#yes i am more so talking about marcille

[theduckeminence]

If anyone were to tell me that the cute DND-esq food anime is carries themes of intensive devotion for a girl that turned into a massive chimera to the point that it could bridge into madness, I would not believe you.

#yes this is about dunmeshi #yes i am more so talking about marcille #and farcille in a way #dunmeshi #dungeon meshi #delicious in dungeon #marcille donato #falin touden #farcille

[tofixtheshadows]

Hello, op! While I do find your reading of Kabru’s self sacrifice and how little he eats really good, im curious why you consider him the deuteragonist? He is a foil to the protagonist yes, but still a supporting character.

I think its pretty clear Marcille is the second most important character in DM, and her story has much more weight than Kabru’s.

Hello! I've mentioned this on my blog before, but I actually consider Marcille and Kabru to both be deuteragonists to Laios's protagonist. I just wasn't talking about Marcille in that post.

Technically this term is meant to be used in playwriting, and the Greek tradition at that, so I'm playing a little loosey goosey with semantics and my argument would sound different if I were writing an academic paper. But this is tumblr dot edu and I'm trying to get a point across on my little blog, and part of the idea of a deuteragonist is that they support the protagonist. "Secondary main character who has their own importance in the narrative while bolstering the protagonist" works well enough for my purposes.

I think Marcille and Kabru are both playing specific and complementary roles to Laios. Marcille is at his side, facilitating the A plot: namely, "save Falin", which requires Marcille's magic, and then Marcille's method of resurrection ropes Thistle in, so the continuation of "save Falin" necessitates confronting the Dungeon Lord and conquering the dungeon (the B plot).

Kabru only intersects with Laios, but he is tied from the beginning to the B plot- and with dragging basically everyone else into it. Actually, the fact that he brings in this extremely loaded B plot despite only having brief face time with the protagonist should be seen as significant. In a sense, Kabru represents the surface world and all its concerns.

Before I talk about that more, I want to continue with the complementary line of thinking and point out that Kabru and Marcille have very similar background motivations.

Laios wants to save his sister first and foremost, and it's only along the way that he starts to consider what he'd do with the responsibility of Dungeon Lord. Coming to the conclusion that he wants to create a home for disparate peoples to live in harmony has connective tissue to both Kabru and Marcille's desires.

Marcille is the only one in their party who starts out with a greater motivation other than saving Falin (Izutsumi is a special case, but she's ultimately along for the ride), one that she keeps hidden for a long time. Because she is a mage, and because she is driven by a very personal tragedy (my dad died; I am terrified of outliving everyone), she is looking for a miracle to bring the different races closer together.

Kabru comes from a background of personal tragedy as well, but it's also a far greater, more political tragedy than just the death of a parent. It is not a coincidence that Kabru is a brown boy from an exploited region that suffered despite and because of military intervention from a first-world power, nor that he was adopted by a white woman whose coddling/dehumanization of him represents the paternalistic oversight of these world powers.

Thus, Kabru's motivations are both personal and political: if they, the short-lived races, can finally access the secrets of the dungeons, then not only can they have agency in stopping tragedies like Utaya's, but it will also give them a greater power of self-determination.

Marcille and Kabru have both correctly identified and set themselves against a problem that is greater than saving the life of one girl, greater even than sealing this one dungeon.

Despite Marcille's hopes, there is no grand magic solution to this. Only small, slow, backbreaking, ordinary solutions, the kind you labor over in kitchens and bedrooms and throne rooms and meeting houses and hearths and negotiation tables. The kind you run a kingdom with.

There is a reason why Dungeon Meshi ends with Marcille and Kabru on either side of Laios's throne.

Okay: back to Kabru (under the cut).

I've talked about this a little before, but I'll reiterate here: I consider Kabru to be the counterweight to the back half of the story. In a very literal sense too, as he pulls the focus up from the depths to the surface not once, but twice. Dungeon Meshi builds itself on the premise that the traditional "dungeon" must function as an actual ecosystem, and the monsters in it are biological actors in that ecosystem and not merely magical obstacles independent of their environment. The first couple dozen chapters are focused on this. Like regular animals, monsters have needs and instincts and unique behaviors, and they can be killed and consumed as part of a food chain.

And then Kabru comes along and he reminds us that humans are also part of their own special ecosystem, with their own needs and instincts and unique behaviors, and that beyond the biological drive of the literal food chain there are also complex social issues influencing these behaviors (like capitalism). Tansu's visit with the governor introduced us to these ideas, but Kabru is the one who carries them.

The way he and his party break down Laios's party also serves an important function. I think most readers are so busy being shocked that Kabru is "so wrong" about our goofy boy Laios that they don't realize that he isn't actually wrong about anything (he's only missing the context of what drives Laios, which he admits to and is part of the reason why he pursues him). We've gotten only Laios's view of things so far, and Laios is pretty tunnel-visioned. The narrative, through Kabru, is telling the reader this is how our protagonist actually comes across to his community.

We like Laios because we are following his story from his inner circle. We know he's naive and struggles with people but that he has a good heart and is ultimately just a big silly guy who won't harm anybody if he can help it. But we only know that because we're seeing him with his inner circle, in his environment. Outside of the dungeon, Laios is anti-social to the point of rudeness; he misreads situations and misjudges people, he acts in ways that cause friction, and he accidentally aligns himself with people who make his whole enterprise look suspicious: a prominent half-foot community leader, a mysterious foreigner literally surrounded by spies, the disgraced daughter of a criminal who now has to shoulder the burden of her father's reputation, and an elf in a land where there are no elves. And they seem to be very good at what they're doing. Yet this whole time, Laios acts as if he doesn't care about profit or taking the kingdom, the only logical reasons why anyone on the Island would gather up such a party and throw themselves into this death pit day after day.

Yeah of course Kabru finds this suspicious and interesting. Of course people don't know what to make of Laios. This all reiterates the question that Zon the orc already raised: What will you do, Laios, if you defeat the Mad Mage? If you gain control of all of this? Can you be a leader? Laios himself doesn't know yet.

This is all necessary context for our protagonist and the journey he has to go on, and it's fittingly brought up by the most socially adept character, who is so concerned with human ecosystems and the bigger picture of the dungeon. There is a reason why Kabru, as a character, is connected to large webs of people as he moves throughout the narrative: his own party, Toshiro's party, the Canaries, the denizens of the first floor of the dungeon.

Kabru is responsible for bringing Toshiro down to Laios's party. Toshiro is not a big mover and shaker in the story itself, but his confrontation with Laios is a huge part of Laios's character arc. His detour down to the lower levels also allows Izutsumi to escape and join Laios's party later.

We also have this very important moment:

It shows the first inkling- to the audience, to Kabru, and to Laios himself- that Laios is willing to do a painful, necessary thing to protect other people, that he won't just allow them to become collateral for his sister/monsters. That he can listen, and that he can assess a situation beyond his personal feelings. Again, fittingly, big-picture-thinker Kabru is the catalyst for this.

And then, not content to leave him as merely a device for Laios's character growth, the focus slingshots back up to the surface, and we follow Kabru.

The Canaries were going to go into the dungeon soon anyway, and they were always going to stir up the crowd in order to lure Thistle to them. Unless Thistle had given up right then and managed to slip away, the story could have very easily ended here:

Falin, immobilized and surrounded by Canaries, would have certainly been killed, and there would have been no way to ever resurrect her. Thistle would have been neutralized. The dungeon would have been taken by the elves, and anyone they could get their hands on would have been imprisoned at best. And maybe the dungeon would have been managed safely ... or maybe something would have gone wrong, and more lives would have been lost. Remember: the Canaries arrived in Utaya one year before the tragedy.

This is a huge moment that changes Laios's life forever, and he doesn't even know it. Kabru single-handedly keeps the story on course by sabotaging the Canaries, and he does it not just for Laios's sake, but for everyone's sake. For his friends and companions in the dungeon and everyone else outside it. Laios is a part of his motivation, a key player in Kabru's hopes, but Kabru has his own desires, his own agenda. He's trying to change the world. In a way, he succeeds. And while the Canaries might wish it were otherwise, as an entity in the narrative they are always anchored to Kabru's character. The two forces collide because of Kabru. The unsealing of the Winged Lion and Marcille's emergency ascension to Dungeon Lord happen indirectly because of Kabru.

While I have talked so much already that I don't want to give a detailed breakdown of it, I do want to mention Kabru's unique interiority as a character. That is to say: we see the inside of Kabru's head more than anyone else. Every character in the main ensemble gets their own moments of inner monologues or fifteen minutes in the limelight, but for Kabru, it's constant. He's always thinking, talking, narrating. His POV chapters always stand out for how first-person they feel compared to most others.

Notably, the only other character I could compare that to is Marcille, specifically during the dungeon rabbit debacle and her ascension afterward, which is when she really takes center stage as a character.

I hope I've explained my reasoning without becoming too insufferable.

To cap off my thoughts with a nod to my original post, I cannot stress enough how significant it is, thematically, that Kabru's relationship with food is the inverse of Laios's. It isn't just that Laios is the main character in a story about cooking monsters and Kabru happens to be his monster-hating foil. The artistic choice to deny the reader the visual of this character ever enjoying food, and only ever putting it in his mouth in situations where it hurts him, in a manga that gives so much attention to eating and the pleasures of meals, cannot be understated.

#Dungeon Meshi #Marcille Donato #Kabru #Kabru of Utaya #Dungeon Meshi meta #Dungeon Meshi spoilers #I started answering this at 10:30 AM but took several detours #mostly I was at work. some people shitpost at work. god knows what I'm doing. #I am so fucking sorry I did not mean for it to be this long. I had to EDIT THIS DOWN #paging malewifesband I feel like this does the trick wrt: Kabru's function in the narrative #of course I have more to say about he and Laios specifically (she threatened) #musings with Dea #I think I'll go back and add image descriptions but it's been eight hours and I need dinner! #and also to play FFXIV #dungeonposting #Dea's anonymous friends

[animehouse-moe]

Ryoko Kui's Daydream Hour

I am moving at a glacial pace with tidying up and editing the images of this art book, so I'm going to take a break and talk about Kui's incredible character design on Delicious In Dungeon, using elves here as an example

So, first of all, race-defining traits. With the elves, it's obviously ears as the first. But, Kui plays around with that far more and in an incredibly natural way. The size of their ears differs, the angle at which they protrude from the side of the head can be different, their rotation in terms of where the opening of the ear faces can change, and even the "pointyness" is unique to each elf.

It creates incredibly varied views and "styles" of elf within the world, and complements a lot more of the physical traits that reflect ethnicity in our world.

Take, for example, the hair of elves. In the vast majority of cases it remains blonde or silver/white, and is straight. As you can tell with some of the images, it's not always smooth or silky like some exhibit, but in the vast majority of cases, for elves that are pure elves, their hair is straight (potentially with some shape/volume as you can see with the gray-haired elf with green markings on their face).

Similarly, elves are shown to have characteristically blue or green eyes. Which begins to draw your attention towards an outlier.

This elf. The one with purple eyes. Immediately, you might think "oh, they must only be part elf", but Ryoko Kui was only laying a trap with that idea. This elf is certainly 100% elf, it's just that they exhibit traits that are heterogenous to how Kui's defined elves as a race.

The biggest outliers being the purple eyes, but then also the ears. Here's the thing though, there's not a race that strongly exhibits purple eyes throughout Ryoko Kui's work on Delicious In Dungeon. It's just that elves exhibit strong homogeneity in regards to eye color. A similar thing can arguably be said about the ears which may make viewers think something's up. They're certainly the smallest of the bunch, and the most rotated, but other elves also see aggressively rotated ears, just not to the degree that this one does.

If you want to talk about how the traits of elves mix with that of other races we actually have two examples. Marcille Donato, obviously, as a half elf and half tall-man, but also this other blonde woman with blue eyes.

We know of Marcille's heritage so let's focus on the woman on the right. The first thing that you notice as a heterogenous is her hair: it's wavy. It's a trait that's very much separate from Kui's depiction of elves. Similarly, the shape of the eyes betrays that much more narrow and sharp style.

Then there's also the ears, which are larger, noticeably shorter, more round, and most noteworthy are thicker.

With that last piece I'm sure many are thinking, "Oh, she has to be half Gnome!". Yes, the shape and size of the ears does very much fit Kui's style of Gnome (as does her height, I'll say more later), but let me show you a (bad and unedited) image of how Kui draws gnomes.

Their eyes are far more slanted and downturned. It's a very strong trait of the Gnomes, alongside their very prominent noses and hair that isn't noticeably curly or wavy.

So no, it's not Gnome, and I wouldn't say it's Dwarf either. My guess is that this woman is part half-foot. The smaller stature (yes, the headshot shows that she's shorter than the other elves), the curly hair, the shorter yet more prominent and thicker ears, the rounder eyes, it all speaks to similarities expressed by Half-Foot characters.

And I think that's really incredible. It's just a wonderful highlight of how thoughtful and creative Kui is with their character design, and how unique they're able to make a race.

At a glance, you can tell who's what, but they don't all look the same by any means.

That's something that's really driven home with Ryoko Kui's Daydream Hour, and something I really want to talk about more. Though, as you can tell, I've got a lot of work ahead of me to get images that are actually good and presentable, so we'll see when I'm able to squeeze out a proper post.

