#their dynamic is one that never would have occurred to me but is too funny

[dittydipity]

played the researcher and seeker event. this is what they are to me

[reythenerdypisces]

things that I overlooked in PJO the first time / small, funny things I noticed during my reread

Part 3: The Titan's Curse

The truth was I was kind of disappointed to hear that she liked her new school so much. It was the first time she'd gone to school in New York. I'd been hoping to see her more often.

I tried to concentrate on little things, like the crepe-paper streamers and the punch bowl - anything but that fact that Annabeth was taller than me, and my hands were sweaty and probably gross, and I kept stepping on her toes.

"The General?" I asked. Then I realised I'd said it in a French accent. "I mean... who's the General?" I want this part to be in the show

"Sweet! Let's go! [to CHB]" said Nico. this breaks my heart. he was so excited in this book

Tyson thought Annabeth was just about the coolest thing since peanut butter (and he seriously loved peanut butter).

"How would you kidnap an immortal goddess? Is that even possible?" "Well, yeah. I mean, it happened to Persephone." "But she was like, the goddess of flowers." Grover looked offended. "Springtime." you tell him grover

"That's some serious danger you're facing." Connor Stoll said. (I liked how he said you and not we.) I'm just imagining the rest of the campers not bothering to go on quests cause it's always the same few demigods and they don't care, they're just chilling safe at CHB while Percy and Annabeth do their things

The creature looked at me sadly. "Moooo!" But I couldn't understand his thoughts. I only speak horse. Percy Jackson speaks two languages: English and Horse

With a shiver, I realised that five hundred or a thousand years from now, Bianca di Angelo would look exactly the same as she did today. She might be having a conversation like this with some other half blood long after I was dead but Bianca would still look twelve years old. ouch

"It wants to kill us!" Thalia said. "Of course." Grover said. "It's wild!" "So how is that a blessing?" Bianca asked.

"That's us," he said. "Those five nuts right there." "Which one is me?" I asked. "The little deformed one," Zoe suggested.

When she smiled at me, just for a moment she looked a little like Annabeth. I know everyone talks about this part but I can't help but bring it up again, they are so cute

"Woah, first of all, I never said anything about love. And second, what's up with tragic!" little does he know. also, Percy is so incredibly insightful in this book but he's also so jealous of Annabeth and Luke and so upset about the idea of her joining the hunters yet still can't figure out that he likes her

"Seven hundred feet tall," I said. "Built in the 1930s." "Five million cubic acres of water," Thalia said. Grover sighed. "Largest construction project in the United States." Zoe stared at us. "How do you know all that?" "Annabeth," I said. "She liked architecture." I cannot explain how much this little bit means to me.

The girl I'd just tried to slice in half yelped and dropped her Kleenex. "Oh my god." she shouted. "Do you always kill people when they blow their nose?" Rachel's here!!! I love her

Five minutes later, Zoe had me outfitted in a ragged flannel shirt and jeans three sizes too big, bright red sneakers, and a floppy rainbow hat. someone draw this and tag me. what an outfit

Suddenly it occurred to me: this had happened to her before. She had been cornered on Half-Blood Hill. She'd willingly given her life for her friends. But this time, she couldn't save us. How could I let that happen to her? he is the most empathetic, wholesome guy, I love Percy

"Can't this go any faster?" Thalia demanded. Zoe glared at her. "I cannot control traffic." You both sound like my mother." I said. "Shut up!" they said in unison. I kind of wish we got more Thalia and Zoe interactions... they would've made such a great enemies to lovers dynamic, if Zoe didn't die

"Get away from my daughter!" Dr Chase called down, and his machine gun burst to life, peppering the ground with bullet holes and startling the whole group of monsters into scattering. "Dad?" yelled Annabeth in disbelief.

Grover went off with his satyr friends to spread the word about our strange encounter with the magic of Pan. Within an hour, the satyrs were all running around agitated, asking where the nearest espresso bar was.

"No," I said. "I choose the prophecy. It will be about me." "Why are you saying that?" she cried. "You want to be responsible for the whole world?" It was the last thing I wanted, but I didn't say that. I knew I had to step up and claim it. "I can't let Nico be in any more danger." I said. might I remind you this boy is 13/14 and has the whole world on his shoulders (both literally at some point and figuratively)

I feel like these are just getting longer and longer but again, I will be back for part 4!

[everythingmp3]

𝕤𝕟𝕖𝕒𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕒𝕣𝕠𝕦𝕟𝕕 ✧

adult!Van x fem!reader (smut)

when you return home for the summer and your parents tell you that a friend of theirs will be staying over for a while, you don´t think much of it. that is until you meet her and it becomes impossible to be around her without trying to get her attention.

minors dni. warnings: filth but no bottom/top dynamic (tit sucking, thigh riding, etc.)

author´s note: I missed her so here I am, back to pushing the adult Van agenda <3 I was in the mood for something fun flirty etc. so thats the vibe I went for, hope you like it!

after a stressful last few weeks of the semester, you were glad to finally be going back home to your parents place for the summer. when you called them a few days before coming back they briefly mentioned something about an old friend of theirs, Van, who´d be staying over for a week because she was in the area and they hadn´t seen each other in a while. you didn´t think twice about it, it was a regular occurance for them to have people over for a few days. your own plans mostly included sleeping in, relaxing in the garden, doing nothing for once, but that was only partly what was going to happen that first week of being home.

the day that Van arrived you’d been out for dinner with a friend from high school, so by the time you came home it had gotten late and you walked in on your parents and her standing in the kitchen, laughing, having a drink. the moment Van turned around and smiled at you, you thought what the fuck. it took you a moment to speak but you recovered, somewhat. 

you introduced yourself to her and asked a few polite questions, but the whole time you were thinking why the fuck didn´t they tell me they were inviting a hot lesbian? couldn´t they have given me a warning?, but then you realized: of course your parents had no clue that you were into women that close to their age. 

after a moment of chit-chat you excused yourself to go freshen up and collect your thoughts before joining them again out on the terrace to also have a drink and enjoy the sunset. sitting there listening to them talk, you immediately understood why they´d kept in touch with Van even after so many years: she was funny, a dry kind of humor that you enjoyed, she was charming, quick witted, easy to talk to, generally just great company. on top of that she was painfully alluring, her fiery long hair, the faint scars on her cheek, her dark blue eyes, that deep soft voice, it was all getting to you, after a while you were scared you were blushing, but you could´ve just blamed it on the alcohol. 

the good thing was that any amount of enthusiasm you showed while talking to Van just registered as friendly to your parents, you were safe in that regard, they´d never have guessed that your interest went beyond the platonic kind. 

at first you were unsure whether you were her type at all so you didn´t get your hopes up and tried to play it cool, but that night something happened that changed your mind. 

they gave her the guest room next to yours, which meant that you two would share a bathroom. as you got undressed to shower you forgot to lock the door because you weren´t thinking about the fact that someone else was also going to use it, so as you stood there in your underwear the door opened and Van immediately excused herself, overly apologetic “oh fuck I´m so sorry”, but she hesitated just a moment too long before closing the door again; there was one brief second you caught of her gaze scanning your body in a way that made it crystal clear: the attraction was not one-sided. you grinned like an idiot for minutes after, the whole time you showered, thinking back to that flicker of want in her eyes as she took in the sight of you. 

the next morning your choice of outfit was not coincidental. you skipped over the loose t-shirts in favor of a tight tank top, you also fussed with your hair longer than usual, you made a point to put lotion on your arms and legs, to wear a nice fragrance, and when you caught yourself doing all that you almost laughed to yourself, realizing that you were acting like you had a crush, but you didn´t mind, it felt good to be that into someone for once. 

that morning your whole physicality changed because of Van´s presence in the room. the moment you were downstairs helping your parents with breakfast, while they told Van to just sit and wait, you started moving certain ways on purpose: you leaned over the counter when it wasn´t really necessary, you licked some juice off your fingers when you could have just used a towel, when it was time to eat you sat more upright than usual, you were very conscious of your expression, giving her a look while listening to her talk that was way more intense than the kind you´d haven given other guests. 

Van´s poker face was good, but she noticed it, all of it, and she couldn´t believe it. at first she thought she might be imagining things but by the time you were done eating and leaned your head on your hands, looking over at her with your head tilted, all doe-eyed and sweet, she thought: oh no. she knows exactly what she´s doing. 

the first few days of Van´s stay were during the weekend so your parents were off from work and used that time to show her around, to get dinner with her at their favorite restaurant, properly catching up while you were free to do whatever, but by Monday it would be just you and Van in the mornings and afternoons and you were nervous as hell.

Monday morning, you walked down, trying to figure out how to act casual, but when you saw her messing with the coffee machine all nervousness vanished as you found a way to open the conversation: offering to make her that coffee and breakfast. she gladly accepted, talking to you about college, about her store, about films you´d seen lately, watching you as you moved around the kitchen, serving her.

it felt natural, you had no trouble finding plenty of things to talk about and the conversation turned passionate quickly, since you both had strong opinions about pretty much everything that came up. as you both ate you asked her, “so, what I´m gathering is that I shouldn´t put on Netflix around you, hm?” she laughed, “well, you can do whatever you want, I won´t police you, but they don´t have the good stuff. so you´d be wasting your precious time” you leaned forward, eyeing her, amused by that way of putting it, “the good stuff? and what would that be?”, it took her about 0.5 seconds to start listing her favorite 80s and 90s classics, most of which you´d already seen, but you felt like messing with her so you said, “never heard of any of those.”, dead-pan, convincing. her jaw dropped, “what the fuck.. are you being serious??”, you didn´t move a muscle in your face, letting her believe it, taking in her dramatic reaction “okay, I think you need an intervention here”, you laughed then, “oh and you´d be the one doing that yeah?”, she nodded, “I mean you´re off from school I know but you have some serious homework to do here”, you nodded, “right. I´ll report back when I’m done with that list you just gave me. you can quiz me on it then”, she smiled “good idea, I might just do that”. 

you kept talking for a few more minutes as you finished your drinks and put away the plates, but the interesting part was that neither of you dared to ask the other one about dating or romance at all, it was clear that you were both trying to figure the other one out without giving yourself away with questions like, “so, got a girlfriend?”. neither of you wanted to expose yourselves like that, so it stayed mysterious, certain glances, certain suggestive ways of puttings things, giving hints here and there. even though the words didn´t give it away, something was in the air, undeniably. 

you offered her a ride because you were meeting your friend for coffee downtown and had recommended a few places for her to check out nearby, so she agreed, slightly nervous to be sitting that close to you.

usually she was the one driving people around, so it was a nice change, to have you do it for her, too nice she realized, as she kept staring at your hands on the wheel, your arms flexing, your legs pressed against the leather seat. you could tell, suppressing a smile as you felt her enjoying the view, when a few minutes passed and you could still feel her eyes on your side profile you applied some lip balm at a stop light, really taking your time with it, Van thinking jesus christ what is she doing to me as you pressed your lips together, slowly, really drawing the process out. the rest of the afternoon Van tried to forget about it as she walked around a few stores, talked to strangers, had lunch, but the entire time she kept replaying the things you´d said and done earlier, increasingly convinced you were just waiting for her to make a move, trying hard to remind herself it wasn´t a good idea at all to mess around with you under your parent´s roof. 

that day was a particularly hot one, so at night, around 2 am you gave up on sleep and went out onto the balcony that connected your room and Van´s. you just sat there for a few minutes, staring up at the sky, enjoying the soft breeze, until you heard a door creaking and saw Van stepping out. once she saw you she said “oh, I´ll leave you be”, but before she could turn around you said “no, please, come sit!”, patting the empty space next to you on the bench. for a brief second she thought of saying no, knowing that she was getting herself into trouble, seeing you sitting there barely clothed, but she couldn´t do it, she gave in, nodding, sitting down next to you, consciously keeping her knee from touching yours.

