#would be interesting to know about the exorcist's family and how he chose it even after his mother's death or because

[mikimakiboo]

Ghosts & Medium AU by @ancha-aus :3

I'M FINALLY DOOOONE I was busy so I couldn't finish sooner :(

A nice AU idea where Dust is a medium and goes to haunted places to help the ghosts leave and rest in peace :)

Until he finds Killer, a very flirty and clingy ghost who seems to have fallen in love with him at first sight

The post that started it all

And my interpretation of everyone's backstories under the cut !

Tw: mention of torture, death, starvation, possession, religious trauma, sect

Medium Dust

( official backstory )

He had a rough childhood, being bullied most of his life because he kept saying he "could talk to ghosts", that made him the weird kid

He can really talk to ghosts tho, but it depends on how strong the ghost is, if it is a weak ghost he will need material to be able to communicate with them, but if the ghost is strong (like his brother, Killer, Horror and Cross) he will be able to see and talk to them without any material needed

He later decided to use this ability to work as an exorcist and soon became popular as he was one of the rare ghost hunters to actually have good results and not doing it for tv

That's when he met Killer, and regretted chosing this job

He used to be a lone wolf, only talking to his dead brother who never left his side after Dust failed to reanimate his body after studying necromancy, but now he is a tired guy trying to monitor four ghosts and a demon, and killing himself isn't an option for a very obvious reason that is: he would become a ghost too

Ghost Killer

( official backstory )

I wrote his backstory in an ask before making this post

Quick summary: Killer was a hitman who killed a very important man (possibly mafia boss), the man's family got mad, kidnapped him, kept him tied up in their cave to torture him and make him pay for the murder, and ended up leaving him to die in an abandoned train wagon, still tied up so he wouldn't escape, due to that Killer is deeply afraid of loneliness and ropes (and just restraints in general)

He caught an interest in Dust because for the first time someone wanted to know him, and having been manipulated all his life the fact that Dust asked him things about himself and listened to what he had to say made him fall for him in an instant

He then swore to stay by his side no matter what ! Dust is not happy about that

Priest Cross

Cross is the priest of the universe !

Why did he become a priest ? To please his father, and as a punishment too

Cross's father, XGaster, didn't like that his son was bisexual and after trying many conversion therapies he forced him to go to the church and become a priest so that he would devote his life to God, never take a partner, and hopefully quit being bi

Cross, of course, got influenced by his father's opinions and thinks that being a priest is the best choice, he got traumatized by the therapies and genuinely thinks that being bi is a sin and that he will burn in hell of he ever feels attracted to a man

Needless to say he didn't take it well when he realized he was attracted to FOUR men, one of them being a demon, two of them being dead, and one of them (Killer) having possessed his body to flirt with Dust (Cross was supposed to exorcize him but messed up and Killer possessed his body instead, so now Cross is the ghost following Dust around, waiting to take his body back, and having to witness his own body flirting with Dust)

Ghost Horror

Horror was born and spent all of his life in a sect in the middle of nowhere, not that he wanted to leave anyway, but even if he wanted to he couldn't have reached out to anyone because there wasn't anyone aware of their existence

Food was sacred in the sect, so much that it would be used as sacrifice for their supreme leader (Undyne) and that only the worthy would be allowed to eat, and they still didn't have much food left

Horror was part of the worthy, he believed whole heartedly that the sect was good and only ever acted for its good

Until his brother made a mistake and was left to starve

And Horror loved his brother way more than he loved the sect, so needless to say his death greatly affected him

He started questioning Undyne, questioning the sect, and of course he got into troubles for that

He was hit, his head got badly injured, and he got locked up in the room where they left those unworthy of food, he later died of hunger

He haunts Dust now, and he always makes sure he eats during the day, being very scared that he might be hungry too as he had been hungry all of his life and died because of that, he is very insecure about food and always scared that there won't be enough

Demon Nightmare

A demon born in heaven and banished in hell, twin brother of an angel

Angels don't want to hear about him as he is a demon and demons don't trust him as he has angel magic in him and angel magic is more powerful than demon magic

Thanks to, or because of, the angel magic Nightmare is one of the most powerful demons in hell and quickly got a reputation among mortals who summon him quite often

But the thing is, he is too powerful, and demons don't trust him even if he never showed any sign of rebellion, but to prevent any risk they decided to lock him away, separating his spirit (not his soul as demons don't have souls) from his body, leaving him as a broken version of himself only able to do small spells

But he still has a reputation, and Dust summoned him in hope he could do something for all the ghosts already following him, and Nightmare agreed on one condition: Dust had to give him his body back

Lots of things happened, Nightmare got his body back and is now tied to Dust because of their deal, but he never gets rid of the ghosts because he grew attached to them even tho he won't admit it, he will say that he finds them untertaining instead

Anyway Nightmare has big trust issues as he was betrayed by heaven first (and by Dream who did nothing to defend him) and then by hell, so it takes a long time for him to admit liking the group as deep inside he's still afraid they're gonna turn their back on him like everyone else did

(He also tries to convince Dream to stop trying to exorcize Dust when there is clearly no need to (Dust doesn't agree with him))

God Error

A God with not many followers but the few he's got are very devoted

His followers tried to sacrifice Dust once as they recognized he had a great power (plus the fact he had a demon following him around), but of course Dust's mates stalkers intervened and killed the followers

Blood having been spilled, and followers' blood being a greater sacrifice than other people's blood, Error got summoned, but instead of being mad that his followers got killed he was actually curious of Dust and declared him as his high priest to keep an eye on him and his little teammates

Error now shows up once in a while to appreciate some drama, Nightmare also became his new gossip buddy as Error talks shit about other Gods and Nightmare talks shit about Angels and Demons

[zhivchik]

[mari-lair]

Would you be willing to do an analysis on the way Teru acts with Akane? I personally love how comfortable he appears with Akane compared to pretty much everyone else.

The way Teru acts with Akane is something I deeply treasure, so I’m happy to talk about it!

We don't know how they feel into their routine but we know Teru couldn't hide he is an exorcist from Akane, who is involved in supernaturals too. There is no point in censoring himself when Akane already knows he can be just as cold and ruthless as he can be gentle, so Teru has a place where he can be more relaxed. Teru is still a guarded person though, so the one speaking the most is Akane.

Despite being seen as merciless at the start of their dynamic, he lets Akane go into detail about his life and obsessions in a way most characters would get weirded out by.  Teru isn’t being indulgent, he genuinely enjoys listening to Akane and learning about him and Aoi. He absolves everything his vice president says, so proud of how much he knows about Akane that he shares his knowledge with his family.

He values their talks, but he never hesitates to bully Akane.

That’s because Teru truly alleviates stress when he bullies Akane, and he is confident Akane won’t run away no matter how much he beat him. He knows Akane well after all, just like he could tell that Akane would value an enchanted pair of glasses, he can also tell the guy is not the ‘run away’ or ‘will get revenge’ type, considering him someone strong enough to handle his bullshit.

So Teru gets to have both his chat pal, and his stress relief.

Somewhere along their strange relationship Teru's interest turned into trust, he relaxed enough near Akane to lower his walls, until the insults and gushing about his family got more personal, effortlessly sharing thoughts that reveal a lot about Teru as a person.

Each time Teru is honest he only gets honesty back, and proof that Akane may be mild mannered and rude, but he is very smart. He usually understands what Teru wants to communicate like no one else does, and while he isn’t as cold as Teru, he doesn’t treat him like a monster either, just an asshole.

This encourages Teru to keep being more open about himself.

I want to bring attention to Teru’s smile here cause it may be small and subtle but it isn’t fake. He is more intrigued and amused than annoyed. When he shocks the poor guy there are stars on his speech bubble, he gets genuine joy from bullying Akane, which is a far cry from the disgust he shows when killing supernaturals.

He even admitted in the spin off that he have fun bullying him:

At its core, Teru feels accepted by Akane.

Teru knows his life is way too different from Akane’s life, he is an exorcist, he is not normal, but that doesn’t bother him as much when he talks with Akane, cause Akane is weird in his own way and he always listens. He treasures info on Teru just as much as Teru treasures info on him.

Is very clear Akane can not follow Teru's thought process or fully predict Teru, but he can grasp his mood and he knows when Teru is being serious. He still understands Teru better than anyone.

Teru is someone that’s hard to work with, that’s something even Teru himself acknowledges, but his conversations with Akane are effortless. It genuinely doesn’t matter that he isn’t normal or that his personality is shit, cause Akane already accepted that, and he chose to stay by his side anyway.

Akane can respect Teru while disagreeing with him. He can be completely caught off guard by a request and still go along with it, doing his best to keep up and unconsciously encouraging Teru to keep being himself, no matter how strange and hard to handle his honest self is.

Is no wonder Teru is so comfortable when he’s with Akane.

This extra also explicitly tell us that Akane is wise in his eyes, and that's big for Teru.

For as much as Teru loves to trick Akane, he is never being condescending, that's just his extremally questionable way to display affection, which I won't go in detail here.

When it matters Teru fully trusts Akane's intellect. The most obvious example is in chapter 73: At the Minamoto's House

Teru normally doesn't expect much from people, even from people he love, like Kou, but he believes Akane can reach the truth on his own. He is still awful at expressing his admiration but the fact he doesn't cut Akane off, only edging him to keep laying his logic out is very telling.

He trusts Akane to reach the right conclusion. And while Akane's view ins't perfect for Teru, his overall analysis of his reasons and actions doesn't fail, the amount of respect and pride he has for Akane is ridiculous. Just look at his face.

Akane is the person Teru trusts the most in the series as of now, but that's an analysis for another time.

[2n2n]

The circumstances of Tsukasa’s murder: what they be?

There isn't much discussion of the probable context around Amane and Tsukasa's situation, so I want to ruminate a little on it, and provide my little theories for it.

We know the Yugi's mother quickly believed Tsukasa was not his true self, but was replaced by some sort of interloper. I also think, in light of this, it's obvious Amane's extrapolating on his Real Lunar Rock, is him talking about his  boundless acceptance of Tsukasa, who he chose to believe in as real, even if nobody else believed it. Even if he appears crazy for his conviction, or stupid. He doesn't care: Tsukasa is real to him, and precious. Amane even claims he found this rock, at age 4-- the age Tsukasa disappeared, and returned to him, a little over half a year later. He remarks on its incredible journey to get to him.

here are Amane's words on his Lunar Rock:

"I have a lunar rock! It came one night when I think I was about four. It fell from the sky, right in front of me. This is it! Would you believe me if I said it was real? (clearly just a rock) [...] but we believe it's real. And that's why... no  matter what anyone says, this is a lunar rock! Sensei, how far do you think the moon is from the earth? It's more than 380 kilometers away! And that's how far this baby traveled to get here from the moon! Isn't that incredible!? Even  a rock like this... can go that far. It's my prize possession. [...] The moon's so big and beautiful. Maybe that's why... I just... feel like it's gotta be a really great place. [...] it's just... whenever I look at that rock, I feel like I could go  anywhere. But... I've made up my mind now. I'm not going anywhere."

read more below the cut. Discussions of suicide proceed.

So, perhaps Amane doubled down on believing in Tsukasa. How would that effect their family dynamic? It is doubtful their mother would reject Tsukasa, but support Amane's love for him. If anything, Amane believing in Tsukasa,  would create more tension between the entire family. Perhaps in some way, both twins would be placed in harm, or isolated, as a result of sticking together. Abandoning Tsukasa or rejecting him would have more likely benefited Amane, but he chose otherwise. His life is effected thusly:

"This happens every single day. Don't you think... its about time you told me who's behind this?[...] You've been like this since your first year here. You're covered in cuts and bruises that never go away, you don't have any friends,  you skip class. .. " -Tsuchigomori-sensei

Amane is isolated. Interestingly, this is our confirmation Amane has no friends or social life, which casts an interesting light on this line he speaks to Yashiro, in volume 1:

"Doing things with someone after school, talking about whatever, it's like having a friend... and... I don't know. It just takes me back." Hanako

The word he uses here is actually "Natsukashii" which has a more sentimental, sweet, warm-hearted nostalgia in it. But what friend is he referring to? Perhaps he is thinking about Tsukasa. We have seen plenty of  Tsukasa and Amane having beautiful, delightful times together, at festivals, in their back yard, etc.... from what we know of Amane's life, it could only be Tsukasa who is applicable for him to warmly reminisce on. There are no other friends.

The Yugi's mother appears very traditional, in dress, in candor, and, given her beseeching the Minamoto clan exorcists for help, in her belief system. By contrast their dad looks very 'modern', having adopted a western aesthetic  (which is just catching on in this era). Their house itself is an even mix of traditional Japanese housing, and western sensibilities. From room to room we oscillate from Tatami mats and futons, to kinda victorian/gothic decorations  and carpetting.

I sortof think Amane and Tsukasa will be parallels of their parents-- Tsukasa, similar to their mother, and Amane, taking after their father. I suppose this kind of narrative association is just very common, so I’m quick to conclude it.... Amane is interested in  sciences and new-age technological achievements, while Tsukasa wears traditional garments suchas a Kimono and Hakama, and is a mystical wish-granter. The Gakuran Amane wears is also a look that was inspired by military fashions, and at the time was pretty new-age aesthetically.

