#the arcana is unfortunately a fun world to fuck around in

[arcplaysgames]

WE MADE IT TO THE FINAL DAY OF THE GAME

It's time to say goodbye to everyone we maxed out, i think?

The first person I find is Chie. And it's fun to think about, like, first impressions. Chie struck me from the start as a cheerful bully. She's been an almost tragic character, a Chariot that is still trying to keep a grip on the reins. I never got the feeling her arc was 'complete' and in a sequel to Persona 4, I think she'd finally discover her direction in life instead of just having her foot on the gas pedal all of the time.

Unfortunately, in my heart of hearts, I think the key to Chie's future is to move on from Yukiko. Which is absolutely terrifying, and like.... the degree to which I don't fucking envy her cannot be overstated. When you feel like... there is only one person who makes you special, walking away from that?

I hope Chie finds the support she needs, really.

Character Accuracy To Their Arcana: 8 out of 10.

Aw, Chie was talking about this in her bonus scene, about how she was studying and was taking education more seriously, so she could better understand the world and people around here, I'm so

Chie. I am trying here. I literally just revisited the start of my liveblog and remembered you as the girl who kicked a boy in the nuts for breaking a DVD and

I'm going to need to make a cup of tea for this lmao.

[coyoxxtl]

for some reason im rethinking about coatlis place in the arcana canon bc ive p much exclusively think of her outside of it save for a few cases , but i change so much around i p much make smth totally different

like coatli isnt an apprentice mc bc i hate that plot line for her. like asras love for the apprentice is Everything to the mc as a character none of it is in character for her so i just make coatli a good friend of theirs. theyre both magic practitioners who sell their many magic services, theyre bound to meet make friends and then smoke weed forever. also coatli wouldnt have died of the plague either, as i always imagined her to be unaffected by it bc of being incredibly necromantic, so she would have been either 1) finding a cure for it or 2) acting as sort of a death doula for the infected by bringing them quick and painless deaths or comfort if theyre too far gone. which is more likely imo. shed Help with those finding a cure, bringing in her ties to julian and the rest, but she’d be more concerned with those already dying.

ultimately i wanted her to be the upright death arcana patron. bc there isnt one and i desperately wanted that role filled. she sees death as the ultimate life-giver and doesn’t accept any mindset that sees life and death as a dichotomy. she’s like a Classic Witch™️ as far as character tropes go but i made her with pre-columbian mesoamerican life/death philosophies in mind. as well as philosophies of chaos/order and hedonism and sin. i also put a lot of consideration into what would make her a bruja not just a witch because theres a dozen similarities and differences and i love exploring them.

and ofc if coatli isnt the apprentice that means someone else is and muriel is just There and shes tryna hit 24/7 which will be an entire route in of itself, it would focus on muriel reclaiming his culture with a particular interest in the kokhuri ancestral graveyard and him taking khamgalai’s place as well as fulfilling a deep ancestral shamanic calling. coatli loves to learn about other cultures death philosophies and shamanic rites and would be right with him helping as he discovers these lost parts of himself. him being a Voluntary scourge of the south in my canon will change small details and dynamics significantly enough so ill think of that later, so thats the jist. 💀💀💀

[valhallanrose]

Monster Miriyam Headcanons

So, to preface, Miriyam is still technically human - her monster form comes about as a contract with her patron, the King of Swords, and manifests this way because she is halfway to becoming a member of his court. She’s essentially got one foot in the realms of the arcane, the other in her/the normal world - changing or transforming means pulling magic from the realm of the Suit of Swords and rather than expressing that through spells, does so through self modification. Hence the monster form, which was inspired off the Nyx Hydra design for the King of Swords in the Arcana tarot deck. She’s met with Arcana a few times now and while some very perceptive humans read her more as Arcana-adjacent than anything else, the Arcana very much believe that she’s human regardless of what form she takes. 

Size-wise, she’s about 7’2”, not including horns (horns make it a good 7’10”). Very muscular and definitely as strong, if not stronger than you think she is based on appearance alone. Prehensile tail. 

Miriyam doesn’t break this form out without a long conversation as to what she is (only held with potential long term partners, really, casual hookups don’t usually get to a personal enough point to warrant that)

Transforming is kind of gross, honestly? Like this is some very audible crunching/popping, like when you crack your knuckles but way louder, but it’s also a very fast paced change so you don’t hear it for every long

She’s got some habits from the monster side that have quickly become noticeable when she’s wandering about as a human. 

This includes enhanced sense of smell, hearing, and sight.

Smell and hearing are particularly intense, though, to where she can pick up on a mouse running on the palace marble or tell you exactly what spices someone mixed into a dish as soon as she stepped into the kitchens. 

Sight is trickier to quantify, but the average human with 20/20 vision can see the furthest edge at 3 miles away. Miriyam’s would be somewhere in the 4-5 mile range, while night vision is about 3-4 miles (assuming clear skies and no obstacles)

Very catlike? Loves to sun herself if she can find a private spot in the daytime, will purr if you scratch behind her ears, also easily tempted by shiny things (particularly gold shiny things, her eyes get bigger than her brain at the idea of Expanding the Instinctual Hoard)

Extremely embarrassed to admit she has a not insignificant collection of gold coins and trinkets she’s collected over the years based purely on instinct - she has no idea where half of it came from

Has gone and still goes on long flights, usually to get out when her nightmares get bad. While her secondary form isn’t necessarily a secret - she used it in the Coliseum during her brief time as a gladiator, and most of the guard is aware simply for the sake of ease - she still waits until nightfall for some sense of privacy. 

Her favorite place she’s ever gone was to the Scourgelands, where she flew through the southern lights, and she’s hoping to bring a partner there one day if they’d be alright taking the fast route. 

