#//Heck; this just spiraled lmao

[perhaps-in-anotherdream]

[CN] Victor x MC – S2 CH 37 – Part 2 (Eng Translation)

“Being by your side is not ‘luck.’ It’s destiny.”

“This person in front of me is the origin of my strength, my safe haven, and the direction of my voyage returning home.”

Do remember to read PART 1 first: Here!

⌚ This post contains detailed spoilers for a chapter that is yet to be released on the global server. ⌚

•─────⋅◍♡◍⋅─────•

–

✧ [CH 37-9] ✧

While MC is reflecting on how she’s gotten back what belongs to her (i.e., CORE) but doesn’t know how to use it, and how NW may require longer to develop a cure——

Anna calls to make sure everything is okay with her (MC hasn’t contacted her since the NW CORE study began and handed over responsibilities to her).

After confirming everything is great with her company——

MC: That’s great. Then I can keep my back straight and report to CEO Victor!

–

━━━ [Cut To The Road, Narrator POV] ━━━

Just as Anna hangs up the phone, Kiki, who’s been waiting on the roadside to catch a bus together, comes over.

Kiki: Anna, what did the boss say? Is she okay?

Anna: She’s very good. It’s just that...

Kiki: What’s wrong?

Anna: It’s not much. Just now, after learning that the company’s benefit is good, MC said she would have the confidence to report to CEO Victor...

Anna: But which CEO Victor was she talking about?

–

━━━ [Cut Back To Victor’s House, MC POV] ━━━

The sunlight shines through the gauze curtains, casting a bright shadow on my face. I open my eyes, only to find that it’s already daylight.

After washing up, I habitually walk over to the dining table with ease. While browsing the news, I look at Victor’s figure from time to time, who is preparing breakfast.

Not long after, he comes to the table with two plates of egg rolls and shoots me a glance.

Victor: You are pretty self-conscious in this regard.

MC: After all, a good breakfast is the only way to have the strength to start a new day.

Victor pulls out a chair and sits opposite me, pushing over a plate of egg rolls.

Victor: So what does a certain someone plan to do after breakfast?

MC: Whether it’s the blood disease or the mechanical boxes, now there are people following up on them.

MC: The only thing making no progress is the overlapping phenomenon. So I’m thinking, why not enter an overlapping zone and have a look?

A little troubled, I pick up a table knife and paddle it through the egg roll, watching the tender golden puree slowly flowing out.

MC: The news just said the fluctuations in the space-time overlap zones are becoming more and more widespread, and the frequency of their appearance is increasing too.

MC: And if this goes on, it will soon cover the entire Loveland City.

Victor pours half a cup of coffee in an unhurried manner.

Victor: You ought to know that numerous eyes have their gazes fixed on the CORE right now.

MC: I’m mentally prepared for that. The biggest inconvenience at the present stage, though, is only the leech-like NW.

MC: They need CORE for their experiment, so they will always want to ensure that I’m under their radar.

MC: However, because of the cooperation regarding the effective cure, they supposedly won’t act rashly for the time being.

MC: And if they do take the trouble to find a door, I can act according to the circumstances when the situation calls for it.

Victor: Good analysis. But aside from the NW, you still have a thornier opponent.

Victor cuts off a corner of the egg roll as he speaks.

MC: …hm?

A little confused, I look at Victor and hear him speak.

Victor: [dramatic×3 voice LOL]  BLACK SWAN.

I’m rendered slightly speechless, almost thinking I’ve misheard.

MC: …it’s not supposed to be a cold joke?

Victor: …of course not.

Victor: BS is coming up with a plan for an operation, and there is a high probability that CORE will be included in it.

Victor: [even more dramatic]  And just yesterday, you revealed the information that CORE is inside you to the BOSS of BS.

My movements freeze for a moment, and the knife in my hand is clenched involuntarily, producing a noise against the porcelain plate.

After a few moments, I tug at the corners of my lips with a wry smile as the cause and effects flash through my brain at lightning speed.

MC: It’s really like manna from heaven, falling right at the doorstep of BS.

MC: This meal I’m having now… it’s not gonna be my last breakfast, is it?

Victor lowers his gaze noncommittally, taking a sip of his coffee. Resting my chin on my hand, I observe his expression for a while and speak to sound out.

MC: BOSS, will you cut me some slack and act as if nothing happened?

Victor: Certainly not. But I can give you an opportunity to ask questions.

Victor: If used correctly, this can become your winning point.

