkwardly drawn n) and the symbol for Mars (which interestingly enough, the Mars symbol seems to have the Sun's symbol in it as well. Mars is the "male" symbol, while the Sun is a circle with a dot in the center).

For quick reference, Saturn rules both Capricorn and Aquarius in traditional astrology - representing structure and discipline. Mars rules both Aries and Scorpio in traditional - representing drive and passion. And I'll go ahead and do the Sun's as well, it rules Leo - representing the ego.

Now, I mention this for one reason: medical astrology. Each part of the body (and its systems within) are ruled by a sign (quick fire examples: Capricorn - knees, Aquarius - calves, Aries - head, Scorpio - lower regions, Leo - spine). So, how impressed would he be if he realized you'd tattooed his mark in one of those areas? Just what he'd expect of his clever apprentice! (Even better if you got it on the left side of your body, as the left represents wisdom! Right is power, in case you wanted to know :)).

Perhaps by doing so, you invoke one of the qualities of those aforementioned planet rulings, like you find yourself being more responsible with the mark on your ankle or the back of your knee, maybe you're more authentic with it at the top of your spine, or more aggressive in your pursuits with it on your naval or behind your ear.

I think he'd be fascinated, and oddly flattered, that his mark influences you in a such way. Like he's indirectly influencing you. It'd be similar to how the brothers' sins on your body might make you act certain ways, like more greedy or more gluttonous.

Yeah, he'd be smitten with you and that mark wherever you end up putting it. Whatever makes you happy, as long as he has a little claim of you as well. Perhaps he'd create a mark that represents you to tattoo on his body... If there's room, ha!

[hearvex]

can i ask for this Juan guy lore :v i saw his tweet when it had like 3k and thought it cant be good but i dont know anything about him. its upsetting to see 12k likes tho like why are people fighting against human fights tho

oh this is a long one, who's Juan Guarnizo, the streamer who has recently tweeted against the french union in regards of the qsmp.

juan guarnizo is a colombian streamer (who now lives in mexico with his wife). he's participated in Tortillaland, a roleplaying minecraft series, as a wizard of sorts. He then decided to create a "spin-off" series (more cinematic/pre-planned) called "El Dios de Todo" (The God of Everything, his character's catchphrase). So he partnered with Euphonia, a popular Minecraft Studio that has created games such as SquidCraft, Dedsafio, SawMinecraftGames, and more.

He announced he was looking for several roleplayers for this project, and people started complaining on twitter because some of the requirements were pretty much insane.

Some include, full availability for 6 hours a day everyday for an entire month, good quality microphone, not being able to livestream the content, just record it to be used after the proyect was released, knowing how to rhyme/rap/sing/imitate voices and animals/general voice acting talent and being able to improv. All of that for the price of 0$. The payment? The enriching experience of being part of this unpayed proyect with your favorite content creator.

Well turns out people still didn't like this idea, justifiably so, and continued to call him out on twitter. His initial response was as follows:

(Hello, I understand that you know little about the project so I'll explain it to you: The God of Everything is a series based on a story that we will tell in the most cinematic way possible, therefore it is only possible to have one pov and not 40. Participants will be able to take advantage of the series on different social media platforms but not live. How much benefit they decide to get out of it is up to each person. The 6 hours a day thing is insurance, because there will most likely be days where your participation is half an hour and that's it. Also making it clear that professionals such as voice actors who will also be in the series will be paid for their work. We are creating an experience never seen before for me, the roleplayers and the audience, whoever wants and can experience it will enjoy it very much. It is something that we are putting all our heart and desire into for those who want to see the story. Communities that are not going to see it at all, at least don't fill it with your toxicity or bad vibes.)

Basically excusing himself by "I'm doing good by allowing you to join, please don't let toxicity ruin this". Which was still off, because professional voice actors would be getting payed but somehow the rest wouldn't, weird overall. Several POVs would be recorded but only one would be able to broadcast it, Juan. "we'll pay you with exposure" ahh deal

I haven't followed him since this happened, some claim he then did pay the actors, but even if that were the case, that would've never happened if it weren't for people calling out his exploitative bs. Which is exactly what's happened with the qsmp, only this time it's not a cancellation on twitter dot com, but a whole entire french union.

What I think their fans don't understand is that this is not a mob campaign against their faves, it's about protecting the working class from the privileged who refuse to pay them correctly or sometimes never at all, granting them rights to defend themselves when cases like these arise. This goes for people who claim Juan learned from his mistake, he clearly didn't if his immediate reaction to the union was:

(It's good that they formed a union, so they all hold hands together and fuck off)

So either he's forgotten his "lesson", or he only payed them (if that even happened) because he got caught and wanted to prevent a future cancelation).

[rootsofdread]

May I request some headcanons for The Knight, The Blight, and The Wraith with a twitchy boyfriend who has trouble staying still? Sometimes I'll be sitting still and my head will jerk to the side randomly or one of my legs will kick out and it drives me insane to the point I have trouble falling asleep sometimes :(

i have a similar problem! mine get soo bad when i'm tired lol. we're in this together anon ✊

Philip Ojomo / The Wraith:

Philip tends to keep a close eye on you. He worries about you -- even if you've told him not to be -- and fears you may hurt yourself accidentally, so he just wants to make sure you're okay when he knows that your twitching is acting up. If you're standing together he'll put his hand on your shoulder or around your back, but otherwise, he frequently checks in on you.

In a really weird kind of way, he finds your twitching...comforting? It lets him know you're still with him. When the two of you are close in any way, like when you're laying together or he's holding your hand, and he feels you jerk around, he pulls you closer. He would prefer it didn't happen, for your sake, but he appreciates knowing you aren't suddenly gone.

And he's certainly no stranger to having problems sleeping, being haunted by nightmares, himself; so he knows how you feel, to some extent. When he feels you jerk around in bed, he'll immediately wrap his arms around you and lean his head into your back or chest. He doesn't really know how to help you, because he doesn't know how to help himself, but he hopes that helps...at least a little.

Talbot Grimes / The Blight:

Talbot has always loved having you around since he met you; he finally has someone more like him around the fog. It really does something to his old, shriveled up heart seeing you do the exact same thing he does. Granted, his are more frequent; it still has always made him happy.

And he always tries to make this clear to you. Even before you were together, he'd frequently hobble over to you just to sit with you. He's not much of a talker, so he usually conveys his thoughts through gestures or tapping his cane. He didn't think you understood for a while, but was delighted when he realized you did.

When you're having problems sleeping, he'll always offer you some sort of tonic or tincture to relax you and help you sleep. If you don't want any, that's fine, he'll let you cuddle up and rest your head on his chest, so that he can rub your back while he reads quietly beside you.

Tarhos Kovács / The Knight:

Tarhos was always interested in you from the moment he saw you. He's never seen someone do...that, before. He had long assumed you were cursed for your hubris, once upon a time, or something similar. Yet, you seemed to be taking it quite well. Resolve is one of his favorite qualities in a person.

He's always around to make sure nobody gives you a hard time for something out of your control -- something so inconsequential, at that. The last thing he wants is for you to feel embarrassed about it. If anyone so much as snickers, they will meet his blade.

When you're frustrated by not being able to sleep, he tells you that fire is important, but it will be better spent elsewhere. He settles you back down, tucks you in, and will usually either read to you or recount stories from his time as a true knight for you. By this point, you've probably heard all of them, but he still hopes they soothe you.

