#valantes day

[coinland]

hallo to all

i hope you have nice days

[masonsystem]

Why Didnt Shadi Reveal The Original Note........

[ros3ybabes]

🎀 Workout Youtubers

I currently do exclusively pilates and yoga workouts from youtube. However, I've done other body weight workouts with various youtube videos and seen results in the past. Here is my list of workout youtubers that you could check out! I will put a * next to my personal favorites! I will include a short list of my current at home workout equipment at the end as well as some items I plan on buying soon!

With any workout program or routine, always be safe, check with your doctor if necessary, and if something doesn't feel good or right, don't do it! No matter what your goals are, it's always important to be safe and stay healthy. Please always take care of yourselves and know how beautiful, worthy and valuable you are no matter what! I love you all <333

🩷 Pilates

Move with Nicole * (also posts occasionally barre and yoga videos as well! I love her videos so so much)

Madeleine Abeid

IsaWelly

Pilatesbodyraven

Lidia Mera

Lottie Murphy

Amanda Blauer

Margaret Elizabeth

Jessica Valant Pilates

Bailey Brown

Dansique Fitness

Flow with Mira

Sivi (she's began posting some pilates inspired workouts and to my knowledge is currently getting certified as an instructor)

🩷 Yoga

Yoga with Adriene *

Yoga with Bird

Boho Beuatiful Yoga

🩷 Bodyweight Fitness/Strength/HIIT

Chloe Ting * (I don't like the click bait, but I like the workouts)

Blogilates

Pamela Reif *

Madfit *

Lilly Sabri * (Some of her videos are titled with pilates, but the older ones I used to do were not pilates, so I categorized her here)

Emi Wong

Shirlyn Kim

Vivian Yuan

April Han

growingannanas

growwithjo * (I love her walking workouts)

Hinafit

Mish Choi

Sami Clarke

Elenifit

Coach Kel (she posts what looks like more barre, ballet, pilates inspored/fusion workouts it seems)

Caroline Girvan

TRAIN WITH GAINSBYBRAINS

Daisy Keech

🎀 Current At Home Workout Equipment I Own

Thick Yoga Mat - since I do mainly yoga and pilates my thick yoga may (amazon brand) has served me well. Even tho I am a heavier woman at the moment, I've never had pain or any issues with this mat, and it came with a carry strap which I love! A good, thick workout mat is definitely necessary for working out at home for comfort, safety, etc. Make sure to disinfect it on occasion, especially if you sweat on it a lot!

Resistance Bands - I have about 3 or 4 at different resistance strengths, and they're incredibly useful for a variety of movements, especially lower body ones. They add some extra resistance and make the workouts a bit more challenging when you need something more advanced. I also got mine from Amazon/Walmart a while back. I prefer fabric over rubber because I like to wear workout shorts instead of workout leggings.

Pilates Ball - not a necessity, but useful with some pilates workouts and movements. I have seen sole videos using this, but am not advanced enough to try it on my own yet. Will use for sure once I'm more advanced.

3lb dumbbells - I thought these would be useful for the pilates workouts that had some upper body focus, and as someone who wants to develop a lean and toned upper body, they are perfect for low weight high rep, controlled movements. Again, not advanced enough to use as I want to master my form, but they're gonna come in handy for sure!

Foam Roller - so so good for stretching and muscle recovery on rest days. I love mine but want one that has the bump things on it to help my muscles more. I can imagine how good it'll feel on my legs during a recovery day when I begin wieght lifting again.

Massage Gun - my holy grail for the days I am sore and needing some recovery. my body feels like jelly after using this, and it's just so nice for the days my muscles feel extra tight and super sore.

🎀 Equipment I Want To Buy

Yoga Blocks - these will help me get deeper into the yoga poses once I get more advanced in my practice

Pilates Ring - this honestly looks so fun and challenging to use, I'd love to add it to my collection of useful workout equipment!

Jump Rope - I used to love this as a form of cardio and as long as I don't move into an upstairs apartment, I'm definitely buying one

Pilates Bar - still iffy on this one, it's supposed to mimic a reformer but I want to get better at mat pilates and see if I even end up ever needing or seriously wanting to buy it, its on my list tho

Ankle/Wrist weights - these are gonna be so useful for workouts where hand held dumbbells aren't useful. Want to buy some low weight ones just to help with resistance and extra strength during pilates workouts

Kettlebell weight - I think this would be useful for a workout at home type situation if and when I switch to not doing just pilates and yoga. I know these are useful in their own right, but not needed in my current fitness stage of life.

Core Sliders - these look fun and interesting. They're on my lost for sure, but not sure about the practicality of their use in my life just yet.

That's all that's currently on my at home workout equipment list! As someone who primarily works out at home, the things I currently own are most useful and most of what's on this list is for fun or extra challenge. Just not necessary yet.

hope you enjoyed this list! if you have any questions about my favorite youtuber workout instructors or favorite videos, please feel free to ask, I've tried so many and can give some guidance from my own experience and research.

til next time lovelies 🩷

[moodymisty]

On the same topic as what the previous anon said about a perpetual beloved. In the betrayer book it’s mentioned how after cyrene valantion died they didn’t bury her, instead they put her body in a stone coffin and moved that coffin into what I assume is the word bearers family crypt.

So I’m just imagining lorgar sitting in mournful silence next to his beloved’s coffin, staring off into the distance because the one he worshipped and adored is no longer with him. That is until he hears the long and drawn out sound of a stone slab being moved and his beloved rising from their coffin like a fucking dracula

Lorgar: DARLING-You’re.. you’re alive? You’re alive!!!

Lorgar: … HOW?!?

Beloved, just as confused as he is: I DON’T KNOW!

(Also you being a perpetual would probably be for the better in some ways, because the timeskips in that series are way too long sometimes. You’d probably be a senior citizen by the time the heresy happened LMAO)

You read my mind anon, I have a request in my inbox for Lion'el and this sort of perpetural idea, and i was going to use the stone coffin idea lmao

Also that day in Lorgar's life is so fucking full of emotions I think he would actually just shut down LOL wife dead, wife... alive?

Time in general in the series is just insane. It took emps a couple hundred years to find all the primarchs, then the great crusade was a bit over 2 thousand years. The whole heresy was around 200 years i believe, the war of the beast which took place 2 thousand years after the heresy took a few years, and blah blah.

I tend to just not think about it and assume either their beloveds are perpertuals, or we know the imperium has the ability to extend human life, surely they're using it. Or if you're Magnus' wife, warp magic.

