#you both fight enemies together and help each other stay alive but you also compete to see who earns the most halos

[fluffypichu876]

if bayonetta 2 can have an online mode where you and a friend beat the shit out of angels and demons together, then dmc can too.

[nvrlostword]

cookie run kingdom au bc i’m out of control

ok first of all the kid cookies legally cannot go on missions

chili pepper (though she generally hates rules) established this rule after stage 2-18 when she saw the jelly worm get turned into a dragon and thought maybe this wasn’t the best environment for children

soon after this snow sugar and alchemist run into espresso and are like “wow! a magic cookie! will you come live in our kingdom?!”

espresso agrees because he’s a big softie for kids deep down because he’s been roaming around studying magic for a little while now and it would be nice to have a place to settle down and maybe start up a coffee magic school

of course as soon as they reach the kingdom gate, who else would be there but madeleine cookie

espresso: i need to leave immediately

espresso does consider booking it but alchemist seems so eager to learn magic from him and how could he break his promise to snow sugar to live in her kingdom

meanwhile madeleine, who’s been in the kingdom for a little while now, is surprised to see that one guy from the republic again so he waves cheerfully at espresso and espresso just. walks past him. not even acknowledged

espresso hopes that he won’t have to interact with madeleine much and he can just ignore him. unfortunately, the only house available is the one next to madeleine’s (because madeleine’s house gives off a blinding aura that makes it hard for other cookies to sleep at night, thus no one wants to live next to him except angel cookie, who’s his neighbor on the other side)

regret.png

at DAWN the next day madeleine’s at espresso’s door. espresso (regrettably) answers after like two and a half hours of madeleine standing there at his door, knocking

madeleine asks espresso to join the exploration team and espresso slams the door in his face

madeleine continues to talk to espresso through the door and espresso makes a note to ask the sugar gnomes to install a thicker door

the only reason espresso eventually agrees is because snow sugar asks him to

so when espresso joins, he’s not terribly surprised that the team is a mess (because why else would madeleine, of all people, ask him to join- he must have been desperate), but he didn’t expect it to be... well, as much of a mess as it was. we’ve got madeleine (strong but stupid), avocado (who’s okay at combat but really is a lot better at weaponsmithing), angel (who sometimes does healing magic but more often than not just focuses on making a glowing aura around madeleine), and vampire (does he even do anything???).

madeleine is so happy to have a cookie that’s competent in combat that he gives espresso one of those friendly pats on the back except he’s too overexcited and ends up knocking espresso over

espresso: *long sigh*

so a couple days later espresso is like “why tf is chili pepper cookie not on our combat team???”

turns out chili pepper and madeleine had a disagreement about the morality of stealing and chili pepper refused to do combat for the kingdom ever since

espresso comes in and smooths things over and chili pepper replaces vampire cookie in the exploration team, a change which makes everyone happier

then they meet rye cookie during the chilirye quests

episode 4 and the beginning of episode 5 are kind of rough for our exploration team bc they’re being chased by both licorice and rye cookie

but when they get to pomegranate village and rye hears the whole thing about dark enchantress cookie coming to take over the world, rye begrudgingly agrees to work with the team and avocado goes back to working at the kingdom forge

thus, an epic slow burn chilirye romance begins

the same thing has been happening with espresseleine but like stupidly slow

lore time: ok so in my mind dark magic and black magic are two different things. black magic is like the evil stuff dark enchantress uses, and it’s just one branch of dark magic (coffee magic would be another branch of dark magic), but a lot of cookies get the two confused and so dark mages are looked at as evil

what does this have to do with anything, you ask? well, it just so happens that madeleine and espresso did, in fact, meet once before when they were kids. madeleine was afraid of espresso bc he practiced “black” magic and ran away from him

madeleine doesn’t remember this interaction. espresso does.

it was espresso’s first experience with cookies mistaking him for a black mage, and it wouldn’t be the last, especially from light mages. this is part of why he’s so dedicated to his studies- to prove that not all dark magic is bad

so as the group travels together, they all realize some things. chili pepper and rye realize they’re not so different after all, espresso and madeleine (respectively) realize that dark and light magic (and each other) aren’t so bad, and angel cookie realizes she’s surrounded by gay cookies

everything goes great until 7-25. you remember 7-25 and the nightmare-ridden librarian? i do. i was stuck on that level for WEEKS

anyway. the party gets to the librarian and they are HURTING. chili pepper and rye end up confessing their love to each other- which says a lot about how dire the situation was if you could get two lesbians to confess their love

so madeleine’s at the front and the librarian is about to absolutely murder him when espresso says not today, not my man. espresso steps up and uses all of his remaining energy to send the librarian to a pocket dimension or something, but espresso ends up getting pulled in too and he’s assumed dead

he’s not dead he’s just kinda in suspended animation in the void but the others don’t know that

then the cookies go back to the kingdom bc they need healing, right? wrong. madeleine stays by where espresso disappeared and refuses to move bc what if he comes back, he was injured and when he comes back he’ll need someone there to help him even if he won’t admit it, he’ll be back any minute now

eventually chili pepper has to knock madeleine out just so they can get back to the kingdom

they’re all kinda depresso about losing espresso but none moreso than madeleine. he’s so depressed, in fact, that his light magic actually weakens

he’s still a part of the exploration missions but he’s just. distracted. in a way he wasn’t before. he’s more careless in battle, spends more time alone, and people have actually seen him without his smile

so while our crew is somewhere in episode 8, pomegranate cookie happens to go back to the library and finds the dark magic rift. unlike the cookies on our adventure team, she can actually open it

pomegranate, finding a weakened espresso in the rift: it’s free real estate

pomegranate is really impressed by espresso’s magical talent and takes him back to dark enchantress cookie (who has been summoned at this point and is starting to really cause chaos). dark enchantress wants to recruit espresso but he refuses because of a certain light magic idiot dark enchantress is the one who made people look at dark magic as evil

dark enchantress: ok *casts a mind control spell on espresso*

posesso the espresso

meanwhile, madeleine is doing the talking to himself thing that he does (in the MIDDLE of a battle) and he’s like “why would espresso do that, anyway? he’s never done anything selfless in his life!” and chili pepper just rolls her eyes and as she’s taking out an enemy and says “because he was in love with you”

*madeleine voice* HUH????????

everyone else thought madeleine and espresso were together bc they obviously had a thing for each other and that’s why madeleine was so distraught when espresso “died”

madeleine suddenly realizes he like likes espresso, which is unfortunate bc he’s “dead”

at this exact moment, white lily shows up claiming she was attacked by espresso

madeleine: THAT’S WONDERFUL NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!1!!!11!!

some distance away, possessed!espresso facepalms. “why did i just do that,” he wonders

so this is how they learn espresso is alive but possessed by dark enchantress. madeleine, however, only cares about the first part, bc at least there’s hope now that he can bring espresso home

his magic returns, even stronger than before, and the revitalized team plows through the rest of episode 8

so they finally get to dark enchantress and face her. dark choco decides to join the hero team bc pomegranate bullied him

which is really good for the team bc their front, madeleine, runs off to fight possessed!espresso alone at the beginning of the fight

espresso and madeleine would do a lot of sparring and stuff together and they were pretty evenly matched because of their different areas of strength, but this is different bc possessed!espresso is actively trying to kill madeleine and he has a black magic buff

possessed!espresso has the upper hand here, so he gets madeleine cornered and is about to deliver the final blow but he can’t

madeleine sees his hesitation and is like !!!!!! he’s still in there!!!!!!!

he also realizes there’s a pomegranate seed over the eye that espresso covers with his hair and realizes that must be what’s causing the possession spell (like in ovenbreak story run when wind archer gets possessed)

instead of fighting possessed!espresso, madeleine starts talking to him, reminding him of how they started out as kind of enemies, but how they became close friends. madeleine talks about how espresso made him realize that not all dark magic was evil, and there’s beauty in dark magic, too, all while slowly getting closer to possessed!espresso, who’s still poised and ready to deliver the killing blow

finally, madeleine asks possessed!espresso to trust him, and then he reaches out and touches the pomegranate seen over possessed!espresso’s eye. there’s a burst of light magic, the seed falls off, and espresso is back to normal

he and madeleine confess their feelings to each other then go help the others defeat dark enchantress cookie. the kingdom is saved, everyone is happy, and our two couples live in domestic bliss the end

[thewolfstarchives]

Hii, I would like you to post you favourite fic recs, the ones you love the most and think everyone should read? :3

 Hi! There’s a lot to choose from, and this is obviously a really hard question! But here are the ones we decided are truly some of our favourites, and we reread all the time!

Sorted by length:

Friends Don’t by shadow_prince (T, 2.2k, 1 chapter)

Remus huffed. “I mean, even at school. You never went on dates. And I thought maybe it was just because you were always with us and whatever, but. You never date.”

“What’s your point, Remus?”

“Why don’t you?”

He looked back down at the newspaper, unable to look him in the eye for the lie he knew would come next. “I just don’t like anyone.”

“Oh.”

Was that disappointment in his voice? No, it couldn’t be disappointment. Because that would mean Moony cared, and Moony didn’t care. Moony couldn’t care, because Moony was straight. If he wasn’t, he would have said something, and he hadn’t, so he had to be straight.

That didn’t stop him from glancing over the top of the paper to where he stood at the edge of the hallway. He was frozen in the way you froze just before you kicked off the ground on your broom. Right before a runner pushed off the block. Right before you dove off a cliff into the sea. Frozen with the promise of movement about to burst forth.

Sirius watched him, holding his breath.

“You’re lying.”

If You’d Let Me (But You Don’t) by @kerstintxt (T, 4.8k, 1 chapter)

"Today on the wire we have Sirius Black, the irresistible lead singer of The Marauders, a band we've been playing an awful lot lately, now that I think about it. They must be having a terrific time; just last year, the four boys from London were playing in tiny clubs and now they've just announced their first arena tour for next year. At the moment, they're touring in the UK, USA and Canada. Sirius, tell me, where are you right now?"

"Uh, give me a second. Remus", Sirius says as he leans a little too far over the edge of his bunk bed (a sharp turn of the bus would be really bad timing) so that he can look at Moony, who's reading on the bed under his. "Remus", Sirius says with the phone still pressed to his ear, "the nice lady on the radio wants to know where we are."

OR, the one where The Marauders are a rock band and Sirius should reeaalllly get his feelings for Remus under control if he doesn't want to ruin everything.

The London Underground Book Of Love by Children_of_the_Shadows (T, 5.2k, 1 chapter)

The cardinal rule of the London Underground is to never, ever make eye contact. It is a rule that, among many others, Sirius tends to follow despite his otherwise rebellious, non-rule-following nature. So the first time he makes eye contact with a human being in the subway comes as much of a shock to him as anyone else. Especially when he's unable to look away.

Love (Messy, Tragic, Devastating) by kmc123 (T, 12.7k, 1 chapter)

it is easier to say "fuck me harder" than to say "love me and only me" - k.y robinson

rumor has it by @punkaspadfoot​ (T, 15.1k, 1 chapter)

No student had ever figured out why Mr. Black and Mr. Lupin seemed to hate each other so much, and at this point in the year the seniors were done trying. All they had time to focus on now was finals and graduation, although the annual class trip provided a welcome distraction. Three days on a lake with their four favorite teachers and plenty of time to gossip had to be a good time, right?

Save Me, Save Me, Save Me by @mollymarymarie (N/A (no smut), 15.2k, 1 chapter)

Remus overhears a conversation between James and Sirius about Sirius being in love and discovers rather abruptly that he doesn't like the idea of Sirius being in love with anyone who isn't him. THEN WHY IS HE HELPING SIRIUS COOK THIS WOMAN DINNER??

Probably so that, while chopping vegetables in the kitchen, he and Sirius can perform an emotional duet, serenading each other to Phil Collin's "A Groovy Kind of Love." AND THEN GET ALL WEIRD ABOUT IT AFTERWARD.

Because they're idiots.

Let Nothing You Dismay by montparnasse (M, 18.9k, 1 chapter)

There are a few things Sirius really didn't count on for Christmas of 1979. The extreme sexual confusion is one of them; Remus Lupin is approximately seventy-eight of the rest.

Now I Wanna Be Your Dog by @remus-john-lupin (E, 20.1k, 7 chapters)

Sirius clunks about in his Doc Martens and listens to The Stooges and smokes cigarettes and wears his hair much too long and spends more time serving detention than not.

And is way too forward about his sudden feelings for Remus.

(A story about teenagers and summer love in the 70s.)

Vows Under the Covers by @mollymarymarie (Not Rated but has smut, 21.5k, 1 chapter)

Remus is getting married. And not to Sirius.

"All the promises - vows under the covers. We would play pretend, my love, But it was real. To me."

Likewise Variable by @oneangryshot (T, 28.9k, 17 chapters)

James has plans, Peter is the nurse, Sirius keeps fake blood up his sleeves, and Remus just tries to stay alive.

Solntse by @lumosinlove (N/A but has smut, 62k, 14 chapters)

Sirius, a young Russian billionaire hires Remus, who is working part time as a call boy to make ends meet. Things happen, feelings occur.

The Lad that Loved You by @mollymarymarie (N/A but has smut, 81.7k, 3 chapters)

James and Peter are out of sorts because Remus and Sirius are fighting. Except that they're not. They're REALLY not.

Here Comes Another One by PleaseDonateBlood (T, 82.7k, 17 chapters, WIP)

Do you ask every stranger you accidentally spontaneously befriend this many personal questions?

FRIEND it may have been spontaneous (destiny) but there was nothing accidental about this love

Also I guess that means this would be a bad time to ask for your name?

Your guess would be correct

What’s your name?

Wow. --- Sirius texts the wrong number. And so it begins. We did need another Wolfstar texting fic. We definitely did.

Currents by @quoththethestral (E, 109k, 17 chapters)

Remus Lupin and Sirius Black arrive in Sydney to compete in the Summer Olympics, both intent on making these games a better experience than the last. The two swimmers have a tumultuous history and intense rivalry, but can America’s golden boy and Great Britain’s notorious bad boy put their past behind them and find some common ground?

Palo Alto by @nachodiablo (M, 110.4k, 18 chapters)

Modern AU set in Silicon Valley.

It's easy for Sirius to ignore his mixed-up feelings while he's got Remus all to himself, but when Remus starts dating again, Sirius is forced to figure things out before Remus moves on for good. Or before James and Peter strangle them both.

Show Me Everything I Missed by @mollymarymarie (N/A but has smut & trigger warnings, 152.9k, 12 chapters)

In the middle of the aftermath left by life-shattering trauma, Sirius finds Remus, someone who understands better than anyone else ever could. And together, they take turns putting each other back together again when the nightmares of their pasts try to tear them apart.

Casting Moonshadows by Moonsign (M, 395.7k, 87 chapters, WIP)

Lonely and outcast by his classmates, Remus wishes on a moonshadow for a friend who understands him. To his amazement his wish is answered not once, but three times, by his former enemies, the Marauders.

Inquiries? Ask the Archivists!