Sensing the atmosphere loosening up, I put down the knife and ask a little insatiably.

MC: For the sake of previously having worked for the organization for so long, could I get an extra chance?

Victor raises an eyebrow, a hint of helplessness flashes across his eyes, and his expression seems to be one of acquiescence. I seize this opportunity to think for a while, and suddenly something occurs to me.

MC: Hold on a sec. The thing about the CORE being inside me, did you only find out about this yesterday?

Victor chuckles softly, wiping the corner of his lips.

Victor: Nope.

…as expected. No wonder he didn’t seem surprised at all yesterday.

Having the vague conjecture in my mind verified, I hesitate a moment before speaking again.

MC: So when did you find out about this?

Victor: Around the meteor event.

–

[Tidbits]: He’s here referring to the events of post-CH 18 to pre-CH 25. In CH 18, after escaping NW, Victor asked someone to verify MC’s report the two of them had found, and the CH ended with him meeting with Time Observer Zero. As confirmed in CH 26, he was at the Space-time Bureau during the time he was MIA, and upon returning, chased MC out of BS, among many other things he did~ (PAIN WHO ಥ⁠_⁠ಥ)

–

My eyes widen slightly. Incredulous, as I’m about to ask more questions, Victor cuts me off as though he’s already anticipated for me to do so.

Victor: Let’s end that one here. As I said, it’s a one-time opportunity only.

MC: [sulking]  ...

I bitterly take the final bite of my egg roll, muttering under my breath.

MC: ...you truly are a man of your word.

MC: But hearing what you’ve said, I, on the contrary, feel there isn’t any need to worry about BS.

MC: After all, the formidable BOSS of BS already knew CORE was on me before I had explained the circumstances to him.

MC: If he really wanted to do something to me, BS would have already done it a long time ago, wouldn’t it?

Victor raises an eyebrow at my words.

Victor: You’ve drawn this conclusion too rashly and haven’t taken the entire range of possibilities into consideration.

Victor: Perhaps BS didn’t take any action before because the timing wasn’t ripe. And perhaps now, the time has arrived.

Victor: Of course, utilizing the power of CORE requires your cooperation. Therefore, you can consider whether you want to cooperate with BS and, through this, get rid of those inconveniences.

There’s a calmness and weighing up in his tone, as though he is confronting a cooperative partner at the same level, or an opponent across the chessboard who cannot be underestimated.

I cock my head and ponder for a moment.

MC: Very tempting conditions, but I refuse.

MC: Although you have downplayed it, in the light of what I’ve heard and my experience in the past, this partnership cannot be that simple.

MC: Even if the problem is solved using BS, it’d still cost me an equal amount of price.

MC: [that smug smile LOL] This agrees with CEO Victor’s business principles, does it not?

MC: And right now, I don’t intend to create diversions for myself by anything other than the overlapping space-time incident.

Victor taps his fingertips on the dining table.

Victor: Back to the overlapping phenomenon, then. How do you plan to settle this?

MC: I’m thinking of investigating that space thoroughly first, then finding out more about CORE from it and accelerating the process of controlling it.

MC: Since this phenomenon is generated by the awakening of the CORE, there is a certain possibility that it will be bound by the CORE.

MC: The prerequisite is that I have complete control of this power.

Seemingly disapproving, Victor shakes his head.

Victor: One point, the quantity of time you’ll require to be able to control CORE is unknown. Perhaps before then, the space-time overlap will cover the entire Loveland City.

MC: ...then l’ll change the direction. Oh right! Aside from developing effective medicine, NW is also carrying out research on the CORE.

MC: If I add clauses in the cooperation with NW... or just infiltrate NW, perhaps I’ll be able to find crucial information?

Victor releases an imperceptibly soft laugh.

Victor: But you should also be clear that putting your hopes on NW is tantamount to giving up the initiative.

MC: …indeed.

The loopholes in my envisagement are unsparingly pointed out one by one. I open my mouth, only to find myself rendered utterly speechless.

Victor straightens up a little and speaks in a manner as though making an invitation.

Victor: The cooperation with BS will not affect your resolving of the space-time overlap. On the contrary, it may also be a help to you.

MC: Is there any connection between the two?

Victor: The phenomenon of space-time overlapping is a part of the Prophecy of Fatima.