[kelin-is-writing]

i hope you're rdy bc i have 3 dabi thoughts in total for you but i'll send them individually 🧍

alright let's start off easy xD

the fandom's thoughts on how dabi would react to finding out his s/o is pregnant seem to go in two different directions. either he's terrified and leaves for good or he sees it as a chance to prove that he's better than his dad. personally i usually go with the second one bc i want him to be happy xD

which leads us straight to girl dad dabi 🥺 i'll never get enough of thinking about dabi with a little girl that takes after him in a way that's almost scary. they have the same stunning blue eyes and it helps him learn to love them bc now they don't remind him of his dad anymore but his daughter instead.

she has the same unruly hair as him and it's a real pain to get under control. dabi even learns to braid her hair (it takes a while tho lmao) bc she always wants him to do it :3

your daughter also turns out to be a picky eater. her daddy doesn't like smt? she doesn't like it either. but this works the other way round as well. her daddy loves smt? she loves it as well. this becomes a little worrying tho after a while when the little girl starts to show interest in fighting heroes and worst of all: arson 💀

one time you find her in her room smearing watercolors all over her face and arms - purple to be exact - bc she wants to look just like her dad. and when you tell her that she can't get the staples she so desperately wants it breaks her little heart 😭

STOP RIGHT THERE MILK. STOP. RIGHT. THERE. MILK.

do you want me to cry? do you want me to shed tears so bad? like... the way dabi would absolute dote on his daughter, treating her with the outmost love and respect, never missing a chance to spend some quality time with you both like going to the sea or have late afternoon walks, granting every single wish of hers under your tender glance and smile like– he’s so gonna make sure she gets all the love, appreciation and attention your daughter wants and deserves.

“dad, i want some candies!”

“sure thing lil mochi.”

“dad! i want that plushie!”

“right away little pixie.”

“the moon looks so pretty!”

“i’m on it.”

“dabi no—”

at some point you gotta step in because he’s so ready to comply to every single request she does, even the craziest ones, a single syllable of your daughter and dabi is already on the move with the most chill and stoic face ever.

like that one time the three of you went to the zoo and your daughter said a simple “mr. lion looks so majestic, i love it so much!”, the next thing you know dabi was climbing up the fence, with the guards yelling at him that he can’t while you stand there trying to hide yourself behind your hands, not from the embarrassment but because of laughters since you didn’t expect him to do something so extreme “my daughter wants a lion and i’m gonna give her that fucking lion, ya heard me?!”, yeah no, he’d definitely go ballistic at any request from his little mochi.

in the end you guys got away with a plushie of a lion that your daughter loves, but to which dabi clicked his tongue at because he wanted to give her the real thing and not a miniaturised version of it, in all this you’re just laughing amused at funny all this situation was for you.

and i’m not allowing anyone to fight me about this, he would 100% read your daughter fairytales before going to sleep. dabi would lay with her on her small bed letting your daughter use his chest as cushion while he reads with soft soothing voice the fairytale of the night, once she’s asleep he would gently tuck her in and kiss her on the forehead lovingly, because she is one of the most precious existences to him.

and as you looked at them tenderly from the doorway, arms crossed to your chest, you really thought that dabi’s initial fear of not being a good dad was for nothing because he turns out to be an awesome dad for the splendid daughter you two have.

[littleeyesofpallas]

Oh hey so here's a thing that we never really got proper follow up on, and in fact if anything some late additions to canon just kind of... not quite "contradict" the implicit world building but kind of just exist without addressing the existing hooks?(i hope that makes sense) I'm talking around the subject... I mean the dual zanpakutou and what that actually seems to say about their wielders and how Ichigo absolutely does not fulfill that same criteria with his bullshit final zanpakutou, either played straight or as a subversion.

I have sort of talked about the zanpakutou names themselves but I didn't really stray into the territory of character analysis too much. Kyroraku and Ukitake both have implicit dual personas that are reflected in their swords, at least at first. And Ichigo pretty distinctly doesn't, not in the same way at least, although there is sort of a caveat to that, but I'm already getting ahead of myself...

I'll start with Kyouraku since his is probably the least consequential, and the most overtly addressed... On the one hand Katen[花天] probably comes from the more specific Chinese phrase Huā tiānnǚ[花天女], I specify because it has much more concrete artistic associations than [花天] does, either in Chinese or Japanese, and is a minor figure of Chinese celestial bureaucracy often depicted as a beautiful young woman flying thru the heavens scattering flower petals from a bouquet or basket of flowers. The garden she tends is comprised of all the most beautiful and exotic flowers, posses magical qualities such that the fruits of her garden can grant immorality or magical powers, and the petals she scatters all over the world bring happiness and good fortune.

Clearly her evocation here is an allusion to Kyoruaku's outward demeanor as a kind of pampered, decedent lover of good drink, music/poetry, and women. There are a few things in his name that all point to this as well, beyond just his visual design: Kyoraku[京楽] reading as "(Imperial)Capitol + Music/pleasure/comfort" and Shunsui[春水] as "Spring(the season) + Water," the associations with spring somewhat implicitly involving cherry blossoms, making the phrase sort of analogous to "rose water" or "sweet water."

And then Kyoukotsu[狂骨] is a yokai that takes the form of a skeletal old man that haunts the bucket of an abandoned well. It's got some weird uncertain regional etymologies that sort of suggest it could be any of a number of euphemisms, but I'm not certain which if any are relevant to this. There is one i stumbled into that, given the casual nature of all this, i did not think to record like a citation as i didnt think it'd be so hard to track down again... that said it was used as a kind of slang towards a crazy person or a raucous drunk. I don't want to lean too heavily on that when I can't corroborate it, but it did feel like it made a lot of sense: you drink(from a well) something you shouldn't(i.e. cursed) and it makes you violent and/or crazy.

And more over, their release call is,

Hanakaze midarete Kashin naki, Tenpuu midarete Tenma warau

[花風紊れて花神啼き, 天風紊れて天魔嗤う]

"FlowerWind in disarray FlowerSpirit(s) cry, HeavenWind in disarray Tenma* laughs/ridicules."

There is a distinct bit of poeticism here with Hana... ka[花... 花...] referring to "flowers," Ten... Ten[天... 天...] referring to "heaven," midarete[紊れて... 紊れて...] referring to things "in disarray," and kaze... fuu[...風, ...風] referring to "wind." And notably while there are obvious thematic links back to Katen, there's not actually much reference to Kyokotsu, apart from vague tonal implications. Still, the message seems very clear: The pleasant scent of flowers and aesthetic of petals on the wind are disrupted, flower spirits/god(s) cry/wail in pain or otherwise distress. And at the same time, in the same way, a divine wind/winds of heaven, something that is implicitly a blessing or relief, a kind of god send, is disrupted and the evil spirit Mara laughs or jeers. A good thing is spoiled and divine forces make noises of distress and malice.

This just reinforces the names' dualistic themes that suggest there is a dark side to Kyoraku's penchant for unrestrained revelry. While that could be taken a number of ways, the most surface level one would seem to suggest that for all the boisterous drinking and partying he does, he in fact has a violent abusive drunken side to him as well, part some certain point.

Mara btw is a sort of "demon" in buddhism with a lot of associated themes, not the least of which being seduction, and the derailing of one's path towards enlightenment --in Japanese in particular his name is associated with sexual temptation and masturbation, and yeah he's the penis chariot summon in SMT. He is very specifically the giant demon featured in classical art of the samsara --the cosmological wheel of reincarnation within which all living things exist. So when Mara laughs, it's not just a matter of generic evil, it's the victory of base material temptation over enlightenment. By all rights this makes it sound like Kyoraku's shikai is a matter of trading in his easygoing demeanor for a more violent and darker side.

But as we know that isn't quite how things panned out... Rather, the reveal of that very change in tone just got sorta kicked down the road a bit and became a part of his bankai rather than his shikai. But the implicit themes of the zanpakutou's name, and the zanpakutout themselves, suggests that Kyoraku has two swords because he has two truths, two inner selves rather than one: the one that is personified by heavenly flowers, and the one personified by malice and drink.

And I guess just to clarify, I find it really weird that Kubo went and canonized Masashi Kudo's zanpakutou filler arc designs that way he did, and I still sort of regard them and even their inclusion in the manga proper to be kind of non-canon? I know that's a weird bold arbitrary claim, but even as he used the designs they don't feel like they contribute at all to their own theme or shtick. Like, they were clearly designed with no insight to the shikai's actual powers, the designs are nonsensical (the swords printed on her kimono? european oujo drills on a japanese design? the frills on a kimono? the nonsense exposed midriff on kyoukotsu? it's just a mess) they aren't even named accordingly, you'd think the light tone of Katen would lend itself to the shikai's children's game theme and thus the diminutive one of the pair, and Kyoukotsu the darker themes and thus the noh and bunraku theatre thus the older of the two, splitting them between children's play and adult play. But no.

