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heli-writes · 7 months

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Marriage of Convenience, part 7: returning home.

Pairing: Yoriichi x you

Summary: Yoriichi's friends think that Yoriichi is too lonely and needs a wife and family to take care of him. They propose a marriage of convenience to a woman who's in need of a husband. The arrangement of the marriage is simple: both parties live their lives as before, y/n takes care of Yoriichi as a wife and Yoriichi keeps unwanted men (and demons) away. Love is not required, friendship is appreciated. However, how detached can one be when living so close to each other?

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9

Series Masterlist

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Pounding pain is what (y/n) feels first when she regains consciousness. The piercing sunlight didn’t do her much good when she tried to open her eyes. She groans. What the hell happened last night, (y/n) thinks, I only had a couple of drinks. She rolls over to her other side, away from the window and the light. Next to her lies Yoriichi who is staring at the ceiling. “Mornin’”, (y/n) tells him with a yawn. His head flips towards her in a second but his eyes don’t meet hers. “You’re already awake?”, he asks her. “Kind of.”, she answers, “We didn’t bring any painkillers, did we?”. Yoriichi shakes his head. “I can ask Mrs. Nakamura if you want to.”, he tells her. “That’d be great. My head is killing me.”, (y/n) groans. Yoriichi doesn’t answer that and quickly adverts his gaze.

Suddenly, (y/n) feels embarrassed. What did she do yesterday night that Yoriichi can’t look her in the eyes? Did she do something inappropriate? This whole trip leaves her confused and her feelings are all over the place. Grief over her fiancé, a newfound fondness for Yoriichi which sometimes scratches onto something else and let’s not forget the fear and panic that haunted her in the caves. She turns her head away from Yoriichi.

“Look, Yoriichi…”, she starts, “About yesterday night. I usually don’t drink like this. I just felt so nervous after the caves. I don’t know what has gotten into me and… I’m sorry if I did or said something that offended you or something like that.” When (y/n) notices that she’s rambling, she quickly tries to stop herself. “Y/n… It’s okay. There’s nothing you need to apologize for.”, Yoriichi says calmly. Being relieved, (y/n) takes a deep breath. “So, what happened yesterday then? I can’t remember much after the fourth or fifth drink.”, she asks him. Yoriichi shifts uncomfortably in his futon. He hoped that either (y/n) remembers or doesn’t ask. “We just talked.”, he says vaguely. “About what?”, (y/n) asks naively. Yoriichi breathes out deeply. He shouldn’t lie to her. He should tell her what she told him and, more importantly, he should tell her about the demon. “You told me about the night your fiancée died. And about your family’s business.”, he tells her. Y/n doesn’t say anything after that. When he turns back to her, he sees her staring at the ceiling. He can’t read her. In contrast to her thoughts, Yoriichi finds it easy to read her emotions. However, right now he doesn’t know what she’s feeling. “I’m sorry,” (y/n) finally says, “You probably wouldn’t have agreed to marry me if you had known. I didn’t mean to deceive you. I just… I don’t know what I was thinking.” “You wanted safety for your son and yourself. There’s no shame in that.”, Yoriichi tells her. “It was wrong. You thought you were marrying a simple woman and you got a poison brewer and a walking target. You deserve better.”, she answers bitterly. Yoriichi sits up slowly. (Y/n) doesn’t move. “Hey, look at me.”, he tells her. (Y/n) sits up as well and tries to look at him, but quickly looks away again. “You’re right. You’re more than I bargained for.”, he tells her and (y/n) lowers her head in shame. “I thought marrying you was a risk. It meant putting you in danger. I, too, am on Muzan’s kill list. Everybody associated with me automatically is in danger too. So, you see, it’s not really much of a deal.”, he tries to console her. “My family is a bunch of murderers.”, (y/n) blurts out. “But you’re not. In contrast, you tried to use your knowledge to put an end to the murders committed by demons. That’s noble.”, he tells her. (Y/n) blushes at that. “Still, I was dishonest to you.”, she says back. Yoriichi shrugs. “I didn’t expect you to tell me all of your secrets beforehand. We only knew each other for a few weeks.”, he points out. (Y/n) thinks about that for a moment. “Does that mean you have secrets too?”, she asks him cheekily. Yoriichi doesn’t answer. How could he? How could he tell her that her fiancée’s and (y/s/n)’s parents’ deaths are actually his fault? Because he couldn’t protect his brother? Because he couldn’t defeat Muzan?

“You don’t have to tell me. Considering I didn’t tell you mine, how can I expect you to tell me yours?”, (y/n) says and slowly gets up. She stretches in front of the window. When she turns around, she says: “I’m going to ask Mrs. Nakamura for some painkillers. Then, let’s have some breakfast.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

After the painkillers kicked in and breakfast was eaten, y/n and Yoriichi were ready to leave. After three days, it’s time to return home. “I’m sure (y/s/n) is waiting for us eagerly.”, y/n ponders. Yoriichi nods at that. “Do you think we can take a little detour though? We need some food for the next few days. Maybe we can take a stop at the nearby village to pick up some bread and cheese.”, she says. Yoriichi nods again. For a while, (y/n) and Yoriichi walk in silence. “You’re quiet.”, she tells him, “More than usually so. Is it about yesterday?” “No.”, he answers her, “Just a lot happened the last few days.”. (Y/n) nods. “I guess we did spend a lot of time around each other. You must be happy to get some time away from me tonight.”, she jokingly points out. Yoriichi thinks about this for a second. (Y/n)’s right when she says Yoriichi likes to be alone. He feels comfortable being alone. Most people exhaust him. They talk so much and drain his energy. (Y/n) talks a lot too but it’s different somehow. She doesn’t expect him to talk as well. It’s easy to be around her, he thinks. “It’s fine.”, he mumbles.

They take another route down the mountain, one that leads them to the village near the Kamado’s house. In contrast to the path they took before, this one is uneven and steep. Yoriichi walks ahead and (Y/n) stumbles after him. “Wait!”, she calls out to him, “I’m not as steady as you. Can you hold my hand?” Yoriichi stops and looks at her surprised. (Y/n) simply holds out her hand to him. Without a second thought, Yoriichi takes her hand and leads her down the path. After a few hours, they arrived at the village. (Y/n) takes off to do some grocery shopping and Yoriichi trails behind her. After filling their bags with food for the next few days, (y/n) proposes to have some lunch at a udon stall. “One last meal in peace before we’ve got that little weasel running in between our feet.”, she laughs enthusiastically. After they’ve eaten, they start their way to the Kamado’s.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Oh, look who’s back!”, Suyako chirps when she sees Yoriichi and (y/n) entering their yard. “How was the trip?”, Sumiyoshi asks the pair upon their arrival. “Good.”, Yoriichi informs them briefly. Suyako puts her hands on her hips. “We want to know more than that”, she exclaims, “Come in, come in! Let’s have some tea together.”. Suyako ushers the two of them inside. While the women set off into the kitchen to brew some tea, the men already sit down in the dining room.

“So…”, Suyako says ominously while heating some water. “So what?”, (y/n) asks. “So, how was the trip?”, Suyako clarifies. (Y/n) is sure it’s still not what Suyako means but she plays along. “It was nice. We soaked in the hot springs and were at a market.”, she tells the other woman. “Right… and?”, Suyako wiggles her eyebrows. “And what?”, (y/n) replies innocently. “And did you kiss? Shared a futon? Proclaimed your love for each other?”, Suyako presses on. (Y/n) can’t help but laugh at her face. “What are you talking about?”, she asks whipping a tear off her face. Suyako looks at her disappointedly. “So nothing happened between you two?”, she mopes. (Y/n) thinks about this for a second. Things did happen between them. They’ve opened up to one another. Shared feelings and secrets. (Y/n) feels closer to Yoriichi than before. She trusts him. (Y/n) has to blush as she thinks about the time when she was pinned beneath him. Suyako immediately notices her change of color. “Something did happen!”, she exclaims. (Y/n) quickly shakes her head and waves her hands in front of her face. “No, no, it’s not like you think! Nothing happened. We just talked a lot. I think I understand him better now.”, she quickly explains. Suyako looks at her suspiciously for a moment. When she sees no signs of a lie, her expression turns soft. “I’m glad to hear that.”, she tells (y/n).