When it comes to fighting prowess, she’s absolutely a predator - armored scales, claws, fangs, speed, strength...fuck around and you will find out and yes I do mean that double entendre 

There’s some art refs under the cut from @anonbunnyart and @lajadelmira so you get an idea of what she looks like, and then we’re going to dive into the thirst. 

In case it isn’t clear: NSFW AHEAD, MINORS DNI, also obvious monsterfucking cw 

by anonbunnyart

by lajadelmira

Still cis, still a lesbian, so she’s still attracted exclusively to women and femme-presenting nonbinary people, the pool is only narrowed based on if her partner would ride the dragon. 

Yes I’ve made that joke many times, no I’m not going to stop making it. If I don’t, just assume I’m dead

Absolutely a top and a dominant top at that, convincing her to bottom when she’s in monster form is very, very difficult and usually only comes about in niche circumstances. More on that later. 

Addendum: She’s slightly more willing to bend if you want to use your hands/mouth, but straps are damn near impossible for her to get into when she has all of you right there to pay attention to. She’s not opposed to being touched, but she’d really just rather pay attention to her partner like this. 

Personal pleasure is very much just an afterthought, and honestly, she’s okay with that

Has several ‘weak spots’ on her body that will definitely turn her to putty, no matter how tough she acts. Done in sort of a sensitivity scale from least to most. 

Horns:

It’s not that they’re sensitive, but if you grab her by the horns and tell her exactly what you want to do her/her to do to you, she’ll find it very hard to tell you no.

Loves it and will take it as encouragement if she’s going down on her partner and they grab her by the horns when she does something they like. 

Tail:

Her tail is prehensile, and she will use that to her advantage, including fucking her partner with the tip of it (which is nice if her partner likes penetration, because finding a strap to fit her in draconic form is A Whole Nightmare)

However, she will go a little apeshit if you play with the tip otherwise - particularly if you suck on it - and honestly you’ll probably get pounced

Wings:

Quick note - Miriyam usually keeps her wings tucked fairly close to her back as a sort of protective measure, and she doesn’t usually like being on her back because she doesn’t like them being pinned, but can ease into it with a partner

Loves, loves, loves it if you touch her wings - the membranes are sensitive and just running your fingers across them makes her want to purr like a kitten

Fun fact, stimulating the right spot on her wings will actually make her orgasm. (That spot is on the wing membranes closest to her back, about halfway down, and no, that’s not something Miriyam will realize until she has a partner that wants to explore her physically like that)

Territorial. Absolutely a territorial bastard. She tries to tamp it down, she really does, but some days it’s harder than others. Particularly when she can pick up the scents of other people on her partner, that really kicks up the ‘mine’ instinct even if she logically knows nothing happened and trusts her partner fully

She really likes scent marking because of this - no, she won’t piss on you, that’s just the best term I can come up with - but she has a few approaches if she’s feeling like she needs to ‘stake her claim’

Lots of roaming hands and definitely letting her mouth wander, but if not directed to a specific spot she will absolutely go for a full bite on your pulse point to really just layer the scent in there

Tucks shed scales into the pockets of her partner’s clothing (jackets, shirts, pants, etc)

Or, a good old fashioned absolute obliteration - by which I mean she’ll fuck her partner until they’re an overstimulated puddle in her lap plus an orgasm for good measure - and then taking care of them afterward 

That being said, this definitely goes both ways, she will be raring to go if you just murmur a ‘mine’ in her ear - she’ll be eager to prove that yes, she is yours, and she’s not going anywhere

When it comes to actually doing the deed...

Favorite positions (in no particular order)

Partner pinned to the wall, any position, just. Pinned to the wall

One hand around both her partner’s wrists, legs spread out over her thighs, the other hand between their thighs or otherwise roaming

I feel like I should mention here that monster Miri has a habit of filing down at least the first two claws on each hand (middle and index) if she knows sex is on the table, she’s not out here to hurt her partner like that

Seated on the edge of the bed, ideally facing a mirror, with her partner in her lap. One hand/her tail tip between their thighs, and arm around their waist, chin on their shoulder watching them in the mirror

Yeah this is definitely a favorite of monster Miri’s 

A handful of things she enjoys (all with prior consent)

Primal (predator), some painplay (ft. claws, teeth, and a very strong grip), sensation play, overstimulation

Some turn-ons

Lingerie, but the shinier the better

Gold accents in particular will really make her go AWOOGA, she jokes it’s because of the gold dragon hoard but it’s actually not far off

Dirty talk/dirty...actions?

Just manhandle her she’ll think it’s hot

Any and all of the brat fighting words 

“What are you going to do about it?”, “Make me.”, etc

Honestly the more I think about it I’m not sure there’s an off switch so much as each side of the switch being fight or fuck. Like. Miriyam is always horny like this. She can chill but why would she in the privacy of her home/when she’s with her partner

This might be. TMI. But the scale plating over the fun parts is….retractable I guess? I don’t know what word I want but they’re not always out because that feels like a hazard. And unfortunately no nips like this because those are also a hazard, but her neck, ears, lower belly, and the previously mentioned areas are all very sensitive and prime for the touching. 

[thewormarium]

OK SO ASSUMING THEY STAY DEMONS, What do the Courtiers think about Devil!Nadia? Do they work with/for her now in lieu of their old patron, or do they want revenge?

(Disclaimer: I haven’t finished Nadia’s route (either ending) so this may stray from canon. I’m only including the four horsemen because I honestly don’t know what happens to Valerius in her reversed ending.)