Anyway... that just being part of the set up for the fact that...

Ukitake's got a whole daoist yin-yang thing going on. His theming is a little less obvious at a glance, but pretty distinct in the broader context of things, and eventually ironically nailed down a little more firmly by Kudo's still not especially canon design work for the anime filler: The courtly heian robes the kids are put in are part of the iconic onmyoji image of daoist mystics who served the imperial court as advisors in spite of their non samurai/nobility status. The yin and yang motif is alluded to in the "twin fish" aspect of Sougyo no Kotowari[双魚理]: "Law of Pair(ed) Fish" which is itself later alluded to in the Hell Jaws Wailing/Christening oneshot. Unlike Katen Kyokotsu, there aren't two distinct facets to the sword name, and unlike Kyoraku's katana and wakizashi set, Ukitake has a single sealed katana that splits into two for shikai, all suggesting that the nature of the two fish is that they are a singular unit rather than distinct facets. This makes sense of course because the nature of yin and yang as positive and negative elements is that they are in constant struggle but balanced, and cannot exist without one another.

But the nature of the zanpakutou, again, suggests that Ukitake's soul exists as both sides of that balance, that he is is innately capable of just as much "evil" as he is good. And this underlying tone of something sinister beneath his kindly demeanor is something Kubo sort of tries to paly with but never really fully pulls the trigger on. This theme is where the Fullbringer arc's underutilized bit where Ukitake has been using the substitute badge as a means of surveillance, and where Ukitake is implicitly the one who stripped Ginjo of his powers in the first place, having also monitored him during his tenure as substitute. It implies that, like Kyoraku's two sides to his drink and revelry, Ukitake's inner truth about being an agent of cosmic balance comes in a dark and a light form.

So then there's this thing about Ichigo's stupid new zangetsu(s) where he both has two swords now like Kyoraku and Ukitake, but also doesn't because we get the janky sort of excuse that "oh they're not really two different swords one's just a sheath and their true form is one sword."

And to be fair, while I find the explicit use of that line to try and handwave... i don't know what exactly, but it definitely felt like Kubo thought he was patching up some kind of plothole when he brought it up... we technically already knew that was the case leading up to the first time he addressed it with the final getsuga thing.

In the first inner world fight, the hollow was just a part of Zangetsu that he was able to sort of produce and later reabsorb, and implicitly the opposite was true when the hollow appeared alone during the Visored training: they exist as two sides of the same coin, and can just kind of flip flop control as needed. This made sense as an expression of Ichigo's misguided struggle to deny and rid himself of his hollow --he didn't have two spirits he had one, which again we already knew, but it needed to be confirmed and addressed to cap off Ichgio's arc of self discovery.

Then Kubo tried to sort of rehash this dynamic with the whole the hollow is the sword, and Zangetsu is actually Yhwach's quincy blood just holding the hollow/shinigami side back, but it makes distinctly less sense because when Nimaiya forges the new sword(s) the two spirits show up as separate entities, one per sword. Plus the stupid retconned excuse that, oh no they weren't ever actually the same thing, the whole absorbing thing was just Yhwach actively suppressing the shinigami side. So then what does this really say about Ichigo's nature? Does he have a dualistic nature or doesn't he? Are they two facets of his inner truth, or are/were they always the same singular truth and realizing that was the entire key to self actualization and his true power?

At face value the new explanation divides his identity into shinigami and quincy, despite him having no actual functioning identity as a quincy factionally or culturally, and on a personal level he never actually does anything to reconcile this identity crisis. I know it's a long way around to just point out that it fumbles the theming a lot here, when that was fairly evident even without the context, but I guess I just wanted to bolster that. In the first place i think everyone reading at the time understood it to feel very inauthentic as a twist? like most of the developments of the late arc. Just another case of Kubo phishing around fandom chatter for stupid ideas he could play into to siphon ratings out of.

But again the bottom line being that we had precedent for Ichigo to have two swords in one of two ways: Ukitake's style of having a single identity that encompasses both the best and worst of his inner truth, or Kyoraku's suggested style in which his two facets exist in distinct and separate entities but ultimately both reflect him as truths about his nature. But Ichgio doesn't really do that. His original balance of shinigami and hollow seemed to be a satisfactory solution in the style of Ukitake's, and if he'd just had one shinigami/hollow sword and one quincy sword, that might have been acceptable in Kyouraku's style, but the flipflopping between the two by making the final form just a big sword inside a different big sword where one of the big swords is a sword, but the other sword is just a sheath to hold the first sword(???) is just this bizarre gibberish of themes and symbols.

(I've had this thing sitting in drafts for so long i forgot abotu it. and I swear I had some kind of actual conclusion I was working toward across various rewrites but i don't remember what it was anymore... anyway it's taking up space in my drafts that could be better used, so out it goes..)

[marina-the-witch]

Elden Ring Boss Ranking

Hi everyone!

With Elden Ring being my most replayed and almost most played game over all, I think my opinions on the bosses have definitely solidified enough for me to rank them individually. I will do so in this post.

Seeing as I can only attach 30 images and Elden Ring has a plethora of mini-bosses, I'll only be ranking bosses that reward you with achievements for beating them and ones necessary for story progression. Seeing as Godskin Noble and Duo fall under those criteria, I'll also include the Apostle as I would feel weird leaving it out.

Additionally, I won't be ranking the illusion/nerfed version of bosses and instead just lump them in with the real deal. This applies to Margit, Sewer Mohg, Siofra Ancestor Spirit, Godfrey and Carian Knight Loretta.

Remember that these are only my opinions and you're allowed to agree or disagree however much you want.

Bosses will also be put into a bit of a tiering system through colors. Blue means a boss is almost if not entirely perfect in my opinion and is one of Fromsoft's greatest to date. Purple means I do really enjoy a boss but have a handful of gripes with it that drag it down. Pink means i don't feel strongly about a boss one way or the other, either due to them not really being particularly noteworthy or having both really good and really bad aspects. Green means I don't really enjoy a boss but they have enough redeeming qualities for me to still like them a little bit. Orange means I do genuinely dislike a boss but can't bring myself to hate them. Red means they should be nuked from orbit.

With all that said, let's begin.

#1: God-Devouring Serpent/Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy

Rykard and Radahn fluctuate as my number 1 fairly consistently. While I definitely think Radahn has a better fight, I find the comparison a bit unfair seeing as Rykard is designed to be a gimmick fight. Unlike his predecessors like Storm Lord and Yhorm however, Rykard actually manages to stay challenging despite the game granting you the weapon specifically designed to kill him right away. What really makes Rykard so special for me is everything else. He is by far the most disgusting entity fromsoftware has ever produced in my opinion and I could go on about how much I love his design, lore and presentation for hours. I love everything about this fight, from the insanely memorable voice acting and reveal in phase 2, to the demonic rollercoaster of a theme and the symbolism of the chandeliers in his arena, with this grotesque monstrosity still framing itself a noble king. With a spectacular legacy dungeon to boot, Rykard, for me at least, is easily my favorite boss in Elden Ring.

#2: Starscourge Radahn

While I prefer his siblings in almost every other regard, Radahn for me is easily the most fun boss in the entire game and very consistently switches places with Rykard in my overall ranking like I said. With an immaculate battle theme that really emphasises the spectacle of taking down this fierce demigod, Radahn is a challenging and thrilling fight. While far from the hardest fight in Elden Ring, he can still throw me for a loop, especially as I tend to fight him without summons and a purposefully unupgraded weapon. His attacks are imposing and beautiful to look at while never feeling unfair and no boss better captures the feeling of giving a noble warrior a heroic end.

#3: Mohg, Lord of Blood/Mohg, the Omen

Far more controversial than my previous 2 picks, I can definitely understand why people don't really gel with Mohg. Even I used to not really like him, with Mohg the Omen actually making me almost cry out of frustration the very first time I fought him, as I had not yet gotten used to Elden Ring's delayed attack patterns. However, after fighting the real deal at the end of the game and being perfectly trained to evade his wide sweeps, I knew this boss was something special. Mohg is a thrilling, challenging fight, with an absolutely stunning battle theme that I would confidently call my favorite piece of music in Elden Ring and I could not be happier they made the last minute decision of adding him to the main boss line-up.