[glowingshadows]

ok so i’ve had this au live in my head rent free for the past few days

ok so let’s say that the northern water tribe is attacked by the fire nation earlier and defeated, effectively forcing them to surrender, and become neutral

the royal family are ‘invited’ (see: threatened) by the fire lord to stay in the fire nation

this means that princess yue was never destined to save the moon. she grows up in an upper class fire nation house in caldera, with dark hair and both parents. she never had the title of ‘princess’. 

yue is sent to the same school as azula, mai and ty lee. she’s good friends with them, and she’s always competing for top spot in the class with azula

yue is a waterbender, but never properly trained, and has been told by her parents to not tell anyone. instead she uses her father’s sword from the northern water tribe, and coiled golden whips. 

her father and mother tell her stories of the once great northern tribe, and how they long to return one day. from then on, yue vows to find a way for them to return, but she has to bide her time, waiting for the right moment.

this yue is not the girl we know from canon. she’s cunning and calculating, and has an arrogant mask to hide her true feelings. she has to, especially around people like azula.

a few years after finishing school, yue is surprised to find princess azula turning up at her doorstep, with a proposition. 

hoo boy this got really long so rest is under the cut

when azula asks her to come and hunt the avatar and her traitor brother, yue immediately agrees. she knows that a) azula isn’t really offering, she’ll make her come either way, her family could be threatened if she refuses and b) this is a chance for her to see the world and she’s been bored to death just training all these years

also, after training in school and for years at home, yue is good. like, azula level good at sword fighting, using her whips and hand to hand combat.

so, in omashu, yue joins the trio in getting mai’s brother back and fighting the avatar and his friends. yue sees katara waterbend and is transfixed, she’s always wanted to be trained in waterbending properly.

katara and sokka are dumbfounded when they see a girl with a water tribe sword and characteristics fighting for the fire nation.

in the chase, yue joins the girls in following the gaang. when mai and ty lee go after katara and sokka, azula has yue come with her to go after aang, because she knows that yue is the next best in their group at fighting.

when zuko shows up, azula tells yue to deal with him while she fights the avatar. yue keeps zuko occupied for a while, winding him up with teasing jabs and cutting remarks, making him angrier and more reckless. 

eventually, zuko manages to trip up yue, and she gets trapped underneath some debris. then zuko goes after aang and azula.

when sokka and katara show up, yue tricks them into letting her go, then she goes to help azula. when the two girls get cornered, azula shoots at iroh, and they escape.

ba sing se goes virtually the same, but when aang has been struck by lightning, yue is the one who releases sokka, toph and the earth king from their cells.

then she’s going back to the fire nation, ‘invited’ to stay at the palace under azula’s watchful eye.

over the next few weeks, yue overhears a lot that may change her views. she’s stealthy, and good at eavesdropping, so she hears when zuko and azula discuss the avatar being alive.

on the day of black sun, it’s not only zuko’s day of truth but also yue’s. after confronting his father in the bunker, zuko gets surrounded by dai li agents and azula being imminently arriving to deal with him.

it’s then that yue jumps in, she’s been shadowing zuko for weeks on azula’s orders. she takes on the dai li agents, using her whips and swords and buying zuko time to escape. but then azula arrives, and manages to disarm her.

without any weapons, yue, in a desperate attempt, waterbends, mimicking moves she’s seen katara do. azula is the better bender, and takes her down easily after the initial shock.

then yue is thrown into the boiling rock, deprived of water like the waterbenders in the prison flashback in “the puppetmaster”.

at some point, she comes across suki, and they fight and get thrown into isolation. then after that, they avoid each other.

eventually though, they begin to tolerate each other’s company. 

after yue gets suki out of a tough spot with guards, they begin to become friends, confiding in each other and watching each other’s backs

when sokka and zuko turn up, yue spots zuko as a prisoner in the yard and beats him up, convinced that this is some trick by azula

then sokka accidentally walks into yue’s cell before suki’s, and is like seriously scared because he knows how dangerous she is.

yue just tiredly tells him where suki’s cell is, and sokka is left confused, until suki then explains how she and yue have been watching each other’s backs.

then, suki finds yue in the yard and asks if she wants to break out with them. yue’s surprised that she’s offering, but accepts.

they plan a failed escape plan, and then another with sokka’s dad.

when mai and ty lee betray azula, its more for yue than zuko. yue wants to go back for them, and has to be held back by suki so that she doesn’t get herself killed going back for them.

when they arrive at the western air temple, no one really trusts yue apart from suki, but toph, sokka and zuko are more trusting than aang and katara.

yue spends her first few days in one of the rooms, stressing out about her family and her friends. then, slowly, suki begins to visit her.

suki convinces katara to give yue some water tribe clothes so she can get rid of the prison uniform, and then introduces yue to each member of the gaang slowly.

first she and sokka are introduced. sokka and yue bond over geeking out about swords and fighting, and get along pretty well.

zuko and yue also reconcile pretty quickly, considering that she saved him in the solar eclipse, and they already know each other

toph and yue aren’t the best of friends, but there isn’t any hard feelings between them, and they have fun together

also yue did a whole zuko style awkward apology to all of them after she emerges from her room

it’s in aang’s nature to forgive, and he warms up to her pretty quickly, asking for combat tips.

katara doesn’t forgive as easily, but around the campfire one night, yue tells them about how her home was destroyed and how confused she was for years.

at night, yue had been practising waterbending now that she had the chance. during a sparring match with sokka, he disarms yue, and she doesn’t think about it, but bends water into his face.

everyone’s like :O you can waterbend??? and yue’s like um yeah??

after that, yue asks aang and katara if they can teach her waterbending. katara refuses, still not sure whether she trusts yue, but aang accepts.

after some ‘lessons’ with aang, its clear that aang isn’t a very good teacher, and yue gets frustrated easily when she doesn’t get it right away.

after a particularly catastrophic session, yue leaves in a huff.

katara finds yue by the fountain at night, at begins to help her with her form and yue begins to imrpove.

and basically i haven’t finished this yet because i don’t know whether i want it to be yue/katara, with the bonding over waterbending and lowkey enemies to lovers, or suki/yue, with the whole bonding in prison and suki being the first to trust her. so uhh let me know if it makes more sense with yue/katara or yue/suki

oh yeah and im gonna have background zukka and mailee too because why not 

also im gonna have an epilogue where yue returns to the northern tribe with her parents and they rebuild it and she learns about her heritage

[drvrslcense]

Can’t Take My Eyes off of You (Percabeth)

Masterlist | Twitter | Wattpad

Read this on AO3! 

Word Count: 3k+

Pairings: Percabeth - Percy Jackson x Annabeth Chase

Description: In which Annabeth is tired from Christmas shopping & plays a song.  

Warnings: FLUFF & also unedited work

Shawn Mendes’ cover is amazing! & If you can’t tell, I’m feeling all the feels- so please enjoy this & listen to this song on loop. 

It's December 24 - the air was chilly and buzzing with that electric Christmas cheer. People all over the place were wearing big smiles, while some were scowling because of the tight crowds. Everyone was fighting their way through the crowds - everywhere you look, you'll hear someone mutter, "excuse me". 

Annabeth was normally a strategist, often considering buying Christmas presents beforehand - before all these craziness starts. But with finals on the horizon, Annabeth focused on her studies, forgetting to buy Christmas gifts. Now, she grumbles about procrastinating and forgetting to buy presents as she fights her way through the enormous crowds, her boyfriend Percy behind her. 

Percy was holding Annabeth's hand as the blonde continued to push through the crowd. Sometimes, his head would turn and he'd gaze in wonder to all those Christmas lights around the city, leading Annabeth to tug his hand and get him off his daze. There was no denying that this boy loved Christmas. He loves being with his family, spending time with his friends, and most of all, spending the winter break with his girlfriend. 

Annabeth was still fighting through the crowd, just wanting to get home. She'd already spent the entire chilly day out shopping for gifts, instead of just staying in and watching whatever crappy Christmas movie Percy likes to pick out. She and Percy were carrying shopping bags for presents - Percy did his own shopping too. While Annabeth bought stuff like perfumes for the girls and polo shirts for the boys, Percy bought foods. Dam foods. He bought his friend, Grover, a can fondant cake as a gag gift. Like a literal aluminum can fondant cake. You know those cakes that look like the thing they designed it after? That then turns out to be a cake? Yeah, that. Annabeth didn't know where Percy just find those. She almost berated him for buying those dam snacks and forced him to buy other gifts like a musical instrument for Grover or a box of LEGOs for Tyson, but she understood where he was coming from. And it was sweet, so she let it go, wondering if Percy bought a dozen soft pretzels or a gingerbread house for her. 

As they clamber through the busy streets to their apartment in the middle of this bustling city, Percy could feel both excitement and nervousness on his insides. His intestines felt like it was rising up to his throat and forcing him to throw up the spectacular soft pretzel he and Annabeth ate in the midst of the chaos. He bought something for Annabeth while they were out. He was sure it was pretty, even he thinks that it was forged by Hepahestus himself. He just wasn’t sure what Annabeth’s reaction would be when she sees or when he gives it. He knew that he wanted it to happen, it was just so nerve wracking to do that he avoided it. 

Annabeth sighed happily as they entered their apartment, dropping her bags near the door — in an orderly fashion — before flopping down on the couch. Percy dropped his bags messily on the table before opening the lights on their Christmas tree and flopping down beside Annabeth. The two admired the Christmas lights that danced before them. Their apartment was simple, small, but enough for the couple as they brave adulting. Annabeth was the one who designed the entire apartment. If it was her way, she would have designed their house. But because of high prices, urbanization, you know, the stuff, they couldn’t. Although Percy bets somewhere that Annabeth has a blueprint of her dream house. 

It was a two-bedroom apartment with a minimalist theme. Although it was tiny, it seemed so spacious and elegant, that their visitors (their friends) often teased them about being rich. Upon entering the door, you’d immediately see a view of the buildings outside with their big windows on the side. Their Christmas tree stood beside the windows, its lights flickering various colors of green, blue, and red. It was, by standards, a thin tree. Percy liked his tree big, but given the space of their apartment, it was impossible. So, they settled for that thin, green tree adorned with countless golden and silver colored balls - there was even a snowflake ornament and a golden star perched on top. 

That attention to the windows would be stolen away as eyes would be on their cozy, L-shaped couch, in front of that is their white, pear-shaped coffee table where an architecture book lay on top of. Percy often likes to put his feet on the coffee table, which he just does to annoy Annabeth who likes keeping things and orderly in their house. Their television was mounted on the wall across the couch. On the side of the apartment was their kitchen, it was L-shaped with a dining table in the middle. The dining table seats four persons and has a modern theme. It was round that whenever they have people over, they just add chairs.  

The couple stared off at their window which overlooked half of the city and the flickering of lights on their Christmas tree. The lights danced in a way that was enticing to the both of them and it was the only light in the room. The couple stared in silence, with Percy putting his arm around Annabeth, before she broke it and scrolled on her phone. Percy cuddled Annabeth on the couch before the blonde pushed him away for being heavy. 

Annabeth let out a weird sound - somewhere between a scream and a squeal -  as she saw something on her phone that Percy observed quickly lifted her spirits. 

"What?" Percy bolted upright. "What happened?" 

"This," Annabeth has a big grin on her face as she showed Percy her phone. It was a paused video of a curly-haired boy, sitting in front of the piano. Percy was confused, but he was interested as seeing it made all her exhaustion leave. 

"And what is 'this', exactly?" Percy asked, raising an eyebrow to Annabeth. 

"Just turn on the speakers." 

Sighing, Percy reached behind him and turned on their speakers. Annabeth quickly connected her phone and played something. 

You're just too good to be true 

The first line of the song plays and Percy thought the voice was familiar, he just couldn't remember who. But he knew the song, his mother often played it while he was growing up. All the while, Annabeth has this soft smile on her face and Percy decided it was heaven. He could give her the world and it still wouldn’t be enough. 

"Who is this?" Percy asked. 

"Shawn Mendes," Annabeth sighed dreamily, a big smile appearing on her face - she often reserved the smile for the special people in her life. Percy couldn't help the jealousy that stirred in him, but he shook it off, scolding himself as irrational. Instead, he raised his eyebrows, and a smirk toyed on his face - apparently, Annabeth is a big fan of Shawn Mendes. 

At long last love has arrived 

And I thank God you’re alive

Annabeth closed her eyes, feeling the way Shawn Mendes’ voice just flow to her ears. It wasn’t heaven, but it was pleasurable enough. She feels like floating on Cloud 9, where all her stress disappeared and everything else just melts away and all she could see was Percy’s dazzling sea-green eyes, tousled jet-black hair, and his smile. Damn, that smile. The song wouldn’t be the death of her, his smile would be. She couldn’t deny all these feelings she has for him, even though they’ve been a couple for years now. 

It all started out during high school. It was kind of cliche but Annabeth was glad she met Percy that young. Percy was a big part of her life, growing up as schoolmates despite not being close friends or enemies - he was just always there and Annabeth loved that about the two of them. They were always there for each other. Like that time in Mathlete where Annabeth competed against another school and won, she could see Percy cheering for their school in the crowds. Or when Annabeth rallied against their school overworking their teachers, Percy joined them. Or when Percy was awkwardly standing during Rachel Dare’s birthday bash and Annabeth joined him. That was when they first started talking and it all went from there. 

Funny how they went from strangers in high school to literally a couple living together in the middle of the city. Their journey up to now has been a wild ride, but Annabeth was glad that it ended here - in their apartment, with Percy beside her doing God knows what, but having his presence is a comfort to Annabeth. 

Pardon the way that I stare

There's nothing else to compare

The sight of you leaves me weak

There are no words left to speak

While Annabeth closed her eyes during the song, Percy stared at her. He couldn’t help but admire her. She was pretty, no matter how much she denied it. Her piercing gray eyes were Percy’s favorite physical attribute of Annabeth. But what he admires most is her courage -  she is brave beyond compare, often heading head first into whatever difficulties they face. In fact, she was the one who asked him out. Percy was the one who was about to ask her out that night but Annabeth beat him to it, much to his frustration and his surprise. 

It was during their school prom night, both of them ditched in the middle of it, coming home to Percy’s apartment to have a spontaneous movie marathon. It was in the middle of it and Percy was overthinking about whether or not he should ask her out. He’d liked her for years and had done nothing. They have also been friends of two of these. It was a boring movie when Annabeth abruptly faced him and asked, “Wanna go out to lunch tomorrow?”. Percy was taken aback by that question and just stared at her. Annabeth misunderstood him as him rejecting her. She stood up to grab her things when Percy yelled, “No, wait.” Percy was wearing a nervous, but boyish smile that made Annabeth stop and smile at him. Percy grinned and before they knew it, they were dating and Percy couldn’t help but always notice her gray eyes, which he thinks turns stormy whenever she’s intense. 

Annabeth is captivating and Percy feels very lucky to have her in his life. He feels blessed by the gods to just be with her. Being around her presence made Percy feel whole. She is his best friend, partner, and love of his life. 

Something was weighing down on his pocket and he palmed it, feeling the small box’s sharp edges and velvet skin. Sighing, he set his hands on his palm and paced around thinking that Annabeth was probably too engrossed in the song to hear him pacing around. 

He was going nuts, not knowing what to do with the item. He was sure he wanted to do it during the holidays. But the great Percy Jackson doesn’t have any plans nor any ideas on how to proceed. He wanted to ask his best friend Grover, but Grover is quite chatty and he knew that it would spread within their friend group even before he does it, so no. And the others, well, it’s not that Percy distrusts them, it's just that feeling that he wants to do this by himself if he can’t tell Grover. And there’s also the feeling of pressure if someone knows. 

Of course Mr. Chase knows -- he’s already agreed on this whole thing months ago, when he pulled him aside during Annabeth’s birthday, asking Percy when he’d do it. 

Percy continued to pace around the room when his eyes laid on the bags of presents strewn across the apartment. Instead of just pacing, he decided to put it all under their Christmas tree. 

Annabeth heard the rustling of the paper bags and opened her eyes. “What are you doing, seaweed brain?” 

“Nothing,” Percy answered quickly. Too quickly that his heart sped up. “Just-- moving the bags under the tree.” 

“Oh, okay,” Annabeth answered, shooting him a small smile as he turned his back on her. Annabeth closed her eyes once again listening to the song. Percy released a relieve sigh as he saw Annabeth’s eyes closed. 

Later. 

But if you feel like I feel

Please let me know that it's real

The song ended quickly. Too quickly for Annabeth’s liking. There was just something about Shawn Mendes’ voice that sounded so satisfying that everything weighing her down just melted away. 

She opened her eyes for a bit, setting the song to loop. And then closed it again, melting into her bubble of relaxation. 

Percy was happy that Annabeth’s in that state of bliss. Finals were stressing her out the last few weeks and today’s Christmas shopping just happened to be the cherry on top. 

Finishing up with moving the presents, Percy stood up, a smirk toying on his face as he got an idea. It was random and spontaneous, but Percy thought of it as romantic. The song was romantic and the ambiance set in the room with the Christmas lights and the bustling streets below just makes up a combination for a spontaneous slow dance in the middle of their living room. 

Percy started moving stuff around the room quietly, careful not to make Annabeth open her eyes. He moved the presents around once more, lining them up under the windows to make more room. Then, he moved the coffee table to the side. He wasn’t sure how he'd done it properly, stealth wasn’t one of his abilities. People would always deem him as ‘clumsy’, but he would call it ‘just someone not wanting to do it’. It was his way of denial that he was clumsy. 

Anyways, he let another song pass by. He smiled as he saw his work - the room has more space and everything just looked so perfect in his eyes. He was also proud of himself because he managed to do it all without making Annabeth open her eyes. 

You'd be like heaven to touch

I wanna hold you so much

As Shawn Mendes’ voice in the beginning of the cover filled the room once again, he cleared his throat in front of Annabeth and offered his hand. Annabeth opened her eyes and stared at it. 

“Come on, dance with me,” Percy said, opening his arms, and doing a motion of what looks like a slow dance. Annabeth laughed as she stood up and Percy’s breath was snatched. 

The way she stood up was so graceful, like a princess, that even without the ball gown and sparkling glass shoes, made his jaw drop. His smile widened and he offered his hand once more. Annabeth took his hand and playfully curtsied. The two of them shared a soft laugh before Annabeth placed a hand on his shoulder and he placed a hand on her waist. 

It took a few paces before the two of them were dancing in harmony. But when they did, it was amazing. It was like the whole world fits into his arms. He wasn’t nervous anymore. He was Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase’s boyfriend. 

Percy swayed Annabeth and she followed along. If anyone could see them, it would be like two rusty robots dancing together. But for them, this is perfect. 

“I love you,” Percy softly said while swaying. 

“Yeah?” Annabeth looked up at him, staring into his dazzling sea-green eyes. 

“Yeah,” Percy kissed her forehead, inhaling the scent of lemons. No matter how sweaty she was the whole day, her hair always manages to smell like lemons. 

