#the koolaid incident

[quill-of-thoth]

fun fact my roman empire is truly that story of yours about gatsby and american lit class and i have absolutely no reasoning to why i just read it once and actively think about it all the time and my junior year english class is currently reading gatsby so it made me think of you some more!!!!!

Sandwich I'm flattered But don't poison anybody, ok? ;)

[sheawritesstuff]

Yo yo got any lovely/vincent headcannons?? Any thots thoughts??

Vincent / Lovely Headcanons

✩ Vincent has dragged Sam clothes shopping with him in several unsuccessful attempts to get him to wear something fun to the summit

✩ Lovely joked about blood bags being CapriSuns for vampires soon after they turned and Vincent had to go to a different room to recover

✩ Fred and his progeny view Vincent and Lovely as their cool aunt/uncles 

✩ Vincent and Lovely have at least three sets of those goofy matching T-shirts - e.g. “I’m insane” “I love crazy bitches”

✩ Vincent has bangs that cover his eyes if he doesn’t style them - sometimes Lovely puts them up with a hair tie and calls him a unicorn

✩ Vincent and Lovely have matching necklaces they wear every day

✩ When Vincent was still trying to be all cool and flirty to convince people to let him feed, he’d practice smirking and making “seductive faces” 

✩ After turning, Lovely still tried using their electric powers for like a month, just desperately hoping they’d still work somehow

✩ After the Adam incident, Vincent would periodically get up during the night to look around the house and check the wards along with all the doors and windows to make sure no one could possibly hurt Lovely again

✩ They unironically enjoy holding pinkies because they think it’s cute

✩ They would absolutely try those new Skittles drink things

✩ Vincent rolls his eyes when Lovely calls him “my prince” but secretly likes it

✩ Lovely tried to put one of those little koolaid packets in a blood bag once, it was disgusting

✩ Vincent doesn’t eat popcorn often because it gets stuck in his teeth, but when he does he puts m&ms in it

✩ When they’re bored, Lovely opens all the doors in the house and just runs through the house like the Benny Hill theme personified

✩ Growing up, Vincent had a poster of his dream car on the ceiling above his bed

✩ William acts like he’s Lovely’s grandpa - if they casually mention liking something in front of him, he’ll get them a lifetime supply the next time they visit

✩ Before turning, Lovely once got a set of those flimsy plastic neon vampire teeth, put them in their mouth, and gave Vincent their best impression of him

[msviolacea]

Thinking about this today, after reading a couple of things across ye olde internets.

There are two specific incidents I often thing of when I come across political and social discourse, both occurred at least a decade ago, but remain eternally relevant. The first was possibly long enough ago that it occurred on MySpace - either that, or the VERY early days of Facebook. An acquaintance of mine - someone very intelligent, very empathetic, very left-leaning - reposted one of those rumors that so many people tend to believe because they sound true, something in the "watch for fentanyl in your kids' candy" kind of vein. When a few people pointed out that it was proven false, she posted something that sounded miffed, to the effect of "what, am I supposed to fact check every post that comes across my feed??"

I didn't have the energy to say that - yes, you do. If you're going to spread something that could be inflammatory, then you do have an obligation to make sure it's true to the best of your ability.

The other thing, I heard from my dad multiple times over the years. If you've been here for any amount of time, you already know that my dad unfortunately drank the right wing koolaid. The statement that always reminded me of a) who he was and b) the fact that I'd probably never actually get through to him was his frequent, angry assertion that he "just want(ed) the TRUTH - there's always truth somewhere, in every situation, you just have to find it."

And, the thing is ... no, there's not. Not in the situations that matter. 2+2=4, yes, that's a truth ... if you don't dive deep into the philosophy and mechanics of mathematics, how we ended up with the numerical system we did, et cetera. And politics, history, and social issues are so much more squirrelly than math. There is very little absolute truth, only points of view that resonate with you. And the more you insist that there HAS to be a single undisputed truth to a situation, the more you're likely to fall for bullshit somewhere along the line.

IDK, today I'm just reminding myself that truth is a subjective monster, and each one of us has an obligation to be careful about what we're amplifying in this cacophonous internet of ours. Beware of things that give you immediate outrage energy. Sometimes they'll turn out to be worth that energy, but all of us only have so much energy to go around. Make sure what you're spending yours on is worth it. And know that whatever you're outraged about, there's probably more nuances to it than whatever clickbait you're angry over.

[usernamesuggestionsarefunny]

I accidently stumbled on your grant about The Lost Crown by Sarah Miller and honestly I agree a lot with what you say. I realize Miller was working with what was available then, but she really drank the Rappaport koolaid that Alix was a selfish pig who neglected her daughters. Rappaport vetted the manuscript and in "The Romanov Sisters" Rappaport thanks Miller for "many conversations about OTMA via email." Miller also promoted HR's book on TikTok recently. What bothered me most in TLC - retrospectively, since Helen Azar and Georgd Hawkins have disproved it - is the allusion to Rappaport's false claim Maria had a sexual dalliance with a guard and that her mom and Olga hated her, of course a PG version of this scenerio neverthless.

Hi! I am glad to know that there are people out there who share some of my thoughts and that I was not screaming into the void! Lol

Alix does come across that way in one scene that I remember, yes, the time Maria hurts her eye.

I am going to be honest with you though, and confess that I enjoyed what Miller did with the cake incident. Yes the cake incident as a whole has little to no basis in reality and the scandalous part of it all is most definitely a myth, but Sarah Miller handled it pretty well, the way I probably would if I wanted to make an OTMA novel based solely on facts and plausible enough events but also entertaining to the readers. That is what the scene was to me.

What is often portrayed in historical articles, shows, books, and media as a kiss or even more whilst completely ignoring the girls' real time period-typical moral and religious values, not to mention the impossible logistics in that crowded, small house with strict rules for the guards, Miller portrays as a relatively plausible innocent chat and laughing about the cake being dry that is instantly discovered by the superiors of the guard in question. There was barely any flirting, just a very romantic Maria internally gushing about the idea of guards wanting to marry her. Very in-character imo.