–

[Tidbits]: I won’t go into much detail here, but the “Prophecy of Fatima” is a series of apocalyptic visions and prophecies. In the MLQC verse, BS was originally founded in 1908 to prevent those prophecies from happening by a group of 12 from the future who weren’t part of this world until, of course, the organization was led astray. There will be a little more about this later~ [see how the CH name and tagline are SO significant ಥ⁠‿⁠ಥ]

–

MC: Hold on... the Prophecy of Fatima? What’s that?

I blink a little in puzzlement at the quick succession of unknown information. However, Victor raises his eyebrows with his expression of remaining calm in the hour of peril, not answering my question.

Victor: This is confidential content of BS, and is not to be shared with anyone who isn’t a member of the organization.

Victor: Of course, if we were to enter a partnership, I’d consider disclosing it.

MC: ...

I ponder for a moment, sighing resignedly.

MC: Come to think of it, I seem to have never been able to say no to your proposals.

Victor: You will always have the right to choose.

Victor: [gets more mischievous LOL]  But accordingly, I will also designate more terms so that you’re incapable of refusing.

His tone is laced with that familiar certainty and calmness, and I involuntarily curl the corners of my lips.

MC: In that regard, our partnership is confirmed, then?

I hold out my pinky to Victor as I speak, wiggling it lightly. He straightens up knowingly and hooks my pinky finger.

Victor: Mm, the partnership is confirmed.

His voice is solemn, as though it’s not a childish agreement, but a real contract.

I unconsciously reel in my relaxed posture and lock eyes with his focused gaze.

The dining table in front of us seems to have turned into a negotiating table. And the promise of this moment is the most solid commitment of all.

I withdraw my hand and look at my pinky, the corners of my lips arching up.

MC: Reaching the negotiation benignly with clear terms, and each playing their part for the common good after leaving the table…

MC: So, this is how it feels like to be your partner.

Victor’s hand lifting the plate pauses in its motion, and he looks at me a little helplessly, a peal of intermittent laughter flowing through his tone.

Victor: The partnership with you began a long time ago, back in the day when I invested in [MC’s Company Name].

Victor: Or do you need me to pull out the resources and let you fight for the funding once more so that you can feel the process of reaching the cooperation all over again?

–

[Anika’s Notes]: Fighting for funding incident never happened in S2, MC’s company thrived from the beginning as she did her best under his guidance since MC was 18 & Victor was 24. So this is yet another hint at either him remembering or seeing (at space-time bureau) his S1 memories~ 👀 PG gib us the R&S dammit ಥ⁠‿⁠ಥ

–

•─────⋅◍♡◍⋅─────•

–

✧ [CH 37-11] ✧

Victor’s actions are in motion without the slightest delay, as always. The day after we’ve reached the partnership, arrangements for me to participate in the operation are already prepared.

The metal doors of the private elevator slowly close in front of us. Recalling what he told me last night, I speak with uncertainty.

MC: Would it be a bit risky for me to sneak into the Twelve main gods...

Victor: All successes are accompanied by risks. You can trust my judgment.

Victor: [sulking]  Or is it that the cooperative partner I have chosen doesn’t have faith in me?

Victor says, pressing a few floor keys.

His gaze is as calm as it has always been, as though there isn’t anything in this world worth worrying about.

MC: It certainly is not. Being with you, I’ve never needed to worry about anything.

—

Victor leaves MC with the necessary instructions.

As planned, MC meets Anole (yes, it’s the S2 ver. of that appearance changing evolver from S1), and he helps MC put on the disguise of one of the Twelves, who is absent from today’s meeting by design [keep MC’s disguise in mind]***

Amid the grave, quiet ambiance of the meeting, Victor discloses that the organization has located CORE.

As expected, it gives rise to enthusiastic clamors, and people “express their different views” towards the CORE – Hades wanting to wipe away “inferior humans” (!ofc🤡), while others hoping to lead the path to evolution.

Having silently watched the drama so far, Victor declares that the carrier of CORE has infiltrated in disguise at his behest in this very conference room, but he won’t disclose the person’s identity.

That declaration, again, stirs everyone up while MC relishes on the side LOL~ :>

Victor then announces that he has more to say:

—

Victor: BLACK SWAN has always paid particular attention to impartiality.

Victor: Opportunities and information are never miserly to those who are trustworthy. This, of course, also includes CORE.

Victor: Therefore, what you guys have to do is prove that you are worthy of this information, and this trust.

His gaze slowly glides over the crowd, his eyes gleaming with a cold light.

Victor: But equally, if someone brings about harm to BLACK SWAN…

Victor: This information, then, will forever remain sealed.

Hades narrows his eyes with a bleak expression.