#4: Morgott, the Omen King/Margit, the Fell Omen

Much like his brother, Morgott is also an extremely thrilling and exciting fight. What makes him a little inferior to me, is that he's not quite as challenging as I think he should be and a few of his longer combos can feel a bit tacky and excessive. While I definitely see a lot of praise for Morgott as a character, I sometimes feel as though his fight and especially theme aren't really talked about enough though. Morgott is a perfect capper for the midgame of Elden Ring, just like how Margit is a perfect beginning, providing an extremely challenging but learnable fight that prepares the player for what's ahead. He, much like Radahn, is a boss worth nerfing myself for.

#5: Malenia,Blade of Miquella/Goddess of Rot

I feel like my placement of Malenia would be controversial no matter what. Understandably, seeing as she is maybe the single hardest boss in Fromsoftware's catalogue, Malenia is quite divisive and it even took me a couple attempts to finally start liking her. But this latest attempt, where I finally managed to best her without summons, was the one. While I do think Malenia can be really unfair at times, I can't deny that the duel with this master swordstress is a one-of-a-kind encounter. With an absolutely gorgeous theme, Malenia has wormed her way into my heart, despite all the trouble I've gone through while fighting her. My only, and obvious, gripe is that I feel as though her heal-on-hit-ability is a bit excessive and could have been substitued with a larger health pool, as I often found myself having a hard time hitting her when she was only a few hits away from death, when a simple mistake quickly undid a lot of my progress.

#6: Dragonlord Placidusax

Every Souls game needs it secret dragon, and more often then not, these fights end up being some of my favorites in the game and Placidusax is no exception. While I do prefer Midir overall, Placidusax is nothing if not a jaw-dropping spectacle with moves like the thundercloud form and lightning stake nuke. While not particularly hard, Placidusax manages to be fun and challenging regardless due to his robust defenses and high damage output. The only issue I've encountered is that the fight can drag on for a bit, and especially when her health is low, he will start teleporting all over the place, which can be a little annoying. Regardless, Placidusax is an absolute marvel of a boss and fits right in in a game so in love with making its fights cinematic spectacles without the use of cutscenes.

#7: Radagon of the Golden Order

For the purposes of this list, I'll be ranking Radagon and Elden Beast separately, as my opinions on them differ quite a bit. Radagon is an excellent final boss in my opinion, perfectly making use of the core fundamentals of every bosse's kit with a mix of heavy physical hits and ranged incantations. Him being quite challenging is a huge positive for me to, as I often feel as though the final bosses of souls games end up being needlessly easy and almost pathetic for narrative purposes. Additionally, genuinely no final bosse's theme, in any game I've played, has encapsulated the feeling of finality more than his, to the point of literally being called "The Final Battle." Radagon can be a bit unfair at times, but he is the perfect conclusion to your journey as Elden Lord.

#8: Godfrey, First Elden Lord/Hoarah Loux/Lord's Apparition

Godfrey is so effortlessly awesome. With a well telegraphed moveset, kickass presentation in the form of his cutscene and a gorgeous piece of music to accompany his fight, he is one of the most memorable encounters in the game and definitely the most popular boss overall for a good reason. However, I find myself having quite a hard time with him fairly consistently for some reason, which, while not his fault, does obviously impact my enjoyment of his fight overall. That's not too say I dislike it though, as I feel Godfrey's moveset is extremely satisfying to dodge and counter. Hoarah Loux on the other hand.... I don't know really. The fight against Hoarah Loux is too stressful for me to enjoy it long term and I mostly just try to reduce his health as much as I can before this phase triggers. That's not to say it's bad, I just don't enjoy the amount of grabbing going on as a result of Hoarah's very limited moveset. Overall, it doesn't stop me from loving Godfrey though, as Hoarah Loux rarely last very long anyway, and can be quite fun in small doses.

#9: Godrick the Grafted

Godrick is a really entertaining fight. His cutscenes, voice acting and presentation are on point and his mechanics definitely fit for the first shardbearer you'll be fighting on most playthroughs. I, however, often find myself struggling with dodging his moveset and often feel as though my victory is more a result of his fairly weak attack power and health pool. That doesn't mean I don't enjoy Godrick though, as I definitely do. Not only is he a fantastic first boss but I also find it quite fun from a narrative perspective that he's nowhere near as challenging as his.... great uncle? who's guarding his castle. I can't confidently rank him higher unfortunately, since Convergence and Godefroy have taught me that a tanky, high damage Godrick can be quite the piece of work.

#10: Beast Clergyman/Maliketh, the Black Blade

Oh boy, Maliketh. Quite the story with this one. I actually only properly started Elden Ring quite a long while after most of my friends had already beaten it and as such they were all EXTREMELY excited to see my reaction to this guy, especially seeing as his cutscene is a blatant reference to not only my favorite boss in bloodborne, but any game I've ever played, Ludwig. However, their expecations were met with harsh disappointment as Maliketh frustrated me to the point of actual tears and I had to resort to a cheese strategy using the Redmane Flames Ash of War. After giving the game a try or two more though, I've warmed up to Maliketh quite a bit. I do think he can be a little annoying with how mobile he is and don't really like how his fight will often just end up with him stalling and only surviving as long as he does due to you not being able to hit him, especially regarding his tiny health pool. Additionally, I also find Beast Clergyman quite annoying and wish the threshhold for phase 2 was moved up to 90 or 80% max rather than the 70 to 50% it's at currently. However, overall, I do still enjoy Maliketh and think his lore and presentation make up for my many gripes with his fight.

#11: Lichdragon Fortissax

The other major dragon fight of Elden Ring, Fortissax, doesn't hit quite as hard as Placidusax for me unfortunately. Undeniably awesome with his presentation and placed in a real scary arena, Fortissax ends up being quite overwhelming with his combination of deathblight clouds and red lightning. The latter definitely drags the fight down for me quite a bit, as I much prefer Placi's 4 timed strikes with much greater range and damage over Fortissax's constant shower of them. However, while I do have many gripes with this fight, I can't deny the concept of a death-riddled dragon protecting his former best friend is one of the coolest presented by Elden Ring and, lightning aside, Fortissax does show that the ancient dragons are actually really good, whereas every other encounter with them ends up being quite messy due to elevations really messing up their movesets in my eyes.

#12: Loretta, Knight of the Haligtree/Loretta, Carian Knight

In my opinion the MOST underrated boss in the game. Loretta is awesome, with a gorgeous armor set and a super fun take on the already pretty enjoyable Tree Sentinel moveset. Her greatbow spell drops are some of my favorites in the game to boot. Unfortunately, she does blend in a bit with all the other horse bosses (I blame the five-hundred Night's Cavalry) and ends up never being very challenging, but on paper, her moveset is well telegraphed and fun to dodge. My only gripe is that the Carian Phalanx and Glintstone Stars she begins casting when you move away can be a little bit annoying, but overall, Loretta is easily the best miniboss in the game in my opinion.

#13: Dragonkin Soldier of Nokstella

Another boss that I don't really feel gets a good amount of appreciation is the Dragonkin Soldier of Nokstella. Ignoring the one in the Lake of Rot, Dragonkin Soldiers are just really cool to me, both in lore and design, as well as their fight. Not only do you fight this one in what might be my favorite arena in the game visually, it also has a surprising and unique phase transition not seen in any of the other soldiers, with the Nokstella soldier sprouting wings and beginning to cast frozen lightning, which is one of the coolest magic concepts Elden Ring provides in my opinion. My only wish is that the second phase would trigger a lot sooner, as the boss is not very hard and often ends up dying before it gets time to shine.

#14: Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon

While I would agree Rennala is the best sorceror fight Fromsoft has provided thus far, I would not say that's a very difficult title to claim, nor is Rennala anything to write home about. Her first phase is quite simple but it is kind of fun to mow down rows upon rows of the juvenile scholars with a big weapon every now and then. Her second phase is fairly alright too, with Rennala not dishing out a ludicrous amount of damage and having a nice variety of sorceries to cast. A bit like Placidusax, I do sometimes find the fight drags on a bit as she stalls and relies on her summons rather than actually fighting you, but considering how easy she is, it's really no big deal. Of course I can't not mention her gorgeous arena, as it immediately made me think back to Bloodborne's Moonside lake, and anything that reminds me of Bloodborne gets a plus in my book.