How did the Yugi's parents handle this concept, that Tsukasa was not himself? Would dad have followed mom's belief system? It feels unlikely to me-- if he's more modern-thinking, maybe her hysterical belief in something  mythological was something that came between them. What if Tsukasa's controversial existence broke their family apart? What if coming back, ruins the family? What if Amane, by doubling-down on supporting Tsukasa, drives a stake between  himself and their mother? These all feel possible, and like reasonable circumstances to produce a very dangerous, caustic, household.

But beyond the Yugi family, what might the greater town have felt, of Tsukasa? Kunishige is quickly suspicious of Tsukasa after his brief experience. How many small, ominous interactions could anyone have with Tsukasa, before knowledge collects about this dangerous child? How many suspicious circumstances before action is taken to contain, subdue, or 'exorcise' him? How will their mother deal with Tsukasa, who she believes is evil, at home?

We know the Minamoto clan's grandmother forbade anyone from interacting with the Red House. Later, it is her, who somehow seals Hanako, at great effort-- the seal we see him with, now. It's claimed by Kou that she used all of  her strength to seal him. Why and how was she aware of Hanako? What was Hanako doing, to arouse interest in himself? How powerful was he, pre-sealing, and what did he use that power for? As she already has awareness of the Red House, and is old enough to have interacted with them when alive,  we can assume she had some sort of take or view of the Yugi family while it was still percolating.

Why is Tsukasa's held item a radio? We see the exact same radio in an illustration by Aidairo, where Amane and Tsukasa watch TV together. The radio appears to be one they had in their home. Tsukasa appears to be able to  manifest it as easily as Hanako manifests his knife from his body. Perhaps the radio was a part of his living life, and emotionally significant to him in some way. It frequently parallel’s Hanako’s knife in illustrations. Could the function of manipulating rumors to create circumstances, itself, be inspired by a mundane radio’s power to spread (mis)information, and turn any idea into truth through broadcast? It’s conjecture at this far-flung point,, but, I could see how Tsukasa, a child rumored to be evil and dangerous, whos life may have been altered progressively by said rumors, would have strong feelings about manipulable masses creating dangerous circumstances through nothing but their own paranoid conviction in their inevitability.

So, spitballing all of this into some kind of vague theories: Perhaps Tsukasa, at a point, was no longer allowed to attend school. Perhaps Amane attended it alone. Perhaps Tsukasa was kept locked in their house, to avoid him 'causing' any incidents, or attracting attention. Perhaps the radio was something  Tsukasa listened to all day, if he was kept alone for many hours. Perhaps Amane would skip class, and avoid his studies, to spend time with Tsukasa. Perhaps bonding with Tsukasa, and misbehaving, placed him in a dangerous position. Perhaps  Tsukasa was subjected to any manner of torture in the form of attempted exorcism or restriction. It is hard to imagine their mom was loving towards him.

Amane does imply an allegiance with the person who is harming him:

"Even if no one else would ever forgive it... even if there's no reason that would justify it... I forgive it." Amane

He is also extremely flippant and casual about the wounds themselves. He smiles and declares them 'nothing', he scoffs at Tsuchigomori's concern, he is annoyed by his prying. He condescends to and rebukes Tsuchigomori's attempt at  consoling him. Even now, as Hanako, Amane is still dismissive and belittling of Tsuchigomori's concern for him-- happy to condescend to him by acting a little pathetic to manipulate him into some menial task, suchas providing test  answers, or letting him play cafe with his friends. He is not precious, despite being the one person to try to reach out to him in this period of suffering. He seems to treat Tsuchigomori as if he is out of his depth, unable to understand his situation, undeserving of hearing about it. Amane likely already knows the situation he is in,  would 'look bad', and yet, he finds this perspective cheap and of no value to hear. It is complicated. So complicated, he can't trust anybody with it, no matter how well-meaning they seem to be. He doesn't want to explain it, only to have it maligned, judged, or himself seen as a victim. I doubt Amane wants to be seen as a victim... if Tsukasa is in any way suffering.

Whatever is happening, Amane genuinely wants to keep outsiders, out of it. Being offered help is annoying to him. It seems to process like-- it's a misunderstanding, to pity him as a victim, or to demonize whoever is doing this as a  boogeyman who awaits punishment. Amane is protecting the person who is doing this. It's likely Tsukasa. Amane does not believe Tsukasa deserves punishment for what he is doing to him. Amane is likely very sympathetic to  Tsukasa's situation, whatever it is. It may deserve our sympathy, too.

Perhaps swearing off of space-travel, wishing to forget about the moon and stars entirely, ties in to this. Achieving his dreams, would mean abandoning Tsukasa, and not being there to protect him from whatever mom, or the  Minamoto clan, may do to him. In this circumstance, achieving dreams suchas this would become repugnant, horrifying.

Whenever Amane declares his resolve to "not go anywhere", he is proud, smiling. It would make sense to be proud of yourself, for doubling down further on your allegiance to a suffering party, and to wish to prove to Tsukasa, that he  will always be here for him, with him-- even as no one else is any longer. Tsukasa, who Amane already lost once, is precious, to Amane. They appear to have spent a good deal of years together in bliss, and perhaps it is only deteriorating, now.

Another detail of note, is that Tsukasa is obscured in illustrations of him and Amane, from periods we haven’t yet fully revealed in-manga.

His back is facing the viewer, in every one. We do not see his expression, we see Amane's.

The only illustration we seem to have of Tsukasa from these obfuscated ages thus far, is likely this shot, from the Hell of Mirrors

(the Hell of Mirrors never reflect yourself. They reflect what you don’t want to see, things you are afraid of. Hanako as well appears to have killed himself via stabbing his gut-- where he’s been illustrated stabbing, as well as where he pulls his knife from when he summons it for use. This body appears to be bleeding from its chest, where I theorize he stabbed Tsukasa. It also has the same little chest-window as Tsukasa does in his current outfit.)

The only illustration we have of them both around 8-13, are the shots of them at their middleschool entrance.

Those with loving families-- Mitsuba, Yashiro-- are pictured with their loving parents.

The Minamotos, we know are estranged from their busy dad, and as their mom passed away, are alone, just siblings, no parents.

Why are the Yugis without both of their previously loving parents? .. Perhaps just to save their reveal for later? Or is there something to be said about their family dynamic, by this time?

Finally, we know that whatever happened to the Yugi household, was read by authorities as an ikka-shinju situation-- a (generally understood as somehow considerate or thoughtful) family suicide. 4 were found dead. This means up until the final moments, mom, dad, Tsukasa, and  Amane shared the house-- so dad leaving or what have you, is out of the question, as far as we know. It was not investigated as a homicide or murder-- it is different for it to have been termed as shinju. For whatever reason, what  appeared to have transpired looked as if it were willful and desired of those involved.

We know Amane killed Tsukasa, and then himself.

Another element to consider in this.... is the inclusion of the short historical fiction story, Takase-Bune, in this manga, and the themes it has in common with Jibaku Shounen.

Amane is reading Takase-Bune aloud at the beginning of the Picture Perfect arc. To summarize.... the short story is about a criminal, being ferried to his exile on an island, for the crime of killing his brother. The guard ferrying him there, is astonished by his lack of visible guilt or unrest, as well as nobody at all accompanying him on this journey. The boy explains his story: that himself and his brother were orphaned together, and struggled to make a living. They lived hand to mouth, no money between them. One of the brothers became chronically ill, and never recovered, unable to work again. Seeing himself as nothing but a burden to his hardworking brother who is so long-suffering... he attempts to kill himself. He fails, merely stabbing himself in the throat, and bleeding out painfully for a long duration. His brother finds him in this condition, and is left with the choice of what to do-- the brother begs for him to pull out the implement, and kill him. Faced with the options, the boy did so, and was discovered by a neighbor, who saw the scene in her own eyes as a homicide, and reported him to the police. 

The story is meant to make you question if the boy is truly guilty of a crime, or not. His brother was begging for death, and in such a condition he was unlikely to be saved, even if dragged to a hospital. He was miserable, and guilty, to have become nothing but a cost to his poor, suffering brother, who loved him. The boy convicted is calm-- he is simply excited to have room and board, and a steady supply of work, meals, and even a little money, in his imprisoned life on the island. He has never had such luxuries in life, struggling as he was.

  The story also criticizes society, the ills of it, responsible for these boys suffering... and even the guardsman reflects on his meager, unsatisfying life with a paltry salary that cannot provide him much beyond food, either. The guardsman is not certain if he could convict this man of murder... but concedes to the law being absolute, and having made its call on this situation. 

  ....Tsukasa, at age 4, saw himself as a burden to Amane. He was an annoying, and unnecessary element to his life.... Amane saying, "If I could be healthy like you, I wouldn't need anything else!" causes Tsukasa to easily conclude: he is not essential to Amane's happiness. Tsukasa sacrifices his life, to provide Amane with a prosperous future. It bares some resemblance to Takase-Bune as it is, but I don't think that will be the end of it... I think the circumstances in which Amane murdered Tsukasa, will also be morally vague and complicated, a result of circumstances that were not easily or well remedied no matter what. Amane himself is incredibly guilt-ridden about Tsukasa, and constantly asserts that he is paying for his crime. He sees what he did as unjustifiable. Whatever the circumstances were... he regrets what he did, and lives his entire life in service of it.

  [the phrasing in Japanese I would say is more like.... ‘horrible, special’ ‘awful, special’ or something.....]

Morally vague actions are a general theme of JSHK, and we explore them on the ends of humans (the Minamoto clan's atrocities in human sacrifice, and slaughtering of countless yokai, the enslaving of the innocent and mild-mannered Oni, among others), and supernaturals (Hakubo, the Oni, his entire existence as a loyal servant of the Minamoto clan, made to commit atrocities, and finally, committing some out of love of the mistreated and sacrificed Sumire). The entire village that used to occupy this territory..... was steeped in misery, brought about by other humans, and supernaturals, alike.

You're generally supposed to understand every character as complex and responding to their own motivations.... even if Teru might threaten and demean Mitsuba’s existence as pointless, his journey for a place in this world as pointless, or Hanako may trade Aoi's life for Yashiro's. Tsukasa will be no exception. The pressures of the Minamoto clan's ruthlessness are what Hanako initially claims is his motivation for destroying Yorishiro-- an act which he knows from the very beginning will result in the Severance and come with an extreme cost-- because if they don't hurry and work out this insurrection fast, the Minamoto will take care of it by slaughtering all of them. 

The perpetuation of violence and hatred is contributed to by humans and supernaturals alike.

..... so I don’t think anything will be so simple as this crude early theory an ignorant Yashiro proposes

well...... and so..... to throw my hat over the fence.......my ultimate theory, it is this: whatever happened, Amane did it all as a gesture of devotion and commitment to Tsukasa.... but perhaps, at a point when he wishes he had acted sooner, to have not waited for it to become inescapable and horrible. Perhaps life was unbearable, and Tsukasa was miserable, and hurting him in that misery. Perhaps Tsukasa was afraid of losing Amane... or guilty and burdened by his coming back, how it destroyed his prosperous future, just as he knew it would. Amane perhaps begins to profess, declare, that he will not leave him, ever, tearing up moon-landing news in Tsuchigomori’s classroom. Maybe killing Tsukasa, and then himself, was a final declaration of his promise to stay with him... and his resolve to refuse to live a life without Tsukasa in it. That he would rather die. Whether Tsukasa finally killed one or both of their parents, or if their mom finally truly snapped with intent to kill Tsukasa, or their dad killed their mom and himself for her irrationality or something... I have no idea, I think all of that can go absolutely any way.

Perhaps, like Hakubo and Sumire, they should have ran away together much earlier, but didn’t, until there was no choice.

I’m not convinced Tsukasa is without guilt and regrets. I’m more convinced that all of Tsukasa’s actions in canon, are orchestrated in an attempt to ultimately grant Amane a gigantic wish, to finally achieve happiness for Amane, which Tsukasa has always wanted, selflessly, at all costs. Amane, a boy born with a destined-short-lifespan, has no options within the boundaries of this world... it makes sense to me that Tsukasa wishes to defy and break down all of the structures at play. He loves Amane, and fate was senselessly cruel to him. Perhaps the world must be broken, to grant the unfortunate Amane a happy life. And Who Am I To Say He’s Wrong, This World Fucking Sucks, Fuck It Up Tsukasa!!!! 

Tsukasa is, after all, self-defeating and quick to believe he is worthless.

I’m not so sure this has truly changed. Guess we’ll see! Uhm. I think Tsukasa is an angel. Trying to grant a blessing. But that would be a whole other post I guess.... ♥

[jasontoddiefor]

Tyki Mikk is a Clone and I can (almost) prove it

Tyki Mikk is undoubtedly a fan favorite and yet we don’t really know a lot about him. For a character that was created with the purpose of being handsome (cf. D.Gray-Man Manga Volume 5, page 150), he carries a lot of baggage and has a rather unclear past. A theory that has haunted me since I read chapter 198 and has only grown in strength with the most recent arc is that Tyki is in fact a clone of Nea. As far fetched as this seems at start, there is quite a bit of evidence supporting this theory.

1) Tyki’s visible similarity to Nea (and Mana)

One of the first things Wisely remarks on when he meets Tyki is his similarity to “a certain man” (Chapter 187).

This similarity is picked up twice more in the manga. When Allen meets Nea for the first time (cf. chapter 198), he mistakes him for Tyki at first.