“can´t sleep either, huh?” you asked, she shook her head “no, it´s still so fucking hot” running her hands through her hair, wiping some sweat off her forehead. she looked even more attractive to you then than during the day, something about seeing her in that more intimate light.

you agreed “yeah it is”, reaching for your glass of ice water on the table, holding it out to her,“here, have the rest”, she looked at you for a moment, realizing that you were daring her to agree to the casual intimacy of sharing a drink. she took the glass and downed what was left in it in one big gulp, sighing afterwards, “that´s better”, pressing the cold glass against her face for a moment, closing her eyes, soaking it up. you kept looking at her from the side, at her freckles that were very prominent during summer, her nose and cheeks that were a little red from the sun, barely a few inches from your own face. Van could tell you were staring and smiled to herself before setting down the glass and turning to look back at you, “you know, you´re really lucky your parents are so fucking oblivious”. 

“what do you mean?” you asked, your grin giving away that you knew exactly what she meant. she shook her head, “well, you´re not very subtle, let´s put it that way”, she said, her eyes searching yours for a reaction, you shrugged, returning her gaze, “who said I was trying to be?”. 

she kept looking at you, stunned by the sudden confession, “come on. you could be out there with a nice girl your age right now, why don´t you do that, hm?”, she meant it, she was puzzled by your stubborn pursuit, your almost absurd level of flirting, and you realized you had to make it clear to her: that you truly wanted her, that it wasn´t just a game or a fun way to pass the time for you. 

so you shook off any shame that was left in you and leaned closer, placing your palm flat against her thigh, feeling her wince for a moment, her eyes wide, your voice low and quiet, your fingers lightly tracing her skin, a shudder down her spine, “why would I go out there, when I have someone I want right here?”. Van´s breath heavy at that point and you were cruel with it, running your hand up her thigh until she couldn´t take it anymore and grabbed your wrist to stop you. the moment she did that she saw your expression change in an instant, the impact of her touch immediately visible all over your face and it was done, she needed more of that, much more. a sudden clarity: I need to fuck this girl or I´ll go insane. 

she let go of your hand, and reached for your face instead, pulling you in for a kiss, not gentle but hard, determined, the kind that says this is what you asked for, immediately more sexual than romantic, open mouthed, needy, frantically groping at each other within seconds, you pushing yourself up against her, almost climbing onto her lap. the desperation got sounds out of you that quickly became too loud to stay out in the open, you both realized it at the same time and pulled away, panting. “come to my room” you begged her “please”, she nodded, not in the position to deny you any of your wishes, still out of breath, so you pulled her up, leading her inside, closing the door behind you. 

the second you turned around she was all over you again, any hesitation gone by that point, her hands on your lower back, pulling your shirt up, you doing the same to her, both of you tearing the other person´s top off, making out chest to chest for a moment, savoring the feeling, hands roaming, before it got too hot for any stitch of clothing to remain on your bodies. 

Van often stayed somewhat dressed during hook ups, not loving the vulnerability of being totally exposed, but with you it felt different, she didn´t think twice, shorts and underwear quickly piled onto the other clothes on the floor, both of you taking in the sight of the other person for a second,“god you´re fucking beautiful..” Van marveled, as she stepped closer, making you back up onto the bed. 

you laid down flat on your back as she climbed over you, leaning down, trapping you with her arms, seeing you smile up at her, visibly pleased by your successful move on her, a cocky grin spreading across her face that suited her, “you really were dying for this huh?” a teasing tone. Van clearly enjoyed the power she had over you, and you didn´t mind at all, letting her enjoy the feeling of having you at her mercy as she briefly traced your lips with her thumb, feeling you open your mouth for her, the tip of your tongue against her fingers, her eyes turned darker as she watched you turn all submissive and sweet for her, violently turned on by it, before you pulled her down to kiss her again, but Van had other plans. she gave you a few feverish kisses before moving down to your chest, her flat tongue running over one of your tits in broad strokes as she grabbed the other one, an audible “fuck..” from you as she started sucking on the sensitive skin, so eagerly that she was definitely gonna leave a mark or two but she didn´t care, it was too intoxicating, your soft skin between her lips, her tongue circling your nipple, you biting down on your lip to suppress moans that would be too loud, hands in her hair, messing it up as she hummed against your skin, leaving your chest glistening with her spit, so deeply into it that she couldn´t help but lightly bite down a few times, forcing a whimper out of you, practically claiming her territory with the red splotches that were blooming on your skin because of her. 

after a while you couldn´t just lay there squirming under her anymore, you had to do something so you moved to switch, flipping her over and straddling her, kissing her neck as her hands settled on your waist, holding you in place. you were so desperate for her by that point hat you started grinding against her thigh, she could feel you slick against her skin but you were still holding back a little but she reassured you,“don´t be shy with me, I can handle it” moving her leg up a bit to add pressure, you were kissing again by then, moaning into her mouth as you moved on top of her, the friction creating a deep throbbing feeling at your core, a groan from her as she felt how soaked you were getting, spreading it all over her leg, but it wasn´t enough, you needed more, you wanted to really feel her, you were almost whining from it, all delirious with want, “what do you need, hm? tell me sweetie” she cooed, wanting you to get off,“can we-” you weren´t at a place to speak anymore, so you just showed her by getting yourself into position. 

she could see what you were trying to do, helping you by adjusting her legs, making space, almost scared for a second that the sensation would overwhelm her and she was right: the moment you hooked your leg over hers and angled your hips in a way that made your cunts rub up against each other she whispered “oh fuck..” trying to remain somewhat calm but it was too intense, too good, the feeling of your wetness mixing with hers, the warmth of your core spreading into hers, the blurring of where yours ended and hers began, she had to work hard not to remain somewhat composed.

“good?” you inquired, seeing her nod as she let out a breathy “yeah, perfect” as you grabbed her leg and started adding movement to it, rocking against her, feeling her match the motion, a shared loud gasp as your clits met, a shared effort to stay at that exact angle, your hips moving faster then, both of your fingers digging into the other one´s leg to hold on, Van was trying hard not to fully lose her mind but the sensation of you grinding against her as she saw your face twisted in pleasure, your skin glistening in the dim light, the vague outline of the bruises that she´d left on your tits, your whole naked body hers to take in, it was all driving her insane with lust.

she realized that you´d had the exact right idea, after a long hot day it was the best thing, not to exhaust your jaws or arms but to just rub up against each other needily, a sensuality to it that made the whole thing feel like a dream, the room silent except for the the vulgar sound of your soaked lips moving against each other and your barely contained moans, “fuck just like that dont stop” you begged as you found just the right rhythm, your nails digging into her flesh, the kind of pain that just turned her on even more, she couldn´t deny herself the chance to see you unravel completely, so she took the order and added more force to her movement, your clit throbbing by that point, hers too, “you feel so fucking good” she praised “so good..”, breathless as both of you could feel your orgasms approaching, “fuck Van I´ll cum” you uttered, watching her pretty long hair falling down over her chest, you reached out to touch her as you pracitcally rubbed yourself raw against her, your whole body vibrating and hot by that point, and as she felt your fingers pressing into the flesh of her tits she knew she´d finish soon too, locking eyes with you, both of you sensing that the other person was very close to the edge, staring into each other´s soul´s as your pace became faster and your movements more erratic, the eye contact driving you wild, it was pure bliss, seeing the person you´d lusted after being overcome with pleasure because of you, a simultaneous deep shudder going through your bodies as you came against each other, your cunts clenching, your hips sore by that point, slowing down once you were truly finished, breathing a little steadier then, detangling your shaking legs. 

you moved to lay down next to her, spent, sweating, but somehow still in heat, so you moved your hand down to her wetness after not having used your hands on her yet and she did the same immediately. you faced each other as you both slid your fingers over the other´s slick heat, drenched by that point, almost leaking down your thighs, savoring the proof of your fucking for a moment, a sudden wordless agreement: let´s cum again. you teased her clit, mirroring what she was doing to you, her hot breath against your face, closing the distance for a sloppy kiss, sighing as you made out and felt the other person´s hand quickly drawing out another orgasm, shoulder to shoulder as the second climax got a few final broken up moans out of you. the first high was more violent but the second was what you needed to feel truly satisfied, to calm down. 

after a moment of letting yourself lay there, you put your hands on her stomach, placing your chin on top of them, smiling up at her all flushed and content, “was I really that obvious?” she cocked her head, slowly coming to her senses again“no, not at all. you were just blatantly eye fucking me across the dinner table. no big deal”, “I was admiring you”, you corrected, feigning innocence, batting your eyelashes at her, she nodded, “right sure, you tell yourself that”.

you propped yourself up on your elbow once you regained some strength, looking at her laying next to you, “the walls are super thin by the way, so they definitely heard us”, a serious tone, watching the utter shock in her expression for a moment before a grin spread across your face that gave away that you were just fucking with her. she playfully slapped your arm then, “okay very funny. you´re not the one who´d get your fucking ass kicked for this”, you laughed, gently brushing a strand of hair out of her face,“oh don´t worry, I´d protect you”, she nodded, her tone laced with irony “right, that´s very romantic of you, really”, but she cracked a smile too then, shaking her head “you really are something else..” reaching out to trace your outline with her index finger, “you were fucking playing with me these past few days, huh? that was torture”. 

you smiled, eyeing her, “oh yeah? that bad?”, almost a hint of pride in your voice, she looked at you, clearly charmed, “trust me, “my friend´s daughter” is not my usual type. I wouldn´t be this reckless for just anyone”, you realized she was sort of calling irresistible, “I´ll take that as a compliment” you said, laying back down again, “please do”, she didn’t want it to be a secret, that something about you was special to her.

both of you just stared up at the ceiling for a moment, listening to the sound of the wind in the trees outside, the cicadas, the soundscape of the night, until you spoke up again, “when are you leaving again?”, you asked her, “um, Friday morning”, you contemplated that for a second, “you know what I think you should do?”, a conspirative tone, she was curious then, caressing your arm absentmindedly, “do tell”, you continued, “I think by the time you leave you should tell them that you really loved it here. like truly in every way, and that you would love to come back in a few weeks”, she laughed then, realizing you were already thinking of missing her and coming up with plans to reunite even though she was still there, “oh really? and you think I am so obsessed with you that I´d close my store and drive a whole day to come back here?”, you considered it, “well, if I do things right the next four days I think that will be the case yes”.

Van couldn´t lie, your confidence and relentless pursuit were a mix that already had her wrapped around your finger, she wouldn´t have admitted it in that moment but she´d already thought about it herself: the reasons she might find to come back again. it almost embarrassed her to think of, that she´d fantasized about that, since she knew it was kind of fucked up but it was also exhilirating, far beyond what her dating life usually entailed. she wouldn’t have admitted it in that moment though, she was gonna let you believe that you were the more intense one in the dynamic, at least for a while. 

“let´s see about that” she said, a grin on her face.

“you know they´re gone at work all day tomorrow” you whispered, “yeah I know”, “so..” you added, she turned to you then, meeting your gaze, “so..” mimicking your tone, “you mean we won´t have to worry about any thin walls then, hm?”, you laughed, blushing, “exactly yes”, she pulled you closer, “well, let´s try to sleep then or we won´t have the energy for that. at least not me, I´m too old for all-nighters”.

you smiled, nodding, closing your eyes and leaning against her arm as you felt her fingers running through your hair, the air still warm enough for you two to just lay there on top of the covers like that for a while, finally at ease, after all the tension and exhaustion of the hot day had evaporated from your bodies at once, leaving you in a state of lazy bliss. 

[lizaluvsthis]

Welcome again to Liza's Fixation...

I present to you...

Reasons why I document these kinds of stuff to how similar gay idiots have occurred to me for the past few years.

SMG34 AND SQUIDBOB (SUN AND MOON PAIR)

Quick reminder: the explanation is a bit too long so grab a seat and eat some snacks while ya read-

Sun & moon dynamic:

Noticing the differences in how optimistic spongebob and smg4 are in their own world even if the sh-t ass problem gets a bit more heavy to deal with? They both kept it there and still moved on even tho it was a bit of a problem in their life that impacted them already. Yet they still chose to move.

Pessimistic like Squidward and SMG3 they both sometimes ignore the ray of sunshine or sometimes would be the ones watching their optimistic sun/partner on the side glances or view to check up on them.