[nyaagolor]

A genuinely shocking amnt of people said they wanted to see my “Apollo backstory but it’s exclusively based on AA4” so huzzah! Self-indulgence on main! It’s under the readmore because I don’t wanna clog anyone’s dash :)

Everything starts with Thalassa because of course it does. She’s part of the Granmarye Troupe but kinda Hates It. Her father gives her very little autonomy, and she feels like they’re treating her more as an asset or employee than family. She's good at putting on a brave face but she has very little autonomy there and is completely miserable, so she sneaks out to meet with the audience sometimes to get a taste of freedom. It’s on one of these little trips that she meets Jove, who she quickly falls in love with. They continue to meet in secret, and Thalassa’s resentment for the troupe only grows. The day she turns 18, she runs away to go elope with him, not leaving a note or any indication of where she’s gone

The two of them are happily married for a year and have a child, but Jove dies in an accident (unrelated to Kuhrain in this version) only a year into their marriage. Thalassa, now a 19 year old single mom with no money and no documents, realizes the only person who can help her now is the last person she wants to see. Desperate, she calls Magnifi, who agrees to help her IF she gives up the kid and comes back to the troupe. He thinks if she still has an attachment to the child she’ll try and run away again as soon as she can (and he’s right!). Thalassa gives Apollo to the orphanage with one of her bracelets and secretly tries to keep track of him— she does plan on coming back for him as soon as she can, Magnifi be damned

Magnifi, knowing that both Zak and Valant are in love with his daughter, actively encourages the both of them to pursue her, hoping one of them will get her to fall in love and give her a reason not to leave the troupe. Zak is the one who ends up succeeding. They have Trucy together and things immediately take a turn for the worse

Thalassa immediately gets very depressed after having Trucy and nothing seems to cheer her up. She can’t stop thinking about being forced to give up her first child and the life she lost and nothing Zak does seems to help. Eventually, Magnifi steps in and says that she needs to get over it and get back to performing. To everyone’s surprise, Thalassa agrees without protest

This is when the “accident” happens. Air quotes here because surprise! It was not an accident at all. Thalassa was tired, desperate, and wanting nothing more than to go scorched earth on the entirety of Troupe Granmarye, so she loaded the gun improperly on purpose in hopes that the aftermath and scandal will bring the troupe down with her. She somehow survives, but only Magnifi knows. Not wanting news of it to escape and seeing an opportunity to hold this over Zak and Valant’s heads, he ships his amnesiac daughter off to Borgnia and tries to wipe his hands of the whole thing

While clearing through Thalassa’s things, Magnifi finds all of the information on Apollo and Jove, which he shows to Zak. Zak, who didn’t know about Apollo, feels wildly hurt by it all. He ends up projecting a lot of his feelings onto Trucy— he still loves her but becomes more distant because he’s grieving Thalassa’s death and “betrayal”

This is how Zak knows about Apollo and why he tells Phoenix about it. Phoenix does try to find Apollo as soon as he learns about him, HOWEVER, Apollo is trans and all of Thalassa’s documents have his deadname on them so they can’t be used to track him down. (By the time Phoenix realizes Apollo is the kid he’s been looking for ((via the bracelet)) he’s already broken Apollo’s trust enough that he doesn’t feel like he can safely drop that truth bomb without scaring him away. By the time Apollo DOES come to trust Phoenix, Thalassa has her memories back, at which point Phoenix feels it’s her truth to tell). Anyway.

Trucy’s story is effectively identical to canon so I don’t have much to say about that

While in the orphanage, Apollo decides he wants to be a lawyer bc he hears about Phoenix (specifically the whole thing about sticking up for people with no one on their side). He goes thru the lawyer track in HS bc that’s a canon thing in AA apparently and tests into a special fast track law program so he can save as much money on tuition as possible

Apollo works his ass off, he has a ton of jobs and works indexing night shifts for the courthouse. Everyone starts to know who he is bc he works every law related job he can no matter how miserable. This is how Kristoph finds out about him

He works all thru law school but basically all of his money goes to tuition so he goes between shitty apartments and crashing at the courthouse / work when he runs out of rent money. This is the OTHER reason everyone knows who he is and how kristoph finds out about him— he’s always loitering around the courthouse. He makes a name for himself as a hard worker, being fast + thorough with paperwork, and having an excellent eye for detail

During internship hunting season, Kristoph approaches Apollo— he greatly values a dedicated hard worker like Apollo and thinks Apollo’s abysmal financials are good leverage for manipulation. I hc that Kristoph specializes in fraud cases, so Apollo’s talents are extremely relevant to Kristoph’s interests. Kristoph’s firm is only himself because of all the illegal shit he does (less eyes less chance of being caught) so he gambles on taking in Apollo. He ends up personally fixing up Apollo’s credit score, ensuring he has proper documents, and gets him set up with a decent paycheck so he can start to develop a savings account. Apollo decides he would die for him

This continues until Kristoph plays a bad hand— he intends on having Apollo defend Phoenix in the hopes that he’ll lose so he can hang the resulting verdict over Apollo’s head to manipulate him. Turnabout Trump happens and Apollo ends up back where he started, broke and with less trust in others than he had before (which is saying a lot). During his internship with Kristoph he managed to get together a tiny rainy day fund and even started to save up for top surgery, but all that money has to be used to cover rent while he’s jobless bc of the Turnabout Trump aftermath. It’s when the money finally runs out that he answers Trucy’s phone call and agrees to work for the WAA

Canon proceeds as normal, but Apollo has extra paranoia because he’s worried all the money and documents and credit that Kristoph gave him were faked. Also, Thalassa doesn't tell Trucy and Apollo about the whole Thing because part of that would be admitting the role she played in how their lives turned out and she is not quite ready to face her demons yet

[oodlyenough]

playing turnabout serenade. still on trial day 2 so no spoilers please but here are some thoughts:

lamiroir on the stand: why would i lie to you... 😔 you just think that because i've lied seven thousand times already 😔

this case really likes ample use of The Flashback lol

orange klavier is so good

"the window was CLOSED so there's no possible mechanism by which it could've been open earlier and closed later" is quickly becoming one of my top 10 most objectionable pieces of AA logic

being under oath in a court of law <<<< the magician's code of secrecy

who's got fanart of the gramaryes in the arrested development We Demand To Be Taken Seriously pic. someone's gotta this game is like 20 years old

apollo and trucy seeing valant repeatedly backstage "trucy do you know that guy? you're wearing the same uniform" "NO of course not" [three hours later] "hey uncle valant" lmao

also, trucy and apollo repeatedly seeing valant backstage and yet "there was NO ONE ELSE backstage" lol

this is not case specific but i've been pronouncing klavier the french way this entire time. will probably not stop. unclear to me what the correct pronunciation would be

[therestofmyfandoms]

turnabout succession thoughts

parts 1 2 and 3

this ones gonna be a lil different, ill be adding thoughts as I play, then do a summary at the end. ill probably do this one under a read more

edit: i've finished, and yeah, glad i put it under a read more. just a massive block of bullet points under there, so i'll do my summary up here instead. full breakdown is under the cut. spoilers ahead!