And it is brought up a third time by Nea himself in chapter 225 when he says:

To which Tyki, or rather Joyd, has this wonderful reaction:

But more on that guy specifically later. Point being right here is that three different characters, or four if you want to count Road and Wisely separately, acknowledge that Tyki resembles Nea a lot, down to the man himself. How does that saying go again? Once An Accident, Twice A Coincidence, Three Times A Pattern? This is something that repeatedly gets brought up again. And this is without going into detail on how much Tyki resembles not only Nea, but said man’s identical twin as well. Just look at that dashing long hair!

And take this from chapter 158 as well

Pretty long haired boy Mana is nothing new as of chapter 218 and 219:

Another interesting point here is that Tyki is the exact same height as the Earl in human form! They’re both 188cm tall. Nea, on the other hand, is listed at being 177cm. This could just be that Nea unfortunately ended up as the shorter twin, or, we take into consideration what Mana tells Allen/Red in chapter 238:

He remembers being seventeen, which means that he and Nea probably weren’t done growing yet when the “Earl” corrupted Mana. (It also kind of makes everything about Nea more hilarious if you realize he’s just seventeen.) Tyki, however, is 26 when we first meet him and should be around 27 now. He is an actual adult and not bound to hit another growth spurt.

But to summarize the first argument: Tyki looks uncannily similar to Nea and Mana and the manga keeps pointing it out so we can assume this resemblance is important.

2) Cloning is possible in canon

Now the second point is just here to point out that we know cloning to be possible. Funnily, Tyki’s resemblance to Nea gets pointed out just before the Alma Arc, which very much deals with the concept of reincarnation – only there we have the brains of deceased Exorcists transplanted into youthful bodies.

However, it’s not as if something like DNA hasn’t been mentioned before. Specifically, it has been called “Helix of life” by no other than maybe-former-Bookman but definitely First-Nea-host Past!Allen in chapter 221:

So let’s assume that, in the aftermath of Nea’s “death”, PastA didn’t just wait around for Nea to wake again, but tried to find a vessel for him. Messing around with this helix, and whatever other dubious science and magic this world had to offer, and created a new body to host Nea. Except he failed, and the result is Tyki.

But if that is so, shouldn’t Tyki remember anything about that? Good question. Time for some more shady weird stuff about Tyki.

3) The Missing Years

In chapter 202, while the Earl is resting, Tyki talks to Road. I don’t speak Japanese, so I can’t verify which translation is more accurate, but I’ve found these two:

Now the official German one also goes with a similar translation as the second one here, implying that Tyki has been with the Earl for ten years. In any case, the fact that this decade at all gets mentioned is quite odd because it doesn’t match up with what we know of Mana travelling with Allen. Cross calls Allen a “ten-year-old brat” (chapter 208) when he looks after him. So between Mana travelling with Allen and current canon, only 6 years have passed – what are up with the other 4 that are supposedly within this decade? We don’t have a definite age for how old Allen was when he met Mana, but I’d say around 7 or older. That’s still not enough to fill out the decade they speak about here.

Now, presuming that it does in fact refer to Tyki staying with the Earl for that time, we’re either left with assuming that the Earl acted as a separate entity as we see in 218, or that Tyki’s memories are just flat out wrong.

4) Tyki Mikk’s Canon-Typical Ignorance AKA The Baby of The Family

The more often Tyki appears, the more we see how much he actually doesn’t know about the going-ons of the war, or even himself. This goes back as far as the Ark Arc in chapter 130 with the Earl pointing out that:

So this form is apparently something that all Noah of Pleasure can take on, a sort of second stage of awakening. Still, it feels significant that Tyki separates his life so much into “black” and “white”, “Noah” and “human”, going as far as suppressing a part of his Noah. It puts him in direct opposition to Skinn, who was more or less entirely consumed by his Noah memories. Though, perhaps this is also just a narrative ploy because a character with the ability to chose is, frankly speaking, fuck off overpowered and the only reason why Tyki isn’t constantly leveling battlefields is probably that he just doesn’t know how to apply himself.

Regardless, Tyki’s ignorance also becomes visible in chapter 187 again when he wonders about his Noah name:

Nobody else reacts like he does, even though the other Noah haven’t been awake as long as he has and also should have retained the same memory damage as Joyd after Nea’s murder spree. Yet Tyki feels a little like the baby of the family, still learning and growing while everyone else is already in the know, which can’t be too far from the truth if we look at chapter 225:

Wisely and Road definitely know that something went down and kept it from Tyki for so long for reasons. So besides Allen learning the truth sometime in the future, Tyki is also heading towards some kind of realization – and honestly, what better than the fact that the man who enjoys his freedom and roam so much, was artificially created?

Road could have manipulated his subconsciousness, his memories. It’s a miracle really that the Earl hadn’t had a breakdown around Tyki already given how much he looks like Nea. And if Tyki really awoke as a Noa a decade ago, then eh would have been right the age Nea was when he died. The Earl should have reacted in one way or another.

Other small details that don’t add up is a) the claim that Tyki and Sheril are actual brothers. They have different last names, which would imply that they are perhaps rather half siblings, sharing one parent, or maybe they just aren’t related at all in the first place. The other thing is that Nea recognizing Tyki’s face immediately after confronting Mana about his changed appearance just adds even more suspicion.

5) TLDR

Tyki is either a clone or something else messy went down because there’s no way that there’s a natural Nea and Mana copy running around who also just so happens to be a Noah. No way.

Thanks for coming to my  TED talk I’m never writing meta again this was a nightmare to post.

[variousqueerthings]

Favourite Horror Tv Shows (Unranked)

The Haunting Of Hill House 

You want trauma in your ghosts? You want plottwists and time shenanigans? You want excruciatingly beautifully shot episodes? You want m o n o l o g u e s ! Family drama! Shirley Jackson with a twist?

I’m someone who generally loves Mike Flanagan’s work, because he’s not particularly pretentious about it. He clearly just loves horror as a metaphor for grief and trauma in particular, and also his wife Kate Siegel, and I think that’s sexy of him. 

This is definitely my favourite out of everything he’s made though, movies included. 

The Exorcist

Underrated! Wonderful! Queer! It’s unfortunate that this show was so misjudged that it didn’t reach the audience that it would have thrived under. I imagine a bunch of angry edgy fanboys wouldn’t be too happy with queer priests (amongst others) and feminist horror. 

Geena Davies in season 1. John Cho and Brianna Hildebrand in season 2. And the leads (Marcus and Tomas) are the version of partners-in-crime (sometimes literally crime) who pine for each other that for once isn’t grounded in no homo. 

The tenderness of affixing someone’s priest collar 🥺

(they get this close the first time they meet. this is their first meeting).

Buffy The Vampire Slayer

The Classic! Created so many tropes! And, despite J*ss Wh*d*n being a dick, full of women who are played by wonderful, talented actresses, and who get (for the most part) interesting, harrowing, fulfilling, varied narratives. 

I really didn’t see a genre show with this many female leads again until... I wanna throw out a year like 2015-2016. And even then, this one breaks the mold in terms of sheer accessibility and fun and inventiveness!

Sarah Michelle Gellar is an icon. This is her show!

Santa Clarita Diet

You know that post that’s like: My favourite “het” couples in film are actually bisexual. You know when a woman is unhinged and her husband is simply there to assist her in that goal? You love domestic serial killers? Zombies with-a-twist? Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant being married? 

Literally what’s not to love? Sometimes your spouse becomes a zombie and because you love her, you’re going to help find the right victims (usually nazis) and hide the bodies. I don’t even like the idea of marriage, but if this is what it’s about, I finally get it!

Twin Peaks

I feel like I’m due a rewatch of this. The tragedy of it wasn’t lost on me when I was younger, but I was definitely very caught up in the eerie dreaminess and idiosyncrasies of the characters. 

Also, I still haven’t seen Fire Walk With Me, which I feel would help to recenter the whole narrative where it rightfully belongs: With Laura Palmer.

It’s aesthetically so right though. It draws you in, it unsettles you, it embodies the idea of a place being alive. 

Not to mention we love Dale Cooper in this household! 

The Addams Family

Okay before there were any other married couples, there was Morticia and Gomez Addams. 

This show is so funny - so many of the gags you see in the later movies that are also still hilarious are directly from the original show. 

I’ve got no ability to say how this was appreciated in the 60s, but considering it only had two seasons I feel like Not Enough. 

Somethingsomething ahead of its time, very subversive, Gomez Addams is Sean Astin’s stepfather, which feels important to me.

The Twilight Zone 

Speaking of ahead-of-its-time right? 

This show is everything! It has everything! It’s fantastic writing! It’s gorgeous set-up-and-pay-off! It’s political! It’s spooky! It’s anthology! It’s classic! It’s wild to me that its first season was in 1959, but it was a time of change and this fits perfectly into that push against all kinds of sensibilities and norms, both within Hollywood and America beyond.

Rod Sterling was a masterclass writer and anyone interested in the strange and unusual, but also just in good stories put to screen ought to watch this. 

Seriously: The Classic!

Hannibal

The joke I was going to make was “haha look I chose a gif for this show that’s less about Cannibalism and more about how gay these two are,” but honestly a large proportion of the gifs are about how gay these two are, and isn’t the show really a gay dramedy when you get down to it? 

The inverse Pushing Daisies, the continuation of Bryan Fuller’s perfect career of making beloved - and then cancelled - shows (Wonderfalls, Dead Like Me, Pushing Daisies, Hannibal... what next?) and my personal favourite of the bunch, because I love gothic gay idiots.

Chucky

I’ve seen the first 4 episodes. I love the film franchise (me, having watched the Child’s Play Verse films in the last two months, clutching them to my chest and hissing like a cat). 

It is more enjoyable if you watch the movies first, since it situates itself in an already-established verse and narrative, but it’s a fascinatingly built world that - because of its continued story through the last 30 years - feels very congruent to its own internal wacky laws. 

It also has queerness baked into its bones and I’m fascinated by how it’ll delve further into that legacy now that it’s become more possible to be direct about it. 

[natsubeatsrock]

Anime Recommendations Based on Fairy Tail's Big Four Ships

I've been meaning to do this for a long time. (I feel like I'm saying that a lot, nowadays...)

The Big Four ships of Fairy Tail are ubiquitous among fans. It's hard to find too many people that don't like even one of them. If you're a fan of Fairy Tail, chances are that you like all of them to some degree. It would make sense to find shows that have dynamics similar to the ships we love. Who better than I to make a list like that?

Someone that actually likes the Big Four ships, for a start.

Anyone who's followed me over the years knows I was never going to write that kind of list. Originally, I was only going to deal with shows that handled the dynamics in ways I personally thought better. However, I put it on the back burner for a few months. And a few months became a few years.

Now that I'm actually setting out to try to write this, I've decided that I would make a bit of a compromise. Two recommendations for each ship. Both play with the dynamic in some way. One plays with it in a manner closer to the ship it's compared to and is what I would recommend to true fans of the ship. The other is a much looser parallel and does things I'd imagine people who didn't like the ship would like. Hopefully, you'll find some show that you like regardless of your feelings about the ships.

Nalu (Positive Recommendation): Twin Star Exorcists

This wasn't as tough a decision for me to make as one might expect given my history with the ship. When Rokuro and Benio have something of a chance encounter, they don't get off on the right foot. However, they realize they have more in common with each other than they'd like to admit. They go from outright hating each other to loving each other throughout 50 episodes. Of course, it helps that the fate of the world is dependent on them getting married and having a kid together. When I think of the best things about Nalu, I think about the relationship between Rokuro and Benio.

Nalu (Negative Recommendation): Snow White with the Red Hair

Shirayuki, the character the title describes, is an herbalist. The show focuses on her journey to becoming recognized as a court herbalist and her growing romantic relationship with Prince Zen Wisteria. As the show progresses, they each end up encouraging each other towards reaching their own ambitions. I could see the argument made that this is a better parallel for Nalu than the show I recommended. But, as someone who's made a name ragging on the ship, I think I'm in a good position to make this call.

Gruvia (Positive Recommendation): Momokuri

The heck is a Clannad? The show starts with a confession of love and a couple starting to date. That would be the end of most romances, but the fun only starts there. It turns out that the guy is not entirely confident with himself and is not sure how to properly handle a relationship with a girl older than him. The girl, on the other hand, has been borderline stalking him before their relationship started and still struggles to stop following him. I hope it doesn't come off as an insult to say that I kept thinking about Gruvia watching this show. This is one of the fluffier shows I've seen.

Gruvia (Negative Recommendation): Golden Time

Stop me if this sounds familiar. There's a girl who's been really in love with a guy for years, to the point some would call it unhealthy or obsessive. Unfortunately, the guy's not into her and all but shatters her heart with the declaration that he's found someone else he likes and can only see them as friends. But in swoops someone else who has been watching everything go down and sympathizes with her. How will their romance go? On a completely unrelated note, it's weird to see Golden Time and think that this was both written and animated during Fairy Tail's serialization. Almost as if writing Toradora gave the author psychic powers.

Jerza (Positive Recommendation): Romeo x Juliet

If you're going into this with the expectation of a straight adaptation of William Shakespeare's famous play about star-crossed lovers, you will be disappointed. However, Studio Gonzo took the story and turned it into an interesting fantasy and romance series. This show gets my nod on account of playing up both the romance and inter-family conflict of the original play. Jerza represents people on opposite sides of a conflict trying their best to work together against an enemy they're slowly but surely realizing they share. Be forewarned, though. This is still an adaptation of Romeo x Juliet.

