#senshi would find a way i trust

[untimelybones]

have some more (ft. 2 homeless (rich) men)

every morning i wake up and refresh toshiro's tag in hopes of new (lai)shuro content

[lady-boketto]

Being a Bard within the group! (Dungeon Meshi)

A/n: I recently watched Dungeon Meshi (I also started playing Baldur's Gate 3) and I have been enjoying everything so far and I had the idea to write a relationship dynamic between a bard reader and the rest of the Dungeon Meshi group (I also might write a Barbarian/Fighter type of reader)

Laios:

He is amazed at how you can compose such lively tunes and respects how much time and effort you put into your craft

Will be amused if you choose to try to write a song about him (He smiles to himself when he overhears you trying to find a word that rhymes with his name)

He will not like it if you were to ever sing about him in front of others (his facial expression will not be a happy one, more of a nervous one since he doesn't like it when he's in the center of attention)

Laios really likes it when everyone is resting at camp after a meal and you play your instrument to pass the time (he likes to tap his foot along to the melody)

Laios is happy to provide you with monster names and rhyming words to help you complete your song (or parts your stuck on)

Marcille:

She is very glad that you are with their group since when you play your instrument for the group it calms her nerves a little with each note you play (her ears slightly twitch when you play a more cheerful songs since her hearing is more sensitive)

Marcille gets as sad as you when you break your instrument, but is just as eager to use her magic to repair the instrument (maybe it fell from a high place or that it took on a bit of water damage, but most likely you smashed it over a monster's/person's head and it broke)

She also likes it when you write songs about their adventures (especially if you sing/write about how powerful she can be with her magic, but like Laios is very flustered if you sing about her in front of a crowd, she will turn red and try to hide behind her staff)

Your soft songs without words, or humming at most, settle her nicely into her sleep (she sometimes gets the tune stuck in her head for hours until she begs you to play that one song for her again)

Chilchuck:

Chilchuck values you as a companion since you sometimes use your skills to get the group out of tough situations (sometimes you use your charms talk your way out tough situations, which is a RELIEF because he has no trust in the others abilities. Laios...)

this one time you talked your way into a free night's stay at the local pub the group frequents in exchange to entertain guest all night long, in which you were happy to since you also sometimes get extra coins from generous people passing by

He probably won't say it directly to you but he really enjoys listening you compose new songs (his ears are also quite sensitive just like Marcille's, so when he hears you trying to figure out which notes sound good together, he has a small smile on his face while he continues to polish and make sure his lockpicks are in good condition)

Chilchuck also can't hold back his laughter when you mock people when they are being disrespectful to someone in your party and you jump in to defend them (He manages to slap his hand over his mouth just before he lets out an ugly laugh since he doesn't expect you to roast your opponent so hard. Sometimes even managing to cry so hard he winds himself)

Senshi:

Doesn't really get why you are traveling in the dungeon in the first place, since this is the last place he would think someone with your skills would ever be

Senshi is not used to hearing the soft melodies coming from your instrument. Instead of the usual noises of whatever creature on the current floor he was on would make or the occasional screaming parties that travel by (or he is so used to the silence that he doesn't notice how much he misses the warmth and sound of another soul)

He admires any carving or engraving you have on your instrument and asks you if there's a story behind it or if it was for aesthetic purpose (wants to ask if he can hold your instrument so that he learn more about you as a person based on how you handle it while asking you how you came to play such an instrument)

Senshi takes note of how well you seem to take care of your work and takes the time compliment you on your hard work (He learns from you how to properly maintain your instrument and keeps an eye out for anything that might help when he gets the chance)

He comes to love when you play songs while he cooks a meal for the group to enjoy, He sometimes gets concentrated in what he's doing that he doesn't realize that he's softly humming along to the melody your currently playing (He likes to slightly sway along with the tune while he dices things or when he's waiting for the dish to finish cooking)

[kcrossvine-art]

Hi fellow adventurers!! A few weeks ago i caught wind of "Delicious in Dungeon". I'm not really an anime person, but I am a TTRPG, CRPG, and cooking person- . And holy shit. It is so good i  convinced my partner to binge read the whole thing. I'm caught up on dungeon meshi, the anime, and just yesterday i also finished dungeon meshi, the manga.

Its rare to come across a serialized story that is so thematically cohesive and knows its characters so well. All of the bonus content like the artbooks and monster tidbits are just the icing on top.

So, inspired by Ryōko Kui's writing and illustration I'm going to attempt to create a recipe for every single Delicious in Dungeon recipe!-

Today that means Huge Scorpion and Walking Mushroom hotpot is on the menu!

(As always you can find the cooking instructions and full ingredient list under the break-)

MY NAMES CROSS NOW LETS COOK LIKE ANIMALS

SO, “what goes in to a Huge Scorpion and Walking Mushroom hotpot?” YOU MIGHT ASKThis is one of the pricier dishes until we get to the kelpies and dragons of the menu-

Rock lobster tail

Porcini mushrooms

Shiitake mushrooms

Snow fungus

Small potatos

Fensi (glass noodles)

Water

OPTIONAL: your choice of dipping sauces

There was a crossover/promotional event in Shibuya which featured various realworld dishes from the series. They had one for Huge Scorpion and Walking Mushroom, but they used prawns.  while those cook better in a hotpot, they also didn't look enough like the scorpion for me, they also used udon noodles for the slime and a seaweed/kale(?) mixture for the algae. If you're looking for substitutes due to price or availability i would start with those ingredients.

AND, “what does a Huge Scorpion and Walking Mushroom hotpot taste like?” YOU MIGHT ASKI hope Senshi would forgive me for technically cooking the lobster outside the pot, once he tastes it.

Okay im always partial to veggies but wowowowowowowoowowowow the snow fungus and the mushrooms tasted soooooooooooo good in the lobster stock

A nice delicate layering of different flavors

Try to get a bite with the lobster meat and shiitake together, dip in butter then chili- trust me

Its up to you what texture you prefer if you want to put the noodles in at the end or put them in halfway through the meal. Either way dont go for eating those first as theyre very filling

I think this would pair well with a citrus drink, something light and clarifying

This would also pair well with being extremely high and hungry (if you feel safe cooking while inebriated lol) very calorically dense

For the trial run I did one lobster tail in the pot with everything else, and one lobster tail off to the side to be picked apart. The former is more in spirit with a hotpot, but it got rubbery as the meal went on and lost its nice taste. The latter may be a bit more work but all you have to do still is boil it and set it aside. I found it held up much better. It was also easier to get inside the shell.

. If you have hardshell maine lobster available, i think it would be superior to rock lobster (keep in mind crustaceans will get rubbery if cooked too long in the pot) . Green onions and/or lotus root would make excellent additions

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From getting the ingredients out to sitting down and eating, id say it took maybe 30 minutes max? It'd vary on how fast you can prep vegetables and get the various implements heated.

Hotpots are not something i do very often as i'm usually just feeding myself. I think thats why a hotpot makes perfect sense to start the series off. If you want to set the tone of "take care of yourself, eat food with others, and use what you have" (generally speaking) there is nothing more simplistic, flexible, and defeats-the-purpose-if-you-eat-it-alone than a hotpot. Gather around and let your friends bring ingredients to the pot if you want to fill your heart up extra full <3

I'm doing something different here because unlike previous recipes where i used a bunch of different sources and made my own recipe out of hodge-podging it, or just used another persons recipe entirely if they did it really well, i made this more whole-cloth based off of what i had available, what I could discover through research, and my existing knowledge. Instead of the recipe being 50/50 original, this one is more 20/80. So. I'll pass the final verdict off to you guys :D 

What would you rate this recipe out of 10? (with 1 being food that makes one physically sick and 10 being food that gives one a lust for life again.) Did you love it, did you hate it? What're your thoughts on what I could do different, and what would you have done instead?

🐁 ORIGINAL RESIPPY TEXT BELOW 🐁

Ingredients:

2 Rock lobster tails

3 Porcini mushrooms

2 Shiitake mushrooms

Snow fungus (a good handful, should rehydrate in the hotpot)

2 Small waxy potatos

Fensi (glass noodles)

Water/lobster stock

Method:

Lightly rinse all of your vegetables beforehand and let them dry.

Vertically slice the porcini mushrooms. Cut off and dice the stems of the shiitake mushrooms. You can slice the tops if youd like.