When the two of them return to the dining room, the men have the children on their laps. (Y/n) fondly watches (y/s/n) show a picture book to Yoriichi who seems invested in the boy’s silent narration of the story. “There you are!”, Sumiyoshi exclaims. Yoriichi looks up and meets y/n’s eyes. She gives him a warm smile and Yoriichi automatically gives her a small smile back. “So, (y/n), Yoriichi told me about your trip to the caves.”, Sumiyoshi starts a conversation. (Y/n) sits down as Suyako sets the table, “Uhm… yes. How much did he tell you?”, she mumbles. “Hm? Oh, just that you went on a boat trip with another couple and that the guide tried to scare you.”, Sumiyoshi says. “Oh, yes, that’s right. Turns out I’m a real scaredy-cat.”, (y/n) laughs embarrassedly. “You shouldn’t be ashamed of that. Fear can keep you alive in a situation of danger.”, Yoriichi tells her. “Och, Yoriichi, don’t always be so serious! What danger?”, Suyako dismisses his comment. It makes y/n smile, however. She notices how he always says things to make her feel better when she’s embarrassed or uncomfortable.

“So, how did (y/s/n) behave while we’re gone? Anything other than fine will earn him a serious whopping at home.”, (y/n) changes the topic. “Oh, your boy is so well behaved!”, Suyako gushes. “Sometimes we had trouble understanding him but all in all it was great having him around.”, Sumiyoshi adds. Y/n nods contently and turns to her son. “Did you have fun?”, she asks the boy. The kid nods excitedly. Yoriichi pats his head and the boy puts his head onto Yoriichi’s chest. The Kamados laugh heartedly at that.

After tea, the Tsugikunis start their way home. Way too late, for Yoriichi’s taste. The sun is already starting to set. “Stay close together.”, he tells (y/n) and her son. (Y/s/n) immediately grabs Yoriichi’s hand. (Y/n) laughs at that. “Good idea, buddy!”, she tells him and quickly grabs Yoriichi’s other hand. “Now, we can’t get lost in the dark!”, she says and nudges Yoriichi. Yoriichi blushes but presses her hand.

They manage to get home before it gets too dark to see the path in front of them. (Y/n) whips up a quick dinner of fried eggs and bread. By the time they finished the dishes, (y/s/n) could barely keep his eyes open. They quickly get ready for bed and (y/s/n) is gone before his head hits the pillow. “He must have really worn himself out with the other kids.”, (y/n) says while letting out a huge yawn. Yoriichi and her settle into their respective futons as well.

“I don’t know about you but I’m glad we went on this trip.”, she tells him. Yoriichi silently agrees to that. “Can we do it again someday?”, (y/n) asks, “Maybe bring (y/s/n) along?”. “Of course,” Yoriichi agrees, “But maybe let’s not take him to the caves.” (Y/n) laughs sleepily at that. “You’re a good father.”, she mumbles halfway into dreamland. Yoriichi blushes when he hears that. He didn’t plan on becoming a father figure to (y/s/n) but lately, he has started to feel more and more like it. It makes him proud that (y/n) thinks of him as a good father. “You’re a good mother too.”, he replies, “No matter how or why you’ve adopted him.” “Hmm…”, (y/n) hums and mumbles: “We’re good at parenting together.”. Yoriichi turns to her and sees how her eyes are already closed and her breath starts to slow down. He carefully reaches out to her and strokes her cheek. (Y/n) turns over in her sleep and puts her hand over Yoriichi’s. Slowly, he inches closer to her and presses a soft kiss on her forehead. “Sleep well, (y/n).”, he whispers, before settling back into his futon and let sleep take him away.

#demon slayer #demon slayer yoriichi #kny #kny x reader #kny x you #yoriichi tsugikuni #yoriichi x y/n #yoriichi x you #kimetsu no yaiba #yoriichi

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fairytale-poll · 8 months

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ROUND 1B! MATCH 2 OUT OF 8

Propaganda Under the Cut:

Original Fairytale:

The girl, the myth, the legend. The one who started it all. She skips into the forest with head held high, unknowing of the wolf and the many, many retellings of her story. Something, something, puberty, something, something, men are wolves. Just let my girl wear her red cape and be on her way to Granny's, please and thank you.

I feel like in a lot of modern adaptations they get lost in making Red Riding Hood more a girlboss who fights back or making her secretly (or not secretly) the real wolf or having her and the wolf be love interests, they lose a lot of what made the original fairytale so good. AND SO CHILLING! We have been told this story so often since childhood we can forget how frightening it can really be. A lost young girl, punished for the follies of childhood. I also think that even in the "happy" endings when the huntsman saves her there is this sense that she will never be the same. Her childhood is over. And that's haunting! The horrors of unprotected innocence.

The Path:

Each of these girls deal with their personal demons- in this case, "wolves-" as they grow and mature on the path of life. Each of them represent a different stage of a young person's life as they go through the world and the different ways in which that world can turn on that young person when they allow themselves to get lost in a dense forest, culminating in their reflection on the life they led.

the path is just a really cool underrated game idk man

i just really really like the path 🤷‍♂️

I will admit I'm only familiar with The Path through Izzzyzzz's seminal video on the subject but her Vibes are pretty iconic

(Scarlet) Most underrated sister imo. Her story is hauntingly sad and has themes of "lost of childhood" in a completely opposite way from the original Red Riding Hood, a good twist on the story.

(Ruby) The most well-known of the Path girls and the most goth, I get very sad when I see her. I know "teen angst" is a joke but sometimes I see reminders of just how full of despair teenagers can be. Her self-destructive tendencies and her "Charming Wolf" are leading her down a path (pun intended) that could kill her if she is not saved in time. It's so easy to dismiss teenage impulsion but only the survivors can.

(Ginger) Girl is so queer. Love that for her.

(Ginger) lesbiam

(Robin) Little girl sees giant wolf and wants to take it for a ride. Nuff said. (Also her room is the scariest imo. A child learning about death and their own mortality is mundane but terrifying)

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it-happened-one-fic · 2 years

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A Lover's Oath - Xiao

Author Notes: This one was largely inspired by the song "Lover's Oath" from the Genshin Impact OST and some of Xiao's voice lines which I used within the fic itself. Fun fact: The only place within Genshin Impact that plays "Lover's Oath" that I know of is when you meet Xiao. As usual the reader is gender-neutral.

Type: Fluff/romance implied/perhaps a dash of angst because its Xiao

Word count: 869

“If you awake to a knife at your throat, if monsters dig their claws into you, if death comes knocking at your door, call out my name. Adeptus Xiao. I will be here when you call.”

They were words I would never forget. A solemn oath that was sure to catch one’s attention and stay in your memory for a lifetime. Perhaps that was why meeting Xiao was a memory that would last for longer than eternity.

What’s more is that he upheld his promise. A promise that would be impossible for anyone else to keep. If I called for him he was sure to appear in the blink of an eye.

I looked out across the view of Liyue from Wangshu Inn, bathed in the light of the setting sun like it had been that day. That day when I’d first met the ancient being that sat next to me, gazing out across the same landscape that I looked at. The same landscape that he watched over in silent, solitary guardianship. My eyes flicked over to him as shared memories danced through my thoughts.

“I'm willing to protect you. But don't think about getting close, and stay out of my way, or all that awaits you is regret.”

Such bitter words. But they were why I knew better than to voice my thoughts and affections for him. Xiao’s walls could come up frighteningly fast as he withdrew. Because he was always trying to protect me from himself in the same way he protected me from everything else.

Telling him that he reminded me of my very own guardian angel would only be met with a cold scoff. He more likely thought of himself as a demon trying to atone for the sins that haunted him. Sins he could never atone for even though it was an unjust burden.

And then he would tell me what he always did, “If a day comes where even you are taken by the darkness, it will be up to me. So do not fall prey to the darkness. I have no mercy.