Likes/interests/love?

Now I'm not pretty sure about this one but if I were to think- that smg4 and spongebob would point out something or hint it. I'll be heading off to the part when they go soft on their moon. (Smg3 and Squidward)

Just like something that they do to soften their partner- smg4 looks at three with awes in his eyes like a baby- and spongebob looks at squid with sparkled eyes and or well- inclusions of his lip bitings/flirting/and too many attempts of him kissing his cheek/forehead/nose over and over from other episodes.

But since SMG4 and Three's dynamic are unlike the same- I do kind of see some parts of SMG4 being a little goof to Three as well.

The moon's effect"

OH YEAAAA PREPARE FOR THE TSUNDERE ACTIVATION!!!

Ahem- let's just say that just like SMG3 where he calls four baka about more than five times already- let's put this simply he likes four but tries to hide it as well.

And just the same thing as Squidward. He may hate the poriferan for being such a mess or annoying him on the other days, but at the same time, he deeply and truly does care about him even if he does NOT want to admit it right in front of his face.

Playing the cards as a moon dynamic could be a bit simple BUT it's also from the same part where that moon plays with its OWN actions.

A tsundere cant-NOT tell that person they're crushing just yet because mostly they think that it'll be such a rush. And well- wanted to take the sun's time to think or to feel around with them.

The sun's effect:

EUGHHH anyway- since the sun likes to give love, joy, and happiness to other people. Like spongebob and smg4 showering love out of platonic to people some patties or uhhh memes...

Sun has been and always been sensitive with stuff from how other people they're closest to act out to them.

Now let's just put the example of three opening up to four during that igbp arc.

And then also Squidward opened up to spongebob during that Fools in April episode.

The moon knows how sensitive suns are that they can't urge themselves to think about what would happen in advance due to their own consequences that dealt with their own actions to make the sun's life miserable.

Because deep down the moon has always been so miserable that they dont want to let their closest to get this negative feeling too. (Such as the sun does)

Friends? Enemies? Lovers? Foes?:

It would be funny how similar the dynamic is but a different type of situation they grew up having. They had slowburns coming tho!

Smg34 (enemies to friends) says on the wiki that his relationship with smg4 could and would possibly go to as "lovers" but it has never been admitted YET. Development grows (including uh igloo event-)

SO UHHH COUGH- COUGH- UHHHH YEAH... erm- ahem- uhhh his dynamic with three grew from just a simple seed then turned to grow into tiny roots of their bond then coming to a sprout blooming out right after the events of 2020 or 2021 have been shown.

Squidbob (friends to close friends) [according to their development during the seasons]

<THOUGH IT IS CONFIRMED SPONGEBOB IS ASEXUAL ACCORDING FROM OFFICIAL TWITTER!!!>

it seemed that spongebob had grown to admire Squidward as his co-worker to the point Squidward gets a bit used to it now and then he wouldn't mind anymore or THINK that spongebob is just an annoying loser.

wish to tell but I could not:

moon thought it would be a bit too embarrassing or a bit awkward if they were to say something about the mixed feelings they have with their certain sun.

But even if it were to hint out just like what Sponge and Four did to Squid and Three- and even if the moons were to do the same- it comes out from dodging the arrows. The hint of realizations.

Just like how we saw four trying his best to comfort and make it up to smg3 as much as possible without making him a bother or getting three to see him as a bastard in a way. (start of YouTube arc and trash friends) And then to spongebob trying to make it up for Squidward once his life got ruined even tho he tried to make his life even better, Squidward still sees him as an annoying yellow nuisance. So if we take this place to the moon's pov they could also find it such a hard time to actually reciprocate or to think about what could resolve their own problem without even being such a both as there is for them now. The situation that they carry is a lot heavier than what there is from the outcome and could lead to some sorts of stuff that they wouldn't want to happen just now/yet

The flow between their relationship:

I mostly thought about how the sun would have most of the time being a goof around to the moon when they're always down, so if it was the sun's turn to feel down. Moon also uses the same tactics in trying their best to comfort their moon.

It's like how smg4 felt bad about smg3 when he destroyed his own production. And like how it is to Spongebob when he destroyed something that Squidward felt upset about.

He never thought much at first but he also tried his best way to think about the situation to meld their situation together.

Nicknames? Flirting?

Fluids between their relationship of being actual friends to closer then to not close again.

When Squidward deals with having someone close to him (just like how spongebob does the same) he mostly engages with also saying nice words (rarely) and really means it to which spongebob could be so happy that Squidward would be showering out his true colors. Because of the sun's response, it's all a bit good to be true and they aren't sure about what to believe. But goes on along with it. Smg3 whose been the one to do things about helping or say a couple of nice words to four. Making HIM rethink about his stuff if it was all actually true and whatnot. Because the Three we all used to know was a villainy dude who was so obsessed with taking over Four's channel and what'd we get? A smooth development- (kinda rough but smooth still)

I think those are all I've got it's just literally the same things so yeah-

[letteredlettered]

Hi! I was wondering are there any other pairings that you would consider for Draco and Harry? What appeals to you about those pairings?

Honestly, the only other person I ship Harry with is Ginny. I'm not likely to read Harry/Ginny fic, but that's a ship I can really imagine being happily ever after in a way that lives on in my head. Meanwhile I will totally read Harry/Snape, Harry/Sirius, or the crossgen ships, but I do not ship them and mostly really just want some nice smut in those corners of the fandom.

But for Draco, I ship Draco/Hermione in a major way. But I'm really afraid of reading fic for them because I'm just kind of assuming the dynamic will be a lot of a) Hermione deciding Ron isn't her intellectual equal and therefore is a bad partner, which is something I cannot stand and makes me almost want to like Ron out of sheer spite, b) Hermione deciding Malfoy is her intellectual equal and therefore a suitable partner, when he's really not; no one is her intellectual equal and that really is okay, c) Hermione deciding Malfoy is really hot and fuckable, or d) Malfoy deciding Hermione's gotten really hot and fuckable because she's smoothing down her hair and wearing fashionable clothes, which I despise viscerally.

Meanwhile all I've ever wanted in my life is Malfoy growing up and being a bit more mature and having some regrets and then meeting Hermione again and absolutely losing his mind for her. Like she is so smart and so talented and so powerful and so honorable and so good that he just worships her. And he's like "well that's very nice; I've turned over a new leaf and can respect a Muggleborn; I am an improved member of society," except his dick keeps being inconvenient about it.

And slowly Malfoy realizes that Hermione with her bushy hair and bad clothes is perhaps the hottest woman on earth. And it really, really sucks because Hermione is infinitely kind to him and the only person in this new society who has ever really given former Death Eaters, and also him specifically, a second chance. And she's so warm to him and generous and good and laughs at his little jokes. And also she would never be romantically interested in him in like. Ever.

She's literally never thought of him that way, not even once. She mostly pities him and kind of thinks he's a funny little guy. And Harry is like WTF he called you slurs and you were tortured in his house, and she's like, "We must move beyond our past, Harry," and she really does, but it literally never occurs to her that Malfoy is a man. He's a human being who deserves a chance. And at some point maybe someone even points out that Malfoy is a man that may have some kind of romantic or sexual desires in this world, like maybe they think Malfoy's a hunk and wonder who he might be dating, and Hermione is a startled by this because she's literally never considered it and then goes right back to not considering it, she has so little interest.

This is really the fic that I want to read. Like Draco making heart eyes for hundreds of pages and meanwhile Hermione pioneers space travel and the cure for cancer. BUT I would also be fine if eventually Hermione did notice him and return his affection, but only after like, a RIDICULOUS amount of him pining while she is so completely oblivious that she makes Wei Wuxian look super aware.

Anyway, that's my other main Draco ship, though I quite like Draco/Ginny too. I'm not sold on a particular ship dynamic, though I somehow doubt fic about them is really focused on the shared trauma of Voldemort befriending them and using them and threatening them and throwing them away, which is what I would really be into for them. I also just think they're kind of hot, I guess, though honestly most Ginny pairings are hot because she's hot.

I'll read some crossgen stuff and I'd possibly read like, idk, Draco/Lupin or Draco/Neville and like it, but I think my heart is really set on Draco/Harry or Draco/Hermione, even if I'll never read the latter.

[theneighborhoodwatch]

uhhh wally/barnaby for the ship thing?? idk if you ship them im just guessing because youve rbed some art for it lmao

(send me a character/ship to hear my thoughts)

when or if I started shipping it: [friendly shrug that communicates absolutely nothing]

my thoughts: IT'S FUNNY, I... I FEEL LIKE I SHOULD FEEL WAY MORE STRONGLY ABOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF THEIR RELATIONSHIP BEING ROMANTIC THAN I DO? especially considering that "eccentric and traumatized manic pixie nightmare guy obsessed with fulfilling some fictional archetype x his more cynical and worldly friend-slash-colleague who starts out supportive but eventually finds himself way out of his depth" was pretty much the Exact dynamic of the last ship i was invested enough in to call an otp. so far though, any moments they have together don't get much more out of me than "ooh, interesting, i wonder if/how that's gonna come into play later," or "oho, i think my friend who ships barnwally will get a kick out of this," or "aaaghghg fuck.... buddy comedy angst...." i think my thoughts on them right now can be best summarized as ... i am excited for when there is enough About them in canon to finally make me as emotional over them as i am about, like, franklydear or wally and home. but also even if their relationship is never explicitly or even implicitly romantic then i have more than enough reason to believe it will still be just as emotional and rich with Themes. TL;DR: i know they're gonna fuck me up Some day, but that hasn't happened yet.

What makes me happy about them: they genuinely like each other! i feel like with welcome home's whole Thing of its characters' predetermined roles coming into conflict with their reality it'd be really easy to have one of them secretly hate or resent the other from the get-go, but - no, wally trusts barnaby to always have an answer for what he's feeling or experiencing and barnaby is gentler and more upfront with wally than he is with almost any other character (although considering his general personality that may not be saying much HAHA.) it makes it a lot easier to get invested in them and subsequently dread what effect The Horrors will have on their relationship.

What makes me sad about them: so, like. wally probably knows why he and barnaby are friends to begin with, i.e. he probably knows that A Higher Power decided that they should be friends, and so it was done. the possibility that wally can exist beyond what his audience/creator(s) expect of him does not seem to have ever occurred to wally himself. what i'm getting at here, is that. wally may genuinely like being friends with barnaby, yes. but liking something because you chose to seek it out and liking something because you are under the impression that you will somehow cease to exist without it are Two Very Different Things, and the latter is. very dangerous for any kind of relationship. and, fuck, barnaby - if i was barnaby and i found out that that was how my best friend (who i may or may not be in love with) saw our friendship the whole time - if i found out that was the truth and i never noticed it? i would never be able to forgive myself. even if that friend ended up doing things that hurt me or other people or themselves and i was rightly upset with them for that, there would always be that little voice in the back of my head telling me that if i had just looked closer for two seconds i could have fixed it. i could have helped him. i could have shown him i was a real friend.

Things done in fanfic that annoys me: i don't seek out WH fic all that often, but i remember when it first became a thing a lot of explicitly romantic barnaby/wally fic made barnaby a little too earnest/mushy for my liking? like yeah, he cares about wally and is gentle with him and everything, but he is also very quick to tease wally and to dress up pretty much everything he says in at least on layer of irony/clowning around. this pooch does NOT have the emotional self-awareness for the things you want him to say!! i also dislike when authors make another character (usually home or. howdy?) like, over-the-top abusive towards wally so barnaby has more incentive to get with him, but i just don't like character assassination/flanderization in general, so.

Things I look for in fanfic: honestly, just, like. more stuff that actually interacts with WH's canon. i feel like a lot of the stuff i see for them is either AU fic or smutty oneshots that don't do a whole lot to incorporate canon elements. which, like, do whatever you want forever, but i'm Starvin' over here.

My kinks: y'know i was gonna be like "teehee, wrong blog! you're not getting that here, silly!" but. i actually have no idea what kinks i would consider Only in the context of wallaby. uhhh. ask for my nsfw blog if you wanna hash that out i guess.

Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: i'm very curious to see if canon is going to end up making a case for laughingstock. i don't know if it will but i think it would be very funny. as for wally... [looks at his relationship with home] uh. [looks at his relationship with W/the WHRP] umm. [looks at his relationship with the audience] fuck. maybe work on yourself a little bit before thinking about sharing your life with someone again, buddy.

My happily ever after for them: an animated music video set to on melancholy hill by gorillaz. it opens with wally sitting in front of home's burning remains at night, gazing mournfully into its eyes one last time. the only sound we hear is the crackling of the fire. we smash cut to black for a split second before the song begins to play, paired with the visual of wally driving down a long highway at sunset, in what is very clearly a hastily painted over mail truck that used to belong to eddie's post office. after the opening instrumental of the song, the footage alternates between three perspectives: wally traveling to his unknown destination, complete with all the hitchhiking, gas pumping, pit stopping, and otherwise less glamorous parts of road travel; the other neighbors trying to put their lives back together after The Bullshit, in particular following barnaby's melancholic point of view as he visits each one/attends their various get-togethers; and finally, the neighbors Braving The Horrors back in the day to fight for a life that best fits their needs rather than that of their long-dead makers. as the song begins to roll to a close, we see the mail truck pull up to an unfamiliar looking house, with a handful of neighbors hanging out on the porch and barnaby leaving out the front door to grab something. the entire scene takes place at sunset once again, meaning everything in is in silhouette. barnaby stops dead in his tracks when he sees the truck, and the others soon follow his gaze. wally opens the door and steps out, his body language hesitant as he takes one step towards barnaby. barnaby begins to walk towards him. we smash cut to black on the final note of the song. the end.

[writing-for-life]

WIP Wednesday…

It’s currently progressing slowly because it’s heavy and I need to pace myself, so I just need to share something a bit lighter. Well, maybe lighter around the edges—it’s Dream being Dream and Delirium being Delirium, and I love those two so much. I’m so happy to write their dynamics a bit more this time, but it’s also so much pressure to get them right while still leaving space for something new to develop.

It doesn’t give away anything, so fine to post (if you’d rather wait for the whole thing to get published, this is the exit sign…)

A bit of Dream/Delirium dialogue…

“My sister, I know you can hear me, and I would… I want to apologise. I treated you poorly, and it was not my intention to hurt your feelings. And I understand if you do not wish to answer my call. But it is important to me you know I regret we parted on less than favourable terms.”

“You did the apologising thing the last time. And then you were still horrible. So how do I know it means anything? And that you won’t be mean again?”

He felt a slight smile tug at the corners of his mouth at hearing her voice. “I think you will just need to… trust me?”

Delirium came through within a split second, hair dancing, each strand a rebellious stroke of colour that seemed to stand on end in defiance. She put her hands on her hips, and her locks began to blaze in a riotous tangle that seemed to mirror her current mood.

“You ask me to trust you when you would never do the same. When did you ever trust me?”

The choker of crystal beads around her neck strained, and prismatic rays of light sent a surge of blinding brightness into Dream’s eyes. She might as well have slapped him, and it occurred to him that maybe, just maybe, she had. And once again, he felt an overwhelming need to smile because maybe, just maybe, he deserved it.

And when Delirium noticed, it immediately stopped her rant in its tracks. “Why are you smiling? What’s funny? Soooo… I’m a joke to you now. Ha ha, not laughing.”

Dream took a hesitant step towards her, face still soft. “I am not laughing at you, sister. I was just thinking that… I fully deserve your anger, and once again, I wish to apologise for my behaviour.”

Delirium eyed him with suspicion, but her hair had turned into a slightly less wild do. She began twisting her leg on the ball of her foot. “Accepted.” She still sounded like a surly teenager, but it was a start.

They stood in awkward silence for a while, and Dream felt bound by memories etched into his very being.

He finally chose to speak. “We were once—when you were younger, and so was I—stitched together like… constellations. And like stars might realign, what seems like a broken orbit could perhaps be… mended by…”

Delirium looked at him with knitted brows. “You always make everything so complicated. Even your words are complicated. Making amends is not starry, or breaky like some… like spider’s silk and frayed threads and tiptoeing and eggshells. See, I can do that too, that complicated word thing. But it’s just silly. I just want you to be my brother and stop being angry at me and…”

Dream rolled his eyes. “Where does this idea I am perpetually angry come from?”

She forced one eye shut and wrinkled her nose. “Because it seems like it?”

He exhaled loudly.

“You do that a lot when you’re grumpy. The noisy breath through your nose.”

Dream snorted, which made Delirium perk up. “Ha, you don’t do that a lot, the snorty laugh thing. I like it.”

“I was just reminded why you and Thalia seem to get along.” He inclined his head with a raised brow. “In a sisterly manner, not in any way related to your function.”

“She’s alright.”

He smiled. “I am aware.”

Delirium sat down on the floor, legs crossed. “I know you know, but you didn’t believe me when I said I liked her for you. And that I wanted to help you. And her.”

Dream sat down with her, legs equally crossed. “I can see that now. I would like you to know that I appreciate the sentiment. And that I am willing to let go of my complicated… feelings around the issue, at least where they concern you.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

Delirium bumped his leg with her foot. Not too hard. “And now what?”

➗

And if you want to know “now what?”, you’ll need to wait. You can of course bridge the wait with digging into The Light of Stars if you haven’t already, because it’s the prequel.

I’m so excited about this one, but it is so much harder to write than TLoS because it has so many canon connection points and references I need to weave in, and it’s such a delicate dance between staying canon-adjacent and creating something new.

And I still don’t write in sequence, and I’m just killing myself a little, but it’s okay…

Tagging the usual suspects that I also tagged in Snowglobes and Whisky:

@marlowe-zara @tickldpnk8 @safeuphigh @bluecsparrot @rey-jake-therapist @intothesoul

[stellaluna33]

I know everybody's just having a good time, and that's FINE! You do you and all that, but this is also my blog where I get to have my own thoughts about things too, so... It's just funny to me when I see those "X character as a Boyfriend!" posts which are all about fantasizing about dating a fictional character- and I GET IT! It's perfectly normal to fantasize about that kind of thing! But what I keep getting stuck on is that there IS NO "X character as a Boyfriend" like, IN GENERAL, haha. Because relationships don't WORK like that! People aren't just interchangeable, you know? They're not going to act the same way in a relationship with one person as they would with a different person, because the dynamics would be totally different!

And I know it's a cliche to use the word "chemistry" to describe relationships, but it really is TRUE, though! You're not going to get the same results if you swap out one element with another one! And the same element that made something really good might make something absolutely toxic mixed with something else! And being toxic in one combination doesn't necessarily mean they'll be toxic in every combination either. Sodium and chlorine are both pretty dangerous by themselves, but together? Pretty tasty! And that's not even getting into the effects of applying heat or pressure or time... ANYWAY, all that is to say that relationships are not static, and PEOPLE are not static! I know this stuff is harmless and it's fine, but imagining a character in isolation as "a boyfriend" will never be as fascinating to me as observing the changes- the CHEMICAL REACTION that occurs between two specific and unique people! Mwah! Love it!

[yikes-strikes-again]

highlights from my adventures in Area X, totally blind the whole time until i finished Acceptance. Spoilers for all of it.

me being neurotic about spoilers (this is a common theme)

obsessed with how this is my first instance of theorizing. the last two sentences are eerily accurate and i can't believe i said "alien planet" that's hilarious

this is good analysis too bad i was missing a key piece of information that makes my inadequate conclusion actually make sense

middle of Annihilation, first attempt at analyzing Where lies...this is actually pretty close to what I think about the tower text Now except missing the parts that would have never occurred to me without reading further (that the Crawler is Saul and that Area X is not on earth).

aw this is so cute. They don't even know about the first expedition footage with the sky leviathan POV (i have a pet theory that SR used that clip specifically to brainwash the husband. this is supported by his anecdote of falsely attributing memory to lived experience when its origin was television, as a young child)

i was so right

this is so funny. you are like a little baby

this is still Based

The Antics

this theory is so fucking funny considering how much grace hates lowry

this was like the least brutal of my Control roasts. they ramped up considerably in Acceptance

then i stopped reading the trilogy for eight months and had to start over Authority. but i still thought about it. this is me thinking about it.

This was me like a third of the way into Authority. What the fuck. It's not that creepy when you consider the information dispensed by that point but it's still kind of creepy how accurate my actual predictions were when my ideas were still wrong

then i went to sleep and

so true, me. So righteously true. magic IS real and it's coming to fuck up your town

Future me here: Yea it was a red herring

More Control roasts:

CALL ME IMPORTANT THAT'S MY NAME

Fragment of my "Area X clones are agents of germination" theory. I felt so smart at the end of Authority. So in Control if you will. And then

it was fucking life changing. the homosexuals that they were

first drama in the gc...

This is when the amount of Divine Knowledge brought to me by Accemptance started to get to my consciousness. Once i start saying phrases like "the virgin control and the chad ghost bird" and "the Caroline to his GlaDOS" and "everyone is a clone of a clone of a clone of a clone" that's when you know i've lost the thread

more disjointed quotes because i ran out of images:

"the BASED control vs. the CRINGE everyone else is no longer the dynamic because he's not narrating. i feel like i just broke up with him" "so does ghost bird probably"

"The time dilation really came out of left field. Kind of like a "well shit. thats a hell of a mystery no one thought was a mystery and didnt even really need solving. but damn if it didnt just get solved so nice work"" <- me forgetting how hard i tried to solve the mystery of the cellar journals compost

"When they see that reflection of themselves, they despise it, they need to destroy it This series is about environmentalism as much as it could be The need to make Area X an enemy with a pathological desire to destroy says more about the humans than it does Area X. When they see themselves, they hate so much what they see. But I don't think Area X necessarily hates humans at all. Only the biologist/Ghost Bird can even seem to contemplate that. Maybe Whitby could, briefly, in his endless circular ramblings, but that did not quell his fear and hatred for himself" <- rumination on automatic senseless clone violence

at one point i got whiplash from the Grumpy emotion i got from biologist's borderline ecofascism to the Intense Bittersweet of Saul's fatherly attachment to Gloria in light of everything and then the Pain of trying so hard not to laugh at the thought of someone saying "Don't talk to me like I'm an idiot, I'm aware this looks strange" in response to being caught washing a mouse

"phone creature even BETTER than mouse washing" I characterized the phone creature as "little Lowry - his son that he doesn't want" because that amuses me forever

i love how i'm like "i could pass on more of lowry, i'm so sick of that guy" and then proceed to write four Thousand words of meta about him. i like the Theory of lowry. he's a horrible broken man who throws drinks at milves

and i love imagining that everyone who comes back from Area X is a clone no matter what not because that makes any sense but because i get to imagine two versions of every character. i'm like "i love the idea of Lowry being a clone all this time and somehow being protected from the fact by a quirk of his creation. And that he's imperfect compared to Original Lowry in odd ways but SR just chalked up his change to the intense trauma of the event, and if it ever seriously occurred to them they decided it didn't really matter. And if he knew. I don't know what he'd do And real Lowry is a megalodon in the ocean terrorizing plankton instead of lower-tier bureaucrats"

another thought: "I still love the thing that stitches across the sky. I think it's an avian cosmic leviathan, as the biologist is an amphibious cosmic leviathan. You could call it a dragon."

i ended up with a pretty secure Grand Unifying Theory that isn't interesting because you probably all have the same one. It's about the process

my final words of wisdom:

that's the books.

[loyaltykask]

Chapter 27

@journeythroughjourneytothewest

Wukong just has to scream and that sucking works

I forget that the White Bone Demon Arc is actaully like.... super early in the jounrey. Like they have been only on 3 adventure together AT MOST and that is no including getting Bajie And Wujing. At this point they are all still strangers to one another. They are barely a year in to a 14 year journey and this is like their first real test of faith in one another. Sanzang has only see a Head monk commit suicide, get kidnapped by Yellow Wind Demon and face the Immortal Equal to Earth at this point, all that I will admit aren't Wukong's best moments. But he still has this arrogance that Wukong can and should do anything he says. I think it says a lot where this chapter is going to go when this is there first test after coming off the Ginseng Fruit arc as a team and whether this will break them or they can come out strong for it.