Peel and cube the potatoes, roughly an inch each.

For the lobster tails; Boil a pot of salted water. Keep the shell on. Weigh the largest tail and add 1 minute of cooking time for every ounce of weight.

When done, strain the lobster from the water. Pour the water into your hotpot as the base. Serve the lobster on the side so people can pick the meat out to dip into the hotpot.

Bring the hotpot to a simmer. Add the potato cubes, snow fungus, mushrooms, and noodles.

OPTIONAL: this wasnt in the show, but its fun having sauces on the side :) i had oyster sauce, dry seasoned chili dip, melted butter, and soy sauce available

[yusiyomogi]

I wanted to ask you if there were any notable differences with Mithrun's dialogue in a few specific scenes, or anything of note when he says "Free yourself" to Thistle, the scene with Marcille where he says, "Do you have any idea how empty that will leave you", generally speaking, when he's trying to show care and compassion and empathy, like the therapy scene, and what he says to Marcille there about love, too. I guess I'm wondering if there's any difference with how they're displayed, because, for instance, I've seen people say that he's cruel to Thistle, and I see the ruthlessness easy, but I can also read the autistic sense of justice, which, although people laud this as a "good" thing, it can be really single-minded and actually pretty unconcerned with "right" or "wrong".

It sort of has a way, to me, as an autistic person, of mirroring Laios wanting Senshi to eat the griffin—to know and be free because that's the only way forward, just. Harsher.

Also, um. His interaction with Kabru, too! When he goes on to ask him what he wants to do, or really just that panel. Their interaction. And... um? When he says about Falin, "If she wants to, she will."

Anyway, besides that, it also screams "meltdown", on a further look. He's very restless and distressed and that seems clear. I think he's kind of trying to rush out the conclusion he wants, maybe mistakenly believing he's more cool-headed than he is, and people trust him, I think, because he seems capable, I see a lot of, "he just doesn't care", but he's not very tuned into his emotions, and I think not really caring about the consequences if he can get what he really wants. Some people see malice, but I think his care is genuine, though I sort of believe he's also wanting his conclusion to happen as fast as possible—trying to force it out, and really not as stable as he may seem.

People will say "He doesn't care at all", but then I feel like...? Why try, if you don't care? And I was wondering about that, I guess.

Sorry if this is a big ask. I have Thoughts™️.

if you're asking me about japanese version, i'm sorry to tell you that i'm not that good at it :D. the only noticeable difference i see from his usual way of talking is that mithrun puts a lot of emphasis in his speech when he's trying to persuade other dungeon lords (he ends almost every sentence with [だ], which is usually a sign on emotional speech). but it's already pretty obvious from the meaning of what he says. the one that looks interesting to me is this panel, his pleading face and the way he says [お前になわからないか] "don't you understand?" works so well, it feels like he's truly empathetic here.

when people say that he acted cruel and violent, i say: yeah, and that's the point! mithrun, while being in many ways a unique character, is also an example of very old and very very common character archetype: he's a desperate and angry broken person who wants revenge and literally destroys himself in the process. it's almost impossible to write a character like that without them being cruel or cold or uncaring to other people, would any kind of redemption and healing even be interesting to see if they were perfectly nice, well-adjusted person?

the only reason to even talk about this is to analyze the cycle of cruelty traumatized people often find themselves in. to see how horrible the impact truly is, because kui does a great job portraying this. mithrun didn't even start as a good person, he was already at a pretty bad place mentally before his trauma. and guess what, any form of mental illness and trauma doesn't usually make you a better person, even if it changes you. when you have no desires, it's already kinda difficult to have any love, patience or care for people. what kind of person anyone would be when they don't wanna have friends, to love, to be loved, to live, to do literally anything? while also being constantly dehumanized by everyone, even people who technically care about them? actually, we know, because it happens in real life all the time.

but here's a thing. surprisingly, mithrun tries to care. he tries to care about civilians, he doesn't even kill people who wanted to kill him (kabru did, for example. don't know why people forget about this, pretty easy comparison to make). he tries to care about his squad: he always does the most dangerous job himself. he tries to care about other dungeon lords, because he feels compassion towards them, so he always gives them a choice.

but i love that kui makes him stay true to his character: he's an asshole, he doesn't have desires anymore, he's depressed, but he tries to care... and he fails and gives up. all the time. and he ends up hurting people because he gave up. idk, i find it incredibly relatable. and i think it's kinda weird to "criticize" mithrun for that, he's just a character that we're clearly supposed to empathize with, and we all one day or another find ourselves in similarly dark place in life. and there's something hopeful in his story, he didn't ask to be loved, but people loved him anyway – and he learned to accept this love. doesn’t happen as often in real life, unfortunately.

[holmsister]

I think one of the things Dungeon Meshi is definitely about is how different people deal with being an outsider/marginalised/neurodivergent/what have you and basically what im getting at is that Kabru is TEXTBOOK "high functioning [insert diagnosis here]". Its that how they say it still? Don't care.

Basically. This man shows up and you listens to him talk and see how his party treats him and you think. Oh this is a cool guy who has his shit together. And then after like two pages you find out that he has constant flashbacks to Utaya that make him completely freeze, anxiety attacks, thought spirals, is incapable of analyzing his own feelings, is a stuttering mess when the stakes are high, has never done a chore in his life, keeps putting himself in triggering situations and re-traumatising himself, and the icing on the cake is when you read the extra material and it turns out he regularly forgets to eat and lives in a depression nest of dirty clothes and self-medicates insomnia with alcohol and also is 22. Which also kind of puts Misilril not wanting to let him go in another light - yeah for sure she's controlling and infantilising and also its not like she was really helping his issues but also she was not entirely wrong in her judgement. This man does NOT know how to take care of himself. He knows how to do the bare minimum so when he shows up at work the next day he can fool his coworkers into thinking hes got it together enough. For a bit.

He is DEEPLY unwell and he knows it but he is carried by the desperate wish to avoid another catastrophe. If he stops for a moment he KNOWS he'll collapse so he doesn't.

I also think this is why him acting nurse to Mithrun is such an important part of his arc. Its like. This person who has spent all of his adult life focused on a single objective disregarding everything else is faced with what happens when you do that for too long. And the result is a wet tissue of a creature who looks like he doesn't know where he is most of the time.

He is a man on the brink. I have no doubt he felt relieved when he decided he could trust Laios - not even in a Labru way, straight up because he knew he could not keep going like this.

But also like. Of all the characters in the manga, I think Senshi and Kabru are the most lonely ones. Except Senshi seems to be OK with solitude - for sure it's not entirely healthy to be alone for as long as he was but he definitely did well enough. He is very good at taking care of himself. Meanwhile Kabru *knows* a lot of people but can you really say he has friends? Rin, maybe, arguably, but even she does not seem to truly know him, you know? He keeps himself hidden from everyone. I think the only time we see him entirely honest is when he says to Laios that he wanted to be his friend, and hes so shocked when it comes out, you can tell he did not mean to say it. And differently from Senshi, he does NOT fare well alone. He likes people, he needs people. Again compare with Mithrun - he has like a squad of people taking care of him. If Kabru had a breakdown of that size can you say his party would go out of its way to help? Im not sure. Not because they're bad people, but because he's simply not that intimate with any of them.

Idk man it just struck me all of a sudden. Laios is weird and offputting and doesn't care about other humans the way Kabru does and YET he is infinitely more successful at building deep, meaningful relationships and taking care of himself as well. I think this is part of why Kabru is so fascinated with him as well. He can tell Laios has something he doesn't have. Wait this is turning into a whole another post I'll write this next time.

[authenticyuri]

Listen I know I know, referring to Laios’s party as found family isn’t breaking new grounds but like. Can I talk about how literally everyone in the main cast has been ostracized or othered throughout their life and how they can form connections with each other despite their differences and how they don’t belong anywhere else but they actively want to stick together?

The Touden twins have never belonged in their family or with their peers. Laios’s fascination with monsters and low people skills are obviously the main traits that lead people to find him and his interests weird and creepy and cause them to have inaccurate and exaggerated views of how he acts in their head. Whenever people don’t outright tell him how weird he is they always pretend to be his friends while secretly hating him and acting passive aggressively towards him. Even when his knowledge and skills are put on full display and are actively useful, people are still on the fence about him as a whole and don’t take any time to understand him, constantly insisting he’s a freak and an idiot.