Jerza (Negative Recommendation): Our love has always been 10 cm. apart

Hear me out on this one. Jellal and Erza's relationship involves a desire ultimately to be together despite the things pulling them away from each other, namely themselves. But... does it need to involve the whole "I can't accept that I may or may not be responsible for deaths and human atrocities" plotline running through Jerza? The characters in this show have a similar internal struggle, as the title describes. They just happen to be students in different clubs struggling with how they'll handle their passions before and after graduation, along with their potential romance. Before you watch this, it might be a good idea to be introduced to the characters via the movie “I've always liked you”.

Gajevy (Positive Recommendation): Ookami-san and her Seven Companions

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away- wait, wrong story. Ookami is known as one of the more intimidating people in their school and is the main muscle of one of the school's influential clubs, Otogi Bank. The club's newest member is on the frailer side but proves himself to be both competent and reliable in a pinch. He's been in love with her since the start of the show, but she's pretty slow to accept her own feelings for him.  This one may be a fun pick for people who liked seeing how Gajevy played out. Especially given, that the ship roles are somewhat gender-swapped.

Gajevy (Negative Recommendation): Chivalry of a Failed Knight

Part of me says that I could have put any romances involving a tsundere in this spot. After all, Gajevy's about falling in love despite bad first impressions. Though, my reason for picking this story deals with a rather interesting complaint about the ship: Levy's descent into the background as the series continues. In this story, the characters get together and prove themselves to be competent fighters. Of course, this means more for Ikki Kurogane, the main character, starting from the bottom to become the strongest fighter the school has. However, you never forget that Stella Vermillion is also strong in her own right. Though I'd caution against this if you're not a fan of fan service.

Bonus: Tsuredure Children

As a fun bonus recommendation, I'm throwing in Tsuredure Children. I often worry that fans here care more about the romances in the series than anything else happening. Tsuredure Children provides a fun solution to this problem: make it about nothing but romances. This anime follows a handful of romances at a high school, following different personalities, tropes, and levels of success. There are probably some parallels to these ships, but that's what the other recommendations were for.

And that's all I've got. See you!

What are you still doing on this post?

You saw the title. I did everything I said I was going to do. I even threw in another recommendation. There was no other reason to continue this except for satisfying your own curiosity.

How much more are you expecting of me? I'm only human.

Well, since you're here, it won't hurt to reward your curiosity. Here are two more recommendations, for Zervis. Thankfully, neither deal with the whole “Is this pedophilia?” thing because I never want to talk about that again.

Zervis (Positive Recommendation): Real Girl

If you've seen my end of year favorites, you'll know that I've enjoyed this show. If you'll ignore the laughter of those who've seen this show, I chose this for one important reason. This show plays with the idea of having someone who sees value in you that others don't can be life-changing in a positive way. I have to assume that, were Zeref and Mavis allowed to be happy, that would be the end goal of their relationship. By the way, their relationship comes as a shock to those watching it go down.

Zervis (Negative Recommendation): Hyouka

This shows also takes the idea of a life-changing relationship but plays with the guy's special talents to both solve and create problems for the series. I don't know how much of this pick is a "recommendation for people who don't like how Zervis played out" and a “I can’t think of another series I’ve seen to fit what this ship could have been if it didn’t involve people who could kill each other” pick.

But for real this time, see you! 

[midnight-in-town]

Hi I've being following you for a veeery long time, and since you're a fan of Ao no Exorcist I wanted to know what makes you enjoy reading it (I've mad up my mind to start it so I need a bit of motivation)

Hey Anon! Thank you so much for staying around for so long, it makes me very happy to read that. :3

When it comes to AnE, gosh, I have so many reasons to love reading this series… And so many to hope more people will give it a try. xD

Maybe I should start with the fact that it’s the only manga I read in which twins are written as what real twin siblings are actually like? 

(@hamliet​ this one is for you xD)

Shouldn’t be news to you (since you said you’ve been following me for a while), but if there is one thing I dislike, it’s all those twin tropes in manga, where these poor siblings are a literal copy of each other, or have a telepathic bond, or end each other’s sentences, or anything that just makes you wonder if the author ever met twins. 

I tend to tolerate it, because it doesn’t have to ruin a story (I love Kuroshitsuji, TG and Urasawa Naoki’s Monster), but Kato-sensei doesn’t bother with those tropes and that’s great and refreshing:

The two brothers are depicted as having a beautifully complex sibling dynamic that feels so very real (at least to me, a person who happens to have siblings), as in: yes of course you love your sibling(s), but it doesn’t have to always be simple and without issues. 

It’s also at the very center of the plot, just saying, and I just love those boys. 

The second reason would be an amazing cast, as well as many character developments to go with it.

Well, obviously I live for this lmao, but in AnE it’s even easier to love, since the cast is diversified, incredible and they all get a development. 

Seriously, the writing is top notch on that and, most of the time, it targets deep personal issues that revolve around the theme of “family”. I don’t want to spoil though, so I’ll stop there. :)

That’s the third reason why I love AnE: the big focus on the family (and what’s related) theme. 

It’s both a subject of issues and plot, but also a very heartwarming topic. A family doesn’t always have to be a mom, a dad and kids: it goes deeper than that, with a lot of different examples and I love how Sensei plays with it. 

Fourth reason would be… Mephisto. 

If the name doesn’t ring a bell, then all the better because you will discover him by yourself. I think it’s honestly the only character who manages to scare and fascinate me, both at the same time. The thing is, I’m easily fascinated by many characters, but I’m not easily scared and that’s why I think he represents a whole reason why AnE is so enjoyable. 

Don’t get me wrong, he doesn’t scare me because he’s actually scary, but he’s very hard to read (even for me and I love the clown type) and he does live up to, well, what he is. I can’t say the same of Sebastian Michaelis in Kuroshitsuji or even Femto in Berserk (but for different reasons). 

I actually tend to suggest to watch the first two episodes of the anime (which cover the first chapter of the manga), because Mephisto’s introduction in the anime remains one of the biggest surprises I ever had. Also, the way the anime is written and animated for those two episodes gives a good look into the series.

Fifth reason: plot and plot twists. 

Again, I don’t want to spoil, but I assure you that the plot is more complex than what you can first expect. 

As for the plot twists, well, I love to theorize and it can sometimes damage the surprise effect, but frankly several moments I fell from my seat while reading. And I’m always expecting some more. xD

Here’s a summary [x][x] of the series, by the way!

Sixth reason: art style and pace…

…Which are both A++. If you follow me because of Kuroshitsuji, then you may have noticed I can complain about the pace, more often that not. Doesn’t happen with Ao no Exorcist: it’s monthly but it delivers each time. 

As for the art, you’ll be the judge of that, it’s always subjective. :)

Seventh reason: women’s place in the story. 

Can sound random, but again if you’ve been following me for a while, you may have noticed that I tend to really enjoy strong and positive female representation, whatever form it takes. Again, AnE does deliver on that. 

For example, Rin’s mentor is a woman and it actually means a lot to me, because I don’t see that very often. And that’s only one example.

Eighth reason: emotions. 

On par with Gintama in my opinion, maybe not in how it’s depicted (Gintama remains #1 in that) but, since the story focuses a lot on the family theme as well as nature vs nurture, it can get very sad or heartwarming real fast sometimes (at least I know the story can make me cry). 

Ninth reason: dead characters and flashbacks. 

Sorry, I don’t know how to name this one better. xD I mean it as in, character development post mortem or in retrospect being actually a thing and very well written. Would be a spoiler to say more if you really don’t know who I’m talking about here, but if you start the series, you’ll soon understand. ;) 

Mainly, I love the fact that no one is perfect in this story and thus no one should be presented as such. And if someone (or an organization) seems to be, then there will come a moment in the story when their flaws are going to be exposed.

It goes with the second reason I mentioned, but I specifically love that approach with dead characters: it’s not because they’re dead that they’re out of the plot. Nope. x)

Tenth and final reason (since I gotta stop somewhere): how faith is presented and used in the story. 

Worldbuilding encompasses that and it’s a point that’s hard to explain on its own, but since we’re dealing with Exorcists in the story, I find it’s interesting to read about how Kato-sensei chose to talk about topics such as religion, faith, beliefs, etc and how she built her universe around these notions. 

I think I may have reblogged posts explaining how she must have researched a lot about what she’s writing, so it’s really interesting, even if it’s not something you’ll get to read about immediately.

There is also a big part of the plot that focuses on science vs religion and, well, even nowadays it remains an important debate sometimes and Kato-sensei does include it in the plot. I don’t know, I just think it’s neat and well done. :))

There you go! Don’t hesitate if you were looking for other reasons, but I think you’ll have to specify a bit in that case. :))

Sorry if that makes no sense, but I really didn’t want to spoil on anything. :3

Thanks again for the nice words Anon and please tell me if you ever start AnE and if you enjoy it! Have a nice day! ^3^

[freshlyjuicedbeetles]

Drakgo Fic - Gap

Drakken feels weird about how much older he is than Shego when meeting her friends.

Drew Theodore P. Lipsky AKA the infamous Dr. Drakken had overcome many obstacles in his life.  He fought Kim Possible more times than he could count (and he could count pretty high). He managed to evade punishment for his many dastardly deeds in the past. Even when he was captured, prison wasn’t that bad; a Hannibal Lecter-esque high tech cell that sounded alarms every time his back popped is quite cozy once you get used to the electronic hum. Although, meeting his wife’s best friends was one obstacle he wasn’t sure he could conquer successfully.

Drakken had already met Shego’s immediate family with mixed results within the first few months of them dating. Not that Shego cared if he met her family but she couldn’t deny how awkward it would be if the first time they met her husband was at the wedding (even if they did elope). Her brother Heath turned up the machismo and pulled the ‘if you hurt my baby sister blah blah blah…” Michael seemed annoyed that he was dragged into this and had better things to do. The twins Wesley and William didn’t care, just a quick hi and they ran off to play. Her mother, Kate, thankfully, seemed to be the only one with a good head on her shoulders and only a little intimidating. Her father, well, Shego hasn’t spoken to him in a long time. He was invalid in her mind. Drakken meeting her friends was an actual priority for Shego. It took some orchestrating since they went to different colleges and lived in different states but finally made it work for a long weekend together.

They were throwing a small housewarming party. For many years, home was a lab that happened to have living quarters for Drakken and Shego and barracks for the henchman. Now, the lab was across town. Global Justice didn’t like them on too long of a leash. They managed to get out many of their personal belongings from all the past lairs (after GJ checked them of course) before destroying the lairs. That didn’t stop Drakken from starting a new lab down in the basement…

He didn’t know what to expect at first. The Mothman? A Chupacabra? A pack of wild wolves? Drakken couldn’t imagine Shego having normal friends, especially when her life changed drastically at such a young age. So, he did some sleuthing. Okay, okay, he searched Shego’s friend's list on Facebook. If he had an actual lab at home, he could unleash his real computer skillz.

Savannah Coffman, 27, BFA in visual arts, working towards her Masters, both from CalArts; unemployed.

Jill Nesbitt, 26, BBA, owns her own business in New Orleans. One citation for yelling ‘come at me, bro!’ at a living statue street performer.

Okay, nothing too alarming.

As their arrival time drew near, Commodore Puddles was put outside in the fenced backyard with water and plenty of toys to keep him busy. He really did not like company. When the doorbell rang, he started barking furiously and running back and forth to each side gate and back to the backdoor. How dare those filthy humans not let him have his prey!

“Don’t be weird,” Shego whispered harshly, before opening the door.

“Stephanie!” Jill and Savannah screeched, excitedly.

They enveloped Shego in a tight hug. Drakken was surprised that Shego didn’t seem to mind, even reciprocated. She didn’t let just anybody touch her. There were times when she wasn’t crazy that he was hugging her.

Drakken stood there in awkwardly as they greeted each other, complimenting each other’s looks and remarking on how long it had been since they last seen each other.

“Guys,” Shego said, nodding her head towards Drakken.

“Wow, you aren’t what I was expecting,” Jill said.

“Thanks?” Drakken replied, not sure how to take it.

Savannah studied him, “Yeah, I guess I expected the tall and dark type.”

“Yeah,” Jill added, “You guys were evil and whatnot at one point. You kinda look like my dad, but on a bad day.”

“I mean, he has a scar…”

“He got it from shaving,” Shego said, barely holding back laughter.

Jill got very close to Drakken’s face, who tried to lean away “What’s with the blue veins?” She asked Shego.

“Okay!” Shego interrupted, “This is Drew.” She said as she pulled Jill away from him.

They exchanged awkward hellos. Drakken already wanted to find a cave and hide.

Shego quickly ushered them into the living room while handing Drakken the bottle of wine Jill had brought that was forgotten in the welcoming frenzy. He had always wanted to see New Orleans, he thought as he set out to make the drinks. Shego was more of a Jack and Diet Coke kinda gal.

“Shit Steph, you have an actual place. I practically live in a closet above my shop.” Jill said.

“Same.  Student Housing.” Savannah added.

“Don’t follow my example,” Shego warned, throwing herself on the couch with her legs across it.

As Drakken prepared their drinks, the women talked hurriedly and loudly in excitement and howled with laughter. It sounded like a coven of crazed witches planning their next ritual. He was just really glad that Shego was having fun.

He brought in the drinks and sat down next to Shego, moving her legs. She scowled at him as he did so but ignored her.

“Steph, look what I found,” Jill said, pulling out a worn, furry blue photo album.

Shego’s nickname hit his ears. She was very selective with who she let address her by her real name or any part of it.

She gasped in recognition as Jill and Savannah crowded around them.