Though perhaps you can stand your ground alone.”

He always looked away just as he finished, not able to meet my eyes when he admitted that I was capable of standing on my own two feet. It always made me wonder if he was afraid of being alone. He’d been alone for so long… And though I wasn’t always around, I liked to think that I eased his loneliness.

Even if he only wanted me to view him as a weapon…. After all that was what his promise was. One that he reminded me of every time I went away to handle a commission or explore some new area.

“I deal in death. If you cannot bring yourself to kill — speak my name.”

The meaning behind his words was all too obvious and one that pained me whenever I remembered them.

Don’t forget me. And remember that I will always come when you call. Don’t sully your hands when mine are already too stained to ever be cleansed.

It was almost like a plea for help and swift refusal of assistance all at once. Don’t get too close or you’ll get hurt. These are my burdens, not yours.

I was accustomed to such thoughts myself, but thinking of him feeling that way…. Well, it was upsetting to say the least. After all, I had learned to accept help. I’d been forced to. Being an adventurer wasn’t always easy. Especially with the Abyss order constantly lurking around every corner.

I looked over at Xiao once more, studying his profile that was shadowed in the dusk of the day’s slow death. Would he ever learn to accept other’s help?

He met my gaze, a solemn look on his face as we silently looked towards each other. Understanding the other’s thoughts without saying anything. It was there, in his golden eyes. The quiet request for me to withdraw. To distance myself from his cursed self.

I didn’t get to refuse his silent request though as he sighed and began to speak, possibly more to himself than to me, “It's too late. The connection between us is too strong. Even if you wanted to, it's too late to sever it.”

He paused, his eyebrows arching at my speedy headshake, “Hm? You've never thought to sever it?” I smiled at his correct assumption but that just seemed to exhaust him more as he sighed, a sound of long suffering.

“This eternal dance of demon subjugation... My fight goes on. But I would like to know more about you.” His eyes flicked around, looking at me one second and looking away the next. Almost like he really didn’t know where to look.

I felt my smile widening as I reached out and took his hand, “So you’ll come with me to the lantern festival this year?”

He looked down at our tentatively interlocked hands and flipped his palm over, returning my grip with a gentle squeeze as the faintest of smiles spread across his face. “As If I could refuse. All you need to do is call and I’ll come…. Even if it is something inconsequential.”

#Xiao x reader #genshin impact x reader #genshin impact imagines #xiao imagines #The fact that Lover's Oath is also called Guizhong's Lullaby makes me feel like Zhongli just passed his romance song onto his son #fluff #gender neutral reader #romance #Xiao x y/n #Xiao x you #Genshin impact x y/n #genshin impact x you #Liyue #guardian yaksha #lantern festival mentioned #mywritings #fanfic

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bittersweetblasphemy · 17 days

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hey sorry you're sick bud. what's your oc with the most tragic backstory? vs an oc with a relatively chill past?

the most tragic? woof that's a tough one. and i'm gonna use it as an opportunity to infodump about a lot of OCs lol

most of my characters have at least some level of trauma. i mean just going through my works (and not touching reader characters):

your First Mate in LLTQ comes from a species known for stealing people away to use as brood queens and where said Queens are usually not consenting, then was sent off to perpetuate that same cycle completely alone for the first time in his life. one has to wonder what he went through to decide your consent actually mattered to him.

Hulo was once a human man whose literal humanity was slowly stripped from his soul and eaten over the course of decades

David's no-contact with his family. mom was neglectful from the beginning and cares more about his half-siblings than him. step-dad is some ex-military jackoff who thinks he's a loser who will never amount to anything. doesn't have many memories of his bio dad who just up and left when he was three

Brizeth and Colovan i won't say much about bc i'm actually going to talk about this in the next chapter for B&D. what i will say is that their childhood was fucked up but also a completely normal childhood for demons like them, so is it really that tragic? 🤔 (and bc im sure people's minds are going there, no, there is no CSA involved despite them being concubi)

Adrian is a fallen angel whose anger got his wings ripped off

Hector watched his first love die

Malak is the bastard child of a palace concubine who very conveniently isn't around anymore so you do the math

Tuq left his herd to live completely on his own due to rampant transphobia

Sasha got his scars from attempted murder via arson by homophobic wannabe monster hunters who were hoping to kill him and Theodore

Viktor's big sister, who he looked up to, was killed by a werewolf hunter

the imps in QR paint a pretty clear picture of the hell (literally and figuratively) they'd lived through before being taken in by Horace

where do i even start with Arro? [1][2][3][4]

but ultimately if i had to pick, i think i'd pick Gage. they were kidnapped and sold into forced sex work where all of their memories of their prior life were completely wiped, effectively factory reset, and they frequently deal with trauma by just erasing memories they can't handle. this includes deleting any knowledge of entire people and friendships because they were either killed or committed suicide, and Gage would rather forget than deal with the pain of missing them.

and while they may not have those direct traumatic memories haunting them, they're perfectly aware of the gaps in their memory and what they mean, which just strikes me as particularly sad.

Chill backstories? I mean,

Willow had a normal childhood and learned her love of gardening from her mom and dad, who she has a good relationship with

Marius came from a decently well off family and just liked having sex enough to make a profession of it

Ahlex grew up in a world with UBI, Universal Healthcare, and where there's always plenty of food and fresh water to go around, so despite being raised by his single disabled mother, he had a pretty easy time growing up

Marble and Button were childhood friends that fell in love as they got older

ignoring the tragedy that led to his current position as Malak's guard, Bic had a great childhood and was being mentored to be a clan storyteller, which is a very highly respected position in goblin clan hierarchy

Nina lived a comfortable life with her mother and father, who taught her the art of monster hunting and also impressed upon her the importance of the honor code she still lives by.

anyone else who i haven't listed either has their chill backstories at least alluded to in their fic (like Melia), or i just haven't given them a backstory yet

#madax answers #lore #too many ocs to tag #tag later

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shrublike · 1 year

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Oh, hey! I was the one talking about Lesson 16 like a month ago. I got memory problems and forget usernames the second I close a tab, heh. Just rediscovered your blog after clicking on the salty Lucifer pic and realized you responded to my ask.

I think that while Barbatos agreed with Diavolo's actions, he knew that it wasn't going to lead to a happy outcome for the prince (earns the respect of the Devildom, but loses his most trusted friend, and either has to harden himself in a way he doesn't want to or be haunted by the question, "did I do the right thing?").

Diavolo didn't want to kill Belphegor, but he couldn't just let him leave without appearing weak or like he considered his inner circle above the law every other demon followed on pain of death.

If he freed Belphegor, the demon would actively inspire other demons to rise up against him and try to overthrow him or launch genocidal attacks on innocent humans. Humans are like hunter's game to demons, and many demons don't want their delicacy becoming a protected species or a moral dilemma ("these creatures are innately less valuable than I am, and therefore it is reasonable to sacrifice them for my needs" vs "this person is worth the same as I am, so is the pleasure I get from killing them worth their life?").

It's easy to forget because he is so laid-back and friendly, but Diavolo lives in a strength-based hierarchy (hence why Satan is the 4th oldest when he is younger than Belphie, the 7th oldest). If he appears weak, then he will become prey to the opportunistic. Aside from challenges to his power, he could potentially face civil war as all of the demons begrudgingly following him, no longer consider him strong enough to respect and want to return to the ways of his ancestors.

While I believe the idea to send MC back in time was Diavolo, Barbatos's permission to use his powers to find a peaceful solution was likely given a broad interpretation by the demon, and he arranged the timelines on his own. Diavolo likely intended for MC to return with the revelation that they were related to Lilith, but it still wasn't an ideal outcome for him because Belphegor would resent him for locking him up without even considering his views.

So Barbatos adjusted things and found a solution that left Belphegor with the most favorable attitude towards Diavolo that they could hope for and pushed that nasty bit of attempted-treason under the rug where none but the prince's most trusted could find it.

Diavolo trusts Barbatos implicitly, so if the butler said "this is the best way", he would agree without hesitation and allow him to tidy up and cancel the timelines as he sees fit.