Hades: What does BOSS mean by this, does he suspect a devil among us?

As though he’s heard something incredibly ridiculous, Victor curls the corners of his lips, but there is no trace of warmth in his eyes.

Victor: It appears that everyone here has a poor memory.

Victor: Do I need to take some time out of the main gods’ meeting to help you all recall the STF’s suppression of BS?

MC: !?

The conference room lapses into a deadly silence within a split second. Victor’s cold words reverberate in the large room.

Victor: I’ve already warned some of you before. Who is doing what behind the scenes, I’m well aware of everything.

Victor: But you guys tried to test the limits of my acceptance, and even drew inconveniences to the organization.

Victor’s voice grows heavier.

Victor: The previous purges were simply the beginning. All factors that are not conducive to BS will be removed one by one.

–

[Tidbits]: He’s referring to S2 CH 25 chasing outs btw~

–

Victor: Dionysus, who was arrested a few days ago, was one of them. But he is not worth pitying, and someone more powerful will take his position.

Victor: And everyone present here is equally replaceable.

Everyone in the conference room falls silent, each with different expressions written on their faces. I seize the moment and open my mouth in an ambiguous voice.

MC: Since disclosing the CORE among us is not on the agenda, I’m assuming BOSS has something else to announce?

Victor’s eyes sweep over the faces of everyone one by one. Although I know his plan, I still shiver a little when I meet his tranquil gaze.

Victor: There is indeed something more important for you guys to witness.

Victor: This is the fundamental purpose for which you have become the twelve main gods.

—

With these words, everyone is instantly and abruptly brought to a desolate wasteland from the conference room, leaving them utterly shocked.

MC notes a uniquely shaped slab of stone standing tall behind Victor, its pitch-black color glowing in the bleak daylight, and its design is unlike anything she’s seen before.

At Artemis’s snarky urging, Victor explains unhurriedly:

—

Victor: In 1908, the ones who originally established BS came here.

Victor: They founded BS for the same objective, to change a prophecy.

At these words, someone in the crowd lets out an impatient, light sneer.

??: BOSS, we have very little interest in the development history of BS. Let’s not waste everyone’s time.

Victor’s voice becomes even heavier.

Victor: If you don’t have the patience for that, you may leave right now.

The crowd, which has been stirring restlessly, lapses into silence after a few moments of whispering. Amid the stillness enshrouding the entire surrounding, the complex emotions of crossing swords seem to be surging.

Victor: The original purpose of BS was more than just human evolution; it was simply a way to accomplish the ultimate goal.

Victor: But in the process, someone tampered with the original purpose and falsified the prophecy itself.

Victor: And today, I am here to rectify it.

Victor turns around, looking behind him with an indifferent expression.

Victor: Now, does anyone else have an objection?

–

•─────⋅◍♡◍⋅─────•

–

✧ [CH 37-12] ✧

Of course, there’s a “polite objection” (from Poseidon) asking for the credibility of the prophecy Victor spoke of and if this place truly is the “Land of Advent.”

Victor, naturally, says he has the means to prove his words. He affirms if the carrier of CORE uses their power on the slab of stone, it will respond to them.  

Knowing it’s her turn to step up, MC is puzzled about how to use the power of the CORE, and if it’s similar to how she used the QUEEN gene in the past.

At this moment, reading MC’s mind as always, Victor throws in the air that “the person simply needs to imagine themselves using the power.”

Getting the hint, MC does so, and not long after, the slab is soon enveloped with luminous white light.

[ Now, here’s a BREATHTAKINGLY BEAUTIFUL description of the “majestic entity” (it sounds kinda sacred actually haha) that emerges, and I’m gonna skip LOL :> ]  Long story short, those lights gradually reveal the silhouette of, literally, a spanning-to-the-sky edifice with the black door sealed with metal chains.

Naturally, it leaves everyone dazed, and as someone tries to get close, the edifice steps back on its own.

—

??: The Land of Advent denies your entry because you guys do not have that qualification.

A male voice suddenly shatters the silence, but it does not belong to anyone present on the scene.

??: Here is the origin of the variables, the endpoint of the omens. The trajectory was extended, and everything began from here.

I follow the voice and see that a man wearing a black cloak has appeared in front of the slab at some point. His face is hidden in the dark hood, making it impossible to see his appearance clearly.

Victor gives him a slight nod in greeting.

Victor: Eos.

??: Eos? How could a first generation of the gods be here?

A question, carrying shock, transmits from the crowd. I look up in some astonishment as I hear someone speak.