#ryoko kui #daydream hour #delicious in dungeon #dungeon meshi #dunmeshi #marcille dunmeshi #marcille dungeon meshi #marcille donato #delicious in dungeon marcille #anime art book #anime art #manga art book #manga art #anime and manga #anime #manga

[fuumiku]

They’re really interesting foils in many ways. I’ve always thought that Marcille & Mithrun have underrated dynamic potential. Give me the cringefail dungeon lords. Give me the elves with ears-centric metaphorical self-image issues. Give me the academic elites whose deepest strongest desires will always remain unreachable and the only option is to turn to the corrupt forbidden fruit of a demon pact. I am so so normal about Mithrun and Marcille

I wonder if the resemblance between captain Mithrun and general Hagreus aka Marcille’s fave in Dalclan is intentional… They definitely look very alike. It could represent idealization vs reality? Something something the romanticization of elves and their societal drama in their fiction vs a very real and imperfect product of their military system. The canaries certainly aren’t glamorous next to whatever Hagreus is the general of. I feel like she never had the opportunity to notice the resemblance herself bc within seconds of meeting him he was wrestling her on the ground but. If she had… She would so think he should have been his actor in the tallman stage play of Daltian Clan in that new extra comic hehe. I love the little details like Hagreus’ lips being drawn with extra details because they’re full and pretty while Mithrun’s lips are drawn with extra details because they’re chapped lmao.

This art is all silly and surface level but in my head mithrille is like so dramatic and I make up daltian clan level big plots with them gbdgd. I made a spotify playlist for mithrun if y’all interested, rn it’s mostly centered around cravings that consume and losing yourself and illusions inspired from his time as dungeon lord but it’s branching out. Varied vibes, levels of intensity and degrees of confusion and await you ✨ I would emotionally rant about Chainsaw Man ost lyrics and how they tie in with Mithrun and the winged lion’s relationship but this post is already a monster

I want more of these two please please please pleaseee just one or two interactions in the new canon content coming up… All they ever did was debate philosophy on desires and human self-fulfillment and try to murder each other, please… I never get to gush about them and I can’t shut up so if you want more thoughts I talk about them more below

To get a girl to peacefully accept arrest follow these simple steps: in private, ominously stand above her and forcefully interrogate her, while in public, tell her you’ve met before (untrue and also not a pickup line, you’re just face blind) and interrogate her with a thin veneer of decorum. If all else fails, threaten and follow through on said threat. My guy needs more than just physical therapy I’m afraid

Sorry if most of these were Marcille-centric with Mithrun standing there looking cool, if I were doing these more from Mithrun’s pov things would be like "She’s a bit much but I guess I don’t mind hanging around her." or "Oh you’re a half-elf? -insert elven supremacist rethoric-" or "I have to keep her from becoming demon stew." immediately followed by "Did someone say demon? Kill kill kill kill kill" since these are set prior to like really knowing another. Then things would be more like "huh she has bad tastes in novels but her magic research is pretty interesting" and "I’m lonely and don’t understand myself— Oh she loves talking about feelings? Oh shi-" That last one is an aspect of why I like Marcille and Mithrun’s potential dynamic lol. She’s very… Emotionally intelligent alongside being impulsive. You think you have no feelings because the world has beaten them out of you? Think again!! Marcille be upon ye! -In a therapy sort of way but mostly in a connecting with people and your own self through interpersonal relationships and talking kinda way. I just think a lively, upbeat, annoying friend way too interested in your personal life would do him good, the canaries are nice but like if Marcille went to prison and was a sort of extra new bunkmate I think that’d be interesting and fun to read is what I’m saying

Unlike Kabru she wants all the useless messy filler of his backstory, eating chips while listening. Like two chibi sets side by side, "me and my fellow canaries, name name and name-" "Hold on we don’t need to know that." Vs "Then we were to sleep on the third floor of the dungeon, which had the look of a mausoleum, and name and name got into a fight over the campfire placement." while Marcille is like uh-huh what next what next while kicking her feet. She thinks of pre-dungeon pompous Mithrun and is like omg you went through a character arc and become better as a person- and then he opens his mouth and she’s like nevermind let’s keep working on that. She would also go "ew ur hair is greasy" and give him a full hair care treatment. What I’m saying is I need them to be forced to spend time in a dungeon together and become besties through a life or death roadtrip

Marcille is insecure about her ears, long, like an elf’s pride should be, but rounder, inelegant. Seeing Mithrun though, the epitome of beauty, with his half-cut ears make it a sillier thought. Not sure if Mithrun is the best person to reconnect with ur elven culture with but it sure is an option Marcille would so appreciate being around someone both cool headed and kind, I genuinely think they’d get along, like not that Senshi isn’t that too most of the time but I think Mithrun would be in a way that’s more refreshing to her. I’d be so curious about them discussing Dalclan, I doubt he’d have read it but she could make him read it, maybe post-canon with the excuse that they’re trying to find him a new hobby hah. He’d tear into the writing and everything but it’d be a fun time, I like to think that it’d make him a bit less prejudiced. Marcille @ Mithrun "👉👈 Soo maybe you don’t know these books they’re pretty recent having come out 50 years ago but…"

I’ve been in a Mithrun phase I want to make and read Mithrun-centric fics and angst so baaad. I razz him a lot here but he’s literally a traumatized military man that became obsessed with revenge due to bad coping and neglects himself in the process idk not much for him going on and some of it is because he has to work on himself, but hey no one’s perfect it all comes from a place of love and relating though I prommy. He’s the one ungodly angsty squeaky toy blorbo with brain damage rep I have don’t take him from me

#Dungeon meshi #mithrun #marcille donato #I feel like i haven’t drawn in so long i’m so rusty #Mithrille #Mithrun x marcille #Marcille x mithrun #I finally did smth for these 2 yippee #Dust and dog hairs manage to get on my drawings while i take pics it drives me mad i can’t do this anymore sorry if you see any #Continuation of my Marcille: “LET ME LOVE YOU!!” saga #Sorry marcille i hate drawing your sleeves #There are a couple things I’m not satisfied with and might redraw at one point but i need to stop and get stuff done #Marcille has 5 cm of height on mithrun according to the adventurers bible neat #Spoilers #dungeon meshi manga spoilers #I’ll move those last two tags up when I get to my computer #Character playlist #I made a more formal mithrille post on another blog explaining what potential i saw in them just search in the ship tag if you’re intereste

[prismatoxic]

cause I need to hear more of your sweet thoughts bout those two freaks, favorite laichil moments that have been stewing in the back of the mind?

oh gosh ummmmm

well now that episode 11 is out i am so very deeply fond of laios's visual pan from kensuke to chilchuck's dawning, rage-filled horror at what's happened

i think the swearing was better in the manga--not because the anime let him say actual words (bc i think that's awesome) but bc in the manga i thought they were still running while chilchuck was doing this. good visual

OF COURSE THE BEST EPISODE 11 CHILAIOS MOMENT... TO ME... is when chilchuck tells laios they're going to have a Talk later

the dub delivery kind of disappointed me (as it always does) BUT IN THE SUB the way laios immediately agrees is so very much, to me, a "yes sir" moment. and if you read my fic you know i'm very into this

i have a lot of little canon moments that i'm super fond of and am very excited to see in the anime... my faves are often when chilchuck is being a hostile little goblin but i'm so fucking excited about what i assume will be episode 13. you know. because

um

okay i have a lot of thoughts actually (MANGA SPOILERS I'M SERIOUS)

so. chapter 30.

chilchuck goes to get the party's supplies from where they were abandoned in the house they had dinner with falin at, having his own character arc along the way. we have seen him try to convince both leed and senshi that the smartest thing to do will be to lie to laios and marcille so they can return to the surface. trying to continue in this state will kill them, but neither of them will rest if they think they can still find falin. neither senshi nor leed agree with chilchuck's plan, and leed insinuates he's a coward. chilchuck stays firm. even after he's clearly pushed off kilter by leed saying he should just tell the truth, we don't have any concrete reason to think he will.

then they return and senshi is struggling to keep a now-awake laios down. laios is wounded and weak and senshi is a dwarf but laios is so deeply, fervently determined to get falin back that he's very hard to stop.

chilchuck, by contrast, is not strong at all, but somehow his added presence gets laios to sit back down. chilchuck rests a hand on laios's shoulder and even before he says anything, laios is looking at him. he knows something is coming. i think he resents chilchuck for it, too--the implication that there's anything to be said here.

we don't know at this point what chilchuck intends to say. senshi still thinks he wants to lie and intends to stop him, but i think it's clear in this moment that chilchuck has changed his mind.

he kneels--proud, all-too-aware of "how his people are treated for their size" chilchuck kneels between laios's legs. and i'm not pointing this out for horny reasons, for once.

he's bringing himself closer to laios--assuming a position associated with pleading and willingly making himself not the authority in this interaction. he believes, wholeheartedly, in what he wants to do and what needs to be said, but...

he also knows laios is hurting.

laios is... devastated. he's terrified. he's angry. but he's also still laios, and he knows chilchuck, insofar as chilchuck has allowed him to. he also respects chilchuck. so this--a teary-eyed plea to do what goes against everything he feels--gives him pause. chilchuck does not beg, and he does not cry.

...and he never talks about how he feels.

but he does, here: he doesn't want to lose his friends. and he does mean all of them, senshi included. he has three people to think of--three people whose lives he cannot in good conscience allow to be put at risk any more than they already have been. even so, he acknowledges that however laios feels about falin is probably incomparable.

but he tries to give laios hope--he gives him a plan of action. he says we will come back. he tries to impress upon laios that this isn't defeat and it isn't surrender, it's being safe. it's giving themselves an actual fighting chance at getting falin back.

laios doesn't want to... but he also doesn't say that. all the things he's feeling haven't gone away, but he's also aware of just how big this situation is if chilchuck opened himself up this way. chilchuck does not and never has done this. up until the fight with the red dragon, you could be forgiven for assuming chilchuck is just a contracted coworker who's a little fond of the party and nothing more.

senshi and leed, the only people who knew chilchuck's plan to lie to the others, don't openly acknowledge his change of heart... but they back him up. they pitch in to push laios just a little further, to get him to agree.

and it works.

so. um. episode 13 will be good i think

#tox answers #chilaios #dunmeshi spoilers #dunmeshi anime spoilers #ummmmm i got a little into this one #long post

[fumifooms]

Marchil crumbs part 3

Part 1 - Part 2 - part 4 - part 5 - part 6 - part 7

Count of times canon reminds us that Chilchuck is very attracted to blondes: 3rd For context: this is the canon explanation for everyone's shapeshifters

I can’t get over Chilchuck seeing Marcille like she has anime sparkles around her hair. How long have you stared at it. It’s like with the handsome Senshi where everyone is like "no this looks legit and absolutely like the real one" but her hair is shinier/prettier in the changeling than in the actual her

It drives me crazy that Marcille styles her hair every day for herself but little does she know she’s giving Chilchuck the show of his life, daily arranging his favorite thing aka blonde hair into different unique ornate hairstyles. Not that he cares about the details but ohh my god.

It makes sense that Chil would be the first one to notice her hair being all loose and messy then. He’s bothered by seeing her like this and wants her to tie it up again, and is even more unsetled and shocked when she says she doesn’t want to anymore. Though he also recovers from the shock quicker than Laios and takes charge of the situation. HE NOTICED. HE CARESSSS. IT BUGS HIM

^ That is what you call a character arc, of becoming attached to her hair lmfaoo(more like to Marcille and her habits). Or lying. "Man I sure wish she'd shave her hair I'd be less distracted on the job. Her golden majestic hair is so blinding with how shiny and sparkly it is ugh" /j

He chose to do a portrait teehee <3

Chilchuck defending her honor even under mind control that makes them honest zombies

Marcille out there defending his VIRTUE. It’s not just that he didn’t commit infidelity, he HAS A PURE HEART!! Honestly, assigned virtuous by a bicorn would so be the type of novel shenanigan that Marcille would hella romanticize. Which we do see her do lmao but <3

They're so funny together in the golden kingdom chapters. First of all, sitting in front of each other at the table? Nice. Second, them being on the same wavelength all throughout lmao.

Them. Sharing the same numerous braincells, nodding together and making good use of it to make good decisions for the party. Valuing their noses

Also can we apreciate that they like, can talk together. Communicate and debate. Even under tougher situations or more sensitive topics. Shit this would have been a good place to put the pages when Marcille was dungeon lord... But they're lined up for part 4 and part 3 is already full with pics... You guys have no idea how much Tetris I'm doing for these marchil crumbs posts

I wanna do a full compilation of every time he laughs at her but in the meantime have this small imperfect collection as well as this reddit comp. I swear she's the person/thing that makes him laugh and smile the most. Besides alcohol maybe

The gang and Chilchuck both knowing her well and not at all lol. Gotta love Chilchuck's confidence about knowing her favorite meal, and him remembering the bare minimum that even Laios hasn't lol

Marcille infesting his life to the point that, quote, "her delusions" are even part of his adventurer’s bible life timeline. The only picture in fact, in the streamlined canon reference to Chilchuck's life. "Hey is Marcille imagining herself as an halfling and Chil's wife with a mini Chilchuck baby Chilchuck's canon family appearances" canon: well no but actually yes /j

Chil at her bedside <3

Looking out for each other comp Yes thank you Chil captain obvious (he's trying his best and doesn't want to die let's not be mean c'mon). But like you know with that whole scene of the mad sorcerer attacking, for Chil it must have been the most terrifying thing ever. Ancient magic?? By an elf, targeting them with murderous intent?? With only an elf with also ancient magic to keep them safe attack by attack in the nick of time?? His biggest nightmare. I'm also reminded of when Chil talks with Leed about how "our magician held under the mad sorcerer's attack" all fond and 'I am so relieved I can trust her with my life' and Leed is like "That silly looking elf?!" and Chil was like "Yeah she's silly. At least she's strong tho." I'm getting carried away but yes this scene was relationship-defining in some ways

But they keep each other in check too

She was trying to make conversation and sharing her interests aw Chil come on

They're sooo domestic. "Chil are we there yet" "Marcille I swear to god if you ask me that one more time-". Also second time through the manga that Marcille squishes Chil against the ground/wall.