Falin was never understood by her parents because of her magical abilities and didn’t fit in at all at her academy. Others always saw her as the weird, muddy, quiet, irresponsible girl in their class, and while she never payed much attention to how others perceived her, it still left her completely isolated from others, until she met Marcille.

Chilchuck faces discrimination from other races constantly looking down on him (in more ways than one) and seeing him as literally disposable. He developed trust issues around others and tried to overcompensate by acting dryly and being as profesional as possible, but it does nothing to deter people from seeing him as a child and underestimating him.

Marcille’s huge age gap and irregular aging from others has made her feel completely isolated from everyone around her since her childhood. She is looked down upon by high and mighty elves who don’t see her as an equal due to being a mixed race. Her interests in ancient magic actively creep out her party members and everyone else who can only see it as the illegal and dangerous “dark arts.” She’s never been able to meet anyone else like her and feels isolated due to no one else having to bear and therefore never being able to understand her situation and frustrations.

Senshi was seen as an inconvenience in the original party he was a part of. Out of the main cast, he probably suffered the most traumatic circumstances and hasn’t been able to overcome that lingering dread in the back of his mind for years. He explored the dungeon in complete solitude for many years while never going out of his way to meet new people until he met Laios’s party. He is someone who uses his interests to try and connect with the people around him but people are unable to see that due to just finding him a weird man who lives in the dungeon and is obsessed with cooking.

Izutsumi never being properly raised and given love by anybody and seen as a freak because of her curse to be a beastkin, to the point she convinced herself that getting rid of her curse is the one thing that would finally make her happy. She’s never formed a close genuine connection with anyone and understood the concept of relationships as give and take.

Many or all of the preconceived biases each individual character faced are still present when it comes to how they view each other, and yet, despite it all, they are still sticking around, regardless of how many opportunities they had to leave. It’s how Chilchuck put himself in harms way despite not being strong and how he finally opened himself up to these people. How Senshi always stuck around to provide food for the others and help them along their journey, and come to accept different ways of doing things or understanding the world because of them. How Marcille ate every single meal she was served despite constantly showing hesitation, and she kept going despite how many times it seemed like they would never make it out or accomplish their goal. How Izutsumi learned that sometimes it’s necessary to do things you don’t like for the sake of other people, and she stuck around cause she knew they needed her, despite her not needing them. How Laios did gain a positive outlook on humanity and betrayed his instincts to save and protect the people he cares about. And about how Falin, after years of eating all by herself, was finally able to share a delicious meal with other people.

[ladyloveandjustice]

After watching Episode 13 of the anime, I begun to wish we'd seen Marcille waking up and her reaction to the decision to go back to the surface. So I wrote it.

---

Empty Arms

Marcille could feel Falin's warmth against her, her flushed skin, her heartbeat, her whispery breath tickling Marcille's face. She ran her fingers through Falin's fluffy hair, soft as downy feathers. She could always feel Falin's magic when she did that, mysterious and as infinite as the sky. She already smelled like Falin again, the sharp scent of new soil and fresh fruit. There was no trace of the bubblng blood and dragon viscera Marcille had dragged onto her bones. Falin was whole, Falin was safe. Marcille sank into sleep, feeling complete at last.

And then she woke up to find there was nothing but cold air. Her arms were empty. She looked frantically for Falin, but all she could see was him, his terrible violet eyes. Mine, he said.

Marcille's eyes snapped open. She tasted the rancid medicine in her mouth, and she saw Laios sitting solemnly by her side, and she knew it hadn't been a dream. It was all real. She coughed out some gunk, and tried to sit up. The edges of her vision blurred and the world tilted. Ah, right. No mana.

"Hey," Laios held her shoulders to steady her. "Are you okay?"

Of course she wasn't okay, but she nodded curtly.

"We're going back to the surface, so you'll be able to recharge your mana soon."

That was the last thing she'd expected him to say. "What? No. we're not. We have to go after Falin right now."

"In your condition?"

"We'll find another spirit to eat. I'll be fine." Marcille forced herself up on shaky legs, shrugging off Laios' hands. Senshi and Chilchuck were here too, watching her warily.

"Marcile, no. I wanted to as well, I get it, but Chilchuck convinced me, We need to get supplies, we need to tell people that's going on and get help, that's the only way we'll have a chance of saving Falin."

"Chilchuck," Marcille snorted. Of course Mr. Paid Up Front wanted them to run and leave Falin behind

"What was that?" Chilchuck snapped.

Marcille ignored him."We can't go back. It'll be too late. What he was doing to her, it was magic I'd never seen before, I won't waste another second, you don't know what he's capable of, but I felt it, I felt his magic, I felt his hold on her!" She was babbling, she knew, but she didn't care. She took a shaky step forward, the world spinning. "If you won't go, I'll go by myself."

"Marcille!" Laios' eyes widened in shock. He was used to her following his lead in the end, trusting his call. Even with resurrecting Falin, she'd included him, asked him if it was okay. But that was because she'd known he'd say yes. She'd known that just like her, he'd do anything for Falin, break any law, take any risk. At least that's what she'd thought. If he'd said no back then, she would have done it anyway, and since he was saying no now, she'd do what she had to.

Marcille fell to her knees, legs too weak to continue on. Propping herself up on her elbows, she began to crawled toward the door, dirty stone staining her sleeves.

"See! I told you! I told you!" Chilchuck said to Senshi, but the dwarf was watching her with sorrowful eyes. "Lass, you're only hurting yourself."

Laios crouched down and grabbed Marcille's arm. "We will save Falin, but we can't do that if we die. We need to take care of each other too. You didn't see it, but Chilchuck was crying, Marcille! He was crying and begging us not to die!"

Chilchuck swore at Laios in his own language. "Listen, you--"

"He was not," Marcille muttered. Chilchuck had probably never cried in his life.

"I was not!" Chilchuck agreed. "That doesn't count as crying!"

"He was! He bared his soul because he cares abut us!" Laios continued doggedly.

"He cares about you and Senshi, maybe. I'm just a dark elf who does evil magic and causes trouble," Marcille snapped.

"For the love of-- are trying to make me apologize to you by pretending to go insane again?" Chilchuck pointed at her accusingly. "Well, it's not working this time!"

Marcille shook her head and jerked her arm out of Laios's grip. She inched forward again.

"He said he's taking care of three people, so that obviously includes you! Chilchuck, she really doesn't believe it. You need to cry for her too. Dig up those emotions again." Laios was waving his arms around frantically.

"No way!"

"Then at least tell her you care about her and don't want her to die!"

Marcille was at the door. She reached for the handle and pulled herself up with a groan.

"Ugh, fine! Marcille, I care about you and don't want you to die!"

The sincere distress in his voice stopped her. She'd never heard him talk like that before. She hesitated, her lip trembling. "None of you understand. It was my fault. I should have known something was wrong. Her magic felt different, like there was heat to it, like it was reaching out in all directions..."

Marcille remembered Falin holding her hand in the bath, the strange, brief surge of excitement that raced through her , and then feeling her magic so intense, so wrong, so overwhelming...but she'd just ignored it.

Her fingers slipped off the doorknob and she fell. Laios grabbed her. Even Chilchuck and Senshi rushed forward. "It wasn't your fault. We were all there, and we all couldn't stop it. From what I hear, you're the only reason we even survived to fight another day." Laios said. Chilchuck and Senshi nodded.

Tears bubbled out of her eyes. "I held her. She was right there and I held her. She was finally with us again! It's not fair."

"I know," Laios said, leading her back to her mat. "And we're going to find her and hold her again. I'm never letting go. And I know you won't either."

"We're here to help ya, whatever comes," Senshi said.

Marcille curled in her mat, tears nearly blinding her "Okay, okay."

A few seconds passed and then..."That was pretty dramatic."

The orc woman, who seemed to have been waiting at the window, came through the door. Marcille covered her mouth defensively.

The orc sneered at her. "You look so pathetic." But her expression softened. "Your loyalty is surprising, though. I've never seen an elf care so much about anyone besides themself, much less someone of another race. Didn't think it was possible. You should listen to your friends, you're too weak to do much right now."

She turned to Laios. "You'll be leaving soon then?"

"Yes, thanks for everything."