“You know,” Annabeth started when they resumed back to their swaying.

“What?” Percy stared at her piercing gray eyes. It was mesmerizing, it was the only thing about her that makes her unique from Princesses. It was also one thing of Annabeth’s that Percy loved, among all of them. 

“I continually thank the gods for leading me to you. You’re a gift to me, Perseus Jackson,” Annabeth said, keeping her eyes trained on his chest. She noticed his outfit today which was a dark blue shirt and black pants which highlighted his height, which was six feet. She was shorter than him, by only a few inches. 

“Hey,” Percy lifted her face up, facing his hand under her chin. “I thank the gods, too.” 

Words can only do so much for the two of them. The two of them knew that it wasn’t just gratitude to the gods, but it was also gratitude and love for everything they’ve been through. It was all those gratitude for moments they spent, even moments they spent apart. It was those things that led them to each other. That ‘thank the gods’ thing were just filled with unspoken words, unspoken feelings that both of them were unsure how to express. It was those fun moments they shared like dates and celebrations. It was also those sad, comforting moments they shared when Annabeth failed her entrance exams. It was also all those fights that led them here in this moment. 

It was everything that made them. Sure, words won’t ever be enough, and they both aren’t sure if actions will be too. But for now, it is enough. 

“I love you,” it was Annabeth’s turn to say the three words. She tiptoed and kissed Percy’s cheek before they swayed again. 

Even after hearing those three words from Annabeth countless times before, Percy was sure he would explode every time. He couldn't believe that he’s here with Annabeth. Gods, he was completely smitten with her. It was an overwhelming feeling -- being loved -- that Percy thought he would explode. His love for Annabeth was also overflowing, he imagines it as something like the ocean - vast and immeasurable. 

Before the high note starts, Percy starts swaying Annabethas if they’re waltzing. And as the high note hits, Percy spun Annabeth around in which she turned all over the space in their living room. 

I love you, baby

And if it's quite alright I need you, baby

Percy was sure he was watching it in slow motion as Annabeth spun around, her ponytail flowing behind her. She was captivating, percy was so sure of it as he stared at her. It took everything in him to just stay in the moment and not let his mind wander off. 

The rest of the world falls away as the sight of her leaves him weak. Percy noticed the way Annabeth’s foot crossed as she spun, a careless smile on her face. He could see her eyes twinkling as she spun. 

Her hair hits Annabeth square in her face, making her stop. She stopped beside the Christmas tree and Percy could see just how bright she radiates beside their Christmas lights. 

Percy looked at her and the two of them shared a laugh and a big smile. 

“Come here,” Percy motioned her to spin back to him. 

This is now or never, Percy thought. 

To warm a lonely night, I love you, baby

Trust in me when I say

Annabeth was sure she was shining brightly, big bursts of happiness was radiating off of her, as Percy motioned her to spin back to him. 

At first, she felt ridiculous, just spinning round and round. But she let that feeling go as bliss took over when she realized she was sharing this moment with Percy. What was supposed to be a moment of relaxation after a long day of buying Christmas presents, turned out to be very joyous when Percy asked her to dance with him. 

It was perfect. This moment. 

If Annabeth could freeze a moment in time, this would be it - with the two of them dancing around their apartment to Shawn Mendes’ voice and just that moment of joy before Christmas. 

Stopping, Annabeth stumbled. Turning around a few times made her dizzy that Percy had to steady her before kneeling down. 

But when he did, Annabeth took a step backwards and her hands flew to her mouth where a gasp escaped.

“Is this happening?” Annabeth breathed out through her rapidly beating heart. 

“Yeah,” Percy said, opening up the small, orange, velvet box. It revealed a ring with a simple square diamond on top. It was perfect and Annabeth’s eyes watered as she saw the sparkling ring and the look on Percy’s eyes.

Percy chuckled nervously before starting his speech. “Annabeth Chase, when I first saw you, I was captivated. You were enchanting and perfect. But of course, me being me, let that go, knowing I was never up to your standards. But then that night at Rachel's party when you talked to me, I felt like I had a chance. And thus, blossomed a friendship, wise girl, that would lead to this. Gods, I’m so blessed to have you, wise girl. You are my best friend, my partner, and unmistakably the love of my life. So, Wise Girl, would you do me the honor of being your husband and marry me?”

Annabeth’s eyes were welling up in tears and she released a small laugh, “Never knew you could stomach that, Seaweed Brain.” 

Percy chuckled nervously as Annabeth grinned at him through her blurry sight. 

“But yes, seaweed brain, I’ll marry you,” Annabeth finally said, making Percy release a relieved laugh and throw his hands up. 

Percy was about to stand up when he remembered the ring still not being in Annabeth’s hand. “Oh right,” he said, grabbing the ring out of the box and placing it on Annabeth’s left ring finger.

It fits perfectly, Annabeth thought as she gazed in wonder at her ring. 

“It’s perfect,” Annabeth told Percy when he stood up beside her, placing his hands on her waist. 

“You’re perfect,” Percy told Annabeth, kissing her forehead. 

The blonde faced her fiance, and placed her hands around his neck before pulling him into a kiss. 

“I love you,” she said before pulling him again for a kiss, placing her left hand on his cheek. Percy smiled as he felt the cold metal of the ring on his cheek. 

Now that I found you, stay

And let me love you, baby

Let me love you

[pooktales]

Greymane’s Garters

I made up a fake history because ‘Greymane’s Garters’ is so fun to say and imagine. Enjoy!

The Order of the Grey Garter, more popularly known as "Greymane's Garters", has origins comingled in Human myth and legend. It is now considered somewhat ridiculous, as it instantly conjures a mental image of the noble King Greymane of Gilneas, him covered head to toe in white fur as he is in Worgen form, but for some reason wearing a pink-and-gray frilly woman's garter strapped to his leg.

Image: from ebay (only 1 left!)

This, I assure you, Greymane's Garters are not! They are hardly a male Worgen lingerie trend, but an order of noble knights and also so much more. Firstly, female Worgen find themselves members of this ancient order as well. Secondly, the garter is only a symbol--today it is often worn around the arm at ceremony or as a badge, a flat pink-and-gray belt coiled in a hoop and showing its buckle, that it was once considered part of suit of armor to help keep plate buckled over the legs. Only attend a Greymane's Garters initiation and see for yourself and you can be assured of this. The members proudly wear very little but their fur, to show they have at least embraced their Worgen side (this is a subject of contention even within this royal order, but they at least agree fur is alright). So the wearing of yes, admittedly, skimpy clothing to show off fur and the traditional garter around the leg is a thing. But if it is not buckled around the leg, then it goes proudly on the arm above the bicep, or on a cape--it may look strange indeed to the unschooled, but it is an honorable form of dress. Greymane’s Garters are not 'furries in SM gear' whatever the modern youth mean by that. A Greymane's Garter would maw you and strap you to a pole or a bedframe or some other handy torture device if they ever heard you calling their order a low-key furry headcanon, never that.

Military History

The order was first formed in the Second War. Under pressure to conform to the standards and military norms of the Alliance of Lordaeron, Gilnean leadership made a pledge that they would stay a distinct force as far as they could, focused solely on the political advantage of their own kingdom. As such, they felt a need to distinguish their military leaders on the battlefield with a brand that could not be overtaken by the blue and gold Alliance regalia. Their other goal was to remind their soldiers that their home kingdom, Gilneas, should always be the priority. Of course, this manifested itself in only a token support force sent to aid the Alliance at that time, all of them good-looking men in excellent polished plate, saying things like 'What ho!' and also 'Get gabbin' or get goin!' which were practiced phrases to deflect accountability. They made it subtly clear that they were only interested in doing those tasks for the Alliance that would further Gilnean interests. And they defiantly wore their pink, gray and white garters high up their thighs. The grey garter became an emblem of their stalwart resistance to Alliance assimilation. The effort was a great success from the Gilnean perspective. Not long after the first Greymane's Garters arrived in Lordaeron, the Alliance despaired at them, actually, and didn't prod the Gilnean King for any more his "help". And then the Greymane’s Garters went back home after the conflict and eventually the Gilnean wall went up too, which certain Alliance leaders were pretty relieved for, even if they couldn’t say it. The wall also had the effect of ‘keeping it over on their side’.

Mythical Origins

The more mythical origins of the Greymane’s Garters involve a magical Grey Lady who walked out of the Emerald Dream one evening in the forests of Gilneas, accompanied by gray feydragons. Everything she touched turned into a gray mist. A knight set out to slay her, believing she was a witch, but instead, she mesmerized him and inspired him to gather his fellow knights to return to her and perform a great task that would, she said 'Make little sense now, but will mean everything to saving your kin' in the far future. They Great Grey Knight then returned to the mists as the Grey Lady bade him, with three axemen, five lancers, and twenty-six cavalry men. And then, standing in a circle, she gave them all the garters of their order to wear, attaching them to their legs and buckling each to cinch proud and tight. And then she showed them a traditional dance. It was the gray dance of death that much empahsized squats and lunges with the legs, later used to train King Greymane's personal guard for ages, who one day kept him alive during the conflict with Sylvanas.

Competing accounts say the first Greymane’s Garters never learned a fighting technique, but they did serve her special gray ritual wine made from special silver grapes. And she made them grill her delicious capon and venison for supper. In exchange for that, what she taught the knights was how to create a 'Grey Garter', a special kind of powdered sugar dough dessert that is made in loops of pastry. This sparkling gray dough dessert was passed down in the Gilnean court and would still be cooked today if not for the disruption, again, of Sylvanas laying waste to Gilneas.

Modern Findings

Today, historians cannot find any real evidence connecting the myth of the Grey Lady to the military dance of Greymane's personal guard. (If it can even be considered a dance.) Nor can they say with confidence that a legend of that era really would be an elaborate way to convey a few cooking recipes involving gray food. Most recent research makes a more practical suggestion as to the actual events concerning the Grey Lady. That is, the knights soon discovered the Grey Lady was in fact a witch, or at least a very strange woman with the skill of a pressure salesman and a lot of mist handy where she happened to live in the forest. She clearly had a thing for knights wearing garters so halfway through their weird dinner-date, the men who weren't drunk and drugged off their feet got together and slayed her. They vowed, there and then, to come up with a better story for what happened and be 'reborn in blood'. From there on, the 'grey garter' story became a joke among the Gilnean nobility descended from these surviving knights, and when an opportunity eventually came up during the Second War to give the Alliance of Lordaeron the proverbial middle finger for making them provide aid against the Orcs, the Gilnean nobility reached back for the 'grey garters' story, layered some more meaning in it, and then made it a part official military dress. As an in-joke among the Gilnean crusty uppercrust. The rest, as they say, is history.

Motto

The motto "reborn from blood" has passed into common parlance of course, though many Gilneans may not even realize it. One often meets a Gilnean or a Worgen who, thinking of the turmoil their people have endured, make the remark that Gilneas will be reborn from the blood of their enemies. This derives from none other than the Greymane’s Garters.

Source: wish.com

The Ribbon

As you can see, the ribbon itself has changed over time. First, in the era of the Grey Lady myth, it was a very tribal-looking chevron in white, pink and gray colors. Later, it was a bold pink-and-gray plaid. Even later, due to lack of resources and the loss of the kingdom to Sylvanas' forces, it was mainly the sort of spider's silk, large swaths of pink ribbon were easier to come by in Darnassus where most Gilnean refugees settled.

The pink color of the Darnassian iteration (also referred to as the Gilnean diaspora, so show some respect) isn't "girly" as some consider it. First of all, pink is a color, it doesn't “belong” to anyone. Second of all, the whole thing was going to be abandoned when the order was re-formed after the fall of Gilneas recently, but many of the prouder Worgen members insisted it was also the color of roses, or raw meat or flesh, which connects back to that side of the Gilnean experience. Gray connects back with Greymane and white is the color of a new moon, of hope, of Greymane's own fur hide. So they keep all the colors, pink, gray and white, intermingled whether in the traditional plaid pattern or the primal, very bold chevron that can be easily seen strapped to a Gilnean's leg across the battlefield. Or, yes. In frilly Darnassian pink if that's what's available.

Notable Members of Greymane's Garters

King Archibald Greymane

King Genn Greymane (current sovereign)

Princess Tess Greymane

Queen Mia Greymane

Lord Darius Crowley

Lorna Crowley

Lord Vincent Godfrey (posthumously stripped of rank due to treason)

Speculation

It is rumored that King Anduin Wrynn has been offered a place in the Greymane’s Garters (with a special exception made for his devotion to Stormwind of course). However, Greymane is most likely still awaiting confirmation that Anduin will accept. Undoubtedly he will, of course! Anduin’s biggest reservation is said to be ‘Wait, aren’t those guys a furry group that wears underwear on the outside? This is for real?’ Though SI: 7 refuses to comment on whether the the young king actually said this. It may be that Genn is waiting for Anduin to mature some more before offering Greymane’s Garter again. Or, it may be that other rumors are true, that Anduin is prepared to make his own royal order of garter-wearing knights if he has to, to get out of wearing fancy underwear given to him by Greymane.

Because, of course, two garters on both of Anduin’s legs, ontop of his armor? One leg pink and the other blue? That would look completely ridiculous and anyone would obviously agree.

Unless you are a proud member of Greymane’s Garters that is!!

-fin-

[thereinafter]

Letter for Chocolate Box 2020 (cut for major wall of text; fandoms I requested are Dragon Age, Tortall, Darkest Dungeon, Original Work)

Hello, dear chocolatier, thanks for creating something for me!  I’m thereinafter (isyche) on AO3.

I like both fic (any rating you want to write) and art (gen or romance or implied sex fine, no explicit porn), Prompts below are copied from my signup, followed by a long general likes list and then DNWs.

Dragon Age

Cassandra/Leliana: I love them and their long history/intimidating outsides/romantic insides/right hand-left hand balance a lot. some prompt ideas: a) on a mission pre-DAI and some forced-intimacy or h/c trope pushes them to admit/act on feelings b) escalating personal notes attached to official reports c) sneaked moments away from Skyhold  d) fighting back to back e) either one convincing the other to take a break and do something fun, in her own way. Or anything from my likes list you find inspiring, get-together or established. For art: I’d love them being romantic or formidable together however you want to draw it.

Leliana/Josephine: I also love their history and friendship, and how Josephine can potentially light up Leliana’s tendency to darkness, and also how Leliana is playful with/protective of her. There are a lot of established-relationship missing-scene type scenarios I’d like for them, e.g., an excursion to Val Royeaux from Skyhold, a dance together at Halamshiral, Josie waiting up for Leliana to finish spy business, distracting each other from frustrating work, managing difficult guests. Or being drawn back together when Josie comes to the Inquisition after having been in the past. Or, again, anything else from my likes you’re into. I’d be delighted by art of them as well, if you want to illustrate any of these ideas or just draw them being cute.

and some gen ideas I’ve thought about recently and would like to read:

Cassandra & Vivienne: Since Vivienne is a knight-enchanter and thus technically a melee fighter, I’m curious about how and where she trains or has in the past for that, and I’d be interested to see her and Cassandra bond in some way through testing themselves against each other.

Female Hawke & Leliana & Morrigan: These three could have all potentially met in Lothering before the Blight, so write me something about that? Maybe they all get into a scrape together and have to cooperate? Maybe it was caused by Hawke’s or Morrigan’s magic?

Morrigan & Sera: I once drew Morrigan being amused by Sera stealing templar breeches and ever since I’ve kind of wanted that fic. Morrigan is entertained by Sera’s pranks on targets she dislikes and offers to help? Sera is suspicious/scared of her but eventually decides she’s all right? (Sera makes friends with Kieran?)

Tortall

Keladry of Mindelan & Baby Griffin: Having recently read the Kel books, I was really charmed by her heroic efforts to care for the griffin baby until its parents are found, and I’d like a little fic exploring that more, or maybe it coming back to find her later on? Daine and/or Alanna could be involved too if you like. I also am pretty sure this would make for adorable art.

Darkest Dungeon

I feel like there are potential stories around a lot of the mechanics in this game: the quirks and stress and breakdowns and need to recover through drinking or sex or gambling or religion, the weird trinkets and cultist groups, why new adventurers keep showing up to get fed into the dungeon. So, with this fandom I’m interested in fic playing with those things and building on what’s implied in the game (or art along those lines illustrating some offscreen scene, or creating a shippy moment).

I picked these three pairings because I thought they made for interesting dynamics, but if you want to include other characters or enemies, go for it (and use whatever names you want).

Antiquarian/Grave Robber: bonding over an interest in treasure and desire to stay alive and out of the melee? Getting lost on an unadvised side trip in the ruins?

Arbalest/Shieldbreaker: Arbalest takes Shieldbreaker under her wing and tries to cover her in combat/patch her up/help with her nightmares?

Hellion/Vestal: opposites attract, Vestal has impure thoughts about Hellion, and/or healer/fighter h/c?

Original Work

I pictured all of these in fantasy settings when nominating them, but some could also work as SF/space opera or historical.