??: Haven’t those people all fallen already?

The first generation of gods, fallen... all kinds of unfamiliar details, known only to the insiders, surge to me. They are reminiscent of a clutter of thoughts filling my brain.

I look incredulously at the man behind the hood and see him raise his hand slightly.

The black streams of light suddenly coalesce in the air, and in the next instant, scatter in all directions.

The wisps of darkness grow increasingly thicker, obstructing the entire sky, with only the silhouette of the edifice becoming continuously clearer.

Suddenly, the chains on the gate begin to move. And the moment they crash to the ground with a loud bang, the door opens little by little.

I look towards the door in bewilderment and uncertainty, but can only see the darkness with no end in sight. Immediately afterward, a voice resounds from the depths.

“We come from the future, only with the purpose of better evolution of the human race.

We possess Evol; we create everything.

QUEEN will surely awaken and usher in transformation.

We look forward to walking side by side in the new world.”

For a moment, the only thing that can be heard in the world amid the darkness is that voice, and it’s as if the sound is knocking on the soul.

The familiarity of this content involuntarily makes me clench my fingertips. I suddenly react to something, causing me to be breathless.

...this content, it seems, is a bit different from what I remember.

Heart pounding in my chest, I anxiously recollect for a moment and finally remember the memories in the back of my mind, the content of the manifesto I had seen in the underground of the hacker conference.

–

[Tidbits]: MC is referring to S1 CH 8 btw~ :>

–

Back then, the beams of light cast into that room had reflected these words on the dimly lit wall:

“No one can stand in our way, for we are the ones to rule the world.”

But now, those words have disappeared.

Could this be the part... that Victor said had been tampered with?

Before I have time to think about it clearly, the darkness that pervades the surrounding disperses like a tide, and is replaced by a light that arrives from somewhere unbeknownst to me.

The glaring beam of light makes me close my eyes instinctively, and I can faintly hear shrieks from beside me.

I don’t know how long has passed when I open my eyes extremely cautiously, only to find an empty, pure white space entering my vision.

The slab of stone, the Twelve main gods, the towering edifice... everything has disappeared without any trace whatsoever.

I subconsciously search for Victor, but I’m unable to spot any signs of that familiar silhouette.

In front of me is only a shimmering staircase dappled with soft light, stretching towards the distant sky as though it’s guiding me in a certain direction.

I hesitantly approach and see my own appearance being faintly reflected in the pure and limpid texture of the steps.

MC: ...what’s going on?

I mutter to myself and touch my cheek; then I suddenly hear the sound of footsteps coming from behind me.

I turn back subconsciously and find myself looking into a familiar pair of eyes.

Victor stands behind me, gazing at me calmly, seemingly not at all surprised by what’s happening right now.

My heart, which has been at a loss just now, seems to have found its fulcrum and suddenly calms down. I briskly walk up to Victor.

MC: What is this place? Even Anole’s disguise has lost effectiveness…

Victor shakes his head.

Victor: It’s the first time I’ve been here too.

Victor: Everything here is probably some kind of Evol construction. It’s not surprising that it has resulted in Evol’s ability not working.

Victor’s expression is tranquil and calm, as though what he’s just said isn’t worth paying heed to. I hesitate a moment before opening my mouth.

MC: …so where did the others go?

Victor: This space is only open to the person who possesses CORE. They have been taken to a different space to witness that history.

Victor: When it’s all over, everyone will be returned to the original spot.

MC: Will we also be sent to the place we were just now after we leave here?

MC: …but what should we do now since my disguise is not working? Won’t my identity be revealed?

Victor: It won’t be.

Victor answers me resolutely and decisively. At the same time, I think of something in hindsight.

MC: Phew, that’s good. Wait a minute… why do you know so much about this? Also, why are you allowed to enter this place?

Victor’s eyes land on me with an expression written across his face that says, “why do you have so many questions.”

Victor: I’ve asked Eos to help, and he’s promised I can make it easier for you. So don’t worry. He will see that it’s handled.

Victor says, looking toward the steps of the path of light in front of us.

It spans forward quietly, dissipating at the end in a patchwork of light, as if it’s making a silent call.

Victor seems to feel something as he withdraws his gaze and opens his mouth to me.

Victor: Let’s go, some people should have been waiting for you for a long time.

I nod. Just as I’m about to move forward, my footstep suddenly stops.

MC: One last question! You haven’t told me; why would Eos help with this?