WHAT relatives BE TALKING ABOUT THIS?

OOOOOOO THey got CLOUT

And Wujing was a Captain i thought he was a general, need to remember that. Never thought "clowning" would be used in this context but damn good for them

Sanzang STILL Be scolding even to some rando woman DAMN

Again I just imagine Sanzang holding a 4ft monkey in his arm holding him back

See because later it is shown that Wukong HASN'T eaten human I really think he trying to push the point the demons (he including himself in this to make a point) lure human with falsehoods all the time that Sanzang shouldn't be so trusting

This also makes the idea that Bajie, Wukong, Bailong, and Wujing are all parts of Sanzang that he fighting with himself. Bajie is his worldly mind seeing a beautiful woman and trusting her for that beauty. While Wukong is the rational part of Sanzang's mind that is trying to warn him about the dangers. Sanzang not listening to Wukong is him not listening to himself, rather choosing what he want to believe instead of the truth in front of him.

Also lmao his bald head is a red

Funny enough this does suggest she was using dead bodies as her shield So the illusion is very convincing as it was once a real person but they should be long dead by now

Even here Sanzang is 1/3 convinced (kinda strange way of putting it) as though Wukong is sure of himself but Wujing and Bajie are not, hence why Bajie is vocal about his objections and Wujing opts to say nothing as he too wants to see the best in everyone, hoping that what the woman said was true.

Such symbolically filled chapters and also show the dynamics and where they stand one year into the journey. Like they are just starting to understand one another from what we see in the Ginseng Fruit arc and starting to understand their roles not only in the party but to one another as well. Sanzang is the one here who needs to grow the most in order to get past his arrogance and grow not only as a master but as a person as well. It was very smart to put this chapter early in the book, I know it’s in the second volume but this is legit just the third large trial arc on this journey setting the tone for the rest of the journey and how they interact with one another here. Sanzang still doesn’t fully trust Wukong here and Bajie letting his jealousy for his brother show I honestly think Bajie is more just wanting Wukong to get in trouble and like tease the other, cause he is disappointed by the lack of a free meal, but he is never intended for Wukong to be so far gone as to be sent away.

Still not over Wukong calling Sanzang a whore and saying "I'll build you a bed so you can just fuck you're self out of the monk lifestyle you floozy"

It just occurred to me that Neither Wujing nor Bajie has seen Sanzang use the spell until now. Like Sanzang told them about it in the Ginseng Fruit arc but they had never seen it in action because he hadn't used it in the past 6 months. I think he only used it when they were at the Temple with that evil monk dude and Wukong lost the cassock but he hasn't used it since.

Yup, just check he only used the spell when he lost the cassock and hasn't used it since. Shit they really are in for a bumping ride.

I don't know why but the idea that being kind to even bugs and Sanzang is the Golden Cicada speaks to me on some

SO LIKE Sanzang has admitted that he doesn't mind dying, sure he doesn't want to but he gives off the vibes that he knows it can happen to him at any moment and he would just accept his evitable death (I'm not sure if that is low key suicidal but deadass not really saying he wants to live either). Wukong on the other hand knows this guy is going to die and being a monkey of his word wants to repay him for freeing him under the mountain. Wukong has been shown before to have a lot of gratitude to people that help him in the past, his own Master Puti and Guanyin for starters as he never forgets when he owes a debt (unless you are Ao Guang then tough shit). Sanzang thinks he hit an innocent person that hasn't wrong them yet while Wukong argues otherwise and even goes on to say that he will fight again even if Sanzang uses the spell, he isn't going to be unruly again. Clearly Sanzang is in the wrong here but also this highlights just how loyal and honest Wukong is as a character, sure he is a trickster and known to be cunning and can use deceitful tactics to get his way but overall him as a person is always honest with his intentions and what he thinks and believes, which is very interesting wonderful dichotomy.

Also, love that Wukong just..... straight out points out that an old lady probs can't give birth as his reasoning. He really is the Monkey of Mind.

Okay so like..... he was RIGHT to do so but ALSO YOU COULD HAVE GIVEN SOME WARNING SHE WAS A DEMON BEFORE DOING THAT

He uses the spell again and tries to send him away, harsh words deadass. At this point, it is clear that Sanzang is just digging in his heels refusing to trust Wukong after already set in stone in his mind that the last person they killed was an actaully person. Now any trust they have built over the last year is gone and it is only going to get worse.

I can't tell if Cheng'en is trying to make the pain like.... funny like in a cartoon but it def leaves disturbing mental images.

Even being sent away they still bicker Wukong more offended by his pride as a monk is being questioned than being sent away

Wukong this time uses the excuse of having the fillet to keep him around, that he would be dishonored coming home with it on his head, and that if Sanzang can't take it off then he better come along all the while. It is a different excuse than the first one, rather than using Sanzang's natural compassion against him, he is using Sanzang's need to bear responsibility over him. That as the master if he can't loosen it then he has no right to send him away with it still on. Which is interesting in Buddhism culture as any action Wukong does so reflects on his Master, meaning that every life Wukong takes, whether human or demon is on Sanzang's hands he is responsible for Wukong during the whole journey. It is that kind of Shifu-Tudi mentality that students are an extension of their masters and that they carry on their will through their actions. Anytime Wukong does something 'unruly' in Sanzang's eyes it is because he himself as failed as a master to teach Wukong properly. To Sanzang, Wukong's failures are his own and sending him away would be him trying to give up not only on Wukong but also on himself for not being able to properly teach Wukong.

Bajie shut the fuck up your giving the party anxiety.

Wukong be weighing his options of whether to save Sanzang from his demon if and when she catches him or just kill her now. He had a calculated risk that he will be able to talk himself out of this one.

He willing to keep Sanzang safe even if it meant getting that Spell. never was there a more brave soldier.

Deadass Wukong finally got the proof he needed cause White Bone Spirit BE FINALLY DEAD Only when true death can that the corpse be shown. Also weird that her name was in his spine but hey who am I to judge.

NO BAJIE YOU FUCK SANZANG WAS THIS CLOSE TO JUST SAYING "You were right Wukong thank you" THIS AINT YOUR TIME TO LAUGH AND TEASE THIS MONK IS SERIOUS

Out of everything Sanzang said saying that they don't need Wukong cause Wujing and Bajie are there hurt him the most. Sanzang goes on saying "I have been with you since day one! Not them!" Funny enough that Sanzang DOESn't even bother with the spell the third time, like just as he was about to recite it Wukong stopped him and they just argue. He just.... tell him to leave.

This is the most formal banishment damn, got a letter of resignation and everything Sanzang being a petty stubborn fool like this Wukong refuses to leave without bowing and even Sanzang try to dodge a bow but could not.

Wukong only be trusting Wujing here for this mission Both Wujing and Bajie not saying much, which allows for a lot of interpretation in what they could be thinking. But Sanzang still thinking that Wukong was being deceitful in his actions Wukong gives WUjing to use him name but only that.

CRYING HE IS CRYING I HOPE YALL HAPPY

[nonuggetshere]

I loved reading all of that. It's so funny how PK's sibs, and at points his dame, tease him. I love it so much 😆

It also got me thinking.

Would it be possible, in another AU (maybe like wayward royals or somewhere waaaaayyy down in FAaF), for Flower them to run into WLs Father. Or, maybe Flower gets separated and meets him by accident. Would he realize their kin or just see him as a territorial threat?

THANK YOU it's one of my favourites, writing family dynamics is so entertaining

AND FUNNY YOU MENTION THAT because I actually have an AU where they meet both of their grandparents! But first, some info about Quercus, then more info about the AU itself

This is gonna get super rambly bc I'm copy-pasting mine and Integrity's messages from discord

His name is Quercus and he is old as balls

He had Amanita when he was very very old too and these two were particularly close because she was the only surviving seedling. She's never seen his persona face to face but they talked a lot and he took great care of her (I think I already mentioned how roots grow up and how he's like with his children)

The kingdom he resides in is quite literally built around, on and into his giant ancient root body. He hasn't fully abandoned his former form like his daughter had and resides in a sort of in-between, which roots can do. His smaller form is connected to his body and is more residual from ages long past when he used to properly rule the kingdom. Now he's retreated from this role and many of the kingdom's peoples don't even realise that the higher being whose body they live in is still alive

He keeps his body beneath the ground, in a chamber he dug amongst his roots, where he mostly resides in and feeds on any poor schmuck that decides to venture into (and get lost in) the twisting, long tunnels amongst his roots

It's been a long time since he's communicated with anyone face to face, which he doesn't mind, roots aren't particularly social and are quite literally built to remain stationary with very little outside stimuli for a very long time

A mortal would have probably go insane if they spent their human lifespan's equivalent in isolation like he did but he's quite literally built different

And when I say ancient I mean ANCIENT

When he had Amanita he probably would be like the human equivalent of a 110 year old

But roots don't die of old age and he's strong and healthy so he's still kicking

The few AUs where he and Adamas meet they do NOT get along its actually so funny

Worsties in law

SO THE AU

I've mentioned that higher beings in my AU have the ability to sense who is their kin and it's especially strong in rootfolk, it's needed considering how they reproduce to avoid inbreeding

LONG story short, Flower needed a fucking break from Everything, ended up getting lost, ended up chancing upon their grandma and almost got their ass beaten by her before she realised they're her kin, after they left she had a bad feeling and decided to follow to keep an eye on them, they arrived at their grandfather's former kingdom and decided hey checking out these tunnels that supposedly nobody came out of alive would be a good idea, Adamas obviously sensed this ancient god in there and followed to keep Flower's dumb ass safe, bullshit ensues when she interrupts him excitedly introducing himself to the first grandkid he's ever met and asking about his daughter

And the two get into a massive argument. Because it just didn't occur to them that their children could EVER end up together

And Flower can't get a word in to explain

Adamas might not be a god but she's so willing to square up against one about this, Flower is HER kin so you can go fuck yourself you overgrown carrot

Flower: Fucking hell, now I get why my parents are Like That

Quercus: they’re clearly a root!

Adamas: they’re clearly a wyrm!

Flower: I—

Adamas: where’s their vines and roots and flowers than Hm? You’ve gone mad in old age

Flower: hey guys—

Quercus: Bold words from a mortal

Adamas: I might not be a god but I still don't mind kicking the ass of one!

Flower: OKAY! Alright! Enough fighting! Here's a wild idea; I am both of yours grandchild

Quercus: ...No

Adamas: Impossible

Quercus: Why would any of my children lower their standards so much as to take something as beastly as a wyrm for a partner?

Adamas, bristling: What could a root even provide for any of my clutches, besides sustenance after ripping into one? You're all soft, lazy pushovers

Flower: Fucking hell–

Flower: what if I ditched you both and left. What then. What if just leave

They just. Ditch their grandparents but of course Adamas goes to hunt them down

Adamas: Didn't your sire and dame teach you it's rude to sneak away like that?

Flower: I didn't sneak away, I even said goodbye, you were just too preoccupied with tour squabbles. Why do you keep following me anyways?

Adamas: It's not often I get to meet my grandchildren, let alone one's so careless or stupid enough to not only wander into another wyrm's densite but to also march into an ancient, hungry God's open maw. Somebody has to teach you self preservation because clearly whichever of my children had you failed at that

Flower: Oh, joy...

Adamas: …which one was it anyways?

Flower, who doesn’t even know PK or WL’s name: ….. the pale short one?

Adamas, also pale and kind of short: .......Do you have any idea how little that narrows it down?

Adamas, starting to list names:

Flower: I don’t know his name

Adamas: ??????????

Adamas: Are you serious?

Flower: ...Does the Pale King of Hallownest ring a bell?

Adamas: You only know him by his title?

Flower: It's a long story, don't dodge the question

Adamas: I suppose I've heard of him, wyrm kingdoms aren't that common nowadays- isn't he a god? One of my children is an actual god?

