#from her earth background but we know now is because she was an exorcist

[kathyprior4200]

Adam and Lute meet C.H.E.R.U.B.

Adam: "You pastel singing sheep are pathetic! You really think saving sinners and human lives on Earth will stop them from going to Hell? Where I can slay them all?"

Collin: "I'm surprised that you, a former human, is able to break the "thou shall not kill," rule."

Adam: "It's only part of my divine duty."

Lute: "You sheep servants know better than to talk to Lord Adam like that."

Collin: "The only Lord I know is our Heavenly Father."

Adam: "The one who made me who I am! Supreme commander of the Exorcists! And who did He make you three? Subservient sheep reduced to babysitting reckless naked apes!" (laughs)

Keenie: "In case you're wondering, "Lord" Adam, we hate those shitty dead people as much as you do. Which is why saving them on Earth where they have the chance to redeem themselves..."

Adam: "Yeah, like only 1% of the humans get to go to paradise, anyway. The rest never will. And now I get to rip out their guts every year and watch you babies cry about it. Amusing."

Collin: "Is bloodshed really necessary? We're supposed to be a land of light and love."

Cletus: "Yeah. Why not just kill the full-blood demons instead of your own fucking descendants?"

Adam: "Because sinners outnumber the full-blood demons and it's because of them and my former wives Lilith and Eve that Hell was created in the first place."

Cletus: "And not Lucifer, before?"

Adam: "Lucifer and the fallen rule Hell and are powerful enough. If we fought them directly, we'd cause another Heaven-Hell war. Might as well remind them of their transgressions by killing their own kind!"

Collin: "B-but the humans, they're your family!"

Adam: "Not anymore! And don't call me a mere mortal! I am a god...a sexy god at that." (winks at Lute who chuckles). (Cletus and Collin stick out their tongues in disgust).

Adam: "Look what you bitches do! You're the riffraff of Heaven, reduced to babysitting mortals for free! And here I am, pampered by all my little soldier sluts!"

Keenie: (shakes her head) "Lust, murder and pride in one angel. Perhaps you're living in the wrong place."

Adam: "Some words coming from a frilly prude, a periwinkle wimp and a ginger baby who got themselves banished and ass-kicked by imps."

Lute: "Oooooh! Nice one, Adam, sir!" (Harp, Lyre and other Exorcists cackle in the background).

Collin: "Y-you're still the first man..."

Adam: "And the best..."

Collin: "You ate the apple and fell with Eve! You're still a sinner, but just won't admit it! You're not even Heavenborn!"

(Silence)

Adam: (leans close) "No one calls me that. Ever. Perhaps I'll be nice and NOT have lambchops for dinner." (reveals sharp yellow fangs, making Collin shudder and hide behind Keenie, who pushes him off.)

Adam: Besides, I made new rules that will privilege all the Heavenborn over the former mortals...putting me at the top of course! I'm God's right-hand man!"

Cletus: "Yeah, right!"

Adam: "And rules to ensure that no sheep peeps step out of line."

Cletus: "We're not sacred of you, Adam! All you and Lute ever do is abuse your own women-in arms whenever they falter! Adam is surrounded by assassin whores!"

Keenie: "We tried to save that human inventor but it was an accident! But we don't sin like you! No one else is bothering to notice!"

Adam: "Oh? And little Collin doesn't feel the same about you guys? Being the sacrificial lamb in all your little missions?"

Collin: "I do an awful lot of paperwork, Keenie!"

Keenie: "Just do your job, wimp!"

Adam: "Anyway, while you are off stuck on Earth and getting your asses kicked by imps, I'll be off to destroy that princesses' trashy hotel. What a joke to think she can actually redeem irredeemable sinners! Lucifer has really lost his marbles. Maybe Lilith still has the hots for me."

Cletus: (scoffs) "Good luck with that."

Adam: (laughs) "That naive fool? She won't see what's coming!"

Keenie: "Hey, can you at least kill those imps when you get a chance?"

Adam: "Imps?"

Cletus: "Those imps who go to Earth to illegally kill shitty humans and ruin our job?"

Adam: "Makes my job easier."

Cletus: "Not if it makes them sacred and sends them to Hell before they can repent and go to Heaven to help our world thrive!"

Adam: "Again, it's a win-win for me. The sinner humans taste my blades and the good humans get to adore me and the Exorcists. The demons stay in line, I get praised and all is well."

Keenie: "But shouldn't those imps get killed before they encourage humans to rebel? They'll cause chaos on Earth!"

Adam: "There is already chaos on Earth. God wanted to make a paradise, one where I was head of all life. It didn't work and now the cycle will continue until the Earth ends, there are no sinners left and I get to be an eternal hero with my angel warriors!"

Cletus: "A hero! What nerve!"

Keenie: "Sounds like laziness to me! You don't even care about God's divine creations! Those imps ruined our job and now we want revenge!"

Adam: "Then go get it! Find a way to redeem yourselves, go back to Heaven and help ensure that sinners don't enter our world."

Cletus: "That is our same goal, at least! We can surely work together, can't we?"

Adam: "Eh. Maybe someday."

Keenie: "Kill I.M.P.!"

Adam: "Killing sinners is more fun!"

Collin: "They made Deerie banish us!"

Adam: "Not my problem. Unless you can help make sure those sinners and demons stay fearful and in line, I don't need you, Except perhaps to feed me grapes."

Keenie: "You're unbelievable! Fucking every female that moves! So inappropriate!"

Adam: "Jealous, prude? Or maybe you don't want anyone to know about your side-show with Cletus?"

(Keenie and Cletus fume and blush a bit).

Cletus: "Look, Adam! Just un-banish us, kill those imps, kill the sinners if it's for the greater good and we won't stand in your way!"

Collin: "Do you think the princess' hotel can help redeem us?"

Cletus and Keenie; "Shut it, Collin!"

Collin: "What if her plan works? We can return home, Hell will have less sinners..."

Adam: "And me be out of a job and Heaven becomes full of sinner scum? No way." (Cletus and Keenie nod).

Adam: "I'll help you three kill demons, but if you three go to Hell...better watch your back."

(Cletus, Collin and Keenie shudder).

Adam: "Lute! Time for me to be on top!"

Lute: "As you wish, my Lord!"

Adam: "By the way, C.H.E.R.U.B.? Your jingle is so fucking cheesy!" (Strums his rock guitar). (Collin bawls, Keenie fumes and Cletus stares agape). (Lute cackles again).

Cletus: "And I though Deerie was an asshole."

Deerie: "Yeah....no....uhh, yeahhh, I heard that."

Cletus: "Uh oh..."

Deerie: "Go back to Earth, worthless things..."

"Fuuuuccckkk!"

(Three cherubs scream as they fall back to Earth)

[dreams-of-a-lark]

(Lark and Elias’s first and last photos together)

TASK 1: THE LAST DAY

January 11, 2016 7:00 AM, EST 12:00 PM, GMT

“Lark, you know I love you—”

“Boring.”

“Mmm fair. It’s fine, I have others. How about this one? Lark, you mean more to me than—” 

“Erh! Nope. Try again.”

“Oh, come on, you barely let me start!”

“Boo hoo… I knew where you were going with it. Got anything else?”

“Just one more, I was saving this one for last. It’s the best one I have, so will you let me actually get going before you stop me this time?” 

“Maybe. Compel me and we’ll see. I want to see you dig into the deep recesses of your soul, pull out your raw, still-beating heart and lay it bare. Otherwise, what am I even here for?”

“You’re unbelievable. But fine… Ahem...” Elias closed his eyes and let out a deep, shuttered sigh, “Lark. Before I met you, I had lost almost all faith in humanity. I found it impossible to believe that anyone acted with genuinely good intentions. I was bitter, cynical, lonely… and then, just as I was on the precipice of giving up on people entirely, there you were. Right on time. This pure light, banishing all my shadows. You are everything I was once sure didn’t exist in reality, but also the most real thing I’ve ever encountered.

The sheer amount of love you have to give blows me away. Love isn’t something you keep a reserve of only for certain special people. For you, love permeates the air around you everywhere you go and anyone lucky enough to meet you or know you gets to breathe it freely. Lark, you are so good, with no expectations or conditions attached to it, but just because it’s your nature. You make me want to be better everyday now, whereas before… I was just working on the motivation to be, period point blank. 

I have had the unfathomable privilege to breathe your love everyday for the past eight years and I hope you’ve felt even a fraction of what you’ve given me reflected back to you. Because, Lark, I love you more than I have the words to say. I love you with every last bit of life in me and I want to love you and feel your love for just that long, until the very last bit of life leaves me and I’m returned to the earth. I don’t know where I’ll be in the next five, ten, fifty years, all I know is I want to be wherever you are. So, Lark Dorian Crain, will you marry me?”