Female Adventurer Lost in the Snow/Female Fire Spirit: Obviously she needs warming up, however you want to take that (does the spirit warm her and let her go like a grateful one night stand? Or a darker take where the woman lets the spirit consume her and make her one of them? or both at different times in her life?)

Female Armorsmith/Female Warrior Who Needs Frequent Repairs: This could go in either a funny “why do you come in here so much” or an angsty “why do you get hurt so often” direction and I’d like either (or both).

Female Knight/Female Bath Attendant with a Crush: I like knights and requited crushes and the sort of caretaking involved in baths, and would be happy with any cute/romantic or comfort/solace or sexy take on this combination.

Female Court Painter/Impatient Princess Sitting for a Painting: Maybe the princess is a flirty rake and the painter is a serious type with no time for her nonsense but secretly charmed, or vice versa? Or they keep falling out over how the portrait should go and then making up? Or they're in a secret relationship and the impatience is because it's the only time they can see each other?

Grumpy Lonely Sorceress/Female Courtesan She Hires for a Ritual: I pictured this as a lighthearted story where the situation starts awkward and ends more fun than expected for them. Why does the sorceress need to try this particular ritual/spell? (unexpectedly necessary for something she’s researching?) does it succeed? do they decide to collaborate again? up to you.

Anchoress/Woman Outside Her Cell: I’d be happy with either a historical medieval setting or a fantasy/SF invented religion. Here for the pining and inability to touch that the premise suggests; would prefer a hopeful ending to a super bleak one.

-----------

General likes (mainly a fic-oriented list, but if you do art for me and want to incorporate something here, great):

In case you want more inspiration in addition to the above. Take from it as you wish, all these things are good alone or combined

for both gen and shipfic: Lighthearted (romantic or friendship) fluff and humor Glimpses of how the characters manage everyday life stuff in canons where the focus is more on big dramatic events Canon divergence AUs in the “what if x event in canon turned out differently” sense Casefic if the characters do cases or missions or short adventures Epistolary or “found documents” stories, and other unconventional story structures Time loop stories, Rashomon-style stories, and other kinds of variations on a theme (including “five times” fic) Worldbuilding/exploration of the canon world and backstory, especially parts unexplored in the canon; also, in-universe stories, songs, mythologies, histories, etc. Holidays and celebrations and balls, masquerade or not, and dancing, romantic or not Characters doing things in disguise, whether they’re good or bad at it Heists and rescues/jailbreaks Court plotting, intrigue, spying Road or sea trips/wilderness survival situations Swordfights, duels, tournaments, sparring, training for all kinds of fighting Characters making things for others, whether it’s art or music or crafting or food or magic or whatever, and giving gifts Artists (in any art form), artistic rivalries, artist/muse dynamics, artists inspiring each other Competence and being very good at what they do (but perhaps awkward or lost in other contexts); relatedly, learning/practicing new skills

additionally for shipfic: Angst with happy endings Pining, preferably requited in the end Repressed feelings and extended UST, especially between working partners who are busy with something more important Loyalty/dedication/faithfulness/devotion, us against the world, knight/queen dynamics (either one-way or where both consider themselves the knight to the other), bodyguarding, love conflicting with other loyalties, noble self-denial and sacrifice, courtly love Stoicism and hidden feelings/bad at feelings but has a lot, or good at feelings and good at hiding them Secret/forbidden relationships as a source of angst and/or for the excitement of sneaking around Hurt/comfort, rescuing each other, fighting beside each other Snuggling/bathing/dressing/playing with hair/other caretaking Forced intimacy tropes like bedsharing, huddling for warmth, fake dating, marriage of convenience, handcuffed together, dreamsharing/psychic bonds, bodyswap Longtime friends to lovers, old friends meeting again, old enemies who aren’t really anymore and have to admit they like each other, rivals who respect each other Ascetic/hedonist or repressed/libertine or inexperienced/more experienced pairings

for sex scenes: cuddling, kissing, laughing, eroticized hands and voices, clothed/semi-clothed sex, complicated undressing, talking whether emotional or joking or dirty, curiosity/discovery, playfulness/inventiveness, eagerness/desperation, being overwhelmed by feelings, having to keep silent or hold still, interruptions and delayed gratification and intentional teasing/drawing things out, body worship, sex against walls, informal mild kink (e.g., tying up, holding down, blindfolding, taking direction, scratching/marking, tearing clothes, mutual roughness), sexy letter writing, one fantasizing about the other, decadence, voyeurism/exhibitionism, writing/painting on skin, sex pollen, magical or magic-enhanced sex

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

DNWs: unrequested setting AUs (like high school or coffee shop), non-canonical/unrequested polyamory, non-canonical/unrequested pregnancy and kids, non-canonical nicknames infidelity (unless it’s something like escaping a forced or political marriage) sexual violence/rape (eroticized/described in detail; I’m OK with, e.g., a character being a survivor or hunting down a rapist) a/b/o, formalized bdsm, daddy/mommy kink, underage, incest, shit/urine/vomit/spitting

[thisweekingundamwing]

TWIGW March 18-24th

Happy Spring, amazing fandom!

Check out all the cool stuff we have for you this week below, and remember to show the creators some love!

Thanks for all you do!

-Mod CB

Fanfiction:

A Little Piece of Gundam Wing

The archive is being ported to AO3! Check it out!

Amberly with @yourbloodlikewine

In This Light

Duo spent the last semester working in his older brother's coffee shop. He's resigned himself to a boring spring when a stranger appears, shaking up his entire life. Eli left home last fall, choosing to spend the last six months living out of his van on his travels from the Midwest to the East Coast. By the time he arrives at Ink's, the novelty of traveling alone has started to wear off. Still, the last thing he's expecting is to meet someone who's going to change all that for him

Pairings: 2xOMC, 3xOMC, Solo x OMC,

Warnings:  Rape/Noncon, Original Characters - Freeform, Alternate Universe, child abuse mention, Sexual Assault Mention, homophobic parents, Re-Written Characters, Drug Use, Violence, off screen murder, gratuitous author indulgence

@anaranesindanarie

The Shinigami and The Silencer

They say a person only needs three things to be truly happy in this world: someone to love, something to do, and something to hope for.  I had all three, despite my rough start in life. I had a lover, a hobby that I loved, and I had a hope… hope that my lover would get better, that we would be together forever. But he didn’t. He died in a hospital bed, cold and alone as I watched through a window, my body covered in chains. I wasn’t even allowed to bury him as the prison sent his body off to be cremated. My heart broke that night and the next day, on the way to my execution, I killed five of my guards before the others opened fire. I was dead before I hit the floor, my blood staining it. Why was I being executed you ask? Let me tell you the story of The Shinigami and The Silencer.

Pairings: 2x3

Warnings: Major Character Death, death, angst

@claraxbarton

Singularity

Dr. Trowa Barton has a problem - he's this close to figuring out the secret to manufacturing a nanocarbon black pigment that could compete with Vantablack.  But he's also hit a dead end, and he's tired and maybe a night of drinking beer and painting Beagles is exactly what he needs to get his research back on track.

Pairings: 2x3, 3x5, 2x3x5

Warnings: Art, Science, Chemistry, singularity - Freeform, AU, ex-lovers now friends, Threesome, Threesome - M/M/M, drunken sexy times, sober sexy times, weird art, i mean. maybe it's not weird. to each their own, nanocarbon black, paint pigments, what are these tags, Quatre is a good wingman

Silver Strand

Summary: The world had shifted, boundaries had been crossed, right and wrong had long ago been abandoned. A dark story of revenge, love, loss and drug smuggling. AU set in Coronado, California in the 1970s. Based on/Inspired by Joshuah Bearman’s “Coronado High”

Multiple pairings including but not limited to: 1x2, 2x5, 2x3, 2x3x5, 13x2, RxH, 9xS, 6x4

Warnings: Angst, drug use, Vietnam-era politics

@claraxbarton , @kangofu-cb

Bad Company

"The only hell and the only paradise are the ones we build ourselves." - Unknown Years after the wars, Preventers has decided to tackle one of the most powerful and oldest of all the Terran crime syndicates. Embedded dangerously deep in an undercover operation targeting the violent and bloodthirsty Sinaloa Cartel, Trowa Barton is pushed beyond even his flexible morals - and when his new "partner" arrives in the very unexpected and unwelcome form of Duo Maxwell, the one person he'd been trying to protect at all costs, both men must deal with the realization that preserving peace for humanity is turning into a bloodsport.What follows is race against time to uncover the evidence they need to bring Sinaloa, and its beautiful but deadly leaders, down - all while keeping each other alive in the process

Pairings: 2x3

Warnings: Post-Canon, Undercover Missions, Undercover as a Couple, Implied/Referenced Torture, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Human Trafficking, Gang Violence, Canon Typical Violence, Explicit Sexual Content, Moral Dilemmas

Foopy, kirallie

Knights of Avalon

Multi-series crossover fic

The Galaxy is a weird, wonderful and dangerous place. There is far more to history than anyone remembers.

Warnings: Very AU, Stargate pushed up to movie in '04, sentient weapons, many dates have been played with to fit

@kangofu-cb

If You Let Me

If Trowa could give the new residents one rule for surviving the ICU, it would be ‘Don’t Touch Anything. (Especially The Patients.)’.  In reality, he’d actually give them a lot of rules, possibly with diagrams for clarity.  But his main rule essentially covered the bases. When you worked in one of the largest ICUs, in the biggest medical center in the country, at a hospital known for taking on unstable patients for the most complex and risky surgeries that were performed no-where else, new residents were a menace. Until he meets Dr. Maxwell, the newest anesthesia resident.

Pairings: 2x3, background HxD

Warnings: Alternate Universe - Medical, Doctor/Patient, Nurses & Nursing, Fluff and Smut, this is literally my feel good thing guys ok, I mean I'm not saying there won't be any angst, but basically this is all WAFF, Explicit Sexual Content

@ladyjstruth-blog

Friend Zone

Duo and Hilde's wedding is fast approaching but after a heartwrenching breakup, how will Trowa and Quatre get through the weekend?

Pairings: 3x4, 2xH, 1xR

Warnings: Drama and Romance, Post-Canon

LadyLilyAnne, Melfice13

The Trials & Tribulations of a High Society Shinigami

Duo was a very caring woman, an open book so to speak, always there to help those that needed it with a smile on hand. The problem was she was surrounded by insane men who needed to be watched over like kids and her fellow women left her to it. Resigning herself to being the team mom Duo did her best, but she hadn't planned on Heero admitting he loved her. Things are weird now...

Pairings: 1x2, 3x4

Warnings:  Fem Duo, oblivious characters, Developing Relationship, Obssessed Relena, Obssessed Zechs, The Pink Thing, Explosions, Non-Graphic Violence, Duo and Trieze Have a Weird Friendship, Non-Chronological, Related Drabbles, gratuitous cursing

LavenderKisses

Stay

Duo watches Heero leave his bed every time the phone rings. All he wishes is that, for once, he would stay.

Pairings: 1x2, 1xR

Warnings: Angst, Songfic

Lil_1337

2018 Comment Fic_Feburary

Drabbles and short fics written for the Live Journal community Comment Fics which can be found here: http://comment-fic.livejournal.com

Multiple fandoms/pairings, please see chapter specific warnings

Lthanz

Life is War

Multi-series crossover fic

Sequel to 'Life is Fringe'. Five years later, Max, Chloe, and Kevin have settled into their new lives. However, they soon find themselves caught up in a power-struggle between two powerful men competing to control the fate of the world. Loyalties will be tested but a greater threat looms in the darkness, ready to strike.

Characters: Maxine "Max" Caulfield/Chloe Price, Kate Marsh/Original Character(s), Maxine "Max" Caulfield, Chloe Price (Life Is Strange), Kate Marsh, Olivia Dunham, Treize Khushrenada, Natasi Daala, Lucrezia Noin, Lady Une

Warnings: Science Fiction & Fantasy, War, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Original Character(s), Post-Canon, Crossover, Multiple Crossovers, Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, pricefield

Luvsanime02

The Taste of Peaches

A @gwcocktailfriday submission

Relena's had a long day, and so she stops off somewhere for a drink or two.

Pairings: none

Warnings: AU- modern setting, introspection

Maldoror

The Source of All Things

Center, a planet where magic and technology blend. Or more accurately, fight tooth and nail. A planet of Sources, holes in our boring dimension letting through arcane power, chaos and pseudo-deities. In this hot-house of myths and very real dangers, Trowa and Quatre find a mysterious man at the end of a shamanic voyage. Portents suggest this Heero Yuy is crucial to Center’s survival. He’s important enough to have some interesting enemies after him, at any rate: a devious killer and thief called ‘Shinigami’, and a very irate Dragon. Beyond them looms an even greater threat. Indeed, the greatest of them all.

Pairings: 3x4, 2x5, eventual 1x2x5

Warnings:  alternative universe, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Plot Twists, fairly graphic depiction of sex, Mild description of self-harm, Mathematical Magic, weird science, crones - Freeform, Magic and Technology brawling and eventually screwing, Eventual Threesome, Kinda, Insanity of arcane origin, The universe is a pile of marbles and other dubious allegories

Two Halves

The two kingdoms of Sanq and Lin were at war for years; a conflagration involving magic, armies and political murder. The conflict left both nations devastated and strewn with refugees. The king of Sanq finds his infant son, lost at birth, among the death and the ruin, a miracle he barely dared to hope for. But there isn't just one boy, there are two, clinging together like two halves of a whole that cannot be separated. Decades later, the truth behind that second child’s existence will put a hole in the world, or possibly save it.

Pairings: 1x2

Warnings: Fantasy AU, medieval setting with magic, starts with our heroes as children, Cousin Incest, sort of, eventually, being royalty this is in fact the norm and rather expected of them, Canon-Typical Violence

Merula31

Sleepless

It started that first night that I got him out of the hospital. I don't know where he found the time between raiding my gundam for parts and fixing his, but he did. He slipped into my room, managing not to wake me up until he got into bed with me.

Pairings: 1x2

Warnings: Yaoi, Lime, Implied Lemons, post war-ness, Angst, Sappy, POV Alternating, Spoilers, but if you haven't seen the series by now - what's wrong with you???, Original Character(s), Preventers (Gundam Wing), but no action, well - not THAT kind, Suicide Attempt, Misunderstandings

@miss-m-muses

The Cabin

Trowa’s debut novel became a best-seller and now he is failing at writing a follow up. In order to find peace and quiet to write, he rents a secluded cabin near a small town to find inspiration. Yet writing becomes hard when he keeps hearing howls from the woods in the middle of the night and even harder when he meets a charming diner owner named Duo…

Pairings: 2x3

Warnings: Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Explicit Sexual Content

@noelleian

Open Book for @weiclown (Moreena)

One would think being skewered on a rapier was the worst part, but then Quatre was always full of surprises.

Pairings: 3x4, 1xR

Warnings: Humor, Canon Compliant, Takes Place Between the End of the Series and Odds and Evens, Trowa's POV, Injured!Quatre, Delirious!Quatre, Love Doctor!Duo, Iatrophonia - Fear of Doctors and Hospitals, At Least Sally Has Her Shite Together, Fluff, Friendship

@noirangetrois

The Story of Wrong

Duo recounts his experiences during the war in order to explain... well, why he was wrong.

Pairings: 1x2

Warnings:  Angst, Drama, Tragedy, slight AU, Spoilers, very dark, Heero and Duo don't dieI,  promise, Yaoi, slowburn, Mental Instability, Mental Health Issues, Mental Breakdown, If those are in any way an issue for you then go ahead and skip this, Eventual Smut, VERY eventual, this is mostly canon-compliant but I've changed a couple things here and there

@passingdestinies​ (MorbidBirdy)

Animus

A ghost of Heero's past takes possession of his life, relationships and his identity.

Pairings:  1x3, 2xH

Warnings:  Post-Canon, Psychological Torture, Blood and Violence, Explicit Sexual Content

PubLicEneMyNumBah1

Super Robot Wars GQ

Multi-series crossover

Long gone are the Ancient Ones and the will of Mankind triumphs, yet with catastrophes and wars that beset them, will their reign soon end?

Original Character(s), Mecha, Giant Robots, Gundams, Crossover, Multiple Crossovers, Action/Adventure, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Alien Invasion, War, Canon Rewrite, Space Battles, Cthulhu Mythos, Pseudoscience

QMC

Over Tea & Other Things

The first fan-fiction piece that I wrote back in 2010 on FF.net. I've edited it a little. "Tea" is the first of a series I decide to write about general moments and life rather than on any significant story line or plot point. They're all stand alone pieces so I'll keep them here as chapters rather than in separate posts. Comments are welcome. :)

@remsyk-blog

Souls for the Bayou for @maevemauvaise and written for @fandomtrumpshate

For Trowa Barton, exploring the bayou is the ultimate adventure. Drawn to its borders since before he could walk, he spent his childhood learning its paths and uncovering its secrets.  But a chance encounter sets him on a path that spans across time, challenging everything he thought he knew, plunging him deeper into its mysteries than he ever thought possible.