apollo: loved his whole thing here. glad he still got to do the final blows to kristoph. phoenix did take over a lot, but i'm glad apollo was still there, yknow. also his bracelet! i know some people are probably like "great magic bracelet" and tbh the "power" is a little stupid, but i like that the bracelet technically has nothing to do with it? it's just something that tightens perfectly to your skin, and it feels like it gets "tighter" because you get more tense. fascinating

phoenix: mans is so mysterious. why do you not explain anything to anyone. please please please fucking tell your daughter she has a brother wtf. i get things are on a need-to-know basis with you but like. come on. that seems pretty need-to-know. also his fuckin hat camera thing!! oh my god!! man has been recording shit (presumably) this whold fucking time!!! what the fuck!!!!!!

trucy: never change queen i love you. been bossing people around since day fuckin one and no one can stop you. queen shit

klavier: this man. has been through. so fucking much. how are you still standing. how have you not collapsed under the anger and the grief and the stress youve been under?? baby boy please take a rest. please see a therapist. please im begging you

kristoph: what an evil man, but tbh? im still a little confused on his motive. why did he want to be so famous? why did he decide to kill so many people. why. mans a fuckin insane serial killer and yet. he still trusted his brother. maybe because klavier would've been harder to get rid of. the mishams, whatever, they're reclusive painters, no one would've noticed if they up and disappeared (technically). but klavier? man

conclusions: i love this game and i love apollo justice. thank you.

i called it i knew valant was gonna come back. yet he's only technically tangentially related to this case. suspicious......

vera. pretty..............

WHY does drew misham have that hair. fuckin mad scientist lookin ass

the fuckin. layer thing?? the minigame x-ray thing?? honestly super fun i want to do more

why did misham draw our cases???? how did he get this images when he has barely left his house at all?? im ngl i genuinely got a shiver down my spine when that got revealed like wtf. i felt like i was being watched

also didnt mention earlier but like. the envelope that nick gave trucy? fuckin. chekov's gun. deus ex machina. "this is a surprise tool that will help us later"-looking ass. thats so suspicious phoenix what the fuck

I HATE THIS STUPID BRUSHEL GUY I HATE HIS FACE WHY IS HE LIKE THIS

and hes gonna be a fuckin witness because of course he is goddamn it

and the trial's starting i do not feel prepared but what else is new

goddamn brushel. why do i have to look at him sweating. i hate this

klavier?? just fuckin flirting with apollo?? and my man just goes "anyways heres the point i was making" like my boy. my man please he wants your attention so bad hes so desperate

apollo goes "what if drew was a fake himself" and i suddenly caught on to his train of thought and felt like i slipped into the matrix. for a moment i felt so incredibly smart

"the... de.. vil...." vera please. did you just call kristoph the devil??

aaaaand of course this ties back to the case 7 years ago of course it does. phoenix "haunting the narrative" wright motherfucker. man please i just to play as apollo why are you bringing phoenix back into this

BABY KLAVIER THIS IS NOT A DRILL I REPEAT BABY KLAVIER

baby boy why are you wearing shades i cant see your pretty eyes.... baby your hair is so short why..... so young so pretty

oh right and phoenix and gumshoe are here. but klavier......

also calling it now valant is gonna be the second witness

in the meantime. did zak (shadi) actually do it???? did valant do it?? is perhaps my dislike of valant coloring my perception of the case?? so many questions so little time

fuckin called it there he is twirling his stupid baton. man idk what it is but i hate this guy so much

maybe he reminds me of max galactica. maybe i just have ptsd from the big top case. not sure

man also had a letter. but for a later time. hmm...

also where does the girl fit into this. isnt troupe gramarye a 3 person show? is the girl just. eye candy or somethin? did she also get a letter? or was she fully excluded from this whole thing?

speaking of girls theres a lot of guys in this courtroom. i miss maya. where's my favorite small medium at large?

klavier i love you PLEASE shut up about your music. no one cares

oh god oh no not the magician's grand prix please no

""ace attorney" Phoenix Wright" he did he said the line

"theres no proof he didnt do it, either" FUCKING THANK YOU. how long have we gone... with perfectly good explantions and reasonings, only for the prosecution to be like "yeah but i dont think they did therefore youre wrong" shyagzjfhsjks

fuck i know this evidence is forged but like. phoenix doesn't?? also is just the page fake?? is the whole book fake?? and klavier knows, right? didnt kristoph tell him that phoenix made-up evidence? though i got it from trucy, who got it from a mysterious man in the hallway. what the fuck is going on

god its such an obvious trap but theres literally nothing else i can do. it fits too well goddamn it

oh fuck and klavier's trying to warn me. god fuckin...

wait wait wait hold on. so we knew misham was a forger. we've known for years. it was brought up in court, in front of a judge. and they didnt arrest him???????? my only thought is that maybe they decided to "overlook" this crime in exchange for him cooperation but like. why

aha and im already seeing inconsistencies. misham is obviously covering for his client, he "never met them". vera, on the other hand, claims she met them face to face. a clear discrepancy, and now klavier's earlier (later?) freakout makes much more sense. hes been under the impression that phoenix is a liar and a cheat this whole time. obviously, he has no idea his brother's involvement in this whole this (tbf im still not clear on the details myself but dramatic irony at its finest)

MAN FUCKIN JUST DISAPPEARS ON THE WITNESS STAND. MY MAN YOU HAVE A CHILD WHERE ARE YOU GOING

OH MY GOD THE MAGATAMA??? ITS BACK????

just as a little aside as i embark on the mason system: looking at the court record, i see that kristoph and apollo have been added. both of them have (what i presume to be) their "present" descriptions, but their "past" ages. so apollo says "a greenhorn defense attorney. i call him apollo" and his age is 15. like first off. you did not meet apollo at 15 i call bullshit. plus kid is not a defense attorney he is in HIGH SCHOOL

anyway the kristoph one is funnier because it says he's 25 but "incarcerated for the murder of shadi smith" which has not happened yet. they dont even know shadi yet (well they do but. you get my point). okay aside over back to the game

awww its officer meekins. ill be honest i really was not expecting to run into him of all people

baby truce is the same as ever i see. she has immediately taken over phoenix's life and honestly? good for her

"i just dont know much about anything other than law" yeah thats what happens when you drop out of art school to save your crush from 2nd grade, phoenix. you end up knowing nothing

god fuckin. trucys mother. the woman in troupe gramarye. lamiroir. fuuuuuck

BABY VERA. SHES SO CUTE

WAIT WAIT WAIT BRUSHEL WAS THERE???? BRUSHEL WAS AT THE BOWL CLUB?????????

why does kristoph have a full study for a cell. what is this. what kinda rich asshole bullshit

black psyche-locks??? what does this mean...

okay wait im just now doing valant's locks. did they fucking shoot thalassa??? is that what happened to her??????? oh my god poor lamiroir....

no wait wait wait apollo has the same thing as trucy yeah but youre not implying what i think youre implying are you game?????? trucy and apollo?? are actually related???? nah nah nah say it aint so. i thought those were fuckin. headcanons. not. not actually....

ah so magnifi killed himself. okay. sure

WAIT WAIT WAIT HAS PHOENIX BEEN RECORDING THE WHOLE TIME??? WITH HIS LITTLE BUTTON??? OH MY GOD???