Diavolo: *doesn’t want it to seem like his inner circle is above the law*

also Diavolo: *sweeps his bestie’s brother’s first degree murder charge under the rug*

he’s lucky the mc doesn’t have the option to hold a grudge cause they could single-handedly start their own civil war with that lmao

I like that you mentioned the civil unrest tho, I’d be so interested for that sorta thing to be shown!! beyond Mephisto just being all “ugh stinky human peasant >:(“ only to warm up a lesson later 🙃

Diavolo literally made his government out of fallen angels - which we know people like Mephisto don’t approve of - only to chuck a human in the mix further down the line, seemingly all without a public vote!! their qualifications are that they’re his buddies, that’s it!!!

can you imagine if that happened in reality?? there would be uproar, and I wanna see that!! I wanna see how the public reacted to the brothers and how they’re reacting to the mc!!!! GIVE ME THE RIOTS!!!!!

p.s. are you a fic writer, nonnie? something about your typing style gives me writer vibes 👀

#this is what you get when you put a himbo in charge #disclaimer: this is a diavolo loving household #i simply crave chaotic realism #ask #obey me

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seiya234 · 2 years

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california, rest in peace

this is for the amazing Reynier on AO3 who has been doing some amazing stuff wrt tau: read it here

-------

honestly, they never really thought about California, not much after 2038

---

Mark and Anna went almost no contact after April 29th. If Mabel called them, they picked up. And they religiously called on the triplet’s birthday, and Thanksgiving.

But other than that the small flow of calls and letters, and occasional visits completely dried up.

Because there was no getting around it, if they hadn’t been out of town for vacation, they most likely would have died.

And yes their family was small on both their sides, but the graveyards where their parents and grandparents were buried were now underwater, Anna’s sister lost a leg after it was crushed in the rubble, and their three nephews were rather obviously traumatized from watching the earth tear itself asunder around them.

Their son had destroyed their world.

Their daughter was sheltering him.

They had been able to swallow many things, but this.... this was what broke them.

---

It was almost conspicuously not spoken of in the Pines household.

Partially for the obvious reason of attempting to preserve the mental health and unity of everyone in the family and the absolute dissonance of knowing one of the people you loved most in the world was responsible for 45 million people dying and the state of California literally dissolved into the ocean.

But the main reason was just that they were too busy living their lives to really devote thought to California.

Oh it was constantly on Stan and Mabel and Ford and Henry’s minds for weeks, even two or three months.

But then they stopped finding survivors, and stopped finding bodies.

But then the rubble began to slowly be cleared, the oceans and the land settled, and the USGS began to survey what remained of California, and what had been reborn in the aftermath.

But then one month two month three month anniversaries turned into one year five year ten year anniversaries, and every big milestone felt less big than the last one.

And in the mean time there the triplets, who needed to be fed and clothed, their laundry done and their home kept cleanish, who needed love and attention and their whole selves.

In another time, Anna asked Mabel how she could live with herself, letting Dipper still live with her.

(in that time, Mabel slammed the phone down.

but the answer would have been, because it was way too easy to forget about California)

---

There were two things that haunted Dipper about that day.

Well, besides the obvious.

The first he confessed to Jo, after they had gotten settled in their new home.

They both were somewhat in their cups, or at least Dipper was, and-

“Could you have stopped yourself? That day?”

He didn’t need to ask Jo what they were talking about. He knew.

“If California happened today,” he finally managed to say, “it would not have gotten that far.”

“Because you’re.... older,” Jo delicately said, politely avoiding that Dipper had confided his true age in them.

“Yes. But then....then I was so young. I didn’t feel young then. I thought I was an adult. But I was a child, with the power of god and the self control of an infant. My sense of self was washed away, and....it happened.”

Jo was not a touchy-feely person by nature, but they reached out and patted his hand. Which was really all that needed to be said.

The second thing, Dipper took to the heat death of the universe

----

(Demon match? Demon match?

The small part of him that was freaking out, that this was a bad idea, bad bad bad was overruled by the part of Dipper that had grown up on Pokemon.

These kids, these beautiful dumb kids, were using him and Milchiresa to fight like they were Pokemon, and the cults the trainers.

What a terrible idea!

what a ͍̱̼̟̯͔̻c͏o̠̩̰̖̫͉̫o͟ļ͔̱̩̩ ̪i̼͓d̫͉e̪̮a̴̙!̼̟ ̺̟̻͍̖͔)

----

Dipper’s family never thought much about California.

Perhaps they should have.

#transcendence au #seiya writes!

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anverogia · 8 months

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About demons and otherworldly...

I rarely talk about films and series that I like. Let's begin!

Part 1. Facts

Title: Kuroshitsuji (Black Butler)

Author: Toboso Yana

Year: 2006 (manga); 2008 (first film adaptation)

Genres: Action, Detective, History, Comedy, Mystery

Part 2. Plot

An alternative England of the 19th century appears before the reader/viewer. The events of the Victorian era shroud in darkness the fate of Ciel Phantomhive, a boy of 12 years old. As befits an earl, Phantomhive has several servants in his service, among which the butler Sebastian Michaelis stands out in a special way. Whatever happens in Phantomhive Manor, the affairs of the young master, or even England, Sebastian is able to handle the impossible. 'Cause he's «just a damn good butler»

Part 3. Let's talk about the abstract or Nonsense by CH

Anime

As far as I remember, this anime was recommended to me as a joke. And this joke is out of control.

I wasn't particularly impressed with the first season, because I felt some kind of understatement. Yes, the story was logically completed, but there were too many white spots. The mystery of the Phantomhive tragedy is a confusing thing and I suspected that the creators did not manage with one season. And so it turned out, I found 2 more seasons and 2 full-length films.

The second season, as it turned out, wasn't based on the manga at all, and as a beginner, it confused me even more. Therefore, for those who are watching for the first time, I advise you to postpone the second season somewhere at the very end (may a ton of slippers from fans of the history of the Trancy house not fly at me)

The third season, called the Book of Circus, is currently my favorite. For the most part, it was filmed exactly according to the original source and therefore retained such a fragile line between comedy and tragedy that haunts the adventures of the young master and his faithful butler throughout absolutely the entire story. I recommend watching it immediately after the first season.

The Book of Murder and The Book of the Atlantic, in my opinion, deserve separate posts, so I will say briefly, they are definitely worth the time spent. And yes, when watching The Book of the Atlantic, don't be surprised by the obviousness of some plot twists that will accidentally spoil it in the first season.

Manga

The first chapters were released in 2006, so this year the work celebrates its seventeenth anniversary. To be honest, I admire the progress of the author and really like to simply look at the pages of history. But we don't forget about the plot either. The original source explains what is happening much faster and more clearly, and the characters themselves look a little more beautiful and livelier, brighter. For the most part, the first time I needed the manga was to put everything that was happening in the anime in my head and understand what was going to follow. Now I started reading it more for the plot.

Part 4

The most profitable (in my opinion) viewing order:

Kuroshitsuji (2008)

Kuroshitsuji: Book of Circus (2014)

Kuroshitsuji: Book of Murder (2015)

Kuroshitsuji Movie: Book of the Atlantic (2017)

Additionally:

Kuroshitsuji II (2010)

Kuroshitsuji II The Tale of Will the Shinigami (OVA)

+ several other small stories that are easy to find on the Internet (OVA)

P.S. I am attaching some moments from the manga and the opening of the third season

youtube

#kuroshitsuji #black butler #kuroshitpost #yana toboso #anime and manga #Youtube

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ladivamagnifica · 11 months

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Blood (Manuela and Ishtar)

Faculty and Staff Mission Task Board: An overnight outage to the stables’ heating system results in the deaths of several wyverns, personal mounts and beloved lesson drakes alike. In their grief, passionate students vowed to sleep overnight in the wyvern stables to help them keep warm through the night. [Grants Flying +1] @mjolnrr

“Oh Goddess of the Earth and Sky; She who cast the stars to fill the endless night and set our hearts ablaze with love, how can thou be-est so cruel in your design, so abundant in our misery? When you took your throne amongst the heavens did you imagine bearing witness to this, the innocent grief of children? Of cold and bitter winters so merciless in their making that they could suck the life from our beasts and yet still hunger for more? Has thine heart e’er muttered a beat or hath the ice of this season quelled your love for us? Is this our retribution? Did we, your loyal servants, not do enough..?”