I didn't see it as Sarah Miller trying to make a PG version of the myth just to reference it and imply that it happened, or worse, that more happened. I saw it as a way for her to keep everything that happens in the story likely and true to the real historical characters (Though as I mentioned in my long post, she failed imo in many other aspects), while also making something entertaining for the readers.

There is also the idea that myths have their origin in some truth, so I assumed Sarah had thought something like "mhhmm, which of this could technically have happened, and what is logistically impossible/out of character for Maria/likely the murderers going by or making up hearsay", and she concluded that since some guards had a nice relationship with the family, it was not outrageous to imagine one of them could have sneaked a cake, which in a fictional setting could make for a cute little anecdote.

I also don't remember the girls ending up mad at Maria in the book like it happens in the myth, and I re-read those scenes recently. Olga even comforted her after the incident because she thought she had ruined the escape plan or something. Alix does come across as cold, though not too harsh, the way she is portrayed the whole book, really, I don't see much difference after the incident as it is in the myth.

Your comment did make me remember that the love between Alix and her daughters is not too well portrayed in the book, unlike the love between them and Nicholas.

[vwiolets]

vox is so the purple koolaid incident I need this man lobotomized.

[captainrayzizuniverse]

Yes! Thank youuuu @goldcrumble for this I truly need it now. I’m sitting in Kelowna waiting for the worst year of my life to be over in the most unremarkable way (binging on paw patrol with my nephew) and what better way to do it than this? Beware, long ass essay incoming. 

When did you become a Louie? (This is about to get loooong)

I love talking about this because it’s such an interesting journey for me compared to other artists I love. I used to watch British reality tv with my grandma every year and that of course includes x-factor and strictly come dancing (and the GBBO, sewing bee, BGT etc..it was unhealthy) which usually start around the same time. We started with x-factor when leona lewis won until the last season with Louis as judge. So yes of course I watched the one with 1D and I was rooting for them during the show (and Louis was my LEAST fav only because I’d watch the xtra factor and the video diaries and he was SO loud and obnoxious and basiclly everything I find annoying in a person. Sorry it was what it was. Anyway after that season I never paid them any attention but we continued watching x-factor year after year. I've mentioned this before but when Louis was announced as the judge in 2018 I remember telling my grandma that it’s probably to draw in the 1D fans because the show was so bad at that point. Obviously I said it with eyes rolled and thinking ‘they really think they’re gonna save this shit with a kid from a boyband?’. Little did I know this guy will ruin me. Anyway as a non fan and someone who really didn’t know anything about the guy I absolutely loved him as a judge..so like a couple of weeks in I read his entire wikipedia and was 100% drinking the ‘reconnected and in love with his long term gf and has a kid with a one night stand from LA’ koolaid. And I listened to his singles at the time, loved them, added them to one of my Anghami playlist and it was chill for a while.

I have never been in a music fandom before..I’ve been in the football fandom (esp livejournal) for ages and also several movies/tv shows and books. I think most of the music I listen to are either from bands who are dead or there just isn’t a fandom big enough to exist…or I haven’t found it. Dunno..just never got into one. SO on a flight from oslo in 2019 I was reading a fic from another fandom and in the author’s note there was something about being inspired by a Larry fic and I vaguely remembered who the Larry ship is about. So when I clicked it and saw that it was THE Louis T, I went into my second rabbit hole and saw all these news singles he has out and an album that was about to come out and a show in Toronto and wow so much excitement all at once. Booked the tickets for the show which were later cancelled due to covid and then never got to see the ltwt live (rip hearing defenceless live). After that I didn’t follow up with him, I didn’t even know lthq was a thing ffs. When people say that they need to promote things on his personal IG, it’s for people like ME! Anyhoo! I still never searched him up on Tumblr until one day by chance I saw a clip from a livestream on instagram of one of his earlier shows in Texas. I didn’t even know concert livestreams were a thing tbh. So I kept on monitoring to find the source until I got to finally watch an entire show (I think it was the 4th American one, a few before the chicken nugget incident) and then somehow that led me to Tumblr and slowly I started following very very few blogs. So when did I become a Louie really? Was it 2018 when I was like ok the dude is cool I like the couple of songs he has out? Or 2019 when I booked my first concert ticket? Or in 2022 when I found the fandom on Tumblr? Also I got into 1D when I read that wiki page and it said something about him having the most writing credits. It intrigued me and was like ‘fine! I’ll give them a go I guess!’

your favourite song? (one off walls and one off fitf)

We Made It. All this time (if you ask tomorrow it might jump between Saturdays or holding onto heartache or she is beauty)

your favourite music video?

Miss you! The hair, the song.

your favourite gig?

Toronto one because I was anticipating it for sooooo long and it fully lived up to it. Esp after spending the entire 2022 watching livestreams and being jealous af. The new york one was good too but my home show will always be my fav

your favourite louis hair?

X-factor hair. 

your favourite louis interview?

Oof man this is hard! They all kinda get mixed together so either a Zach lang one (probably the first one because it sticks in my memory more since I saw it right when it came out) or one of the buzzfeed ones like the snack wars or the one he did with the yellow background (man I’m lazy as shit, I can literally YouTube this).

suit louis or tanktop louis?

Suit Louis. Literally anything but tank top louis. I know I’m the only one in this boat but I just don’t dig tank tops. I think it’s also the fact that he almost always wears hideous shoes with them that kinda kill the look. If I had to be specific, I’d say tracksuit Louis. 

favourite louis tattoo?

I’d also go with the x&o’s 

favourite louis bodypart? (c'mon we all have one!)

I immediately thought his eye crinkles but realized that’s not a body part. Maybe hands or the veiny neck??I love a neck with passionate veins (what even am I saying??)

—-

I think my small Louis loving mutuals have either already done this or have been tagged, so it ends with ME!

And with that I shall wish everyone a genocide free 2024! A free Palestine! And an end to this fucking massacre!

Back to watching Marshall and Skye on PP. 