Get squeezed idiot

Part 4 is here!

#dungeon meshi #marchil #shipping crumbs #on today's menu: sigh... chilchuck fixating on blonde hair again... Marcille defending his virtue. Sharing brain waves across a dinner tabl #they're so... married behavior #looking ateachother and nodding wordlessly that they have to keep laiosfro mdoing this or that.

[lai-mar]

I think messaging about my fic would work better over Discord if you’re comfortable sharing that (because Tumblr asks are only so long), but the basic premise is “exploring what happens to Melini post-canon, focused on Marcille’s point of view and her continued research into ancient magic/improving Melini. A slow burn Laios/Marcille as they inspire each other to grow into their best selves, and then fall a little bit in love. And then panic because they didn’t plan for that. Most notably, a scene where Marcille realizes how sweet and generous Laios is being with her, and how it…reminds her of her parents being in love?? but when she (flustered) asks Laios if he’s courting her he freaks out (“oh my god no, I didn’t mean to come across that way, I’m sorry, am I making you uncomfortable??”), pulls back his affection, and they both realize they’ve been something much more than friends for a long time and they miss it.”

YESSSS THAT'S SO GOOD thanks for sending me this I'm rotating that in my brain I'm such a sucker for people subtly moving past being only friends but not realising until they've actually moved past because it's just so natural. Also it's the fact that she recognised her relationship resembling that of her parents!! That's so sweet (especially it's between an (half) elf and a human once again). Also them feeling weird when he pulls back and it's more normal for him to continue the "courting" ohhhhh..... OHHHHHHHH

Yes you can talk to me through discord buuuuuuut I'm swamped with irl stuff atm so I don't a lot of spare brain juice but yesss I hear a friends to lovers slowburn and 👀

#ask box #answered #laimar

[roydeezed]

Dungeon Meshi Thoughts 03

I originally wanted to write something on Dungeon Meshi after reaching chapter 50 or even 45 but so much has happened so fast since my last post that I’m writing this after chapter 36. The last time I wrote about it, I had just finished chapter 28 and was dreading the metaphorical sword of Damocles that was hanging over their heads. I shouldn’t have, because it came crashing down the very next chapter. I’m writing an update to my thoughts now because it’s becoming clear what kind of manga Dungeon Meshi is going to be and the next chapter beyond this also feels like it will be a defining moment. I’m purposefully being vague as I don’t want to spoil anything so more detailed thoughts are below the “Keep reading”.

Okay, the shit hits the fan right away. I had no idea that after so much speculation that things were going to get bad that fast. And I’m glad y'all Dungeon Meshi fans who dm’d about the non-spoilery questions I had in the last post kept it under wraps. I appreciate it and can’t wait to actually talk about this when I’m all caught up. Okay so immediately, the Sorcerer attacks our group and takes back Falin. So here’s my read on the Sorcerer. First of all, while they are currently evil, they also seem to be a tragic figure. I assume that because their life trajectory seems to be as follows: born as a lower class peasant, noticed by the king, becomes the court magician or some such high position, and then in an effort to help out the kingdom (extreme reach of a guess) messes with time magic and freezes the kingdom in time while also going mad.

The king, as a ghoul or specter of the dungeon, finally escapes it to perform the scene at the beginning of the manga and the sorcerer, who has gone mad and used to be extremely devoted to the king, refuses to believe the king is dead. Hence why they were searching for the king. Okay, that’s my reach of a guess but I’ll be happy if any of that is true. 

I really love how the dragon was tied back to the Sorcerer, in a way it cements them as the antagonist from the get. And I mainly think their struggle that led them to turn evil has to do with losing their own morality and sanity because that is exactly what is happening with our heroes. Slowly, one by one, they’re all becoming desensitized and accepting of things they never would. Senshi lets Laios heal him with magic without any complaints in regards to the magic, Chilchuck protests less and less against dark magic as time goes on, and Marcille becomes the first to dawn the frog skin. Marcille and Chichuck also barely protest against the dryad pumpkins before giving in. Laios… … … nope, nothing to say about him, this man happily leaps across boundaries. But to get back to the point of desensitization, in a way it’s a very jaded way of looking at coming of age stories and growing up. Our heroes journey mirrors media like Made In Abyss and Zombie stories where the journey itself takes from them, not just physically but emotionally and morally as well. They have to abandon their boundaries and morals at every step of the way. But the way that this doesn’t devolve into a 100% depress sesh is that they point to the other joys of the journey.

And that’s the discovery and the companionship. There’s something very primally enjoyable about the concept of sitting around a fire, cooking and eating and knowing that next time you do it will be far away. Am I very unsubtly trying to suggest adventure stories play to our primal instincts of being nomadic hunters like our ancestors? Yes. And in this context the sitting around the fire contrasts very heavily with the moments they’re not. And that’s something I’ve noticed. The contrasts. This manga is so beautiful and intelligent in so many ways but the thing that has me losing my mind this post is the way the authour creates a benchmark, a static, and then uses other characters and moments to contrast and contextualize not just the characters but also the world. 

As I said in the previous post, this world seems to be different from ours in the way that existing and living in it requires a sense of detachment. But it was quite unclear to me at that point what exactly that meant. But by the introduction of Kabru as a fully fleshed out and thinking character that has an even more detached view of the world, we understand it and our heroes, especially Laios, a lot more. Now that I have some in world context, especially an outsider’s view, it seems our heroes, while they didn’t seem like it, are very much an ideal adventuring party. To start off with, the most out of left field is Senshi, and even then he’s a pretty tried and true adventuring trope of guide well versed with the area that decides to join them. Then we have Chilchuck, who is an extremely skilled thief/rogue that has a high position in the local (thieve’s?) guild. And Marcille and Laios really seal the deal for our party as the chosen ones as Marcille is the most skilled graduate of the magic school who also knows forbidden tricks and Laiso is an extremely skilled and noble knight. They kind of are the chosen ones despite their bumbling natures. 

And seeing them as the paragons sheds a light on everything else. In this world charity is looked down upon as Kabru finds Laios suspicious because of that.

The simple aspect of charity being a suspicious act contextualizes this world so much.

And also makes me very interested in Kabru as a character. Maybe I’m wrong but Kabru feels very much like a formidable antagonist. He freezes up against monsters but is really good at killing humans, knowing to aim for carotid arteries and such. This not only brings forth the possibility of Kabru as a potential murderer/evil serial killer, but it also contextualizes Laios as noble as he’s only skilled against monsters. In another instance, Laios mentions how they’re friends with orcs and kabru’s first thought is about killing them, highlighting quite well Laios’s boundary as he sees them more as sentient beings than some of his peers do. The way that Laios thinks about monsters is the way Kabru thinks about humans, painting him as a clear foil to Laios. 

But beyond just being a mirror to Laios, Kabru is very interesting. At the heart of it, it does seem like he’s noble but the way he thinks makes me feel like he’s one good push from falling into either good or evil. The way he thought about Laios and Falin giving gold to their injured comrades still sticks with me. He believes that because they are careless with their power and don’t look after things beyond their goals, they are evil. He thinks only his way of thinking is good and any other methods are evil. Simply having different priorities is evil. That’s highlighted by the fact that his party is quick to agree with him and offers little resistance, unlike Laios’s where he was just asked by Chilchuck to head back. I wonder if he will become the final antagonist after the sorcerer, like the scouring of the Shire by Saruman after the defeat of Sauron  in the Lord of the Rings. With how reverent it is towards fantasy tropes, it certainly is possible. Kabru feels dangerous to me. 

And that also brings us to the other big personalities we’ve passed. Namari and Shuro. We learn about Namari’s backstory and it seems like her motivation has something to do with respect as not only was it very clearly brought up that she couldn’t join back up with Laios because of the hit her reputation would take but that she already has a negative reputation because of her father. Namari also feels very practical but I don’t think she is too concerned about getting her own way in a party. So if Falin and Namari were not the voices of reason in the party then who was? I think it might be Shuro. Again I want to bring up one of the themes of stories like this, and that’s that you either have to abandon your morals or die. And Shuro seems to not want to abandon his morals.And because of this whole honorbound love, it’s driven him to exhaustion. But he also seems strong willed enough that he might have been the voice of reason with their group, alongside Marcille. Without him Laios just overrides her easily. But Shuro’s objections probably always come from decorum and morality as opposed to common sense like with Marcille. 

Okay, those were most of the scattered thoughts that I wanted to deal with first, with a lot of thoughts on characterization. Now I want to go over roughly what has happened over the last few chapters and talk about a few things. Right from the get, things once again go wrong for Falin. And right after she’s rescued too. As Marcille later explains she basically recoded Falin so her body became a part of the dungeon. And because of that and fusing with the Red Dragon, it can explain why the Sorcerer was able to find and control her so easily. It also makes me wonder if the thing that’s been changing the shape of the dungeon isn’t so much the Sorcerer but Falin in a desperate bid to save her friends with what little is left of her soul.

Then the sorcerer turns her bottom half into something we later find out resembles a big type of bird thing. Anyways, our heroes fight the Sorcerer and we see a lot of desperation and what kind of toll the dark magic is taking on Marcille as she giggles maniacally while fighting back against the Sorcerer.

They eventually escape but almost all throughout the fight we see these spirits surrounding them and pulling at them. I think the Sorcerer loved the King so much that they massacred all of the subjects and thus that’s why all of them ghouls and spirits try to stop them. And freezing the place in time would also be consistent with this worshiping attitude, the way that the dungeon was underground for a 1000 years and the madness of the Sorcerer.

They narrowly escape and after comparing notes realize they came up against the final boss way too soon. So Chilchuck asks to go back to the surface so that they can get prepared. Once again, the authour demonstrates exceptional control over the characters and the story as this gives us such a deep insight into Chilchuck as well as progressing his character development. Chilchuck has always been somewhat cowardly, at times even comparable with Ussop from One Piece. But here we see a growth of that cowardice. It’s still a key character trait but it’s taken on a very noble light as that worry isn’t about himself but rather his group. It shows how he’s come to care for them and how just like Laios was burdened with their lives so was Chilchuk.

It’s a really sweet moment and shows how character traits are stretched to their limit while being given respectable undertones. Chilchuck’s concern for his friends disguised as outright cowardice mirrors Laios distracting himself with food and adventure to help him cope with his worry for Falin and his companions. 

Okay, one little side note before we move on, just a little fun world building tidbit I want to mention. So Chilchuk is 29 but Senshi treats him like a child, but the halfling in Kabru’s party calls him a geezer, so does that mean 29 is old or like midlife for halflings? If so, I love the world building, it would be incredibly realistic for different races to have different lifespans as even on earth there’s a drastic difference in the amount of time dogs and cats live compared to humans compared to tortoises and whales.

Senshi is also insanely relatable as he’s very much a do-er and a carer. He wants to support these new friends that he’s made but the only way he knows how is to cook so he hyperfixates on them.

Honestly each and every one of our main characters gets intensely relatable sometimes. What does it day about me that I relate to these dorks? Nothing flattering I’m sure. 

We soon move on to Kabru’s party after some shenanigans with some dryad’s with our party, with Chilchuck, a grown ass halfling man, getting “The Talk”(Plant Edition).

Here we get more insight into Kabru’s party who at this point seem a lot like yes-men. We get insight into Kobolds, who in this world are dog-like creatures with low intelligence. Also if Kabru has been around since Laios first got his start, does he really have a right to be so critical of him? Laios is leaps and bounds more capable than him, what’s Kabru been doing so far?

Through Kabru’s group we learn a lot about our heroes and then jump back to them.

Here in their discussions, as Marccille is teaching Laios and Laios is fondling Senshi, Chilchuk brings up a very good point.

And that’s the fact that Laios needs to become a better leader. Being brought up so frankly shows the trust Chilchuck has in Laios but the fact that it’s being brought up at all is a valid concern. We also learn of Halfling’s history with elves and hear talk of an alternate dimension where magic is drawn from. As so far almost nothing has been said unnecessarily, I think this could be a very important clue towards the secrets of the dungeon.

It’s here where we get the spirits talking to Laios again and it seems like the spirits of the citizens of the kingdom are in some sort of stasis, perhaps between here and the alternate dimension and are in extreme pain. 

I fell in love with Laios last time and this time it’s this dork. Just look at her.

She takes so many L’s.

I love her. She distracts a Cokatrice and ends up petrified and used as a pickling press before returning to normal. The groups led by Laios, Shuro, and Kabru all converge and the revelation about dark magic being used occurs. There was a promise of things coming to a head as Falin also looks out over the group so I stopped to write this. Some final thoughts before I finish up here. First of all, I think Kabru has the potential to be evil, but in the future.

From the way he thinks I think he’ll try to pacify Shuro as it seems like Kubru's always wanting to maximize the situations he’s in and he doesn’t want to get hurt in the crossfire. For Shuro I think if he doesn’t attack Laios, then it begins his descent into the same depths as this is the dungeon stripping away at his morals as it’s done with everyone else. The only thing I can feel for Falin is pity, the poor girl has been through enough, she doesn’t deserve to get Nina’d. Someone save her!