#15: Commander Niall

Out of the 2 commander bosses, Niall is definitely the more standout one. Banished Knights suck and I hate them, so I'll try to look at Niall on his own, and I gotta say, I quite like him. His hitboxes can feel a bit over the top but that aside I think he's genuinely a really fun fight, and definitely the hardest miniboss the game has to offer in my opinion. His weapon, while absurd, is quite cool and definitely worth a try for those who want to focus on physical stats but still have the benefits of lightning damage, especially seeing as it scales with dexterity anyway. Niall definitely feels like a good pick to be guarding the last thing you need to enter the Haligtree.

#16: Magmawyrm Makar

While I often find myself annoyed with the other Magma Wyrms and their tendency to do little else besides their magma charge, Makar is quite a fun little miniboss in my opinion. The ruin-strewn precipice is a fairly cool little side area and Makar is a very good capper for it and an even better guardian for the Altus Plateau. His reveal is quite funny, but overall, I can't really say much about this boss, as his fight is just okay across the board. Nothing particularly annoying nor amazing to note, really.

#17: Regal Ancestor Spirit/Ancestor Spirit

The Ancestor Spirits are, in my opinion, mostly noteworthy for their gorgeous music and presentation, but their fights end up being quite lacklustre unfortunately due to a fairly limited movepool. They're not hard at all, with the Regal Spirit's only "challenge" coming from the hard to dodge roll it attains after absorbing a boar's soul and the health regen move it pulls out every now and then. Much like Makar, I can't really say I love, nor hate these two, but the Regal Spirit's aformentioned health regen does make it a bit more bothersome than Makar on occasion. Overall, their beautiful design and music do make them worth experiencing even despite their medicore fight.

#18: Godskin Noble

I found myself actually quite enjoying the Godskin Noble as of late, to the point I'd actually say they're a little overhated. The thrusting attacks feel nice to dodge but even better to block and counter but obviously it's far from perfect. Obviously his roll has gained infamy ever since the game came out and understandably so, but other moves such as its powerful thrust can also be a bit tough to work with. Other than that, Godskin Noble is a perfect example of a boss that is so perfectly alright that i don't have much else to praise it for nor complain about.

#19: Elden Beast

While also being kind of undeserving of all the hatred it receives, Elden Beast is very far from being a fun boss in my opinion. For starters, it is WAY too tanky, with half of its fight feeling like a sisyphean effort of slapping its chest until something finally happens. Additionally, its moveset feels very limited, especially for a final boss. Lastly, and most importantly, it does really bother me that in order to even be able to fight this extremely tanky boss, you have to beat another fairly difficult one beforehand every time, so it becomes a kind of unbearable endurance run in hopes of having enough ressources left to beat this fairly underwhelming boss. Its one redeeming feature comes in form of its truly breathtaking design, but otherwise, I can't say I'm a big fan.

#20: Astel, Naturalborn of the Void

Astel used to be in my Top 5 but he quickly fell out of favor after the Honeymoon phase of "Wow, they added a Bloodborne Great One to the end of my favorite character's quest line" wore off. Astel is, for lack of a better word, annoying. His wide range and tendency to fly above a lot of moves with his thin gangly body make him bothersome to approach and a lot of his attacks, such as waves of darkness, meteorite shower and the gravity ring just feel bad to dodge or get hit by. Astel is another boss whose main merit comes from presentation and design, but unfortunately, his fight is quite weak with very few redeeming qualities in my opinion.

#21: Godskin Apostle

This may be a bit of a hot take, but I've found myself struggling with Godskin Apostle a lot more than Noble, to the point I like it a fair bit less. His twinblade combos can be quite a hassle and he feels much more prolific with his usage of blackflame than the Noble. His blackflame tornado and weapon helicopter are also pretty annoying. Overall, I don't really enjoy the Godskin Apostle's fight, but it feels like more of a personal struggle than the boss actually being bad, hence its ranking.

#22: Mimic Tear

I really don't have much to say about this boss. It's hard to consistently judge as how fun or annoying it is entirely depends on how you approach it. Overall though, I do like the concept and it can be quite funny. Due to its inconsistency and me not really caring for NPC invaders in general though, I'll just put it as the cut-off point for bosses I just genuinely dislike.

#23: Godskin Duo

Godskin Duo isn't good, but it's not as bad as people say either in my opinion. Being made up of two pretty average bosses and especially after the balance patch to duo bosses, the Duo ends up just being a kind of whatever fight that can be a bit annoying sometimes. I really don't have much to say other than that. Guess I will use this spot to say how much I love the Godskin theme though.

#24: Draconic Tree Sentinel

I don't like this guy he looks like burnt chicken and waffles. I don't really have much to say about this guy either. His AoEs and Hitboxes can be real weird and annoying and I hate the horse fireball spam you will be subjected to if you even dare try to heal. He's just kind of a necessary evil, not really worth complaining about.

#25: Fire Giant

By far my least favorite remembrance boss, Fire Giant is everything people say is wrong with fromsoft's plethora of giant bosses. Not only do you just spend the entire time slapping its ankles, Fire Giant also has an absurdly massive health pool, and a boss that wastes your time will always annoy me more than one that gets you with cheap bullshit. While having a fantastic and underrated theme and really cool lore, I really don't enjoy fighting Fire Giant at all due to his large health pool and wide range AoEs.

#26: Elemer of the Briar

I can't stand this guy and I can't stand that there's like 8 of him. I really don't see where this "Elemer is the most underrated boss" idea came from, because I personally think Elmo deserves every bit of hate he gets. My girlfriend put it perfectly when she said "Elemer has a punish for you existing", because it really does feel like he can counter everything you do, no matter if you're healing, jumping, casting or attacking. While it's cool that his sleek sword is the reward for fighting him, I really don't enjoy the battle with Elemer at all.

#27: Leonine Misbegotten

Genuinely how do you make Gael, Dark Souls' greatest boss in my opinion, so fucking unbearable. With a non stop barrage of overly staggering sword swings, Leonine Misbegotten is without fail an insanely annoying fight for me. Its arena is really cool but that is about the only positive I can give it. I already don't like Castle Morne, nor the Grafted Blade and Leonine Misbegotten really doesn't help either of their cases.

#28: Valiant Gargoyles

Like I said before, Godskin Duo isn't as bad as actually say. Valiant Gargoyles, on the other hand, might somehow be worse, despite nobody being able to stand them anyway. I really don't have anything of note to add to the conversation about this god awful fight and writing about these bosses I hate is already draining enough, so I'll just move on.

#29: Red Wolf of Radagon

While I do think from a game design perspective, Valiant Gargoyles and Gideon are worse, Red Wolf frustrates me more than anything else. Not only is it a cheap attempt at making Dark Souls fans rejoice by reusing scrapped content from 3 that's obviously reminiscent of one of the most memorable fights in the first game, Red Wolf is also just really annoying, with its overy long combos and tendency to avoid attacks by jumping around aimlessly. The only saving grace is it's tiny health pool, but that still requires you hit it to begin with, which, unfortunately, isn't always a given. Red Wolf just pisses me off in a way I can't really properly describe but at least it's over quick most of the time.

#30: Sir Gideon Ofnir, the All-Knowing

Not only is Gideon a massive cunt, his boss fight also sucks. Being everything wrong with both NPC invaders and sorceror bosses, Gideon is one unbearable spam sandwich of spells that more than likely will kill you in 2 shots. Gideon has genuinely no redeeming qualities that affect his fight and there is a very good reason everyone uses his admittedly pretty cool monologue to instantly bumrush him the second they pass the fog gate. Gideon's fight really is a huge letdown considering how much of a despicable cunt he is, but I suppose there wasn't really a better way to do it. Regardless, I hate fighting Gideon. It's cheap, annoying, unfair and rewards you with a subpar weapon. If he wasn't mandatory nobody would be fighting this guy.