[blazingstar24]

Thinking about how FCG genuinely seemed to buy into what the Ruby Vanguard was selling. Because of course for them, a clean slate sounds fantastic. They just learned that they are actually an assassin robot. That they were the one who murder their previous party. That there could have been more people they’ve killed.

And then some guy tells you that some higher being could make that all go away. That if freed Predathos will free everyone from it all and everyone gets to start over.

To someone like FCG? That’s the best news they could have gotten. Think about their reaction to Shithead. They were convinced that the bird was a manifestation of their sins come to punish them. We thought Orym has guilt issues? FCG can rival him in that because FCG’s issue is that he can’t even remember if he did anything wrong and he can’t remember what he did wrong.

To hear that you hurt someone but you can’t remember what you did? How do you make up for that? How do you atone if you have no memory of the incident? How can you move on from trauma that you don’t know the root cause of? Getting told someone can give you a redo is the best news. It’s a shortcut to feeling better. I mean we all have been tempted by the idea of getting to redo a moment where we fucked up.

But this is the koolaid that the Ruby Vanguard is selling. And the scary part is that it seems like they truly believe it. I personally think Ludinus does not buy what he’s selling. Because this is the ultimate tactic to recruitment. He finds people like FCG, like that guy. They’ve experienced trauma, they’ve had a bad lot, they’re broken down. And he sells them the dream.

What’s scary about Ludinus is that he’s not Trent. He knows that breaking people doesn’t work. He’s seen what becomes of that with Caleb. You cannot abuse someone into following you, it only leads to a knife in your back. No, what Ludinus does is he finds the broken, the desperate and he “lifts” them up. He offers that dream of a second chance. Of power. Of being more. Because he knows that once you buy into the dream, he’s got them. Once they buy in, he can manipulate you to die for him, to kill for him.

The guy they captured was ready to die for the cause. If he wasn’t magically compelled, he wouldn’t have spilled. He’s all in. Because Ludinus has promised that Predathos will make all that religious trauma he experienced go away. It’s his revenge. And now he doesn’t even hear the insane amount of holes in the plan. Like every question the BH bring up is valid. How do you know that Predathos won’t just fuck the mortals over too?

This is Ludinus’ MO. I mean how do you think Essek went with the CA for his research. Of course Essek willingly chose to do so and probably saw through the bullshit real quick, but Ludinus definitely played the sympathetic card. The “oh of course I understand how it feels to not have your research funded and appreciated. Your talents are being wasted” card. He’s lawful evil. He knows how to play the game vs Trent’s oozing chaotic evil everywhere he goes. Jester literally thought he was an okay dude after meeting him and had to be reminded that he helped hold Nott’s family hostage.

And honestly it’s not just FCG this would appeal to. All of BH’s have that desire in them. It’s just that a good chunk of them have good detecting bs meters. Truly it’s, Fearne and FCG that could be swayed. And that’s the scary part. Because in that moment Imogen understands the guy and why he’s doing what he’s doing. And now it’s not just evil moon obsessed people. It’s people that have been manipulated and swayed under some charismatic fuck. It’s not just a cult full of faceless evils. It’s them staring down at that temptation to give into what’s easy. They need to be stopped of course but boy did it get so much more complex.

[starbudspresents]

Re.Gray 017 - Catastrophe at the Black Order

[ Masterlist ] [Read on AO3] [ Raws ]

Summary: The infamous Komlin incident, part 1. Also some very interesting Q&A with the author.

♦ 7

sfx: bu— [beeeep]

Komui: Muahaha... It's finally finished. ♫

Komui: As I said: Komlin!

sfx: bububuh [beep beep boop]

sfx: pochin! [screen turning on]

Reever: Hey, Director, what's with the big ungainly robot...?

sfx: bubu [boop boop]

sfx: chikooon [fully powered up]

Lenalee: Um....

Lenalee: Komlin's....

17th Night - Catastrophe at the Black Order

♦ 8

sfx: pika! [lightning cracks]

17th Night - Catastrophe at the Black Order

♦ 9

sfx: fuaaaaa [big yawn]

Allen: It's gotten so late...

sfx: gakoon [boat bumps into dock]

sfx: gigigi [Toma hauling on the mooring line]

Toma: Because the storm delayed our train...

Toma: Knowing the Science Division, I'm sure someone will still be awake.

sfx: nemui [sleepy]

Allen: It must be nearly midnight....

Allen: What should we do with the Innocence we've retrieved?

Allen: I'll go see, then!

sfx: dosa [thud]

Allen: !?

♦ 10

Allen: Huh?

Allen: L-Lenalee!?

Allen: What happened to you!?

Allen: !

Reever: Oh... Y-You're back, Allen....

sfx: yura [stagger]

sfx: haa, haa [panting]

Allen: Reever!?

Allen: Look at you... What in the world is going on?

Allen: What?

sfx: dosah [slump]

Reever: R... Run.

Reever: Komlin is coming...

sfx: dodododododododododo [swift, heavy footsteps]

♦ 11

sfx: DOKAN [Komlin the Koolaid Man comes through the wall]

Allen: !?

Reever: It's here.

♦ 12

sfx: zappo-n [hydraulic pistons whine as it attacks]

Allen: Whaa—!?

sfx: zababababa [it slowly gets to its feet]

label: SCIENCE DIVISION

Reever: Damn, it's so bloody quick....

Allen: What is that!?

Allen: WHAT IS THAT!?

Allen: !

sfx: pipipi [high-pitched series of beeps]

Komlin: LO... CATED!

sfx: pi pi [beep beep]

Komlin: LENALEE LEE.

Komlin: ALLEN WALKER.

Komlin: TWO EXORCISTS LOCATED.

♦ 13

Reever: Run for it, Allen!

Reever: It's going after Exorcists!!

sfx: dadadada [them running]

Komlin: SURGERY!!

sfx: buo [rears up]

sfx: doga doga doga [chewing up the stairs behind them up as they run]

sfx: dadadadada [more running]

Allen: Aaaghh it's coming after us!? It's coming after us!!

Allen: Reever, I have no idea what's going on here!!