All in all though, these last few chapters, even though they were quite dark, further the theme of companionship as being the antidote to spiritual and emotional exhaustion. All through very literal ways of course but it only emphasizes the point. Our heroes have fallen time and time again these past few chapters and it’s only through picking each other up, listening to each other and eating around the same pot do they recover from their scars. See ya’ll again after a few more big story events!

#dungeon meshi #delicious in dungeon #manga discussion #manga

[james-fun-in-the-sunderland]

dungeon meshi? for the asks :3

HELLO im so late again but yes... dunmeshi... ive been thinking abt it lately bc kbity is being added into the anime YAYY

obligatory ask game link

Favorite character: Chilchuck and izutsumi :) middle aged little guy and kity girl... theyre so good and they have good moments together!

Least Favorite character: At this point im so sorry everyone but it has to be kabru . everyone is so annoying about him god bless

5 Favorite ships (canon or non-canon): 1. FARCILLE FOREVER #FARCILLE NATION (falin and marcille) 2. this ones just for fun but i like chilchuck and senshi. 3. mithrun and kabru, i think theyre weird enough for each other 4. kiki and namari, i think they clearly have a thing for each other. 5. ... um... chilchuck and his wife i guess, i think hes a malewife a little bit

Character I find most attractive: Senshi. most sex appeal in a man. big beard big muscles big ability to cook. also most upskirts .

Character I would marry: ALSO SENSHI. who wouldnt.

Character I would be best friends with: i know me and laios would be besties. i would know him in hs for sure, he would infodump on me about wolves and i would be like wow...

A random thought: not really random since i probably would say this often to people who hear me talk about dunmeshi but its so nice that ms catgirl izutsumi just acts like an actual fucking cat instead of a moe anime girl .. it makes her so much cuter :)

An unpopular opinion: laios isnt chubby he just has a normal amount of fat on his body ... ummm yeah thats probably my only one other than disliking labru lmao

My canon OTP: farcille. its literally canon

Non-canon OTP: Chilchuck and senshi, its not really an otp since i just ship it for funsies but its the only thing that fits here.

Most badass character: i kept saying wow mithrun is so cool on my reread of the manga so!

Pairing I am not a fan of: labru ... (laios and kabru) im so sorry everyone it is . the burakhovsky of dunmeshi to me.

Character I feel the writers screwed up (in one way or another): I dont really feel this about anyone? but i guess i wish the main cast other than marcille and laios got more time for arcs, like more development. but it works well for the main plot so!

Favourite friendship: marcille and laios have a nice sibling ish relationship to me! also chilchuck and marcille are fun :) girldad and the one girl. ALSO CHILCHUCK AND IZUTSUMIIII theyre so good

#rev lore #sorry to everyone in the main tag who sees this dont kill me aaaa #dungeon meshi #also thank u percival <3

[susie-dreemurr]

Dungeon Menshi (live-blogging from ep 2 to like 7 I think

Ep2

Marcille is such a mood I love her. I too am a picky whiny bitch

THE MY LITTLE PONY CHICKEN— BASILISK. Ah yes i remember its bam enow

Genshin rly said fuck that guy I wanna cook. He’s gonna have to wait for me to cook. Everyone but Marcille is insane <3

NOOOOO MAKING ME FEEL BAD ABOUT THE DOGS— oh thank god she never tried it

If I was Falin I would kill these motherfuckers the instant I got out fr y’all wasting too much time man

Fofa conversa

Ok if I were this Chil kid I would fucking kill Senshi as soon as we could

“Your job is to cook, mine is to detect and ruin traps, Marcille’s is magic” …and the protag guy can get fucked I guess

Ep3

“I was killed by a moving armor once so I used to be terrified of them. Wonder what they taste like, none of the books ever described it. How would you cook them?”— Insane person speaking

Is there like a really tiny person controlling that one specific armor that moves wonky. Like two kids in a trench coat kinda deal

“These armors seem alive and are protecting something *skips the implications* which means they’re edible”

“If he dies let’s leave him here” “yeah” based

Laios (I know his name now) Laios please take out the fucking creature from the sword before taking it with you. Laios please

Laios NEEDS to get someone on the team killed one day. *remembers his sister* that one didn’t count

Ep 7 (I forgot to liveblog the others)

Damn Senshi got that nasty ass beard. Marcille teach him hygiene— FUCK SHE LOST HER SOAP IN THE DRAGON FIGHT NOOOO

MARCILLE JESUS???? WLAKING WATER

In a modern au Senshi is that guy from a countryside town who’s an urban legend because he lives in the woods and refuses to interact with any kind of technology. He doesn’t stop others from living their way but he decided to be a medieval citizen, good for him ig

Marcille finally is awestruck by Senshi and all it took was a fantasy horse… she’s a horse girl isn’t she

Senshi is a better person than me because if someone said it’d be more practical to use my pet’s organs as 🛟 I would kill them. I understand Laios but damn bro

“Why is everyone soft hearted for mamíferos and doesn’t let me plant carnivorous plants?” — Laios. Aiai eu esqueci que ele é assim. Freak /pos

NOOOOOO ANNE NOOOOO. It was inevitable I guess, it is a wild animal after all, but FUCK MAN.

Senshi :((( I feel so bad man but class will start shortly rn so I can’t even be sad :((( having a pet makes me sensitive to this stuff. :((( I’m so sad man

Naur he’s gonna eat Anne to make sure nobody else gets to do it. What if we all died

THESE MFS KEEP GETTING WIPED MAN NO MAMES. WHAT IS WRONG WITH THEM STAY OUT OF THIS DUNGEON

Chilchuck??? Chilchuck thanks to hxh I have trauma over dull eyes I know you’re hypnotized probably but don’t do this to me

Thank you Laios for being weird as shit not even the mermaids want you

Lmao Chilchuck trying to talk his way out of not acting to eat a semi-human creature

I have a feeling that Laios will eventually make everyone in this group cannibalistd

MARCILLE FOFA DEMAIS

“Is that a squid? Or an octopus?” It’s an Ikalgo

Senshi is smarter than me I would of literally never thought of that. Marcille’s Jesus spell the true MVP, just like Jesus himself was god bless

Ok essas são as consequências das suas próprias ações Laios, pra que que tu foi comer VERME cru???

#live-blogging

[xmaliwrites]

22:50 PM   —  [hizzie] hope confessing her feelings to marcel and rebekah

The balmy sun was warming Hope’s skin. She was seated next to Marcel, silently enjoying the breath-taking New York’s sunset, both holding different milkshakes.

“You look happy, kid.” Marcel smiled as his ears captured a low laugh coming from Hope, whose eyes were now locked at her phone.

“Look what Lizzie sent me.” Hope turned her screen at Marcel, showing a picture of Lizzie holding an ice cream cone close to the camera, pretending that Pisa Tower was her ice cream.

“So, who is she?” Marcel finally asked, returning his attention to the view from the top of the roof.

“She is my friend. The Star Wars girl.”

“Oh, I remember.” Marcel hummed with a playful smile growing on his lips. “She is pretty.”

“Yea, she is.” A wide smile took over her mouth while her fingers were busy answering her, still laughing lowly about the photo.

“And you like her.”

“Yes I-“ Hope eyes widened, stopping her from saying the next words. “Hey, don’t do that!” She punched Marcel’s arm who kept laughing amused with the red roses flourishing on her cheeks.

“Don’t do what?”

 Rebekah’s joined them, after taking care of some bureaucracy issues related to her company. Swiftly, the girl seated on Marcel’s lap, wrapping her fingers around his neck.

 “Your nephew h-“

“Marcel, I will kill you if you try to say another word.” Hope whispered between her teeth, making Rebekah more curious.

“I feel offended. You trust more Marcel than in me?” Rebekah opened her mouth, pretending to be shocked.

“Fine, whatever.” Hope rolled her eyes, trying not to smile. “I was just showing him a picture of Lizzie.”

“Oh, the blonde Saltzman?” Rebekah smirked and looked at Marcel, exchanging playful gazes between them before grabbing her nephew’s phone. Rebekah analyzed the female centered on the phone, zooming in to see her outfit. Her fashion sense was amazing. “She is pretty. Why were you so shy about sharing the photo?” Rebekah handed back Hope’s cell.

 Hope pressed her lips tightly before placing the phone on the glass table in front of them. She could feel her cheeks burning with the pression coming from her aunt and Marcel. Was she that obvious?

 “Oh, you like her.” Rebekah stated, looking delighted at her niece whose eyes finally met her.

 Rebekah wasn’t blind. It’s been a while since she started to notice how Hope couldn’t stop babbling about Lizzie Saltzman. It started with silly things such as ‘Lizzie and I are going to this nice art exhibition next week’ or ‘I can’t call you tomorrow, I’m going out with Lizzie’. After months, Hope started mentioning her name almost every day: she was always talking about minimal details about the Saltzman sister, about her weird obsession for shoes, her talent to style her own hair, how the matcha latte made by her was really good and so on.

 “N-no I don’t.” Hope rolled her eyes, coughing uncomfortable.

“There is nothing wrong about liking a girl, especially Lizzie. She seems to be a lovely girl.” Marcel nodded, agreeing with her.

“Yes, she is. She is really special actually. I am just afraid of screwing everything up.”

“You? Hope, you are amazing.” Rebekah leaned at Hope’s direction, caressing her hand. “Hope, you of all people, deserve to be happy.”

 Hope raised her chin, looking at Marcel and Rebekah whose eyes were focused on her.

 “Do I?”

“Of course you do.” Rebekah laughed. “Besides, I would love to meet her. Her fashion sense it’s amazing.”

“I know!” Her face brightened up. “You should see her plaid jeans collection.”

  Marcel kept quiet, enchanted by those women in front of him whose mouths were talking about things that he couldn’t understand. The sparkle on Hope’s eyes made his heart flutter: he couldn’t tell the last time he saw her this happy. The reassurance of knowing that Hope had someone next to her that was able to make her eyes shine again, made Marcil grin at her.

a/n: yes i pretended that rebekah doesn’t have a part of hollow inside her, let me dream >:(

wc: 662

#hizzie #hizzieimagine #hizzieheadcanons #hizziehc #hopemikaelson #lizziesaltzman #Hope x Lizzie #lizzie x hope #hope and lizzie #we stan hizzie #xmaliwrites #fluff #hizzie fluff

[readymades2002]

hm okay so marcille’s wish seems to have Two facets to it. there is the thing she says she wants, which is to create opportunities for people that a difference in lifespans can block off, and what her fear drove her towards, which is never having to watch everyone die before her again. we’ve seen what that difference in lifespan means before, how everyone else resents elves for looking at everyone as children with short memories who don’t know what’s best for them, it’s very much an established thing! and the way it’s talked about in this chapter DOES worry me a little bit, like, narratively speaking.

lifespan is...like. it’s different than other axes? the idea of living a thousand years is NIGHTMARISH to me and i think that...that is a heavy weight to give others to carry without their input. i do think that it is, dare i say, Not Good to do that.

but the way it is refuted, and the way lifespan differences are shown to be kind of a social class...thing, it does make me feel a little weird because on the ONE hand literally its very scary yes but on the OTHER is this a metaphor for something and is this refutation a metaphorical response to that something. you know. marcille wanting to eliminate inequalities between lifespans as something that Just Isn’t Good For Everyone or something to that effect. idk the translation including the phrase “racial disparities” DID put me on edge here too, i know in Fantasy World they use Race to mean something more like species which is not uncommon by any means but i still think its a very poor choice of word and keeping the history of fantasy “races” and their...Inspirations in mind makes it worse. i might be reading too much into it but 1) thats what i do and 2) seeing that one GODDAMN kabru shapeshifter joke really REALLY Got Me ugh

for now i am gonna look at it more optimistically though and say that marcille’s motivations simply looking at them as they are are very interesting. i don’t doubt that she wants others to have more opportunities denied to them by their lifespans (though i think the solution of “simply make lifespans longer” instead of “do something about elves holding power” is a short-sighted one. VERY in-character though, that’s not a complaint about that. just thinking as i go) but she is motivated by her own fear. marcille is kind of a selfish person! she is self-centered and a little thoughtless and she’s been through a lot that drives her to soothe the fear created by it. she may be convincing herself of her good intentions, of her care for her friends, but ultimately, she does not want to be alone. i mean who doesn’t but its the kind of thing she is willing to go to questionably ethical lengths to achieve with only her own desires in mind. i think that the birds outside her wizard tower (have you seen the birds. for the record the birds in dunmeshi are simply divine. excellent birds. wonderful birds) point to her motivations well. losing a bird (especially one as long lived as a cockatoo!) affected her deeply. she’s disturbed by the lion conjuring a puppet of her father, but she keeps him around anyway. the temptation is great and the fear of loss powerful! there is marcille who is very put together and knows what to do better than anyone else and who believes in her own accomplishments and abilities enough to stake the world on it, and there is also marcille who is thoughtless and petty and insecure and terrified of being alone and it makes for a very dangerous combination! she’s such a fascinating character!!! i think this is an excellent arc for her

#dungeon meshi spoilers - #dunno if this is coherent. i love media #i REALLY think marcille is a well written character with complex motivations and morals so im hoping HARD that the intention #isnt like. 'well waving a wand and wishing for equality isnt realistic' im phrasing that simplistically but that...viewing of wanting things #to improve. does that make sense? i think that solving the problem by just wishing for everyone to live longer #is...silly. its not a narrative trope i thought i put a lot of thought into because its very unrealistic and i think staking some kind of #Stance on it is silly but turns out i do have thoughts on it and those thoughts are a lot of 'youre missing the problem i think' #i feel the same way about...ugh. okay the thing coming to mind is the ending of pmmm but i DO feel that way! #i dont know how to word it but. in pmmm it felt like the writing of someone who does not take the idea of abolishing a system seriously #which. i mean fucking obviously he wouldnt but im hoping thats not the case here!!!!!!!!!! #i mean unlike in pmmm this solution is being presented as a flawed one but if the exploration of that ends here itll be disappointing #agh i dont have any confidence im saying it right! whatever

[artificialqueens]

Your life is gonna change me (Biadore) Chapter 7 - AbbiNeedless

“Oh my God!” Violet walked to the mannequin that was in the office and looked astonished at what it was wearing. “Is this kaftan made of flannel fabric?”