Valdemar has no loyalties - their only loyalty to the former Devil was their deal with him, and now that he’s gone, I can’t imagine they’d feel the need to stick around. However, if they did stick around, it would be out of curiosity. Having known Nadia (to some degree) for so long prior, they’d be interested to see how her reign would differ from that of the former Devil. Their relationship would be fraught with tension, but Nadia tolerates their (occasional) presence. As long as they aren’t a threat to the MC, she lets them lurk. 

Vlastomil would feel neither the interest nor need to stick around, for potential deals or revenge. Having received his sacrifice from Lucio (though not at all in the manner Lucio would have liked), he’s content to go back to the South and live in comfortable solitude with his children. He’s a lot more hesitant to strike up deals with mortals, knowing how terribly annoying they can get when they don’t fulfill their end of the bargain. 

Volta would stay, if only because she has no idea what to do with herself now. Nadia removes her hunger curse and treats her a lot more kindly. Their relationship is almost akin to a master and pet. Volta acts as an underling and Nadia rewards her with food and scritches - she loves scritches. Right behind her lil’ wings - that’s the spot. Volta adores her beautiful, beloved, kind Countess!

Vulgora, in typical Vulgora fashion, would want revenge. They were perfectly fine with the former Devil! They were having fun! And then Nadia came along and fucked up a great world-merging plan! Unfortunately for them, now that Nadia has the powers of a Major Arcana, revenge would prove a lot harder than they expected. None of their former deals for power and strength would be enough to take Nadia down, and they’d end up banished to some other realm - probably the Tower’s. Nadia just kind of picks Vulgora up by the scruff of their neck while they kick and yell at her and hands them off to their patron like “Come collect your kid.” 

[justine-the-guillotine]

Hey there! I saw your post (about Mystic Code) on LucyDream's tumblr. Love how you're in your 30's but still playing otome games! I'm the same, but I'm in this world just recently. Can you make a list with your favorite visual novels and otome games? I love those ones with a more mature MC. I mean your can be cute/fun and still be sassy/adult hehe I miss it sometimes...

Okay Anon first of all I’m trash because I told you I would have this out the day you asked it and I totally didn’t so I’m sorry I don’t even know if you’re going to see this. 😩 But you need to know that THIS IS MY MOST FAVORITE QUESTION I HAVE EVER BEEN ASKED AND I LOVE YOU A LOT. 

Anyway, I have a lot to say about this and here’s what I’m gonna say first - there’s a lot of layers to this question so let me just... write a novel. 

Important Note #1: I don’t know that you necessarily want to consider me some kind of expert on otoge with adult MCs. My favorite VN of all time is not an otome game and it is also not with a “mature MC”... you play as a 16-year old boy in Fate/Stay Night. But it’s such a good VN, if you can find it I totally recommend it. I will rave about it for DAYS so if you also want an essay about that please let me know. 

Important Note #2: Some little, technical things... - there is a difference between “mature MC” and “older MC” so I’m gonna kinda do a mix of both... but also going to include “older suitors” or “suitors with no canon age” in this criteria as well.  - I prefer PC games to mobile games but play mobile more often due to convenience... -I own a lot of games that I’m super interested in and have actually never gotten around to playing because I have both a time management problem and a shopping problem. So there are probably some even better choices than what I’m about to list from personal experience and maybe I’ll just come back and update this in a few months.  Moving on...  Here are my current top favorite VNs (otoge or not):  1. Fate/Stay Night (PC) 2. When the Night Comes (PC)   3. The Arcana (Mobile) 4. Amnesia (PC and Mobile) 5. Mystic Code (Mobile) My favorite mobile VNs:  I’m gonna tell you right now this list is gonna change on July 1st when Ikemen Vampire comes out... watch that immediately jump to the #2 spot but as of right now I haven’t played it so I can’t do that.  1. The Arcana 2. Ikemen Revolution 3. Mystic Code 4. Mystic Messenger (this is iffy to call this a VN in my opinion but VNDB lists it so I’m going go with it) 5.  Mysterious Forum and 7 Rumors  My favorite PC VNs (otoge or not): This list is a big oof to be honest because there are so many games I am really interested in but haven’t yet played. For example, I have 20+ unplayed games in my Steam library right now.  1. Fate/Stay Night 2. When the Night Comes 3. Amnesia: Memories  4. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni 5. Cinderella Phenomenon  Now those are my favorites, but here instead are my actual recommendations for you personally Anon:  Recommendations for VNs with a More Mature MC:  1. When the Night Comes (PC, Free to Play) I absolutely adore this VN. It is the best otoge/dating sim I have ever played (thus far). But that’s because it caters to a lot of my interests - it’s definitely not going to hit the mark for everyone! The MC has no canon age or gender. You can date a human, witches, a vampire, a Lycan, and a demon. There are even two route options for poly romance. THE WRITING IS PHENOMENAL. I mean the story is great, yes, but THE FUCKING LANGUAGE is totally everything I love. It is very snarky, witty, and British. Swearing in places one would swear in real life. Sarcastic, “roll my eyes at myself” jokes that one would make in real life. Things are dark but with a sliver of hope. MC is a fucking badass and very much a mature adult. It’s currently being updated monthly (chapter 8 comes out tomorrow - 6/29) so we only have two more months left and then we’re done :( 2. The Arcana (Mobile, Free to Play, with Premium Options)  Please be cautious when interacting with this fandom, especially right now. But besides that warning, The Arcana is amazing. It is also currently still updating. But the MC again has no canon age nor gender. And as a plus, as far as I am aware, the suitors do not have canon ages as well. I wish all games would have no canon suitor ages but I digress. The story sorta starts as a murder mystery but evolves into something much more. It is magical. It incorporates tarot so well. The art is absolutely gorgeous. The MC is not at all helpless and definitely holds their own. 