"mr. wright told me everything that's been happening" did he mention you have a sister. did he mention you and trucy are related. did he fucking mention that

god klavier... youre helping me against your brother.... man what this man must be going through.... your brother is a murderer yet you still help to make sure the truth comes to light instead of covering for him... fuuuuck

"i have to pull that darkness out of him" GOD FUCKIN-- apollo is trying to save klavier and klavier is trying so hard to help apollo even through all this emotional shit jesus fucking christ im going FERAL

okay so even though kristoph is a fuckin murderer and does not care about anyone... he still cares about his brother. he killed literally everybody else who knew about the forging (or tried to), he covered all of his bases..... except for klavier. did he just never expect klavier to betray him? did he trust klavier? if youre killing everyone else, why not your brother?

GAHDGSYDUJD

LAMIROIR??? SHES A JURIST???? HUHHHH???

ohhh fuuuckkk and the reveal of the other bracelet omggg

if you didnt piece it together by this point that would be a HELL of a reveal

i love vera im glad shes alive

question. for the straight people out there. is vera supposed to be apollo's love interest? like i know he was a lil blushy around her or whatever but like. is that just typical ace attorney stuff or are they trying to insinuate stuff.

i mean obviously klapollo is superior regardless but like. is that the intention

trucy dear we dont need to find you a mommy we just need to figure out where your other daddy is. probably in germany somewhere

PHOENIX YOU HAVENT TOLD THEM THEYRE RELATED WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU

and thats the end! lets go me

and as an aside for those who read through to the bottom of this: i'll be playing duel destinies next, and ill probably be writing my notes as i play again. my question to you is this: would you prefer this play-by-play again? or simply the post-case breakdown like my first posts were? thanks!

[th4tsj4zzy]

Idk if you've played Ace Attorney 4 (spoiler warning if you haven't) but if so can you write smth about Troupe Gramarye? Idrc if it's angsty or not I'm just starved for content of them lmao- (If you need some prompts ones I can think off of the top of my head are how each member joined the troupe, how Zak and Thalassa got together, how the members interacted with Trucy, smth about Valant's feelings of incompetence, Valant's life during/after jail, au where Zak remained alive, etc)

AGHH IM SO SORRY I HAD FINALS TO DEAL WITH THIS WEEK :,((( i have so little experience w Troupe Gramarye, so i apologze again in advance (both that it took so long and if anything is out of character and if things dont check out in canon ;-;)

A loaded gun, a letter, and two options.

One: Valant could, as instructed, shoot the sleeping man in front of him. The one that brought him up as a magician, made his life a living hell after a trick gone wrong, and brought about “a golden age in stage magic.” If he shot him, while his magic would die, the guilt that came with her death would die with him, and he wouldn’t even need to be within a mile’s reach of a jail cell. And yet, he looked at the stage pistol in his right hand with hesitation.

His second option was to put the gun down, turn around, and leave the room, pretending nothing happened and leaving magnifi to die naturally. He could just leave without blood on his hands. After all, that man would die anyway: It was only a matter of time. 

He already taken one person’s life with his hands; Whats wrong with another? Oh, who was he kidding? What kind of sociopath would think that? It’s someone’s life for god’s sake, not to mention his mentor’s life! But he knew the old man; he had no clue how to act normally, nor what was right or wrong. He lived tip toeing that line, and that rubbed off on Zak and him. They would pay the price for him on that matter, though. But he also needed to live: The fact he was chosen as a Gramarye proved that. Unless..

Do i shoot? Or do i put the gun down? Just having the pistol reminded him of that incident, three years ago. Shoot, or not? Shoot or not? Shoot or not? The room felt suffocating, as if it was closing in on him. Shootornoshootornotshootornotshootornotshootor-

Before he knew it, he was turned around toward the door, the gun put neatly back on the tray of Magnifi Gramarye’s hospital room. He knew he couldn’t. He just couldn’t. 

“That.. is the wrong answer.”

And that day, April 13th, 2018, the rest of the Gramaryes’ lives were ruined. 

…………..

Zak had always been better than valant. To Valant, all that had any personal experience with Troupe Gramarye knew this as a fact. Magnifi only confirmed it, his worst nightmare, and he had no choice but to leave with his head down and spirit shattered.

I gave the rights to my magic to Zak Gramarye. Please.. support him. Like hell he would! F or years, Zak had taken everything he wanted: The role of star pupil, Thalassa’s adoration (not that he really seeked it, but still), the skill and wit of a professional magician, and now, Magnifi’s performance rights. And the worst part? He respected him for it. For he was a good man, and that was the thing he hated him for.

When Thalassa’s husband died, she was inconsolable. Looking back, she was mentally still just a teenager. Valant knew not of the life (or lives, or bracelet) she’d left behind her in coming back to Troupe Gramarye. In his naive, young mind, he believed she would eventually get over the entire thing. With the luxury of retrospect, they really had never been normal, all four of them, he thought. and so, he never tried to comfort her. but Zak did.

In his mind, that mind blinded by the spotlight, the fame Troupe Gramarye earned would be a delightful distraction for Thalassa. She was a Gramarye at heart, had been for 17 years; all of them yearned for the stage in the beginning. They were busier than ever, and if he couldn’t support her off stage, then on stage would have to do. He was helping in the best way he could, right? But he never asked how he could help her, and so, Zak swoops in to remedy the tragedy that was Thalassa’s life.  

Zak-no, Shadi- and Thalassa were always a little bit closer than Valant was to the latter. It took years, but slowly and surely, Thalassa got better with Enigmar’s help. And what followed was Trucy Enigmar, who literally and figuratively brought new life to the Troupe. As if it was a fairytale, everything had seemed to start looking up for them again. But of course, it all went wrong. With the same gun as the one on the tray and a singular bullet. BANG.

Zak lost his wife, Valant his dearest friend, Magnifi his daughter, and Trucy her mother. And worst of all, they couldn’t blame the other for her death because it could have very well been themselves that pierced Thalassa Gramarye-Enigmar’s head.

So, for once in my life, let me be the one who’s better than him, Valant thought as he stood upon the sleeping man that would no longer wake.