“Yes.” Valentina put her bag on the desk and joined her friend. “This one was made by Raja.” “No way, Raja Gemini?” “Yup.” “No fucking way, your aunt works with Raja Gemini?” “And they are the best of friends too.” “Bitch! Why you never told me?” Violet walked around the mannequin studying every single detail of the kaftan. “I fucking love this.” “Well, well, Valentina is already here and she brought company.” Someone said behind them, they turned around and saw Raja entering the room with Tyra by her side. “Wait, you know you cannot bring people in here, Valentina.” Tyra told her. “Not now that we are preparing for the New York’s fashion week!” “Tyra, relax, I asked her to bring her friend.” She passed her a roll of white fabric. “Here you go, now leave us alone, please.” Tyra gave Valentina an annoyed look before leaving the office. “God, she is such a drama queen.” “We’ve been knew.” “So, you’re Violet Chachki, right?” “Yes, ma’am.” She gulped, how did Raja Gemini know her name? “Don’t be nervous, Violet, I asked Valentina to bring you here because I love your work.” “What?” “Valentina knows I don’t like to stick to hire models like Cara Delevigne for my runways, I love to find new talents.” She sat on her desk and opened her laptop. “She told me about this girl in her university that is studying fashion but she also does aerial and burlesque; you.”

Violet looked over at Valentina, she smiled to her and blew a kiss.

“Val sent me a couple of pictures and videos of your work and presentations and I think that you have what I am looking for in my new model and, who knows, maybe in my new apprentice.” “…” Her heart was pounding out of her chest, Raja wanted her to be her model and her apprentice, holy shit. “So, what do you think? Are you interested in this offer?” “… Yeah, yeah, I’m down!” “Good, now we need to do all of the paperwork.” She looked over at Valentina. “Thanks for your help, Val.” “It was nothing.” “Nothing?” Violet got up and walked to her, she placed her hands on her shoulders and looked right into her eyes. “Bitch, you just got me my dream-job, my dream-job! This is not nothing, this is a whole lot!” “Oh, you stop!” “Just kiss already.” Bianca said as she entered the office. “I see you got a new model, Raja.” “Yes, I did.” “Violet, get ready, this bitch is going to make a monster out of you.” She sat next to Raja. “Actually, we’re going to turn you into monsters, the fashion week is in two weeks and you have to kill it.” “You’re going to be modeling with some of the fiercest models in the industry.” Raja got up and started to walk towards them. “Eva Marcille, Adriana Lima, Gisele Bündchen…” “Not Gigi Hadid or Kendall Jenner?” Violet asked her. “She said fiercest, Violet.” Bianca said. “If we use someone like Jenner or Hadid is because they are like a magnet, they attract teenagers to the market.” “Ask Pepsi about it.” Bianca clacked with laughter. “Well, young ladies, let’s get down to business.”

—-

“Fuuuuuck.” Violet sat next to Valentina in the studio’s sofa. “What? Are you already tired?” Bianca asked her. “Not at all! But I do need to take a minute.” “Newbies.” Bianca’s phone rang on her pocket. “Sorry, I have to answer… Adore, my love…”

Bianca walked away from them talking on the phone, even a few metters away from them the girls could her talk.

“You want to paint the nursery again?… I thought you liked the bone color on the walls…” “It seems that Adore is driving Bianca crazy.” Violet said. “Just when she gets bitchy, sometimes when she is hungry she gets angry and starts to mumble around or when her feet hurt or her back…” “That color looks good with blue and pink, baby.” “…” “Val.” “Yes?” “You seem a little bit off lately, are you ok?” “I’m good.” “You’re not.” “I am.” “Don’t lie to me, bitch, there’s something wrong and you don’t want to tell me.”

Valentina looked over at her aunt, she was still speaking on the phone.

“Come with me.”

Valentina took her hand and leaded her to the elevator, she pressed the roof button, when the doors opened they were welcomed by a gorgeous patio with a lot of plants and benches all over it.

“She never comes in here.” She sat on a white bench that was next to a little tree. “Why did you bring me here?” “I don’t want my aunt to hear me say this.” She took a long breath. “This is going to sound so selfish but…” “…” “I kind of don’t want the babies to arrive.” “What do you mean? Weren’t you fucking excited when Adore got pregnant?” “Yes, I’m still excited but… Is just…” “Come on, Val, you can tell me.”

Valentina sighed.

“For the last four years it’s been only the three of us against everything, they’ve been more than just my aunts, they’re like my mothers and… It’s stupid but I’m jealous that they… You know, now they’re going to be actual mothers… Their mothers, not mine.” “Val, they are going to still love you and Ethan and Willow are going to love you as an older sister, all of you are going to be just fine.” “How do you know that?” “Instinct? I don’t know, I just know.” Violet wrapped her in her arms. “You’ll be ok, Val.” “Thank you, Vi.” She rested her head on her shoulder. “Actually there’s one more thing I-“ “Here you are!” Raja entered the patio. “I was looking for you, it’s time to toot you or boot you on the dresses, young ladies, you ready?” “Toots and boots?” Violet asked confused. “You’ll see in a moment.” “And what did you wanted to say?” “Never mind, let’s go.”

—-

“Well, that’s a wrap, ladies.” Raja said. “Tomorrow, we’ll choose the final looks that we’ll take to New York.” Bianca said. “Now go home and do your homework.” “Are you coming?” Valentina asked her as she took her bag from the chair. “No, Val, we have to check some extra details.” She passed her the car’s keys. “Finish your homework and make sure Adore does not eat all of the peanut butter again.” “I will, see you.” “Wait, Val, come here.” She walked to her and took her by her shoulder. “Are you ok, kiddo?” “Yeah, I’m completely fine.” “Sure you’re ok?” “Yeah, totally.” She smiled to her. “Ok, see you later.” “See you.”

The girls got into the elevator, Violet pressed the floor button.

“Want me to give you a ride?” “Nah, you don’t have to, Matt is waiting for me.” “Ok… Wait, you said Matt? Are you and Matt together again?” “Yes, something like that.” She smiled. “Those months without him were horrible and now that we are back together I feel like this is how the things have to be, you know?” “Yeah, that’s cool…” “Anyways, what did you wanted to say before Raja interrupted us?” “Don’t worry, it wasn’t something important.” The door opened. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” “Yeah, see you tomorrow, Val!”

Valentina hurried to the car, she got in and closed the door.

“… Goddamn it!”

Valentina hit the wheel with all of her strength, she was mad, she was really mad. She looked through the window, she could see Matt’s car and him waiting for Violet, she ran to him and hugged him; Matt smiled to her and kissed her, Violet kissed him back. Valentina looked to her friend and for a moment she wished she was the one holding Violet like that, she wished she was the one with her hand stuck into Violet black long hair, she wished she was in Matt’s place.

But she wasn’t and she will never be.

She was just Valentina, Violet’s best friend.

“This is stupid… Calm the fuck down, Valentina.”

She wiped the tears from her face and when she looked through the window the car was gone. She started the machine and drove to the beach, she needed a relaxing place to calm down, when she arrived she took off her heels and walked to the shore, the water in her feet was cold and relaxing.

She took a long breath.

“Should I smile because she is my friend or cry because that’s all we’ll ever be?” Big tears rolled down her cheeks. “I’m so stupid…”

She made her way back to the car and drove to her house in complete silence, before she entered the house she made sure to fix her make-up, she didn’t want to disturbed her aunts. When her make-up was fixed she opened the door.

“I’m home!” All of the lights were off. “Is anybody here?”

She got no response.

“Oh well.”

She turned on the lights and suddenly her aunts appeared besides her.

“Boo!” “God, Jesus Christ!” “Sorry, Val” Bianca burst into laughter. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” “You’re not sorry! Gosh, I almost peed myself.” She got into the house with her aunts by her side. “How did you get here?” “Raja gave me a ride.” “Anyways, we have a surprise for you.” Adore said and took her to the kitchen. “You ready?” “Yes.”

Adore opened the fridge and took out a plate full of red M&M’s, Valentina started to laugh along them.

“Oh my God, why?” She took the candies from Adore’s hands and sat with them on the couch. “Bianca told me of that one time when you were 10 years old that you only wanted red M&M’s and made a big scene because your dad didn’t give them to you.” “You still remember that? That’s embarrassing!” “It’s just a classic! I’ll tell this story to my kids when they grow up.” “Why do you like to embarrass me?” “I’m your aunt, it’s my job.”

They ate the M&M’s while they watched Golden Girls, Valentina was sure that they had watched the same episode a million times but she didn’t mind, she was in her happy place.

“Val?” “Yeah?” “Raja heard you talking with Violet.” Valentina almost choked with the M&M’s. “…”

Adore turned off the TV and looked at her.

“Vale.” “I’m sorry.” “Why are you sorry?” “I just am.” “Valentina.” Bianca took her niece’s hand and looked at her. “You don’t have anything to worry about, I love you as you were my own child and that’s not going to change after they are born.” “Val.” Adore took her face between her hands. “Ethan and Willow are not going to change a thing when they’re here, nothing is going to change.” “Well, our sleep hours will-“ “Shut up, Bianca, I’m trying to be a good motherly figure!” “Sorry, Dorey.” “You’re so stupid.” Valentina giggled. “Look, she is laughing! I win, I’m the shit.” “Bianca, shut up!” The three of them burst in laughter. “This is why we can’t have nice things.”

—-

She carefully opened her niece’s door, Valentina was with her back to the door and headphones on. Adore touched her shoulder.

“Val?” “Yes?” “Can we talk?” “Sure.” She took the headphones off and made a space in her bed for Adore to sit. “What do you want to talk about?” “What happened today?” “What do you mean?” “Two of my students called me and told me that they saw you in the beach crying.” “What? Who?” “That’s not important, baby. What happened?” “…” “It has something to do with Violet?” Valentina gasped at the mention of her name. “I’ll take that as a yes.” “…” “Working with her is not as fun as you thought it would be?” “At the contrary, it’s a lot of fun, we annoy your wifey a lot.” “Just as I imagined.” She said with a smile. “Then? Did you… Did you tell her that you are in love with her?” “No…” “Then?” “I realized that we are like dominoes; I fell for her and she fell for someone else… She is with Matt again.” “Oh…” “Yeah…”

Adore wrapped her arm around her shoulders, Valentina rested her head on her shoulder and cried again, she hated crying because it made her feel vulnerable, it made her think of her dad and she didn’t like it.

“Vale.” She looked up at her aunt. “I know that it hurts when you have someone in your heart and you can’t have them in your arms, the bitch hurts a lot.” Valenitna giggled. “But we never know where we’re going to find the love, do you think I knew the love of my life was Bianca? She scared the shit outta me.” “She did?” “Yeah, I was her intern and now look at me, I’m her fucking wife.” She pinched her cheek. “Be open to the possibilities and don’t put walls around your heart, that is not going to be good for you, got it?” “Got it, thank you, Adore.” “Anytime, Vale.”

They hugged and remained like this for a few minutes.

“Gotta go, you have school and work tomorrow, you need to sleep. Goodnight.” “Goodnight, baby.”

—-

“Ok, girls, we chose what we’re going to take to New York.” Raja said in front of them. “For Violet we’ll take the kaftan.” “Fuck yes!” “The 50s prom dress, the leather and lace, the devil suit and the death becomes her.” “That is going to shock all of the bitches.” Bianca said from her desk. “I’m counting on Violet for that to happen.” Raja winked. “Believe me, me and my corset are ready.” “That’s what I wanted to hear! What about you, Bianca? What are you taking to New York?” “The Mariachi outfit.” “I fucking love that one.” Valentina said. “You did such a good job with that one, Marco is going to love it.” Raja said. “And it’s going to make Donald Trump angry, I like it.” Bianca said and continued. “The green one-piece with the lotus flowers, the red ballerina tutu, the yellow dress with the removable tulle skirt…” “I made that dress.” Valentina whispered to Violet. “No you didn’t!” “Yes I did!” “Anyways, I have one more spot and I don’t know which one to add.” “I wish we could take the bride dress…” Valentina said. “Why can’t you take it?” Violet asked her confused. “Tyra is doing a whole bride collection.” Courtney explained to her. “If Bianca takes the bride dress she’ll say we copied her and that we’re not original, bla, bla, bla.” “That’s a shame.” Violet hugged Valentina. “That dress looks gorgeous on you.” “You know what? Fuck Tyra, let’s take it.” Bianca got up from her desk and took the dress with the other ones. “Are you sure about that?” Courtney asked her. “Yeah but to be sure and complete let’s take another dress just in case.” “What about the snake one?” Valentina suggested her. “I could finally use my Maria Félix’s necklace!” “Court, can you add this one to the list as well?” “Sure!”

Bianca’s cellphone rang on her pocket.

“Excuse me.”

She walked out of the studio and answered the phone.