A silence hung in the air accompanied only by a faint mechanical whirring and the low buzz of an LCD screen. Katie finally broke it, her voice glitching and tinny through Elias’s small laptop speakers, “Better.” She said simply.

“Seriously? That’s it?” Elias replied, his voice laden with shock and disappointment.

“Don’t get me wrong, it’s beautiful, definitely a solid start. I almost teared up a few times. But, as all first drafts go, it could use some improvement.”

“It’s not my first draft, though…”

“Eh, feels like a first draft, love.”

“You know, sometimes it’s almost impossible to believe you’re related to Lark, let alone twins?”

“To be fair, do you know anyone in our family that’s really like Lark?”

“Eleanor.”

“Not related to us, stupid.”

“Mmm.. true. Ugh! Katydid... What do I Katy-do?”

“Well, for starters, you could never do whatever that just was again. Secondly, stop worrying about it, seriously. Knowing Lark, you could throw the ring across the deck and say, ‘go fetch if you wanna marry me’ and he’ll be running for it in an instant.”

Elias rolled his eyes, but smiled fondly at the thought of Lark bounding eagerly around the ship. It filled his heart whenever he thought of Lark’s joy, to think he had the power to bring so much of it to the surface baffled him endlessly.

“I’m so nervous,” he admitted.

“You don’t need to be,” Katie reassured him, “All jokes aside, it’s beautiful, and Lark loves you so much. You may not have moved me to tears, but you’ll definitely move him to tears. And then he’s going to blush like a damned schoolgirl and say yes a million times, like the sappy romantic he is.”

“You think so?”

“If he doesn’t, call an exorcist immediately, because that’s not Lark.”

Elias scoffed, but this was comforting encouragement to hear. Nothing he didn’t secretly already know, but it didn’t hurt to be reminded when he was feeling self-conscious. He breathed in deeply, filling up his cheeks with air, then puffing it back out through the small ‘o’ his mouth formed. 

“You’re right, I know.”

“I know you know. Listen, I’ve got to get back to work, love. I can call you when I get off, if you want, but you really should just enjoy your time with him today. Just act like it’s any other day... on a fancy cruise ship with the love of your life. Right?” 

Elias nodded, “Right. No need to call me back, you’re right. I’m just going to enjoy the day with him. Have a good day at work, I’m sure we’ll both call you after it happens.”

“I’ll be sure to hold the phone far away from my ear, so you all can squeal without busting my eardrums. Bye for now, then.”

“Alright. Bye Katie.”

The call ended and Elias closed his computer and looked out over the beautiful expanse of ocean surrounding the ship. Lark was still asleep in their cabin and probably would be for another couple of hours or so, it was nearly impossible to wake him anytime before 9 am. So Elias decided to stay for a while, taking in the peacefulness of the empty deck while the majority of the ship’s passengers slept, rocked by the lullaby of gentle waves.

January 11, 2016 9:00 AM, EST

Elias crept silently back into their cabin to find Lark sleeping fitfully, brows furrowed, eyelids knit tight. This was normally fairly unusual, but lately he’d been experiencing an uptick of nightmares that he didn’t like telling Elias much about for some reason. Elias eased down onto the edge of the bed and carefully lowered a hand down toward his forehead, fingers grazing across, pushing aside a stray curl. Almost instantaneously, Lark’s expression softened at his touch. It was moments like this that reminded him just how strong their connection was, the small gestures that could soothe one another’s most turbulent emotions.

He leaned down and pressed a light kiss on Lark’s cheek at which his eyes fluttered open, gazing weary oceans up at him. A soft smile, wrapt in security accompanied the gaze and Elias felt a pang in his chest as his heart skipped in response. “Morning, sleepyhead,” he sang softly to him.

Lark hummed and curled around where he sat, “Mmmmm… no.”

“No? What do you mean, no?”

“Not morning,” Lark muttered.

“It is, though.”

Lark shook his head, “No,” he mumbled, sleepiness still heavy in his voice, “still nighttime.”

“Oh is it now?” Elias asked, to which Lark nodded. Then, before he had a chance to react, he felt long arms wrap around him and pull him down and over into the bed, “Ah! Lark!” He laughed, “What’s this?”

“We sleep now,” Lark cooed, clearly very pleased with the results as he held Elias close. 

Elias let out another gentle laugh and turned to face the larger man, pressing his forehead to the other’s and cupping his face in his hands. “I love you,” he whispered.

Eyes closed, Lark gave a delighted smile. “Mhmmm,” he hummed in response, raising a hand to Elias’s eyelids in an attempt to shut them, “we sleep now.”

“Okay,” Elias giggled, “we sleep now, just a little longer.”

January 11, 2016 1:20 pm, EST

Elias woke to find Lark gone. Where was he? He rolled to sit up in the bed and checked his phone. 1:20 pm. Of course it was. With a stretch and a hearty yawn, he began to work on getting to his feet and looked around. The room was empty, the shower wasn’t going either, then he saw a shadow through the blinds leading out onto the small balcony of their room.

He opened the blinds to find Lark sitting in a wicker chair, sipping tea, gazing out over the water in placid solitude. There was a bottle of champagne and a pitcher of orange juice sitting on the table next to him, along with two champagne flutes and a bouquet of roses resting in a faceted crystal vase. Elias smiled to himself and slid open the glass door onto the balcony, coming up behind Lark who turned his head slightly towards him. 

“Good morning, sleepyhead.” Lark said, seemingly completely unaware of the irony.

“It’s nearly 1:30.”

The other shrugged, “Morning is a state of mind.”

“Okay,” Elias laughed, draping his arms around Lark’s shoulders, and kissing the top of his head, “what’s all this?” He pointed at the set up on the table, to which Lark rose from his seat, came around to hug him tight, and laid a tender kiss on his lips. 

He smiled, then turned to pour two mimosas, “Happy Anniversary,” he said, holding out a glass to Elias. 

They clinked glasses and sat on the balcony, sipping their drinks, enjoying that serene silence they could only take true comfort in with one another. Every once in a while Elias would glance over at Lark’s satisfied face, the view of the ocean sparkling in his bright eyes. It didn’t matter where they were, Elias knew, but this was perfect. He wondered if he shouldn’t just pop the question right now, but the ring stayed in his pocket, waiting for a moment more perfect than this one. 

January 11, 2016 5:30 pm, EST

Elias hopped and shimmied as he pulled on his slim fit black slacks and tucked his stark white button up into them. He sifted through his bag and spread out the various necktie options he’d brought with him — plain black, floral, black and blue stripes, matte and satin striped maroon, black bowtie with subtle gold stars. A muffled sound of happy singing came from beneath the hiss of the running shower in the background. Elias looked back toward the bathroom and smiled, then turned to eye the bowtie lying on the bed. He was no good at tying bowties, Lark would have to help him, which made it the obvious choice in accessory. 

“Lark! Hurry up, our reservation’s at 6:00.” 

The singing stopped, “What’s that?” Lark called from the bathroom.

“I said... move your butt!” he called back.

“It’s always moving, love!”

“You know what I mean.” 

“Alright, alright, I’ll be out in a minute.” 

The shower went on for a little longer, then the hissing became a light trickle and, soon enough, a thick fog of steam rolled out of the bathroom door, orange light dissipated through the clouds. Lark strolled out, towel tied around his waist, drops of water hanging from the ends of his hair and glistening on his shoulders. He eyed Elias with the untied tie around his neck. A pleased laugh escaped his lips as he inched toward Elias and tugged at the ends of the bowtie, pulling him in for a kiss.

“Did you pick this tie just so I’d help you with it?” Lark asked.

Elias shrugged, “Maybe I did, you don’t know me.”

“No, of course I don’t.” Lark smirked and gently traced the side of Elias’s face with his fingertips, taking a moment to savor the sight of him. Eight years in and seeing Lark look at him like this still made Elias’s heart race.

“We have to get a move on,” Elias muttered, breathlessly. 

Lark cleared his throat, coming back to earth, and brought his hand back down to the tie. “Right,” he said matter-of-factly, then started on the tie. He worked the ends over and under, focus woven into his furrowed brow. Elias glanced down to watch his hands move then glanced back up at him. “There,” Lark fluffed the bowtie proudly when he had finished and met Elias’s gaze again.  

“I love you.” Elias reminded him for the millionth time and pulled him down to meet his lips, running his hands through Lark’s wet hair. 

Lark responded in kind, wrapping his long wingspan tight around Elias’s waist, “I love you too,” he whispered into Elias’s lips.

“I know,” Elias said and patted Lark’s chest as they pulled apart, “Now get dressed, we have like fifteen minutes.”