Victor’s eyelashes quiver slightly, and he speaks after a moment of silence.

Victor: I made a deal with him.

I freeze, and then it comes to my realization that there must be some kind of price involved in this deal.

My eyes sweep over Victor at lightning speed, and I speak with some urgency.

MC: What are the conditions he offered? Have you been hurt?

Victor: It’s not important. Since I’ve agreed, I can afford it.

Although he downplays it, I know very clearly that the price asked by the first generation of gods is bound to be not so simple.

This man seems to have always been like this, standing in front of me, calmly paying some price I don’t know about and bearing it all alone.

And then he returns to me as if nothing has happened and tells me that I don’t need to worry about a thing.

My eyes trace over his countenance inch by inch, then I lower my gaze with some astringency, murmuring softly.

MC: Didn’t we agree to just trust me and not let me rely on you?

Victor: [gentlest voice to exist, ever]  That is why I am standing here.

Victor: [continuation x2]  I said I would face it together with you, didn’t I?

I look up in a daze and meet Victor’s eyes.

In this void and quiet world, only his eyes shine with infinite tenderness and certainty.

Like an invitation, or some kind of guidance–– Victor steps on the stairs, turns back to me, and reaches out slightly.

Victor: Let’s go together.

–

•─────⋅◍♡◍⋅─────•

–

✧ [CH 37-13] ✧

The flights of steps before us seems to have no end.

Palms interlaced with each other, as I climb upwards with Victor, I feel as if time has lost its concept, and I already can’t remember how long we’ve been walking.

I only know that if I were to turn around, I would no longer be able to see the beginning point of the zigzagged staircase behind us.

Gradually, my body begins to feel unwell.

I don’t know if it’s the exhaustion from the walk or something else, but the dizziness intensifies with each step forward.

The burning in my chest becomes distinct in my gasp for breaths, as if it were a viscous and boiling swamp that would engulf my consciousness at any moment.

I purse my lips to death. In a trance, I think of that NW experiment I was forced into for stimulating CORE.

At that time, my perception was also obliterated by such a burning pain. Could it be that this staircase is also some kind of system to stimulate CORE?

I take a step up the steps as I struggle to contemplate, and suddenly I feel a fleeting stinging pain in the back of my head as if being pricked by a needle.

My body sways, and I nearly lose my balance. At this moment, a warm, strong hand holds me steady.

Victor: [sounds like he’s in pain]  Can you still go on?

MC: …absolutely. Compared with the NW experiments, it’s not that unbearable.

MC: I’m the chosen carrier of CORE, don’t underestimate me.

I look up as I speak, using all my willpower to lift the corners of my lips into a smile.

Victor looks at me quietly, his gaze clear and tender. He seems to be able to see through all my pretense and persistence amidst the staggering breaths.

After a few moments, he speaks in a low voice.

Victor: Thankfully, you are.

His words are reminiscent of some kind of peaceful sentiments, and I don’t know why but I ask in return:

MC: Is it something to be thankful for?

He replies with a soft “hmm,” and his deep and low voice brushes past my ears, giving my heart a reassuring certainty.

Victor: Even though the dummy I know would’ve seized every glimmer of opportunity with an overflowing zealous heart even if she wasn’t the CORE…

Victor: But CORE always means power.

Victor: With it, you will have more possibilities to solve problems, and also have the authority to choose in the face of many things.

It’s as though a ray of light from the heavens has shone through the foggy haze. I look into that pair of serene eyes and murmur.

MC: Actually, I used to feel that I was forced to take on a lot of heavy things because of the CORE.

MC: There have been many times when I was clearly exhausted, but I still had to persevere and keep going forward.

I say, looking at my empty palm.

MC: But now, I am slowly realizing that CORE has brought me even more than what I have to bear.

MC: As you said, I also have power because of it.

MC: I can change many things, instead of just having to stand still and wait to accept the outcome.

A tinge of warm hue flashes through Victor’s eyes.

Victor: Mm. In that regard, you are very lucky.

MC: Come to think of it, it really seems to be the case.

MC: But it’s not just because I have CORE, but because I’ve had you by my side all along.

As I speak, I sway our interlocked hands, hearing the hint of laughter tinting Victor’s voice.

Victor: In this regard, you are not right.

Victor: Being by your side is not “luck.” It’s destiny.

This familiar certainty causes a warm current to surge through my heart. I look back into his eyes and walk up the steps together with him.