Reever: Uhh, well, that's.... Komlin... an all-purpose robot the Director built....

sfx: dogagagaga [the sound of their running changes as Komlin gains ground]

Reever: And as you can see, it's running amok!

Allen: How come!?

♦ 14

Reever: So about half an hour ago,

Reever: we were doing unpaid overtime, like always.

? Wonder if I can get myself transferred....

Johnny: It's endless....

Johnny: We could waste our whole lives and never catch up....

Tup: I need a nap so bad I'd even take the dirt kind.1

Reever: Hang in there, boys, we will catch up... eventually....

Lenalee: Coffee, anyone?

Everyone: Yes please! ♥

sfx: gashon gashon gashon [hydraulic footsteps]

sfx: gassha-n [hydraulic settling]

Komui: Gooood morning! Everyone conscious?

Komui: Behold, behold!

♦ 15

Komui: Ta-daaa! ♫

Komui: Allow me to present the saviour of our Science Division: "Komlin"!!

Reever: Hey, Director, what's with the big ungainly robot...?

Reever (side): It's wearing a hat.

Komui: As I said: Komlin!

Komui: I've just finished it, finally!

Komui (small): Magnificent~ ♥ ♥ ♥

Komui: A prototype all-purpose Innocence robot which duplicates my entire mind and personality. ♪2

label: SCIENCE DIVISION

arrow: charm point

Komui: In addition to handling all manner of paperwork, it can also perform surgery on anti-Akuma weapons and provide Accommodator care support.

Komui: It's like a second me!

Komui: It should make the job a breeze!

Komui: Yes, yes, I'm incredible, I know.

Division: Directooor~~ ♥

Division (side): Is this for real?

sfx: hisshih [desperation]

sfx: uiiiii [delicate hydraulic whine as Komlin plucks a mug off Lenalee's tray]

Komui, side: Beg my forgiveness! Sing my praises!

sfx: goku goku goku [gulp gulp gulp]

Lenalee: That's... my brother's coffee....

♦ 16

Lenalee: Komui, can Komlin drink coffee?

sfx: ahahahahaha [ahahahahahaha]

Komui: Don't be absurd, Lenalee.

Komui: However much it may resemble me, it's only a robot.

Komui: Of course it can't—

Komui: drink... coffee...?

sfx: DON [BOOM]

sfx: busuh [Komlin stabs Lenalee in the neck with a comically large syringe]

Lenalee: !?

sfx: dosah [slump]

♦ 17

Komui sfx: KYA—— [SCREECH]

Komui: Lenalee!!!

Komlin: I am... Komlin.

Komlin: I make Exorcists... stronger....

Komui sfx: hawa hawa [umm?? umm??]

Komui small: K-Komlin?

sfx: muki ♥ [brawny ♥]

Komlin: This woman... is an... Exorcist.

Komlin: I must perform augmentative surgery to make her macho!!

Division: Whaaaaat!?!

sfx: dogya-n [kablaaam]

sfx: zu——n [Reever's story has cast a pall over everyone's mood]

Division 1: GYAAA

Division 2: NGUHH

Division 3: KOMLIN NO

sfx: ha— ha— ha— [panting]

Allen & Toma: How inane...!!

Reever: ...And there you have it.

Reever: Sorry it's so stupid.

♦ 18

Allen: Is Lenalee all right?

Allen: She's an Exorcist, yet she couldn't—

Allen: Hm?

Reever: Komlin put her to sleep with a syringe of something.

sfx: goh [Reever lets his head fall back against the wall with a thump]

Reever: Ahhh.... Serves us right for wanting things to be easier on us.

Mana, past: Welcome back, Allen.

Reever: You Exorcists and Finders are always risking your lives on the frontlines.

Reever: So, sorry.

Reever: And welcome back.

Allen: Mana....

Reever: Allen?

♦ 19

Allen: Hm... Oh, yes?

Reever: What's with you? Did you get injured on your mission?

Reever: You can report that to me.

Reever: ?

Allen: No no, I'm fine!

Allen: I'm—

Allen: I'm home.

Allen side: haha... [haha...]

Division: Hallooo!! Are you all right!?

Allen: It's the Director and the others!

Johnny: Foreman, quick, over here!

Tup, small: We'll catch you!

Komui: Oh, Allen and Toma are back? You two as well, quickly now....

sfx: don! [bam!]

Komui: Lenaleeeee, are you still slim!?

sfx: jita bata jita bata [Division members milling and fretting]

Reever: Calm down, all of you...

? It's here!

♦ 20

sfx: go go go go go go [Komlin dragging its huge body into the central hall]

Division: FIRE!!

sfx: gashakon! [elaborate sound of a whole cannon extending from the hovervator and clicking into place]

Johnny: Don't underestimate the egghead brigade!!3

sfx: kachih [double click]

Komui: !!

Komui: No shooting my Komlin!!!

Johnny: !?

♦ 21

Allen: Ngahhhh!

sfx: dorurururu [wild gatling firing]

sfx: don don don [bullets impacting one after the other]

Division 1: Hold him down!

Reever: The hell are you doing!!

Reever side: You wanna kill us!?

sfx: doka baki goh dofuh [Division brawling with Komui]

sfx: ha— ha— ha— [panting]

Division 2: Komlin—

Division 3: Tie him up!

Toma: A traitor in our midst....

sfx: hyuoooo [wind whooshing over the abyss]

Komui: Komlin...

sfx: gusuh [sob]

Komui: It seems Allen's anti-Akuma weapon is damaged.

Komui: Fix it, please.

Allen: Huh?

sfx: pipi [high-pitched double beep]

Komlin: There's

Komlin: damage....

♦ 22

Allen: !

Komlin: Triage priority established!

sfx: chiko-n [whirr as it gears itself up]

Komlin: Top priority SURGical treatment FOR Allen Walker, SERIOUSLY INJURED!!4

sfx: gashih [Komlin attempts to grab Allen, gets him by the foot]

Reever: Wh—

sfx: gun! [it yanks Allen towards itself]

Reever: Allen!