Flower: Wh- how did you hear of him but never realised he was your son? You have no right to judge me holy shit

Adamas: So it's decided, I'm going back to Hallownest with you and beating your parent's ass

Flower: HUH WHAT

Adamas: Fucker can't teach you how to take care of yourself and makes you use their title, I'm setting their ass straight if that's the last thing I do

Flower: WHO'S DECIDING THIS WE DIDN'T DECIDE SHIT I DO NOT AGREE TO THIS

SORRY GOT OFF TOPIC

Point is, Quercus would recognise Flower (and any other grandkid) and would ADORE them, especially if he knew they came from his little princess. But PK and his part of the family? Yeah uh. The old man does Not like nor approve of them

I think the only thing Adamas and Quercus would agree on is that Flower's parents kind of suck

Especially if they find out about the whole vessel thing

[jade-of-mourning]

just rewatched the first three episodes of lok and i'm obsessed again. korra is SO CUTE she's buff she's passionate she's self assured she's sassy as fuck she's the whole world to me omg.

welcome to republic city & the revelation do SUCH a good job of establishing the character of the city and really, introducing the new world!!! the revelation has been one of my favorite episodes of lok for a long minute because of its noir aesthetic, the art in the cityscaping, the insane cinematography and composition of the korra/mako & chi-blocker fight! the way that mako's revelation of his and bolin's backstory is a direct parallel to the fradulent backstory of amon!!!! (and the potential behind the firebenders-killed-my-parents stereotype as inflicted on a firebending kid,,,)

AND THE WAY KORRA IS IMMEDIATELY SMITTEN WITH MAKO IS SO FUNNY. the way that it just does not occur to mako at all to romantically like korra at all — he sees that bolin is not in their attic and automatically assumes that he's flirting with korra and is just entire amused at the concept like okay,,, then korra offers to help him find bolin and he goes "nah i got it" and i'm like dude,, if i were in your position i would literally be hanging off of her bc she's so cute wdym Nah I Got It you do not got it you are a hot trauma mess let the pretty girl help you. actually he's aro what.

also i'm yelling about how bolin was written as, y'know, an actual human being with feelings and nuance in characterization in these first few episodes. the show could never make me hate you bolin. and the way mako looks so tired all the time especially in his initial introduction just looking at his side profile, and how he word for word goes "i think i'm gonna turn in; you kids have fun" at korra and bolin STOP. mako physically picking up an equalist and hauling them off the stage like a ragdoll bc they were going to harm bolin is the truest shit of all time. sorry i still think mako should've been a girl but in that moment where he asks if bolin is alright and bolin goes "YES MAKO I LOVE YOU" i agreed bc i love him for who he is in canon too

THE SETUP FROM A LEAF IN THE WIND guys the way the airbending philosophy translates over into an entire theme of the season,, how tenzin and korra's relationship already evolves so much over the course of one episode and how they recognize their own faults and acknowledge each other's perspectives; they were always meant to help build one another into better more empathetic people. i just love watching their dynamic so much um kind of the most important part of the show. also the way that korra sees what mako does in the ring and connects it to what tenzin told her about airbending and how it finally clicked for her,,, sorry i'm once again thinking about the sheer potential that makorra could've been until it got absolutely trashed in about one episode from now LOL. (i'm joking it took about another season before that happened but still.)

talk to me please i need to yell about season 1 again and esp the first three episodes because they had so much potential for so many good things and just never got the time to explore it in its entirety,,,, AAAAAAA never getting over the visuals the personality in the animation the background paintings the music just hgnajdsgbhkbsjdgajs SEASON ONE KORRA I LOVE YOU. also my chest hurts sm what

[symphonxx]

So, in the midst of scrolling through tiktok nd waiting for kubosai content, i stumbled upon sumn I should’ve watched back during quarantine.

Cherry Magic. ( or Cherry Magic! 30歳まで童貞だと魔法使いになれるらしい )

It never occurred to me that i should watch it until two days ago, when a video a close friend of mine reposted came up. Despite having told myself that i might watch it back in 2020 when it came out, i never actually got to watching it but now that i did, I want to say that, its a fkin masterpiece.

Adachi nd Kurosawa have such a lovely relationship, that doesn’t necessarily revolve around sex ( something that i try to put off from most BL’s ppl around me have introduced ). The side characters are all well written and really memorable despite the little scenes they have with the main protagonists.

My favourites are definitely Adachi, Kurosawa, Rokkaku and Fujisaki! They’re all so sweet to each other nd their dynamic makes it more or less sweeter!! The way they ( Adachi nd Kurosawa ) inspire both Fujisaki and Rokkaku in their own ways. But despite the little ( i mean, does it count as little?? They do have alot of screentime together??? ) scenes they have, they do make their scenes worthwhile to watch and man they are js so adorable everytime they come up 😭😭

Adachi and Kurosawa on the other hand, are rlly rlly cute. Their relationship makes me crumble and fold.

Kurosawa is such a green flag. The way he wants to hold and kiss Adachi but holds back from his urges bcs he cares more abt Adachi than his own urges. Sure its basic human decency but seeing it actually being well-portrayed in a BL show ( not that I rarely see it, its more of most Japanese shows being weird nd stuff ykwim? ) makes it so much more refreshing to watch. Also the way he cares so so much abt Adachi? He could sense if Adachi is more gloomier, picks up on the lil quirks Adachi has, makes sure Adachi is smiling most of the time bcs he enjoys seeing him happy more than he enjoys seeing him being upset etc etc. It’s js so heartwarming and Kurosawa doesnt even have mind reading powers to do that. He supports Adachi all the way, even spending days trying to help Adachi perfect his presentation skills nd stuff nd js ughhhhh-

Adachi, is incredibly cute as well, his little bedhead, the funny monologues he does in his head, his existential crisis’ everytime he hears Kurosawa’s thoughts, the amount of “ Ehs “ he says and the way he thinks so lowly of himself makes his character relatable and endearing. He gets so excited about the thought of being popular or being an inspiration but immediately turns the idea down due to some unforeseen circumstances or js bcs of his thoughts. He sees himself as a normal boring person, doing normal boring things in his life. Hell, even we see that Kurosawa thought of him that way too before he fell for him. Everyday is the same for him etc, at one point when Urabe-san, his senior, suggests dating Fujisaki-san, he instantly turns down the idea. Even after thinking abt it, he turns it down bcs he thinks it would be impossible ( to an extent ).

But despite all that, Kurosawa and the others genuinely think of him as an incredibly hardworking, reliable and kind colleague to have around their work place. Even though he used to pick things up through his mind reading powers, he does show that, even without it, hes still as kind and reliable.

The show is so amazing and im planning to watch the others ( eg. the movie, the manga, the anime?? ) because i just cant get enough of them!!

Also i cant do reviews for the life of me so this would be the longest you get out of me yet. I usually attempt to ramble a whole abt my fav shows or anything but whenever i try, my brain melts or get all woozy at the thought of them bcs I JUST LOVE THEM SO SO MUCHHHH !!!!

Anyways, I’ll do another Kubosai post soon.

[quodekash]

its 7 in the morning, i have a little time, lets roll (the commentary for just this one episode is gonna be a mess lmao)

FLASHBACK TIMEEE

little baby gun wearing glasses- hes so tinyyyy

I LOVE HERRRR

THE SONGGGGG

oh my gosh its not city its a silly song about a bullfrog i love this

aw mannnn he was jokinggggg

i love how theyre speeding up some bits, but other parts theyre adding more detail because it works better for the characters

CITYYYYYY

"im sorry, bro" I LOVE HIS ENGLISH WORDS

I NEED TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THIS UNIVERSE POR, WHY IS HE NOT FLUENT IN THAI

CAPTAIN PORRRR

and so the captaincy begins

good luck por

IMAGINARY TINN IMAGINARY TINN IMAGINARY TINN

IMAGINARY GUN SCENES ARE MY FAVOURITES

IMAGINARY GUNNNNNNN

i love forth so much hes such a good actor i love him i love him

tinn's little chants and then the ear blows like its some kind of magic spell RHJBGH

WAIT A SEC IT JUST OCCURRED TO ME

SOUNDWIN HAVE SWITCHED

DOES THAT MEAN SOUND IS THE ONE TO CONSTANTLY FALL ASLEEP IN CLASS??

pls let that be the case

i could have so many thoughts and headcanons if that's the case

GIJREKDBG I LOVE THAT BOTH SOUND AND WIN ARE HERE FOR THE EXAM PASSING STUFF

YO WITH THE DISBANDING NONSENSE

also win's expressions and mannerisms and stuff are gonna be excellent for an in depth analysis of sound later

i know ive done a million in depth analyses of sound

but you can never have too many

"i feel at ease now" "i somehow feel like we're getting a full score" i love this so much, i love them so much

CHINZHILLAAAAA

"will he have time for us?" "OF COURSE" this is so funny and amazing and perfect and all the good words

cos theyre literally in the same room. why wouldnt he hear them? and they needed to progress the plot. and gun would do that, whereas tinn wouldnt actually say anything.

I JUST LOVE IT SO MUCH

"dont doubt nosy guys like us" lmao theyre not even trying to think about a cover story, just 'hey, you know we're nosy.'

I LOVE THAT SOUND IS SPEAKING UP MORE OFTEN BC HE'S THE WIN IN THIS SCENARIO HFBGHRB

I LOVE HIM SO MUCH

COMFORT CHARACTER GO BRRRR

okay ive finished 2/4 and now i need to go again

IM BACK! to you guys that was no time at all, for me that was 12 painful hours

my friend went further ahead than me and sent me a few clips and hOLY HELL i have felt like im missing out ALL DAY

BUT WE'RE HERE NOW

EWVOUSDLV

THE HEART GRAPH SCENE BUT REVERSED GRBGHDB THEY MAKE ME SO HAPPY

ITS LIKE EXACTLY THE SAME

BUT ITS DIFFERENT BECAUSE THEYRE DIFFERENT PEOPLE

GIUEJSBD I LOVE IT

"i didnt mean to kiss you" PFFFFT GBRSDHXGB I LOVE THIS

GHREBDFG ALL OF THE FRIENDS SITTING AT THE TABLE

1. I LOVE ALL THEIR GROUP DYNAMICS SO MUCH

2. THE WAY THEYRE ALL WHINING AND COMPLAINING AND TALKING OVER EACH OTHER LIKE LITTLE KIDS GBFDGHBH

"I DONT HAVE ANY!" you dont have any.

like. what.

you have. no food?

h- how-

"if youre hungry, go eat somewhere else" damn bro

i do like that gun has kept his temper tho

theyre the same people as the originals, just in different situations and with different contributing factors and i could think about this for so long i love this so much holy hell

"why did you invite them" "my friends are stupid" i mean, is he wrong?

THE PARALLEL OF TINN/GUN YELLING AT GUN/TINN AND POR/TIW TAKING THEM AWAY FROM THE GROUP AND SAYING "thats your baby" GEHRSBGD

HIS EYES GOT SO SUDDENLY WIDE WHAT THE HELL

I NEARLY FELL OFF MY BED

TIW IS SO SILLY IN THIS UNIVERSE

I LOVE IT SO MUCH

I LOVE SILLY TIW

omg all of them chanting 'hot pot'- its like little children begging for mcdonalds

poor gun and por have to deal with these children

i love them

GUYS WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING SO EVILLY

YOU FORGET, THE PEOPLE BEHIND YOU ARE IDIOTS

THEYRE GONNA THINK YOURE PLOTTING THEIR MURDER OR SOMETHING

either that or they just. wont notice the very loud evil laughter coming from the corner.

both options are equally plausible.

oh they got louder

i think they noticed

OHHHH, THIS IS WHERE THE MOTORBIKE SCENE IS FROMMMMM

SOUNDS MOTORBIKE- COS SOUND WOULD HAVE THE MOTORBIKE IN THIS VERSION, NOT WIN

GRJBDGJEBRD

my brain is playing the freaking soundwin motorbike scene but with the roles reversed and im-

HEARTLIMING NOW IM THINKING OF HEARTLIMING

SOUNDWINDIDITFIRST

theyre really just copying from soundwin even in different universes, damn

why does sound have little boots on his keychain

gotta love the (not at all) subtle advertisement

SOUNDWINDIDITFIRSTSOUNDWINDIDITFIRSTSOUNDWINDIDITFIRST

ITS LIKE SHOT-FOR-SHOT THE EXACT SAME SCENE

THEYRE NOT EVEN TRYING TO BE ORIGINAL ANYMORE, THEY KNOW SOUNDWIN IS BETTER

no hate to tinngun, i love them

but also. soundwin.