Since Marcille couldn't walk, Laios had to carry her piggyback. Completely humiliating, especially in front of the orcs, as they said their goodbyes. A few.chuckled at her, but the leader simply looked at her and said, "I hope you find your wife, long-ears."

"My-my what?" Marcille sputtered,

"Mate? Lover? I don't know what terms you elves use. Hope you find her."

"I--!"

"Let's go!" Chilchuck groaned.

She did not want to interrogate the rush of joy she felt at the orc calling Falin her lover. All that mattered was that she get better, and bring Falin back.She tightened her fingers against Laios' shoulders. She would do that as many times as it took. No matter who she had defeat or what taboo she had to destroy.

But...she thought, as Laios steadily carried her, as Senshi and Chilchuck walked beside them...at least she wouldn't have to do it alone.

[thequietkid-moonie]

Request: Usagi, Makoto, and Minako with an S/O that is from the world of Madoka Magica, and has become jaded on the idea of Magical Girls ever having a happy ending, saying they've seen to many die to think it's possible. (Reader has no powers. They just worked with a lot of Magical Girls) (Hope this fits what want)

Reader is surprised by the Sailor Scouts

[ CROSSOVER - reader comes from Puella Magi Madoka Magica ]

[ Minako, Makoto ]

[ Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon / Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon ]

As much as I totally loved this prompt I have now a writers block and I had to left Usagi, sorry, I hope you like what I wrote

Also, i just rewatched Madoka Magica and I just remembered why I love so much that anime waaaaaahhhh

This wasn't your world, it looked like it but you were sure this wasn't your world, you have wandered the streets of your world thousands of time, following your friend when searching for the witches, just hoping to don't be a burden

Walking around for a bit try to search anything of help, anything that could help you out, your friends, Kubey, even a witch, at least that would explain where you are or what is happening

But no matter what you do you don't find nothing you know, just a calm and peaceful city that you didn't knew if you could trust

Even when you end up involved in an attack and get saved by magical girls, this was far from what you had ever saw before, there was no witch, no labyrinth, even the magical girls were far diferent from the ones you know, their fighting style is something you had never seen before and they were even working together

You didn't know if it was a dream, an hallucination or maybe just another trick of the witches or even Kubey, wanting to trick you into become a magical girl again, whatever it was it is strange, but also fascinsting

Minako Aino

Minako is really focused on the fighting and her surroundings when she is on duty as the leader of the Sailor Scouts, so when she noticed that you were being the victim of one of the enemies she tries to be quick while trying to avoid putting you in more danger that you already were, once the threaten is over she imediatly came to your side to make sure you were alright

Minako imediatly notice how shocked you seem, but asume that is just because of what happened, trying to come up with an excuse to don't involve a civil on her problems as a magical girl, although she doesn't come with a too good excuse (specially if you seem anxious or even scare)

Minako may have a weird feeling about you but for your shocked state decide to ignore it and try to just help you. Honestly, Minako wanted to just make sure you are alright and go away as far as posible, not wanting to put you at any other risk but is more likely that you are the one asking her what were happening, even if she was far diferent from the ones you know she still was a magical girl, she may be able to help

At the end she probably just take you with the other Sailor Scouts in hopes to find out what were happening to you, but even with the others she feels more responsible of you, not only she was the one who found you but also she is the leader of the sailor scouts, she should be capable to handle the problems (and if you decide to stay close to her that will just make her feel closer to you and lead her to actually take care of you)

It won't be too dificult to get to know you are from another world, what make Minako just feel even more responsible of you, so from that moment until all of you are able to find a way to send you back she will be the one to take care of you, and honestly she will grow to care for you and start to treat you as an little sibling (but will wait until you feel more comfortable)

Minako tries to ask you about your world since the start in hopes that would help you feel more comfortable or let you cope with everything that is happening, but if you prefer to don't say anything then is alright too, she will undestand by your expression that you aren't comfortable with it, so instead she start to talk about you and treat you as a friend

Knowing that there are magical girls in your world too would be surprising for her, the sailor scouts are warriors that fight for her princess and own planets, so at first she will assumed you are talking about the magical girls that fight as representatives and warriors of your planet, but the moment you feel comfortable to open up to her about the whole problem with the magical girls and witches of your planet she is shocked and devastated, the magic of your planet isn't used to protect for love but to manipulate, this isn't something she want at all (and is actually what she is fighting, most of her enemies uses magic to manipulate others, but is definetly not the same)

Minako feel like she should say something to try to comfort you, but she can't thing in anything, she just doesn't know how to react, so she will just let you continue talking as much as you need, assuring you that now you have her and the rest of the sailor scouts by your side, even if you come back to your world they will be always cheering for your happiness and safety

The Sailor Scouts fight together, they fight for love and not for survival as you were used to, it would be normal for you to see it as strange, and for that Minako will open up too and say that not everything is fun as it seems, maybe you think is easy for what you had been throught but the reality is that they had fight with their lifes, have lost a lot in the past and now are fighting to don't lose it again, maybe your stories have diferent developments but she does understand you, and she makes sure to let you know that you aren't alone, as well as how brave you are for enduring all of that

When getting to know Kubey's trick and how you still haven't get a contracts with him Minako will actually feel relieved that you don't have to deal with it, at least for a while, and she makes sure you know you don't have the pressure of having to be stronge or become a magical girl, while you are here they will be the ones protecting you

Makoto Kino

Makoto has always been a protective person, if you get involved in the battlefield there is no doubt that she will imediatly get to you side and try to protect you, even may even shield you before taking care of the enermy, claiming that there is no need to involve civilians or how unfair it is to bring troubles to innocent people

Makoto wants to make sure you are alright once the fight is over but seeing you shocked or even scare will make her even more worried, she tries to help you calm down and concentrate (in hopes to make her focus too) before even trying to explain what have just happened, she doesn't has much troubles with explaining that she is a sailor scout but only if it would be helpful, and will try to don't give more details of the necesary, not wanting to bring you any kind of troubles

Is probably that her own honesty is what lead you to say that you know some magical girls too, but ones that are far different from her or her friends, explaining the whole thing with the magical girls of your world and kubey is your choise, in any case Makoto won't be pushy with you telling her all the details imediatly, even when she think it would be the best she won't force you when she can tell for your expression that this isn't easy for you

Makoto will decide to trust you and take you with the other sailor scouts to search for a way to try and help you find a way back to your world, or at least undestand their world since it seems that you aren't used to their world. If you want (or even prefer it) she can stay by your side at all the times, being the one taking care of you, in that case she will end up taking it rather seriously, giving you a room on her house and taking care of you as well as making sure you adapt to all of this and always asking you if you have any question or need another explanation to the things that are new for you

Makoto is really caring towards you but tries to don't treat you like a kid, she treats you more like a friend (but actually waits until you feel comfortable and trust her before getting closer)

The moment you finally open up to her and start to tell her about your world and the trick that being a magical girl is for you, it doesn't matter if you decide to tell only her or to all the sailor scouts, doesn't even matter if you decided to tell her everything at once or go slowly, she will respect your rythm, still she will feel totally heart broken for what you tell her, she and her friends fight for love and see each other as family, Makoto felt lost for so long until she found her friends, so the idea of the magical girls having to fight no just with witches but also against each other in order to survive makes her mad (not at the magical girls but to the one who is the culprit)

Makoto won't be able to hold back her tears and express how horrible this situation this is, but, also, it won't take her much time before she tries to comfort you, assuring you that this situation is completely unfair and that the fact that you had to go throught all of that doesn't mean you don't deserve some peace, your friends had been tricked by someone evil and egoist, all of you deserve a better treatment and a happy ending, and she say it with so much confidence and determinantion that is almost flatering

From that day Makoto doesn't treat you too diferent but is obvious how much she want to include you in simple things, her friends doesn't have it easier but at least have some times to just be teenagers, and Makoto is always inviting you over in those times

[madraleen]

Delicious in Dungeon - Ryōko Kui Vol.9: The one where I write a Mithrun essay.

-mithrun cover! beautiful, magnificent, extraordinary, sublime-

-the way marcille insta-changes her vibes, i relate to it so much, i see myself in so many of her expressions

-SPILL IT OUT, MARCILLE! TELL US ABOUT YOUR PAST AND YOUR DREAM! ffs, keeping silent after drilling chil like that

-laios and marcille are so sweet together

-eheheheheheehe laios' ideal is marcille, cute cute cute

-MONSTER marcille is laios' ideal?! boy would he find his place on tumblr

-...do we trust the winged lion, do we really? do we trust "power"? i can't tell.