[cryaboutitpal]

Discussing what happened between Marshmallow and Paintbrush.

(This analysis post is going to primarily focus on Paintbrush. Sorry Marshmallow fans.)

As we know, Marshmallow decided to abandon Inanimate Insanity during episode 11 of season 2 and was officially disqualified in episode 12. What I don't see a lot of people talking about though is the relationship between Marshmallow and Paintbrush and just how much hurt this could have possibly caused the poor artist.

So, let's take a look at the whole ordeal together in my attempt at an analysis post and see how this all affected Paintbrush. Marshmallow won't be mentioned too much because I'm mainly focusing on Painty here, not Marsh.

Let's not waste anymore time! Let's go! The analysis is under the cut!

1: Marshmallow and Paintbrush's friendship

From what we (the viewers) have been shown, these two are pretty close. From that one Santa ploy they schemed together to trick Apple in episode 9 season 1 to Paintbrush helping Marshmallow hide from Apple in episode 6 season 2, they were commonly shown helping each other and in general just being best buds.

Bare in mind, all that is simply what's shown! I know they're fictional characters and all but still! Imagine all the shit they could've done together off camera! (If that was possible, of course.)

So, with the context that Paintbrush and Marshmallow were extremely close... Doesn't the whole "Marsh abandoning the game to live with Bow, Dough and Apple" thing seem much more tragic already?

No?

Don't worry, I'll show you just how tragic it truly is.

2: Abandonment and the (assumed) circumstances behind it

We all know why Marshmallow abandoned the game. Here's the thing though: just because we, the viewers know the reason doesn't mean that they, the characters know that reason.

Paintbrush doesn't know that Marshmallow simply got sick of the game and wanted to live with Bow. They have no idea where she is or if she's even alive.

Not only that... They probably think they are at fault as well.

I'll tell you my reasoning as to why I think they blame themself.

The episode right before Marshmallow abandoned the game (episode 10, season 2) Paintbrush lost it right in front of Marsh and assaulted Fan. Verbally and physically. Doesn't help that the run in with some of their other teammates ended with Paintbrush calling Marshmallow, telling her that they were leaving.

I doubt Paintbrush meant to seem as controlling as I made them sound. They just got frustrated, that happens.

That doesn't mean they don't blame themself now, does it?

I mean, if you got angry in front of your best friend and that anger led to you hitting someone and storming off, dragging your friend along right before they mysteriously vanished, never to be seen again... Well, who wouldn't blame themself for that?

Again, Paintbrush isn't evil. They aren't exactly good but they certainly didn't want to control Marsh. If anything, they wanted to help her. It's just that their anger got in the way and now she's left them.

Things get even worse however...

3: Lightbulb's time travelling shenanigans

(Great quality screenshot, Akemi. You could probably count the pixels in that goddamn thing.)

Lightbulb fucking around with time in of itself didn't really do much about the whole situation. What I want to talk about is something that is barely even touched on, if at all.

Like with Marshmallow leaving the game, the cast didn't know that Test Tube and Lightbulb were time travelling and messing about in an alternate universe like us viewers do. To the cast, they just disappeared.

Sounds familiar, doesn't it? Yep, it's similar to Marshmallow going AFK.

Not only that, the circumstances are similar as well, at least to Painty.

They got angry with a teammate, hurt a teammate (emotionally this time) and walked off mad.

Considering how Lightbulb disappeared basically right after this scene, Paintbrush probably thought that Lightbulb had left them forever.

Just like Marshmallow.

Granted, Paintbrush displays a positive reaction to the news but... How do we know that they were actually happy about Lightbulb suddenly going missing? What if they were mentally tearing their bristles out or something? That had to have felt some guilt and self-hatred over the whole thing, right?

Faking a smile is basically Lightbulb's whole character (heavily watered down but still kinda right), I wouldn't doubt that Paintbrush would fake one as well.

Remember: actions and thoughts can be separate! A character could look happy but actually be extremely sad and self-loathing!!

At least Lightbulb didn't actually disappear forever like Marshmallow. That probably made Paintbrush feel a little less guilty. Keyword: a little. Not entirely. They still don't know where Marshmallow is and still probably blame themself for her leaving the game.

Not entirely a happy ending but more bittersweet, kinda like their season 2 elimination.

So, in conclusion. Paintbrush's conscience is probably a guilty one due to Marshmallow leaving them and never coming back.

(I could still be wrong though, feel free to correct me.)

Anyway, Sayonara!

[nonhumanresources]

A List Of Books/Stories About Transformation

You ever seen those titles of extremely specific essays? If this was one of those I'd call it "A List Of Books That Contain In Whole Or In Part Some Amount Of Transformation, Or The Changing Of Oneself To Another That Has In Some Manner Been Fundamentally Altered From The Self You Used To Be." That was the original title but I didn't want to be mean.

I was rambling far too long about post TF on one of warmer-hotcakes's posts and they mentioned not being able to find stories with a positive relationship to transformation (as well as transformations that are permanent) so I wanted to put a few down in a list!

Granted, these are incredibly inconsistent in pretty much every way other than being SFF but hey, we take what we can get here. Plus they weren't wrong it is VERY hard to find these kinds of stories, half of the list at this point is self published novels on Amazon written by people I've met by chance in TF circles, to give you an idea. So, to pad it out I will add more tangentially related TF stories.

If anyone happens to have more stories feel free to comment them and I'll add them on! I will also add to the list sporadically if I feel like it.

Anyway, without further ado:

Wolven by Di Toft is about a kid finding a werewolf out in the woods. It's been years since I read it but it's got a fun dichotomy between a villain and a protagonist both suffering from partial werewolfication and the ways they deal with it.

Thousand Tales by Kris Schnee is a self published series of books set in the near future where an AI runs a video game that allows people to be "uploaded" into it. There's a lot of books that don't need to be read in any specific order focusing on different characters and is generally a more lighthearted approach to the topic than most, and also it has furries in it. There are books about people who upload immediately, people who do eventually, and people who never do. Not quite the same as adjusting to changes IRL but this is my list and I get to shill whatever I want. Also, it's some of the highest quality writing/editing I have seen in a self-published novel (especially TF novel).

How To Be A Hero: (And Part Time Dragon) by S. Blakeway is a book about a hero who gets defeated and turned into a wyvern by the Dark Lord. Her eternal torment is interrupted, though, by said Dark Lord sending her out on a quest, during which she has to navigate turning back into a wyvern every few days. It's fun and silly and has lots of TF and the author is a very nice and cool person. Go buy this one and the sequel and help me bother her into finishing the trilogy please.

Perspective Flip also by Kris Schnee and Shifting Tails by Paul Lotor are a pair of short story collections. These are more of a soft recommend; both include cases of protags adapting to transformations, and generally involve positive stories, but not all of them are great. Perspective Flip is generally good but Shifting Tails especially has stories that lean very far into the horny side of things as well as topics I was very much not into, but some of them were admittedly very enjoyable. Being horny isn't bad, of course; it's moreso that there is less "story" and more "hey wouldn't this TF be hot." To be fair, sometimes they are, but sometimes they stray far away from my interests, so take that how you will.

Wereworld by Curtis Jobling is something I read as a kid but I'm gonna be honest I remember almost nothing about it. However it is about therianthropes of all types and I like that so it's going on here. They even have sharks!

The Dragon and the George by Gordon R. Dickson. Full disclosure, I have not finished reading this one, and I do not believe it has permanent TF, but it does feature a dude who astral projects into a dragon and is generally a fine book.

The Dangers Of Wearable Technology by Serathin Sabertooth (gods I hope that isn't a pen name, that would be so cool). This is one that I don't really recommend? Which is odd, you might say, for a list of recommendations. Correct! I just have a complex relationship with it, which I will include in a post here so that I don't flood this list with unnecessary words.