Drakken peered over Shego’s shoulder. There were pictures of the young girls at sleepovers with butterfly clips in their hair, first days of school on sunny mornings, them pulling faces in a school hallway in front of lockers (Shego had braces?!), a group picture of them at prom and at graduation. A picture taken of the girls at a dance in line for the Cha-Cha Slide with Shego dressed tight jeans, focusing on her footwork. Shego was blonde at one point!? Shego with a purple streak in her thick, raven hair, Shego and her friends scowling at the camera with thick black eyeliner circling their eyes. Shego with alternative, teased hair, sticking her tongue out.

“No!” Shego howled, covering her face in embarrassment, “Burn that thing! It’s too cringey!”

Damn. Even some of his teenage photos were in black and white. Was their age gap that severe? Some of the slang Shego used sounded like a foreign language to him.    What if they had kids? Drakken didn’t want to senile before his child’s graduation.

Their age difference of ten or so years never truly crossed his mind until then. As much as they were opposites in personality, they agreed on many things. Just different enough to keep things interesting, similar enough to keep a relative peace. In fact, the only time age was an issue was with the radio setting, when Drakken wanted to listen to the 70’s or 80’s station and Shego would roll her eyes and call the music corny. That, or have no idea who was playing.

Drakken had long ago accepted the fact that Shego was way out of his league, that he was the picture of a flattered fool. Even though he was a scientist, and scientists are taught to question everything, he chose not to. He knew Shego loved him and that she was trustworthy. Still, things got to him.

“Hey, Doc, has Steph told you about the time she tripped during eight grade graduation and knocked down our entire line?”

“No, no, no,” Jill said waving her hand excitedly and putting her glass down on the coffee table. “Remember the time she projectile vomited all over Amberlynn in tenth grade and everyone called her puky-lynn until we graduated?”

“Well, she was being a bitch and I had the stomach flu. It was just good timing,” Shego replied casually, playing with her hair.

“You should have seen it! She looked like the kid from the Exorcist!”

“And she looked so proud of herself afterward!”

“I was proud of myself afterward!

They lost themselves in stories of teachers; the good, the bad and the ugly, field trips and other school memories. Feeling self-conscious, Drakken excused himself with little notice from the women.

Shego, however, noticed and could tell something was wrong. She gave him some time before slipping away while Jill and Savannah argued about who really stole Savannah’s rainbow gel pen in fourth grade. Spoiler alert, it was Shego.

She found her husband in the bedroom, “What? Do we have cooties or something?” She teased as she sat down next to him.

Drakken was lost in thought, not looking at his wife. “Am I really that old?” He finally asked, not exclusively to Shego.

Shego scoffed and rolled her eyes, “Are we really doing this?”

“Yes! I feel like I’m robbing the cradle!”

“You need to chill. Don’t put much stock into what Jill says. I’m not entirely sure she’s human.”

That got a chuckle from the scientist.

“Has anyone who we actually like cared about our age gap?” Shego urged.

“Well, Mother was concerned- “

Shego cut him of dismissively, “She doesn’t count. Look, we’ve been through a lot of stuff together. How many times have we been separated because one of us was in jail and yet we got right back to where we were like it never happened? Drew. I hate to admit these kinda things, but you are more mature and wiser than me. How often do I rush into something stupid and you pull me back, telling me to think?”

The time she wanted to spend a good chunk of her bank account on a new purse when what she really needed was a new pair of boots for her suit came to mind.

And the time she really wanted to go BASE jumping while she was recovering from a concussion brought on by Ron Stoppable.

And anytime she speeds or runs a red light.

Despite all the stress he felt worrying for her general safety, she did keep things interesting.

“Not just that, remember the time we decided we wanted to go see the Northern Lights on the spur of the moment and we just kept traveling for nearly a month? Or that mosh pit at the Ghost concert last Halloween? Naked Twister?  What about Rex the crocodile? She wouldn’t have survived if we didn’t take care of her for that month after she was injured in that hurricane. Tell me, would some broad your age go for all those things? I’m even including the crazy and exciting things we did and still get to do as part of our jobs!” She said.

Shego sat down on Drakken’s lap, wrapped her arms around him and looked into his eyes, “You aren’t the type of guy I’d date, let alone marry, but those guys were actual idiots. I don’t know how they’re still alive, whether from forgetting to breathe or staring at the sun for too long. I found out that I want substance in a guy and to have an actual conversation with my significant other. I found out that that’s what I want.”

Drakken smiled contently, “Thank you, Stephanie. I love you.”

“I love you, Drew.”

They sealed their proclamations with a kiss.

“You’re still a doofus though,” Shego said once they pulled away.

Drakken groaned. She could only be so nice.

“Are we good?” She asked.

Drakken nodded.

“Great, because Amberlynn lives around here and we’re gonna go egg her house,” Shego said, grinning deviously.

“I’ll drive and get my bat to knock over her mailbox!” Drakken replied giddily.

“See? We’re still a perfect team!”

[icharchivist]

I wonder if it's possible that Lavi will end up with his own rival/enemy within the clan? I'm just fully expecting the bookman clan to not be as united in everything as you'd think. The Order and even surprisingly the Noah family are in their own chaos w/conflicting goals/feelings over this war. There's no way any human run organization is 100% perfect w/different povs. That one guy at Campbell mansion that fans think might be a bookman looked pretty hostile. That's a little scary. Even more -

2 coming from a group of unfeeling people not attached to anyone and holding a lot of knowledge to themselves in secrecy (knowledge is power. Enough the Noah are torturing them for it). What if there are bookman who won’t acknowledge Lavi as the Bookman successor? What if they try to use Lavi’s feelings for Allen against him in order to discredit his worth. This could be a good time for Lavi to reavaluate the clans purpose and any hypocrisy he finds if there are bookman against him.

that would be pretty neat tbh??? I would completely dig it!

We know th eBookmen are a clan after all, and if the two people we’ve seen in the Campbell mansion are part of the clan, we have a bigger family that can awaits us there. 

It would be fun say that, there is one official Bookman and one successor that goes around from war to war, but a sort of main clan that keeps archieve and makes researches to know where to send them and all- which would also requiree that some of them may not agree entierely with what’s going to happen.

Let’s be real, Bookman Sr is. Not going to survive for long at this point. It would be a miracle if he does. If Lavi was his chosen successor, with also his current disappearance it is possible they will try to remplace him. (”Bookman doesn’t have a successor anymore”). What if they chose a new successor before knowing Lavi is alive? What sort of conflict would that bring, would that person be ready to give up his place? 

And it could be easy to blame Lavi for how involved he got in the Exorcists to say he’s unfit to be a Bookman. And that apparently while Bookman managed to escape the Noah, Lavi hadn’t, for all we know, which could make him unfit if he can’t even defend himself. (using here very unfair logic, but that’s what you can get from humans organizations).

What if Lavi got really hurt in the tortures and it affected his way to reccord history? Maybe this one is the most extreme and least interesting one bc it would have a “logic” Lavi can’t really make a choice about, but what if people use against him that say, PTSD from the torture makes him irrational and therefore he cannot be a Bookman since he can’t controle said PTSD? Bc if he doesn’t get others majors sideeffects (an angst fanfavorite to explore in fanfic is memory loss, that would destroy Lavi to not be able to remember things, imagine the slow angst of realizing information are slipping away and what it means for his role! Sadly i would keep this one for fanfics bc like i said, too extreme and stripping him from his choice) we can at LEAST expect some PTSD of being tortured and then losing Bookman in such a short period. How woulc a clan that neglects emotions would feel about “illogical triggers”?

Or what about if people had never approved Lavi to start with? He got propulsed at the title of successor at the age of 6 because of his mystery eye. What if that didn’t please some potential successors? Imagine people who had more training, more preparation, (who knows when Bookmen originally gets picked) getting upstaged not because the guy has more talent at being a Bookman but because of the mystery of his eye? That could have created some jealousies inside the Clan. What if the tortures did something to said eye and people would use it as a reason for him to not be fit as a Bookman anymore? (i think this one is unlikely bc I do think the eye will play a part on the long term, but we’re in a what if situation there)Therefore any excuses used against Lavi could work. And this one would also put the eye on a plotpoint worth exploring more than as a sidenote.

We don’t even know how much the Bookman clan would have agreed after all with recordding for the Exorcist - after all they’re linked to the Campbell and had been on the Noah’s side for reccord. Perhaps they disapprove of it. Hell, Lavi and Bookman had seen 48 wars, with about 4months each time, but now they’ve been in the Exorcist side for two years. Which is absurdly long by those standarts. Would the Bookmen agree with those practices? wouldn’t that just “tempt your emotions into caring for people you stay this long with”?

What if Bookman’s methods weren’t even entierely approved? He kept secrets about Cross after all. And his previous apprentice did gods know what. If Past Apprentice did get linked to the Noah (or well Past!A=Apprentice), couldn’t they just put the blame on Bookman for not raising his successors properly and causing their impartiality to be put back in question? Could they therefore trust Lavi would they already have a sceptical look on Bookman?  I mean we know nothing about how the Clan feels about Bookman and Lavi, anything can happen.

And how does the succession works anyway? Bookman dies and Lavi just takes over? You’d expect the Clan to know, so it means Lavi would have to touch a word with the Clan. What if they consider Bookman’s death too fishy to let Lavi take over, or that Lavi can’t make it to the succession, see therefore the others possible choices?

And if regardless of all that, if Allen comes to the Campbell mansion and revaluate them, would Lavi be forced to pick a side? Would things go this wrong? hell would the fact Lavi is friend with him automatically makes the Bookman put him under radar just in case?

…. Anyway there could be a LOT of different reasons to consider Lavi unfit, from the simple “we thought he was dead so we nominated someone else as Successor and we can’t know if he’s fit for it anymore” to some more vicious and petty stuff. And it could put Lavi to the test, and test his relationship with Allen.

Like you said, most organization we’ve established are flawed and have inner chaos. Hell even if Allen makes his third side, it will itself be chaos only bc Nea is roaming around or Link’s conflicted sides (but also bc nothing that require Kanda and Allen to cooperate will go completely smoothly, I love them and their dynamic but yknow how they are): So why not the Bookman clan? 

the more we establish there are more people in the clan the more likely it is. When we had only two people to get an idea we would just limitate ourselves to them, but yeah, we have now 2, see 3 people if that old man wasn’t Sr. and if that Old man wasn’t Sr, you’re entierely right, the man looked quite hostile and know more about the shady stuff Noah had done. Would he approves?

And yeah would be cool if there was One Other Chosen Successor. The Preffered one, the one who would have been picked if Lavi hadn’t had  that damn eye. Someone who could have grown jealous over time, someone who would fit much more the Bookman’s requirement. That would make for a fantastic rival and explore the clan, Lavi’s eye, everything. 

And meanwhile Lavi could have a certain growth out of it: inner conflict withint he clan that would hurt on his inner conflict would make for a fantastic arc, especially if Allen becomes the major reason of said conflict, with what we said before of “letting history happen and let him suffer or saving him”, that could be not appreciated under the Clan’s scrutiny.

…..

So yeah i’ve never thought about it before but now i’m fascinated by that idea, thank you so much nonny omg.

I guess we’ll have to see but that would be so cool aaahhh

[terraclae]

A lantern's light

Lore pings: @cityofinoue @yuushanoah-fr @rasvimhia

Quick chapter to break up the flow from the Paramo party being in trouble. Also I just wanted to write a little bit of Solaire.

'Princess, this cannot possibly be a right idea!' And the servant was right, this wasn't a good idea. Yet, Athena easily rammed him out of her way. No handmaid or retainer was going to stop her from keeping control over whatever inhabited the castle and city of Paramo. She reached the door to the library after worming her way through a few more servants. 'Please, this is complete madness!'

'Oh yes, it is most certainly mad, but is that for you to decide?' Athena came to a halt with her hands on the door. 'Since all of you are cowards someone has to face this apparition.'

'Then send more soldiers!'

'We sent so many already and I'm sick of seeing corpses around the castle!' Athena promptly sealed her verdict by crushing the annoying servant’s foot, sending him jumping backwards. She took the lantern that hung from her hip and lit it. Her hand rested on the door and sent a wave of energy through it, cracking it open. ‘If you do not intend to follow orders then leave before I will have your heads.’ On that note she dashed in and pulled the door closed behind her.

‘Princess!’

‘Has she gone mad?!’

‘Who does she think she is?!’

Well, a princess of Lux Laterna for one, she thought. With that name came responsibility they would never have. Athena moved away from the door until she no longer heard the voices of her servants and stood in the middle of the dark library, the only source of light being the magical lantern Noxfero had once gifted to her. If she didn’t hear them then maybe they didn’t hear her, and she didn’t want them to. They didn’t need to know what she intended to do.

‘You’re a far way from home, miss.’

She slowly turned her head to look around. It was too dark to see what might be creeping around her. ‘Well, such is life.’

‘Have you come to meet your death yourself as opposed to those disposable little puppets of yours?’

‘They were good people that you killed.’

‘You have the audacity to walk into my home-‘ The darkness around her whipped up and reached out in hundreds of claws. A heinous force consisting of the darkness came at her in raging clouds and was stopped by the shield of light that her lantern generated. Right in front of her on about four meters distance she saw the spirit of Paramo’s library. Not a specter of darkness like she had imagined, no, the vaguely woman shaped figure was pale as bones with her muscles and limbs aligned wrong in just the slightest way. Her eyes lacked lids and made her eyes hard to look at. ‘-And declare yourself good? You hurt the people I love, you scared away my librarian… How can you call yourself a good person?’