The solemn winter had brought with it a terrible agony to the monastery. Truly, it was hard to believe that such a tragedy had occurred all in the space of a single night: that unbeknownst to them all as they slept restless in their chambers one evening, the ravenging winds of the storm had wrenched open the stable doors, and bereft of their protection, stolen away the heating crystals used to keep alive and well the wyvern, drake and pegasi mounts, beloved creatures who had served their masters well. With such hateful weather and everyone confident that the stables, which had weathered worse storms in the past, would be secure, the need to check in on the animals the following morning had been leisurely at best; no one had heard their cries during the winds howls and shrieks.

But that was all Manuela could hear now.

They haunted the dormitories like demons, behind every closed door and sneaking into the shadows of every corridor. They whispered in the great hall the tragedy over and over again; they made the food taste bitter, laced with tears, and when the time had come to hold a requiem in the cathedral for the beasts they loved, those wretched cries became their hymns aplenty. Her own misery had joined the choir, lamenting the loss of darling foal she had watched over since its birth three months ago. A charming thing with silvery hair and striking blue eyes- now only gazing into the Abyss, at Death and its sweet silver bridle.

These bitter tears were not the first she had shed, and with venom she cursed that they would also not be the last; kneeling in reflection as she was, before the statue of Saint Cethleann, patron of grief amongst a great number of other things.

It had not escaped her notice that at some point during her private contemplation that another had joined her side, sometime between the end of her prayers and the absence of almost everyone else who had attended the requiem ceremony. She, like herself, wore drying tear streaks and an air of profound melancholy- perhaps not unusual given the circumstances, yet the air of loss was absent for this woman, and still, all the same she stood humbled and listless.

“It is cruel isn’t it?” Manuela said and sighed. “Those poor children… Some of them had been raising their mounts for months- it will be some time before they can learn to love again.”

The woman said nothing in reply, yet compulsion had Manuela desperate to end the silence.

“Even I have to admit that I’ve been undone by this tragedy… Morale was already low, so consumed by the bleakness of winter that we are, and now we are plunged into despair… I despise how easy it will all be to forget our sorrows. Not everyone, no, will be able to let go of this misery and I have no doubt some will be consumed by it, desperate to assign blame and make sense of something so utterly- well, unfortunate, the infirmary shall be haunted by this for many weeks to come.”

She waited a moment; yet again all she was met with was the disquiet of her thoughts.

“Ah, forgive me. I shall leave you to your mourning.”

Rising, Manuela wiped the fresh tears from her eyes and turned, intending to spend the rest of this impromptu day wallowing in bed and finding solace in sleep, but what she had not anticipated was for the stranger next to her to speak.

“No, please… Stay.”

#TOA #The Officers Academy #Manuela RP #In character roleplay #In character RP #Mission post #Faculty and Staff Mission #Sadge #Manuela Casagranda #Ishtar #In character #TOA Mission

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lambsearandlavender · 2 years

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Epilepsy/seizure whump ideas idk??

I really like whump/sickfic & comfort fics and, as a person being diagnosed with epilepsy, there's not nearly enough good seizure whump/comfort fics. And what is out there is usually grand mal seizures which, don't get me wrong, I get that they're the big dramatic ones and stuff but there is so much more to seizures or epilepsy that's been unexplored here. So I want to like... share some of my personal experiences in the hope of spreading awareness and also seeing more fics in which I can imagine my comfort characters taking care of me in situations I actually deal with irl 😅

Biting teeth together in sleep so hard that they chip; slowly having one front tooth get a series of small chips along the bottom and needing to cope with the dip in self image. Not wanting to smile with your mouth open anymore. Being afraid of chipping your teeth more in your sleep

Biting tongue and cheeks in sleep so hard that they bleed. Waking up with blood in your mouth, all over your face, on your sheets and pillows

For 3 years I had seizures in my sleep but didn't KNOW that was what was happening. What I knew was that I periodically woke up with stroke-like symptoms: dizzy, slurred speech, everything felt like I had to push through an incredibly thick fog in my brain to do it, difficulty thinking at all, difficulty forming sentences, falling over, balance issues, crashing into things. Trying to pick something up and my hand would swing out wildly and knock the thing over instead. Working so hard to pick it up and then my muscles just giving out so I drop it anyway. Walking like I was drunk. Doing everything really really slowly because it was so hard to think, move, or speak at all. Being too weak to lift anything. This lasts 15 minutes to several hours/all day. I often have to sleep it off. Recovering from a seizure is no fucking joke and when you can't remember the seizure, you just wake up like that and it's scary and confusing

Waking up feeling like the world is spinning in circles, rolling like a ship at sea, and shaking violently all at once, and my eyes are also moving uncontrollably (nystagmus is the medical term) so it LOOKS like I'm in an earthquake yet I know that the world isn't moving and it's something wrong with me. Curling into a ball squeezing my eyes shut, waiting 2-3 minutes for it to stop. This will happen several times in one night. These are partial seizures, which you are conscious and aware during.

The general concept of aware seizures where you know full well what's happening but you're not piloting your body and all you can do is wait

Twitching or going rigid in your sleep as you seize, possibly waking your partner. Or knowing you had a seizure and they slept through it; both happen lol

Constantly waking up in the middle of the night dizzy and brain foggy, realizing you've probably had a seizure, going back to sleep hoping you'll be able to function by morning

Some seizures have no warning and others are preceded by an aura. Auras can have tons of symptoms including but not limited to nausea, dizziness, hallucinations of all senses (so not just seeing things, but also hearing/smelling/feeling things), a sense of impending doom out of nowhere, and strong sense of deja vu

Having an aura and being on edge waiting for the seizure to happen. But sometimes it doesn't and the aura IS the seizure bc they are actually like a, idk, smaller but longer lasting pre-seizure seizure. Idk what to tell ya that's how it is

Some folks think they're psychic or haunted or just plain going crazy due to the deja vu and hallucinations until they know it's seizure related

Speaking of, legitimately being told that you're possessed by demons and need to repent at least once a month by some random stranger

Days that you recovered mostly from a seizure but your brain just isn't all there. Forgetting entire important conversations from the day before, or just needing a lot more time to think through and comprehend something that's normally easy for you

Seeing the mix of concern, annoyance and frustration, and just plain making fun of your memory loss from the people around you

Waking up frozen in a weird position mid seizure, or waking up with one body part having its own lil dance party while you seize and otherwise can't move

The Epileptic Scream where you make a weird fucking scream or moan as your lungs seize and force all the air out all at once. I hear this is a pretty scary sound to the people who live with us, I've heard myself do it a few times and it is a pretty strange sound plus it gets tied up with the trauma of your loved one seizing

Having a new weird thing happen and not even knowing if it might be a seizure or not

Being told you can't do things bc you might seize....drive, swim, etc...being told you should have someone monitor you even in the shower and stuff just in case so a loss of privacy and independence until your seizures are "under control"

You know what can trigger seizures? STRESS. Also lack of sleep. Go crazy with that.

You know what stresses me out? Seizures. Which are triggered by stress. And you know what happens when I'm really stressed and anxious? I can't sleep. Some nights I'm so sure I'll have a seizure that I'm AFRAID to go to sleep. Except, the not sleeping also makes me have a seizure. And I know it. So I'm stressed about it...........

Having a really stressful day and just KNOWING a seizure is gonna happen because of it and preparing yourself for it as best you can

Days my face just can't stop twitching really severely. Well, just my mouth and lips. All day. It's embarrassing. Trying to drink something and your lips start going really extra twitchy and everything dribbles out. Fuckin sucks. Are they seizures? Auras? We don't know 🤷‍♀️

"I don't know" just comes with the territory

Miss a dose of your seizure meds? Instant seizure.