Pairings: 2x3

Warnings: Supernatural - Freeform, Fae & Fairies, Fae Magic, Bayou, Cajun, Childhood Friends, Childhood Memories, Mystery, Slow Burn, Technically Speaking, Young Love, Use of accents, Original Character(s), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, I don't want to give it all away at once, Fandom Trumps Hate

Robot_Qwerty

Finding Home Again

Harry Potter crossover

Morgan lost any family he had left during the horrors of the Canadian Civil War, he lived on his own and carved out his own existence at eighteen years old. Adventure and magic only existed in fairy tales and daydreams, survival is all he knows anymore. The Civil War ends a little before the Eve Wars. So when the new laws after the Eve Wars come into place, his world was turned upside down and Canada's new government left little choice to the die-hard patriots. Finally escaping to the Sanq Kingdom wasn't the sanctuary he had hoped it would be. Add the former Gundam Pilots to the mix and he might just find his escape, or will he never find the freedom he craves?

Pairings: 4x5, 1x2, 3xOMC, Sx11xOFC

Warnings: Abuse, Past Child Abuse, Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Mental Health Issues

sylvieforaday

Neighbors

A/U - Meilan is learning, not everything happens the way you thought it would. Sometimes you fall for the perfect girl next door when she gets knocked off her pedestal.

Pairings: Meilan x Relena

Warnings: None

@the-indomitable-bhg, @passingdestinies (BHG and Morbidbirdy)

End of Line

The Grid, the legendary Tron System, has always intrigued Duo Maxwell. After years of dreaming and months of tireless work, he finally receives the final part he needs to unlock the door to the digital frontier. A blast of a digitizing laser later he finds himself in the world of his dreams. However, soon that dream becomes a nightmare as he comes to realize that his existence in this new world is both a danger to him and to the programs who reside there. With the help of Security Program Trowa and a mysteriously damaged and glitchy program named Heero, he embarks on a journey through The Grid to seek help from a mysterious entity known as the Gatekeeper. Will he be able to get out of the Tron System, or will the organizations who are hunting him manage to derez him first?

Pairings: 1x3, 3x4

Warnings: Slash, AU, Angst, Post-Tron: Legacy, Action/Adventure, implied sexual violence, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Complete

white_fox

Life Is A Highway

On an impulsive plan to travel from California to New York City to propose to his longtime girlfriend, Heero Yuy did not plan to pick up a hitchhiker in nowhere Texas. Faced with some setbacks and a growing attraction to his passenger, Heero goes through more challenges than he planned on facing.

Pairings: 1x2, 1xR

Warnings: light slash, Fluff, Road Trips, Dubious Morality

Snippets:

@lifeaftermeteor

LAM!verse - Duo and Trowa chatting

@ransomedbard

Snippet Saturday

Photo Edits/Manipulations

@gundamwing-ellesmith​

What if Gundam Wing was real? - Chang Wufei’s office ft. Sally

What if Gundam Wing was real? - Une

What if Gundam Wing was real? - Sally’s table ft. Wufei

@kangofu-cb

Whose Line photo edit - “Gundam Wing, where everything’s made up and the ‘canon’ don’t matter.

Multiple Contributors

Come at me Yuy

Headcanons / Meta / Discussions:

@lifeaftermeteor

L1′s origins and history

@ransomedbard

GW and cars headcanon

Fanart:

@downwarddnaspiral

Relena ice skating

@duointherain

Duo

@hackedmotionart​

Just Wild Beat

@huehanya

Gundam Wing re-watch comic

@lemontrash

Heero doodle

@noelleian

Human Sandrock

@noromax

Wufei

Calendar Events:

Cocktail Friday

https://gwcocktailfriday.tumblr.com/

A new prompt every Monday!

Submissions should be posted Fridays between 3 and 5pm EST, and tagged with @gwcocktailfriday

Interview with a Creator by @remsyk-blog @interview-with-a-creator

Remsyk has created an online interview for fandom creators to fill out and then she features one each week so that everyone in the fandom can learn a bit about each other.

If you haven’t filled out her interview, go! do! now!

This week’s featured creator is @cosmostar - check her interview out here!

Calling all GW COSPLAYERS by @ahsimwithsake

Metrowing—our gundam wing cosplay group that comes to metrocon (Tampa Florida) every year—will be hosting a panel at Metrocon 2018!

We’re looking for additional cosplayers to round out the cast for a Q&A panel on Friday 7/20 at 4 pm.

If you’re interested, please private message me here on tumblr. I can provide you with more information and set you up with a group Skype chat with the metrowing cosplayers.Help us celebrate 25 years of Gundam Wing!

Check post for more information.

NHK is running a poll for the 40th anniversary of Mobile Suit Gundam!

Voting is open here

You can vote for your favorite series (TV, OVA, and Movie only), mobile suit (pick 3), characters (pick 5), and songs (pick 2). Unfortunately the site is in Japanese but with the help of Google Translate, it’s easy enough to navigate. Let’s vote our GW boys to the top!

Gundam Wing Stream Rewatch by @the-indomitable-bhg and @amyole

Post found here - they are currently looking for interest/time suggestions/platform suggestions.

[officialotakudome]

New Post has been published on Otaku Dome | The Latest News In Anime, Manga, Gaming, Tech, and Geek Culture

New Post has been published on https://otakudome.com/section23-announces-august-slate/

Section23 Announces August Slate

Section23 has unveiled it’s August 2021 slate:

HOUSTON, May 25, 2021 – Home video distributor Section23 Films today announced its August slate of releases which includes Sentai Filmworks warrior action series, Vinland Saga! Available on English dubbed Blu-ray August 31st with a Limited Edition Premium Box Set to be released soon.

Product details follow, in order of release

  Coming August 2021

  Title:                 MAOYU ~ ARCHENEMY & HERO

Published by:    Sentai Filmworks

Distributed by:  Section23 Films

Run Time:         300 min.

Street Date:      8/3/2021

Format:             BD

Language:         Japanese with English Subtitles

SRP:                $49.98

SYNOPSIS:  For 15 years, mankind has fought the dreaded Demon King, but when the heroic warrior known as Hero finally storms the King’s Castle, he’s shocked to learn that the Demon King is, in fact, a Demon Queen, and she’s been waiting for him with a most unusual proposal! As both humans and demons are only united by their common enemies, she points out, it’s almost inevitable that no matter which side wins the war, the various factions of the victors will turn on each other. However, if the adorable “King” had a collaborator on the human side, together they could end the war in a way that would ensure lasting prosperity for both sides! It’s an idea so crazy that it just might work as the most unlikely of partners join forces in MAOYU – ARCHENEMY & HERO!

Title:                 THE MAGNIFICENT KOTOBUKI THE MOVIE

Published by:    Sentai Filmworks

Distributed by:  Section23 Films

Run Time:         119 min.

Street Date:      8/10/2021

Format:             BD

Language:         Japanese with English Subtitles

SRP:                $29.98

SYNOPSIS:  On a barren world almost devoid of life, the only efficient way of distributing essential supplies and cargo between the isolated pockets of civilization is by using giant zeppelin-like airships. Unfortunately, these massive craft are also easy targets for the wolves of the air – sky pirates, who hijack aerial commerce and slaughter the crews. That’s where birds of prey like Kylie, Reona, Chika, Emma, Kate, Zara and their Nakajima Ki-43 Hayabusa fighters come in. In a deadly business where a single mistake can mean instant death, the lady falcons of the Kotobuki Squadron will outfly and outshoot anything else in the stratosphere! Get ready to venture where only Angels dare to tread as the epic TV series becomes a spectacular motion picture in THE MAGNIFICENT KOTOBUKI – THE MOVIE!

Title:                 GAKKO*** SCHOOL-LIVE! ANOTHER STORY

Published by:    Sentai Filmworks

Distributed by:  Section23 Films

Run Time:         111 min.

Street Date:      8/10/2021

Format:             BD

Language:         Japanese with English Subtitles

SRP:                $19.98

SYNOPSIS:  What does your school mean to you?  For a handful of students at Megurigaoka Private High School, the answer is going to be salvation as they start their worst day of classes ever.  It begins quietly, with only the fact that some students aren’t showing up for classes to hint at what’s about to begin.  Then the killing starts as the school’s student body start to turn into reanimated student bodies, taking an early lunch break to devour their former classmates!  By the time our group of female survivors realizes that they’re in the middle of a zombie epidemic, their only chance of staying alive lies in barricading themselves into the building.  What they don’t realize yet is that this is only Day One, and they may be living there for the rest of their lives in Gakko***SCHOOL-LIVE! Another Story

Title:                 MARIA-HOLIC!

Published by:    Sentai Filmworks

Distributed by:  Section23 Films

Run Time:         600 min.

Street Date:      8/17/2021

Format:             BD

Language:         English & Japanese with English Subtitles

SRP:                $89.98

SYNOPSIS:  Kanako likes girls and guys literally give her the hives, so she thought that attending an all-girls school would be the perfect place to meet the perfect girl. Then her hot new roommate turns out to be a guy in drag. Yikes. And when the most popular girl in school catches Kanako’s eye, our poor heroine has to compete with all of the school’s OTHER similarly obsessed girls… which seems to be most of them! To further complicate things are her roommate’s rude maid, their cat-eared dorm leader, her roommate’s identical twin sister, and WAY too many other attractive girls, and the question is whether Kanako will die from frustration first, or her almost constant nosebleeds! Still, she may be the girl voted least likely to succeed, but Kanako’s not ready to give up on love just yet in the ultimate collection of MARA HOLIC!

Title:                 MY TEEN ROMANTIC COMEDY ~ SNAFU CLIMAX

Published by:    Sentai Filmworks

Distributed by:  Section23 Films

Run Time:         300 min.

Street Date:      8/24/2021

Format:             BD

Language:         English & Japanese with English Subtitles

SRP:                $69.98

SYNOPSIS:  High school is coming to an end and a huge portion of Hachiman, Yukino and Yui’s world is about to change, whether they like it or not.  With that realization comes another epiphany:  even though they’ve spent so much time helping others, the three Service Club members still have issues of their own that need working out.  But even as Yukino decides to move back in with her parents and attempt to put that part of her life in order, she accepts the major task of helping plan the graduation prom.  Trying to accomplish such a major goal will be one of the hardest jobs the Service Club has ever taken on, but as long as they have each other to rely upon, they’re determined to see it through in the third and final season of MY TEEN ROMANTIC COMEDY SNAFU!

Title:                 VINLAND SAGA

Published by:    Sentai Filmworks

Distributed by:  Section23 Films

Run Time:         600 min.

Street Date:      8/31/2021

Format:             BD

Language:         English & Japanese with English Subtitles

SRP:                $89.98

SYNOPSIS:  Raised in peace and on fanciful tales of a mythical far-off land without war, young Thorfinn dreams of someday traveling to the fabled Vinland.  That dream is shattered when threats from the legendary Jomsvikings put him in the path of a band of Viking mercenaries, forcing Thorfinn’s father to sacrifice himself to the band’s leader: Askeladd.  Alone and far from home, Thorfinn joins the forces of his father’s slayer, determined to compel a duel with the mercenary leader and avenge his father.  However, Thorfinn quickly finds himself ill prepared for a soldier’s life in the long war between Denmark and England…where the opportunistic Vikings earn coin by fighting for both sides.  Now he must learn how to fight and survive, even if it means facing friend and clan in battle in VINLAND SAGA!

About Section23 Films:

Section23 Films provides home video marketing and distribution services for a variety of companies, including Sentai Filmworks, Switchblade Pictures, Maiden Japan, Kraken Releasing and AEsir Holdings.  With its special focus on genre entertainment, Section23 Films distributes some of the very best anime, martial arts, and horror titles on the market today.

[unknown-de-mordor-blog]

Five ships I’m still not over

Beleg Cúthalion/Túrin Turambar

Universe: Middle-earth, first age

Ship name: Nothing that’s widely used in the fandom, I don’t think. But I like to think of them as ‘Black Sword (referring to Turin’s cursed weapon) and Strongbow (direct translation of Cúthalion)’

To me, there's no character more tragic than Turin son of Hurin, and no pairing more tragic than him and Beleg. And no clearer love, too. I don't know if J. R. R. Tolkien intended for them to go that far, but their emotional connection is so deep and powerful that whether you ship them or not it's undisputedly one of the most beautiful relationships in Tolkien's lore. Alas! It's not powerful enough to undo the curse placed on Turin and his clan, which ends both his and Beleg's life all too soon and all too tragically. So, yes, I count Beleg as one of the elves who die for love.

Favourite quote: 'I would lead my own men, and make war in my own way,' Turin answered. 'But in this at least my heart is changed: I repent every stroke save those dealt against the Enemy of Men and Elves. And above all else I would have you beside me. Stay with me!' 'If I stayed beside you, love would lead me not wisdom,' said Beleg.

Uh, I love this so much because it shows the difference in their temperament and maturity. Beleg's an elf who has lived through and fought in so many wars. He's an (elf)man of duty, honour and intellect, and Turin is still a young man whose pride and stubbornness can seriously get in the way of a grown-up conversation. And Beleg is so not having any of that in this scene. He’d do anything for Turin, including ditching his command to find him, but he can pull some tough-love moves, too, when Turin’s unreasonable.

Uzumaki Naruto/Uchiha Sasuke

Universe: Naruto

Ship name: sns, narusasu, sasunaru

I think Naruto and Sasuke canonically love each other, I really do, but I don’t think they are together romantically at any point in the series. And that’s by design, really. Sasuke -- the last of the Uchiha, the tragic figure of the Naruto series (still not as tragic as Turin, but let’s not do this morbid comparison) -- has too many issues to work through, and Naruto isn’t in the position to really help him through them. So as soul-deep as their bond is, they couldn’t have been together and survive each other. Although, I really want that to happen. That’s what fanfictions are for, I guess.

Favourite quote: ‘If you attack Konoha, I will have to fight you... So save up your hatred and take it all on me, I'm the only one who can take it. It's the only thing I can do. I will shoulder your hatred and die with you.’

Honestly, Naruto might just as well propose to Sasuke with that because he’s essentially saying ‘give me your worst, I’m not leaving and never will’. I know friends could be like that, too, but normally not to this degree and not with this kind of commitment. I’m not surprised at all when Sasuke has to ask Naruto why the hell he is doing all this for him. It just goes beyond reason, really.

S'chn T'gai Spock /James T. Kirk

Universe: Star Trek

Ship name: K/S, Spirk

The Daddy of all ships! Pun intended! Spock and Kirk's friendship really walks that fine line of are they/aren’t they. I personally think they aren’t (another controversial statement coming from a shipper), but they’re so cute together you just can’t help think: what if they are? They have this deep trust and affection for one another anyway; why not push it a notch further? ‘This simple feeling,’ as Spock calls it, might as well be love.

Favourite quote:

Kirk: How's our ship? Spock: Out of danger. Kirk: Good... Spock: You saved the crew. Kirk: You used what he wanted against him. That's a nice move. Spock: It is what you would have done. Kirk: And this... this is what you would have done. It was only logical. I'm scared, Spock. Help me not be. How do you choose not to feel? Spock: I do not know. [tears fall] Right now, I am failing. Kirk: I want you to know why I couldn't let you die... why I went back for you... Spock: Because you are my friend. [Kirk places his hand against the glass and gives the Vulcan Salute as he dies]

It’s actually really hard for me to pick a quote for these two because I think every ‘Jim’ from Spock does the job except nobody else would understand it but me. (Second to that is, ‘Captian, not in front of the Klingons.’) While I love them teasing each other a lot, I think Kirk’s death scene from Star Trek Into Darkness has all the right punches to it. Spock has been unable to accept the feeling of friendship towards Kirk (actually just feelings in general) until the moment he watches Kirk dies behind the glass door. And all just comes out like BOOM! Not to mention how close Spock comes to killing Khan for revenge before Uhura tells him that Kirk can be saved but they need Khan alive. Honestly, that’s the only reason Khan’s head doesn’t go plop in Spock’s hands.

Morgoth/Sauron

Universe: Middle-earth, first age

Ship name: it just came to my attention that the fandom is calling this ship Angbang (a wordplay on the name of their home/fortress Angband). Nicely done, you naughty people. Also Melkor/Mairon if you’re going by their proper first-age names.

I think a lot of people seeing this ship would go ‘what?!’ Like, how is that even possible when Tolkien didn’t write a single scene with the two of them in it. I’d say in this case the absence is more powerful. Tolkien wrote the Silmarillion and the Unfinished Tales as lore, so they necessarily come from the perspective of the tellers; i.e., humans and elves. That doesn’t mean Tolkien didn’t drop hints about the complex characters that the dark lords of Middle-earth are. He even has Elrond says that people don’t start out evil, not even Sauron. So the question becomes, what the heck happened? And the heck that starts it all out is pretty much in the first few chapters of the Silmarillion where Morgoth is clearly a powerful and inventive figure but in many ways an outcast and shunned by everyone including the very power that made him. (*cough* daddy issue *cough*) And then we are made aware of the fact Sauron, who is also powerful and creative, isn’t on Morgoth’s side from the get go but decides to join him later. The power-hungry dark lords we are later told about aren’t that at all, so it raises the question of their true characters and motives. If anything, I think the length in which Sauron would go for Morgoth thousands of years after his master is defeated and shut away says something about their bond with each other. And if I know one thing, it can’t be fear or respect. If I have to make a guess, I think it is akin to love.