At least he can be with his daughter.

im sorry if its really shitty :,( i wanted to add more tidbits on how the troupe treated trucy after thalassa’s death, but i didn’t think it’d fit super well with a valant-focus piece. maybe ill get back to that one day bc i love trucy and wondering how little her had to deal with so much tragedy back to back makes me sad :)

[tobiasdrake]

Ace Attorney 4-3 Turnabout Serenade, Trial 2

An impossible murder committed by an impossible killer overheard by an impossible witness. Today is the day we unpack this illusion and find the secret at the heart of this magician's trick.

This is going to be a two-parter. I want to take some time to talk about the case itself and its construction before getting into the characters in the second part.

Turnabout Serenade has more than a few bumps in the road. There's a lot that happens in this case and a lot to talk about. The consequence of almost nothing happening in Trial 1 is that everything under the sun happens in Trial 2.

The case against Machi is complicated (and partly rooted in inarguable bullshit, grumble grumble), and the case for Machi is even moreso. Meanwhile, the case against Daryan is that a friend of the defendant who can't have witnessed the crime said he did it. On the other hand, the case for Daryan is:

As long as Daryan was onstage at the time of the murder, we're going nowhere with accusations against him. Daryan was onstage in the first set. Lamiroir was onstage in the second. Daryan was onstage again in the third. Even if we hadn't explicitly heard the gunshots during the third set, at no point were Daryan and Lamiroir ever backstage together. It cannot have happened.

As with 4-2 and 4-1, 4-3's illusion relies on a fundamental misunderstanding of the basic facts of the case. For 4-1, that misunderstanding was centered on who was even present at the crime scene, along with a shell game of bottle strikes. For 4-2, the misunderstanding centered on the seemingly three angles that the bullet could have come from, never considering a secret fourth option. For 4-4, it's a misunderstanding of time.

We have a positive ID on the killer. But unweaving this magician's trick will, ironically, require unweaving an unrelated yet pressingly important illusion cast by an actual magician. The trick does not directly relate to the crime, but it's adjacency to the crime requires us to unpack it in order to provide key evidence of what transpired.

(This idea, incidentally, is one of two pieces of the case that a Danganronpa mystery will later borrow for its own series. Danganronpa creator Kazutaka Kodaka seems to be a fan of Turnabout Serenade specifically.)

In this case, solving the magician's trick allows us to change the scene, making the impossible become possible. It lets us move the position of Lamiroir during the second set away from the stage. This is a vital change that makes it possible for her to have heard Daryan's voice.

To that end, we turn to the magnificent poof who's been popping in and out of this case waiting for his turn in the next. Valant Gramarye carried out a grand illusion in the second set, during which Lamiroir became a witness to this crime.

But alas, we can't get anything from the horse's mouth because Valant saw this coming.

Skipped town so fast you can practically see the dust cloud in his wake. It's hilarious that Valant is the one person involved with this crime to grab his shit and run at the first sign of trouble, but he's also completely innocent. He just doesn't want to be forced under oath to explain his trick. That's great.

So, with Valant bunkering down until it all blows over, we're left to piece the illusion together for ourselves.

It's clever, the way Turnabout Serenade weaves these two illusions together. Valant was onstage acting as a body double for Lamiroir while she crept her way into position to complete the trick - singing all the while to maintain the performance. This put her in position to become a witness to the crime that our cautious killer never knew existed - And, better, yet, to capture the crime on mic.

Isolating Lamiroir's singing to find a gunshot captured in the song's recording is a lot of fun. It's one of the few times in the series where it feels like you're doing something more than simply listening to people talk and then matching statements to contrary evidence.

Which is a lot of fun, don't get me wrong; Nobody would stick around for Ace Attorney if they didn't enjoy the core gameplay loop of cross-examinations and evidence rebuttals. But I like when it gets a bit more complicated.

This is my favorite part of 4-3. Unpopular opinion, I know; Having to sit through the Guitar's Serenade over and over again is one of the more contentious parts of this case, I think? I don't know, I'm not super up-to-date on the discourse. But I love playing around with the mixing board - though the final mixing board challenge is pretty obtuse, admittedly.

Honestly, I like most of the minigames from this franchise. They're all fun to play in their own ways. Though the fingerprint dusting is mechanically tedious and should be trimmed down to just picking out whose prints might match. I think I recall they threw it out entirely though? Which is a shame.

But I digress.

Cracking Valant's illusion allows us to crack the illusion of the crime scene - with one other illusion that needs to be cracked in order to form the full picture of what happened. That brings us back to the other piece of Turnabout Serenade that Danganronpa borrowed from.

Well maybe the murder didn't happen in rhythm with a fucking song and we shouldn't be using that as the legal basis for our case.

You want to talk about evidence lacking credibility? The murderer handed us a script for how events played out and we took him at his word because we're a fucking clown show. XD

Speaking of magic tricks, this was pure con artistry. The only way to win at interpreting the song lyrics was to ignore them. Their purpose wasn't to help us solve the case, but to complicate it.

In my Danganronpa revisit, I complained heavily about their take on this because it required the killer to hang out and take an awful lot of extra steps at a crime scene that was already compromised. Turnabout Serenade, however, weaves most of those steps into actions that Daryan already intended to and needed to undertake anyway. The plan was already a hop, skip, and a jump away from Gavin's song as it was.

Though the moving of the body at the end is still pretty bullshit. Especially since he had to not only transport a corpse down a well-used hallway onto the stage but then also hunt down, knock out, and position Machi up there as well - All without ever being seen doing any of it in this relatively small and locked down space full of cops.

In a case filled with stage illusions, that was shameless wizardry.

In any case, those are the three illusions layered over this crime. Now it's time to talk about what really happened on that fateful day. Courtesy of Investigation 2, we've already got a pretty strong idea of what this case is about when we go into it. In fact, the case opens with a reminder of the ominous hints it set up in Trial 1.

This, right here, is the key to our motive. The Chief Justice's son has fallen victim to a deadly virus. Conspicuously at the same time that a cop smuggled a miracle cure into Japanifornia and shot an Interpol officer over it. These two things are clearly related.

Taken into context, the killer's motive here is clear to see. This is about the Borginian Cocoon.

Romein was investigating Lamiroir and Machi under suspicion of trafficking one of these highly illegal cocoons. Which at least one of them obviously did, resulting in a confrontation with the buyer Daryan.

Specifically, our very own defendant Machi. This is one of those fun Ace Attorney cases where the defendant, though innocent of the murder charge, is in fact guilty of something else. Also, he can speak Japanese English after all.

So that's two out of two performers who don't speak Japanese English until it's suddenly revealed that they speak Japanese English. Everything about these people is a lie. I don't like this particular aspect of the case.

This case gives me a lot of feels for Lamiroir and Gavin, though. The only two people who were actually here to play music, and they were both played for suckers because of it.