-is that. is that baby kabru? HE'S SO CUTE

-mithrun, sir, are you aware that you are the most beautiful character in the manga, sir?

-AHAHAAHA NO, "IDENTICAL" KABRU ACCORDING TO MITHRUN OH NO

-the fact that mithrun has no idea what kabru looks like but knows there's a mushroom around his leg

-yes, a week of just kabru and mithrun, that's all i want, that's great

-kabru: pls tell me how i can tend to you properly. mithrun: *proceeds to tell him his entire backstory* like, you didn't have to, my man. you didn't have to.

-the "others. others. mithrun" is me when reading dunmeshi

-aw past mithrun has longer hair, lil bb

-mithrun going from "i can't sleep without spells or potions" to just dropping asleep on the floor, everyone say "thank you kabru"

-"barometz soup. ingredients: barometz." i burst out laughing. senshi is sensing this and crying somewhere out there

-surely you can't expect me to see mithrun in his domestic era with his disheveled hair and his little bow scarf and his little spoon and his puffy sleeves and not love him? surely?

-wait so, mithrun's beloved is still alive out there, and she's with his brother?

-i wonder what mithrun’s non-abridged story is.

-lol at how the elves feared for mithrun's well-being, when instead they should have been fearing his spilling every single ancient secret to a guy he just met with arguably conflicting interests

-NO RESCUE, NO RESCUE I SAY, JUST KABRU AND MITHRUN!

-ah. oh man. mithrun asking kabru "what do you want to do?" hit me some way

-MITHRUN LOOKS SO SOFT WHEN HE TELLS KABRU "right. then let's do that." MY HEART! OH MY GOSH MITHRUN IS STAYING WITH KABRU. and kabru doesn't even question it, lmao, "of course my elf man would stay with me, wdym"

-okay, hold up though. i'm interested in how mithrun makes choices like that without desires. can choices be completely devoid of desire? if you choose something over something else, especially so blatantly, like mithrun choosing kabru over the expected course of things, ie his rejoining the canaries, that entails preference, and doesn't preference correlate to a want, to an extent? we don't seem to be differentiating between want and desire, so... is the want in such choices so minuscule that it doesn't count as a want? you could argue that choosing isn't necessarily wanting- you could be neutral about all choices and just pick one to get it over with, but mithrun wasn't asked to choose. kabru didn't invite him along, he didn't even imply he wanted him along. the canaries were like "come, captain, pspspsps" and mithrun asked kabru what *he* wanted, and then mithrun's actions were like "well, i don't have wants, but i'll trust *his* wants over my team's that i've known for years if not decades, so... bye bitches." which is heartwarming, to say the least, for someone like me who loves the mithrun/kabru duo.

or maybe, is mithrun’s choice completely driven by desire for revenge? but that would be easier to obtain if he stayed with the canaries. or could it be an extension of mithrun needing things and his actions being dictated by those things, just without mithrun registering consciously that he needs these things? eg his body collapses when he needs rest, but in *his* perception, he just collapses randomly, he doesn't register the need for rest. so maybe something in him needs to confide his backstory to kabru, needs to join kabru, and it doesn't register consciously as a need, he doesn't care to know the reason for acting on it, but his actions/choices are dictated by it all the same. is this elaborated on later and i'm babbling nonsense, or is it never addressed and i'm just overthinking it. i wonder.

-on a lighter note, i really love the tidbits of "meanwhile laios' party" 'cause it's so cool seeing "oh this is why they found the fire, this is why the dullahan lacked a horse" etc.

[detectivereads]

Delicious in Dungeon vol 7 by Ryoko Kui

#$!@/5 (my heart was ripped out; the volume is great.)

This post is for fan entertainment, I’m not being paid.

This volume is thicc! Dungeon Meshi Thursday!!!!!!

Ok there is a lot of tension between Chilchuck and Izutsumi, I am hoping in the future they will get along better but for now I can see them butting heads more. But during the fight with the Ice Golem, they do know how to put their differences aside and work together to get the job done.

At first, I felt sorry for Izutsumi, they wanted to be change back to their normal form. Also, I was reading more in The Adventurer’s Bible, understanding their back story a bit more, and I was shocked on what I found out on the part of who placed the curse on Izutsumi. (I will do a separate post on The Adventurer’s Bible; I highly recommend the book.)

Izutsumi seems to have a hard life that leads to major trust issues and will only help if it benefits her and her goals. But she has the pallet of a child that refuses to try new things and will throw a fit if she doesn’t get what she wants.

It also makes me wonder what her life was when she was with Shuro’s group, I mean we do see Izutsumi and the other ladies interact and it does seem that Izutsumi pushes stuff she doesn’t want to do/want on too Tade (even though when Tade fell off the roof, no one asked her to go up and do that chore, she just wanted to be useful.)

Now some of the middle chapters, I am now greatly worried about the group The Canaries. This group seems to have an impressive resume that even Kabru knows and has deeply affected him.

This whole group is elves, and from previous volumes they are looking for the secret of eternal life. That it seems that elves take over dungeons when they get out of hand, and from what Tansu has said that the elves want this dungeon back.

When I got the village part of the volume, I was surprised to see how a village managed to survive in this dungeon for so long. (I know that it’s Sissel magic that is keeping them alive.) But I pity them when they just farm to farm and do not really enjoy the product of their work. Like their sense of taste is so dull and with magic they have no reason to eat.

(Good lord if I couldn’t taste food I would be devastated, I love food and seeing something that you love like sushi or pizza and not being able to taste the cheese sauce and crust and spices, I would be beyond depressed.)

With that aside, these chapters we got a lot of information about Sissel, how he came to Degal kingdom, how he got into magic. How dedicated he is to try to find King Degal.

When Laois’s group got into the village, we meet Yaad, the grandson of King Degal and he is ruling the village they are in currently. Ever since Degal left for the surface, there has been a rift between the surviving Degal family and Sissel.

Yaad explains a prophecy about a person with a winged sword who would come and stop the mad mage and become the ruler of the dungeon. However, they need the help of a winged lion (that is their god that Degal’s people worshipped). But, Sissel has it locked away in the lower levels of the dungeon.

So, Laois has a choice to make.

At end of this chapter after Yaad helps the group leave, we see Sissel asking in a very scary way who was Yaad talking too.

This part makes me worried for Yaad.

The last chapters of the book…. *cue hysterical crying* POOOR SENSHI!!!!!!!!!!!! *uncontrollable sobbing* Oh lord his back story!!! His fear!!!! My god this must have tortured him for so long!!!!

You never see Senshi cry!!!!

Now (*Dries tears*) I do have some conflicted feelings with Laois in this chapter.

I can see where he is coming from, (and maybe its just me being overprotective of Senshi) but when discussing the death of Senshi’s old group, I do wish both Chilchuck and Laois exercised some tact, like talking in private out of ear shot of Senshi.

Laois is thinking is hard to follow sometimes, let’s eat the griffin and see if it tasted like the one from your past, if does yay you didn’t eat your teammates or oh no this doesn’t taste like that meal so that means I ate a team-mate.

However, I did like what Chilchuck said to Laois, that he really needs to stop. This was what I was talking about in my last post with Shuro and communication skills.

Chilchuck has good communication skills, he will not hesitate to call Laois on things that are delicate.

Though when re-reading the chapter again, I am glad that Senshi had such a great teammate to put Senshi who was at the time the youngest in the group. 

DON’T MAKE SENSHI CRY!!!!!!! My poor heart can’t take it!!!!!!!!

[real-life-senshi]

10 (Mostly) Spoiler-Free Reasons to Watch Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon 2003 Live Action

A countdown to the 20th anniversary of Act 1 air date!

Reason 5: The captivating story!

Ultimately, I would say the live-action stayed true to the essence and intention of the original source material when concerning the Dark Kingdom arc.

I’m choosing to use the word “essence” though, because it is also factual that in multiple aspects, the story does diverge from its source material, but with the intention of further amping up the stakes and angst for drama, and possibly even pulling in elements from story arcs beyond the manga’s Dark Kingdom arc into the one season we (sadly) only have.

Sometimes those differences could be due to limitations of CGI and execution methods in real-life filming, while others could be due to updating the content to appeal to the newer generations of viewers in the early 2000s.