Favourite quote: There isn’t anything I can quote from the source material since there hasn’t been a dialogue or anything they say to an audience that could be trusted as genuinely representing who they are. One thing I do scream about is the scene in the Return of the King movie when the black gate opened and behind there isn’t just the tower with the eye of Sauron but Mount Doom next to it in the same frame. I was like ‘I know Morgoth’s not here but isn’t that him in spirit.’ Yes, I’m a proper trash for these two.

Also, there’s this awesome comic series (unfortunately discontinued) by Suz. It’s legitimately hotter than the fire of Aule’s forge, honestly.

Beren/Lúthien

Universe: Middle-earth, first age

Ship name: I’m not aware of any ship name for these two but ‘Beren and Luthien’ is catchy enough as it is.

How else to finish this list but to dedicate the last entry to the greatest love story of Middle-earth, and, yes, I'm saying that with a straight face because, holy hell, this couple defies expectations left, right, and centre. Luthien, our elven princess, is an active participant in her own fate. She falls in love with a human who, in an act of valour, accepts her father's stupid, impossible task to steal the most treasured jewel from Morgoth the Dark Lord himself. Luthien basically runs away from home, finds her man captured and tortured, and tears the goddamn fortress down in a showdown with the-dark-lord-to-be Sauron himself (which makes you question the competency of everyone else in Middle-earth). They then proceed to steal the jewel together. They don't quite succeed in bringing it back and Beren loses his hand in the process, but hey, they could say it's in his hand, somewhere, and now could they please marry because otherwise I have a feeling that Luthien is going to elope with her boyfriend and her mom and dad won't be seeing her again ever.

And this is really just scratching the surface of Luthien’s feisty personality quite unbefitting of most princesses until the recent overhaul of attitude by Disney. And all this came from a man who was born in the Victorian era when women's autonomy wasn't given or respected. But I think Luthien's depth of character comes from the fact that she has a real-life counterpart, and so she feels more like a real woman. And the love between Beren and Luthien feels compelling because its the love the professor himself had for his wife and life-long partner, Edith. You can check out their gravestone. I'm so not making this up.

Favourite quote: The song of Lúthien before Mandos was the song most fair that ever in words was woven, and the song most sorrowful that ever the world shall ever hear. Unchanged, imperishable, it is sung still in Valinor beyond the hearing of the world, and the listening the Valar grieved. For Lúthien wove two themes of words, of the sorrow of the Eldar and the grief of Men, of the Two Kindreds that were made by Ilúvatar to dwell in Arda, the Kingdom of Earth amid the innumerable stars. And as she knelt before him her tears fell upon his feet like rain upon stones; and Mandos was moved to pity, who never before was so moved, nor has been since.

It’s not a scene between them, but this is how far Luthien’s love and badassery goes. She loses Beren in a battle to protect her father’s kingdom, and she dies grieving him. In the afterlife, she gets to meet the god of death Mandos and sings him a song of their love and her grief. Apparently, she’s so good with words and music that Mandos is like, ‘I can’t handle the feels. You can have your husband back and have a mortal life with him.’ And Luthien takes the deal, of course.

[watanabes-cum-dump]

Second Tries part 1: Shadowhunter

Second Tries will be a series where I revisit my old fandom OCs and tweak them around to be less OP and more like a fucking person. 

Today on Second Tries, we have Shadowhunter (edgy I know) and old Transformers (yes, that Transformers) OC that I came up with when I was around nine or ten, I dropped her at elven years old because I became obsessed with Magi. 

(There was a rewrite of the original story, but I'm not taking that into account as there’s only one chapter versus the original’s 20+ chapter of nine year old me’s crack enabled ramblings) 

Let me first explain to you the plot of the show, since this show in particular was Transformers Prime and not the original or the more popular movies. I still love this show, but not to the extent of writing fanfiction. In depth character analyses maybe, but no fanfiction. 

So in Transformers Prime, there aretwo sides to a war over the planet Cybertron’s political system, the Autobots (good guys) are on Earth and are collaborating with basically the FBI. The Decepticons (bad guys) are the ones with the advantage here, with larger numbers and legions of drones, plus they have more experienced and smarter minds on their ship with an advanced hacker, two scientists, and a leader who is basically the golden standard of villain. 

I won’t refer to them as heroes or villains because both sides have very understandable goals and ways of thinking. I myself leaned more towards the Decepticons because I understood that they were all in all fighting for equality and to overthrow the old order. They were more competent and should have won in my opinion. Both sides ultimately chased the same goal but it was the way they handled it and how it would be settled when one side won that tied the whole thing together. 

Transformers Prime was a war and though I couldn’t really tell back then, wars have no right or wrong. There are no good guys and bad guys, the goal is peace, but peace means different things for different people and the way that peace is achieved is also different. 

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.

Now that you know the plot of the show this is based off, this is what I could gather of her character: 

- Shadowhunter is apparently some sort of divine guardian or something, of what I don’t know, but from looking at old notes, these guardians all sort of reside over specific sets of principals that are important to society in some way. Hers are, get ready for the edge; darkness, war, violence, and most notably, fear. 

- Bless my nine year old soul for realizing that having someone with corresponding powers would be too powerful, so I dumbed her down and had her exiled for her rash behavior, stripped of her power but given immortality in exchange to correct her mistakes. Which is actually a very interesting concept. 

-  Her origin is even more fucked up: she’s half god (they’re called Primes in Transformers, Optimus is sort of like a trial god. Like a demigod?) her dad is the MANEFESTATION OF EVIL (his name is Unicron and he’s like, a fucking planet + was exiled and is only half alive so idk how he even had a kid???) but she was obviously not raised by him, her mother died after giving birth to her (???) and she’s raised by her verbally abusive step father and her step brother, the canon character Soundwave. 

(I want to fucking die) 

- She, get this, grows up to be seriously fucked in the head but still loves her brother who by the way, she looks nothing like in my old drawings. Maybe I described her as looking more like him but whatever. 

- The thing is she acts perfectly sane and I hate it. She acts like a perfectly normal person when described to be basically Azula and she even cries and apologizes for her mistakes THREE CHAPTERS INTO THE STORY. 

I find that my issue back then was execution, which is honestly my problem now but back then I didn’t even write any notes, I was sort of on track for the first two chapters and then I fucked off thirty miles south and basically dropped this exiled god concept. 

The thing is, she was also written as a canon character’s love interest and I wrote everyone out of character. With her love interest it’s even worst because her boyfriend is a psychotic, merciless, and not to mention abusive war tyrant.

I think that Shadowhunter over here has amazing potential to be a villain and the abusive one in the relationship but I digress, she is the main character and my entire point to her arc was for her to be redeemed. As much as I love this idea, she was supposed to be redeemed.

Shadowhunter was shown to have a soft side, but her soft side shouldn’t get in the way of her ideals. Her whole idea was: camp out with the winning team and hope this war gets over with. She clearly did not care how the war ended, just that it ended and that she be on the right side when it did in the hopes that if this war ended, she technically did what she was supposed to do since she contributed to both the start and ending of the war. 

If you’re wondering how she “started the war” I made it so that she got into Megatron’s (the leader of the Decepticons and her love interest) head and fucked him up real good, pushing him to start a war since she was the guardian of violence and by extension, war. 

Now, here’s what I would change if I were to rewrite her story:

- I would definitely have her still be violent and overstep her boundaries a lot, the other characters are shown to fear her slightly and wouldn’t stop her then. She gets beaten up for this in the original but I’m not going to include that since the beater in question was her love interest.

- She isn’t the leader, more of a high ranked commander and I need to remember that. Despite her lower statues, she does come from a lot more than her superiors so I would find a way to integrate that since class plays a big role in their society. 

- What I really am not comfortable with anymore is the fact that she is written like an emotionally unstable teenager whilst her love interest is clearly older and more mature

- I would make her more mature since I think it was just the way I used to write 

- I would make the romance more slow burn and problematic, it was way too fast and turned out way too perfect when both parties are clearly mentally unstable. Perhaps there isn’t really any love, one both sides the end goal is power. 

- Seeing as she is to be redeemed, I don’t think their romance should end perfectly. Megatron is still violent and messed up while she has come to terms with her mistakes and has redeemed herself in some way. 

- Having her join the other side would be perfect, she isn’t a fan of their methods, but they share the same goal as her: a democratic and peaceful society instead of dictatorship and violence. 

- Joining the other side would also be problematic with most of the Autobots seeming to not like her, I like this a lot, since despite her being a very difficult and rash person, she is still powerful and could give them the upper hand on the enemy as an ex commander with inside information.

- Now as for her brother, Soundwave, I’d definitely have them disagree and he would still end up on the losing side in a bad predicament. Perhaps it’d be the turning point for her, and her trying to convince him to join her would definitely add to her redemption and mellow her out 

- Her brother dying because of his stubbornness since he’s shown to be extremely loyal to his faction in the show. I like sibling dynamics a lot, especially when they don't share the same goals. It makes for a compelling story and it’s very emotional watching one rise and the other fall when you know they care for each other. 

- Maybe she would have genuine love for Megatron, but it actually isn’t shown what happens to him. He actually just flies off in the end, a lot of people presume he’s either committed suicide or lives in exile. So I will yeet that off the table and have her just be content with whatever comes after the war since she most likely can’t have her emotionally unstable boyfriend 

- I personally think she’d keep her position as this divine guardian, but be a lot more tamed. I think her problem was that she only listened to herself back then and never actually took the word of anyone she supposedly held close to her, spending time on a cohesive team like the Autobots would definitely help her a lot. 

And I think that’s where I’ll wrap it up. I love her concept and I’d like her even more if I chose to keep her evil, but I have to stay true to young me’s vision and redeem her. Either way, I definitely think she’s less Mary Sue now because she always got her way and was friends with everyone. Having her earn people’s trust is a lot better than the “everyone just likes her dude” she was in the story. 

Anyways, that’s it for this part of Second Tries. I’d love to know what you guys think! 

[tiny-little-bird]

Now you go around saying Sansa is a warrior? Yeah sure ok 😂 You guys just keep twisting stuff around so it applies to your stupid crackship 👍😂 Jon and Dany are together and in love. Put Sansa next to Dany and she withers 😂😂 Dany is a Queen, she has dragons, has conquered cities, has fought slavery, while Sansa has done what exactly? Yeah, nothing. She can't even protect herself lmao 😂 Sansa is anything, but a warrior, she's the stupidest and weakest character in the books and the series.

I’m assuming this is about my reply to this post [x]?

I’ll insert the reply below:

“I’ve honestly always interpreted this quote this way:

Usually when we can’t have something or someone, at some point, we try to convince ourselves we don’t want it, to protect ourselves from pain, hurt and disappointment. It’s a coping mechanism. 

Jon is a romantic, he’s brave, he’s kind, he’s gentle, he’s caring, he has all the traits of a true knight, he’s always dreamed of being a knight, and what do knights do? Protect, take care of and, rescue ladies, and people in general, whom are helpless and that in certain situations can’t protect themselves.Jon is simply trying to convince himself, that he doesn’t want a “Lady”, to spare himself some pain, because in fact, it’s exactly what he wants, but since it’s something he thinks he can’t have, since he thinks he doesn’t deserve it, because he’s bastard born, and well, also because he’s a sworn brother of the Night’s watch, he keeps telling himself, he tries to convince himself, it’s not what he wants.

So yeah, in my opinion it’s a coping mechanism of his, to deal with reality (little does he know, that he’s a Prince, and the rightful heir to the Iron Throne).Now, not to say that he’s only attracted to Ladies, and he doesn’t find warrior women, or better said, strong women* (because let’s face it, the word “warrior” can have many meanings, it can mean strong, brave, fierce etc., it does not necessarily mean, a woman who can fight and kill), *attractive, because he does, but he likes Ladies too, he likes femininity, “I’d like to see you in a silk dress”, “You like women who swoon? Oh a spider! Save me Jon Snow.”, “Sansa looked radiant as she walked beside him.”, “New dress? […] I like the wolf bit.” He loved Ygritte’s singing voice, and look at this quote from the book ADWD, when he’s dying: “[He thought] of Sansa, brushing out Lady’s coat and singing to herself.” immediately followed by him thinking, “You know nothing, Jon Snow.”

So basically what Jon wants, is a strong Lady. If you think about it, Sansa is now a mix of both a Lady and a warrior (not a literal warrior, but you know what I mean). She’s still a Lady, she likes to style her hair, and wear (silk) dresses, but she’s also strong and intelligent, and can take care of herself, but even so, she still needs a protecting sword, because although she’s strong, she’s not a literal warrior, she can’t use an actual sword, her “sword”, her strength is her mind, she’s a warrior in her own way, but in situations of danger, when someone is coming at you with a sword/a knife trying to kill you, the mind is not of much help, and you need an actual sword, a knight to help and protect you.

There is nothing wrong with being helpless, there is nothing wrong with needing help. Besides this quote kind of contradicts with what he is, a protector, a guardian, a shield, a sword, he’s a Black Knight. 

That’s what he does, he protects people, he protects the helpless.

“I am the sword in the darkness. I am the watcher on the walls. I am the shield that guards the realms of men.”

Besides, Jon/Sansa and protection, is a recurring theme between the two of them in S6 and 7. He wants to keep her safe, he wants to protect her. “I’ll never let him touch you again, I’ll protect you, I promise.”, “Jon is Jon. He’ll keep me safe, I trust him.”

He realizes that she’s not a silly little girl/child any longer, she’s a woman grown, she’s strong and intelligent. He admires her, he admires her strength, but he feels the need to protect her anyway, he wants to protect her anyway, he wants to be her sword, her protector, her knight.

And, she wants and tries to protect him too, “you have to be smarter than father, you need to be smarter than Robb.” They’re trying to protect each other, keep each other safe, alive, and that’s just so powerful and beautiful to me. I’ve said this many times, what one lacks, the other has, they’re both strong and complement each other so beautifully, he’s the sword and she’s the mind.Where I’m trying to get at with this is, Sansa has grown and has learned from her experiences, and at this point she is exactly Jon’s type, all the traits and qualities he likes/wants/admires in a woman, Sansa has. 

To make it short, Jon admires and is attracted to strong women.Sansa is a fighter, she’s strong, fierce, brave, intelligent, beautiful, she has kept her morales, has remained caring and kindhearted (despite all she’s gone trough), she’s highborn, she’s a Lady, she’s a Stark, she’s pretty much everything he’s ever wanted.

She is perfect for him, and there is no question he has all the traits and qualities she’s always wanted in a man (and to top it, he’s a Prince too, what are the odds), he’s perfect for her, they’re perfect for each other, they’re a perfect match.

#JonsaIsComing 💙”

What have I twisted around? Can you read?

Sansa is strong, brave and fierce. She is not weak, and SHE IS a warrior, in her own way, as I’ve said above, there are many types of warriors, and she is one of them, she is a fighter. 

“Jon and Dandelion are together and in love”, Yeah… sure… ok… whatever you say 👍😅

How does Sansa wither next to Dandelion? lol She is beautiful, kind, intelligent, she isn’t power hungry nor obsessed with conquering and being Queen, she cares, truly cares, about her people and their well being and she is a good, capable and competent ruler, which inspires the loyalty of her people. If anything, it’s the other way around…

I honestly can’t wait for season 8, when Jaimie will pledge his sword to her, when Varys will realize that he had the Queen Westeros deserves, right under his nose, the whole bloody time:

The Seven Kingdoms need someone stronger than Tommen but gentler than Stannis. Sansa is stronger than Tommen, but gentler than Stannis.

A monarch who could intimidate the High Lords and inspire the people. Sansa knows how to speak with the Lords, how to listen to them and keep them at bay.

A ruler loved by millions, with a powerful army, and the right family name.  She is loved by her people, the Lords and Knights of the Vale are now loyal to her (more people will follow in S8), and she has the right family name, the Stark name.

Tyrion will also realize at some point, that following Dandelion was a mistake. I think in S8, many characters will end up pledging their swords and their loyalty to Sansa. Theon/House Greyjoy as well. I mean Dandelion didn’t give af that Yara, one of her allies, was captured. Theon had to go help her/rescue her himself, because Dandelion doesn’t give af abt her allies, what a great ruler, what a great Queen, when your friends get captured you leave them behind, how truly inspiring. 

The only thing Dandelion is, is incompetent, the only thing she inspires is fear, the only thing she brings to Westeros is war and destruction and that’s it… “Incompetence should not be rewarded with blind loyalty”

I cannot stress this enough, Sansa isn’t stupid, Sansa isn’t weak. She is one of the strongest characters in the series, a character which has had a strong growth. She has grown from an innocent little girl with her head full of dreams and songs, to a capable, fierce woman, that would do anything in her power to protect, and ensure the safety and wellbeing of her pack and her people.