‘I never said I was good.’ Athena responded quietly, lowering her head. ‘I said my servants are good people. Humble folk from all walks of life, that had families. Maybe my family deserves death but they do not.’

That quietened the spirit momentarily who cocked its head sideways with an eerie crack. ‘They are affiliated with you. They and your family intend to desecrate the heritage of a family I have been with for hundreds of years.’

‘I can see that it seems like that. Maybe my father intended to if he chose to rule this place on his own but he is not the one in charge.’ She set down the lantern on the marble floor. ‘I am. I make the decisions here.’

‘Am I supposed to be happy with that?’ The spirit asked, cocking her head to the other side with yet another crack. ‘All you lanternheads are alike.’

‘Maybe so.’ Athena folded her arms and sized up the spirit. The darkness still curled around her shield, intending to break it. ‘I don’t like that either and that is why I’m here.’

‘Oh?’

Before the spirit had any opportunity to add Athena spoke again. ‘My mother Merope visited this castle. She died here. This place is part of her memory and I wish to preserve it.’ Athena folded her hands and walked forward until she reached the edge of the barrier. ‘I know you do not trust us-'

'Wild to assume I could ever do so.'

'... Fair enough.' Athena whispered, then continuing her earlier phrase. 'I want to make a deal with you.'

'I don't make deals.'

'At least hear me out.'

She paused, then shook her head oddly. 'Go ahead. What kind of nonsense will you sell me?'

'You want your librarian back, no? And if you're a spirit, you live on energy.' Athena started. She could feel the spirit's energy through the barrier. She did not have a lot of time and felt her palms had grown sweaty. 'I can track down your librarian and bring him back, offer you part of my energy and declare parts of the library of limits. I can't leave, but I want to make a compromise.'

'I don't just want my librarian back. I want my family back.' The spirit's energy rippled, a noise like fizzling electricity following. Almost, she almost had broken the barrier. 'That is in no way enough to make me happy, princess.'

'Then what if I bring back your king and his entire entourage? Would that make you happy?'

'I am not even sure why you bother negotiating.' Her eyes fell on the lantern, then back on Athena. 'You have exorcists with you that can easily banish me. Why haven't you? I have no interest in what you have to offer.'

'Because this is my castle to rule. Waldemar was banished when my father was here, but now it's up to me to decide what to do with you.' Athena held her hands behind her back and looked off into the distance. 'I know my mother would not have wanted us to hurt your people.' She said, her voice wavering as she spoke. The spirit seemed to pick up on this. Athena met the spirit's gaze again. 'I know what I do is wrong.'

'Then why not stop?'

'Because I want to make my father proud. I can only do that if I'm better than my brothers… Brother.' Athena lowered her head briefly, out of sight as if desiring to hide herself. 'I will leave you with this. Please consider my offer.' Athena lifted her head and walked back to the lantern. She picked it up and started to walk towards the door.

'Girl with the low voice. What is your name?'

Athena froze with her hand just above the door handle. She slowly turned her head and looked over her shoulder. 'Athena. Princess Athena of Lux Laterna.' She bit her lip. 'Is it… Is my voice too low?'

'No. I don't like it but it suits you.' The spirit hummed, her blank gaze shining from the darkness. 'The next time you decide to come here, you shall refer to me as Solaire. Show some respect for those that embody this place.' On that note Solaire opened the doors and smashed against the barrier, sending Athena flying through the doorway. As soon as she was out, the doors slammed shut and locked themselves.

Athena still held on tight to the lantern that now had fizzed out, the magical barrier it created broken. Immediately she was surrounded by anxious servants, two rushing to help her up, others worriedly pacing around her looking for injuries. Most were stating they thought she was careless in what she had done, some asking what had happened. Athena said nothing then, and did not say anything until she had been guided to her room and breathed a sigh of relief once she was within it, away from everyone.

[aion-rsa]

How Helstrom Became One of Marvel Television’s Last Shows Standing

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Hell hasn’t quite frozen over on the Vancouver set of Marvel’s Helstrom but it’s close. A chill can be felt even inside the fabricated walls of St. Teresa’s Church as Tom Austen, who plays the titular Daimon Helstrom, sits down to talk with the press. It’s February and the show is months from its release date but Austen is already wearing the classic “Marvel leading man undercover” look, with a logo-less black hat atop his head. He’s prepared to discuss many aspects of Marvel’s first horror series, chief among them: just how much fun it is to set things on fire. 

“I love the stuff with fire. I would say like over 90 percent of the fire-work that we’ve done has been practical. If there’s fire and Daimon’s standing by it then I’m standing by it. Which has been quite nice shooting outdoors because it’s cold here.”

Helstrom represents plenty of firsts for the Marvel TV universe. It will be the first time a Marvel series has shot in Canada and the first time a Marvel show has been chiefly classified as horror. It’s also set to be the last in many regards. For starters, Austen just might be the last actor to ever set stuff on fire for Marvel Television…and that’s because the entity known as Marvel Television no longer exists.  

Last year, Marvel czar Kevin Feige consolidated Marvel’s TV offerings under the Marvel Studios banner, creating a new TV-producing entity known as Marvel TV Studios that could create TV content that fits within the Marvel Cinematic Universe for the newly-arrived Disney+. As part of the transition, Marvel Television (known for Netflix’s The Defenders, Hulu’s Runaways, and ABC’s Agents of SHIELD) was shuttered.

With one stroke of the pen, a half-dozen Marvel Television-produced shows were left in the lurch. Howard the Duck, Tigra & Dazzler, Hit Monkey, and Ghost Rider, which were all in active development for Hulu (which has been controlled by Disney since the Disney-21st Century Fox merger in 2019) were killed. In the end, Marvel decided to move forward with only animated series M.O.D.O.K. and live-action horror drama Helstrom and even then the latter show lost its “Marvel’s Helstrom” original title. Nor has the word “Marvel” appeared anywhere in the show’s advertising campaign. How then did Daimon Helstrom even become one of the last heroes standing for a Marvel era of television that no longer exists? 

For starters, the character is used to being an underdog. Though Marvel has historically been willing to mine some lesser-known titles, like Guardians of the Galaxy or The Eternals, for its adaptation purposes, Daimon Helstrom is particularly obscure. The character was created in the ‘70s when Marvel (perhaps wisely) vetoed Stan Lee’s desire to make none other than Satan himself a Marvel superhero. The character was revised to be the son of Satan, known as Daimon Hellstrom (the Hulu series drops the extra “l” in “Hellstrom”), and made his debut in 1973’s Ghost Rider #1. Daimon would go on to get his own brief “Son of Satan” arc in Marvel Spotlight issues 12 through 24. Since then, Daimon has popped up in a couple more runs but never fully took off as a character. 

To most, Daimon Hellstrom is best known as the moody magic-user with a Pentagram on his chest and a chariot of three-winged demon horses at his disposal. Despite the Son of Satan’s relatively limited comic history, however, one comic book page was all Helstrom producers needed to be convinced the character had a second life waiting on television.

That one page, from issue 13, captures everything one would need to know about the Helstrom family, as Daimon reads his mother’s diary and discovers that he is the product of a union built on lies and treachery. He has his father’s abilities but no guidance. He is charged with creating his own identity all the while marked with the sign of the devil plainly visible on his chest. 

“Look at the building blocks of what (Daimon) is,” co-executive producer Megan Thomas Bradner says. “He’s a demon who has an incredible guilt over his history, over who he is. Maybe the different writers and artists chose not to go down that path, but it all starts with the stuff that they gave us.”

Helstrom is a more grounded and realistic take on the character that delves deeper into his sense of isolation and pain. This Helstrom is the son of a serial killer father (according to the show’s synopsis at least) and a mother (Elizabeth Marvel’s Victoria) who lost her mind and now lives, restrained, in a padded cell inside St. Teresa’s hospital wing. As an adult, Helstrom now lives in Portland and works as an exorcist of sorts, all the while dealing with the trauma of an interrupted family life. There are no tights, no magical tridents, and no demonic horses… probably… maybe…

“They’re going to be ponies actually,” Austen quips. 

He does have a physical scar, in addition to his emotional ones. And that scar just may or may not resemble a Pentagram but it’s hard to say. Daimon keeps getting a tattoo over it but the tattoos quickly fade away. Makeup Artist Cindy L. Barlow says she knows where to place the scar on Austen’s back by tracing his freckles before applying the adhesive in a 10-15 minute process. Austen likes to peel it off at the end of each work day.

“You’re supposed to gently remove it but that’s not as fun,” Barlow says.

Daimon’s life has reached a fragile equilibrium as the series begins. Though he chiefly works as an Ethics Teacher at Gateway University (which makes a brief appearance in the comics), he also uses his supernatural abilities gleaned from “The Shadow Side” to assist St. Teresa’s and other interested parties in demon removal. To aid in that mission, he is supported by Dr. Louise Hastings (June Carryl), head of the psychiatric hospital within St. Teresa’s where Daimon’s mother Victoria is committed.

“(Dr. Hastings) acts as a kind of surrogate mom for Daimon,” Austen says. “She’s one of the first people to become aware of his abilities and tries to channel those for him to do some good.”

“There is a practicality to Louise that I think gets a workout,” Carryl adds of her character. “Walking that line is interesting. When something kind of goes off the rails and into another realm there’s a ‘huh, okay. I’m going to have to put that in the hopper. And it’s going to pop for a minute and we’ll deal with it later.’”

Another one of Daimon’s allies is Gabriella Rossetti (Ariana Guerra), a young agent sent by the Vatican to assist Daimon with his demonic issues. While everyone involved in Helstrom has old source material to sort through, Guerra decided to check out some even older texts to prepare to be an agent of the Church. 

“I was reading the Bible every day,” Guerra says. “I was going to church maybe like two or three times a week, just to kind of feel connected and to appreciate the rigidness of it and not see it as a chore. For a while I was like, ‘Mom, I think I’m going to convert.’ But then all of a sudden I started having a lot of Catholic guilt. So I had to just step away.”

The presence of the Catholic Church in Helstrom indicates just how big, old, and elemental the forces at play are. And if this is all starting to sound a little like The Exorcist, that’s by design. 

“I think there’s fun stuff in there for Marvel fans, whether you are a comic fan or a TV fan. But if you also are just a fan of horror, you can come to this too,” Bradner says.

This is the kind of production where (disturbingly anatomically correct) rubber corpses lie haphazardly on stretchers outside of offices. It’s the kind of production where the props team likes to note that they’re working on “human meat cubes” and that they’ve got a “bin full of thumbs.” It’s horror through and through. 

All that horror is a lot for any one Son of Satan and his Vatican agent buddy to deal with. And that’s where Ana Helstrom comes in. 

For as little Daimon Helstrom source material that the show has to work with, there is even less to go off of for his superpowered sister—the sultry Satana. In the comics, Satana’s key features are a profound love for her father and an even more profound distaste for modest clothing. 

“I said, ‘Oh, okay. So we’re going to be using wigs and prosthetic body parts apparently.’ That was an overwhelming sight,” Ana actress Sydney Lemmon says of seeing the comic version of her character.

“My Ana Helstrom is a little different though,” she adds.

For one, Satana is now simply Ana. Ana Helstrom works as an art and antiquities dealer at her own San Francisco auction house who uses the selling of swords owned by Napoleon Bonaparte and ancient Sumerian daggers as a jumping off point for her own brand of demonic justice. Lemmon (who is Jack Lemmon’s granddaughter and was recently seen in a crucial arc on Fear the Walking Dead) appreciates the role that legacy plays in crafting Ana’s psyche.

“I was really, really drawn in by the intense family dynamics happening between all of the Helstrom family members,” Lemmon says. “It’s fraught and turbulent and then when you add in the element of superpowers, it’s a done deal.”

Just as Daimon has his own helpers in the form of Gabriella and Hastings, Ana too has her allies. One is Chris Yen (Alain Uy), Ana’s business partner and surrogate brother figure in Daimon’s absence. 

“Chris is a very in-control type of person and likes things in this specific way,” Uy says. “In some ways that is the yin to Ana’s yang. It literally feels like a brother-sister relationship. Listen: I don’t know if you’ve got brothers or sisters, but I do and there’s definitely like a rivalry there, but it’s a healthy rivalry.”

Like many a Marvel sidekick, Chris Yen will become embroiled in some of the more intense and interesting aspects of Ana’s life, bringing the pair into contact with another one of Ana’s friends, Caretaker (played by The Wire’s Robert Wisdom). 

As the name implies, Caretaker has close ties to the dead and all manner of dark magic. The character is one of the few Helstrom supporting figures who has a comic book presence and has previously been played by none other than Sam Elliott in the 2007 Ghost Rider film. 

“If you’re familiar with New York, you know about the third rail on the subway. In the sense, Caretaker is working in two dimensions,” Wisdom says. “He’s up on the platform and he’s holding the third rail. He’s one of the few that can conduct that energy without snapping. That’s the tensile strength that I’ve given him.”

Wisdom describes Caretaker as a Nick Fury type, and also as a father-figure and guardian for Ana. 

Daimon and Ana Helstrom clearly aren’t hurting for paternal and maternal figures in their life, which is fortunate given the fate of their real parents. Though the siblings’ father is understandably not an announced part of the cast yet, Victoria Helstrom is set to play a big role haunting the pair’s lives, even from within the dismal confines of her padded prison. 