January 11, 2016 8:00 pm, EST

Elias and Lark walked hand in hand across the top deck of the ship, stomachs full, hearts warm, and heads perhaps a bit too light from a day full of champagne. Above them hung a cloudless, black blanket of sky encrusted with brightly shimmering, diamond stars and the thin sliver of a waxing crescent moon. Not far from them, a band played a harmonious violin cover of “You Are The Reason” with soft percussion accentuating the background. 

Lark pulled away, still holding onto Elias’s hand at arm's length, “Dance with me?” he asked.

Elias looked around the deck at the other families and couples enjoying the night around them, “There’s so many other people.” 

“So what?”

“They might be watching us.”

“Then we’d better put on a good show for them, don’t you think?” Lark smiled, pulling him back in and holding him close. 

Elias sighed, but a blush pulled the corners of his mouth into a coy smile. He wrapped his arms around Lark’s neck and leaned into him as they spun around the deck. Holding each other like this felt equal parts due to the desire to be close to one another and the necessity to help one another remain standing. The more they danced the more the effects of the day’s drinks took their toll and it wasn’t long until they had to slow to a stop. 

“Getting a little dizzy?” Elias laughed.

“Just a little,” Lark agreed. Then his face got serious and he pulled Elias with him towards the railing of the ship to look out over the water, shimmering under the stars. 

“I don’t want this night to end,” he said as they walked.

“Neither do I…” a pause settled between them. 

“Lark—” / “Elias—” They both spoke the other’s names in unison, followed by another unison, “sorry.” Then Elias spoke alone, “You go first.”

“Oh, uh,” Lark began, thrusting his hands into his pockets. He seemed to be fidgety all of a sudden, “Well, Elias… I know you know how much I love you, but I just wanted to say… before I met you…” Was this going where Elias thought? Had they really had the same idea at the same time? Well, he’d be damned if Lark was going to upstage his proposal. He gave a knowing smirk and stepped forward towards the other, “Lark…” but suddenly… time seemed to slow.

January 11, 2016 8:15:28 pm, EST

“… sorry.” Lark squinted and shook his head slightly, slow blinking.

January 11, 2016 8:15:30 pm, EST

Lark’s knee gave out on him and he stumbled back a bit.

January 11, 2016 8:15:32 pm, EST

Elias noticed the railing behind him fell just below Lark’s hip level. His eyes widened and he reached out to him.

January 11, 2016 8:15:33 pm, EST

The railing of the ship caught the back of Lark’s thigh.

January 11, 2016 8:15:34 pm, EST

“LARK!” 

January 11, 2016 1:15:28 - 1:15:34 am, GMT

Katie slept fitfully, alone in her small, twin bed, nestled in her small, one bedroom, Hampstead flat. In her dream, a flock of seagulls surrounded a small brown bird with a yellow face, a white underside, and black accent marks across it’s chest, under its eyes and in the tufts that sat upon its head. The small bird desperately flapped its wings to stay in the air, but the gulls, ten times its size, flapped their wings with all the more force down upon it.

January 11, 2016 8:15:35 pm, EST

Lark flipped over the railing, tumbling down towards the frigid waters below. A small crowd on the deck gasped as they bore witness. Elias ran to the railing and climbed readying himself to jump in after, but, just as he was about to take the leap a couple bystanders stopped him. 

January 11, 2016 1:15:35 am, GMT

Katie sprung up in her bed and screamed, cold sweat running down her face. An indescribable feeling of unbearable loss hit her core and ricocheted through her body.

January 11, 2016 8:15:36 pm, EST

The two bystanders held Elias tight, while others ran to find crew members that could help. “NO!” Elias screamed, “LET GO OF ME! LARK!” His body, completely sober now, shook with shock and tears cascaded from his eyes. “LET GO OF ME, GODDAMMIT!” He struggled against the ones holding him, finally breaking free and running back to the railing. His eyes scanned the water, desperately searching for signs of Lark, but couldn’t make out even the slightest shadow of a body. “LARK!” He called out. “LARK!” His knees buckled and he collapsed against the railing. “HELP HIM! SOMEBODY! Do something!” His forehead pressed hard against the bars, as his voice gave out, cracking a helpless, “please…” the bustle of crew members rushing to help Lark echoed from lower decks.

“Please… Lark… help him… somebody… bring him back…” It was impossible to see through the blinding film of tears rippling across his eyes, “please… I can’t… please don’t let him be gone… I can’t… I can’t… please… I can’t… somebody… Lark… I love you… please… I can’t.” 

January 11, 2016 1:15:36 am, GMT

On the other side of the world, Katie sat alone in her bed and heaved untamable sobs for reasons wholly unknown, save for the fact that it felt like something had reached into the deep recesses of her soul and snapped her still-beating heart in half, leaving the memory of it lingering like a phantom limb. 

January 11, 2016 1:30 am, GMT

A high tinnitus whine made its home in her ears, as she tried to process what she was feeling. Then the phone rang.

#stranded task 1 #task #loss tw #drowning tw #outside meridium #pre meridium #also I hardly proof-read this so please be gentle #I'm considering an epilogue as well but we'll see #lark songs #vibes

[cs-discourse]

Reccomendations (V long sorry 😅)

I offer you all some shows to watch instead of hAzBiN hOtEL:                         

Epithet Erased (On YT I think. - Animation style is a little hard to get used to, but I love the chars and story line. Wholesome fun.)

Brooklyn 99 ( Netflix - please remember that real cops are not like this, it is a fictitious portrayal - the actors themselves donated 100,000 $ to support protesters against cops. Enjoy it but watch it as the fiction it is. Be aware that it’s copaganda.)

She-ra ( Netflix- we stan that lgbtq representation)

Avatar the Last Airbender (Netflix - Most of you have prbly already seen it but uh. If you haven’t, it’s pretty good. Definitely a lighthearted semi childish show.)

Daria (Crave - We stan unique poc representation. https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/59kp45/daria-jodie-landon-suburban-black-girl) 

Adventure Time (Dailymotion -free- or Google Play - Just google best episodes and watch those ones. The ones with Marceline + PB are my personal faves.) 

Magic For Humans (Netflix - Basically an interesting magic show. Fun activity: when I watch this w/ other ppl we try to figure out how he did the tricks.) 

The Fresh Prince (Netflix - A classic. Still know the theme song by heart.) 

Hilda or Kipo and the Wonderbeasts (Netflix - these two animated shows are new unique takes on fantasy adventures. ) 

IZombie ( Netflix - Basically a zombie detective, but better. Think Veronica Mars. -also a good detective show y'all should watch. *trigger warning: it’s a zombie murder show so it has some semi-realistic depictions of gore/brains.) 

Disenchantment ( Netflix -The closest thing to Hazbin on this list. An animated show with dark humour without being racist or homophobic. *some animated gore that some people might find triggering. It’s been a while since I watched so idk exactly what.) 

Final Space ( Netflix -like disenchantment, an animated show with an intended audience older than your average animation show. *again, animated gore.) 

Mods, if any of these shows are homophobic/racist/otherwise problematic -(ignoring B99 which is obvious copganda. Again: It’s fiction. Do not -I repeat, DO NOT- look at it as a real representation of cops. It’s not.)- please say so. We not here tryna recommend problematic shows. Or, if you have any other reccomendations?

ps: I’m Canadian, so some of these shows may not be on american Netflix, or some of the ones that aren’t may be on it. Idk. Stay safe y'all. Oof way too long submission finally over. 

-

if you like anime, here are things i watch:

blue exorcist - DEMONSSS (hulu and netflix im p sure)

scissor seven - its actually chinese animated, but its very well made and the production value goes up as the show goes on. i honestly rlly like the cliche anime backstory for the main char bc its also funny as hell (netflix)

saiki k - its like if one punch man was a teen who was also incredibly sarcastic. if you have adhd this shows p good for you too, it goes really fucking fast and you cant look away or youll miss something. its hilarious, go watch. (netflix)

also, some youtubers if youre feelin like that:

dream - minecraft youtuber, child friendly (not in the annoying way. just no cussing)!! hes like 5000 iq and holy shit his minecraft manhunts are insane. holds the mc speedrun world record POG. good coder, my fav youtuber right now.

hellfreezer - reading reddit stories youtuber. his voice is very nice, and videos are faily long. i use him as background noise when doing work.

TRO (the right opinion) - long commentary/rant videos on controversial topics/youtubers, like onision and yandere dev. sexy british voice ;)

mossbag - hollow knight lore and theories. i love hollow knight sm

penguinz0 - streams, commentaries, very short videos. one of the funniest men alive. absoultely incredicble. hes very quick witted and his insults make me scream laugh sometimes

joana ceddia - random life videos. full of personality! i love her honestly shes really chill but also gives off the energy of a thousand suns

pointcrow - gaming youtuber. makes a lot of insane challenge botw videos/zelda vids in general. he streams and then makes the videos.

jarvis johnson - makes videos like drew gooden/danny gonzalas do, but he is also a poc. his bids are entertaining and interesting!! i recommend greatly if you like shorter commentary videos.