“Hello?” “Hi, Bea, it’s your dad.” “Dad! Hi!” Valentina got out of the studio at the mention of her grandfather. “How are you?” “Good, I just bought my plane ticket to California.” “That’s amazing!” She waved Valentina to join her. “Dad, I’m going to put you on the speaker.” “Ok.” “Abuelo!” Valentina said excitedly. “Vale, mi niña preciosa! How are you?” “So excited! When are you arriving to California?” “Tomorrow around midday.” “We’ll go to get you from the airport.” Bianca said. “Yes, please. I haven’t been in California since the 80s, I don’t remember a shit of the city.” “Damn, that’s a lot.” “I know.” A woman’s voice was heard on the background. “Well, I gotta go finish packing; I’ll see you tomorrow, mis niñas.” “See you tomorrow, dad.” “I can’t wait to see you, abuelo, I love you!” “Love you too, mi niña, see you tomorrow.”

She hung up and looked at her niece.

“Can you believe this is happening?” “No, I pinch myself every day to make sure I’m not dreaming.” “And?” “It hurts, I’m not dreaming.” She hugged Bianca and was surprised to see that she didn’t push her away. “We’re going to see him again, he is going to be with us again.” “Yes, kiddo, we are going to be together again.”

#abbineedless #biadore #lesbian au #romance #kinda smut #fluff #lots of fluff #angst #moms to be #sad past #rpdr fanfiction #your life is gonna change me #bianca del rio #adore delano #pregnancy

[celebritylive]

NeNe Leakes has patched up her strained relationships with several of her Real Housewives of Atlanta costars so far, including Kandi Burruss, Eva Marcille, Porsha Williams and Cynthia Bailey. But Kenya Moore? That’s another story.

The two Atlanta Housewives have been at odds all season, even nearly getting into a physical brawl during one heated argument filmed while on a group trip to Toronto.

Their tensions go way back, but most recently, during last year’s finale, NeNe made a series of snide comments about her then-pregnant costar, calling her a “monster” and making fun of her size by saying that she looked as though she was “going to have a buffalo.”

Since then, things between the two have only gotten worse. On Sunday’s episode of the Bravo reality series, NeNe, 52, approached Moore, 49, in an attempt to clear the air. Instead of forgiveness, though, Moore only had a cold shoulder to offer NeNe.

“Is there an issue?” NeNe asked Moore, after Moore rejected two of her attempts at a hug. “I’m just letting you know that I don’t have an issue. And I really want you to understand that.”

“We’ll talk about it. We will talk another time,” Moore said, eventually brushing NeNe off with a “Thank you.”

“Can I be cordial? Yes. Can I be phony? No,” Moore told audiences.

RELATED: RHOA‘s NeNe Leakes Gets Into Near-Physical Brawl with Kenya Moore

At the time, the two women were with their spouses at a couples’ bowling event, which Moore’s husband Marc Daly was using as an opportunity to invite the other Househusbands to participate in Black Man’s Lab — a charity event he was throwing to help inspire young black males by presenting them with examples of successful black businessmen.

The evening was meant to be about togetherness. So in that spirit, Daly made sure to extend the invitation to NeNe and her husband Gregg Leakes, despite Moore previously saying that she didn’t want NeNe there.

“I’ll say it in front of everyone so we don’t have any miscommunication: We’re gonna shelf all the nonsense for ,” Daly, 49, told Nene and Gregg, before referencing the fact that his wife hadn’t tagged NeNe in the event’s invitation on social media. “I’m not on Instagram so I don’t know what happened, but that’s irrelevant to me. The point is, I want him to be there. If you support your spouse, I would never divide a couple. So I want you guys both there.”

“For me it’s nonsense, at the end of the day. You’re going to have challenges in life, we gotta go past it. So put the ego away,” Daly added. “Let’s just move forward in a positive way.”

Moore and NeNe agreed.

“Oh yeah, without question. Without question, I’m in total agreement,” said NeNe. “I’m in total agreement. Thank you Marc. I really appreciate it. Thank you Kenya, I really appreciate you.”

RELATED: NeNe Leakes Says She’s ‘Very Undecided’ About Returning to RHOA — ‘Everybody Is Attacking’

Of course, behind the scenes, the two women had very different things to say. NeNe, for one, mocked Moore — saying that she was two different people: “Kenya,” when she was by herself, and “Ken,” when she’s around Daly.

“Kenya plays all kinds of games, curses like a sailor, but Ken can’t do none of that s— when Marc is around,” NeNe explained. “I love it when she’s Ken because Ken shuts the f— up.”

Moore, on the other hand, complained about NeNe to Daly.

“I’m not in a good place with NeNe. I know how nasty she has been to me for no reason,” Moore said. “I feel very uncomfortable being in an intimate setting when she has not addressed the fact that she tried to fight me, called me names, she’s cursed me out. She got in my face, pointing, and people had to hold her back.”

Unfortunately, Moore didn’t get the support she needed from Daly — which frustrated her.

“I am your wife, and if I have a problem with someone that means you have a problem with someone. Get it?” she told audiences.

RELATED: NeNe Leakes Says She Wishes She Had Spit on Kenya Moore During Heated RHOA Argument — But Didn’t

That was all before Moore and Daly split. The two went their separate ways back in September, days after Daly’s Black Man’s Lab event.

Months later, both appear to be on the path to reconciliation, the two spending more time together as they coparent their 1-year-old daughter Brooklyn Doris Daly. 

As for NeNe and Moore, they are as estranged as ever. Later this season, during a trip to Greece, the two get into another confrontation in which NeNe almost spits in Moore’s face.

Though NeNe never did actually spit, Moore has said the mere thought of it was enough to squash any chance of them actually having a friendship.

“I think she’s pretty much dead to me,” Moore said during a visit to Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen back in November. “When someone tries to spit on you, I think they’re not ever going to be friends with you.”

And as for NeNe? Well, she’s only doubled down, writing on Twitter last month that Moore “needs to be spit on with all the horrible things she has said and done!”

“I DID the act but DIDN’T SPIT!” she wrote. “I wish I had though! No regrets.”

The Real Housewives of Atlanta airs Sundays (8 p.m. ET) on Bravo.

from PEOPLE.com https://ift.tt/38VlSVv

#Celebrity

[recentanimenews]

Bookshelf Briefs 11/20/18

Black Clover, Vol. 13 | By Yuki Tabata | Viz Media – As long as you’re writing a series which uses every cliche in the book, you may as well go all in and write a tournament arc, and that’s what we’re getting here. Surprisingly, Asta is not paired with Noelle, but with Mimosa, who I’ll be honest I had totally forgotten about. Given that Noelle fills the ‘tsundere’ love interest bucket, it only makes sense that Mimosa is the Hinata of Black Clover, being shy and tripping over her words in front of him. As for the battles themselves, they’re all good ways to spotlight folks who we don’t really get much chance to see in the main storyline. On the downside, so far they’re all very predictable outcomes. I’d like to see some people win who shouldn’t normally win. – Sean Gaffney

The Bride & the Exorcist Knight, Vol. 2 | By Keiko Ishihara | Seven Seas – We get more of the same here—good character development and action sequences. Shame that they’re really pushing the “I am twelve years old and suave as heck” plotline, and Anne does seem to be falling for him, though thankfully we haven’t advanced quite that far. One thing that did impress me was the fate of Anne’s parents, who would normally get killed off to jumpstart the plot in tales like this, especially given Anne’s status as a magical bride MacGuffin. There’s nothing really extraordinary here, but it’s good solid fantasy romance, and it at least makes noises occasionally about Anne being creeped out about Haru’s age. For fans of shoujo starring cute, cool boys. – Sean Gaffney

Delicious in Dungeon, Vol. 6 | By Ryoko Kui| Yen Press – Remember when this was a funny series about eating monsters? Last time I said the books were getting a bit darker. Here they take a running leap into grim as we continue to see how Laios and company are seen by everyone else around them—as reckless lunatics who endanger everyone around them. What’s more, Falin’s back, but that’s not good news—the slaughter that follows is a kick in the teeth. Honestly, after that sequence, seeing the “which is the original and which is the shapeshifter” plot was a welcome light relief, and the sequence with Laios helping Marcille with her nightmares was rather heartwarming. Still, Falin’s influence on everyone around her, death, and subsequent “came back wrong” are now THE reason to read this. – Sean Gaffney

Frankenstein: Junji Ito Story Collection | By Junji Ito | Viz Media – The first edition of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein was originally published in 1818, so Viz Media’s release of Junji Ito’s rendition of the story is aptly timed for the two-hundred-year anniversary of the groundbreaking novel. Ito has made a few changes here and there—particularly towards the end—but for the most part the manga adaptation is very faithful to Shelley’s original and Ito’s artwork is well-suited to the more grotesque and disturbing elements of the tale. In addition to Frankenstein, the volume also collects a series of six short manga featuring Oshikiri, a young man who is very self-conscious about his short stature but whose real worries are of a more horrific and supernatural kind. (It doesn’t help that his home seems to be a portal to alternate dimensions.) Also included are two unrelated short horror manga as well as two short manga about the Ito family’s pet dog Non-non. – Ash Brown

Haikyu!, Vol. 29 | By Haruichi Furudate | Viz Media – It’s all volleyball game this volume, so there’s no real plot I can talk about. We do continue to see character growth from Hinata and Tsukishima, who gets one of the cooler moments that also made me laugh when he talks about blocking the quick set. The other team is no slouch, though, particularly the twins, and our heroes are behind the eight ball most of the time. The opponent’s band is not helping either, which is why for once it’s Saeko who gets to have the Big Damn Heroes moment, arriving with Taiko Drums to drown out the band’s odd rhythms. Other than that, this volleyball manga continues to put the emphasis on volleyball. I’m about ready for it to go to every three months, to be honest, and it will be soon. – Sean Gaffney

Love at Fourteen, Vol. 8 | By Fuka Mizutani | Yen Press – Aside from Love at Fourteen‘s main couple, who are meant to be the cute and sweet default, the series makes a lot of unusual choices for its romantic pairings. Nagai and Hinohara continue to put the “ergh” in non-consensual teacher-student romance. Shiki and the school nurse bond over being tortured lesbians in love with a straight girl who isn’t going to love them back. And we get a new one here, as Kato, the really short boy in the class, ends up getting entangled with what appears to be a cute older girl… except she’s actually eleven. He’s fourteen, so we’re not anywhere Hinohara’s level of wrong, but Love at Fourteen really enjoys giving the reader heartwarming discomfort. – Sean Gaffney

Mob Psycho 100, Vol. 1 | By ONE | Published by Dark Horse – As a fan of One-Punch Man, I went into Mob Psycho 100 expecting to be amused and I’m sorry to say that never really happened. Shigeo Kageyama is an eighth grader with superpowers who works as an underpaid assistant for a fraudulent spirit medium named Arataka Reigen. Shigeo is called “Mob” because he’s an expressionless kid who blends into a crowd, and his desire to be attractive (and win the girl of his dreams) ultimately leads him into strange situations, like being recruited for a creepy cult. My interest was piqued, however, by the meter running throughout the volume that depicts some sort of percentage and the payoff when it reached was 100% was totally worth it. Plus, Reigen’s pep talk to Mob afterwards was completely unexpected and kind of heartwarming. In the end, I think I’ve been convinced to try another volume. – Michelle Smith

Waiting for Spring, Vol. 9 | By Anashin | Kodansha Comics – Both Towa and Aya have now confessed to Mitsuki and she doesn’t know what to do about it. I appreciate that Anashin shows why each boy feels the way that they do, and also that Mitsuki is completely forthcoming with Towa about everything that’s happening with Aya, so that no plot line ever hinges on “completely avoidable misunderstanding.” Instead, there’s more complicated drama, like Towa feeling frustrated that Aya keeps being in a position to heroically save Mitsuki (this time pulling a ligament saving her from being hit by a car) and wondering if perhaps they aren’t destined to be together. Instead of wallowing, however, he seemingly becomes more determined. It’s nice to see Towa start to become less reserved and I look forward to what volume ten will bring. – Michelle Smith

Wotakoi: Love Is Hard for Otaku, Vol. 3 | By Fujita | Kodansha Comics – About two-thirds of the way through this volume, Narumi and Koyanagi are relaxing at a hot sprint on a company trip. Koyanagi wonders if Narumi feels lonely because she’s barely seeing her boyfriend this trip, but she says that, given Hirotaka’s lack of social aptitude, she’s merely happy to see him getting along with other guy friends. Koyanagi points out that that’s a mature answer, but leaves her a little bored. I’m not bored with Wotakoi yet, but it does appear to me that it’s very dedicated to showing that our leads are all pretty happy, with most conflicts resolved over the course of a single chapter. Given the title, you’d expect a bit more, but while it’s still very sweet, love isn’t that hard for these otaku. – Sean Gaffney

Yotsuba&!, Vol. 14 | By Kiyohiko Azuma | Yen Press – Azuma does not believe in pumping out the chapters for this series—this is the second volume in five years. Still, it’s like we never went away, really. Last time we met Yotsuba’s grandmother, and this time it’s her aunt, who is meeting up with Koiwai in Tokyo so that he can get a car—which I assume will allow for greater scope of adventures in the future. This means that here we get Yotsuba & Tokyo, with much hilarity, including an alien invasion that needs to be stopped, and delicious food at an expensive hotel. Oh yes, and Fuuka and her friend Hiwatari do yoga with Yotsuba, which leads to much frustration as she’s as flexible as a young child and they are not. Yotsuba&! still has its magic; I just wish it was magical more often. – Sean Gaffney

By: Ash Brown

#Anime #News #Manga Bookshelf

[fumifooms]

Hey what're your thoughts on how marcille and chilchuck show affection for marchil?