Seizure meds often cause severe mood swings (of the angry or depressed variety), serious weight gain or loss, things like hair falling out... but hey if your seizures are controlled maybe you can drive and swim and stuff and also the not having seizures part of course. So it's worth it I guess? But if you have mental health issues already lol good luck

Canceling plans because you're really tired and you know going out already tired will just lead to a seizure

How do they diagnose you? They hook you up to a bunch of electrodes and then try to trigger you to have a seizure on purpose

Just, hitting your head if you fall during a seizure is such a massive issue

SUDEP...sudden unexpected death in epileptic persons. Yeah, sometimes people with epilepsy just randomly die in their sleep (presumably while seizing). If your seizures are uncontrolled (not medicated to no/few seizures), you're at much higher risk

Take a guess how this affects my anxiety about sleeping while I'm still unmedicated

Also every person in my life acts like either my life is over and so tragic (huge overreaction) or like absolutely nothing has changed and have no empathy for it at all (my life isn't over but it is changing a lot and this stuff is scary, so can I get a LITTLE sympathy, please?)

I'm super duper not an expert on epilepsy, just a gal who did a lot of research and talking to other epileptics and taking notes about my own experience... but I'm really happy to chat about it or answer more questions (or if I'm wrong about something/someone knows more than me, I'm really wanting to learn so please feel free to correct me!)

#whump prompt #sickfic #comfort fic #whump #whump scenario #idk how to tag this sorry

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cangrellesteponme · 2 years

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13, 14, and 19 for the writing asks!

What feedback did you receive for your writing that stuck with you?

This is going to sound very stupid, but what haunts me is the importance of making your work readable.

How well or shittily you write doesn't matter if your work is an ugly wall of text that no one will read. I was taught about that in detail when I was around 11 (harsh teachers...), and then I was told how to do it a bit better when I was 13. As you know, I'm 20, so... yeah never forgetting that.

But yeah, learn from me (and my French teachers) and fix your format. Prescriptivism is inherently wrong and all but if you want to listen, or at least know the rules before you break them, it's easy.

A new idea is a new paragraph. Dialogue is a new paragraph. Use the right quotation marks for your language. Use the right dialogue format too. Free Indirect Speech or Thought is a new paragraph unless it actually fits into the idea you're developing (and italicise that shit, for the love of god, unless you're intentionally making it unclear). Use your tenses correctly (English literally has two. Just pick one and stick to it, or if you want to switch it up, do so only if it actually adds to your storytelling).

This is like, some basic Writing Format 101, and I have a lot more things to say (especially as someone who has corrected, proofread, and reviewed a fuckton of writing from their peers) but that would take hours.

What is something that you feel weird/uncomfortable writing about?

Plenty of things, actually.

We all know that I only write sex scenes if I'm paid to do it, so there's that. I may fit the "all aces write good smut" cliché but I am not willing, okay.

But also writing very emotional characters is out of my comfort zone. For Open The Door, I wrote from Virgil's (the literal embodiment of anxiety) POV and through the whole thing I was like "what does severe anxiety even feel like... i think i'm actually writing sensory overload there let me fix that... oh no that's PTSD... eh, that works" because I'm simply not a very anxious person. And I struggle with big emotions in general for the same reason - I'm just a very repressed rational bitch.

I also have a hard time writing empathy, comfort, and all those complex... social things. I'm not talking in terms of skill, or ability - I mean that I'm honestly just not having a great time with those things because it takes so much effort (but I balance it out with more fun stuff! like heartbreaking angst <3).

Show us the line you want readers to remember from your story.

I'll answer this for Staring Contest, obviously.

It has to be one of those two:

"Baldroy does not like many things about many people, but today he decides that he particularly hates the way Sebastian Michaelis looks at their young master."

"There’s something fragile and worn, a breath away from breaking, bubbling under the surface but ready to cool down in a second."

Obviously, Staring Contest has no dialogue (except one line from Ciel, because I simply couldn't be bothered to change it) and a very honest focaliser, which kind of restricted my ability to hide the truth in a bunch of lies so I had to work a lot with omissions.

With the first line, I think what I'm implying is obvious (even the second, more disturbing layer of it also is. i mean we've all read the manga. canon seb is a creep), and I want the reader to keep that in mind, for reasons similar to the second line. For the second one, I wanted it to be a sweet, memorable line with just a hint of carefully sprinkled pain.

For both of those, what you should remember is that appearances or suddenly developed feelings of paternal affection don't matter - this is still a dangerous demon whose sole intent is to get that dinner. The affection is fragile not only because it's new, but also because it can and will be crushed if needed. Both of those line highlight, in different ways, how fucked up this all is. But yeah it's all hidden in the fluffy dadbastian vibes.

#i always write long ass answers i'm so sorry lmao #takes me ages to get to the damn point #but yeah i hope those answers are satisfying :)#ota's ask answers

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rebelsofshield · 2 years

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Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi: “Part Four” - Review

Obi-Wan launches a rescue mission in an exciting episode that seems to forget the strengths of past chapters.

Leia Organa has been captured. Held prisoner in the Fortress Inquisitorius, she is interrogated by Reva not only about the location of Obi-Wan but the entire underground rescue operation of Force Sensitive children. Meanwhile, Obi-Wan with his new allies plans a dangerous rescue to retrieve the Princess of Alderaan before it is too late.

We closed last week’s episode with our hero brought to an even further low. Not only out of practice and out of touch with the Force, Obi-Wan was beaten and tortured by the monstrous new form of his former surrogate brother. It was one of the darkest Star Wars installments in quite sometime and fairly traumatic for both viewer and character.

Which is the reason why this episode’s decidedly plot and action focused structure feels off putting and strange. Despite its sometimes awkward execution, the undeniable strength of Obi-Wan Kenobi has been the realistic and measured approach it takes to showing its title character’s trauma. We’ve seen clearly over the last three episodes just how much Obi-Wan’s faith and confidence have been shattered by the violent end to The Clone Wars and if anything his defeat at the hands of Vader should only send him into a further spiral. This is a man who spent the last ten years with a passive mission that let him wallow in his failures and misery and the first time he steps back out into the galaxy he loses the girl he was trusted to protect and is burned alive by a demonic reminder of his own failure to help one of the closest people in his life. This is not to say that Obi-Wan would just give up and go home and leave Leia helpless at the hands of the Inquisitors, but it seems only right that his faith be even more shaken.

And that just doesn’t happen. “Part Four” is a thrilling, classic Star Wars style rescue. It’s about as A New Hope as you can get, right down to the oblivious stormtroopers and rescuing Princess Leia. And it’s fun! Those clamoring for the action hero Obi-Wan of the prequels are sure to get their fill here. Even if his skills are still a little rusty, Obi-Wan still gets to swing his lightsaber around and take out patrols of stormtroopers.

On a spectacle level it’s probably the best the series has been so far. The Fortress Inquisitorius is a great set which feels imposing and Imperial, lacking in the sometimes shoddy production value of the last two installments. “Part IV” feels cinematic and the stylish and thrilling direction of Deborah Chow that first impressed way back in The Mandalorian’s first season finally hits its stride here.

But it’s all action and plot and little else. There are no true moments of reflection on Obi-Wan’s part. No flashes of doubt or worry. Sure, he’s got shit to get done, but what exactly was the point of last week’s fiery conclusion if we aren’t going to let it inform and alter our character. Even haunting moments like the eerie sights of former Jedi encased in amber (RIP Tera Sinube) feel more like lore wrinkles and less like an emotional challenge for our hero to overcome.

Similarly, after spending the last three episodes obsessing over finding Obi-Wan, Reva now centers her hunt on The Path and the hidden escape route for Force Sensitives. It’s a strange swerve and seems out of step with a singular focus that seemed like it had to be personal. Reva’s easy switch to different prey makes her motivations feel like pure ambition and little else, which I hope isn’t the case. Moses Ingram is too good for that.