.phe

my current faves are:

dorohedoro - anime about humans and wizards coexisting during a war against each other. the wizards hate the humans and curse them to experiment with their magic. all-powerful demons control the magic world behind the scenes. very graphic in regards to gore, some nudity on occasion. anime not finished adapting from manga.

hunter x hunter - anime about hunters who do just that-- go out into the world and hunt for whatever it is they want. examples include justice for their clan killed by genocide, a new family because the old one is a toxic group of assassins who believe you can’t have friends, friends to fill in for an absentee father, and a phd. somewhat graphic in regards to gore, especially so later on in the series. anime not finished adapting from manga.

what we do in the shadows - tv mockumentary series about vampires living in staten island. very funny but also VERY NSFW... lots of sexual references/content, gore and blood.

snowpiercer - tv fantasy series about the apocalypse in which the government fucked up and sent the world into a total deep freeze. 1001 train cars are all the life that remains on earth. VERY NSFW... sexual references/content, gore and blood. there’s also a movie adapted from the comic series by the iconic and incomparable bong joon ho on netflix which is good.

// Mod Peach

#cs discourse #submission

[magaprima]

Part 1 Episode 6 Thoughts (part 3/3)

You can’t not comment on the ‘The Exorcist’ visual reference as they arrive at the Putnam house, and you can’t not love it either. 

When they enter the bedroom where the possessed Uncle is writhing in bed, Hilda and Sabrina are stood together at the foot of the bed, but Lilith slips in separately, walking behind them. She’s all in dark colours, she has dark hair, while they’re all in light colours with light hair, and it does give the visual hint of how Lilith has orchestrated this entire thing, the possession included, that she’s there, even now, working from the shadows. And although Lilith is soft focus in the background when Sabrina is loudly challenging the demon at the beginning, telling him she found out his true name, you can still see a bit of Lilith’s expression, and that she is smirking, both at the Uncle and at the whole situation. This is her whole long-con plan falling into place, piece by piece. 

The way she forcefully places the exorcism in Sabrina’s hands, alongside her instruction of ‘Speak with a loud, clear voice, Sabrina’ is further proof of this all being her plan, her idea (which is confirmed later in her private moment with Jesse. Also side-note, I called my first ever hamster Jesse so I get attached to that name). She is making sure this happens, the Dark Lord is forcing her hand and so she, in turn, forces Sabrina’s. Yet, when Sabrina replies ‘always’ there is a brief moment, a shared, held look between the two of them. I don’t know what it is precisely, I can’t put my finger on it, but it feels like something bonded is brewing between them.  I mean, in some versions of the tale of Lilith, it says that she spoke God’s true name with a loud, clear voice and that’s what made her a witch (it’s possible I’m mixing versions up there as there are so freaking many. Men just can’t decide how best to condemn women in their allegories and fairytales. But it is a part of the mythology that I keep in my own headcanons for Lilith and mix in with the CAOS mythos, that she didn’t have to sign the book because she made herself a witch ) so I wonder if the look over the loud, clear voice is again a parallel to how Sabrina and Lilith have very similar origin stories and narratives

When all the candles burst into intense flame, Lilith looks genuinely shocked and surprised by that development, so I genuinely believe that dramatic accompaniment was unexpected by her. Also, the man has a lot of candles, maybe that’s her surprise was about....

“I call forth the powers of Lilith”

Literally the first witch they call on is the first ever witch herself and, unbeknownst to Sabrina, she is right there beside her. I cannot express how much I love this moment and I also cannot express how much I wish the camera had shown us Lilith’s face in that moment. Also, it’s a reminder (as it later says in Edward’s manifesto) that Lilith is the Mother of Magic, you can’t do anything without it leading back to her, quite literally in this particular spell. She is the mother of witchcraft, she is incredibly powerful, and we know this, but I think Satan has made Lilith forget it, as abuse victims do often start to forget who they are, their own strengths. 

Lilith is the only one grinning and totally unshaken when Jesse Putnam starts floating and writhing in the air in full The Exorcist mode, while Hilda is just like ‘holy fucking heaven’. Lilith also seems to only half join in with the exorcism; sometimes she mimes, sometimes she speaks quietly, sometimes she doesn’t open her mouth at all, and I do wonder if it’s not just because she needs Sabrina to be the specific one performing the exorcism but because Lilith, being the First Witch and Madam Satan, is so much more powerful than the other two, that her full contribution would immediately knock out the spell and make it instantly effective. Which would not only ruin her plans, but blow her cover too.. 

“Keep going, keep going, keep going” is said with this wide eyed urgency that she is simply not letting Sabrina give up, because she can’t. Because Lilith needs Sabrina to succeed more than anyone else, because failure is just not an option. Of course, in the middle of this encouragement, Jesse launches forward, Sabrina screams bloody murder, and Lilith just looks at her in silent shock like ‘Wow, that’s a pair of lungs. Also, calm the fuck down’. Though even Lilith looks a little grossed out when he vomits up the demon. 

I would comment on Lilith’s reaction to Hilda shoving her, but thanks to Lucy, we all know the reason that happened, haha. Although, in the next shot Lilith is still glaring at Hilda...so is this Michelle dedicating herself to the moment, or did Lucy shove her again without the camera seeing?

As she hands Sabrina the stones, and goes to wrap up the demon worm, Lilith does look like she’s thinking ‘i am not paid enough for this shit’. The woman has a very hard job, it can’t be denied. And when they’re looking down the well, Lilith is the one who looks the most concerned about whether it’s truly gone or not...but that’s obviously because not only will any failing have a bigger impact on her, but we know that she is the one who gave the demon to Jesse, so potentially she doesn’t want the warm getting back up, possessing someone else, and spilling all her secrets, letting Sabrina know who she really is. 

When Hilda says Jesse will likely survive, Lilith’s glance to her and then a look to herself, clearly implies she’s already planning to kill him, because she can’t allow for any loose ends to lead right back to her. It’s even possible Jesse met her properly when she got him possessed and could as much identify her as the worm could so....unfortunately, he needs to go. 

When Lilith says she’s intruded on them long enough and that she’ll see Sabrina tomorrow, it’s obviously because she knows not to push it, that she’s more likely to win Sabrina’s trust by letting her be the one to invite her, rather than forcing it. So, when Sabrina calls her back, she looks entirely prepared to hear the girl warning her off again. But instead....Sabrina thanks her. 

And it’s so blindingly obvious that she has never been genuinely thanked before. Lilith seems genuinely shocked by it, and a little thrown. She doesn’t know what to do with this genuine thanks, this true, unconditional gratitude, and you just know she has never experienced this before in any way. All the hard work she does, all the tasks she completes, all the duties she fulfils, all the shit she deals with and no one has ever genuinely thanked her. I mean she blinks with emotion, she’s got something in her throat; she is not just surprised by this thanks, she is emotionally overwhelmed by it. She doesn’t know what to do with it all, how to react. I genuinely believe this is the first tiny flicker of a moment that opens Lilith’s heart a little bit, as Michelle said, there’s no defence for kindness.It softens a small part of what has been turned to stone. The thanks has not reached the Mother of Demons, not Satan’s Concubine, it has reached Lilith. And think we therefore have a trickle of what eventually leads to her and Sabrina partnering up. We’ve a long way to go, but that first minute change has begun. 

"You played your part in this passion play beautifully”

This is a really interesting choice of words, since we later discover Sabrina is essentially the Anti-Christ, so she is a passion play in itself, but then there’s also the passion play of Lucifer and Lilith performed at the Academy in Part 2. It’s all foreshadowing and linked references. Lilith also seems to really enjoy telling Jesse all of this, she is smiling and really getting into it, and it isn’t merely a vibe of someone enjoying an evil monologue, this is Lilith getting to be fully herself for a few minutes, no disguise, just herself and that is very freeing for her, I think. 

“....to see the prophecy fulfilled. I’m sure it will be apocalyptic”

At this point, Lilith is fully on board with Satan’s plan to bring about hell on earth, but this significantly changes over the course of the seasons, which proves that her experiences and new relationships do change her and open her eyes. She goes from being all for it to not caring either way to outright stopping that shit. 

She does seem to take pleasure in squeezing the doll when Jesse is suffering, but not once he dies. After that point, it’s simply ‘the job is done’. Lilith likes making mortal men suffer, obviously, but I don’t think she takes pleasure in kill for hire, having to get rid of something for  duty purpose. Not because of any moral conflict, but because it’s like being ordered, instructed, she has no choice in the matter, and that is something Lilith vehemently hates. 

“I mean, how am I ever going to outwit the Dark Lord?”