Reever: It's dragging Allen into its operating room!!

label: OPERATING ROOM

sfx: vi-n [smooth high whirr of the door opening to receive him]

Komui: Now, Reever! Get Lenalee over here while it's preoccupied with its prey!!

Allen: Eeeeeek, where does that door go!?

sfx: zuzazazaza [Allen's fingernails digging into the stone as he resists being dragged]

Reever: Is there no low you won't sink to!?

Komlin: Surgery ♫ Surgery ♫ Surgery, in any case ♫

sfx: gacha gacha gacha ["surgical tools" clacking and clattering in the hands of half a dozen masked and gowned mini-Komuis]

♦ 23

Reever: Ooh, a new anti-Akuma weapon!

sfx: bah [Allen stares at his impending doom, teeth gritted]

Allen: Nnn...

sfx: vun [his Innocence powers up]

Allen: Innocence: initialize!!!

sfx: fuh [spitting sound; Komui blows dart at Allen]

sfx: pusu [dart hits home in Allen's neck]

Reever: Allen—

Allen: Hwassisnow?

sfx: biri biri biri [wibble wobble]

Allen: M' goin' all numb...

sfx: batah [flops over limply]

Toma: Sir Walker!!

Reever: DIRECTOR!!!

Komui: But but but if you shoot my Komlin with that it'll... it'll...!!

Division: He's got a blowgun!

Division: Confiscate it!

sfx: jita bata jita bata [Division brawling with Komui]

Division: Grow the hell up, Director!!

♦ 24

Allen: R— Reeverrr....

Reever: !

sfx: viiin [doors begin to close as the mini-Komuis drag Allen inside]

Allen: Tage Lenalee an' run, pleesh...

sfx: zuru zuru [his heels scraping over the lintel]

Reever: Allen—

sfx: i-n [door continuing to whine shut]

Allen: Furry.5

sfx: gashi [Reever makes a leap for him and catches the tail of his coat just as the doors shut completely]

Reever: ALLENNNNN!!!

Komlin: Allen Walker successfully retrieved.

sfx: chi-n [door will not budge]

♦ 25

sfx: guwah [Komlin suddenly stands up, leaving Reever hanging from Allen's coattails in middair...]

sfx: pateh [...and Toma splat on the ground]

Reever: Ahh!

Reever: Damn, it's after Lenalee now!

Komui: No, not macho, I beg of you!!!

sfx: dodododododododododo [swift, heavy footsteps]

Komlin: Exorcist Lenalee Lee.

Komlin: Operation required.

sfx: pachi [Lenalee's eyes blink open]

♦ 26

Komui's Lab "Lounge", Vol. 1

Q1. Your characters hail from all over the world, but what language do they communicate in?

A. English, the universal tongue. And yes, Kanda speaks English too.6

Q2. Who is the travelling rabbit that sometimes shows up in your work? Does it have a name?

A. That's an animal version I made of my manager Y-shi. Its name is Yosshii. I originally doodled it for a one-shot, but took a shine to it, so now I slip it in here and there (to annoy Y-shi). I'd love to make an Akuma version someday, perhaps. [looks to the distant horizon]

FOOTNOTES

Q3. What does the title "D.Gray-man" mean?

A. It's a word I came up with on my own, and it has a number of meanings, some perhaps to do with Allen and some perhaps with other characters. Before I thought of it, the series' previous tentative title was "dolls", and prior to that "kuronowa" or "ZONE".

A "dirt nap" is slang for lying "asleep" in one's grave. The literal translation is "If I can't go to sleep right here and now, I don't mind if I never wake up again", which deliberately doesn't quite make sense, but implies that he's so miserably tired that he'd rather flat-out die than stay awake one more second. Relatable, but... be careful what you wish for.

[ ♠ ]

He doesn't explain how exactly Innocence is involved, just lumps the adjectives "Innocence" and "prototype" and "all-purpose" together and lets us guess. It could mean that Innocence was used as a power source during development in some way, or it could mean that there's literally Innocence inside Komlin right now, giving it agency beyond what its creator intended (much as it did for Lala, a similar artificial construct).

[ ♠ ]

Kanji: 科学班 kagakuhan "Science Division"

Furigana: インテリ interi, short for "intelligentsia", slang for "geek, nerd, egghead, brainiac", etc.

Basically "we nerds can fuck you up too".

[ ♠ ]

Variable caps may come up again, so I'll explain that these are used when the dialogue switches jerkily back and forth between hiragana and katakana. It almost always has to do with a malfunctioning robot or AI of some kind, and replicates the way in which volume and tone fluctuate between words.

[ ♠ ]

This here is why I opted not to include honourifics in my translation. By saying this, Hoshino implies that the script I'm translating from Japanese to English is actually already an English-to-Japanese translation and dub in and of itself, which means I'm just undubbing it. The "original" English would not, of course, have used elements of the Japanese language or culture such as honourifics, so... much as I personally love them and always preserve them when translating anything set in Japan (or other Japanese-speaking setting), I couldn't justify keeping them in this time. Alas.

This is a tiny tribute to the first translation I ever read, more than fifteen years ago. This panel made me laugh so hard I made a LiveJournal icon out of it, which I still have and still treasure. Forever grateful for those first fan-translators; I wonder if any of them are still around.

[ ♠ ]

That said, if you ever want to know what honourifics anyone is using, or what first-person pronouns they're using, or literally anything else for that matter, by all means ask! I'm always more than happy to directly convey context details I haven't been able to include in my translations.

[ ♠ ]

[symbolism-of-a-rose]

ok you HAVE to at least tell me another koolaid incident I'm so curious

Bahahahahaha oh my word. The kool-aid incident started the curse, really.

It started with fancy china, as most curses do

And, man I really wish I could make this sound dramatic but the end result was I spilled an entire goblet of kool-aid on our Thanksgiving turkey and then for the next... 15? 16? Years we were cursed to never have a properly cooked turkey.

When I moved to South Carolina for a bit my dad sent me a picture of him holding the ruined turkey over the garbage can as "another sacrifice to the landfill gods".