That's all I can think of at the moment, but like I said, feel free to send suggestions my way and I'd be happy to read em/add em to the list! Obviously it's pretty short right now and I'd love to bulk it up as much as possible for all us COOL NERDS

[celestiall0tus]

Redemption is a noble idea, but...

not everyone is capable of redemption. It is a sad, but honest truth. I'm not saying this to be a negative nancy, but I work with people who are down on their luck, at odds with the law, and I see this. I see people given a chance to better themselves, to get a fresh start on life, but they don't always take those chances and opportunities. Some are just genuinely in denial while you have those that know they have a problem but can't find the strength to stand back up again. After all, you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink. Now, I know in media we get an escape and something we wouldn't normally in life. A fulfillment that can only be found there because of how shit life is. However, not everyone is worthy of redemption, especially a fast redemption.

I'm going to rip this old bandaid off. The Diamonds didn't deserve a redemption. Yes, Diamonds. Yellow, Blue, and White (I'll get to Pink in a whole different post as her story wasn't about redemption) The Diamonds were evil tyrant dictators that committed atrocities across the universe in their conquest. Immediately, Yellow and White aren't exactly deserving of a redemption. Now, Blue had redeeming qualities. She cared more for Pink than the others, mourned her, kept her memory alive, and actively sided with Steven first, but there's one big thing that really taints it for me. The gaslighting and abuse that Blue participated in towards Pink. I don't care what your opinion of Pink is, but the fact is that she was a victim of abuse. She was locked away, told she was "loved" and constantly treated as less than a Diamond. I have no doubt that Blue truly loved Pink, but the way she participated in the abuse and how it was quickly wrapped up will never sit right with me. Especially in the end when Pink is damned while the other Diamonds are redeemed.

To my Miraculous fans, we recently saw this. Gabriel, the worst of the worst, given redemption. This one is a little... muddy. So, he was granted redemption, but he granted it to himself. Mari tried, but was stabbed in the back. That I appreciate. He was able to use the wish to get what he wanted. He didn't need Mari to keep a promise or anything like that when Gimmi gave him exactly what he wanted, at the cost of himself. So, it's really muddy. No, he didn't deserve a redemption, but he won. He got what he wanted in the end. If he lost, but was offered redemption, that would be one thing. However, he actually won. He got his wish and rewrote reality to what he wanted. Again, it is extremely muddy and unclear. I do hope that in season 6 we get some answers. However, even I know that is too much to wish for.

On top of that for my Miraculous fans, I'll briefly touch on the big ones being Felix and Chloe. One who was given a redemption while the other who was started to give redemption, but then given a damnation.

Felix is a mixed bag. He definitely was a little shit at the start and it was genuinely jarring to see him again in Emotion wanting to help Adrien when he actively tormented Adrien. He was a good candidate for redemption, however, it needed time. As it stands, Felix's redemption was so jarring and quick. And, this could be just me, but is a little tied to Kagami. He really changed when Kagami was introduced into his life, and it's cute. But I'm so tired of this. I'm so tired of a romantic interest being the reason a person changes. I get love can change people, but I'm so fucking sick of it. I do wish we could have seen more of Felix's shift rather than drops of vague intrigue.

Now the sore spot: Chloe. Allow me to say this, I will be using the correct terminology for this when addressing her arc. It is my duty as a writer to address this as professionally as possible. If any of my phrasing or terms upset you, grow a pair.

Chloe, like Felix, was a perfect candidate for redemption. What made her redemption far more compelling is that we had time to digest it. It wasn't just dropped on our heads like Felix. We got to see the horrible mother that Audrey was (bitch was straight savage), the trauma that she endured because of Audrey's abandonment. It doesn't justify what she did, but it gives context. On top of that, you can buy her actions as a coping mechanism as she tries to act just like her mother. This does lead her to doing horrible things, that which is pretty bad, but it doesn't make her completely irredeemable. What ultimately led her to a damnation arc was Ladybug. I'll just say it, Ladybug was hypocrite. She told Chloe no more Queen Bee, but then acted rashly and gave Kagami the dragon again, despite Kagami revealing herself. It is no wonder that Chloe would turn to Hawkmoth in her most vulnerable moment.

Speaking of, there is a reason villains attack during a person's weakest. Chloe was a die hard Ladybug fan. She was utterly devoted because Ladybug was her hero. However, her hero tore her down and destroyed her, much like her own mother. This brings her to a vulnerable point. It's a lot like the original Disney's Ariel when Ursula goes after her. It is directly after Triton destroys the grotto and Ariel is shattered. The moment that they are at their weakest. And yet, both Ariel and Chloe are blamed for their actions without analyzing the events that lead them to it. Ariel had everything she loved destroyed by someone she loved dearly. Chloe had her devotion and hope shattered by a person she idolized. And yet people wonder why they did the things they did.

Chloe was someone that was on the right track to redemption, but was damned by her idol. I honestly think it is poetic, but wished there was acknowledgement. The damnation could have worked more if Ladybug acknowledged her own faults and tried to actively right them to put Chloe back on track for redemption. You want them to be seen as grown up by season 5, Astruc, add these moments. Ladybug blaming Chloe was not right by any means. Ladybug is at fault. She was the final straw that destroyed Chloe's redemption arc and pushed her towards damnation.

That is all for this post. I have one more to address a little later, but first need to collect my thoughts on. Stayed tuned for that one

[slasherbat]

Rating Werewolf Designs (TV Edition)

I'm back to chat more about werewolf designs and give my honest opinions. If you want to see my thoughts on some werewolf movie designs, you can check that out here.

Today I'm looking at werewolf designs in TV shows, but only for five shows. Over a show's run, there will be a lot of changes, and this heavily applies to TV shows. Granted, only one of these shows has very drastic werewolf changes from its first and second appearance, so more on that later. If you looked at the tags beforehand or happened to see this scrolling through the show's tag. You'll know what exactly I'm talking about.

Starting off I'll be taking a look at Doctor Who, specifically the series two episode Tooth and Claw. As far as I am aware, this is our only werewolf sighting in Nu-Who.

I've seen better CGI werewolves, granted this episode came out in 2006, but still. It looks oddly photoshopped in, the right paw looks strange from this shot as if it only had two toes instead of four. The arms look a bit patchy with the fur. I've never seen a werewolf so dog-like and alien-like. Also a bit shiny with the fur. It's not something truly awful, I have seen worse werewolf designs and Doctor Who isn't exactly a horror-centric series. Yet if it ever does decide to bring werewolves back, I can only hope it looks better than that and maybe, just maybe. Pratical.

Wednesday Netflix

It's something. It looks more like a saber-tooth tiger than anything else. I can see the vision, but the incredibly long canines feel out of place.

I feel like this would be a very solid design for any other were-creature if decided, maybe change a few things to look like it. This design does have potential to be a solid werewolf, or any other kind of were-creature. A couple of changes can go a long way in design.

Going to the transformation, I have to say. Enid in her mid-transformation state is a solid werewolf that leans on the more human side. Add some more fur, werewolf ears, yellow eyes, fuck her spine up to make her taller and a bit hunched, go for more wolf-ish legs, add some rips in the clothes to reveal the fur. You'd have a good balance of human and wolf. Maybe change the snout a bit also.

(apologies for such poor quality)

The werewolf designs in this show have potential, and I would not be upset if they made some changes in season 2 to it.

Teen Wolf

I'll only be taking a look at three werewolf designs due to just how many designs these shows monsters and creatures had.

The actual wolf design is nothing special to me. I've never liked it when films and shows had done stuff like that, it lacks uniqueness and it's nothing special to me. Go join David Kessler in the London Zoo.

Onto Demon Wolf Peter Hale, it's funny. It's silly, it is not that great, but it did serve it's purpose for the arc. If anything, it looks like a Hell Hound design if it was in anything else besides Teen Wolf.

Now onto the actual werewolf design. It took me some getting used but since I went into the show not knowing what the werewolves looked like. There was a bit of disappointment on my end when I saw that was it, but I've grown to like the design. I will say, that the Teen Wolf werewolf design serves as some pretty solid inspiration for a mid-transformation werewolf look.

Escape The Night

Shown in the season 2, episode Full Moon Slaughter, we got these guys, and they are my favorite monster in this show, Full Moon Slaughter is my all time favorite episode of that show. So I will be brutally honest when I saw this. I kinda hate how the werewolves look. They look off, the face feels a bit flat, the torso's look at bit strange, and it's just not that great of a werewolf design, but as I said before. It serves it's purpose.