Not that they accomplished anything by doing it.

This, right here, is what makes this case work for me so well. We have a cleverly orchestrated smuggling plot to bypass customs and get the cocoon into Japan. We have a carefully concocted murder cover-up by an experienced professional. Everything is so clever, so meticulous. And it's all for nothing.

The entire plan got fucked sideways by the unforeseen detail of the guitar being vacuum packed and everything snowballed from there.

These are my favorite types of case elements. The wild card pieces. In mystery writing, it's all too easy to try and make everything that happens "part of the plan". Everyone wants to write the most genius mastermind imaginable. But a bend or swerve in the story that happened because a genius villain made it that way will never be as compelling as one that happens because of the chaotic randomness of life.

This one simple oversight destroyed five lives. The officer Romein, who was shot in a struggle while trying to find the cocoon Daryan couldn't retrieve ahead of time. The conspirators Daryan and Machi, whose crime was brought to light by the attention the murder brought down on them. And the Chief Justice and his son who will never receive the cure Daryan meant to sell to them. All of these lives took a catastrophic dive because of a simple decision Gavin and Lamiroir made in how they wanted to pack the guitar.

So Daryan shot LeTouse. Then he destroyed the evidence.

This case starts out as an enigmatic killing by an artistic maniac painting his masterpiece in blood. But when you peel back the layers, you just find crime. Mundane, banal crime. Not the portrait of a murder artist, but a desperate clean-up by a pair of smugglers who thought they'd hit paydirt before the job went awry.

[hestiasroom]

honestly my body moves and feels so much better since i started doing Pilates in February. No need to pay for a studio - I do everything at home on the mat with free YouTube workouts. Anything from 10-35 minutes per day is all it takes. My favorite channels are Rachel's Fit Pilates, Jessica Valant Pilates, and Move With Nicole! Some will say that none of these ladies to "classical" Pilates and to be frank I don't care. Whatever the hell they are doing, is working. It is such a calm and relaxing workout too, I always feel so chill afterward. I just love it.

Anyway walking, yoga, and Pilates are the only forms of movement I do now and I love that for me. I have nothing to prove to anyone - I don't need my workouts to be "tough" or look intense to other people. I love that they are "easy". No more high intensity, joint and bone destroying crap for me.

[mageofbreath]

Valant defender and Zak hater until the day I die amen

[coinland]

what you will wishes for Valentine's Day to your love ?

please Write in that white Board and share us to know how's love in that day

Thanks https://www.teepublic.com/user/coinland

https://www.teepublic.com/user/coinland

[masonsystem]

ok additional thoughts on 4-3..

it was very 🤯🤯 to learn that trucy has a "real father".... who i highly suspect to be shadi smith lol. it hasnt been stated explicitly whether this is her biological father or not and i still stand by the opinion tht wright isnt the type to adopt children he has no blood relation obligations to, so im still under the belief tht shes wright's biological daughter.. tho it wouldnt be super hard for me to believe tht shes actually not his bio daughter cuz wright having a child at 18 would be crazzyyyy. but yeah thats for case 4 to reveal to me so thts exciting.. oh and also im guessing mr. hat is modelled after zak gramarye, so valant = yellow, zak = blue, and trucy = pink/red like she was in tht cute little picture!

klavier's and apollo's relationship is sooo interesting to meee.. i really really like how its completely different from every relationship wright has had w his prosecutors. every prosecutor has been antagonistic to wright, but even tho klavier makes fun of apollo's forehead and is condescending to him in the court, hes still pretty respectful towards apollo. it was really cool how he entrusted apollo to incriminate drayan, it was very reminiscent of edgeworth's trust in wright during the engarde case. klavier is sooo interesting, like hes all here talking abt "finding the truth" which took our previous prosecutors like 2 whole games to reach that point, but klavier has already reached it here. i also liked how bratty and grumpy he was in the concert LOL and tht whole part in his office where hes like "i want to pursue simplicity :)" is so interesting and i bet will get unraveled next chapter hurhuahfksdj. hes so different in such a refreshing way and i really really enjoy it. i also like how nice he is to trucy, honestly its nice that everyone is nice to trucy! shes the games special girl and im glad we all treat her nicely!

and of course apollo has been so refreshingly different tooooo, it was typical game stupidity for him to leave the crime scene unattended but hey, he hasnt endangered trucy at any point so that has been a huge plus for me. i really like how deadpan and level-headed and 'serious' he is. its just really good character writing that he fills out the same role as wright but his personality is still very different. like wright was bizzare and apollo is not. but hes still as entertaining. also his confidence in the court was very coollll i really like this kid. and also its so neat to play as a protagonist whose the same age as me HAHA. and ive already said this but seriously him and trucy are so cuteeee together, maya and phoenix were the best of friends, but apollo is like looking after trucy and its just super adorable.

also at first i was very 🤨 at this case bc it took its time to point out my defendant was BLIND and short and also how could letouse have known lamiroir was a witness if he wasnt facing the small window, so i was irked during the 1st trial bc of this, but then it ended with a WOAHHH when lamiroir accused drayan and then the court started to get criticized and it was just soooooo gooddddd. oh and the part where i had to figure out how the magic trick worked was really funny bc i genuinely had no idea, and trucy knowing but not telling apollo was hilarious and so was the judge's insistence on learning how the trick worked 😭 i really liked that part! im very happy with the game so far and im super excited for the last case, cuz even tho turnabout corner kinda rushed its ending it was still a neat case and i liked alita's personality as a killer very much, all the cases have been very solid. and im excited to finally receive answers to the many mysteries of this game.. tho im a bit worried abt having the time and space to actually play it cuz eid is in like 4 days hejfkwehjkshdagjk but what happens happens!

^i like this line

[ethereousdelirious]

Sicktember 2023 Day 17

Prompt: Alt. Forehead Kisses

Fandom: Ac.e A.ttorney

Characters: V.alant, Th.alassa

Wordcount: 1,109

Notes: No major plot spoilers for Ap.ollo Ju.stice, but also probably won't make much sense unless you've played it

Summer found Troupe Gramarye on the county fair circuit, sweltering in a cramped RV when they weren't melting onstage with cheap microphones screeching feedback at the audience.

Zak and Magnifi took turns driving, leaving Thalassa and Valant the permanent occupants of the back, with its wood paneling and shag carpeting. The weak yellow lightbulbs did the interior no favors, nor did any natural light that filtered in through the gaudy floral curtains.

As the RV rounded a corner, Valant sat up and declared "63!" at a volume only slightly lower than his stage voice.

"Shh," came the reply. Thalassa did not bother to look up from her book, but nodded in the direction of Zak's sleeping form. He'd passed out shortly after they'd stopped for lunch at some dour rest area. Valant had a sneaking suspicion he was hiding a flask somewhere on his person, though he had no hard proof.