Regardless of what's faithful or not faithful to original source material, I think PGSM did really well striking a balance of making it a kid’s show, and also adding some complexities to appeal to viewers who were kids or teenagers that grew up reading the manga or watching the '90s anime, who would be in their late teens or adulthood or even parenthood by the time the live-action aired.

Warning: Going forward these series of posts will contain minor spoilers to introduce some live-action only elements. It will only be at the introductory level though!

Staying true and delving deeper into source materials

Personally, I can’t speak much to the ’90s anime, but I can confirm the live-action pulls many elements from the manga source material where possible. Here are just a few:

Introducing the Sailor Senshi!

The story of how Usagi and Ami discovered their Senshi power largely follows the same story, while Rei and Makoto's intro episodes heavily reference the original manga chapter and use the same theme behind the attacks that lead to them accessing their transformation. There's no magic bus to whisk victims away in Rei's case, and there's no wedding dress ghost story in Makoto's, probably due to the feasibility of recreating those scenes.

The Forbidden Love & the Past Life lore

The live-action definitely deep-dived into the 'forbidden love' concept when it came to Usagi and Mamoru, and further created a whole complexity of the storyline to justify WHY it's forbidden. In the manga/anime, it felt like the idea of their forbidden love was purely political and mostly glossed over since the past life kingdoms were dead, but in the live-action, there were actual stakes and consequences to consider even for the present.

And the ABSOLUTE MOST AMAZING THING and by far my favourite twist to the live-action storyline is they actually ventured into exploring the impact of making teenagers soldiers of war! There is actually ample screen time and dialogues AND monologues dedicated for us to see individual Senshi AND the team together grappling with the pros and cons and exploring both extreme sides of the need to follow the past life mission to avert tragedy regardless of the sacrifices made, versus the necessity of making one's choice and finding ways to live in the present in spite of the past life lore! Do they support Usagi's and Mamoru's love for each other or not???? Do they know for sure whether their love WILL cause misfortune again or not or can they trust Usagi to know what she's doing????? FASCINATING AND ANGSTY STUFF RIGHT THERE!

Rei’s Personality

More as an FYI, but Rei’s personality is much more similar to the manga Rei’s personality, instead of ‘90s anime Rei. More cool beauty and calm, less aggressively hotheaded and abrasive. And very importantly, NOT boy-crazy.

New, original dramatic elements

On the other hand, here are some live-action exclusive dramatic elements that I'd like to highlight:

Aino Minako the idol

Even many who haven't watched the series would have heard about how Minako's character is drastically changed in the live-action. Indeed, Minako is an acclaimed teenage idol and singer with best-selling songs in the show!

It's basically as if the live-action screenwriter pulled in the Outer Senshi elements from the Mugen arc into Minako's character: she's famous, experienced, and serious. Minako has full access to past life knowledge and is ultimately mission-driven like Haruka and Michiru are in the Mugen arc, which causes some of her decisions to maybe not be as morally white as we'd expect her to be (I think her costume style of white and black is a nice nod to the idea of her double life and her sense of moral).

Now, that's not to say live-action Minako is completely a new character, you can certainly see manga/anime Minako's character traits here and there if you pay attention - pun-loving, prank-loving, mischievous. For god's sake, the girl named her album Venus, and one of her most iconic songs is called C'est La Vie, which sounds exactly like "Sailor V" pronounced in Japanese. Just imagine this girl playing a vigilante life, and having a chuckle every time she sings her best-selling song that basically announces her identity to the world and no one realizes. lmao

Basically, Minako's character embodies the extreme result of what happens if a teenager is burdened with all the knowledge of the Past Life war and has the weight on her shoulders while working alone.

If you can get past Minako's changed character setting in the live-action, you'll find there are still plenty of Dark Kingdom arc manga/anime Minako elements in there, just some more exaggerated while others are more subtle. (Coz to be fair, Minako didn't start becoming Usagi's twin until after the Dark Kingdom arc.) And her relationship with Artemis is absolutely heartwarming to see in the live-action.

Who's in the wrong? Who's an ally, and who's not?

While our Senshi team is clearly the heroine, and the Dark Kingdom the villains, the live-action takes a more interesting take on what's considered "good" versus "evil", and more importantly, who's in the wrong on how things ended badly in the past life. Who is actually the person the Senshi needs to protect the world from? And that drives the story into a direction that is more complex than what you'll ever find in manga or anime, and certain characters react accordingly and act more grey than black or white - from both the heroine side and the villain side!

Shitennou & Endymion

Something we didn't really get to see as much in the manga and anime, while we know who the Shitennou are, we don't really see the Shitennou and Mamoru interacting until after they... became their name-sake rocks (okay, technically, GEMS). And we don't get many hints on what their past live relationships were, so for many years fans have taken to pen/paper/tablets/keyboard and filled the gaps with their amazing imagination and creative work instead.

In the live-action, we get a much more expansive and interesting take in seeing the Shitennou - technically still under the Dark Kingdom's influence, interact with Mamoru as they all grapple with what happened in the past life.

How would the prince's ex-guardians act seeing their master again? How would Mamoru react? Choosing to accept his responsibility for his past life or not? After all, they had such fond memories of arm-wrestling each other! (Spoiler alert: Nephrite won.) :P

I must once again emphasize that I love what they did with the Shitennou's characters and gave each of them a different story trajectory. They are written so well they pull at your heartstrings!

If you want some canon-material for writing the Shitennou in the age of Elysion Kingdom, definitely give the live-action a go!

Power up! The Senshi Needs Training

Because the live-action only gets one arc, there's no room for us to see the Senshi team (conveniently) get upgraded transformation like they do in each arc in manga or anime. Instead, the live-action takes a different, and I dare say, a more realistic approach, where the Senshi learns that their initial access to their transformation isn't the full access to their powers as they expected. They are put through some legit, and some questionable training of the body, mind and spirit, and each of them has to overcome something within themselves across the series to access their power!

This approach highlights and solidifies each Senshi's strengths AND ties in really well into the girls' character development throughout the series. As well, it makes it feel like the Senshi did have to put in work to get strong and gain access to their power, instead of relying on the plot to get them new powers at the right opportune time, seemingly out of the blue.

Remember: THEY ARE IN SCHOOL!

Yep, sometimes in the manga and in the anime, it's so easy for us to forget that the Senshi are kids in school when they are in the thick of a crisis or fighting evil. Somehow, it always seems quite clean and convenient that the Senshi could separate their school life and their heroine life, doesn't it? How the responsible adults in the world may wonder... "Gosh, where did that kid go in the middle of [insert context]????" Or for a fellow peer in school to wonder - "How the hell did this random group of girls come together like an odd band?"

The live-action takes time to make room for some reality checks in their episodic storylines to explore all the different repercussions our heroine's double (or triple) life has on their normal life, and with that ties in personable and relevant topics and themes into their episodic plots:

Family relationship

Peer relationship

Romantic relationships

Moments that remind everyone how awkward and tough it is to be a teenager.

The toll of lying through your teeth to keep a secret, etc

I cannot emphasize enough that the screenwriting is superb in the series! Not one thing is referenced only once and left out the window, everything that happened builds up into a moment of learning or lasting impact for our characters!

To people who've not watched the live-action, PLEASE GIVE IT A CHANCE! At least give it 6 episodes, and you'll probably be hooked!

You can watch the subbed versions of the series at:

Miss Dream Fansubs

Sea of Serenity Fansubs

The series is also on other online streaming sites, but be cautious to only visit them with good adware and firewall installed.

6 days till the 20th anniversary of Act 1 air date!

Part 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |

[whispering-jabberwocky]

Please tell us anything about your stupid story <3

If you don't know where to start, gimme your favourite worldbuilding idea, favourite plot point and favourite character dynamics :3

I had to get over being embarrassed to death ._.

This is a very Trust The Process work, so many things I think about and improve as I go. As a placeholder name for a benevolent goddess I put Lady Of The Feasts. At first I thought she is a minor one, a nice patron of good food or something. But then, I guess, Spiritual Senshi came to me, and I thought: wouldn't it make sense to make her the goddess of fire? And make her kind and benevolent, because fire means warmth, safety and food? That would also put her among gods supporting human civilisation, which will be important later on...