Sansa hasn’t had the chance to do anything until now, she’s been captive for years, she never had a dragon to flee her enemies ya know? She was stuck with them for years. But now that she is home, she’s taking care of her people, taking care of her brother’s army, ensuring they stay loyal to him, that they don’t abandon him and his cause, she’s not burning the people’s food, unlike a certain “someone”, quite the contrary, she’s making sure that there is enough food for everyone in case they have to flee to Winterfell, she’s reinforcing Winterfell and its walls, she’s keeping the North stable and at peace, avoiding rebellions while Jon is away, she’s executing traitors, whom mean to harm her family and the North. She was given the chance to rule, and she’s doing a fantastic job, she’s a natural.

And sorry to break it to you, but Dandelion can’t protect herself either? She can’t fight/use a sword either? lol What kind of argument is that? Dandelion has protectors left and right, she’s been saved by them more times than we can count, so what’s the deal? By your logic she’s also weak smh

Strenght comes in many forms.

Not being able to use a sword, not being able to fight ≠ weakness

[ripplesofaqua]

Black Emporium 2020 Letter

Dear Author/Artist,

Thank you for creating something for me! I cannot wait to see what you come up with! Please write/draw whatever you are most comfortable with, and feel free to follow your own ideas. But if you are in need of some prompts for inspiration, here are a few things I like (and dislike):

DNWs: major character death, underage, incest,  non/dub-con, depictions of abuse/homophobia/racism/transphobia/etc,  whitewashing or straightwashing, excessive gore/torture/violence,  serious illness, body horror, A/B/O, hardcore bdsm/kink, bestiality,  infidelity, angst without at least a hopeful ending

Feel free to  write whatever rating you’re comfortable with. If you do write smut, I  tend to prefer it on the slightly less graphic side, and always with  clear communication and lots of feels

Things I enjoy:   strong ladies and admiration between them, fluff, banter, angst with a  hopeful ending, humor, balanced and respectful relationships, mutual  pining, slow burn, repressed feelings, (rivals to) friends to lovers, hurt/comfort, oh no  there’s only one bed, huddling for warmth, secret admirer, long awaited reunions, Victorian/historical AU

Prompts: I tried to include lots of pairings, so that there would be plenty of options to chose what you’re most comfortable with. I hope it’s not too overwhelming! I love all these pairings, so please choose what you would enjoy creating for the most. If it helps jumpstart things, here are a few ideas and things I like most about these characters, but this is all optional of course!:

1. Cassandra, Josie, & Leliana: they’re so different, but are all so skilled and work well together as a team. Tender moments, repressed feelings, pining, romantic gestures, palace intrigue - feel free to throw all the tropes at these two! Or maybe think about their relationships before and after DA:I. How did they meet? Did they have to push aside an early crush to work together, except the crush doesn’t go away? Do they lose contact and reconnect after DA:I? Does one of them become Divine? (I generally prefer Leliana as Divine, but am open to other options as well - though please, not too angsty if you that route!

2. Even more Cassandra: just Cassandra being her heroic, grumpy, romantic, wonderful self with a bunch of other amazing ladies! Feel free to throw all the tropes at these pairings, as well!

- Cassandra/Seeker: I love the idea of having Cass rebuild the Seekers into something much better than they were, and going off to the Hunterhorns for some soul searching. Does she meet someone new there, or perhaps reconnect with an old friend from her training? Or do they send letters across Thedas while looking for recruits?

- Cassandra/Hawke: Disaster!Hawke, awkward flirting, banter, meeting heroes, smutty romance novels, secret admirer! How does their initial meeting at Skyhold go? Is there mutual admiration and awe, or sore feelings from Cassandra’s treatment of Varric? Or perhaps have them both at Adamant together.

- Cassandra/Inquisitor: Action packed adventure, romance, slice of life - how do these two get along? Are there repressed feelings, attempts at wooing, or perhaps a rivalry that slowly turns into something more. Does Cassandra reject the Inquisitor at first, and then realize she does have feelings? How would they reconnect after Trespasser?

3. Some more pairings:

- Lace Harding/Leliana: Glances from afar, hesitantly touching hands, working late together. By the end of Trespasser, Harding is one of Leliana’s most trusted agents - how does that relationship grow? Would Harding stay with a Divine Leliana? How would Harding’s optimism and romantic heart mix with a softening, but still hurting, Leliana? Would Leliana show up to Harding’s dance classes, or help her with her fear of heights? Does Leliana inadvertently send Harding into danger, and have to deal with the guilt alongside rescuing her (or have Harding rescue Leliana!)

- Shokrakar/Cassandra or Adaar: Sparring, banter, teasing, shenanigans, and valiant heroics! The letters Shokrakar sends, and her nicknames for Inquisition members, are absolutely delightful. What would happen if they met? What would Shokrakar make of Adaar’s new job leading the Inquisition? Alternatively, how did Adaar join the Valo-Kas? Did they start a relationship back then?

4. Vivienne: Vivienne being in her element and playing the Game with skill and finesse, making impressive use of her knight-enchanter skills, having deep feelings beneath her political mask, and being the nerdy mage that she is! Perhaps send her on some intrigue with Leliana or Josie or Cass - or maybe send them shopping, on a spa day, or to a fancy Orlesian restaurant! Would one of them go out of their way to hunt down a rare book or artifact for Vivienne? Or perhaps, you could have them work through the aftermath of Bastien’s illness.

5. The Avvar: Here are some screenshots if you need visuals! [X] [X] I’d love to see more of their world! Daily life, quiet moments and storytelling by the campfire, sunsets over the lake, blizzards, rock climbing, bears, and the warmest looking hoods! 

- Svarah Sun-Hair: I would love to see her being the badass, competent, confident leader she is - whether this involves fighting, negotiating, or daily duties. How would someone catch her eye and win her heart? The best friend she’s had from childhood, her second-in-command who’s not afraid to challenge her judgment, the Thane of a rival Hold with whom she must learn to work together to reach a common goal? If you choose to pair her with someone outside the Avvar, how would they work through their differences in culture and develop mutual respect and understanding? Would someone from the Inquisition get snowed in or injured and have to live with the Avvar for awhile? Would they fight of danger together, or perhaps work together to open trade in a way that benefits the Avvar? Also, Svarah really knows how to sit on her throne <3

- Cassandra & Storvacker: bear puns! Cassandra becoming friends with her natural enemy! ;) How would these two learn to get along, and what shenanigans (or heroics) would they get up to? (feel free to include other members of Stone-Bear Hold in this too!)

- Sigrid/Trevelyan: How would Sigrid react to a mage Trevelyan - would she agree to join the Inquisition? If you choose Josie for the war table mission, she receives a letter with some interesting possibilities for lecture-circuit shenanigans [X]. Would she and Trevelyan try to outdo each other with explosive results? Alternatively, how would Sigrid deal with leaving or reconnecting with her hold?

- Fullna/Gyda: Fullna is the Hold’s skald (vaguely like a bard), and responsible for keeping their stories and history alive. She’s only had the position a few years and hasn’t yet earned her legend-mark. Gyda is responsible for the Hold’s funerary rights. Would they nerd out together over lore, histories, and nature? They’re both fairly young and new to their positions - how might they support each other? Would they have an adventure (or perhaps something less grand!) that earns them their legend-marks? Would Fullna woo Gyda with a song?

- Linna & Runa: In Up and Away, Linna, a fisher, cannot find her cousin Runa, who got lost climbing. Perhaps you could show that quest from either of their povs? What is the relationship between these cousins like? Did they often get lost and cause lots of trouble sneaking out to climb together while they were kids?

7. Tragic Couples: I’d be happy with both angsty or fix-it fics for these! For easy reference:  the Saga of Tyrdda Bright-Axe [x], Ritts & Eldredda [X], Jehan & Fabienne [X]

6. The most adorable nerds: bonding over exploring and making discoveries, creative inventions, teaching, awkwardness, showing feelings by sharing knowledge.

- Colette/Harding: Adventure! Mayhem! Does Colette make a big discovery with Harding’s help, and finally get the recognition she deserves? Does she help Harding with her fear of Heights? What danger’s lurk around the Basin’s ruins?

- Your Trainer: she’s given up so much to learn dangerous rift magic, I’d love to see her end up somewhere safe and happy (and the same for Minaeve, too). What knowledge can she share? (Also, feel free to explore an ace or queerplatonic relationship relationship here - or really for any of my prompts, for that matter!)

- Belinda/Luka: adventure! explosives! mushrooms! I just love this multiplayer pair!

[atruththatyoudeny]

Monthly Reads | August 2017

OMG! August was such a good month - I’ve read lots of amazing fics! Please make sure to also check out the fics under the cut! ❤ THANK YOU TO ALL WRITERS FOR YOUR HARD WORK AND FOR SHARING YOUR STORIES! ❤ Top 5 6 + 11 more under the cut:

Pray for some sweet simplicity

by delsicle | a/b/o | enemies to lovers | 237k Louis is the only omega to ever make it in the cut-throat world of competitive motorcycle racing—that is, he would be if anyone actually knew about his identity. Now, his sights are set towards competing in—and winning—the European Grand Prix, the biggest and most difficult race of the entire year, so he can disappear underground for good. He’s close enough, too, until an alpha sports journalist is assigned to follow Louis’s every move as he prepares for the event of his career. Or, an AU where motorcycle racing is the biggest sport in a heavily divided world, Louis is trying to take control of his own destiny, and Harry is in for more than he bargained for.

[*edited*]

Chasing Empty Spaces

by domesticharry | historical AU | 1930s | 79k The year is 1934 and Harry Styles was to inherent the largest tobacco firm in the south. His parents have picked out the “perfect” girl for him to marry and he has the privilege of receiving the highest education possible. The problem was, Harry hadn’t realized he didn’t actually want any part of that future until he met a mechanic named, Louis Tomlinson.

We’ll Be Seamless

by dinosaursmate for HL Fic Fest (2017) | Tumblr AU | pining | exhibitionism | voyeurism | 52k Green reblogged an old photo of himself. It was from back in October, a Halloween special. A pulse shot all the way through Louis because this photo was his absolute favourite, and it had taken the rest of the year for him to wean himself off of it. Green was on his knees, arms stretched out in front of him with his fingertips digging into the surface of his bed. He was wearing a pair of cat ears on his head, his curls falling forward. His back was arched, and in the foreground of the picture, Green’s bum was high in the air, a long, black cat tail sitting neatly between his cheeks. — Louis spends all his spare time scrolling arty nude blogs on Tumblr but amongst them all, Green is his favourite.

Given a Chance

by Fabby | Future Fic | canon compliant | slow burn | coming back together | anxiety attacks| 173k Five years after One Direction took their last tour, the last thing Louis Tomlinson ever expected to happen while on a tea run at the local Piggly Wiggly was to run into his ex-boyfriend and ex-bandmate Harry Styles. The odds of them ever running into each other again had to be super slim, right? Wrong. What happens when you mix ex-boyfriends with a large serving of Small Town America? Will Louis and Harry be able to set aside their differences, or will Louis be able to stay breezy as fuck in the wake of Harry’s arrival? (or, the one where Louis and Harry run into each other five years after One Direction ends and learn how to love each other again. Featuring: Reggie as the overweight labrador, Niall as Louis’ last grip on reality, and Nowheresville, North Carolina as the setting for Louis’ worst nightmare to come true.)

No sooner loved (series)

by benzos 1| As the winter to foul weather Trans character | mpreg | abortion | hurt/comfort | 45k AU. An unplanned pregnancy throws a spanner into Harry and Louis’ relationship. It wasn’t supposed to go like this. 2| You and you are sure together Trans character | eating disorder | hurt/comfort | 48k AU. The first day of fall term, Louis hits one of his residents in the face with a door. Later that day, said resident seeks refuge after a fight with his roommate. It becomes a thing. And then it becomes something else. 3| Baby, i’m speeding, and red lights are run pwp | 7k Louis really would’ve liked to just order the damn thing off the internet, but Harry insists that anything going inside your body ought to be thoroughly researched, which, apparently, mandates going to a sex shop. Knowing how ludicrously uncomfortable Louis is with the whole thing, Harry devises the ingenious solution of bringing Eleanor along and having her pose as Harry’s girlfriend who’s interested in trying out pegging, with Louis tagging along as a supportive best mate. It’s not Harry’s worst plan to date, but it’s somewhere in that range.

Under me, you

by hazzafrazza | friends to lovers | superheroes | 12 k You Won’t Believe Who Was Spotted Leaving Harry Styles’ Primrose Hill Pad! If Harry was being completely honest, it probably wasn’t the best idea to be a world-renowned popstar and an infamous vigilante. (Especially when all the comic books said never reveal your secret identity to keep your loved ones safe – which was all well and good, until Louis.) Or: Harry wants a lot of things – fame, glory, Louis – but that last one is particularly hard to get when everyone thinks you’re dating your secret superhero alter-ego and suddenly you’ve become your own worst cockblock.

Such Good Luck

by casuallyhl for HL Mpreg Fic Exchange | Historical AU | 1910s | mpreg | secret relationship | class difference | 66k Louis smiles at Harry’s words, leaning into his touch. “Tell me again.” Smiling, Harry takes Louis into his arms. Pressing gentle kisses to his face, Harry murmurs, “In six months’ time, I will have my twenty-fifth birthday. On that day, my portion of the inheritance will become legally mine. And I plan that very day to announce to my family that I have found love.” Harry chuckles as he runs his lips lightly along Louis’ cheekbone. “That, in fact, I found love when I was twenty-one years old, and that I have loved and been loved every day since.” Or, an Edwardian AU where Harry is a young aristocratic lord and Louis is a working class dairy farmer. Secrets are a necessary part of their relationship, but Louis has one that could topple their whole world.

What A Life I’d Have Missed

by harioandlouigi for HL Mpreg Fic Exchange | mpreg | established relationship | 27k It all started with a prank, tears, and guilt. Louis has been pranking Harry since the day they met. Now, seven years later, Harry has finally come up with the perfect plan to prank his husband back. He has a borrowed positive pregnancy test in front of him, he’s perfected his facial expression, and he’s dead sure Louis will fall for it. He doesn’t exactly get the panicked reaction he expected, though. As a matter of fact, nothing ever seems to turn out the way he expects it to, but that’s for the best, really. Or, the one where an insensitive joke soon becomes a very real, happy pregnancy.

Small Doses (Loving You It’s Explosive)

by Anonymous for HL Summer Exchange 2017 | personal trainer Harry | boxing | dom/sub undertones | 38k Louis Tomlinson finds himself at Vitality Fitness to try and turn his life around after having left his cheating boyfriend of four years. The gym’s owner, Liam, quickly becomes a good friend, but his right hand man is rude and dismissive from the get-go. Louis and Harry continue to clash all while Harry is trying to move his way up the ranks in Manchester’s amateur boxing circuit, but they can’t seem to stay away from each other.

Sound Like a Song

by allwaswell16 for HL Fic Fest (2017) | 14k In high school, Louis Tomlinson lit up Harry’s world like nobody else, even if Harry did most of his pining from the safety of his tightly knit circle of friends. Ten years later, Harry is ready to make some changes. He’s tired of having so many regrets and not taking charge of his life, and he still hasn’t forgotten how brightly Louis shines. He’s about to get a long awaited second chance. Or the one where Harry helps out at a farmer’s market and gives Louis free vegetables.

Take Me Back to Where We Started

by amory | exes to lovers | famous/non-famous | 27k Harry and Louis haven’t spoken since they broke up four years ago. As boarding school sweethearts they once spent every waking moment together, but now they can hardly stand to be in the same room. When their five year class reunion comes around, both boys decide against their better judgement to return and (hopefully) have a good time. The only problem is, they’re both still hopelessly in love. Starring Harry as the petty ex, Louis as the new James Bond, Niall as a boy genius and fake boyfriend extraordinaire, and Liam and Zayn as two friends just trying to make it out of this weekend alive.

Tightrope

by Anonymous for HL Mpreg Fic Exchange | mpreg | exes | friends to lovers | 33k Louis knows he and Harry are going to be together for the rest of their lives and one day they were going to get married and have three point five children, a dog, and two cats. But life hasn’t matched up perfectly yet and that time is not now. So they are both happy to be best friends and casually date other people until life decides they really should get their shit together. aka Louis gets pregnant from “one last time” sex and he and Harry somehow think they’ll be able co-parent without it being weird for anyone (most especially their new boyfriends).

Souls; Plural, Parallel

by Anonymous for HL Mpreg Fic Exchange | mpreg | soulmates | 19k Soulmates are rare, the sort of rare that means everyone has a story about a friend’s sister’s coworker or a brother’s roommate’s cousin. But the fact of the matter is that most people never meet theirs. It’s unfortunate then, that Louis finds out the hard way that he met his soulmate in a club, and the guy never texted him back.