3. Cinderella Phenomenon (PC, Free to Play)   Okay so MC in this one is NOT an adult. She’s 17, I believe. But she’s a bitch and I love her. I genuinely love the plot of this VN. The art is very pretty - very art nouveau. If you like twists on fairy tails, some snark, and a story of... uh, learning how to be less of a bitch ... this one is a great play! 

4. Mystic Code (Mobile, Free to Play, with Premium Options) I’m not gonna elaborate on this here since Anon already knows about it but I want to remind people reading this that I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS VN... I believe it is the best game to come out on mobile thus far this year.  5. Love Tangle in the Niflheim+ (Mobile, Free to Play with Premium Options, Abandoned)  So... normally I would never recommend a Shall We Date game as a top choice, however, this game is SWD’s only exception. It, of course, has the god awful mechanics that all SWD games have, which could make it a bit annoying to play. This game has also unfortunately been abandoned by SWD so there are NO updates to it. Luckily, all the routes (save for one, I’m pretty sure they were planning to release Sunny’s route prior to abandoning) are out and in full. MC has no canon age and it doesn’t matter because she’s fucking dead. Your suitors are also dead. This is the best premise of a fucking story I have ever seen. As with most SWD games, the writing is a hit or a miss depending on the route, but the MC is mature and strong-willed - never helpless. (One thing I will give SWD is they tend to write their MCs with a bit of *bite* in them.) The writing has some well-timed comedic moments so it definitely keeps you entertained!! I originally started playing just for the novelty of it but I actually genuinely love it. Plus MC has the best hair of all the MCs I have ever seen. 

Additionally, I recommend both Ikemen Sengoku and Ikemen Revolution (Mobile, FTP w/ Premium Options). The MC usually has her shit together although she does have her moments of “oh no baby what is you doing?” And in both games, she’s a young adult, not anywhere near 30 but I still find I have no problem self-inserting.  Other games:  -  Hustle Cat (PC, $) - I have yet to play, but it was recommended to me by two people I trust when it comes to these types of games. It seems to be geared toward adults and as far as I am aware, MC is customizable in not only pronouns but build as well.  - Mr. Love Queen’s Choice (Mobile, mostly FTP) - I do play this and I enjoy it. I wouldn’t really recommend it for a “mature” MC (even though she is a young adult who runs a company), but I mod a MLQC discord server and noticed a lot of our members are in the late 20s-30s. So obviously this game appeals to an “older” market (har har, I just mean “older” than 21). It’s a VN at its core, but it’s got so much extra shit going on that it can be overwhelming unless you like those sort of games. The story part of it is really, really good. And the MC gets equal time with all the suitors (instead of specifically just choosing one route to date).  - Food Fantasy (Mobile, mostly FTP) - this isn’t a VN and I don’t think it’s technically an otoge either- it’s a JRPG-  but oh my goodness the art is fucking gorgeous, and the backstory that sets up the game is WILD, dark, and deep. It blew my mind. It’s cute! So I had to throw it in here in case you were looking for something fun. :)  And finally, VNs on my “To-Play” List:  - Ikemen Vampire (Mobile) - this is coming out in just a few days and I have been waiting for 8 months, so I’m super stoked! - Psychedelica of the Black Butterfly (PC and Vita, $) - The House in Fata Morgana (PC, $) - Clannad (PC, $$)  - Tokyo Debunker (Mobile) - as far as I know there’s no official release date yet, unfortunately! :(  Anyway please message me more if you have any more questions or want to know anything else, I love this shit thank you!!! Depending on the question I’ll try not to write a thesis paper next time :[ 

[starryburglar-archive]

Duncan Info

Full name: Duncan Marcus Evans

Species: Human

Age: 20

Sexuality: Bisexual

FC(s): Matthew Daddario || Kovu ( The Lion King 2 )

Bio: From a young age, Duncan has felt like the black sheep of his family. And who can blame him? Everyone else is a respected member of the law, all police officers... and he just happened to have a problem with rules. Rules are meant to be broken, and sometimes it was way more fun than to follow the law and be a member of society. That’s what he always thought. 

Even then, Duncan never went that far with his criminal tendencies: vandalism, stealing stuff... sure, but he would never intentionally kill someone and don’t even dare to suggest he‘s one of those psychos who hurt animals for shits and giggles. He’s bad... but he’s not that bad. Deep inside, he has a hard of gold. It’s just way more fun to be chaotic, make fun of others and intimidate others, not to mention he HAD to act strong and tough while he spent most of his years in Juvy.

One day, however, he saw the add that would the beginning of big changes in his life. He saw Chris McClean, a popular TV show host, announcing his next project: a reality TV show where 22 teens would compete for 100.000 dollars. Duncan saw his chance to get out of Juvy ( even if it was only for the entire Summer ) and possibly return with money for his lawyer. And so, he made a “one of a kind” audition, which made him an official participant for Total Drama Island.

He didn’t do bad -- heck, he ended in fourth place from 22, that’s incredible! And, if he had to be honest, the experience wasn’t that bad. I mean, anything is better than being in Juvy, but he made some cool friends along the way like Geoff and DJ, as well as meeting a “one of a kind” type of girl in Courtney.

Due to circumstances too complicated to explain, he was one of the few to return for the second season, Total Drama Action, in which he became a finalist alongside Beth. A year later, he returned for Total Drama World Tour, only to immediately quit due to being constantly annoyed by non-stop bickering and the singing... oh, the singing. Unfortunately for him, he was eventually forced to return mid-season ( ergo, forced to sing ) and here is where his bad judgment got the better of him.