Elizabeth Marvel (no relation to…well, Marvel) took on the role of Victoria in part due to her teenage son being deeply steeped in the Marvel entertainment universe. Though she quickly found other aspects of her character and the show at large to appreciate. 

“It’s incredibly satisfying and creatively wonderful. It’s just actor candy all the time,” she says. “We work through a lot of issues, a lot of pain on this show. There’s a lot of dealing with the past and childhood trauma, and where, as a parent, your responsibility is, and how can you control and care for your children when circumstances are overwhelming?”

Victoria’s circumstances couldn’t possibly be more overwhelming. As indicated in the series’ first trailer, there’s a pretty compelling, pretty demonic reason that Victoria has been institutionalized for 20 years. As such, the character’s environs are as bleak as they come in the Helstrom world, though it comes with some actorly benefits

“We love going to visit, because the entire room is padded. So we all lie down,” Austen says. 

“Yes. We do a little yoga while they set up lights,” Marvel adds. 

Downtime for family yoga is few and far between on set but the Helstroms have done their best to create a familial environment amid all the blood, fire, and severed thumbs. And they’re hoping that chemistry and those themes of family and trauma appeal to Marvel fans looking for something new.

“I don’t think that anything that Marvel’s put out is quite like what we’re making,” Lemmon says. “I cannot wait for people to get to see this grounded, fantastical story that we’ve crafted. It looks so much like life, but has such magical elements. It feels like new ground for Marvel, and it’s such an honor to be a part of.”

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Who knows what the future holds for Helstrom as Marvel casts its eye towards Loki, WandaVision, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, and more. For now, however, Daimon, Ana, and a whole cadre of demons are prepared to liven up Hulu’s October. Perhaps that’s why Daimon Helstrom was the last hero standing for Marvel Television. Somebody had to bring a spooky edge to the proceedings before the lights went out for good…and it might as well be the Son of Satan. 

The post How Helstrom Became One of Marvel Television’s Last Shows Standing appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/2GBfwlh

[100wordanime]

Continuing on from last week where I looked at my top 5 favourite female yokai, this week we have my top 5 male yokai. I must admit, my first draft had a lot fox yokai on the list and even the revised version hasn’t really fixed that issue. Apparently I like foxes. Anyway, as always, I’d love to know who you would include on your list so please leave a comment below.

Please Note: There may be some spoilers below.

Honourable mention this week goes to Kappa from Nurarihyon.

Number 5: Yahiko from The Morose Mononokean

Okay, I nearly chose Fuzzy from this list but ultimately had to go with Yahiko. Seriously, this fox is so cute and his desire to play hide and seek is adorable (okay, potentially deadly but still pretty cute). Admittedly, the fact that Yahiko was introduced as a potential big bad and then quickly degenerated into the little brother type character that just wants all the attention is probably the reason Yahiko isn’t further up the list.

Number 4: Kuro from Blue Exorcist

Yeah, I know technically they want to say Kuro is a demon but I’m still including him as a yokai. There really isn’t much to explain with this choice. Kuro is my favourite character from Blue Exorcist. Fiercely loyal and yet definitely a cat, Kuro manages to steal pretty much every scene he is in.

Number 3: Yasaburo from The Eccentric Family

Our fast talking, trouble seeking tanuki, Yasaburo had to be on the list. He’s just such a great character even before you consider the fact that he is a shape changing tanuki. As the third of four brothers he is pretty content to drift through life looking for things to make his days ‘interesting’. Despite that, he’s pretty loyal to his family when it matters and most of the time he cleans up the mess he makes (mostly). I absolutely adore spending time with Yasaburo.

Number 2: Tomoe from Kamisama Kiss

Now, how could I overlook Tomoe, the fox who serves as a land god’s familiar. He is rude, occasionally foul mouthed, and extremely short tempered, but also incredibly loyal and ultimately a fairly lonely character seeking acceptance. Not to mention incredibly powerful and needs to be given how often his human-turned-god master Nanami gets herself into trouble.

Number 1: Miketsukami from Inu x Boku

So what beats a fox familiar, well a 9 Tailed Fox secret service member who uses a sword apparently. Told you there were a lot of foxes on this list. Seriously, the guy is adorable both in his normal suit and when he transforms into a yokai. If it wasn’t for his creepy stalkerish tendencies (I guess he calls that loyalty) he’s be nearly perfect. About the only thing he lacks is the ability to actually have a normal human interaction and eventually he might learn to get around that.

There is my list of my favourite male yokai characters. I’d love to know who you would have included.

Thanks for reading.

If you enjoyed this post and like the blog, consider becoming a patron to support further growth and future content.

Thanks,

Karandi James.

Tuesday's Top 5: Male Yokai Continuing on from last week where I looked at my top 5 favourite female yokai, this week we have my top 5 male yokai.

[astxlphe]

Bow before the dead

For the DGM Fanworks Initiative.

War; Hardship; Violence

(I’m late again. I didn’t have time to finish it yesterday)

Summary: Komui lives through the war. His family doesn’t. Character death (a lot), nothing graphic though. Just a small mention of decapitation and dismemberment, again, not graphic.

The first time Komui was confronted with the death of an exorcist, it hit him harder than he expected. He was used to death. He had read every thing he could about the children who died from the experimentation, and he had seen dead finders every day since he joined the Order.

Reading and seeing were vastly different things. The exorcist had been a fifteen years old girl, Susan, the daughter of one of Reever’s subordinates.

The accusing look he received when they came back with her body, torn and bloody, her parasitic type Innocence mercilessly ripped from her chest, would stay with him until the end of his life. He had been the one who sent her, the one who chose her mission and who decided she was qualified enough for it. Strong enough.

He had been wrong.

Her father resigned the next day, and they never heard of him again, but Komui would never be able to erase his eyes from his mind. They followed him everywhere, even in his nightmares, and yet he couldn’t find it in himself to blame him for his rising stress and sleepless nights.

He held Lenalee close as she cried for her fellow exorcist, and wondered if one day it would be her turn.

———

 He spent way more time studying potential mission than he used too, staying up all night drinking coffee and making sure it was the right choice, that Tina didn’t risk severe injuries in this particular mission, that Kanda wouldn’t have to use too much of his regenerative abilities. He tinkered for hours after sunset, making better golems and better barriers because the finders needed them to stay alive.

Paperwork cluttered his desk, but he didn’t care. Signatures weren’t more important than preserving human lives.

 ———

 Every day, he assigned a new team to a new location and waited for them to send their reports or find Innocence and hopefully come home alive.

Every day, there were some that never did.

He looked down as the empty coffins. There were no bodies to burn, the latest casualties having been turned to dust by Akuma.

He could do nothing but close his eyes and tilt his body forward, thanking them for their sacrifice.

And then he went back to his office to riffle through files and select a team for the next mission.

 ———

The two new exorcists weren’t found; they came to the Order by themselves.

Lavi and Bookman came in at a bad time, there had been a huge battle and many lives had been lost, and they weren’t exactly allies. They wouldn’t even know they existed if they hadn’t decided to come. They were there only to record, and it was by pure luck they had chosen their side.

Still, Komui welcomed them, and first sent them to the Head Nurse for a physical check up. He needed to know everything he could to make sure that their new not-exactly-allies would survive, and decided not to think too much about why the Innocence didn’t make them Fall if they weren’t really on its side.

Lavi was around Kanda’s age, and Komui smiled at their antics. Daisya immediately took a liking to the redhead, and while Kanda didn’t like the boys’ carefree attitude, Lenalee thought their relationship was funny.

It was nice to see her bonding with people her age — even if they were boys — but it still saddened him to think that those four were children.

It shouldn’t be up to them to save the world.

———

He didn’t really know what to expect of Cross’ apprentice of three years, but it certainly wasn’t a skinny fifteen year old. Cross was never one to care about people, so why would he even take an apprentice? Maybe his cursed eye had made him interesting for the General…

Still, it looked like that the only new exorcists were children, lately. And parasitic type one. He would have to study him carefully before sending him on any mission.

He spent the night reviewing Timcanpy’s records as well as what he knew about his arm and deciding who would be Allen’s partner for his first mission.

He had a new family member to keep safe.

 ———

“From General Tiedoll’s unit: Daisya Barry. From General Sokaro’s unit: Kazaana Reed, Chalker Laboun. From General Cloud’s unit: Tina Spark, Gwen Flail, Sol Garen. A total of 6 exorcists, all dead. Including the finders, it’s a total of 148 death confirmed.”

They hadn’t suffered such a loss in years.

Komui listened to Reever’s list of names, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that he hadn’t been good enough.

As always, he bowed, thanked them, and welcomed them home.

He couldn’t stop thinking about it — about those families who would never know their relatives were dead, about his men who were losing hope. He needed to think about victory, but he wouldn’t forget that he had failed them.

He didn’t dream about the eyes anymore. Instead, he saw his family dying and it was his fault.

It wouldn’t stop him; he wouldn’t let it. He needed to keep working, to keep the Science Section busy making better equipment.

He wouldn’t fail them again.

 ———

 The weeks following team Cross’ departure from China had been exhausting. Allen had died, but survived thanks to his Innocence — if anyone had told him he would one day thank the Innocence for anything, he would have called them insane. A Level 3 informed them that the other exorcists had reached Japan, and that was everything they knew. It wasn’t exactly reassuring, but after days without news from both teams, they were thankful that they were even alive.

And then they came home.

All of them, including Cross. It was a miracle.

Of course, things couldn’t stay joyful forever, because as soon as they were settled in the infirmary, Central decided to poke their self-righteous nose into the Ark incident.

He felt dread settle inside him as he realized that, once again, his exorcists weren’t threatened by Noah or Akuma, but by the Order itself.

Lenalee had fallen into Leverrier’s hands once. He wouldn’t let that man get his sticky fingers on anyone else.

After all those years as Supervisor, the exorcists’ well being was one of his priorities. It was like a mantra running around his head, motivating him to be better, more efficient.

Keep them as safe as possible. Keep them alive. Make sure they can always come home.

He had come to the Order looking for his only family and found himself with the responsibility of a bigger one. He couldn’t allow himself to let them down. 

———

Komui hated being so weak.

He could do nothing but watch as a Level 4 slaughtered scientists and finders. The barriers he had made and improved so the finders could protect themselves and fight against Akuma had been useless.

He had to watch has his men’s blood splattered, as their heads were torn off, as an Akuma invaded their home bringing death and destruction with it.

Dozens of dead and even more wounded, Headquarters in ruins, their numbers so reduced that they would need to bring scientists from different branches, because Komui had failed again.

Lenalee once again bound to something she hated. Allen, unconscious, controlled by his own Innocence. All the exorcists had suffered some wounds. It should have been their safe place to rest between battles.

But no, everything had been destroyed and Komui had been unable to do anything. It seemed like the only thing he was good at was, as usual, bow before the dead and thank them for their hard work.

 ———

He had thought things were bad before, but they went even more downhill after that. They had to move to a new Headquarter. Allen was the 14th’s vessel. Cross was gone, probably dead. Allen wanted them to kill him if the Noah took over. Every day brought its new package of bad news and Komui wasn’t sure how he could still keep the cheerful facade up, but he did.

They were all tired, irritated, frustrated, and Central’s constant presence in their new home only made things worse. Link wasn’t a bad guy, but he worked for Leverrier, and Komui couldn’t trust anyone working for Leverrier.

Of course, to make things even worse, the Order had dropped to a new low by not only recruiting a nine year old but also by starting human experimentation again.

It was like they hadn’t learned their lesson nine years ago. Whatever the Epsteins had been doing, it would inevitably end in a tragedy.

———

His and Bak’s prediction had been right, and Komui had been once again powerless. They had lost Kanda, Bookman and Lavi, Allen was in prison and half the exorcists were stuck in the infirmary.

Keep them alive, his mind supplied. Keep them as safe as possible. Always welcome them home.

He couldn’t afford to break down, even when Allen was declared a traitor. The exorcists needed him, so he smiled and took break from work to play chess with Timothy and make cute golems and Komurins. He was too exhausted to enjoy it, but he couldn’t let them now. He was their fixed point; the person waiting for them at home with a hug and a smile on his face; they couldn’t see him fail.

———

He sent General Tiedoll with Miranda and Krory in Russia. There were rumors of Innocence, and Akuma were gathering in a small city.

They came back with God’s crystal, and Miranda’s funerals were held the next day.

The Supervisor gritted his teeth and tried not to cry as he held Lenalee against him.

He needed to be better.

———

Komui’s current exhaustion didn’t matter; the war wouldn’t wait for him to rest. So he ignored his need for sleep, drank coffee, and worked. The exorcists and finders needed better, stronger weapons and only the Science Section could provide.

“Keep them alive,” he muttered to himself, bent over calculations.

He ignored the strange look he got. He ignored the whispers born from the differences between the man and the rumors. People always said he was lazy, constantly sleeping, always joking and never working. Yet it didn’t seem to match Komui anymore.

It wasn’t that much of a surprise. War changed people, and even though he had been leading the European Branch for almost a decade, the past year had seemed to go faster than any other.

It was like they were at a critical point and everything was currently being determined. People were anxious, scrambling to put things back together and trying to gain some advantage.

Nobody was fooled, though. They never had any advantage and gaining some was unlikely.

All they could do was to try their best, and thanks those who sacrificed themselves for a war they had no hope of winning.

 ———

Allen had been seen somewhere in Europe. He sent Kanda, now General, along with Lenalee and Marie. They came back with a seriously injured Kanda and reports of silver eyes turning gold.