When Sabrina confesses this, Lilith has mild shock which is not quite hidden. She knows the girl doesn’t want to sign the book, but here she is admitting it’s more than that. And the smile on her lips as she plays dumb, asking ‘Outwit the Dark Lord? Why, Sabrina...what ever do you mean?’ tells us that Lilith knows perfectly well that she’s in the inner circle now. All her hard work has paid off; she’s succeeded in gaining Sabrina’s trust. 

#headcanons #episode stuff #long post

[bluerosesburnblue]

Liz Liveblogs Bravely Second: Chapter 4

Seems like I was right. Time for a short one with Chapter 4: He Who Would Change the World. Two liveblogs in one day? Pretty good, considering the extreme gap between past ones

Why on earth did we take Lotus and Sakura with us to dock on the Skyhold? Lotus has a son! Sakura is really just our kindly bath mom! They shouldn’t be coming with us to the gate between dimensions!

They’re not coming into Skyhold with us, but the Rubadub’s still attached! If the Skyhold goes down, you two do, too! I don’t want to risk the lives of our boat mom and airship dad!

Skyhold has an actual name, Diamante. And it’s gorgeous. Like a palace of blue diamonds

Kaiser, Anne, and Janne are already aware we’re here. Subtle, this party ain’t

“I really want to see my dead - No... I really want to see my living parents.” Janne, hey, maybe instead of changing the past you could... get therapy? How far back are you guys gonna go to change things? One change effects many things. Is the Kaiser’s change gonna eradicate Janne’s family, thus invalidating Janne’s whole quest? Does anyone know how causality works in this empire?

Kaiser, at the very least, seems willing to save Janne’s parents should Janne be unable to

My guide says there’s a summon this chapter and it ain’t on the Skyhold, so we’re just gonna jump off the side and spit in the face of Gho Gettar’s dreams by snagging Amaterasu. Worst. Timeline. WORST! TIMELINE!

I have no idea how anyone is intended to find this spot in the far northeast of Eternia, and then also figure out that the cutscene only triggers if you slam your face into a very specific cliff

This poor Anchorite really got the short end of the stick. The other guys get to hang out in buildings, but they stuck this guy on a remote island in a freezing blizzard. The order he belongs to must really hate him

Oh I just realized I have Tiz as an Exorcist. This battle against a healer is gonna go GREAT now that I can just... undo those

Oh yeah, Exorcist was the real MVP job of that fight

My party is gonna waltz onto the deck of the Skyhold covered in blood and wielding the goddess of light and no one can stop us

We’ve found Agnès’s cell, but she doesn’t seem to be in it

BUT MAGNOLIA’S POSSESSED. Of all people, why did it have to be the one who can summon?

She’s acting like a bratty five-year-old. Is there a child ghost here? I’ve watched a lot of ghost hunting shows, can I appease you with a toy or something?

“I’ll make you pay for what you did to my daddy!” Well, the only dad Edea’s murdered this game is Geist, so I guess you’re Rev, then

If we killed him, then he should also be a ghost and therefore able to see his ghost child, though, right? Like, just pass on kiddo. Your dad’s waiting

Yeah, Revenant Grace. Fittingly, both father and son are named after types of Ghosts/Undead. Which begs the question of what Geist’s parents were thinking when they named him, and why he felt the need to give his son a name with heavy “return from the dead” connotations

I don’t think the Princess Bride reference was really necessary. “My name is Revenant Grace. You killed my daddy. Prepare to die!” just... doesn’t have the same kick to it

Okay, Rev’s possessed armor is really cool. And apparently, he died and Geist pulled a Fullmetal Alchemist and bound his soul to the armor. So there’s that

Edea’s trying to tell Rev that Geist was going to kill a kid just like him... but Rev’s, like, five, he’s not listening. He’s literally yelling “LA LA LA NO HE DIDN’T”

Geist went away on a trip, and some monster lurked on the boat that came back, where Rev was waiting. It killed him

I’m so glad I read about the trick to this fight, because it’s almost poetic. You set someone to Geist’s Exorcist asterisk. Let Rev posses one of his teammates, which sets his own HP to zero. Then it’s just a matter of attacking that teammate to kick Rev out of possessing them and back into his own body, then Undo HP to the last turn, where Rev’s body had 0 HP, thus killing him instantly using his father’s abilities

Also, we Exorcised a ghost. That’s neat, too

Rev’s monologue says that Geist was happier after he was revived and then he mimicked Geist’s psychotic laughter. I think the poor kid misread the situation. Geist broke when he lost his son, and if his last words were any indication, he regretted bringing Rev back

Edea just passed on those words. Rev’s grateful. He’s not a bad kid, just scared and stuck in a bad situation

Time to pass on and see your daddy, kiddo. He’s waiting

Yew’s entry in the journal states that the last name, Grace, is given to Orthodoxy saints and others who did extraordinary service to them. So Geist was either a holy man, or the descendant of one

And since it seems everyone in the Kaiser’s inner circle wants to “undo” something, I believe that Geist must have joined up to undo either binding Rev’s soul, or Rev’s death entirely

Agnès wasn’t there, so on to the next location

I’m almost baffled by how few named characters have died in this game so far, considering last game killed A LOT of people, to make the “redo” aspect feel fulfilling, and then pull the wind out of your sails when you realize that you didn’t redo anything. They stayed dead. (And then this game undid all those deaths because they were beloved characters who got a lot of development postmortem)

For FUCK’S sake, Janne, get lost! And especially don’t attack me mid-dungeon!

Janne “I Refuse to Die Until Yew Geneolgia, Specifically, Kills Me” Angard, is back for YET ANOTHER round

Oh god he’s Kylo Ren. “I was on this big revenge kick, so I befriended you to kill you! But then I liked you and that made me mad so now I’m going to kill you because I’m a child who can’t figure out my emotions!”

I’m... not that big a fan of Janne. He just comes off as a bratty teenager that they keep trying to make sympathetic, but he never stops being an ass about literally everything

“You were a true friend.” Yew, he really, REALLY was not

Rev works for me, because even though he acts like a brat, he’s acting as a reaction to his father’s death. Once you calm him down, the kid’s perfectly civil, and even thanks the party for passing along his dad’s last words. And that’s some stunning maturity for a kid

Janne, on the other hand, is older and should know better. But instead he lashes out, constantly brags that he’s the best, and even in the last fight he’s being petty. He thinks he can get away with betraying his friends, but as long as he tell them “Hey, good shot” as he’s dying, then he’s absolved. Janne has done a lot of REALLY AWFUL things. He has no intention of atoning because he can’t see past himself and what he wants out of this: his parents back. Rev’s a brat because he doesn’t know better. Janne’s a brat because he’s conceited and wants to delude himself into being superior

I’m gonna rip the Kaiser’s sword right out of his dumb metal hand

Yew is legitimately anticipating death. And blames himself for not stopping the Kaiser when he came to kidnap Agnès. That’s Yew’s undo moment. And I know for a fact we’re gonna make. That. Happen.

Edea’s pep talk about trying again and succeeding now that you’re stronger and wiser is something I think a lot of people need to hear. If you mess up, you shape up and do better

Wait, “Bravely Second” is an in-game term for something other than the hourglass? It’s moon for “the courage to try again.”

So the title of the game is, more accurately “The Courage to Try Again: A World With No Future”

Ooop. Just kinda slid into the Holy Pillar there. Okay

Kaiser’s robo-arm must be pretty tough if he can carry Agnès with it like that

I can’t believe I get to watch Leonardo the Ninja Turtle kick the ass of Leonardo the Ninja Turtle

Dude, stop saying the word “deny.” It’s gotten to be at least once a scene, we know. You deny, you deny, you deny, maybe accept that I’m gonna kick your ass?

Where the hell do you get the idea that only those who know sin can change the world, so you became a literal evil emperor to become a big enough asshole to fix time. Where... the hell do you get that idea? Was it Anne?

Wow. We just LET him do that. Nobody made a move while he went back in time with Agnès

...did Anne just imply that we sent the moon to another dimension?