Surprisingly, the one character that does really click here is Indira Varma’s Tala. While Tala’s exact motivations and history are kept mostly vague (the same can be said for most of the rest of The Path volunteers even if O’Shea Jackson Jr and Maya Erskine act their hearts out), Indira Varma plays her with such an empathetic presence and vulnerability that it’s hard not to get wrapped up her attempts to help Obi-Wan rescue Leia. She doesn’t have a lightsaber or the assurance of half a century of canon protecting her. She’s just a woman trying to use her position of power to help someone in need and at any moment that could all backfire on her dramatically. Her attempts to sneak through Imperial red tape and avoid detection are nail biting in the best paranoid spy thriller kind of way and its enough to make her eventual rescue feel like a breath of relief.

As a whole, “Part Four” can’t help but feel like a detour. When a series commits so hard and so well to being a character study, its abandoning of this for the sake of an overly familiar rescue mission episode can’t help but feel like an aside. Sure, the action is fun and the plotting tense, but it feels like a part of a much flashier and less intelligent show than the one we’ve been watching.

Score: B-

#Star Wars #Obi-Wan Kenobi #Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi #review #reviews #Ewan McGregor #Deborah Chow

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cosmicjoke · 2 years

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Hello Cosmic! It's always a pleasure to read your answers! Though I don't completely agree with you on the last few.

As much as Levi wanted to let Erwin rest, he cared about the future of humanity more. I'm not sure if he'd deem himself competent enough to step in as commander even temporarily. Armin was just a kid at the time. No matter how smart, there's no way he could take command anytime soon. So IMO, Hange wasn't the reason he chose Armin, but they were one of the contributing factors that helped him make the decision.

That's fine, haha. You make some good points. I think Levi would be competent enough to take over the Commandership, though. Levi is way smarter than people give him credit for. He might not be brilliant at strategizing like Erwin was, but then, no one is really, not Hange, not even Armin. And Levi is used to making the kinds of hard decisions required of the Commander of the Survey Corps, so I don't doubt he would be able and willing to take on that responsibility himself, if he had to. I think it was Erwin's deteriorating mental state that also played a massive role in Levi making the choice he did. Levi understood that once Erwin discovered what was in that basement, he would no longer have that dream to serve as a motivator, or a distraction from the demons haunting him, and losing that would doubtless threaten his ability to be an effective leader. I think part of the reason Levi chose to let Erwin die, other than wanting to treat him humanely, was because he knew he wouldn't be able to lead them with the same unwavering and solid competence that he once did, which in turn would put them all at risk. Not to mention Erwin himself would run the risk of losing his humanity entirely and becoming a true monster, consumed by his demons and guilt. Giving Erwin the serum would have stolen Erwin's own redemption from him, by taking away his final, heroic sacrifice for humanity. It's easy to forget sometimes, but Erwin was Levi's friend, and I'm certain Levi would want to spare such a fate happening to his friend. If he could spare Erwin that by taking on his role as Commander, I have no doubt that he could and would. Levi already had taken on unwanted roles of leadership again and again up to that point, in service to humanity and his friends and comrades.

#Levi Ackerman #Erwin Smith #Hange Zoe

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ryuto12 · 2 years

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Does Anything Really Die?: The Yang snapshot.

So basically I'm writing a rwby story loosely based around some folklore, some religion and some mythology. To sum it up, Ruby is a grim reaper, Blake is an angel and a Goddess, Weiss is a forever reincarnating paragon of good, and Yang is a demon and also a Kami. Jaune's a reincarnating warrior, Nora's the reincarnation of Thor, Pyrrha's the reincarnation of Achilles, and Ren's the reincarnation of the Kami Jurojin.

Anyway this is a piece out of that which centered around one of Yang's first moments in the story.

Yang Xiao Long, the Demon who decided that she would marry an angel, divorce her, and then move away to cry in hell for all of eternity.

Should they have stayed married, today would have been the thousand-year anniversary. They had married in the year 1014 and it had been the talk of the realms. From the Underworld to Heaven to Alfheim, everyone had talked about it.

Everyone knew in every realm from the Paragon of good Weiss Schnee to the very incarnation of death Ruby Rose, the King of Asgard Odin, the Demonic-Spirt mixed Yokai, and the world snake Jormungandr. She reckons even St. Peter heard the word.

Everyone knew.

But her insecurities had gotten in the way of the happiness they both felt.

Yang, immortalized as the Sun Kami Amaterasu, couldn't die. Death would be paradise to whatever this was.

Blake, --who would only be immortalized as the Goddess Faunus in Roman, or the Goddess Pan in Greek mythology-- two centuries later, was at the time a mortal being.

An angel, so she may live a couple hundred years, but she was no immortal God. And Yang's abandonment issues were no easy thing to overcome.

Frankly, a thousand years later she regrets the outburst she had. The words that would break her and her utmost love apart. The actions that would follow that would seal the deal.

She's aware after everything that Blake delved deep into work, almost falling into a pit of despair. As evidence, her actions had helped humanity so much they now praised her as a Goddess, which would effectively have her immortalized.

Yang vividly remembers begging for forgiveness she was not granted. She's pretty sure she's the reason patience became a virtue.

And poor Jurojin had cracked a harmless joke about it, oh poor Jurojin, listening to the words of his drunken best friend Thor. And oh poor Jurojin, forgetting that as one of the Supreme Rulers, Yang was one of the few people capable of killing Gods.

She hears Jurojin and Thor reincarnate every couple of decades these days.

Yeah, Odin hadn't been happy about that. But what was he gonna do? Smite Japan as Agard burnt to a crisp? No. She heard a lot more prayers than he did on the daily, her will was a bit stronger. He was still pretty pissed though.

"You've fucked Ragnarok!"

"Is the pretty?"

"You idiot!"

That's what she remembers from that encounter.

Yang sighed, it was much easier to cling to her Demonic origins as a Yokai. Father a Spirit and mother a Fallen Angel turned Demon, --later after the Kami's Izanagi and Izami- Yang had been the first Yokai. But haunting people was boring and she had this bad habit of helping them instead, so they started praying to her.

Thus she had become the Goddess Amaterasu, ruler of the sun and the heavens for all who believed in Shinto. Leader of the heavens was already enough to make you a Supreme Ruler, and now here she was.

Sitting in Hell like a coward because sex, drugs, alcohol, and every other sin that is known to man, was much easier to do than rule a realm.

So here sat upon her throne, one made by the greatest Demonic architects solely for her. Slouched and in the middle of a decent blowjob, when a servant entered her throneroom.

"M'lady?"

"What?!" For God's sake she was getting her dick sucked, this was no time for conversation.

"Someone is here to speak to, Miss Xiao Long."

"Oh again? Let me guess, Emperor fucking Tenmu."

"Not exactly..."

"Then who in the actual hell is so important?!"

"Um... Your sibling, ma'am."

Yang groaned, fire burning bright behind her as she sat up straight. "Let 'em in. Go away Neo, now I'm bored and there is no way I'm gonna have sex for the next decade now."

The servant quickly scurried out, having faced Yang's wrath ten to many times.

Yang's also fairly sure she's the reason wrath became a sin.

The girl huffed, standing and giving Yang the side-eye.

"Yes I know you're salty, I'll give you some tongue later, now leave me alone. My family never visits Hell unless it's important."

Neo scoffed, but with a roll of her eyes shattered into shards on the floor that quickly disappeared.

With that reaction, Yang wishes she asked which sibling. For Tsukiyomi or Kagatsuchi she could surely have made them wait.

But oh no fuck her, the higher powers of the world were screwing her day up badly.

Just as she had managed to pull her pants up, the very essence of death itself was in her throne room.

"This better be fucking important."

Ruby grumbled a string of old-timey Korean curses. "It is. Now unless you would prefer I send you right down to the very heavens you rule, I suggest you shut up because I just found your wife on the brink of death. And you, Yang Xiao Long, are the prime suspect in the crime."

Yang snorted. "What is this court?"

"Yes, and I'm the judge, jury and executioner if you don't explain where you were yesterday at midnight."