But who could sleep so soundly in such unpleasant conditions? Even with the windows cracked, the interior of the RV was nothing short of stifling. Valant had already loosened as many of his shirt buttons as propriety allowed, and was strongly considering throwing a tantrum to see if he could get Magnifi to pull over somewhere with proper air conditioning.

"63," Valant repeated, slightly quieter. He didn't give a damn if he woke Zak, but Thalassa would chide him for it, and then he'd have to fight for her attention.

Thalassa set her book aside and humored him. "63 what, Valant?"

"There are 63 flowers on this hideous throw pillow." Valant held it up so Thalassa could see. The pale, noncommittal yellow spoke of nicotine stains, the brown floral pattern of spilled coffee. A bead of sweat rolled down his back and he squirmed, heat rolling through him in waves. "And I am about 63 seconds away from melting."

"It's not that hot," Thalassa said patiently, as though Valant hadn't been complaining about the heat all summer.

Another wave of discomfort crawled, sticky, along Valant's skin. He shuddered and swept his hair back, frowning when it clung to his temples. It was that hot, enough that he felt on the verge of genuine illness if he didn’t get some relief. He huffed out a scalding breath and eyed Thalassa curiously. She did look remarkably placid, sitting in a T-shirt and capris without any telltale sweat stains.

"You really don't think so?" Valant asked, hating how thin and plaintive his voice sounded. He looked around for the water bottle Magnifi had thrust at him when they'd stopped, but it had disappeared.

"Come here," Thalassa said, shifting. "I'll help you put your hair up."

Valant couldn't stop himself from whining. Everyone in Troupe Gramarye knew that he hated tying his hair up, refusing to do so even when its length posed a potential danger onstage.

Even now, when it snaked around the back of his neck in damp coils, when rogue strands itched on his cheeks and forehead, the thought made him miserable.

Valant Gramarye was a man who knew the value of appearances, after all.

He bit his lip and followed the line of one of Thalassa's stray curls to the braided bun atop her head. She really did look comfortable.

And she was offering, offering him something she would never offer to Zak (if only because he didn't have the hair for it).

So Valant got up.

He'd intended to quick-step across the narrow expanse of hideous brown carpet separating them, but had to stop and steady himself against the countertop when all the color abruptly ran out of the room. He blinked white dots away, acutely aware of the dryness in his mouth and the tingling of his skin.

Spying a cheap plastic water bottle crushed between Zak's bulk and the back of the couch, he snatched it and drained it so quickly that rivulets of warm water leaked from the corners of his mouth and drew tingling trails down his jaw and neck.

"Are you alright?" Thalassa asked, or perhaps she'd asked it when he'd stumbled and he'd only just now noticed.

"Fine," Valant gasped and staggered over to sit in front of her. His breath came heavy over his lips and the short-sleeved button down he wore sat heavy on his skin. Something wasn't right.

So why had he lied?

The RV walls were closing in, spiraling closer and closer and the air burned so hot he couldn't breathe it and he wanted wanted wanted to be fine.

Thalassa's fingers breached his hairline and she gasped, following the shape of his skull all the way to the back of his neck. "Valant, you're burning up!"

Her words flowed slowly through the thick air. Valant's chin dipped toward his chest and only the sting of his matted hair pulling against Thalassa's fingers made him lift it again. He managed a thready "wh-what?" and let his head come to rest against her knee, eyes falling shut.

"I think you have a fever," Thalassa said, working her fingers over his temples and forehead. "Lie down on the couch; put your feet in Zak's lap. I'll have Daddy pull over."

"No." Valant opened his eyes, all thoughts of whining far behind him. He already knew Magnifi would ban him from performing when they finally reached the fairgrounds. Any delay on Valant's behalf would only make him angrier, more resentful. "I only need the kiss of a beautiful woman. Then I shall be well again."

Thalassa cocked her head at him, the concern fading from her face just as he'd wanted. "I'll let you know if I see one," she said. Like she wasn't the most perfect woman ever to grace the Earth.

Valant managed to get back to the couch without wobbling too much. He curled his legs in at first, but no amount of scrunching himself up would allow him to position himself in such a way that the armrest didn't force his head into a painful angle. There was nothing to do but slide down and plant his feet firmly in Zak's lap.

"Do you need anything?" Thalassa asked, looming over him suddenly. She looked like an angel, dappled in sunlight, freckles on her cheeks.

Valant's chest ached. Heedless of Zak's proximity, he stared at her with helpless adoration and all the want and hunger that lived in the hollows of his chest. "I told you already," he breathed. Thalassa's perfect face swam and rippled and a drumbeat pulsed behind his eyes.

Thalassa chuckled. Reality warped and a pair of cool lips brushed Valant's burning forehead: once at either temple, once between his brows. "Feel better, Valant."

[characteroulette]

can just complain about 6-2 for a hot minute?

I hate hate HATE that they took a throwaway gag line in 4-4 where Phoenix is like "wait, were there actually MORE APPRENTICES??" and Valant is like "lol no that's dumb" AND THEN DID IT ANYWAY???

excuse me that is just. that makes me mad

also! I don't mind Apollo being afraid of heights, honestly, but like. Phoenix is already afraid of heights and they gave Apollo the new phobia of large bodies of water *why* must we endure Apollo also being *this* terrified of heights??

like the line in AJ has him scared but like. Not THAT scared. He still climbed his ass up there and all!! I do not believe SoJ Apollo would have done that ever. it feels like yet another point where they skimmed more than actually checked AJ's script

and THEN like, why didn't we get Mr. Hat as an evidence??? it would've proven without a shadow of a doubt that there was a goddamn sword up in the balconey!!

for that matter, WHERE'S ALL THE BLOOD?? if that man got stabbed by being zipped up to the roof, then WHERE'S ALL THE BLOOD??? Ema you're our forensics, pLEASE tell me where all this goddamn blood disappeared to!!!

great opportunity of having Trucy in the defendant's seat, totally wasted because all of Apollo's cases have a ridiculous amount of moon logic to them

also I know Reus is an asshole and that's the point, but how the hell did he manage to get everything in the Wright Agency slapped with a "repossessed" label in like less than a day??? I feel like that's the law thing I can't suspend my disbelief about there have to be more checks in place for that sort of thing

I'm also still mad about the whole "see that shadow in the bg that's *obviously* going upwards that we caught on tape?? yeah that's totally Trucy thrusting a sword downwards into the victim as if it could be anything else" like bitch!!!!