Looking back, he regrets the love triangle fiasco between him, Courtney and Gwen, but at the time he didn’t give a fuck what others would think. These reckless mistakes and acting too idiotic would continue in All-Stars, the fifth season of Total Drama and the last time he appeared in live TV. Fortunately, despite how stupid he was acting, Duncan was able to ponder over his own attitude recently... and how not worth it was.  Like, sure, he has always been sarcastic, a little shit and enjoys making fun of others to some extent... but that was when he didn’t give a crap about the world, about the future or the people around him.

The catalyst to his “change of heart” was remembering Mal, the top dog of Juvy -- not even he dared to cross paths with him and was fortunate enough to remain low-key while he was there. Knowing what the guy was capable of made him reconsider his actions, leaving aside his pride and “tough bad boy facade” to help others, especially Zoey. Despite his best efforts, however, Mal eventually learned about it made a plan to have him kicked out. Well, not only did he succeed, but he also made Duncan go back to jail... even if this time he managed to get out early due to good behaviour.

Now as a free man, while not changing one bit of his physical appearance ( Like, c’mon, the mohawk and the piercings are dope as hell ), he IS trying to move on and have a new life... a better life. He began to work at a tattoo and piercing shop as an apprentice, slowly getting to do his own work and having his own customers. The few people that don’t outright hate him from Total Drama still keep in contact with him, much to his luck. He’s still a jackass... but he’s a better jackass than when he was 16.

Note: Follows canon events up to a certain extent, diverges heavily in the events of All-Stars and the aftermath of that.

[ MAIN || INBOX || HEADCANONS || VISAGE || MUSINGS ]

                                 -----------------------------------------------

V001: Delinquent Without a Cause

Default main verse. Takes place after all the events of the Total Drama seasons he participated in ( for more information on my divergence in All-Stars, read the bio ). He’s currently living on his own in a small apartment, with a German Sheppard he adopted from a shelter while it was still a puppy, and working full time at a tattoo and piercing shop.

V002: I Wanna Be Famous

Mid-show verse. For anything or any interactions that happen within the context of Total Drama, in any of the seasons he participated in: TDI, TDA, TDWT or TDAS.

V003: Last Surprise

Persona 5 verse. His lawyer, when speaking to the judge who sentenced him to 2 more years in Juvy, said that travelling abroad would do good for him. Something about different environments and different routines, or something like that. Duncan didn’t ponder on it until he had arrived in Japan, and even then he only REALLY thought about what this was doing to him months later when his life changed in the most unexpected way.

It all started with Duncan doing something stupid. He was getting irritated by the idea of being a transfer student in a country he barely knows, to which he can barely follow a conversation with his basic Japanese... this led him to the shady deals of Junya Kaneshiro. However, what seemed like a good idea at first turned into a nightmare for him. If his lawyer learned about his, he would be brought back to Canada to complete his sentence behind bars... heck, they would probably make it longer!

But then... something unexpected happened. One of his classmates, a dyed blond punk questioned him about the blackmail ( first of all, how did he learn about it?? ) -- he only told him the truth in private, to warn him of the dangers and to make him stay away. He fucked himself over, he wouldn’t let others go through the same if he could avoid it. However, not only did he encounter that dude again, but discover a different reality from their own: the Metaverse.

That’s how he met the Phantom Thieves, how he learned about their identities and what they actually did to change people’s hearts. And the craziest bit? He, too, had the potential. Seems like his rebellious nature had awoken this “potential” years ago, however now it was actually manifesting due to being in the Metaverse. He was already a rebel, why not just continue being one? And like that, he ripped off the mask that formed on his face, his clothes chancing to something more leathery-like, and now having a large three-headed hellhound standing beside him: Cerberus. He was now known as “Demon”.

NOTE: He’s 16 in this verse and nothing from Total Drama happened in this verse. Not even TDI.

OUTFIT // MASK // ARCANA: The Hanged Man

                                 -----------------------------------------------

CONNECTIONS

Courtney :: [ Pom ]

:: Duncan ♥ We stick to our guns and we love like battleships [ Courtney ( floofymuses ) ] ::

Gwen :: [ Star ]

pending tag

Lynn Darcy :: [ Bae ]

pending tag

Lyle Darcy :: [ Bae ]

pending tag

Ann Takamaki :: [ Josie ]

:: Duncan ♥ Don’t think twice baby [ Ann ( galaxyveind ) ] ::

Magnolia Grey :: [ Josie ]

:: Duncan ♥ Dirty dancing [ Maggie ( galaxyveind ) ] ::

[twelvemagpies]

got a full house (stayed up all night)

Ryou sets about reading tarot cards after school. He winds up with lovely spot by the burbling creek in the park, a steady stream of lovesick high school students and jaded salarymen, and one unfortunately persistent regular.

my @ygoexchange for @rukatofan! apologies for it being late, i tried to post it on airport internet and it doesn’t appear to have worked. i ended up picked mariku out of your list, by the way

i’ve been wanting to write this fic for fucking ages, and finally the stars aligned and our ygo exchange giftee gave us the perfect scenario. the cards used are from the traditional rider-waite, because i was too fucking frazzled to scan all of the cards needed from our decks (let alone pick one deck to use).

Handy AO3 link here  (though keep in mind that i’ve stuck to my own naming conventions for marik on AO3)

Ryou hadn’t been joking about the spray bottle.

This shouldn’t have come as a surprise, given that in their brief friendship (relationship? set of encounters? break from the never-ending ennui of eternal damnation on this too-bright, too-loud, spinning blue marble?) Ryou had never bullshitted any of his many threats. Granted, they’ve ranged in both creativity and improbability, but Ryou had kept his word about each and every single one.

And yet, the blast of wet that catches Mariku between the eyes also catches him completely off-guard.

He has a brief moment of unspeakable rage, a throwback to what he’s been told is a really piss-poor way of handling things and expressing his feelings, and his hands twitch just the slightest, the curl of knuckles into the promise of a fist, before he thinks better of it and wipes the water from his face instead.