[something-of-a-hermit]

Ever just dye your hair two different colors and blend them and as you wait for the timer to go off so you can rinse you just pray you didn’t over do one of the colors because I could have red and blue hair or I could have red and purple and blue hair and that might be more than I bargained for

[crystaldwightsworld]

Leon & Patrick headcanons/fluff, platonic

- They had kinda been friends, talked a lot while on the job, comfortable enough with each other that they both have their personal cell numbers but things don't escalate until after the 'incident' at the White House.

- Patrick's shock over the whole situation never really wears off. He thinks about it on the daily, what he could have done differently, pained that he couldn't have done more to help Spacer. But, then again, it had all happened so fast... he had turned so quickly...

- Patrick avoids that hallway as much as he can but when it's not practical for him to, he has to take it. The first time sends him into a full on panic attack and he does try to brush it off but when Leon finds him by himself in the coffee lounge, he's quick to address it, helping him bear through it, refusing to leave him alone.

- Per Patrick's request that they talk things over in a more private setting, Leon had ordered enough take out to feed a family and had suggested that they go back to his or Patrick's place. Patrick had wanted to help pay for half of it but Leon had insisted that he pay, that he didn't mind and that he was the one who invited him out in the first place. Patrick relents and goes with Leon's place over his own. "My place is a mess anyways."

- They had talked for what seemed like hours, through their dinner and even moving out onto the couch to mindlessly watch a movie. They didn't chat about work all that much, the both of them wanting the distraction. It's the most fun either one of them has had in a long time. Patrick is the most disappointed to have to leave at the end of the night but work called to them early the next morning.

- Patrick comes up with the plan that they make their little dinner get together a weekly thing. He's really not expecting Leon to go for it, he was just being nice to help him through his sudden development of panic attacks. Plus, Leon kept to himself most of the time. He's surprised when Leon agrees.

"Yeah, sure! I wouldn't mind. We had fun, didn't we!?"

- Both have a lot more in common than originally assumed.

- Have an extreme likeness for Mexican and Chinese take out food. Patrick's always craving sushi.

- They like to buy those hella expensive lego sets and put them together, well, together.

- Patrick is a terrible cook but with a little help from Leon, who's a pro at it, he eventually learns the basics.

- Patrick can do impressions and narration voices that always leave Leon busting at the seams. His Mickey Mouse voice is his favorite.

- Both agree that the Ice Blue Raspberry Lemonade flavor of Koolaid is the best.

- Leon never really has any time for video games but with his buddy Patrick, who has alllll the consoles, he slowly gets back into it, with a little coaching and helpful tips from Patrick of course. Just no zombie games.

- The first time Patrick brings his Nintendo Wii over, Leon's pretty excited about it. He hadn't gotten to try it yet. A controller with motion controls? How cool! Patrick warns him about the wrist straps but Leon's fairly confident in not letting one slip.

"Don't say I didn't warn you!" Patrick croons, watching Leon play. It's mere minutes later when Leon gets into it way too hard and accidentally tosses the remote half way across the room, missing his TV screen by mere inches, a giggling Patrick dying of laughter into the couch cushions.

"Shit! Okay, maybe I should use the wrist straps."

- Stay up waaaay past an acceptable time on nights where they both have the following day off. They watch movies or binge and entire series. Leon always brings the popcorn or Patrick brings the alcohol and candy.

- Patrick's always sending him some silly little meme at ungodly hours of the morning and it's sometimes the first thing Leon sees after his alarm wakes him up which results in him falling face down into his pillow giggling.

- They both love Hell's Kitchen and like to bet on which team will lose and who gets eliminated.

- Patrick starts going on jogs with Leon. Leon knows all the great spots, plus it's good for the both of them to keep the cardio up. It was important in relation to their jobs.

- They crash at each other's places a lot, especially if they've had too much to drink. Patrick hates that all he has to offer is the couch which is why he ends up at Leon's place most of the time. Leon has a spare bedroom with a full bed for such occasions.

- Know their favorite coffee orders by heart.

- Patrick is obviously trained in their line of work but is still quite a newbie and looks for pointers from Leon. They train and practice together a lot.

[quill-of-thoth]

Whatever happened with football and Student Body Secretary from the AP English class

This is probably so long after it was posted but I’m very curious

Ah, the folks from the koolaid incident. Football: He went to a large state college to study poli-sci, discovered that being good at arguing didn't give you the stomach for politics, took up a more office-y type job. Last thing I heard from him was when he got married. He still loves football, though. Student Council Secretary: Went on to become the school salutatorian, never admitted she had aided and abetted us in salting our teacher like a slug. She went into teaching like both her parents, and mostly disappeared from facebook because you can't have social media under your real name if you don't want your students prying into your life these days. Bonus: Our American Lit teacher: Moved to a different school after her second year at ours. Rumor has it that the next batch of teenagers made her quit entirely, but I know they were not as creative as us.

Me: I'm a professional lab gremlin these days.

[honoredbastard]

I COME BACK WITH THOUGHTS/THEORIES ON ITADORI AND HIS RELATIONS- I THINK.

anyways, so i'll just point this out: i'm not good at speaking my thoughts in an organized manner. i absolutely suck at it, i speak on how my brain brings up the thoughts so i might ramble, get over my head in a thought, etc. i can't control it so i apologize in advance for the jumpiness of the texts. i will spell a lot of things wrong and not everything will be correct, as i read translations and on a manga site. don't worry it's not illegal, i believe.