I mean, marcille seems to be the type to be the most blatantly affectionate of the two, but I want to know your headcanons and observations on the subject. How do they communicate their wants for affection, and what do they view as signs of affection (ex: hugs, small gifts, ect.) and such?

Sorry it took me this long to answer!! Thank you sm for sending a marchil ask my way I swear I love them sm, they spark joy and even if I have uhh -checks- 67 drafts already I love dropping everything for them when the mood comes hehehe. I love talking about love languages actually! Little did you know that the first post I made on this blog was about analyzing the love languages of an ot3 lmao. The only reason why this is so late overdue is because as always I’m going to talk so much about it. The pics I put in it are relevant but I don’t put them right beside where I make my point, so stick with me even if they’re a bit jarring at first, they’re just meant to show aspects of them~.

Marcille and Chilchuck’s love languages

+ their domestic romantic dynamic. I’ll say, I ended up talking even more than I expected, and though it is in a marchil context I think my analysis of the characters is relevant even if their partner was anyone else, so non-marchil shippers might also enjoy this post! Give it a shot maybe~

To open it up, I think this post is very relevant. Marchil is def a ship where the ways in which they say they love each other feel more subtle, for Chilchuck at least.

Their perspective, boundaries and overlap

I think Chilchuck and Marcille recognize the other’s way of showing affection well, though it’s very obvious that Marcille and Chilchuck’s ways are super different. Marcille is very open and loud and Chilchuck… Isn’t. Chilchuck is reserved while Marcille loves to get all the affection she can get. Marcille could be seen as too much while Chilchuck would be too little. One could even say they aren’t compatible, but I think that’d be a mistake.

Yes Marcille loves big grand gestures and a lot of open communication, but her thing is analyzing people as they are, like how when she imagines how it’d have been like as his wife she put in details like how he’d be annoyed at having to wait for her to get ready and didn’t idealize that part of their relationship. She’s very good at putting herself in others’ shoes, at understanding why they might feel this or that way. She typically doesn’t seem put off when Chil is snappy or discouraging at her, like when she shows him the ball of Izutsumi’s hair that she shaped into a cat lol. (The panel at the start of this section was when she was disappointed in him for cheating on his wife, so her good esteem for him was gone). She has a high esteem of Chilchuck’s intentions and has good faith in him overall, so instead of going "He’s annoyed at waiting on me… Am I annoying to him? Does he dislike me?" or "He didn’t notice I got upset when we were out drinking with his colleagues. Does he even love me anymore? Would he care if I left him?" she goes "Oh that’s just how he is, I know if there’s an actual issue he’ll tell me, and he still has my best interests at heart.". Who knows if she’d always be able to rationalize and keep that optimistic attitude up long term, but it gives me a good impression that she would! Or that at least she’d communicate about it if she felt their relationship had a problem. She loves to confront people about that sort of thing! She can be more insecure and meek when the topic is sensitive to her like her being a half-elf, but when it comes to relationships like that, I believe she’d stand up for herself if it came down to it. The way she said that his wife might have left to "test his love" and see if he’d chase after her is a bit worrying to me, but ultimately I think that was her dramatic novels fan self talking and not something that she’d do herself. If she did leave, she would sooo leave a super long dramatic letter about how she felt and the situation and he’d reply and they’d make up I think. ANYWAYS!

Of course everyone needs to be shown some affection once in a while regardless of if she knows well how he is or not, and Marcille would be very unashamed about asking that of him. She’d respect his boundaries with public displays of affection as much as he’d demand it, but she’d be her usual overt self with stealing kisses or making him say I love you regularly. 0 PDA would be rough on her if Chilchuck wanted it that far, but she’d do it, she’d be able to twist it into something endearing too, like her being like "No one else gets to see him this way but me, I have this sweet side of him all to myself" and "He’s just reserved like that, it makes the time when he does show it all the more meaningful", them cuddling a ton as soon as they get home and Marcille feels touch starved, etc etc. So what I’m getting at with all this is: Marcille’s love languages are very self-evident and hard to miss so unless Marcille suddenly acts mopey and doesn’t tell him why, and unless Chilchuck has some anxiety (what with his ex wife just up and leaving without him having been able to see the warning signs), he would feel very confident in her love for him and comfortable in the relationship, if not a little tired or frustrated with some aspects of it if she sometimes does too much.

Meanwhile, like mentioned, even if Chilchuck’s love languages are more subtle, more rooted in casual domesticity rather than big gestures or words, Marcille would see and recognize that and not hold it against him or feel burdened by it. She highly values communication —in a way they both do, even if when it’s about feelings Chilchuck becomes a bit of an ostrich hiding his head underground— so if there’s a problem she’ll for sure confront him about it too. Chilchuck is good at voicing when there are practical problems or when he’s uncomfortable, and Marcille is good at voicing when there are emotional problems, so they’re pretty complementary in that way.

Surprisingly I think if she ever did a marriage proposal it’d be very private though, it’d be a big deal to her and she would want to talk about it in the comfort of their lonesome, already thinking through the grief and how everything would work. I think Chikchuck would also prefer a private proposal, but on the other end I could totally see him thinking she’d love this grand fancy gesture of a big public proposal and organize one for her (Ooh good fic prompt right there). Once they’ve talked it through though they’re both very enthusiastic about it and openly talk about it with friends and coworkers, and Marcille gushes about her fiancé and they both have bachelor parties on their own end and whatnot. The big day would be a fun one, and the daughters would be the perfect wingwomen I believe~

Their love languages

Alright now that the groundwork is done let’s do this thing! Ok so the "official" love languages are words of affirmation, physical touch, gifts (giving and receiving), quality time and acts of service.

Marcille

Starting with Marcille, she’s pretty balanced I’d say! In the sense that she cranks them all to the max. Oh yes, and part of it is that she’s very aware that the time they have together is counted, so she wants to make the most out of every moment.

Idk if it’s fair to say that Marcille has something like separation anxiety, what with her getting mad at Falin when she left and they didn’t see each other for 4 years, and with during canon with Falin and such, because they’re all intense situations that don’t necessarily show how clingy(or not) she would be under normal circumstances (and she doesn’t live with them so she’s def ok with distance to some degree), but also I def think it’s fair to say that due to her experiences with loss she’s scared of taking her eye off of someone she loves for one moment and for them to disappear, also like how we see her talk to Izutsumi when she thinks she’s going to prison. All that to say that yes, quality time!! She adores quality time, she’s the kind to soak up in someone’s presence even if they’re doing completely different things in the same room. She loves talking with him, cooking with him, bathing with him, even just chilling on the couch together. Post-canon they’d both be rather busy I imagine, so it only makes those moments they share more important. They’re trying out the long distance thing and making it work with the power of communicating well 🙏 Again, she’s big on acts of service, would resurrect you, would bathe you, would nurse you back to health or do something for you. Since she’s observant I could see her noticing subtle things in Chilchuck’s routine that she could help with, like getting his mug of coffee for him each morning, etc. I feel like those things are so natural to her that she wouldn’t mention them to Chilchuck or talk about how she does these things, so if she’s doing too much Chilchuck has to tell her because she won’t realize otherwise.

Gifts. We see with how she showers Chil in apology gifts intended to be from him to his family that she does value gifts! Giving wise, I think she’d be the type to be out shopping, see something that reminds of you then get it for you casually. It’s probably resulted in a few joke gifts that did not land lol, like idk modern AU a grumpy cat mug, or socks with "If you can read this bring me a beer" written underneath them. She’ll also put her heart and soul into gifts sometimes, especially for birthdays which mark the passage of time for her and even if a year passes by a little fast she makes it a point to always always go all out about it, she wants to show that he matters to her and thinks of him a lot, so she’ll put all of herself into picking out an heartfelt gift. She can get a little stressed and perfectionist over it but she does genuinely enjoy picking out gifts and giving them. Receiving wise, she’s also super big on it! She’s the kind to instantly value gifts more than other, maybe better suited options she has, like if you give her an ugly hair accessory or a mug she’ll 100% use them all the time from then on… Until she passes onto something new and the item gets sidelined a bit, but then when she’ll find it again years from then on she’ll be struck by memories and emotions and how much it all meant to her. I could see Chil getting her choker necklaces like she often wears for example, or books he can’t begin to understand about magic theory. It’s not as much of a ‘love language’ as the other ones I think, but she does really appreciate them, and if Chil makes an effort to get her flower bouquets somewhat regularly it would for sure make her feel really loved and happy. Oh yes! Also I def think that if she took up sewing or (personal hc) she’d love felting bc of when she did a tiny Izutsumi with her hair, she’d love making handmade gifts! She’d weave him a bracelet. She’d write him letters and put a nice scented oil on them.

Physical touch ohhh she’s big on touch. Even platonically we see that she’s very casual with her touches and does it a ton to most people (mostly Falin, Izutsumi and Chilchuck, but with her being a healer it also happens with Laios etc) and likes to cuddle or hang onto others, in daydream hour artworks, when sleeping with Izutsumi in an extra, etc etc. Even if she had a romantic partner I think she’d keep doing that with her friends and maybe even favoring Falin when she’s there for platonic touch, but I also def think that she’d be super touchy feely with her partner both in public and in private. As long as it doesn’t interfere with what Chil’s doing and he can remain cool and collected™️ he wouldn’t mind I think, so they’d be holding hands often and like, if he were to sit down on a couch with a beer she’d just drape herself over him and they’d chill out there (until they talk and she makes him laugh too hard and he spits his beer out all over them rip), not unlike how Izutsumi would. But YES physical touch is def a big love language for her, wether they’re arguing or just sharing a soft moment together, if he put his hand to her cheek gently she would melt into his touch. And she loves doting on others herself and touching them and feeling like they’re real and warm and alive, so yes yes touch is a big thing to her. Words of affirmation aren’t a big deal to her to give out, because it’s so natural to her, but they would mean a lot to her to receive. She can get insecure and feel lonely/alone, and having someone be supportive and tell her that she is valued like in the mandrake chapter lifts a lot of weight off of her shoulders, and I imagine that’s doubly meaningful when the words are each and all true and earned when they come from Chil. Whenever he says "I love you" unprompted it’s like an arrow to the heart. Again, if he made the effort to be romantic and like idk, tell her poetic things like it’s a love letter she would absolutely melt. "My boyfriend is the best, most romantic most loving most virtuous man" @ everyone in hearing distance etc etc. She wants to keep his words all to herself and be a little greedy but just maybe while kicking her feet she’d go "and then he said blablabla~" with friends and coworkers at the palace (who may or may nit be willing listeners lol).

So because of all of this, of how she values all of them, I think she’d cherish whichever love language her partner does the least! She likes variety, and like we’ve talked a bit she adapts herself to whoever she’s with a bit. She’s personally a big cuddler, but she’d value whenever Chilchuck says that he loves her etc more in the end because she knows how much that means for him and how many feelings were put into that gesture for her.

She wants the full range of affection, everything that someone is ready to offer. She wants the full storybook romance experience babyy, if it’s a crumb of love she’ll take it and gobble it up whichever form it takes. They all mean something to her in different ways.

Chilchuck

Chilchuck is more picky. He knows what he likes and what he doesn’t like, and he doesn’t like to compromise much (though learning to do so is part of his arc in canon). His favorites are acts of service and words of affirmation, and physical touch selectively, imo.

First of all, Chilchuck is a more private person by nature, but I think it’s also worth pointing out that he has some stress over how things ended with his wife, so someone growing on him and him getting to trust them etc also just takes slower. Wether you think Chilchuck will largely be open and comfortable once the confession’s done and they’re dating, or if him opening up and growing used to being loving and loved again is more gradual even throughout their romantic relationship, his love languages will differ depending on what "stage" he is at. For example, I think he’d actually love receiving words of affirmation, they’re just not his highest priority and he needs to highly value them and trust them first, trust that they’re not lies or that you don’t have shit judgement. For the rest of this though I’ll assume they’ve been dating for a good while and have grown used to it and are very familiar with each other. Like Marcille maybe his insecurities creep up on him sometimes, but with the power of communication and support those moments tend to be short lived 💪 She keeps him from using alcohol as a bad coping mechanism & distraction too much.

Ok so starting out with quality time… I’ll get it out of the way but yes I think they’d be sexually active, though with how they work away from each other like with his wife and he spent 4 years holding out fr her his libido isn’t as intense as we’d asssume I think, and for elves "often" might be like once a month, so who knows. This is gonna come back in the physical touch section~ But yes Chilchuck spent a lot of time away from his family, so I think if he values quality time he super values the quality more than the quantity of time spent together. That said, I also headcanon that he gets stuck in his head a bunch about it so as long as he thinks about his family to motivate him on the job for example, he also half-asses the time he spends home and he’s generally too tired to go out and do big things, just wanna relax, so idk!! He might be a bit of a neglectful lover and Marcille needs to poke him so they go out on dates, but yes I think in a similar way to Marcille he really appreciates the time just spent together, even if it’s working on their own thing in the same room. As for conversations or emotionally meaningful moments, I think emotional stuff tires him out quickly, unlike with Marcille where she seeks emotional stimulation from books, so spending time being heartfelt and vulnerable together would be appreciated, but would need to be kinda rare for him to not be exhausted dead lying on the pavement and unable to keep up. Feeling gets him tired too, he never knows wether to repress or let the love grow or how to word what he’s feeling etc etc. At least at first, dates that are activities and allows him to just have fun without thinking much are best. It’ll take him time to grow more used to feeling emotionally naked with her and for it to come more easily and naturally, but they’ll get there and they’ll be sooo domestic. So in the end! Quality time is appreciated but not particularly important, Chilchuck can really keeps the love going even when spending a loooong time away from each other or keeping the moments spent together casual. Oh yes I haven’t gone into that in any of my posts so far I think, but part of why he’s so casual and seemingly dismissive with his wife imo is because the relationship was sooo based on familiarity, respect and trust to him, they’ve been together forever, he trusted that they loved each other and were in this together and that he didn’t have to be extra for her to feel comfortable in the relationship because he trusted that she knew him well enough, trusted that she would stay with him even if their relationship wasn’t perfect, etc etc. So imo as long as he’s like "I love her and that’s enough for me, I trust that if there’s something up she’ll tell me and we can figure it out, I trust in our relationship to stay strong even if we don’t see each other much" then he can seem very casual and neglectful from an outside perspective. But make no mistake he thinks about her all the time and sighs forlornly because he wants to sleep in her arms after a hard day of work and has horny dreams of her 10/10 she matters a lot to him.