Ryou, of course, hasn’t even looked up—one hand is hovering over the makeshift tabletop of stacked textbooks and the other still on the trigger of the bottle, casually aimed right at Mariku even though Ryou fired blind. Mariku and the startled underclassman exchange glances while Ryou hums over his cards. The student clutches her bookbag a little tighter and there’s a joke to be made there, a soft tilt forward and the curl of his lip, not quite sneer, not quite menace but—but Ryou shakes the spray bottle, sloshes the water inside just enough for Mariku to hear it over the ringing in his head. Now that he’s sure his kohl is already running the threat’s not quite as potent but Ryou must know, because he finally looks up (at the school girl, not Mariku, not yet) and stretches his arms over his head. Mariku watches an errant drop of water fall into Ryou’s hair when he says, “I apologize for him. We haven’t got him civilized just yet, only just barely house-trained.”

Mariku’s voice is gravel and crunch and crack when he speaks (he doesn’t mean to do it no matter how much it does help his aesthetic, it’s just that he’s not got much need for talking lately, let alone people to talk to) and the girl flinches. He’s seen Ryou rolls his eyes enough times to know he can do it so hard that you see nothing but the whites for a solid second but it fascinates Mariku every time; he knows the accompanying huff and sigh like the back of his hand. If he’s lucky, if he comes on time, Mariku can stand in the exact place necessary to catch the setting sun on his bracelets and shine it right in Ryou’s eyes, and he does just that as he says, “That’s hardly fair. I only chewed your slippers once.”

The girl, poor confused, terrified thing, cracks the smallest grin. Ryou doesn’t. Mariku scowls. Ryou stares at the cards, finally sets down the spray bottle in favor of flipping over them over instead. Mariku, gods help him, leans forward—he’s just as enthralled as the schoolgirl is, as half of Domino is, with this white-haired, wide-eyed boy, with his ratty blanket and his textbooks as a table and his fortunes. Yugi Mutou may very well be the King of Games, but Ryou Bakura makes his living with a very different sort of deck these days.

It’s a deck that happens to be Mariku’s least favorite, today. Ryou’s explained time and again that this is the standard, the world’s most popular version, but that holds very little sway with Mariku. Ryou has at least a dozen, perhaps even over twenty, stuffed in his backpack and propping up or resting on priceless artifacts in the Domino Museum warehouse, all nicer than these stale pictures and scratchy cardstock that drags against Mariku’s fingertips the few, few times Ryou’s let him touch. He’s using only the named cards today—the Major Arcana, Ryou hisses once, head in Mariku’s lap as he tries to see how long Ryou’s bangs will stay upright (it earns him a solid slap, but the record stands at seven seconds)—one of Ryou’s simpler, cheaper readings.

After a long moment, Ryou leans back with a sigh. He doesn’t smile. Both Mariku and the student watch his face, though probably for very different reasons. It marvels Mariku, this strange sort of mercy that Ryou has, where bad news comes with a smile but when—

When the news is good, Ryou leans back with a sigh, claps his hands together, and says, “Well.” His finger (long, slim, such a nice snap, Mariku’s sure, if he were to break it) hovers over the first card. “Let’s begin.”

Mariku takes a seat on the edge of the blanket, settles in for the long haul—depending on how much she’s paid, this could take nearly an hour. His foot ends up poking Ryou in the thigh and there’s a tiny, tiny twitch just under Ryou’s right eye that makes Mariku practically giddy.

The girl leans too far forward, blocks Mariku’s view of the cards entirely, so he flops back into the grass, more than content to let Ryou do the explaining. “Achievement and success are on their way to you,” he’s started, practiced cadence a perfect middle ground between Isis’ prescient confidence and the flair that Mariku remembers Rishid having, honed from endless nights of the same old bedtime story, “I would say to expect a promotion or some sort of status, but I think it’s far more likely your bout of poor luck will soon be over. Especially given the man—your father or a teacher, perhaps—who’ll lend you his support.” Mariku cracks an eye open just in time to see Ryou shrug. “You know who I’m talking about.”

The girl nods along, smiles and ducks her head in all the right places. Mariku likes these customers best, who keep their mouths shut, let him listen to Ryou speak. A hand closes around the foot he’s been absently tapping on Ryou’s thigh, slinks down to Mariku’s ankle where Ryou taps an absent rhythm as he hums over the reading.

“This man,” Ryou says, “is someone you can trust. You respect him, and it would be in your best interest to get his advice. Especially,” here he looks up, the consummate psychic, the transcendent diviner (Mariku’s heard this act a dozen times, memorized it down to the curl in the corners of Ryou’s lips), smiles at his customer, puts her at ease, “especially since you’re so afraid that things are going to get worse.” The schoolgirl flinches. Ryou’s nail clicks against the card. “This one here? The Wheel? Your luck is changing, Keiko, the wheel is turning. You just need to trust your own intuition this time, instead of whoever tricked you the last time. They have to go—you’ll be better for it, and justice will be done.” The hand on Mariku’s ankle slips away as Ryou leans back on his hand, fingers curling in the grass, finally smiling. “Does that make sense to you?”

It does, Keiko assure him, them, scrambling for her things and brushing grass from her stockings and not quite meeting anyone’s eyes as she smiles and waves and heads on her merry way. Mariku slinks up to take her seat before Ryou can pack up his things. He scoops up the cards, ignores Ryou’s scowl, and shuffles through them. “What does this one mean?” he asks, picking a card. They’re all in English but this card, with the crowned man all in red, scepter in hand, seems important.