As for plot point: I have three main characters I focus on. One of them, Xander, is as I wrote once "like a stray cat, turned into a human". And as such, he wandered off into a god's death site, where he found god's corpse (duh). Upon touching it he saw... something... And now he doesn't know if it was a vision or a hallucination due to enviormental reasons (lots and lots of mold). And the only way to find out is to find another dead god.

And finally, the dynamic: this is about Xander again and his twin sister Roxana. As kids they were inseparable. Then, quite suddenly, Roxana was moved to the capital. There were no letters. No contact. Now she is suddenly back. But they are adults now. Xander is bitter, as he felt abandonned. Also, loseing his much more extroverted companion serverly impaired his social skills. It doesn't help that Roxana refuses to talk about anything that happened during that time. So they are akward, sad and longing.

[lyscot-blog]

Dwarves are not meant for magic

Specifically in the case of Dungeon Meshi (but also some other high fantasy media).

The lowest energy limit out of all the races, and ears, so sensitive that teleportation magic will spin them to nausea. Built to stay far away from magic, either by fear, hatred or the unknown.

That is unfortunate.

I love Senshi and Marcille bond. I hate the idea that dwarves and elves are forever incompatible. Gimli and Legolas should prove people otherwise. Yet the two races are always going to be separated unless a human comes between them. War and argument will always happen for these two races (in media I read of course).

But I love to be proved wrong, that yes, dwarves and elves can be friends. Senshi and Marcille began as two statues never moving from their position. The pragmatic and wise Senshi vs the wary and knowledgeable Marcille. Marcille grows to trust Senshi and find comfort in his food (whether she likes it or not). Senshi develop an open mind to methods, knowledge and bond that he would never have encountered have he not met Marcille (and the group!). Senshi, who trust his own mind to let him survive and escape out of the dark and bloody magical dungeon. Finds trust in magic for the first time (it seems).

Senshi finds trust in someone that he should not trust. Even if proven right that magic is outright dangerous and Marcille will go power hungry, he still cares.

Chapter 14 of Dungeon Meshi is one of my favorite, I will not go into further details but spoilers warning ahead. At the end of the chapter, Senshi finds comfort in magic, not usage, but comfort. To be given a new experience by his friend, an elf. Surely moving forward into the manga, Senshi trusts Marcille on magic and can even find them practical. But Senshi can never emulate his friend because Dwarves are not meant for magic.

But, what if under desperation, there is no possible way to ignite fire, the fire circle that Marcille use would be useful right? Crossing a kelpie infested river, surely waterwalk would feel nice, right? Senshi is stubborn but he likes to adapt and learn, but it's sad that he could not for magic.

In the world of Dungeon Meshi, your friend, the dwarf wants to learn what you do, magic. But they could not even if they want to. A dwarf who dreams of becoming a mage is ridiculous, it's a pipe dream, it's unfortunate. But low magic affinity does not mean there is no magic affinity. Your friend, the dwarf just has to work harder than others, but even so the ceiling might just be lower than their height.

But do imagine a dwarf mage and the potential it can bring. The obvious would be the detection of precious ores in mines and the crafting of magical weapons (a sweet deal to adventurers alike!). But do also imagine, the dwarf crafting earpiece for teleportation. They can come together to provide guides and methods for those who are struggling with learning magic or for dwarves who are unknown to magic. But most importantly, seeing that the stubbornness of dwarves are as stubborn as elves. The rocky stronghold of dwarves was carved from the same ground that grows the fortress of elves.

Dwarves in general are not meant for magic, but some (one in a million) are.

[imjustheretoseetheprivateblogs]

AxZ Week Day 5: Poetry

@senshixshitennouweeks

In Silver Millennium, Serenity hands her a slip of parchment, claiming she found it tucked into the hollow of a tree where she had met with her beloved Endymion (she suspects that she was simply playing matchmaker).

The words compare her to a pool of water on a hot day, keeping refreshing, serene, and reflective in pleasing rhyme and meter.

Though it’s short, it’s words stir something in the princess of Mercury and she wishes to know who made such lovely phrases on the tiny blue planet that Serenity is so fond of.

Soon, Serenity brings her more messages that flatter her about her mind and her ambitions, mentioning her beauty to punctuate the writer’s fascination with her.

She never finds out who it is, though. The Silver Millennium falls soon after.

He’s in the library, looking for inspiration for a new energy gathering scheme for their great ruler. His last plan had backfired spectacularly (Video rental stores were not an antiquated idea; it was novel and retro!) and he was going to find something full proof. Beryl was getting impatient.

He pulled a book from the shelf and opened it. A piece of loose-leaf paper, folded into eighths fell from between.

Curious, he picked it up and unfolded it.

I wish to share my words, read the lines of text, to let others know my dreams.

The words stir something in Zoisite and, against his better judgement, pulls out a pen and scrawls a reply, trying to match the number of syllables and give it some kind of rhyme scheme.

Your words have found me now, and filled my heart to the seams.

It’s a simple poem, nothing he’d want to show anyone, but at least he got it out of his system. Putting the paper in between the pages of the book, Zoisite puts the book back and heads for the music section. He’d always been interested in that, so maybe something would inspire him.

Just as he turned the corner, a girl with short dark hair and blue eyes turned the corner and took the book he had just replaced.

The two of them stand awkwardly a week after their second (really third) meeting. They could sit down in one of Crown Arcade’s many booths, especially since it was a slow day, but that would mean sitting across from one another or, God forbid, beside one another.

She’s still not sure trusting him is a logical decision.

He’s still not sure if she even wants to talk to him.

The tension is thick and cloying, a sensation like wearing an old frayed sweater by a campfire.

“So… um… you like to read?”

It’s a dumb question. Between the three books she’s carrying and the reading glasses in her pocket, anyone could see that.

“Yes,” she answers simply. There’s no malice in her voice, but no feeling either. It’s a simple fact.

He retreats to his room when he returns home, trying to write his heart out on a yellow legal pad and trying to take his mind off how Mizuno could even tolerate him ever again.

It’s all chicken scratch though. Even simple fluff poems about flowers being pretty seem to be hard for him to write.

A call from his prince draws him out of his stupor and into battle against a leftover creature.

It’s a bulky, bulbous monster called a Daimon that was apparently made by science.

“Are we winning?” Nephrite calls after his sneak attack completely fails.

“Do you want the truth or one of those little white lies to make you feel better?”

Jadeite’s frustration is understandable, if the improvised bandage on his leg is anything to go on. Mars’s fire seems to have no effect on the creature, Tuxedo Kamen and Sailor Moon are pinned by the Daimon’s onslaught with Nephrite and the other senshi are still trying to make their way across town.

“Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!”

Glittering streams of water streak at the creature, enveloping it in ice and suddenly, Zoisite’s mind fills with descriptions for the attack and for the trickling otherworldly harp strings that accompany it.

Even when Sailor Moon purifies the creature in a dazzling display, Zoisite’s attention is still on the Senshi of Water.

The muse has struck him hard and maybe he can work up the nerve to thank her.

She recognizes his words when he submits to her, on a sheet of green paper, a poem about Hermes.

He recognizes her’s when he sees her handwriting in her little blue notebook.

Soon, little notes are passed between them. Verses plucked out of the ether to make little compliments.

Soon, they’re talking at length of wordsmiths and writers; who they like, who has the best descriptions, which would fit with music, which writer sounds like they would have voted for Shinzo Abe. Soon, it grows more intimate. Love poems, shared between the two of them, games that become heated the more passionate the poetry.

And the two of them begin to wonder when their games will be played to a work of their own composition.

[kariachi]

Ach, I must ask after liveblogging my Dungeon Meshi read at you what are yer thoughts on it? (also I don't know if its just me but I felt like there's some parallels with Dorohedoro in some ways)

It seems like a damned good story. The characters are interesting and engaging, the story itself has a solid and very focused plot, the worldbuilding is just directly on point. And that without touching on the character and creature designs, which are awesome. This is a story that knew what it was going for and even at it's most meandering points, which seem to have been hardly meandering at all, still made sure it prop up it's main focus on the characters, their development, their growing companionship, not just among the main characters but beyond, while maintaining the steady use of food and as metaphor for damn near everything good in life.

Which is where potential parallels to Dorohedoro come in. I mentioned in another post that food appears to be a mainstay of that series as well, though not nearly so forthrightly as in Dungeon Meshi. Food seems to represent power in that setting, those that strive for power have bottomless appetites or often go hungry, the most powerful are heavily associated with food either by their powers or their skillsets, and so on.