Friend Request

by Anonymous for HL Summer Exchange 2017 | 11k This was written for Kassio as a pinch hit for the HL Summer Exchange, from the prompt: “ Louis is bored on Facebook and in the “People you may know” suggestions, he sees the name Harry Styles. The profile picture doesn’t show the person. He thinks it’s an old family friend who he misses – maybe a middle-aged or elderly former neighbor or babysitter who he was fond of as a child - and sends a friend request. Turns out it’s not old man Harry from their old neighborhood, it’s hot young Harry (who he’s never met before) who accepts his friend request…”

If the Surface Begs You Home

by Anonymous for HL Mpreg Fic Exchange | mpreg | mermaid!Harry | 17k Harry is a mermaid from the underwater kingdom of Mercadia who is a little too fascinated by life above the surface. He’s kicked out of his home after he winds up pregnant, and has to figure out how to make his way in the world. Louis is the darling of the small neighbouring seaside village who came home after university to take over their local library, and can’t seem to stay away from the mysterious pregnant mermaid his friends introduce him to.

Out of the blue corner

by fallingaway | boxing | slow burn 85k Louis is a boxer banned because of doping. Harry is a journalist following the story. * * * “It seemed like a normal morning, but he had a feeling it was the quiet before the storm. And by storm, he meant getting involved in Louis Tomlinson’s life.”

[enterinit]

Stellaris: Utopia and other games coming to Xbox One this week

Stellaris: Utopia and other games coming to Xbox One this week. Ancestors Legacy (August 13, 2019) A history-inspired, real-time strategy game influenced by historical events in the Middle Ages. Combining resource management and base building with large-scale, squad-based battles across vast battlefields and a cinematic action camera that puts you right in the middle of the battle. Stellaris: Utopia (August 13, 2019) Utopia is the first major expansion for Stellaris, the critically acclaimed science fiction grand strategy game from Paradox Development Studio. Utopia gives you new tools to develop your galactic empire and keep your people happy. Push your species further out into the galaxy with new bonuses for rapid exploration or stay closer to home before striking out against all who would challenge you. Exception (August 13, 2019) Exception is a combat platformer set inside a computer system which has been hijacked by a totalitarian virus. A lone member of the system must step up to lead the resistance and battle against this brutal regime. Expertly combine razor sharp reflexes with elaborate attacks to topple the virus and restore freedom. - A New Approach to Platforming - Two-dimensional action in a three-dimensional world. Entire levels transform to reveal new challenges and opportunities. Explore distant areas exposed by the shifting environment. Each level is an elaborate puzzle that unfolds as you progress. - Synthwave Soundtrack - A soundtrack assembled from the very best Synthwave artists. Enjoy nearly two-hours of Synthwave tracks which complement Exception's retro-futuristic aesthetic. - Challenge the Leaderboards - Compete for the best time on your favorite levels through more than 100 leaderboards. Take on your friends or players from around the world. - Illustrated story - The story of Exception told with illustrated cutscenes. Learn about the system collapse and subsequent power vacuum that gave rise to a fascist virus. Join a gang of four misfit software threads in their journey to overthrow the brutal regime and restore freedom to the system. - Upgrade your Character - Execute a variety of special attacks and string together creative combinations to maximize your destruction. Collect hidden artifacts to purchase attack upgrades and push the limits of your destruction. - Dynamic Bonus System - Chain multiple airborne attacks to earn time bonuses. Harness your creativity to uncover the fastest level routes with the most bonus potential. Aggressive attack strategies yield the highest bonuses. Features: Conquer 128 transforming levels set in 16 unique computer worldsProve that you're the best Exception player in the world with online leaderboardsIllustrated cutscenes bring the world of Exception to lifeSix special attacks to unlock as the player progresses128 collectible items to upgrade special attacks15 enemy bosses to overcome with your advanced skillsSynthwave soundtrack from nine international musicians PC Building Simulator (August 13, 2019) The Ultimate PC Building Simulation has arrived! Build your very own PC empire, from simple diagnosis and repairs to bespoke, boutique creations that would be the envy of any enthusiast. With an expansive marketplace full of real-world components you can finally stop dreaming of that ultimate PC and get out there, build it and see how it benchmarks in 3DMark! Run your own Business The career mode in PC Building Simulator puts you in charge of your very own PC building and repair business. From your own cozy workshop, you must use all your technical skills to complete the various jobs that come your way. Learn to Build a PC Does building your own PC seem like an impossible task? PC Building Simulator aims to teach even the most novice PC user how their machine is put together with step-by-step instructions explaining the order parts should be assembled and providing useful information on what each part is and its function. Vasara Collection (August 14, 2019) For the very first time, highly acclaimed Japanese Arcade Shoot’em Ups - Vasara (2000) and Vasara 2 (2001) - are made available to the whole world via this package: VASARA COLLECTION! Science Fiction meets History in these arcade classics which take place in an alternate timeline Feudal Japan where technologically advanced weaponry and equipment are a reality, and heroes use flying motorcycles with amazing firepower and fierce melee weapons to destroy their enemies. Try and stay alive on this frantic game where everyone, and everything, is out to kill you! Features: Tate Mode/ Vertical Mode support;8 playable characters inspired by real Japanese historical figures;Sci-Fi meets Feudal Japan in this retelling of historical battles;Fight Robots and Samurais using traditional shooting and powerful melee attacks;Heavily skill-based gameplay for Experts;Easy Mode for Starters;Branching Paths and Multiple Endings according to your characters and in-game actions; Slay the Spire (August 14, 2019) We fused card games and roguelikes together to make the best single player deckbuilder we could. Craft a unique deck, encounter bizarre creatures, discover relics of immense power, and Slay the Spire! Features: Dynamic Deck Building: Choose your cards wisely! Discover hundreds of cards to add to your deck with each attempt at climbing the Spire. Select cards that work together to efficiently dispatch foes and reach the topAn Ever-changing Spire: Whenever you embark on a journey up the Spire, the layout differs each time. Choose a risky or safe path, face different enemies, choose different cards, discover different relics, and even fight different bosses!Powerful Relics to Discover: Powerful items known as relics can be found throughout the Spire. The effects of these relics can greatly enhance your deck through powerful interactions. But beware, obtaining a relic may cost you more than just gold… Edna and Harvey: Harvey’s New Eyes (August 14, 2019) Life at the convent school isn't easy for Lilli. Only her vivid imagination lets the shy girl escape everyday-drudgery under the stern, watchful eye of the Mother Superior. She diligently works through her chores, no matter how unfair they may be. Her innocent, imperturbable way of carrying out the orders of others has something both tragic and eerie about it. Any resentment, any childlike disobedience is buried deep beneath a seemingly impenetrable shell of sweetness. And if anything goes awry or gets ugly, the jolly censorship gnomes got her back: they put a nice coat of pink paint over all the things Lili would rather not consciously confront. But are her little potato-shaped budies real or just a figment of her vivid subconscious? Maybe it's only a matter of time until she completely loses her mind! When her best friend Edna disappears under mysterious circumstances, Lili bravely sets out on a dangerous journey, not only to get her friend back, but also to confront her subconscious fears. Features: Unique, hand-drawn comic style backgrounds and animations – now also in HD!A classic Point & Click adventure with all the traditional virtues: take everything that's not bolted down, engage in dialogies, solve puzzles… you know the drill.Bizarre characters and crazy humorA remarkable gaming experience with challenging puzzles, several hours of dialogue and 53 different locations Gravity Duck (August 14, 2019) Have you ever wanted to be rich? What if you could become rich and control gravity!?This duck can with your help! Flip, dodge, and traverse mind-bending gravity puzzles in 140 levels in order to grab all the eggs to return to the Maui statue! Need to change direction of your gravity flips? Use the gravity wells to switch the direction you fall in order to get around obstacles and grab the eggs! Features: Flip between 140 levels across 4 chaptersCatchy 8-bit musicVibrant pixelated levelsUse gravity wells to change the direction in which you fallDodge spikes, projectiles, and traps to secure the eggs. Tactics V: Obsidian Brigade (August 15, 2019) Tactics V: "Obsidian Brigade" is a retro-style tactical turn-based video game in homage to console tactical RPGs from the 1990s. Its set in an in-house fantasy setting with it's own lore and magic, It also uses techniques to convert to a 2D isometric look from 3D assets. Content Included: Robust combat system (with many mechanics: facing, targeting styles, actions, delayed actions, reactions)World map navigation.>50 hand crafted levels>80 scripted scenes/battles25+ hours and new game plus3 ½ tiers of gear/weaponry13 unique unlockable classes>50 skills (proficiencies, abilities, power casting unlockable)>140 powers (Elemental magic, close range, Archery, Imbue poisons, etc.)Optional cooperative main-game via assigning troops to another controller during deploymentTraining option allowing a non-fatal combat to be controlled by player(s) or AI to gain XP and Skill pointsOptional Alternate top-down perspective available Features: Tactical Turn-Based CombatRole PlayingLocal Coop Aritana and the Twin Masks (August 16, 2019) “They are not ready…” Are you? Prove your value in Aritana and the Twin Masks. An adventure based on Brazilian mythology and culture that will carry you deeper into the forest's mysteries. This second Aritana's adventure extends gameplay possibilities, bringing a bow and arrow gameplay, 3D movement, vast sceneries in open landscapes and powers that help the player solve several puzzles. Explore a colossal temple, find artifacts that can be mixed in many special potions, and prepare yourself to save the Tree of life. Also, you can further explore this magical universe with comics that shows more about the temple's events. Unmask all the mysteries and follow Aritana on his journey to save the Tree of life, discovering ghosts from his past. Features: An original story based on Brazilian mythology and folklore;Enemy confrontation is also a puzzle-solving endeavor;Look for hidden artifacts to improve your chances of survival;Explore the vast YpY's Temple in a third-person adventure game;Create special potions with tropical fruits and objects from the temple;Uncover the truth listening to a fantastic soundtrack. Read the full article

[petite-neko]

Survivor- 2

Fanfiction: Survivor Story Summary: Anything was better than that. Characters: Law, Beop, Hearts Crew, (Luffy) Pairing: Lawlu Rating: T Warnings: Swearing, Angst, Self-deprecating thoughts, Subtle mention of alcohol usage and/or drug usage. Day/Prompt: Day 4 : A - Awareness A/N: Sooo~ I decided to write a second part. Here you go. (Continuation of Revoke. I’ll figure out a title later.)

.xxx. - Scene jumps.

.+++. - PoV Switch

Read on Ao3

Previous Chapter || Chapter 2: Awareness || Next Chapter

“We’re leaving.”

Those were the words as he hopped onto his deck, ushering his crew to board the submarine.

He had expected the protests from his crew, but he dismissed them and repeated himself, glancing at each member of his crew with insistence in his eyes.

As always, they obeyed, even if begrudgingly.

“…Captain, the Strawhats are screaming something at us.”

Law tensed but toned out the shouts from the other ship.

“Ignore it. We’re leaving.”

“…But what about Mugiwara?”

(His entire body went rigid.)

“He has his own competent doctor.” And he knew his voice was venomous right now. (Away. Away. Push him away.) “And it isn’t likely that he would require intensive surgery again.”

“…Captain…”

“We’re leaving!” He wouldn’t accept their pity right now. He knew what they were speculating.

And so he stormed off and towards his room – because he couldn’t. Couldn’t look at their eyes. Couldn’t doubt that maybe, just maybe, he was wrong and this was a complete mistake.

(A fight, they probably thought – and he supposed that they were right.)

All I could think about…

But – no. This wasn’t Luffy’s fault. Sure, Luffy made him mad. Sure, if Luffy hadn’t been such a damn selfish idiot, none of this would have happened. But Luffy wasn’t to fault for the so-called ‘breakup.’

Poison. Poison. Poison. His fault. Bringing him down…

Because it was his fault for sticking around for too long. Because all he ever did was lose people, and he just couldn’t lose Luffy too.

(And, sure, he supposed that this was a form of loss, it was the lesser of the evils. That Luffy was still alive out there. That he hadn’t permanently lost him. That Luffy didn’t have to suffer and lose everything because of him. That Luffy could fulfill his dreams and smile and laugh. Obtain that freedom he sought, a freedom which would never be granted as long as he was with him.)

.xxx.

Law had ordered his crew to not pick up the phone under any circumstances. To just keep on sailing for days on end. Distance – he needed to distance himself from Luffy.

Eventually, though, the news had to be broken to his crew. And, a week after the ‘fight’ he finally announced it.

“Our alliance with the Strawhats is over.”

Again, the expected protests. Although, it seemed that his crew had at least began to come to the conclusion that this was the result or at least one of them.

They tried to convince him to think about it or tell him to reconsider his actions. State he was being rash…

But it was Bepo that spoke up, asking the question that they all wondered was true or not.

“…Is this because the two of you fought Captain?”

Law sighed. Well, he might as well inform them. “…While, yes, we fought, the break up of the alliance was ultimately my decision. We’ve already accomplished our original goals, and had merely been sticking together for the betterment of both of our crews.” He shrugged, trying to be nonchalant about it. “It was bound to happen one day when the risks outweigh the benefits. And, so I called it off. I informed Mugiwara-ya that the alliance is over. However, it does not necessarily mean that our two crews are actively at war. We just are no longer allied.”

…Certainly, he supposed of he had seen the Strawhats being attacked, he would not have any qualms about his crew assisting the other. Or even if they ended up against the same enemy. Nor would he have any qualms about their crew helping his. (Although, he would most certainly avoid battle as long as that particular captain was around.) As long as they didn’t get in the way of his goals and adventures, things were fine.

More murmurs.

“So, don’t hold any grudges – there are none to hold. And, if they call, hang up. We are merely two pirate crews sailing the same seas now. As long as we do not get in the other’s way, it should be smooth sailing. Although, since I highly suspect they may attempt contact: I will most definitely not be answering the phone.”

And, with the meeting adjourned, Law returned to his room.

By the time he reached for the handle, he found his hand shaking. Mess – he was a complete mess. For when he closed the door behind him, he found himself shuddering as he slid down, knees touching his chest. He found his hands coming up and tightly gripping at his hat, his entire body violently trembling. And yes - yes – it hurt. It hurt knowing that he had to separate himself from Luffy. But – Luffy’s life mattered more.

(Because he always screwed up. Because he always brought a swath of death and destruction in his wake. Because he always ended up utterly alone.)

He would stay out of Luffy’s way. Keep his ill-fated aura away from him. Let him obtain his goals and watch from afar.

.+++.

Whatever the captain said was what happened. It didn’t mean the crew approved of it however.

They weren’t going to pretend that they truly understood what was going on in their captain’s head, but it didn’t mean they didn’t try.

The fight had happened after Mugiwara had been so close to death, and that, they concluded, was what had caused the incident.

(They all knew how deeply the prospect of Mugiwara’s death had affected their captain. The way that he wouldn’t leave Mugiwara’s side. The way he would wake up from whenever he passed out screaming Mugiwara’s name – not his nickname. His paranoia whenever it seemed that Mugiwara would take a turn for the worse. And his elation when Mugiwara broke out of his unconsciousness. Of how Mugiwara had just whispered his name, shook him awake and was responsive.)

Their captain had probably just simply exploded from the emotionally tense week and a half that Mugiwara had been unconscious.

They had also gotten so many calls from the Strawhats as well. At first it was every other member – with the exception of the captain of course. (Who had more than likely only been forbidden to talk on the phone due to his injuries.) And then mostly Nami. After a couple of weeks, the calls decreased in frequency before the Strawhat Captain took it upon himself to call. Always demanding to talk to Torao.

(And yes, the crew obeyed by hanging up on the other crew. But not before an apology.)

And speaking of the captain… well, he often holed himself up in his room. He had developed a penchant for hording newspaper articles in his room. (And other, less healthier, vices too. Although, those didn’t start until a certain captain had called while theirs had been in the room. Of course, demanding to speak to Torao as usual. And their captain? Well, the crew thought he would just storm out of the room, or just physically hang up the phone. No, instead he exploded. He screamed at Mugiwara, demanding that he just leave him alone. And uttering something along the lines of it’s not like he hasn’t done that before anyway. And, after that… well Mugiwara had stopped calling.)

And with these newfound habits of the captain, and his relatively recent actions, the crew could only hypothesise further. And come up with far more solid grounds that almost seemed confirmed.

It had been probably close to two months now. Two months of this.

No grudges to be held their ass.

But, really, they began to understand just what was bothering their captain.

The outburst, in all probability, was the key. But the fact that the returned news coos always had sections missing in regards to a certain ex-ally was a bonus as well.

It wasn’t an issue of the alliance no longer serving a benefit to both crews as the captain tried to pass it off as. No. This was an issue of their captain being scared.

Mugiwara’s potential death, being left alone… The newspaper articles…

Their captain was afraid to lose Mugiwara and be left behind to pick up the pieces.

Their captain was being a stupid, love-struck fool.

And they had to do something to snap him out of it. Before things became any worse.