Ryou frowns and props his chin in his hand, looks terribly put out even though they both know Ryou could talk about this for hours. “The Hierophant—a high priest,” he explains, sees the question on Mariku’s face before he can even ask, “means conformity, institutions, a counsellor.” He smirks. “Or alliances. Servitude.”

Something roils sour in Mariku’s gut and the card in his hand seems much more sinister between his fingers. “How apt.”

Ryou grins crooked and wide. “And that’s only the upright side.”

“Upright?”

“Flipped upside down, it means rebellion. Questioning traditions.” Ryou pulls Mariku’s foot onto his lap, fingers pressing into the sore spots. He ducks his head to hide his chuckle, spits Mariku’s words back at him. “How apt.”

Mariku slides all six cards back into the deck and Ryou takes it from him. Mariku stands, hovers over Ryou as he packs up his books and shoves the old blanket in his backpack and doesn’t step away when Ryou finally straightens. Ryou arches an eyebrow and glances him up and down, a foot apart, and says, “Don’t follow me home.”

“I want to see where you live.”

Ryou lets his breath hiss out from between his teeth and rolls his eyes. They’re standing so close Mariku can see every little vein. “Oh, I imagine it’s a lot like your home, four walls and a door and a laundry hamper—” Ryou pauses, considers what he’s saying and who he’s saying it to. “Where are you staying?”

Mariku shrugs. “You know that abandoned high school everyone keeps breaking into for fun?”

“Are you serious?”

He laughs. “Do you feel sorry for me?”

“Yes, but—” Ryou interrupts even though Mariku had only just opened his mouth. “Not enough to take you home with me.”

It had been worth the try. Mariku shrugs again, waves good-bye, heads down the road in the opposite direction. Doesn’t look back.

-

Ryou’s business is so good that he’s expanded to weekends, commandeering one of the chess tables further into the park for his readings (and if it happens to be the favorite table of a lanky, bespectacled, hoodie-wearing young man who bears absolutely zero resemblance to the CEO of KaibaCorp and his unbelievably short companion who can never quite squirrel away all of his unusual hair under a hat, Mariku keeps his goddamn mouth shut). His customers come endlessly, loitering at the other tables and standing just out of earshot and waiting waiting waiting for Ryou, for that hair and that face and those hands that Mariku doesn’t want to hold and break and kiss and bite not at all no no—

It’s another reading for another red-faced, middle-aged salaryman, cradling his broken arm against his chest and sitting straight-backed on the bench. Ryou glances at Mariku sitting just to his right—he’s become part and parcel to these readings, he thinks, or at least no customers are ever brave enough to ask why he’s there—reaches for his deck, the one Mariku has come to hate, and turns to his client. “Your name?”

The salaryman flinches. “Takahashi.”

“Your first name,” Ryou says, and the salaryman frowns at how unflustered Ryou is, how few fucks he gives about social niceties when they get in the way of his work, how if Mariku was feeling particularly (unhinged? unstable? unbalanced?) misty-eyed, he’d say it was something he loves about this silly little boy.

“Kazuki,” says his client and Ryou starts to shuffle. Ryou doesn’t ask any questions, doesn’t tell them to pick a card, any card, just shuffles and shuffles and pulls the first six cards from the top, spreads them and flips them over.

Mariku hums under his breath and the salaryman’s eyes flick to him. Ryou pinches him under the tabletop and Mariku pinches him right back. “You’re feeling satisfied with your achievements,” Ryou starts, “and you’re about to reach a period of fulfilment. The outcome of your business deal with be fair and in your favor, but the help and support you need for that outcome will only come if you ask. Listen carefully to their advice and your own intuition.” He glances up at his client, smiles. “Even if it tells you difficult things. Even if you need to sacrifice—it will only turn out for the best, but don’t be hasty. Since you’ve been unwell, this is a time for rest and patience.”

The salaryman nods. Mariku yawns. Ryou asks, “Do you understand?”

The sun is casting long shadows across the table by the time Ryou’s clients finally run out and when he pauses to brush his bangs from his face, Mariku takes the cards from his hand. “Read my fortune.”

Ryou doesn’t even pretend to consider it. “No.”

“Why not?”

“What am I going to tell you that you don’t already know?”

“Let me read your fortune, then,” Mariku says, pulls six cards like he’s seen Ryou do, fanning them out across the cool cement table.

He hems and haws for a moment, waving his hands over the cards and generally making an ass out of himself until Ryou rests on calm, dangerous hand—a warning—on the table. Mariku clears his throat. “Your apartment building has structural issues. I would move. A man will appear from the sky to wake the dead and offer them medical assistance, but I’m not sure what that has to do with you. Watch out for him, I guess.” He cocks his head to the side, stares at the next few cards. “A naked woman will sneak into your house and pour all the water in your teapot down the toilet, and another woman in a strange hat will steal the moon and paint English letters on your walls. And your neighbor is going to get rousingly drunk almost light his place on fire, meaning you’ll get no sleep and dogs will keep you up all night with their barking.” Mariku looks up at Ryou, grins with all his teeth. “Was I close?”

There’s a wicked curve to Ryou’s lips and when he takes the cards from Mariku their fingers brush. “No,” Ryou says, cracking each knuckle under Mariku’s entranced eye, rolling his wrists and rearranging the spread to his liking. “Would you like to hear what it actually says?”

Oh, he would love nothing more. “Please.”