Oh, no. She just sent the moon to another dimension. And Magnolia’s trying to call her people, but the moon just ain’t there

And here’s the scene I know about. The big reveal that, yes, Anne is Airy’s sister, she knows about you, the player, and now she’s gonna repeat her scene from the start of Default just to make sure you know that you. Messed. Up. You helped her stop Airy, and now she was able to do this. Aren’t you proud, player? You’ve done everything she asked

This boss music is amazing. A combo of Spanish guitar and Wailing guitar? Hell yes

And the butterfly battle background is gorgeous, even if it’s greyscale thanks to the moon’s disappearance

Well, shit. Anne’s hard. Attack one of her fake copies and she’ll basically insta-kill you. Group attacks are not recommended. They’re what keeps killing me

Not bad once you start playing more defensively. Resurrection Mist was a pretty decent idea for that fight with the way Anne can one-shot part members, but Magnolia’s Promethian Fire Arrow was the real damage MVP

Time to escape to the flying bath boat

I just glanced at the bestiary and Anne doesn’t have an entry. Also, it looks like all entries are locked, because the completion markers are faded. I think we’ve hit the end layer

Oh that’s nuts. It looks like time is frozen. All of the flames around the Skyhold stopped moving

“I know the feeling of losing your home” Actually, that raises a good point, Tiz. Are we ever gonna stop by Caldisla or is that just not relevant, since there’s no crystals there

A world without time. A world that both has no end and is the end. The final layer of all reality. The end layer

The Moon “created night from day.” As in, the Moon controlled time, much as the Crystals controlled the elements. Without it, there’s nothing left flowing or moving

This isn’t the first game with a Frozen Future apocalypse that I’ve played. Let’s see how this one stacks up against Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers. A leaf gecko hasn’t come to kick our asses, so it can’t be that bad yet

Ohhhhh shit I just got chills. Tiz said that we never got to fight the Kaiser once, and Yew realized something. He turned to the camera and said “If you’re out there, watching over us... hear my plea.” Yeah, buddy, I can hear you. “Not once?” I remember one time we got him on the battle screen. Just once

(I used up all my SP in the Anne fight, I hope that won’t be a problem)

Tutorial says that Altair has disappeared, so we can’t add entries to the bestiary. Is... the party not capable of writing without Ghost Dad? Did he steal our literacy or something?

It recommended talking to people, but also New Game+. Let’s see this timeless world, then make sure it never happens again 

Not much different in Ancheim. Some worried citizens, a child who’s excited that they can play forever because it’s always day, a mom who wonders if she has to cook dinner now, and a man who’s acting like there’s always been no movement to the clock or sails

Al-Khampis seems to be a mix of panic and contemplating the scientific repercussions of this new world-state. One interesting tidbit is that one scientist detected an anomaly traveling through time, but not to the past. If it WAS the Kaiser, then he went 200 years into the future, instead. Rifa gave us similar dialogue to end layer guy in Sagitta, and then a message appeared saying I unlocked New Game+, so maybe it doesn’t unlock unless you talk to people

Florem is... Florem. Girls wondering if this means there’s not gonna be another festival, but at least the flowers don’t wilt. I can’t help but notice “Alternis” isn’t here anymore. The real interesting thing is Sylvie and the Matriarch

Sylvie: “...Miss Edea. ...So many tears, so many cries you will come to know from now on. So much evil... So much blood... But even so... Even so, that great ship will take to the sky once more...! To the world, bound in the sky, where Lady Agnès is held...!” I suspect we’re going to have to hunt down the Kaiser using the Buster Ship

Matriarch: “Sylvie would like me to tell you this... ...Edea Lee. ...A time is coming for you to come to a decision, no matter how difficult it may seem. You must tell your friends, then you must lie to the people, deceive the world, make yourself out as a tyrant in word and deed... Let yourself be attacked and blamed. Go after the friends you have lost. Take that glimmering ship to the sky once more! And that world, bound in the sky... Well, I’m afraid that this old lady has no idea about that.” Is this what the Kaiser was told? The sin he mentioned? To change the world, operate the shining Skyhold, he had to become the tyrant. And now it seems Edea will have to make the same decision

Though given her decision making track record in the sidequests... boy, she may already be a tyrant. We’re gonna fix that this time. Speaking of, there’s some people from the sidequests who reference a few of them hanging around, though I can’t say any of them won with a frozen future

Every person in Sagitta is just stuck repeating “Bravely Second... The courage to try again...” over and over, except for the guy who first introduces you to the end layer, who notes that this must be it, and the elder, who unlocks New Game+ just like Rifa did when I spoke to her

Gathelatio’s full of people screaming about the end times and divine retribution, and kids who hear all of this going “Are we gonna die?” And ominous cats

That... one Crystalguard guy whose name I can’t remember screams at us for not stopping the Kaiser, then apologizes and unlock New Game+. Hey, jackass. Do you want to go into the pillar of light and get one-shot by a fairy? No? Back off. I’m gonna fix it once I hit up the last few towns

Eternia has... a goat. Has that goat always been there? Well he didn’t break the moon. Just eats paper. Mm-hmm. And more worried citizens, a doomsayer, and one brilliant mind who wants to solve the moon problem using the white magic cables

I guess those taxes don’t matter now, do they, Grandship? Otherwise, not much here. An old lady who doesn’t care because she’ll die soon anyway, a guy who’s getting drunk for the apocalypse, and a kid who’s wondering where Alternis went

Yunohana’s pretty basic. Ominas is there trying to get Bahamut to fight off a Ba’al, but the little guy doesn’t look so good. The Lord of Bath tells us we have enough to uncover our feelings and unlocks New Game+ yet again

Maybe picking Ominas for the bad future was a good idea. Femto Flare could deal with the Ba’al outbreak that everyone’s talking about but I have yet to see

Visited the girl and her grandpa from the Eisen quest. Holly’s there trying to protect them, but she’s not enough and can’t find Barras (oops?) and the grandpa wishes he’d just sold the house so his granddaughter could’ve had a little luxury before the world ended

Goodman and his crew are holding down Eisen Bridge, but his soldiers back in Hartschild aren’t so confident. The people just want him home

I also checked on Sakura and Lotus. Sakura just warns us not to stay in the bath for too long now that there’s no time to keep track of, and Lotus is concerned at the appearance of Ba’al. Everyone keeps mentioning Ba’als, and I’m scared to turn encounters back on just in case they may be roaming

I also don’t think I ever mentioned it, but since the start of the game there’s been one person in each town who sings a different verse of the Tale of Sétana. They have to be important, but I suspect it’s relevant to the Yōkai quest, since it’s the only non-cameo-fight quest I’m aware of

*Edit after the Fact* I’m an idiot who can’t read. It’s Sétanta, as in the original name of the Irish mythological figure, Cú Chulainn. As in, the guy from the Prologue. The songs are his backstory. Setana is an area in Hokkaido, Japan. I knew that, I just can’t read, I guess. Wouldn’t be the first time I did something like this (like misreading the Harry Potter spell “Rictusempra” as “Rictumsempra” until I heard it said aloud while watching someone’s playthrough of the Order of the Phoenix game)

YEAH I TURNED ENCOUNTERS BACK ON AND THERE’S JUST BA’AL WANDERING AROUND AS RANDOM ENEMIES. Heyyyy, Urchin! Been... been a while?

Okay, the “next plot event” marker was on the “To Title” entry on the menu so I’m just gonna... gonna return to the menu. No point fighting Urchin if Altair won’t write a bestiary entry on it

Welcome to Bravely Second: Send Player. No more of this “End Layer” nonsense. I’m here, and I’m gonna help these kids take back their future

Back to the beginning. The fight where nothing seemed to work, but this time, I can help. Let’s get the team back together and RIP. THAT. SWORD. OUT. OF. HIS. DUMB. METAL. HAND!

Well, future Yew just kinda possessed his own body, and a good thing, too, because I don’t think past Yew even knew why he used the Bravely Second in the first place

“You, who would deny the past and present have no right to shape the future.” HE SURE DOESN’T, KIDDO. RIP HIM APART

“The future will be forged by those who accept the world they live in, and still fight for change!” I love Yew, and I’m so glad that I’m his extradimensional patron, in a meta sense

The chapter has ended. No cryptic monologues, no “Great Distance”. Just us, the Kaiser, and our Coup de Gravy!

#bravely default #bravely second #liz liveblogs bravely second

[coramatus]

Stupid Fanfic Ideas Theater #4

Natsume Yuujinchou (Natsume’s Book of Friends)/Mob Psycho 100 Crossover

In a strange turn of events, Mob and Reigen find themselves hired by a spirit. Their job: find and retrieve its name from the fabled “Book of Friends”.

or

A story about two sad Japanese boys with spoopy powers dealing with spoopy situations.

We start at the Spirits and Such office, on a normal quiet Friday. All of sudden, Dimple just up and flees. Before either Reigen or Mob can figure out what’s gotten into him, a mysterious fox-masked woman in flowing robes enters. Reigen assumes she’s just a regular, if fancy, customer and gives her the usual spiel, but Mob stops him short, informing him of her supernatural nature. She seems amused by this and tells them she wants to hire them for a job. After all, they consult on all matters regarding spirits. So there’s no reason a spirit can’t be part of their clientele, right? As incentive, she pre-pays for half with a small bag of ancient gold coins and high-quality jade magatama. Reigen eagerly accepts the job, until Mob thinks to ask what she wants them to do.