Acts of service!!! Biiig big one, there’s little more that Chilchuck values receiving than respect, though he’s much more stingy about giving it out, what with his teasing and insulting snappy remarks and how he’s always laughing at Marcille in canon. But yes like mentioned just before, Chilchuck likes familiarity in a relationship, so his partner anticipating his needs and going out of their way to do services for him would be suuper appreciated and would make him feel loved, would make him feel understood which in turn makes him feel safe that he doesn’t have to try and be someone he’s not to satisfy her and that she understands him well enough that she wouldn’t leave him due to miscommunication. Doing big favors would also be appreciated, but he prefers to live a routinely daily life imo so the acts of service would show themselves in small ways, like idk letting the water run in the bath because he knows Marcille will want to take a relaxing bath when she comes home from work. It’s definitely the love language that he does/give out the most imo, they’re the way he’s most comfortable showing that he cares and that he thinks of them and that he loves them, and he can feel safe doing them in any context wether he has all the eyes in the world on him or if they’re alone. He’s also generally protective, and looking out for her would fit into this category imo. But yes post-canon, I think one way in which this shows is that he’d do her hairdos, maybe even daily if possible. He loves blonde hair and he’s agile with his fingers, but he doesn’t value complicated hairdos much, but he’d learn a lot of hairdos for her, because he loves her and knows how it was once super important to her, and also bc he wants her to slay out there and at the same time he’s doing himself a favor by prettying it up hehe. He had a thing for undone long hair but he loves Marcille and when in the final chapters her hair was all messy the unfamiliar sight of it unsettled him, so besides just wanting her to get through the day without eating her hair and getting the urge to shave it all off, he also just does it because it feels so her and he remembers that side of her fondly (yes, even if that used to make her take even longer to get ready in the mornings).

Might surprise you might not but I think gifts are everything to him. Like the cowl from his daughter that he always wears, and all the mementos from his family we see he keeps in his room, like the dragon plush and the flower. Maybe they help him feel that the love people hold for him is real and exists/has existed at least at one point, maybe it’s about the memories, maybe it’s about being able to keep hanging onto them even after a relationship is over, idk!!!! But I think having gifts from his loved ones makes him feel like his life is fuller and warmer and like he always has some love surrounding him. For that reason he would super value gifts that Marcille would get for him. She overdoes it a bit and often gets him stuff for no particular occasions, mostly stuff that’s useful and that gets consumed so it’s not a problem or a bother though, but when it sticks it sticks, like a durable pair of gloves in a style he likes that she got for him. I don’t think photographs exist (at least not for the non-dwarves) but if they did oooh he’d be keeping stacks of them, would have some framed, he wouldn’t want people to know because he thinks he’d look corny but he wouuuuuld. He’d also have the "this reminds me of Marcille" moments when out into town, looking at jewelry or food that she likes (I imagine this is often the sort of gift/act of service he’d get for her, meals that he picked out because she loves them), but he’d also have the instinct to get her a gift on special occasions, and he’s s bit clumsy with it but he wants to make the item meaningful. He knows what she thinks is romantic, the woman has made plans for him to apologize to his wife with gifts after all, but he also knows that she loves gifts that scream "him" too so the man just doesn’t know what to do to make it as best as he could and he really doesn’t want to fuck it up. I think once he’d made a little metal sculpture-puzzle for her, like a little rabbit out of metal scraps, and he’d be so self-conscious about it but my god she’d adore it sooo much. It’d be cute if he got her a locket, even, and then with the help of imported dwarven technology they could get a picture of them or even all their friends into it and it becomes her most precious item for the following centuries. Ouuugh that’d make a sweet fic where he plans out a birthday party for her…… But yes yes, practical gifts… He knows she values ornamental useless things, unlike him, and though he doesn’t fully approve he also wants to do right by her so he’d go out of his comfort zone and find pretty gifts for her. I touch upon it a bit in my fic Grind Me Down Sweetly (named bc ground coffee beans & it’s meant to be like her slowly getting through the walls he built around himself :] Finding a newfound vulnerability with someone new but finding it soothing, sweet even if a lil bitter bc it’s coffee), and for example he gives her money for a favor she did for him as a friend. She doesn’t want to accept it, because to her doing something for her friend to help them out is more meaningful than getting rewarded for it, but for him respecting each other’s time and abilities is a big thing too. They end up compromising somewhat, because she then spends that money on gifts for him/them to share, so it ends up being a gift to the both of them for a shared effort~

Alrighty physical touch. In canon we see him get touched quite a lot, and when it isn’t patronizing or crowding (like others going to pet his head) he doesn’t seem to mind at all. But it’s a question of wether he’d enjoy it here. We don’t really saw that I think? He often doesn’t mind touching others but usually his touches have a practical purpose like pushing or pulling someone out of danger, and when it isn’t he doesn’t seem to enjoy it, like when Izutsumi sleeps in his bed. As far as I remember the only time we see him happy for touch beyond the few meaningful hugs like when he wanted the party to head back to the surface, was when his succubi were seducing him, sooo overall I get the feeling he’s not big on touch. Like being open with his feelings it’s something he’d keep for the more occasional time rather than something he does often. He is casual with touches but doesn’t give it out and seek it out naturally, so Marcille being very clingy’s not a problem, and as we see with Izutsumi always sleeping with him he’s ready to sacrifice his comfort for others too sometimes. I think being Marcille’s lover though I feel like he’d warm up to touches more, like she’d love to have him rest his head on her lap and to massage his scalp so eventually Chil looks forward to that as part of their routine and it relaxes him and feels right. I think he does like kissing, the routine goodbye peck feels warm and soothing, but with touch what he’d like the most would be making out and having sex and whatnot. Listen it’s super meaningful to him like, the peak of being vulnerable and naked and pouring out his emotions for someone for him. But yes she hangs onto his arm, holds his hand, goes to hug him from behind when he’s cooking, etc etc, and he doesn’t dislike it, but it’s not one of his love languages perse in that sense. It’s more that physical touches are a part of her, so he associates those with her, and so in a way he quite likes them, but it’s nit something he gravitates towards.

Words! I forget what I’ve mentioned already and what I haven’t oof, but yes Chilchuck values respect a lot, and with his last relationship he now values straightforward communication a lot. "If you want to leave me, at least please tell me first" style. But just with the way he is in canon too, where he hypes up his professional skills a lot, getting earned praised does mean something to him. Inversely, he devalues himself interpersonally quite a bit, calling himself a coward or selfish etc etc, and ultimately it’s Marcille telling him that he was a virtuous husband and that he may still have a shot with his wife that makes him see the glass half full and reflect on himself more positively! Remember what I said about Chilchuck first needing to value someone’s opinion before putting stock in their words? This is the canon moment that makes me feel the most like she earned that trust from him, he values what she says and her perspective. He knows her words aren’t empty and he’s able to trust in them more than he trusts his own judgement about himself. So yes yes, he loves getting told that he has qualities, that he’s skilled and manly and handsome and virtuous and kind, though he doesn’t need to be told "I love you" he’d still find it nice ofc. I say this because as I’ve said I think his way of being in a longterm relationship is soaking in the familiar casual soothing energy of it, he loves knowing her and noticing the little things (much like her with how she notices that he hates having to wait on someone for example), and he trusts her love in him, so he doesn’t feel like being told I love you is necessary, but it is a nice bonus.

And this is the bit where the post I linked at the beginning becomes especially relevant. I think Chilchuck shows his affection in subtle but thoughtful ways that showcase just how much they know each other, because to him love languages are less about proving how much love one holds for another but about defining the bond that they share, about quality more than quantity. He’s not one for big gestures, he just wants to feel connected with the person he’s with. Access intimacy, in-jokes, being protective/attack dogism, knowing the little details (Marcille’s favorite) and voluntary vulnerability… These truly ARE more in line with how Chilchuck shows his affection. And thus Marcille would see them for what they are and greatly value them as well.

Last points

… Help I forgot to talk about how teasing is like their whole thing lol

Ok so more concisely, Marcille will receive and give as much affection as she’s allowed, while Chilchuck needs to have the right setting right mood for it and makes more efforts for her sake to outwardly show it.

Edited in: Short section about pet names!! Chilchuck likes to call people by name and finds that in itself to be intimate but with half-foot names having ‘first names’ where Chilchuck’s is Chil, he might instinctively shorten it to Marci. Otherwise I’ve thought it’d fun if he gave bunny themed pet names teasingly, like his silly rabbit like the meme or harebrain rip, ‘bun’ would have the benefit of being related to food… But also I could see him defaulting to calling her ‘love’, ESPECIALLY if they had a conversation about pet names and discussed it- it could be a more sustainable way for her to feel loved since he’s not regularly showing his affection outwardly much or saying "I love you", that’d be sooo sweet I think. They discussed pet names, and since he doesn’t regularly say "I love you" or show affection all that much, having him call her love as a pet name eases all of that and makes her feel so special and loved. He takes a bit of time to get used to it and not feel silly and self-conscious, but nowadays it slips off the tongue so easily.

How do they communicate their wants for affection: Marcille will blatantly ask for it and/or make the first move herself, except for when she senses that Chil is tired and needs his space. Chilchuck will blink in morse code, and Marcille will somehow understand (to his upmost relief and adoration). He’ll grab her sleeve subtly to ask for her attention and touch, wordlessly walk up to her and reach for her face to leave a tender kiss on her lips, quietly speak to her if he wants to tell her something. And, you know, the other half of the time he feels horny and on top of the world so he indulges her wants for big passionate gestures and being very blunt and forward about it.

What do they view as signs of affection: They recognize each other’s way of showing affection well enough, but it’d be more about which signs they prefer I’d say. For example, Chilchuck does love getting smothered by her kisses and affection sometimes, but if it’s in public 99% of the time the embarrassment will win over, so it ends up meaning more to him that she doesn’t, that she holds back for his sake and she loves him enough to do that and she doesn’t blame him for it and she cares and she would stay with him even if he’s maybe flawed and- It means a lot!!! It’s like an act of service in that way. They compromise and do acts of service sooo much for each other, like she hurries in her care routine so he doesn’t have to wait on her for long, but then he sees her get out ready with her hair a mess and he takes the time to tie it up nicely for her. But yes Marcille overanalyzes everything and will seek out signs of affection into literally anything, but values whichever way to show affection she knows is hardest to do for Chil beyond the ones that feel so heartwarming because they just scream "Chil" to her. Meanwhile Chilchuck values her keeping in mind his boundaries, values her words and her being there for him, an unchanging fixture in his life offering him unconditional love through thick and thin. He values how well they know and understand each other, and how they communicate when things don’t feel as easy. Like, you know, when one of them becomes a dungeon lord and threatens humanity for example.

The compromises that being in a romantic relationship inevitably brings, and having to put some efforts to understand the other person and better the relationship, are points at the heart of Chilchuck’s plot with his wife imo. With the bicorn chapter, Marcille and Chilchuck have already hashed out a lot of their differences and come to a deeper understanding, so I’d say they’re halfway there to making it work :) Oohh what if I gave you hope in the world sometimes being a good bright p’ace where things can go right and love can be fulfilling and rewarding, and what if you gave me a concrete real example of the virtuous man figure that I’ve always idealized in books even if no one real can be as flawless, and the compromise both our outlooks on lives mixed to make made something beautiful and productive…

A bit like how the sweet & salty sandwich feels like an ill-fitting mix of ingredients but still tastes surprisingly good… Like perhaps a sweet woman and a sour man would go well together after all.

I’ll share this lil marchil song analysis @thatsmimi did once of Soap by The Oh Hellos to be the note I leave this post on~

#Ask #Marchil #Sorry according to my dates this was asked on like the first of december aka 2 months ago. I had 67 drafts when writing this up at first #Which dates it a lot already lmao #About the Marcille changes her fave love language depending on her partner thing: for farcille I think it’d be gifts and acts of service #For laimar I think it’d be words and acts of service and- Dammit it also depends on when in the timeline it’s set #Marcille donato #chilchuck tims #dungeon meshi #delicious in dungeon #Yahoo I am now freeeeeee #Spoilers #dungeon meshi manga spoilers #Love languages #character analysis #ship analysis #analysis #This is 6k words #Headcanons #I feel so 🤓 rn I’m sorryyy I just love this topic it’s like getting to the core of each character’s psychology and shit it’s so AAAAAH #Handing you this post like a cat bringing you a bird’s corpse #They’re literally bittersweet ough they get to me