Dungeon Meshi seems like a... words... An equal opposite, of sorts? Food is power in Dorohedoro, but in Dungeon Meshi food is togetherness, food is caring, food is life. In Dorohedoro while the sharing of food is used to represent companionship, it's also a valuable tool- through offensive magics, through Turkey's clones- while in Dungeon Meshi food is by far more associated with care, both for others and yourself.

It's certainly not a coincidence that when Shuro abandons the team at the beginning, decides instead to call in his family's retainers with whom his bond seems to vary at first from nebulous to 'that girl is literally property', he also stops eating.

Food as life and the cycle of life and death are major themes of the manga, but food as companionship and trust and care are also a big deal.

And then you get the demon and it's ceaseless hunger, it's obsession, it's use of other people's obsessions and desires to drag them down onto it's dinnerplate. In Dorohedoro hunger seems to represent the yearning for power, especially by those that in one way or another lack it. In Dungeon Meshi I would say it looks like hunger may more be tied to social and emotional distance.

Farin always ate alone until there was Marcille.

Chilchuck works to stay underweight as well as maintain emotional distance from his team

Senshi is a hermit who hasn't built strong bonds since the loss of his family, and is the first of the team to have hungered for monster.

Laios has always craved the chance to eat monster and has spent his whole life as on outsider among a crowd.

The demon hungered eternally but never ate with anyone, even in the scenes we see it at a full table it's either not eating or being eaten.

And in a way all these characters' salvations seem to come in the form of eating. From Senshi getting the greatest weight of his life taken from his shoulders to Chilchuck reaching a point he can try to repair things with his family to the demon being released from it's entrapment in a cycle that's unnatural to it.

And hunger like that, unending, eternal, is unnatural. To be so alone is unnatural. To be so caught up in one thing- jealousy of your kin, safety from death, finding your chosen one- is not a natural, healthy state.

Then you get to the end, where Laios has been left with this hunger, and he breaks from the cycle of obsession and the divide in makes between us. Puts in the work to do so and allows this hunger and these urges to drive him closer to those around him. And in that he finds further companionship.

And I have no idea if that makes any sense. Um...

TL;DR: The line from Dungeon Meshi to Dorohedoro I- as someone who hasn't read either and has only seen liveblogs for both and the anime for one- think goes like this-

Dungeon Meshi = Life = Companionship = Food = Magic = Power = Dorohedoro

[smallraindrops-blog]

I started watching Dungeon meshi a few days ago (and I started the manga), and Hades 2 reawakened my fixation on the games.

(Potential spoilers for Dungeon meshi?)

So seeing the Fanart of Hades characters as Dungeon meshi characters has me gnawing on my enclosure. Falin Hypnos, my beloved.

That's said I keep thinking of an au for WMFTD where Y/n is in Falins' role and Hypnos is in Marcille.

All this boils down to dragon Y/n and necromancer Hypnos being even more obsessed devoted and in love with one another. :) (You brought me back even though the ones we love most told you not to, I came back wrong, but I know I still love you. You did the unthinkable, and now I am forever indebted to you. You are mine, and I am yours.)

As for the other characters, I think Zagreus would be Laois (brotherly bond and instead of food, his thing would be filling Achilles codex and fishing), while not fulling matching characters I think Thanatos would be in Chilchuck role, and for Senshi... I'm not sure. You could put Meg there not because she necessarily fits as Senshi but to keep her with Zagreus and Thanatos, a knight, maybe? I was thinking of putting Achilles in Senshi's place because it just seems fitting. (And the Angst potential)

But aaa, that's all for rambling. I hope you enjoyed it and have a good day!

I enjoyed your rambling! ^-^ also on mobile. sorry for mistakes.

Putting my reply under a readmore.

But yes I love that line between devotion and obsession because that line might be thinner than love/hate. Also don’t cross that stuff out! That is the goooood shit. 🤌

As for the role for people to play:

Zagreus

Zagreus as Laois fits really well, methinks. It works bc part of the reasons Zag left the house was because he felt like he didn’t fit in.

I think with Y/N getting nom on and leaving Zagreus behind would only increase that feeling of isolation for him.

especially if the others kinda blame him for what happened. ( also maybe the dragon could be a hydra? so in place of feathers, y/n ends up with those horns things? And fangs? )

Maybe Achilles’ codex could still be greek monsters along greek gods and Zagreus having his own personal one for all the different kinds of fishes and the many ways to cook them.

If it was up to Zagreus, they would eat fishes for every meal. The others veto it very quickly.

Thanatos

I actually he would be a great fit for the chilchuck role. Both of them would much rather keep work and personal life separate.

also while Thanatos can fight and fairly well, he is not a skilled/trained combatant like Meg or Y/N would be.

so letting him have a role where he focuses on overall safety and solving puzzles would really let his natural skills shine.

also since y/n isn’t a healer, it would help Hypnos to have someone who also has the skills and patience needed for healing spells.

also I think the fights between Zagreus and him about not being reckless and learning to trust the eachother could be interesting.

Megaera

She could fill in for the Namari/Shuro role. She just didn’t leave the group since she had personal reasons to want to stay ( but it could be interesting if she did leave after Y/N became a sandwich bc the whole episode with her was one of my favorite)

especially if she ends up getting her sisters to help find y/n

it would also help bc while Zagreus is learning how to fight, the lost of skills and knowledge of combat after Y/N got nibble on would be huge blow to the group.

It also possible she felt some guilt for what happened to y/n as well but still blames Zag which could have some fun tension/fights.

As for the senshi’s role, I love the idea of it being achilles, but if I may suggest another character, I think Dusa would be a good fit for the role.

She already shown to be super helpful and has skill in domestic tasks along with being an outcast. Like the group find her and she ends up helping out by showing Zagreus how to de-bone and cook the many different fishes. Along with dealing various monster and gods since she lived in the dungeon for so long.

She would also be a friend of Zagreus while being a neutral third party, something the group desperately needs.

Achilles just wouldn’t be able to stay calm or listen if he lost his son. He would likely get everyone killed along with himself before saving Y/N. Especially if Pat is no longer in the picture.

So maybe…

Tall man Pat and Achilles adopted little Y/N, who might have elf or something else in him but no one knows for sure. As y/n get a little older, his parents began working in the dungeon together, leaving him with Persephone and baby zag. Y/n would start studying fighting skills so he could join his parents sooner.

Something happened, monster or demon and it left Y/n alone with baby Zag, hiding until his parents found them.

So Patroclus and Achilles takes Zag in and they grow up as brothers.

Somethings happened to Patroclus and Achilles, the only thing found of them were ruined gear along with Achilles’ bloody and torn codex. maybe that was part of the reasons the brothers decided to go down there. To try get some answers.

I think hypnos would be unsure at first but seeing the deep pain Y/N’s eyes would make him agree. Also only because hypnos totally thought Y/N as a great friend, nothing more. Nope. He definitely doesn’t get jealous when he caught Meg staring at Y/N a few times.

and he totally doesn’t cozy up to y/n whenever he got cold in the dungeon. Or share more snacks with y/n or fuss over Y/N more when he is doing the healing magic.

They formed the group and everything seemed to be going well.

Then y/n became an ‘all you can eat special’ and the journey began.

And like Hypnos might be going a little crazy bc he just lost his best friend, someone he knew as a boy then as a man and he just really wanted his best friend back. That was all.

Then they finally got y/n back and hypnos knew he was being clingy but y/n didn’t to mind, even letting hypnos hold on to him for far longer than appropriate and hypnos just didn’t want to let go. Maybe they share quiet, gentle kisses when alone together, promising to talk more when they got out of the dungeon.

Then shit goes sideway.

Hydra!y/n is huge, powerful, quick moving and terrifying. With dozens of little hydra following him around. ( kinda like the harpies kinda did with Falin.)

But he seemed to recognize Hypnos, he touched Hypnos’ chin like he did before they shared those kisses. And he was able to say Zagreus’ name.

Also lol imagine poor hypnos during that shirt ripping part with y/n.

So Hypnos can totally bring Y/N back to normal. Totally. He is not crying thank you very much. No, he didn’t want a tissue, Dusa but thank you.

And yeah lol. Thanks for letting me ramble lol.