Buffy The Vampire Slayer

As of right now I am only on Season 4 Episode 1, so I will only be looking at the werewolf designs from season 2 and 3. Due to the fact I don't want to end this post with an awful design. I'll be talking about the season 3 design first.

Now,

WHAT. THE. FUCK?

TALK ABOUT A DOWNGRADE. This is quite possibly the worst werewolf design I have on this list for TV shows. How do you massacre something that was such a perfect design? That is not a werewolf, why is the face a bit to human? I swear, if there are human ears like AAWIP, I'm done. I'm walking out.

They had done Oz, so dirty with this design and the fact we had to see it so much. It's awful, the worst fucking thing I have ever seen. Why? Why did they have to go that route?

To end this post on a good design, and one of my favorites. The season 2 Buffy the Vampire Slayer werewolf is so amazing. I love him, this is one of my favorite designs in a show for this beautiful beast. I wish it stuck around, and I can see elements of it in the werewolf design for The Cabin In The Woods.

This design is just amazing and lovely. There are no flaws. I love a well-done practical werewolf, and it's something you can 100% tell actually what it's supposed to be. I'll never be over this design, it's perfect to me. My 3rd favorite werewolf design following the one in Cabin and David Kessler from AAWIL.

Anyway, that's my rating and review of werewolves in TV shows. Maybe I'll do werewolves in video games next who knows? Until next time everyone!

[password-door-lock]

Saeran takes care in arranging the cheese plate, although he knows he doesn't have much reason to be so meticulous. The two of you are probably going to devour it over the course of the next few minutes— after all, both of your circadian rhythms are severely skewed after last night (or this morning, to be more precise). The RFA party ran late, and then, despite the hour, the other members wanted to spend a bit of quality time together as a group. After that, of course, the pair of you had to make the trek from the party hall in the city to your marital home in the countryside. Saeran drove, and though he assured you that he wouldn't mind it if you fell asleep, you insisted on staying awake with him, playing silly driving games until the two of you were safely in the house. After getting into your respective pajamas and brushing your respective teeth, you and Saeran fell asleep sometime around three in the morning. 

The two of you only woke up about an hour ago, ravenous, as anyone would expect, and now, here you are, combining forces to throw together a low-effort lunch. “Honey, if I sliced up an apple, would you eat it?” You ask. You threw on one of Saeran’s sweaters after getting out of bed, but otherwise, you’re still in your pajamas. This makes you look even cuter than you normally would, leaning on the counter and staring contemplatively at a basket of apples. 

Saeran regards you fondly. “I think most people just eat apples whole, don’t they, my love?” He can’t help but tease you a little. After all, you’re just so adorable.

“I don't think most people put whole apples on their charcuterie trays,” you grumble, though your eyes shine despite your apparent annoyance. Saeran can tell that you’re just making a production of it, trying to entertain him— and, to your credit, it’s working.  “What about tomatoes?”

“Anything is fine,” Saeran assures you, carefully slicing the mild brie that he picked up a few days ago in anticipation of this exact event. After the last RFA party, he learned that neither one of you is really up for cooking a proper meal the next day.  “It's like we're having a picnic,” he muses. Granted, it’s the middle of winter, so it won’t be possible to have your lunch outside, but this is the same kind of food that Ray would have prepared if he’d ever been able to set up that picnic he promised you back at Magenta. 

You grin. “In our pajamas?” 

“Hm.” Saeran looks down at his oversized T-shirt and plaid pajama pants. Although he can’t say that this was a factor of his original picnic fantasy, now that he’s actually living it, he is largely  unconcerned with what the two of you are wearing. He's happy to be comfortable, after all, and he's even happier to see you equally comfortable. “I guess so.”

“That's a great idea,” you decide, placing a pair of whole apples on the plate with the cherry tomatoes and blueberries, despite your earlier reservations. “I'll go get a blanket. We can eat on the floor.” Now Saeran understands— the ambiance of your indoor picnic is more important to you than the aesthetic quality of the charcuterie board. Truth be told, he can’t help but agree, especially considering how excited you sound.

Saeran returns your grin. There's never a dull moment with you, that's for sure. “I've never had an indoor picnic before.” It's not something that he ever would have thought of before he met you. Honestly, he spent so long daydreaming about that specific picnic in the garden that now, he cannot divorce the idea of a picnic from the image that he created in his mind. He’s glad that you can see the situation from a different angle. 

“There's a first time for everything,” you call from the living room, where you are setting up a picnic blanket on top of the rug. “Maybe somebody’ll write a book about us or something.” 

“Maybe you're right, my love,” Saeran calls back, carefully arranging the cheese on the plate. “We’re innovators, aren’t we?” As he does every time he takes a moment to reflect, Saeran finds that he feels thankful to be by your side.

[penncilkid]

Today is March 28th, 2024.

It marks exactly one year since, on a whim, I joined a Discord call. I've referred to it as "Robocop Day" since discovering the date because I joined the call after watching Robocop for homework and decided "Fuck it, if they're still on call, why not join?"

Words cannot properly capture/express how that was one of the best decisions I could've made.

To sit and think about all the ways I have changed for the better in this year is absolutely insane sometimes. I was so nervous to join that night, I barely knew anyone in the Redacted fandom and had barely gotten to know anyone outside of Angie (shoutout to thefablefoxart, go check her out /gen). But in that moment, for whatever reason, my brain was like "Do it. Go join this call. At least give it a try." So I did— And promptly got roped into a multi-hour ramble about one of many Darlin OCs (/lh /pos).

This account would not be what it is without these people. Neither would my art, my writing, my channel, and more. There are so many ways I have grown and so many things I've been able to try in this year of knowing this group of people, and I cannot wait for all that's to come still. So, without further ado, I'm gonna put the people in this group chat on blast (lovingly /lh):

@latenightsleeper: Sleeper Beeper, as Cupid calls you, you are such a force to be reckoned with. You are elusive but nonetheless loved and cherished. You are an incredible storyteller, even if 99% of the time you're simply finding new ways to rip my heart to shreds. I know life kicks your ass more often than not (which is should stop doing, frankly /lh), but I hope you know how important you are to me and how I would rain hellfire at the drop of a hat for you. I've been very lucky to get to know someone like you, and I hope I get to continue gaining your lore, as you put it.

@cashandprizes: Miss Alexis Moonlight, it is no secret how much you have improved my quality of life. Even when you're fussing at me, I know it's out of love and it simply makes me a better person in the long run. Any time spent with you, be it online or face to face, is truly a blessing in more ways than one. I've said before and I'll say it again, you are someone who makes me feel incredibly safe and secured, especially on my harder days. And that is something I will never take for granted. You are such a visionary, even when you don't always give yourself credit for it. I'm always in awe of the things you manage to cook up, regardless of the form they take. I hope that someday I can repay you even a fraction of everything you've done for me.

@mr-laveau: Veau, candidate for the leader of the PK fanclub (alongside Frenchie and Lexi Moon if I'm not mistaken? /lh), it's no secret that I am one of your biggest cheerleaders. And I intend to maintain that title because you are incredible. You are an insanely talented artist, voice actor, and writer, and I don't care anyone else tries to convince you. You are also one of the kindest people I have met when it comes to people you care about/look out for. It's insane for me to think that this singular extended invitation could have allowed me a chance to get to know so many amazing people in the long run. I am so happy to have met you. You have helped me be self-indulgent with the things I make and have pushed me to not only go after the things I want, but be kinder to myself along the way. No amount of words I could give to you will ever encompass all that you mean to me.

And one bonus party:

@wingless-cupid: Cupid, you may not have been there for the creation of this group chat, but you are absolutely a core member of it now. You've been stuck with me for far longer than the rest of these guys, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna pass up on the opportunity to appreciate you and our friendship as well. Life is a bitch to you, but you keep pushing on and I'm so happy to have witnessed it all on the sidelines. Your creativity and execution of such is insane to see in the best way possible. Even if we're threatening each other with violence every other minute, I know that you have my back. And I hope you know I have yours as well.

So yeah. Who is this post for? Mostly me. But I also think everyone I've mentioned is amazing and worth checking out. Thanks for being in my life, guys /pos