MANGA SPOILERS AHEAD.

i apologize for my absence! last week or two weeks ago the tower to my computer completely broke and will not turn on. i tried to repair it and follow my fathers instructions but nothing worked. even cleaned off the fan and went through countless nights readjusting things. it's not my cords either so to help me out my father is working extra shifts to get me a new pc. so in the meantime i'll do small posts like these but not full writing/head canons until i have a computer tower lol. a family member was kind enough to allow me to have their phone while we work throughout this issue.

now onto the actual topic:

kenjaku and itadori's relationship. ( family wise ).

for context in the most recent chapter, 160 "colony" kamo shows up in sasaki's home and talks to her about the culling game and a barrier. but that's not the point, the point is as he's guiding her to the barrier inside her "dream" at the end he says "oh right. i almost forgot to tell you. thank you for getting along with my son." and then she is awakened inside the barrier, in her pajamas beside iguchi. when sasaki and iguchi look at the barrier and gather themselves they bring up kamo.

sasaki asked iguchi if he mentioned his son and he says no. this leaves sasaki in a state of confusion when itadori flashes in her mind. she says his name aloud like she finally connected the dots. now. why am i bringing up this whole kenjaku thanking sasaki for being his "son"'s friend. it throws me off because why didn't he thank iguchi?

did he not think iguchi meant their friendship? because sasaki was the one uninjured and still counted itadori as a friend? does iguchi not consider itadori as a friend anymore?

because we haven't seen these two at all since the incident. that raised many questions in me. as well "how can itadori be related to kamo?" and itadori is related to choso.

because kamo's technique is explained ( vaguely. we are aware he can create barriers, take over bodies, and has incredible cursed tools. chapter 134. this is also where choso makes his connection ( i believe. ) to itadori yuji as his brother. but because we saw this with todo many thought itadori just had another unconsious technique that allows the person who is hit create false memories and believe of a completely made up relationship with itadori without his knowledge. but alas, i was wrong. ) and we're given more hints shown than told ( imo ) i tried my best to make sense out of the situation and what he said. i think my conclusions are pretty solid, so continuing on.

we're given very little history on itadori, his past, and family. at the start of the manga we know that itadori's only family he knows is his grandfather and that he is ill in the hospital. at the very very beginning we learn that itadori is your average cute, fluffy, laid back but strong and goofy protagonist. in smaller words: itadori is kirby but even cuter and dumber.

my first impressions of him is a pineapple. if you're confused to this saying: it's calling a person prickly on the outside but sweet on the inside. and this is true, itadori's grandfather seems prickly and cold on the outside but he genuinely cares for itadori.

he raised itadori for all we know and did that with his all in assumption. but this ends up backfiring onto itadori, because he cares so much for his grandson - he ends up leaving a " curse " on yuji.

help people. save them.

itadori takes this to heart as his grandfathers speech is his last one. when he looks over to his grandfather the man is dead and now yuji is left alone. then the following events occur.

at this point in time i assumed itadori was an orphan ( he technically is if we're connecting the dots. his parents has not been shown, he doesn't speak of them, they aren't in the picture. we can conclude either they disowned itadori or died before he could make complete memories of them. )

but when we are shown in chapter 143 itadori's parents we see this "woman" jin ( yuji's father ) and his grandfather talking about has the same scar pattern. this scar pattern is either stitching ( assuming that is how kamo keeps the top of the opened skull from coming off. this is also how kamo revealed his cursed technique / body of sorts ( the brain, assuming that is kenjaku in his cursed technique and not the body / puppet he is controlling " getou suguru " ) to gojou. )

this is the only way i find kamo being able to assign itadori as his son. why is that you might be asking this dumbass here.

we do not have the full story, exact date, location, and full context of the memory/dream itadori is having. this cannot be fake either because kamo would than have no reason to call itadori his son. or is there? anyways.

take a leap of faith with me. imagine that before itadori is born ( he seems no more than a few weeks or days old in this memory. hence why i am thinking my conclusion is pretty solid in theory. but yknow gege, there might be something different. ) anywhooo.

TW. D3ATH/IMPLYING ANTI LIFE ATTEMPT

kamo had to have taken over yuji's mothers body after an accident OR after she gave birth to yuji. his grandfather is interrupted by her before he can finish his sentence but it seems to be leading to the conclusion that either kaori ( yuji's mother ) died while giving birth to yuji or kaori could not conceive and tried to take her own life or cause an accident that would take her life. ( i read a fan translation for this part but im pretty sure i also read the official translation today too and it added up to the same. )

i believe in the first idea, but since kamo's cursed technique wasn't explained in detail i don't know the conditions of his body technique. does the original host of the body have to be dead? can he regenerate body limbs ( i highly doubt. getou lost an arm during his fight with yuta. overconfident dick. reminding me of an ex ANTWAYS. i forgive him for being overconfident smooch. he learned. OFF TOPIC but continuing on i promise.

this is being continued from the cut off point. i'm so upset so it'll just be summarized. i can't believe this shit lol i took three hours just to finish it for it to literally cut off the bottom half.

continuing on in a sadge mood. kamo must not have the complete ability to take over a body. after all getou took his only arm he had as he was dying and choked his own body to his full ability. getou was willing to die ( possibly, you never know he could be alive if he killed his own body. moving on. ) just to have the chance to save his friend from being swallowed by a damn box.

so there has to be a chance that kamo cannot fully take over the previous persons complete consious and memory of their body. if getou still had his other arm after losing the fight to yuta, he could've choked kamo with both arms. in theory kamo wouldn't be able to control the right arm and die to the previous host choking him to death.

so why wouldn't the other hosts do it? after all, kamo did say it was his first time experiencing such a thing. assuming kamo has lived throughout many bodies in his 150+ lifespan none of the previous hosts could take control of their body.

i believe getou was completely influenced by gojou and his six eyes. there is no way gojou would even try to speak out to his friend unless he had an inkling or saw getou still in there. helpless and without the ability to save himself from the cage he's in.

being used and puppeteered in his own body by an external force. laughing in the world he could not. putting getou into a constant misery and defeat that he couldn't escape his hell. the one he tried so hard to fight and get out of. even if it was the wrong path.

gojou was the last person to witness getou dying. he had to watch getou bleed out after their conversation because he couldn't bring himself to kill his friend. the one he spent his whole jujutsu student life with. so for gojou to say such a thing to getou despite all that he did had to break getou out of his misery and give him that small sliver of hope that he could do something. of course he failed, but i doubt that's going to be the end of that.

the only way i see kamo being related to yuji is if he took over kaori's body before the pregnancy. assuming that when kamo takes over a body he becomes one with said body and is that person for however long he lives in said body. my only thing is, can he take over a persons body whilst they are alive? i would go more in depth like i did the last time but i am extremely upset about my work being erased so that's the end of this part.

thank you for reading! i have one more thing for you though.

the last time we see sukuna in a manga page after the shibuya incident is where he is on his throne and in his domain. this is after yuji is stabbed by yuta and is presumed "dead" at the time. he seems to be interested in yuta and i can think of 2-3 things. I would love to hear your theories too so don't be afraid to barge into my dms like the koolaid man.