Their mission: Find and retrieve the spirit’s name. The spirit lost it to a mortal many years ago and would rather like it back now. The best leads she has for them is the general area it happened in, the name Natsume Reiko, and that it might be part of something called “The Book of Friends”. Mob asks why she can’t just go get it herself, to which she tells him that she was chased out by local spirits and is reluctant to return to that area.

Reigen reaffirms that they’ll take the job. They shake on it and the spirit goes on her way, promising to show up when they’re ready. How exactly she’s supposed to know is gone unanswered. So Reigen dives in to start researching the area and this Natsume person, dismissing Mob as he probably won’t be needed until the next day.

When Mob gets home, Dimple is there waiting. He asks what happened and how they got out of there without so much as a peep. Mob has no idea what Dimple means, so the spirit has to explain that the woman they met is an exceptionally powerful entity. As in: all it would take to exorcise him would be for her to just look at him funny. Mob thinks this is odd because the sense he got from the spirit was a decent energy output, nothing too alarming. But Dimple’s interest is piqued when Mob mentions the job, specifically regarding the Book of Friends. Dimple says that’s only a rumor among spirits and youkai. He’s suspicious enough about the whole affair to resolve to stick with the two mortals to keep an eye on them, and maybe get a look of that supposed Book.

The next morning, Reigen calls in Mob. They’re off for a train ride to the countryside, a several hour long trip. It’s during this time, Reigen gives a rundown of his findings. Where they’re headed has a long history of supernatural happenings, but nothing earth-shattering like what they’ve faced in Seasoning City. In addition, there really was once a Natsume that lived in the area specified, but she passed on many years ago. He did manage to track down an address to investigate, as she might still have relatives around to ask for belongings they can search. Reigen wonders is it really just comes down to finding a book, but they learn from Dimple that the whole affair is more complicated than it sounds. The Book of Friends is rumored to be a compilation of the names of supernatural entities. While that doesn’t sound impressive to mortals, it’s a deathly serious matter for spirits and youkai. For if you learn the true name of a spirit, you are given ultimate power over them and can command them to your will. To have one name is one thing, but to have an entire book filled with them means the potential to lead an army, making it prized among evil spirits and malevolent youkai. If it is real, then whoever owns the book now either doesn’t know about it or is actively using it for their own purposes. Mob and Reigen are a bit unsettled by this, but they’ve already gone ahead with the plan so they may as well see it through.

They eventually arrive at an unassuming little town, where things look fairly normal from the outside and is populated by friendly enough people. What is a bit weird is the higher number of spirits hanging around than expected. Most watch them with something between fear and awe. Dimple assumes its because of him, since is area used to be part of his stomping grounds. Mob doubts it though, since most spirits don’t even seem to be looking at Dimple, but rather himself. He doesn’t say anything though, not until they arrive at their destination anyways and are met with a weird obese cat sitting right in their path. Reigen tries nudging it away with his foot but makes the mistake of calling it an ugly pig statue, to which it yowls and launches itself at his face, clawing like a rabid animal. Mob manages to pull off the bowling ball cat just in time to hear Dimple laughing like crazy at the cat’s appearance. The cat immediately launches into hurling back insults, ignoring the two humans staring at the now talking cat, whom the humans learn is a youkai named Madara. Madara demands to know what Dimple is doing there, since he booted him out years ago. Dimple retorts that he left willingly, simply following the humans to their denser-packed cities and the concentrated energies there. Mob chooses to cut in, saying they were hired to retrieve a name from a Natsume Reiko, instantly grabbing the cat’s attention. Madara gives Mob a good look over, commenting he can see why Dimple would have the audacity to return with such a strong exorcist shielding him, but quickly moves on to demand what the kid knows about Reiko. Before he answers, someone else comes in, asking what they want to know about their grandmother.

They’re joined by a boy, maybe a year or two older than Mob, with light hair and slit-pupils. The cat runs and jumps into his arms, demanding he not speak a word, but the kid responds that if this has something to do with Reiko, it likely is his business. Reigen butts in, asking if Reiko was his grandma then who is he? The boy introduces himself as Natsume Takashi and the cat as Nyanko-sensei. While Madara and Dimple squabble over names, the three humans talk. After Mob and Reigen introduce themselves, the esper notes that he can sense a rather large amount of psychic energy coming from Natsume, who uncomfortably admits that he can see and interact with spirits. Mob smiles and says that he can too. Natsume is surprised to hear just how easily Mob admits it. Before he can ask, Mob breaks into an explanation as to what they’re there for and Natsume brightens, saying he knows exactly how to help and asks for the spirit whose name was taken. The out-of-towners exchange glances and sheepishly admit that the spirit sent them, but didn’t come with.

From there, they have a late lunch and scrape together a plan. Reigen and Mob will escort Natsume back to Seasoning City on the soonest train. Since it’ll be a long trip, Natsume will have to stay overnight in the city. He manages to pull together a cover story, that he’s staying at a friend’s for a sleepover, but will really be at Mob’s place for the night, since that would be safest for both parties. The next morning, they’ll do the ritual asap and then escort Natsume back home. Madara of course insists that he’s coming along, being Natsume’s bodyguard and all. And he doesn’t trust Dimple within an inch of his life.


The two groups break, Reigen and Mob heading back to the train station to wait for Natsume, while Natsume goes to pack for his unexpected trip. While they walk back home, Nyanko-sensei demands to know what on earth Natsume’s thinking, going out of his way to help these complete strangers with their supposed spirit waiting in another city entirely. It’s probably a trap for all they know, what with that stupid green fart cloud hanging around. But Natsume thinks of Mob’s earnestness and doesn’t think they’re lying. Even if they are, he doesn’t want to potentially leave a poor spirit without their name. Nyanko-sensei just snorts and says that Natsume is lucky he’s got such a great bodyguard, otherwise he’d have been eaten a million times over already.


The ride back to Seasoning City is fairly quiet, particularly since Madara is forced into silence, lest other commuters realize there’s a talking cat in their midst. Of course, this opens up an opportunity for Dimple to invisibly taunt him with no repercussions, like teasing him for being in a cat carrier bag of all things. The humans just ignore them while they quietly get to know each other. Reigen and Mob can’t help but be curious about the Book of Friends and what Natsume is doing with it. So Natsume shares his backstory and his mission of returning all the Book’s names, even idly showing it to them. Mob notes that there’s a lot of different emotions radiating off each page: some angry, some sad, some fearful, while a few are amused. Natsume in turn is curious about what Mob’s abilities are, to which Reigen shares in broad strokes their backstory, Mob filling in details here and there. The two boys soon get into a conversation about their powers, learning what each other can do with a few discreet demonstrations peppered throughout. The fact that they both have immense degrees of power with difficulty managing it isn’t lost on either of them. (Reigen takes a nap in the background as this happens)


Once they arrive, Dimple and Madara break off rather abruptly, Madara claiming that after hours of Dimple’s torment, he needs a freaking drink, while Dimple chases after him, knowing that the cat will definitely slander his name in the spirit community. The last that’s heard of them is Madara distantly boasting that Dimple has no hope of stopping him when he once drank Amaterasu herself under the table. Reigen comments that this looming drunken rampage had better not come back to bite them in the ass and bids Mob and Natsume a good night.

(Presumably there’s another conversation between the two as they head to Mob’s place. FRIENDSHIP.)

The two boys make it to the Kageyama household with little incident. Thankfully, Mob thought ahead and informed his parents about their sudden guest. They’re a little surprised when Mob says that Natsume is his internet friend, who was “traveling through the area and needed a place to crash for the night”. But they’re understanding and extend their hospitality, even having an extra place for him at the dinner table. Only Ritsu gives Natsume a silent, hard look throughout the meal. After dinner, Ritsu confronts Natsume, flat out telling him that his brother doesn’t have internet friends. Natsume can only shrug and admit he doesn’t either, explaining the actual circumstances of his presence. Ritsu frowns, pointing out that it’s weird a spirit would make humans do something as simple as this sounds. Natsume has no idea either, but figures it’s just spirit rules or something; they see and do things differently after all. Ritsu isn’t happy about this (all of it stinks of Reigen’s handiwork) and says he’s coming with them tomorrow to keep an eye on things. But he gets off Natsume’s case.


By the time bedtime rolls around, Mob knows that his brother’s coming along and doesn’t have any objections to it. As they settle down in Mob’s room, Natsume comments that Ritsu seems quite protective of his older brother, to which Mob just smiles and says that they worry over each other a lot. Slowly they start to open up a bit about their families and their lives. Both are upset at learning what the other went through: Mob is saddened to find out about Natsume’s near constant rejection and Natsume equally dismayed that Mob’s abilities made him so fearful of their destructive power. They comfort each other, promising to help the other out in the future when they need it. The rest of the night is spent trading stories about spirit/youkai encounters until they eventually fall asleep.