The Order didn’t organize funerals for traitors, but it didn’t stop them from mourning.

 ———

It was Komui’s responsibility to take care of everyone. To keep them from breaking. His cheerful face, eccentricities and usual antics didn’t make anyone smile or roll their eyes anymore.

Lenalee started to tell people to keep walking forward. Those who were desperate, who wanted something to cling on, to give them hope, listened.

Timothy wasn’t doing well either. He was way too young for this, and the others did their best to keep him happy. But Allen was gone, and Miranda dead, and Lavi missing, and he was starting to understand war better than ever. He tried to be strong, but they knew it was hard on the ten year old.

Komui’s heart broke a bit more when Timothy stopped crying. He just stared blankly as Cloud’s body was cremated.

Komui wished he could do more for those children.

 ———

The dead kept piling up.

The Noah twins killed Krory. He took them down with him, but it was only a small consolation.

A week later Sheryl Kamelot defeated General Sokaro. Thankfully, Timothy, on a mission with the General, survived. He was harshly interrogated by Leverrier, and revealed that the Fourteenth, Cross by his side, stepped in and messily dismembered the Noah of Desire.

The boy was never the same again. His eyes were haunted in a way that was almost painful to look at, and Komui spent hours helping him fall asleep without nightmares.

He went to the chapel and bowed in front of the coffins waiting to be burned, thanking them for their efforts and promising again that he wouldn’t fail next time.

He wasn’t sure he could do it, but he had to try.

———

The extermination of the Noah Clan had started again. It was like the Fourteenth and Cross knew exactly where each mission took place and made a point of showing up. It was probably Link. The CROW had been seen with them several times, despite all evidence of him being dead.

Of course, the dead didn’t always stay that way.

———

After the Fourteenth and his allies started to kill the Noahs, things went even faster. They also regularly made a polite conversation with an exorcist to update them on the situation or, more precisely, on the always rising number of dead Noahs.

Considering him an ally was a mistake Komui wasn’t willing to make, despite Leverrier’s attempts to convince him otherwise. The Inspector believed he could control the Fourteenth despite Cross’ presence, that he would only attack other Noahs.

Kanda had to die before the man realized no one could control him.

He had promised Allen to kill the Fourteenth, and he never stopped trying. He was killed and Mûgen shattered by the traitor of the Noah Clan.

Logic told Komui he wasn’t at fault. When it came to the exorcists, Komui had stopped listening to logic and started praying.

(He didn’t like relying on God but he was desperate. He tried to reassure the exorcists, it felt fake and they knew he was broken too.)

 ———

Between the Fourteenth and what was left of the exorcists, there were maybe four Noahs left, including the Earl.

He found an old file in his office and looked through it before letting out a bitter laugh. He wished missions were still about finding Innocence and the Heart.


It was like both side had realized what kind of shitty situation there were in and were trying to kill each other off as quickly as possible, while the Fourteenth got rid any exorcist hindering him on his path towards the Noah Clan’s destruction.

They had lost Chao Ji and General Tiedoll because of him. The former General, Marian Cross, seemed to be an exception to his disdain for humans, but Komui had no idea how long it would last. Link hadn’t been seen for a while now, and people thought the Fourteenth had gotten rid of him.

They had three exorcists left, not including Lavi and Bookman, who had been declared dead. Sometimes, during wars, people just disappeared and were never heard of again. They had their own, empty graves next to they comrades’, and Komui regularly visited them to apologize. He didn’t promise to be better anymore; he knew he would never be.

“Don’t stop.” he whispered to an empty room. “Keep walking forward.”

He wanted to remember what it felt like to have hope.

———

The Earl and what was left of the Noah Clan were dead, and the remaining exorcists came back.

Komui bowed deeply in front of the three black coffins. The war was over; he didn’t need to pretend anymore. He was allowed to break down and cry.

He couldn’t. He felt empty. Dead inside.

‘Thank you for your hard work,’ he managed to say, his eyes burning but still dry. ‘And welcome home.’ 

———

There was a note on his desk with an address on it, with the words “just in case you want to see them”.

The note took him to a church in the countryside. An old woman took one look at him and sent him toward the small graveyard, where the Fourteenth was sitting, facing a bunch tombstones.

“What happened?“ Komui asked.

“Mana killed Cross,’ the Fourteenth answered. “I killed Al and Mana.”

The Order didn’t hold funeral for traitors and deserters, so the Fourteenth did.

(Still, Komui couldn’t look at him, not when he had killed exorcists and wore the face of a family member.)

“Mana?”

“The Earl, my brother. We were family, all four of us. Then Mana went crazy. I had to save him. I had to kill him, I didn’t want Al to die but—”

Komui just nodded.

“We still won,” the Fourteenth added. “I should be happy. We won.”

“It doesn’t feel that way.”

“No, it doesn’t.”

———

The Fourteenth gave him a tight smile and left, and Komui could’ve sworn there were tears on his face. He never saw him again.

The war was won but everything else was lost.

[kokeggy]

DGM ASKS : 14. 17. 21. 23. 24. 25 And 26

14. Who is your favorite character from the Noah family?

w e w, i enjoy tyki, road and nea.. but i guess the one i really started to like before anyone else was road. i remember when i was 11 y/o or something that i just Fell Inlove with who she expressed herself. that looks so cool and evil to me that i wanted to look like that too. so im going with road :D

17. If you were a Noah, what kind of Noah would you like to be?

hmmmmm, i would like to be someone who can mess with peoples memories. having an ability that increases/decreases the intensity of how you feel the pain would be quite funky toobecause then i would decrease their sensitivity to pain to zero. that means they wouldnt be able to feel the pain anymore and that means that they dont know if their wounds are severe or not - they would just notice by the blood thats flowing out of their body. and if they suddenly notice a ton of blood, it would be already too late. yeah, i guess something that is able to change the sensitivity to pain would be really great

21. If you could be in a group with a (few) character(s), which character(s) would you choose?

i would DEFINITELY want to go with allen. no matter what. i would also add lavi and maybe kanda to it. these three are a great combo for entertainment 

23. When did you discover DGM?

i discorvered dgm when i was in 4th/5th grade (im not really sure) i used to watch anime with my mother and then we came across d gray man and watched it together.. and because of the song in ep 93, i went and read the manga asapwait, i also remember that i was so badly interested in dgm that i even continued to watch it when my mother wanted to play games - so i was basically miles ahead already (i still continued to watch it with her even tho i knew what was going on). i was so in love with dgm, haha

24. If something worries you, to which character would you go to to talk about your worries?

definitely allen. allen would probably not be sure what to say, but im pretty sure that his gesture basically say that he cares and wants to cheer me up. i always get that kind of impression from allen!

25. What kind of ability would you have in DGM?

hmm.. it depends if i would be an exorcist, a noah or just a random character (lol)if i was an exorcist i would definitely chose something with bows and arrows. i like them lots.or maybe i would use daggers - daggers are incredibly cool too!guns… guns are very cool too.. im actually not really sure, i cant really decide between bows and arrows, daggers and guns.. … 

26. What are your thoughts about the Akuma?

honestly like the earl says - it is basically “the ugly human being”i find this concept very interesting. especially considering that the akuma are created based on the grief of having lost someone very important in your life. i think this entire process has something to do with the earls creationits just.. so interesting? the akuma. 

thank you for asking! :D

[soulstream-rp]

GUILLERMO “GIL” REYES | TWENTY-FIVE | HUMAN | “IMPOSSIBLE”

DATE & PLACE OF BIRTH: August 18, 1991 / Illinois, USA SEXUALITY: Pansexual OCCUPATION: Unemployed / amateur illusionist FC: Tyler Posey TAKEN

BACKGROUND

Gil never had a single ounce of doubt that life was full of wonder, and that he was the adventurer chosen by the universe to explore every corner of the earth. To be fair, the world beyond ordinary was only a step away from him. His mother, Teresa was a part of a necromancer clan that specialized in talking to the dead and sending them back to where they belonged. In other words, exorcists. She herself used to be one. Though she kept in touch with her family, she retired as when she married his father oblivious to spirits and supernatural. It wasn’t that surprising Gil felt connected to the other side of the world. He used to go visit his grandmother to watch his cousins train. He desperately wanted to be part of that world. His mother, however, was wary of his affinity, knowing what kind of life he would lead. Lucky for her, Gil lacked the most important aptitude to be a necromancer. Even after the age of fifteen, he never showed any signs of having sixth sense. Damn his father and those “ordinary” eyes he inherited. He couldn’t catch a glimpse of a spirit. In the end, his mother set him down and told him he couldn't be a magician. That turned out to be one of two biggest mistakes she made. The moment she told him he can’t, he made it his life’s goal to prove her wrong.

Her other mistake was that she underestimated her son. That very night, Gil broke into his grandmother’s study protected by numerous spells and traps, and stole the family grimoire. What Teresa didn’t know was that by stealing glances at cousins and eavesdropping their lessons, Gil absorbed the arcane knowledge faster than others could keep track of. He showed extraordinary aptitude in understanding structure of spells and interpreting them. Slipping through the alarms and tearing down the defense of the study, thus, were not that difficult for him. He fled from his family trying to retrieve the heirloom. While he was hiding, he came across a magician named Sigrun, who was interested in the grimoire. By interested, it didn’t mean she planned to buy it. She stole the book from him right under his nose. So began their game of cat-and-mouse, until they eventually grew tired of chasing and stealing from each other. Sigrun thought highly of how fast he improved just by watching and copying her. So she offered to teach him magic in exchange of the grimoire. He accepted the deal.

Gil studied the branch of Chaos Magic under Sigrun, adapting to the world of magicians. The essential lesson from her was that magic is about fluidity and thinking outside of the box. They stole knowledge and copied from other magicians to develop and evolve their branch. It wasn’t without opposition, of course, sometimes life-threatening too; magicians tend to be possessive of their secret. At the end of the day, the thieves of knowledge remained undefeated save for the ultimate foe— death. Gil was oblivious to a brand of curse his teacher bore, encroaching her life for decades, the reason behind her seek of arcane secrets. When he caught the alarming signs, it was too late. Her pain was excruciating and relentless, but the curse kept her alive. There was virtually no way to lift the curse, the caster already dead, no hint whatsoever to the origin of the curse, only the symptom of it. Gil couldn’t lose her, the only person who believed in him all his life. He didn’t care if it seemed impossible. That never stopped him anyway. After a year of torment, Gil realized that her body had no soul, merely a husk left behind, yet persisting to live. It was a spell of her design that separated her spirit from her body, to escape from the curse until she can find a solution. Thus their journey continued, of an ungifted boy and a cursed woman, searching for a way to break the curse.

Recently, they landed on Port Ashborne, a city with the black market for magicians and mediums, a perfect place to set up their workshop and study the curse.

His grandmother on the mother’s side is a renowned exorcist, operating based on Chicago.

FAMILY: Alejandro Reyes (father/estranged) Teresa Hernández (mother/estranged) Cecilia Hernández (grandmother/estranged)

CONNECTIONS:

Sigrun (mentor): Sigrun is more than just a teacher to Gil. She is a family, one he chose not born into, his friend. Yet he doesn’t completely rely on her or worship her. At any rate, they understand each other in their own peculiar way. Gil carries around an Ouija board just to communicate with her, bickering at her without holding back.

The Guild (enemy): Over the years, Gil managed to put his name on the Guild’s shitlist by stealing magic from its members and causing some troubles with its Agents. To the Guild, he is a pesky problem and more than few times, its Agents tried to capture or kill him.

PERSONALITY

Gil was one of those hyperactive children who somehow wiggled his way out of the parent’s grasps just to dash right into a trouble. With all of his energy, he could never sit still more than five minutes to save his life. Now, he grew up to be a well-adjusted young man. Well, sort of. He appears harmless and friendly at first glance. He is curious in his core, loves learning and new experience more than anything else. His passion for magic is almost unstoppable. He will surprise you, however, with his quirks and unexpected bluntness fashioned with hearty laugh. He is an unapologetically hedonist, cheekily greedy and never does anything for free. Of course, he would steal from you without hesitation. Reckless is one way to describe his brash ways, but more than often, it is about doing what he is told not to do. Overall, Gil is the wild card; flexible, unpredictable and impossible.

SKILLS:

Gil practices the branch of Chaos Magic with the core principle of “belief is a tool”. Originated from West Yorkshire in 1970s, it adopts any method of rituals and spells from any other branch as long as they are useful. Thanks to this, his magic is adaptable and proactive, using different spells for appropriate situations. Chaos magicians create a unique set of “sigils”, abstract designs charged with the creator’s will, by which they cast spells. Gil uses a deck of playing cards as sigils to cast spells, his rituals based on the card games. 

Gil might be a jack of all trades, but he is master of none. He is born with barely average capacity of life-force. His spells tend to be weaker than other magicians, and some spells he has to modify in order to cast them at all. His saving grace is his aptitude in the arcane knowledge. By watching spellcasting and rituals several times, he can analyze them in the spot and even copy them. He calls this “magic hacking”, interfering with the other’s spell and use it against them.

He has a nimble set of hands, great at playing cards and of course, cheating his way through it. He is also interested in illusions, magic tricks. Hiding behind smoke and mirror, deception is his code. Not so surprisingly, brawn is not really his game. He would rather escape or talk his way out of trouble. He has a knack of dropping out of sight.

Gil has no gift whatsoever as a medium, unable to perceive spirits without help of spells. He is fairly knowledgeable about spirits, however.