Ryou shrugs. “Catastrophic change. Surprises will not turn out the way you expect and new directions will be made apparent to you—to me,” he amends. Mariku wonders if he’s ever read the cards for himself before. “This will be what I wanted, a new start, though not entirely how I had hoped it would come about. The choices I make now will have far-reaching implications. I am,” he frowns, like the word is bitter in his mouth, “I am afraid that my hopes will be dashed, given the circumstances, but instead a gift will come my way. A new relationship, potentially travel. I will need to pay careful attention to my intuition as well.” His eyebrows shoot up for just long enough that Mariku thinks he may have a knack for this after all, turning cards and tables and all to watch the lovely, lovely gears in Ryou’s despicable, fragile head turn. “Someone, a man, isn’t quite who they seem. Trickery disguised as charm, and I must be sure he truly has my best intentions at heart. But I must trust my instincts, and open my mind to new and unexpected possibilities.”

“That,” Mariku purrs, “is quite the fortune.”

Ryou leans back against the bench. “It is.”

They’re quiet for a long moment until Ryou finally moves, picking up his cards and folding the pillowcase he read them on and shrugging on his jacket. Mariku watches him, head in his hands, lazy smile and half-closed eyes. “Feel sorry enough to let me in your bed tonight?”

Mariku winks when he says it and Ryou’s eyes roll so far back in his head that somewhere, a Catholic priest gets the chills. He pauses, deck halfway in its case and pulls one card.

Ryou arches an eyebrow, slips the card and its deck back in his backpack. When Mariku stands, Ryou hooks an arm through his. “No,” he replies, but laughs when Mariku scowls. “But,” he says, makes Mariku’s hair stand on end, “I think sorry enough to buy you a drink.”

[arcplaysgames]

Yosuke and Teddrick Hanamura, I am going to miss you idiots.

I have written an entire post on the tragedy of Yosuke. He is, like Chie, very much a work in progress. You can look at the arc of his character like a lobbed ball and guess his eventual trajectory and landing. I hope for Yosuke, it will be a soft one. I fear instead he will bust an ankle on impact and cry about it, but he'll be okay.

Also someone please wife this man before he winds up married to some woman in the most agonizing comphet marriage of all time. Yosuke is a homosexual and by god he needs a boyfriend.

Character Accuracy to Their Arcana: ZEEEEEERO. He's a High Priestess.

aaaaaaaand this is the second time i cried playing P4G, the first being Kanji's Max SLink scene. Oh my god the tears.

This fucking character should be nothing by irritation. On paper, on script, Teddie is annoying and too much to handle and overbearing (ha). But like, Sam Riegel is the fucking all-star winner of the entire cast imo for making Teddie work. I have been continuously baffled by how much I adore this mascot bear, but his story was so genuinely moving and affecting, he's my second favorite character in the game. The fucking PATHOS.

I am so happy that Teddie made himself into a real boy. If he didn't, Nanako wouldn't have made it. The world is richer for his self-decided presence in it.

Love you Teddie.

Character Accuracy to Their Arcana: 12 out of 10, it's immaculate from start to finish.

I have such mixed emotions on Naoto.

Going into this game, Naoto was the character I feared the most. There is a lot of right-minded anger about how Naoto is handled by the game. As I said before, I tempered my expectations dramatically for playing.

Naoto disappointed me but not because the Gender Thing. With the clarity of hindsight and some context from a trusted source, I get what they were going for with Naoto. But while they were always a fucking gem in the MSQ and group scenes, Naoto's SLink was one of the weakest in the game. I think that at some point, the writers (or someone who had say over the writing, lbr) got gunshy around what they created with Naoto, and as soon as he joins the party, it feels like all the interesting parts of his set-up are shelved.

Which I don't know which I would prefer honestly? A solid attempt at dealing with Naoto And Gender that winds up being a huge fuckup, or this defanged version of a character arc, where all Naoto's potential is visible in the MSQ but just goes poof in every other scene.

That said, her fashion is INCREDIBLE and she gave us multiple incredible moments in the story. Walking out on the beauty pageant and still winning? King shit.

Character Accuracy to Their Arcana: Difficult to say since so much of Naoto's arc feels completely aborted. 4 out of 10 for what was actually on the screen canonically.

I don't have much to say for Yumi! Except in her final scene she sasses Reverie for running away from being her boyfriend, which is funny. ALSO SHE SAYS SHE'S GOING TO GO INTO POLITICS AND I LITERALLY SAID THAT WHEN WE FIRST MET, THAT SHE'D BE GREAT IN POLITICS? Holy shit what a called shot, go me.

But Yumi unfortunately innately suffers from being a Sun arcana after the shocking good and profound P3P Sun Slink. It was an impossible act to follow. She's fun tho! I liked her!

Character Accuracy to Their Arcana: eh. 3 out of 10. sorry.

God what a roller coaster of a pair.

Dojima was frankly a piece of shit for a LOT of this game, albeit a well-meaning one. The moment he sent Reverie after a crying Nanako rather than going himself really truly stressed my dedication to completing his SLink, I wanted to bail so badly. But his portrayal in the game is deeply sympathetic. The game is highly aware he's a fucking mess and a shit father, and it gives him space to become better. Which I like better than a hopeless case. It was real touch and go there for a while though.

Nanako really was the glue that held the plot together, wasn't she. It was kind of heavy-handed. Like, I didn't know what was going to happen to Nanako, but I did call very early that something was going to happen to her, to propel the plot. As this game's Justice Child, she's much weaker than Ken honestly and as much as it pains me to say, she should have been Temperance. There is very little judgement passed by her, there is no great clarity from her. She's a child, and she's wronged and neglected, and those things get better, but there is no recourse.

(Which is okay with me as a rehabilitationist myself.)

Character Accuracy to Their Arcana: VERY LOW FOR BOTH TBH. 2 out of 10. Dojima and the Fox should have swapped, I am dead serious.

okay i would have fucked this up but a friend told me i needed to say no here or i'd miss the true ending. it'll have to wait until tomorrow, as it is midnight and I gotta SLEEP.

tomorrow, we finish P4G.