SOUNDWIN STUDY SCENE YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES MY FRIEND TOLD ME ABOUT THIS

this is gonna be entirely keysmashes

holy hell

the question is: am i gonna survive this

THE WAY WIN IS LOOKING AT SOUND

BOY YOURE WHIPPED AS FU-

"sounds studying mode. how cute!" HEEEEELLLPPP

and yes, i am aware, this scene is tinngun did it first. and yes. its also basically frame for frame. but soundwin did it first in most cases so i stand by this

GU4OEBSDJL

DUDE THATS A LONG FREAKING TIME

HOW DO YOU SIT FOR THAT LONG

holy hell i cant wait for my sound adhd hcs to finally be justified

sorry i have to keep pausing it so that i can just. take a sec. and process what's just happened.

and also to get out the million streams of thoughts that pop into my head

so yeah

THESE EPISODES ARE GONNA BE GREAT FOR AGGRESSIVELY ANALYSING ALL OF MY BOYS GERDJHGBF I LOVE THIS SO MUCH

FREAKING.👏 MOOD.👏

THEHANDSTHEHANDSTHEHANDSTHEHANDSTHEHANDSTHEHANDS

I NEED HELP

WIN'S LITTLE SMILE- IM DYING MY HEART IS EXPLODING MY SOUL IS IN THE ROOF HELP

SATANGS VOICE IS SO CUTE WHEN HE GOES NA NA NA NA NAAA

I LOVE HIM

guess who just squeak-squealed

me

they freaking played the freaking no one else like me track

and i know they play it over every important soundwin moment

but its like

directed at sound

rather than from sound

like. as if the song is coming from win's brain and not sounds.

like. as if. as if win sings the song in this universe.

SERIOUSLY I NEED IT SO MCUH

I KNOW IT HAPPENED IN MY SCHOOL PRESIDENT LIVE ON STAGE

BUT IT NEVER HAPPENED IN THE ACTUAL SERIES

AND IF IT HAPPENS HERE THEN THERE'S A CHANCE THAT ITLL BE ON SPOTIFY

PLEASE I NEED IT

DESPERATELY

GIMME

i think ive ascended into another plane of existence

i cannot- how do you- how does function

TIWPOR

GJERBSG

desperately hoping for more than crumbs, that they actually commit to the tiwpor in this version

(which i know they do because of the clips my friend sent me and im so excited to experience this firsthand)

omg

this part

my friend sent me this part

i think im going to explode

GOUERJHDGOIJBERNO;FDGLJKNV4OERIJDFBGNOI4ELRJDNGIO34HEIRDGOIH34ERDIOGHK34ERPOIDLKGN34EIORDGNV3EIO4RDJNGO3IE4RHNDGOI4EHRINDNG9OIH3N4ERO8DIGH340IEORHG0IO34BERDOB

PLEASE

IT DOESNT FEEL REAL

HELP

HE SAID IT

HE SAID THE THING

AND TIW'S SWEET LITTLE INNOCENT FACE- WHAT THE HELLLLLL

I AM DYINGGGGG

tiwpor exist

they actually exist

"i like it" "you like me?" EGIRBJKS

COS TIW, BEING TIW AND NOT POR, IS NOT SUPER OBLIVIOUS AND INNOCENT

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

"ill teach you later." "promise me, okay?" BRO THEYRE PLANNING A DATE. THATS WHAT THIS IS. THIS IS A DATE. WHAT THE HELL.

THE PINKIES

AND COME CLOSER PLAYING IN THE BACKGROUND

JUST STAB ME IN THE HEART ALREADY

I LOVE THEM SO MUCH

AND THEY JUST. STAND THERE LIKE THAT.

even the camera angle is exactly the same as the original. i swear they just filmed this on the same day. surely. its so similar.

also random thought: WHERE THE HELL IS MY BOY JORN

PUT YOUR HEAD ON HIS HANDS

PLEASE PUT YOUR HEAD ON HIS HANDS

por speaking english >>>>>>

lets. lets not get into that territory.

we dont need daddy kinks, thank you very much.

i cant explain it but i love the way theyre standing

win with his arms crossed

sound with hands on hips

its very Dads of them

mood

HUGS ALL ROUND

TINNGUN HUG

TIWPOR HUG

SOUNDWIN HUG

THE FREAKING ARM OVER THE SHOULDER

THE FREAKING GRIN

THE WAY WIN IS LOOKING AT SOUND

THE FREAKING LINGERING HAND AT HIS HIP???? HEEEEEELLLPPPP

"pat, should we hug too" lmao yopat felt left out

POR SPEAKING ENGLISH >>>>>>>>>

ITS ALWAYS SO JARRING BUT I LOVE IS SO MUCH

TINNGUN SLEEPOVERRRRRRRRRR

OH COS SOUND IS SNORING

THEYRE ALL SLEEPING OVER AT GUN'S PLACE

WAIT YOU NEED TO GIVE ME MORE DETAIL

WHO IS SLEEPING IN A ROOM TOGETHER

HOW MANY ROOMS ARE THERE

all we know is gun and por shared a room, and tinn and sound shared a room. where are the rest of them? was win perhaps also in the same room as sound and tinn? now that tinn is gone, what does this mean for soundwin? PLEASE

"tinn, have you fallen asleep?" dude. you lied down like. ten seconds ago. hes not gonna be asleep yet.

the dancinggggg i love themmmmm

gay panic gun is my favourite

i love him

BRO GUN IS BOLD

WHY MUST TINN FALL ASLEEP

gun burying his face in his pillow and squealing and kicking his feet- that has been me this whole episode. I LOVE PORGUN'S FRIENDSHIP MORE THAN ANYTHING

BROOOOOOOOOO

WIN ASKING TO CHANGE PARTNERS, BROOO

HE'S JUST GOING THROUGH THE EXACT SAME THING THAT GUN'S GOING THROUGH

HES GAY AND HIS HEART CANT TAKE IT

AND NEITHER CAN MINE

DANCE WITH YOUR BOYFRIEND, WIN

guys.

guys.

why are you switching partners.

dont do that.

you havent practiced with each other.

I NEED SOUDNWIN

also: TIWPORTIWPORTIWPORTIWPOR

COME CLOSERRRRR I LOVE THIS SONG

its slightly different somehow

i like it

its so awkward with the partners tho

YES I AM IMMEDIATELY TEARING UP

GUYS THEYRE DOING THE MSP LIVE ON STAGE CHOREO

TIWPOR ARE GONNA DANCE TOGETHER

SOUNDWIN ARE GONNA DANCE TOGETHER

IM GONNA DIE

HELP

THE CHOREOGRAPHY IS SO PRETTYYYYYYYYY

literally just had to shut my laptop for a sec there

holy hell

they mean too much to me

how do i process this

theyre dancing together

soundwin are dancing together

THIS

FREAKING

CHOREOGRAPHY

the yopat is confusing me but im digging it

THE WAY THEYRE GAZING INTO EACH OTHERS EYES, LIKE THERES NOTHING BUT THEM TWO, JUST THEM, FOR ETERNITY, DANCING TOGETHER, THEIR WHOLE WORLD IS NOTHING BUT HIS EYES AND HIS HANDS AND THEIR FEET AS THEY DANCE AROUND THE ROOM, ENTRANCED BY EACH OTHER

guys this freaking choreography. guys. look at the choreography. whoever the choreographer is. i lvoe them so much. this is amazing.

i need to play this clip on repeat for the rest of eternity

TIWTIWTIWTIWTIWTIWTIWTIWTIWTIWTIWTIW

DANG IT I RAN OUT OF IMAGES HANG ON

[justatalkingface]

Do you consider analyzing the villains one day (the main trio or in general) ? It seems that I saw somewhere that you wanted to. If that's the case, I would like to read your thoughts. This manga does not bring me joy anymore (it's quite funny for a story which is supposed to be optimistic to a fault), but I keep a close eye on the villain trio's evolution who are the only characters who make me stay, even if I have some problems with the way the mangaka wrote them recently.

Hmm. I did this big post on Shigaraki awhile ago, so let's ignore him, but let's talk about.... Himiko, Dabi, which are the rest of the big villain trio of the series, and then a bit about AFO and how the villains in general lately. I did a LOV post awhile ago, but that was more focused on how Hori was showing them, so there's still something to talk about.

So... Himiko. I've said this before, but I think there's wasted potential in how her character could have been spun, not as someone totally crazy but someone in dire straights being actively corrupted by her situation, but, it's not like the crazy serial killer archetype is bad.

The problem with Himiko isn't that she kills people, the problem isn't even that she likes it, the problem is she, by the time we meet her, is fully into it, fully living in a world all her own where things work different for her than everyone else, and this is never really... explored satisfyingly.

If we met her someplace before that, where she's, maybe, addicted to the killing, but not committed to it, there would be this interesting contrast where we see her morals, her old morals, conflicting with her finally unleashed desires, and they eat away at who she was over time, like we see in Tokyo Ghoul with Kankei.

But there still plenty of ways to work off a truly crazy character; I think what Himiko could use is a couple of good conversations. It's too late now, but what her character could have really used is a conversation, or better yet multiple conversations, about what she thinks about the world, with people who don't share her viewpoint. And she does that, but... she actually doesn't. A conversation, you see, is two sides talking to each other, and that never seems to happen with Himiko.

One side is always stonewalling the other, either the hero just blanket labeling her as a villain, without really acknowledging the depth of the issues there, or that there's a method to her madness, or that she has some good points mixed in with her crazy, or with Toga ignoring everything that doesn't fit with her world views with all the energy of a child going, 'La la, I'm not listening!' One sides shouts 'Killing is wrong', and the other shouts something about love, or how she wants to live with her friends, and nothing is happening.

The manga wants for this to happen, and acts like it has occurred sometimes, but it never follows through: Toga is stunned that a hero will kill, and that she could die? Where the hero pointing out that she has killed their friends?

Hori has been setting up this dynamic with her and Ochako as this sort of light and dark versions of each other, off the fact they both love Izuku? (And for the purposes of this, let's ignore that, A, that reduces their relationship to a giant chick fight over a guy, and B, we don't even know if Ochako actually still has a crush on Izuku anymore.) Fine. Then talk about it. Have them talk about what love means to them, compare and contrast their views, develop it. Hell, delve more into what Izuku thinks about it, even, that this child who has been stomped down on his entire life has someone who wants to be with him now, even if it's a crazed villain.

All of this and more could have been interesting things to talk about, develop, but it never happens. Himiko is made out of this wasted potential, a theoretically interesting character that never got to live up to what she could have been.

Dabi, meanwhile, is almost the opposite: Dabi, character wise, is good. He has depth to him, but fundamentally he's a simple character with simple goals, narratively and as a person, and he's meeting them.

Dabi wants revenge. Dabi wants to destroy his father, everything he's built and everything he's ever loved. Dabi is a hollow shell of a human being who lives for a single purpose, and defines himself by his abuser. He knows this this fact, and accepts this; there's no illusions with him about who he is. Dabi is a monument to Endeavor's sins, nothing more, and that's all he really wants to be.

There's more to him to that, of course; he cares for his friends, and mourns Twice's death, even if he is physically incapable of crying, even if he refuses to admit it, but Dabi, as a person, has been made for that one single purpose. Literally, by both the writer and the character himself, his entire life is designed to revolve around vengeance.

And on that point, he's doing exactly what he's supposed to. Dabi's problem is that, at some point between the original plan and now, the world he lived in has changed, and Endeavour's story is different now, cleaner, than it should have been. Everything about him is a testament to Endeavour and what he's done, and it's just... no one seems to care. The way the characters talk about him now is either, A, 'God damn it stop burning everything', or B, 'Touya, stop whining about how hard your life was and have some soba with Shoto already'.