A - sukuna is interested in Yuta because of his ability to use the reverse healing technique ( only a few sorcerers know this. sukuna being the first. shoko being the second one to be told that she has this power and then gojou. ) because of this he sees potential in yuta as well or has added this boy into his plans. after all, there is very few that can make sukuna make an expression that isn't an RBF. aka megumi and possibly gojou. I was looking at the page of him stabbing yuji and noticed we only see the entry point of where the blade enters. it's smaller because some got chunked off so its a possibility yuta used this to his advantage when "killing" yuji and instead hit an artery that could kill him but quickly healed him afterwards. or just his heart. the ideas.

B. Rika, Yuta is able to completely control Rika as shown. Even though he claims he is on the weak side, these two combined seem like an unstoppable force. He may be interested in Rika as she is a curse that has been put on someone that can fully control it. Not many people is shown to be able to control their curse. As we haven't met many.

this was enti and that's the last of my post! thank you for reading and it was a fun one. even though i had to restore this shit. anyways, i'd love you to add or fix up my ideas and tell me your thoughts and opinions! Thanks a bunch!

^ this is for pure humor

[wildernessuntothemselves]

100% dont want OC to go back to psycho gyu but even though I'm TeamTea (I'm a SIMP for yamqn Tyun) I part of me misses sweet gyu T.T but I also want to stab him. And even without the rape incident his still so toxic the way he does sweet acts but also breaks down her self-esteem and self worth is horrible. He always says he knows what will make her happy and that he can make her happy but he doesnt care about her feelings of wanting dignity, respect and freedom or even how she wants to grow as a person. He's a big red Flag. He's red koolaid sweet, delicious and refreshing but poisonous and deadly.

that's why he's so effective 😭 you know he's bad but you just can't help craving him 😭 don't drink the koolaid babe. sadly it's too late for me

[dahlame]

( leighton meester. cisfemale. she/her. bulletproof & la roux. ) well, would you look at dahlia ames this year? i’ve heard they’re a full thirty-seven years young, and a waitress at riverdale diner. you can always find them sipping a strawberry kiwi koolaid while they work on a puzzle. when dusk falls, you can usually find them heading home to queens by car. 

@duskintro​

Name: Dahlia Marie Remington Ames Age: 37 Occupation: Waitress  Pronouns: she/her Gender: cisfemale Children: Henry (7), Delilah (5) Parents: Unknown, likely living Siblings: one older sibling, one younger. (wc )

Born Dahlia Remington in New York to a long line of witches that went far back aligned with the dark magic. She was the second in her family born without an inch of magic. The gift never surfaced with her, though it did with her siblings. This brought on many arguments of possible infidelity on her mother’s side, but those were speculations that were never proven true. 

Magic was more important than she was, and the lengths her family went to were disturbing. At the age of sixteen, on the night of a full moon her memory of the events are still blurry. She woke up in a tub of ice with a roughly stitched jagged line on the side of her body. It was with the assistance of a house keeper that she was able to get to the hospital in time. The thing that made this story even more bizarre - was nothing was missing. Just... switched. Her parents believed that perhaps if she had another coven’s organ in her that would spark her abilities. 

All it did was cement that Dahlia couldn’t remain home. Especially when it only confirmed she was nothing special. Stealing what money she could from her parents and siblings from the house, she quickly took a bus and got out of dodge.  Upstate New York wasn’t bad, and the small town she landed in was the perfect place where she wouldn’t stand out. It there she would meet Henry’s father, her ex husband. Life had grown mundane, but she was content with it. Henry was born seven years ago, and Delilah would follow two years after. At first things were alright, and nothing within her decade of being with her husband had set off warning signs. 

The false sense of security would dissipate once her husband suddenly didn’t come home one night.  The local sheriff came in the morning to let her know that he was apart of a traffic accident and he hadn’t survived. Dahlia was left alone with two children, and the worst part was on the incident report the name of the culprit made goosebumps crawl over her skin - her eldest sibling.

That wasn’t an accident.

She did the thing she was best at and ran again. This time never really settling in one spot for too long. Barely scraping by to care for herself and her children. Reluctantly, she came back to Queens after her children started showing signs that she never had to worry about. Maybe that foreign kidney had some magic left in it after all.

TLDR: Grew up mainly in Brooklyn. Was born into a witch family, but is a mortal - she has no magic. Ran away at sixteen after her family performed a ritual trying to unlock “her magic”. They did this by performing a kidney transplant unknowingly  Got married, had two kids under the radar. Eldest sibling believed to have killed her husband in an ‘accident’. Spent another few years on the run. Ended up in Queens after noticing her children seemed to have inherited magic. WANTED CONNECTIONS: Connected by the kidney - The other part to what made her run in the first place. She has this person’s kidney in her body, and they may or may not have hers. I imagine this was another witch, but another magical creature could be... interesting as well.  In witch I trust - someone she sought out when she arrived in New York to try to suppress whatever is happening with her kids.  it’s our secret - someone she stays with for a bit until she gets an apartment of her own in Queens.  childhood connections - ppl she would have known when she was in school up until she ran away. coworkers/regulars at the diner spies of her family would be fun tbh! hunter buddy she asks for protection from her family or one that’s using her as bait possibly.  Friends exes  other mom friends / she needs play dates for the kids babysitters

 & anything else tbh 

[cometcrystal]

also can we stop using the phrase “drink the [blank] koolaid” altogether because jim jones/jonestown (the origin of the phrase) preyed on primarily black people for his cult and the jonestown incident was a mass murder of those cult victims, not a suicide. nobody wanted to drink the poison but they were under threat of being shot if they didn’t, and countless children died along with the adults. the phrase just leaves a bad taste in my mouth now.