#rwby #rwby au #yang xiao long #demon au

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shortstories-slp · 2 years

Text

Tome of the Fallen

There is an incessant ringing happening in my mind, as if someone were calling out to me. who would waste their time calling out for someone cursed yet blessed by fate to continue living on in similar forms. I need to wake up… to find out who keeps calling on me. Ringing on this painful part of my mind.

Liu Junjie, this man blessed and cursed by fate. Having lived the lives of many, but some would argue none at all. His first form was that of a ferocious dragon spirit with one swipe of his claws an enemy would fall to defeat. His second form was that of a lowly demon, one that lived off the scraps left behind by figures of the past. His third was that of a mighty Buddhist priest, rising to the rank of Osho. He protected the Maple temple till he drew his last breath. His present form is that of a human, weak and undeserving of all the chances he had at life. So, who would be calling out to that?

Junjie wakes with a start jumping to life, as his alarm clock blared incessantly. He slams his hand down on the mechanism to silence the annoying machine, rubbing his eyes lazily. As the bright display on the clock burned into his eyes, as if it were glaring at him saying,

‘Look who finally decided to wake!’

His mind finally registered what time it was 8 o’clock a buzzing in his head finally reminded him, as he shouted aloud.

“Ahh! I’m gonna be late.”

He stumbled to his feet and quickly dressed in his work uniform, haphazardly sliding his shoes on rushing outside. Junjie rode his bike to work as fast as humanly possible, only to be scolded by his manager once again.

“Late again. Mr. Liu, refresh my mind, remind me… if you will. How long have you been employed here?” His manager asks in a cold tone, with a smile on her face that did not reach her eyes. Junjie scratches his head and looks up at her, thinking that he should simply avoid answering that question. As if on the same wavelength, she held up a hand and said,

“Forget it, for now. Get to work.”

She waved him off and pinched the bridge of her nose between her thumb and index finger. Junjie stood behind the counter with his coworkers and began to do his monotonous job, taking an order, receiving payment, fulfilling the order, and repeat until all the caffeine addicts had their fill. He would never say he hated his job; it was easy and it made money. In this world, which is all that matters. Dusk finally came around and he began to close shop with his manager.

“Miss Xiao, about earlier…” He was about to ask a question when a loud noise came from the inventory room. Junjie and Ms. Xiao exchanged glances, he waved her to walk over to him and he cautiously approached the inventory door. He held a broom tightly in his hand and he charged in, only to be met by complete darkness. Junjie ran his hand along the smooth wall, frantically fiddling with where the light switch should be. Then a familiar sensation a sound to be specific ripped through his mind, causing his head to pound.

The ringing this sound that haunts me at night. This strange feeling that someone is summoning me deep withing the concaves of my mind. However, I am not sleeping. What is this place where am I?! Is this my torment? Is this what I must suffer with after several reincarnations? What did I do to the world for it to hate me so.

Junjie wallowed in self-loathing not realizing what had happened to him within the short span of time. Out of habit he reached up to run a hand through is mid-length blonde hair, only for his hand to be stopped. He reached his hands around his head, feeling something protruding from the sides of his head. Junjie’s panic finally set in and he looked around the inventory room in a frenzy thinking to himself.

Something reflective had to be in here a mirror. An exceptionally polished silver utensil? Anything?!

He stopped pacing when a knock sounded on the door and a familiar voice called out, his manager Ms. Xiao. He froze, words and pleas trapped in his throat. Should he call out? Should he stay silent? Junjie does not even know who or what he is anymore and the fear fluttered in his stomach; his heart rapidly slamming itself at his chest like even it wanted to break away from him.

The doorknob slowly turned and with a click, it slowly swung open. Ms. Xiao steps in oblivious to why Junjie was being so weird. Wouldn’t an employee want to go home as soon as the closed sign began to flip, especially one like Junjie who rarely clocked in on time. So, why was he so insistent on playing hide and seek in the inventory room?

She finally looks up and to his dismay, she does not scream or faint. Instead, she stares at him in slight disbelief. Ms. Xiao is first to break the uncomfortable silence, asking.

“So, you do not come into work on time and tonight you decide to fool around in the inventory room?! What kind of weird cosplay is this anyways and why is it back in this room? Also, you have makeup hidden back here as well?! You must. This is the final straw, Mr. Liu.”

Ms. Xiao reaches up and firmly tugs on the opalescent blue antler like horn on the right side of his head. It did not come off like she thought it should have and Junjie, let out a groan and quickly put space between them. He rubbed at the now aching part of his scalp and stammered out a reply with zero confidence.

“I can-! Wait, I cannot explain exactly what happened here. Ms. Xiao, you must believe me! This is really real and I do not know how it happened. First that noise we heard and when I rushed in here the light switch disappeared!” He continued to trip over an explanation and she finally had enough, slamming the side of her hand down directly on the mark in the middle of his forehead. His mouth froze agape and she rubbed her own forehead, calmly replying.

“First of all, what noise? I heard nothing earlier, the only reason I walked over to you was because you waved me over. Then all the sudden you rushed past me and went in here. I do not know what happened to you, nor why it happened but you better figure it out. The quicker the better. Just go home for tonight.” Junjie did not protest his head simply looked down at his feet, as he walked out of the room. Looking reminiscent of a child getting scolded by their mother for breaking an expensive vase. He rode his bike home in silence and mother for breaking an expensive vase. He rode his bike home in silence and finally once in the safety of his home he walked to the nearest mirror. Junjie’s steps seemed measured, as if this were all a show and people in the audience were waiting for another plot twist to let out gasps of terror. He stopped in front of the mirror, raising his heavy head slowly. Two completely different presences were on his face. One half of it smooth and cool, yet scales could be felt as his hand reached his cheek. This side looked beautiful ornate handsome; his mind clicked but it still did not explain how this happened.

This face both sides are familiar this side is that of when I was a dragon. Its elegance is still felt through, but this is not fully that entity. What… is… happening?

Junjie finally turned his attention to the left side of his face; it was stony filled with hatred and it burned. He did not dare touch this side, but his hands clutched the table under the mirror. He analyzed this side and seen a crimson mark on his forehead striking in contrast from the deep blue of the dragon’s side. Three red scratches were on his cheek and something was wrapped around the horn on this side, it jingled softly as his mind began to swim.

This is the face of the demon I was in a past life. This side was still handsome ornate and beautifully crafted by the gods, but the gaze was filled with an unjust malice. The ringing I heard, was it my own soul calling out to warn of this trouble? How did that elegant spirit of a dragon fuse with this lowly demon form? What does this make me?

Junjie’s head lowered and hot tears pooled in his eyes, trembling his voice filled with sorrow and a venomous undertone of rage cut out. He asked aloud to no one in particular,

“What did I do wrong this time? Who did I harm to be cursed in such a way?” His face twisted in agony and he raised his hand, smashing it against the mirror. It was like he thought the mirror deceived and was laughing at his wretched repeating face. He sunk to his knees, staring up at the dim lightbulb that buzzed above him. Junjie’s tears freely raced down each side of his face and a voice within his mind called out in a familiar fatherly tone.

“Do not despair. You may think that you look like a beast, cursed to live out a never-ending cycle of being. Do you remember the sutras the ones that we recited?”

Junjie nodded his head unknowingly and he gently closed his eyes, remembering his days as a priest. He took in children and raised them as if they were his own. This voice was one of his ghosts from the past finally reaching a handout to reassure him of his fate.

Junjie opened his eyes and blankly looked around the room. An ominous calm washed over him and he smiled to himself.

Everything is fine.

Everything will always be fine if I have a goal in mind. It does not matter what others think of my appearance I am unique. Everyone is beautifully unique, even if they are unaware of it. One day everyone will realize that they are all valued, a piece of a larger puzzle, a beautifully unique soul.

Liu Junjie, is a man blessed by fate. There was never a curse on the man at all. The only curse was the blissful ignorance; The thought that the mind can evilly conjure upon itself that it causes people to think less of themselves. Value, we are all valued.

#fiction #story #writer on wattpad #original fiction #writer #writer on tumblr #short story #oc #fictional work #writing

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