–

[Tidbits]: Reference to the similar words in S1 CH 24 Black Cabin reunion~ ಥ⁠_⁠ಥ

–

The intense pain seems to keep growing as I climb up, the burning sensation spreading from my chest to my entire body.

I can’t help but tighten my hold on Victor’s hand, as if trying to draw some strength from it.

He doesn’t say anything, only holds my hand just as tightly and slows down his pace in accordance with mine.

On the endless staircase, we slowly advance together, the long shadows behind us seeming to blend into one.

I don’t know how long has passed when my almost paralyzed nerves suddenly shiver, reminiscent of a dragonfly lightly touching the water’s surface.

As if sensing something, I raise my head and look to the end of the flights of steps, feeling something that seems to be shimmering among the specks of light.

As if it’s telling me–– the following path is for me to walk on my own.

My body freezes up slightly. Victor immediately lurches to a stop and looks at me, as though waiting for me to say something.

MC: Just accompany me until here.

Victor doesn’t speak, but he doesn’t let go of my hand either. He simply gazes at me quietly for a long time, just like he’s watched me in every moment before as I ran towards the goal.

Victor: Go on, I’ll keep watching you.

I nod. Even though I’m already well aware of the answer to this question since long ago, I still gaze into that pair of eyes and speak softly.

MC: Will you still be here when I come back?

Victor: I’ve told you before, I’ll accompany you. The homeward journey alone is too far. Although I can’t be with you to continue moving forward, I won’t let you return alone.

I stagger up on my tiptoes and hug him, wanting to freeze time for even a second, all so I can sink deeper into this embrace.

The arms falling behind me slowly tighten. Encased by the familiar and reassuring scent, I close my eyes.

This person in front of me is the origin of my strength, my safe haven, and the direction of my voyage returning home.

No matter what lies ahead, as long as he is there, I can always rest easy.

I take deep breaths and soon feel a hand patting my head.

Victor: What happened again?

MC: Accumulating some strength for the rest of the journey ahead.

MC: I don’t know what I’ll encounter up ahead. But all I have to do is think that I’ll be welcomed in your arms, and I’ll be able to keep pressing on.

Victor: …dummy.

His soft and helpless voice brushes against my ear. I reluctantly put down my arms, turn around, and walk up the steps.

The pain cuts through every nerve in my limbs, but I grit my teeth and continue moving forward.

Even when the warmth on my palms is no longer there, I know that Victor is watching me from behind.

The path stretches step by step beneath my feet, and the brilliant rays grow all the more blazing. I look up in a trance and find that I’ve already reached the end of the steps.

The radiance before my eyes scatters into specks of lights, wrapping me in them. It’s as though they are swimming along my figure, dispelling the pain in my body.

The dizziness in my brain finally becomes clear, and the senses slowly return. And my palm seems to become a little heavy.

I lower my head as an afterthought and see that my hand has been holding a golden dagger at some point.

It’s coated with a hazy light and seems to be engraved with some sort of pattern.

Before I can see it clearly, it disappears into my palm the next second.

The light in the space suddenly flares up for a twinkling of a moment and soon returns to softness.

–

━━━ [NARRATOR POV BEGINS] ━━━

At the starting point of the steps, a figure wearing a hood stands beside Victor and speaks slowly.

Eos: Everything is moving forward toward an already determined future. Even if a temporary deviation arises because of her, it will be amended by the will of the world.

Eos: When that juncture arrives, everyone will need her.

There is not a single ripple in Victor’s voice as he speaks.

Victor: [this coldness is utterly different from ANY of his icy voices before]  I brought her here, but it does not mean that I approve of her fulfilling your mission.

Victor: [continuation]  She does not belong to you guys.

The face behind the hood seems to remain unmoved.

Eos: This is not up to you and me to choose. It has all been foreordained a long time ago. Once, for some reason, our observations were confined to that only remaining parallel world.

Eos: We have spent a tremendous amount of time trying to confirm Evol’s survival or otherwise, to investigate its different possibilities. The answer obtained from that is not merely a simple figure. You and I both know that very well.

The man looks towards the end of the stairs, his tone impassive.

Eos: We understand that others will not give their everything for other worlds. Therefore, we accepted being overthrown, and accepted that the prophecy had been falsified. But our goal has never changed from beginning to end.

Eos: Whether for us, the next civilization, or yourselves, she is destined to walk before the world.

Looking at the figure approaching from the distance, Victor opens his mouth, his voice carrying a kind of certainty and determination.

Victor: [again, utterly different from all the times before]  Her existence has never been because other people “need” her.