The following morning starts peacefully enough, with the three boys getting up and heading over to Reigen’s office. Both Mob and Natsume are noticeably more comfortable around each other, quietly pointing out wandering spirits here or there. Ritsu can’t help but notice how at ease his brother is with someone who was a complete stranger only the night before. Though he’s not sure what to make of Natsume, Ritsu has to admit that the soft-spoken boy does make for a good friend for Mob.

Unfortunately, that peace is broken when Madara comes tearing around a corner. At first, the cat looks relieved to find Natsume, but that quickly changes when he demands that the boys start running in the other direction. The reason why is quickly made apparent when a horde of spirits and youkai turn the corner as well. The four of them immediately bolt. Neither Mob nor Ritsu have encountered so many high level entities out in the open like this and are baffled as to what’s going on. Then Dimple comes flying in after them, yelling at Madara about being a drunken idiot blabbermouth around so many malevolent spirits. It’s not hard to figure out what went wrong after that.

However, Natsume is more startled to find that some of these spirits are in far more grotesque forms than the ones he’s met so far. Madara explains that city spirits and youkai are nothing like the relatively docile, countryside ones back where they live. Human cities tend to generate a lot more negative energy, the concentration of which is enough to make city spirits and youkai far more aggressive and monstrous than when left to the wild. Mob idly wonders if that’s why the youkai he fought that one time were as hostile as they were. Ritsu’s more concerned that Mob even fought youkai at all.

The chase gets cut short when the five find themselves at a dead end. Their pursuers close in, demanding that they hand over the Book of Friends and also maybe submit themselves to getting eaten. Madara tells them off, growling that they’ll have the Book over his dead body, but they’re not remotely threatened by a maneki neko. Madara wipes the smug look off their faces by transforming into his massive monster dog form and dives into the group, sending smaller spirits flying. Dimple joins in, demanding Madara save a few for him. With the youkai distracted, Ritsu uses his powers to create an escape and the boys scramble away. Mob takes a moment to be a good employee and calls up Reigen to let him know they’ll be late on account of evil spirits chasing them. Reigen handles this with his usual aplomb (i.e. sweat) and tells the kids to keep heading to his office where he’ll hopefully meet them halfway before things get too ridiculous.

Things get ridiculous.

There’s a sequence of events here I haven’t fully parsed out yet, but I know it involves Reigen coming to the rescue, looking cool and badass as he stands off against the throng of monsters, actually managing to give some of them pause. And then Reigen throws salt everywhere. Impressing nobody. But it makes for a good distraction. Mob and Natsume make a break for it, while Ritsu stays behind to keep Reigen from getting eaten.

Before they go, Reigen notes that Mob hasn’t raised a hand against their pursuers yet. Mob hesitantly admits that he’s reluctant to use his powers on the youkai, citing the stories that Natsume told of his youkai friends. It doesn’t seem right to use his powers on sentient entities, even if they are out for their blood. Natsume is oddly touched by this, but he admits that when push comes to shove, even he has been forced to exorcise spirits when they threatened him or his loved ones. Mob takes this into consideration while Reigen suggests they get to the spirit that hired them. The sooner Natsume does what he needs to do, the less full their hands will be to wrangle the horde. Also, it wouldn’t do for Mob to accidentally exorcise their client in the crossfire.

So Mob grabs onto Natsume, firing off a quick apology before he launches them both into the air. Natsume would be freaked out, but this isn’t his first time going on an impromptu flight, just his first time doing it with a definite human. They take a moment to survey their surroundings to find a safe place to land when Natsume points out a distant park, where a bright point of energy is radiating. Mob recognizes it and flies in that direction. Soon enough, they spot the figure of the masked woman calmly sitting at the top of a hill and Mob goes in for a landing. He kind of botches it though, and both he and Natsume go tumbling to the feet of the spirit, much to her amusement.

Pleasantries and introductions are quickly made before Mob goes to secure the surroundings. While they got a good distance away, it’s only a matter of time before the horde catches back up to them. They need to do this fast. Mob watches as Natsume performs the name-returning ritual, feeling his friend’s power swell around him as he blows on the strip of paper, ink swirling through the air before returning to its rightful place. And then Natsume passes out, Mob barely catching him in time. He gets the sense that his friend is just exhausted from the ritual. The spirit, meanwhile, shakes herself off, lightly commenting that she feels better already. She also suggests that Natsume could maybe do with a boost. Mob gets the hint and transfers a bit of his energy to Natsume, instantly reviving him. Natsume curiously asks the spirit just how she of all people managed to lose a race against an average human. The spirit just shrugs, telling him that she thought it would be funny.

At this point, a much smaller horde manages to catch up to them. Mob is a little fed up at this point, his explosion meter hovering somewhere in the high eighties. He faces down the youkai and gives the the ultimatum to leave in peace or suffer the consequences. The youkai just laugh at him and try attacking him only to be met with Mob’s barrier. This pisses them off and they try ganging up on him, pushing the meter to the mid-ninties. Mob tells Natsume and the spirit to get away, which only turns the youkai’s attention to them. Realizing, Mob doesn’t have the book, they swarm around him to get to Natsume.

None of them make it, as Mob hits 100%, this time in Protectiveness. His powers flare and the horde bursts into so much spiritual energy. Natsume is awed by just how much power his friend wields. With their pursuers vanquished, Mob quickly settles back down. He checks on Natsume, who’s fine, if a bit shaken. Then he remembers he’d accidentally blasted in the direction of the masked spirit, but he’s relieved to see her no worse for the wear, having protected herself with a mirror shield wreathed in flames. Mob apologizes, but she waves him off, she’s faced worse, she tells him.

The others come crashing in then, Reigen and Ritsu both hanging on for dear life to a giant fluffy Madara, with Dimple floating in close behind. Both of them get sent to the dirt when their ride shifts back into blob cat form and jumps into Natsume’s arms. Everyone checks up on each other, until the spirit announces she’s taking her leave. Dimple gets antsy at her presence while Madara looks like he’s been robbed. He could’ve had her under his command?! he exclaims. She just smirks at him.

As she passes by, the spirit hands Reigen a little jingling pouch, the second half of her payment, and thanks him for a job well done. She then surprises Natsume as well, giving him a slightly larger pouch as compensation for his time and energy. Madara is quick to grab it and look through it, eyes lighting up at what he finds. Natsume tries to refuse, but she gives him a motherly smile and tells him to just take it. Something about her smile strangely compels him to accept it for once. And like that, the spirit disappears just as mysteriously as she appeared.

There’s a scene where Natsume and Mob talk about their powers. Mob’s a little envious that Natsume can use his powers to help the supernatural while Mob only seems to be good at exorcising it. Natsume reassures Mob that what he’s doing is good too, he’s keeping people safe from the dangerous elements of the supernatural.

One scene change later, we find the group at the train station. Reigen and Mob offer to see Natsume back home, but he politely declines, not wanting to impose. Besides, Madara taught those city youkai a thing or two about messing with him or his charge, the cat boasts. Everyone says their goodbyes, Natsume and Mob exchanging their phone numbers and emails, promising to keep in touch. Guess they really are internet friends now, huh? Reigen makes sure to pass along his business card, in case anything ever comes up or he just needs a spirit-aware adult to talk to. Ritsu just shrugs at Natsume, saying that he’s alright. Dimple and Madara spend their time bitching at each other. They do manage to wish the other good luck with their charges. On the platform, the Seasoning City residents wave goodbye to Natsume and Madara as the train leaves, taking the two back home.

That night, Mob gets a text from Natsume reading that he got home safe and sound. After he sends back a relieved reply, Mob wonders about the spirit with the returned name. Looking up at the full moon, he quietly wonders aloud who the spirit was. He turns to go to sleep, but finds the spirit standing right there in his room. Mob is reasonably startled by this, until she casually explains that her brother happened to overhear him and passed along the message. He hesitantly asks her if she planned for all this. Even he sensed there was something a bit convenient about all this. She doesn’t directly answer, instead telling him that seeing two of her children so unhappy and suffering made her realize that they both deserved a friend that understood. But seeing as how the two were unlikely to ever met, she may have nudged things so their paths would cross. Mob asks her if that means yes, to which she just laughs and kisses the top of his head, bidding him a goodnight before vanishing once again.

(Sometime later, it occurs to Mob that the spirit wasn’t wearing a white fox mask, but rather a white wolf mask.)

#natsume yuujinchou #natsume's book of friends #mob psycho 100 #story ideas #this is like a half-fic #too detailed to be an outline and too vague to be a full piece #this is best i can manage #im not writing this #someone else do it #this crossover contains a secret third thing #whoever figures it out gets an internet high-five #holy shit this is almost 4k words