I feel so bad for Apollo my bud, my dude, just constantly handed cases that are like "you don't get all the evidence that makes sense, buckle up kiddo" and how much internal screaming he probably does because of it

I feel like it was only this case because, again, Apollo is *always* handed the cases with the most moon logic. dunno why, but it is consistent. he is cursed.

the weirdest thing that happens in later cases (at least, it set me off-balance) was not getting the murder weapons as evidence in your notes, but that's a gameplay thing because, like, not used for any of the puzzles, so why would they give you extraneous pieces of evidence hahaha

[haphira]

Miraculous Ladybug and the Valant Annuler     By: Haphira

29. Kagami’s Warmth – kagami gives marinette her support and the two hang out  

Marinette sat outside the café on the warm summer day in a light pink sundress she designed waiting for the most unlikely person to meet up with, but Marinette had faced her before and had gotten a friend out of it and now, it was time for their weekly hangout.  

Marinette adjusted the white sunhat she grabbed at the last minute when her mother warned her how bright the sun was going to be today and boy was she glad she listened. Marinette sipped on the small water glass she had while waiting for her friend to get done with practice. A text came through on her phone. She pulled it out to see that the message was from Luka saying they were having a small party on the Liberty tonight and wanted to see if she could come. A second message came before Marinette could reply saying she could bring a friend if she wanted to make things more comfortable, no pressure. Marinette smiled at the texts and put her phone back into her dress pocket next to Tikki. She resumed waiting for her friend.  

When Marinette saw the figure in red approaching, she smiled. She was exactly on time. Marinette stood up when Kagami finally reached the outdoor seating she was at.  

“Marinette, it’s very wonderful to see you again.” Kagami greeted; she didn’t show much in her expression but Marinette could tell she was happy to be there. Marinette smiled warmly and gestured for Kagami to sit and join her. When she did, a waiter came over to take their order of orange juice and croissants.  

“How are things with your class?” Kagami asked. Marinette made a face before she smoothed out her expression to something neutral.  

“Well, they are giving me space and I’ve talk to Juleka and Nino, they have come around I’m willing to hear out Rose, Ivan, and Mylene if they want to talk.” Marinette said, she still looked conflicted but her words weren’t a lie.

“You have more patience than I do, I hope things work out for the best.” Kagami replied. Then the waiter came back with their drinks and food and it was quiet for a few minutes while they ate.  

“Kagami... can I get your advice?”  

“Of course,” Kagami nodded and set her orange juice down to bring her full attention to Marinette. Marinette stirred her drink with the straw before she spoke again.

“Would it be bad of me to not want to forgive them?”  

“No,” Kagami answered right away. “I believe that is very fair in your shoes. They chose a liar who could easily be fact checked over their friend. That kind of behavior is not acceptable.” Marinette nodded but didn’t look convinced.  

“That does not mean that you will never forgive them,” Kagami continued. “It means you are reflecting on their actions and choosing the correct reaction.”  

Marinette looked surprised, “That is something I hadn’t thought of, I always viewed it as this black and white: if I forgive them, I was the better person and if I don’t then I'm a bad person.”  

“Nonsense, you are not a bad person and not forgiving someone who has hurt you does not make you a bad person either. Anyone who says otherwise is wrong.” Kagami nodded again when she finished speaking.  

“Thank you, Kagami, your advice has helped.” Marinette told her. Kagami gave a small pleased smile before drinking the rest of her juice.  

“Do you think you could sneak away tonight? My friend Luka is having a small party at 7pm and said I was welcome to bring a friend.” Marinette asked. Kagami thought for a moment before answering.

“Yes, I think there is a lesson I can skip that my mother will not notice me missing, but I can only be out for a little while.” Marinette smiled happily.  

“Okay, I'll meet you a block away from your house and take you there, I know where they are moored on the Seine.”  

“Moored? As in a docked boat?” Kagami questioned.

“Yup, the Couffaines’ live on a house boat so they move around a lot, but they always dock somewhere on the Seine.”  

“Yes, I remember them. Not exactly my type of music but I did enjoy the show, I would be happy to join you tonight, I’ll meet you at 6:30pm.” Kagami concluded, she finished up the last of her orange juice, paying for their drinks and waving goodbye to Marinette before heading back to her family’s car.  

Marinette smiled and waved as Kagami left and started heading home, she wanted to wear something different to the concert tonight so she hurried home and went upstairs to change.  

When her alarm sounded the time for her to go pick up Kagami, Marinette was putting the finishing touches on her hair. Pulling her hair into a French braid, and a ribbon to tie it off with, Marinette grabbed her purse, Tikki and phone before yelling good bye to her parents. She had told them at dinner that she was going to Luka’s for a concert and would be taking a friend there. Both of them were happy to see their daughter acting happier than she had been lately and they only asked that she call them if it ended up being past 10pm.  

When she met Kagami on the block they agreed upon, Marinette took a moment to appreciate Kagami’s attire. A red top with slim black hakuma pants paired well together, Marinette admired the combo of traditional and modern that Kagami was able to effortlessly pull off.  

“You look amazing Kagami! I love your aesthetic look.” Marinette had her designing face on that Kagami was able to recognize right away.

“Thank you, Marinette, but now is not the time to get lost in a creative spirit, I have limited time and I would like to make the most of it with you.” She paused to take in Marinette’s outfit, a ruffly pink top with dark grey skinny jeans, it looked cute and comfortable. “You look quite striking yourself. Let us not waste time, please lead the way!” Kagami gave one of her rare smiles to Marinette which made Marinette smile in return.

Together they headed to where the boat was docked and saw a few people already there. Kitty Section was there as well as Mylene and Alix.  

“Marinette!” Luka called as soon as he saw her on the gangplank. His call for her cause Marinette to stumble but she quickly caught herself before falling. Luka rushed up to her, checking to see if she was okay.  

“Sorry for startling you,” Luka apologized. Marinette with a lightly red face just waved her hand.

“N-No it’s okay, I was just a little spaced out, the Liberty looks amazing!” The boat was decked out in streamers and lights, creating a very comfortable atmosphere.

“Anyways, this is Kagami, she was here once before, but I don’t think you got introduced.” Marinette told Luka and turned to face Kagami as she stepped onto the boat.  

“Kagami, this is Luka, the one I was talking to you about before.” Kagami bowed to Luka before recognition kicked in.

“You were the one with us at the skating rink.” Kagami stated, she gave him a quick once over.

“It’s wonderful to see you again.”  

Luka smiled warmly, “Thank you for remembering me, it’s wonderful to see you again too.”  

Luka went and introduced the rest of Kitty Section, Alix, and Mylene before gesturing for Marinette and Kagami to take a seat where ever they liked.  

“We are still waiting for a few people, but it shouldn’t be long now.” Mylene commented. They waited for a few minutes, just talking amongst themselves until the new arrivals came, causing everyone to look up when they entered. Marinette could feel her heart stop at who she saw coming onto the Liberty.  

https://archiveofourown.org/works/34663405/chapters/106896441

Chapter 30