Dabi is a monument to Endeavour's sins, but when no one cares about those sins, his entire purpose starts falling flat. He's doing the right things, he's saying the right words, but it doesn't matter if Hori won't allow him to have a point.

And finally, let's wrap up with something about the villains in general; this is something I touched on when I talked about Shigaraki (although ironically it was about how he got past that point at the time), that a good villain is one you're afraid of. A villain drives the plot, in many ways is the plot. You can think they're cool or stan them, but to really sell them as a character, there needs to be one simple ingredient: fear.

When a villain does something, you should be afraid of them, even if only the tiniest of amounts. It needs to make you tense, concerned, make you wonder what are they going to do next? What is their next move? What damage will they cause? Is someone going to die?

The patron saint of showing how much Hori has dropped with this ball is AFO: think back to Kamino. Remember how the students risked their lives to go and rescue their classmate, remember when this man in a mask appears and his mere presence is enough to make them freeze in place. It was tense, gripping, because we didn't know what was going to happen. We didn't know if everyone would make it out of there.

We didn't know if All Might would win.

All For One's simple, gloating speech in Kaminio was enough to fill the manga with more uncertainty than there ever has been.

Let's look at AFO now. He... he plots. He schemes. He chortles, constantly, about how brilliant his plans are, even as they fall apart around him, only to pull out yet another plan to be toppled.

I'm not afraid of him. I'm not worried about him, or what he's going to do. I don't doubt for a minute that Deku is going to beat him, and honestly I'm not concerned he's going to kill anyone we're supposed to care about. I'm just pissed off that he won't shut up for five minutes and actually do something. AFO, as of this manga chapter, is technically a lot stronger than he was in Kamino. He's whole and healthy, for the moment, while in Kaminio he was literally on life support, yet it was only in Kamino that I was truly worried.

This is what has been happening for awhile now, and that's why the villains seem to be worse than they used to be. And I think I can see why: Hori wants to make his heroes seem better, so he's putting them against stronger villains, but he seems to be operating under a misunderstanding.

You don't make heroes great by making their villains pathetic, true. But you don't make them great by making them strong, either; at the end of the day this is a story that is trying to be sold to us, and all the power levels in world don't make a story. You make heroes great by making their villains great. When a villain is great, threatening, gaining victory over them is triumphant. The hero has earned that victory, and that's what we yearn to see: the struggle. That is what we want, that is what we cheer for. Izuku has more genuinely struggled more training for UA than he has fighting against the power of AFO; beating up SFO doesn't make him great, just over powered. Hori makes great fight scenes, but it's more than just fight scenes, is the thing. It's a thousand smaller pieces before, during, and after the conflict, supporting reality of both sides, what they've done and what they're doing, and all of them adding up to make an atmosphere that draws us in, that makes the story seem real. And that's just not there anymore.

[chacusha]

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Prophecy and Change (2003) ed. Marco Palmieri

I bought this book because of @ysalamiri-queen's recommendation of its Quodo short story, which is indeed great. This is a collection of short stories published shortly after DS9 ended, all set within canon (missing scenes/episodes) except for the one by Andrew J. Robinson at the end which seems to be a post-canon follow-up to A Stitch in Time. Here are my thoughts on the stories (mild spoilers for the general content of the book/premises of the individual stories):

"Ha'mara" by Kevin G. Summers: This is a Sisko & Kira story set shortly after the events of "Emissary." I liked this one! It's a good opener to the book not just because it occurs so early in the timeline but because it touches on so many of the themes that DS9 will eventually be about: religion and faith, Sisko's odd role as the Emissary, post-colonial Bajor, Bajor's (non-)entrance into the Federation, etc. I thought it was both a good and odd fit into the timeline: Good because it fleshes out when exactly did people generally know Sisko was the Emissary -- this is a bit vague in DS9 season 1. We know Opaka and Sisko know but outside of that, we never really get how that was communicated to the wider Bajoran public and what the reaction was, so it was nice seeing that here (throughout season 1 I don't think anyone calls Sisko by the title of Emissary but over the course of the show it's obvious he's generally seen as filling that role). Anyway, that's a bit of canon I thought was missing and could be filled in. The story is also a bit of an odd fit because it does some serious relationship development between Sisko and Kira very early in season 1. I'm a bit torn whether I think that fits their dynamic in canon or jumps the gun a bit on their relationship development. In any case, though, I enjoyed this story and its themes. I liked getting to see more of Opaka, too, before she disappears.

"The Orb of Opportunity" by Michael A. Martin and Andy Mangels: Oh man, the main thing I remember from this story is that it seemed like it was written by a Kai Winn fanboy. Now, I love Kai Winn and Nog (who are the main characters of this story) and I love that someone wrote a story focusing on them, but in this story I felt they played up Winn's bravery, revolutionary spirit, and moral compass a bit too much in a way that she no longer felt like Winn. No doubt she is capable of having all of those characteristics and I appreciate getting to see the nobler side of Winn, but she is ultimately meant to be a total snake and I want to see Kai Winn being a total snake. Making Kai Winn instrumental to Nog's decision to join Starfleet is so funny to me but also just NO. Anyway, I liked the story here and appreciated the Nog and Winn focus and the bizarrely positive take on Winn was an experience in and of itself. I like it, but I don't think it's canon.

"Broken Oaths" by Keith R.A. DeCandido: This is a Bashir & O'Brien story that says it's set after "Our Man Bashir" but I think it's more accurately a coda for "Hippocratic Oath". Basically, the plot is "Bashir and O'Brien talk their anger/feelings out about O'Brien disobeying direct orders in order to destroy Bashir's ketracel white research to save his life." Which I suppose is a kind of thing that would put a damper on one's friendship, and generally I like fanfic of the form "Characters actually talk about all the fucked up stuff that happened in canon" but I guess I didn't particularly feel I needed these two to talk out this issue and it felt a bit "stating the obvious out loud" at points (like, "Maybe the reason I was so mad was because [self-analysis]!", you know?). I did appreciate the humor of the stereotypical plot of two characters' whole friend group scheming in order to get them to kiss and make up (with Dax, Worf, Garak, and Quark being the scheming friends here).

"...Loved I Not Honor More" by Christopher L. Bennett: This is the Quodo story featuring Grilka set sometime after her second appearance ("Looking for par'Mach..."), and it's great. I feel like the author had a really good handle on Quark and Odo's dynamic which is ostensibly antagonistic but actually very tender and intimate underneath, and not explicitly romantic but still with those ~vibes~. So like, if you want another story involving these two that's very close to/in line with canon, this does that really well. Also, we get another story involving Grilka and Klingon noble house drama, which is always great. Even though Quark and Odo's canonical love interests come up in this story, somehow it's about Odo telling Quark that he's a Ferengi and that's enough and he never has to be something he's not, and UGH THESE TWO. How do they manage to be so rom-com sappy when they're not even a couple? I'm dying.

"Three Sides to Every Story" by Terri Osborne: Oh man, I have a lot of thoughts on this one. This is a Jake/Ziyal (pre-ship) story, where Jake and Ziyal get to know each other during the Dominion occupation arc and then Jake has to deal with her death. I've heard of Jake/Ziyal as a relatively popular "Ziyal survives AU" pairing so I wasn't surprised to see it here, but I haven't actually read any fic for that pairing so I guess I'm not intrinsically interested in it. Reading this story made me wonder if Jake/Ziyal is actually a soft NOTP for me, or if I just really didn't like the way it was done in this story. I didn't find Jake and Ziyal's attraction to each other convincing (more tell than show), their characterization felt flat to me, and I felt the setup of the story made Ziyal's death more about the tragedy of Jake's connection to her, which is a tough sell as Jake's connection to her is only really established in this story, so the emotional resonance of the story is heavily reliant on having set that up well, which I already felt this story didn't. Anyway, I like the idea of looking at Ziyal's death through a different lens than in the show, and Jake as an artist who doesn't know Ziyal well could have been an excellent choice but I felt making that lens romantic (especially given all the weird forced-romantic stuff with Garak in the show which is thankfully not present here) kind of wasted the potential of Ziyal's character to have some meaning other than potential love interest and daughter, which is already there in the show. Even fleshing out an antagonistic relationship with Damar would have been more interesting IMO (Damar does interact with Ziyal but I also felt those interactions felt flat/didn't have a good grasp on Damar's character either). Anyway, sorry this is so negative -- it's one of those cases where I have a lot to say because I can actually see the reasoning/potential/good ideas here but just got a bit let down by the execution.

"The Devil You Know" by Heather Jarman: This is a Jadzia-centric story set in season 6 after the Romulans join the war against the Dominion and intersecting with the events of "Time's Orphan." This one is an old-fashioned moral dilemma of a wartime Federation where the character goes too far and has to deal with the fallout of that. It felt like a DS9 plot, but at the same time, I felt this took Jadzia's character in too dark a direction (it felt like it relied on emotional outbursts to show/justify why a character makes decisions that don't really line up with that character's values/normal way of functioning); also, it is just depressing but I kind of appreciated the depiction of helpless grief here. Also, Jadzia should totally get her own Romulan woman to have ridiculous chemistry with (Subcommander T'Rul in this case) following the Romulan entrance to the war, just like Kira does (with Kimara Cretak), so I approve. Overall a kind of depressing/bleak story especially for Jadzia (kinda seems out of line with her character) but I enjoyed the plot and thought it did interesting things with her character, even though I don't particularly think Jadzia would react to stress in quite this way.

"Foundlings" by Jeffrey Lang: This is an Odo & Thrax mystery set between season 6 and 7 when Cardassia is increasingly not flourishing under the Dominion. Thrax comes to Odo with a case of a shuttle accident that left all its passengers dead. I'm not sure I really dig the Thrax characterization here but hey, he's a very minor character so... free real estate! I appreciate the author bringing a one-episode character (he doesn't quite appear in one episode, even...) back. Fun mystery with nice Odo character work (and interesting stuff involving Odo vs. Thrax and Odo's relationship to the Dominion vs. Thrax's relationship to Cardassia). But I really could have done without all the Kirodo parts, ngl. 😂

"Chiaroscuro" by Geoffrey Thorne: An Ezri-centric story. This one was weird. Once it started getting into the Jadzia-designed, Dante's Inferno-themed labyrinth, I started wondering if the author already had a non-Star Trek sci-fi story that they had already written, which they quickly adapted here, because the aesthetic and themes seemed so off from Jadzia/Ezri/Trills/Star Trek in general, with a kind of weak rationale for why Jadzia a Trill would theme a maze around a human notion of hell and punishment... But at the same time, the story outside the maze itself does so much to tie in Ezri's previous lives and how Ezri differs from Jadzia that it had to be the case that at least a lot of this story was specifically written with Ezri/Star Trek in mind. But yeah, this one was pretty wild (even the premise of Jadzia wiping memory of the event seemed kind of designed to be like a concession that this story fits awkwardly in canon). I liked seeing Ezri and Jadzia's past work and past hosts get some fleshing out but not sure what I think about this story as a whole.

"Face Value" by Una McCormack: This is a story that fleshes out Kira & Damar & Garak's relationship when they are fomenting rebellion (and are stranded) on Cardassia. Not much happens plotwise in this story but there's a lot of character work, and I like the interactions between these characters and wish we'd gotten more than was in the show (so I appreciate getting more here), and I liked the writing.

"The Calling" by Andrew J. Robinson: This is set after A Stitch in Time and the stage play "The Dream Box" and features Garak struggling to unify a broken, fragmented Cardassia post-canon. As I still haven't read ASIT (it's very hard to get a copy of), I didn't get much out of this one. Like, there was an attempt to fill the reader on all the important terms, concepts, and characters but the whole story just didn't make sense without having that previous background and investment in what happens after the events of the previous stuff. I'll revisit this later once I've read the earlier works.

Overall, a really fun collection of stories. I liked the variety, getting to see the whole cast here, and getting to read stories pretty in line with canon. And yes, the Quodo one was my favorite, although there were a couple of other stories here where the writing was just as good and it told an interesting story.