Victor: [continuation]  She only needs to be herself. She does not have to be any other existence.

Eos’s voice trails off with a faint lilt.

Eos: But there are some things she needs to face eventually.

━━━ [NARRATOR POV ENDS] ━━━

–

•─────⋅◍♡◍⋅─────•

–

✧ [CH 37-15] ✧

A slight residual warmth lingers in my palm as though I can still feel the touch of the dagger.

I find myself immersing in amazement, clutching my palm as I walk down the stairs step by step. From a distance, I can see Victor’s silhouette waiting at the foot of the steps.

Just like he said, he would walk the journey back home side by side with me.

The joy seems to be as light as a feather, overflowing within me. My pace speeds up unconsciously as I run up to him in brisk steps.

Victor’s eyes soften a little imperceptibly, his gaze sweeping over me carefully as though confirming something.

I react in hindsight and speak in a rush.

MC: It’s done. I don’t feel any pain anymore.

Victor’s shoulders seem to slack a bit after hearing my words, and he nods.

Victor: Let’s go, then.

My brimming wonderment parks in my throat, and I tug at his sleeve with some surprise.

MC: Aren’t you gonna ask me anything else?

Victor: I’ve already learned what I wanted to know the most.

Victor: As for the rest, there will be opportunities later.

As soon as the words are out of his mouth, the invisible ripples surface before us once again. Like when we came, the scenes in all directions have begun to blur.

I take Victor’s outstretched hand in mine and close my eyes with my mind at peace.

Within a moment’s work, the originally quiet surrounding suddenly becomes more clamorous, and a slightly cool air brushes past the ears.

I open my eyes and find myself standing on some skywalk somewhere. The tall buildings are faintly visible in the distance in the limpid red twilight.

Not far away, the Twelve main gods are standing scattered in twos and threes, seemingly still immersed in the scene they have just witnessed.

I breathe a small sigh of relief, only to suddenly feel a sharp tightening of the palm holding my wrist.

I look at Victor with some confusion, but see that his brows are tightly furrowed, and a rarely seen grave expression emerges on his face.

My gaze descends unconsciously, falling on my wrist.

The skin that greets my eyes is still smooth, fair and clear, and has not become wrinkled.

MC: !!

A layer of cold sweat violently climbs up my back. How could Anole’s disguise not have been restored?

For an instant, my heart almost stops at half a beat. I turn my head to look at Victor, my voice shivering faintly as I open my mouth.

MC: Didn’t that Eos say he would help us? What should we do now…

In response to my words, a male voice reminiscent of aria rings out from behind me.

Poseidon: Bravo~ I didn’t expect BOSS to prepare such a great show for us.

I turn around and see Poseidon exaggeratedly bowing in Victor’s direction.

His voice draws the attention of the other main gods immersed in their own thoughts, causing them to look toward us, and their eyes land precisely on me without exception.

Their looks of either surprise or hostility turn into a sudden realization almost within a few moments, and they converge on me like wild animals hunting their prey.

Poseidon: Little did we know that underneath the mysterious veil of CORE was actually Nox. Come to think of it, BOSS chasing you out of BS really made us waste a lot of time we could have had with you~

Poseidon saunters over as he speaks, and I can ineffably make out a hint of excitement behind the white mask.

Although not explicitly stated, the meaning beyond Poseidon’s words is to implicate Victor. No matter what, we must not let the operation be exposed at this moment.

With this thought in mind, I open my mouth in feigned calmness.

MC: Whether it’s arranging for me to leave BS temporarily or calling me back, BOSS has his own plans.

MC: As subordinates, we only need to obey. How to play the game of chess is not for you to explain, is it?

Poseidon lets out a delighted laugh.

Poseidon: Indeed, I was overthinking it. I can’t believe I was worried that BOSS  had something else in mind when he expelled Nox before… that’s truly absurd.

Poseidon: Anyway, since Nox is a member of the organization, she must also identify with our pursuit. How about leaving with us now and dedicating yourself and CORE entirely to where you belong, the organization? What do you think about that~

He exaggeratedly raises his arm as if he is singing a hymn. And behind him, a number of figures have gathered at some point.

I even see faint flashes of gray mist and white light in my peripheral vision.

…it’s Evol. These main gods have made no secret of their restraining dread for CORE. Are they trying to use their power to make me allow myself to be captured without putting up a fight?

Victor: It seems that you guys still haven’t learned the lesson.

Victor suddenly speaks in a heavy tone, carrying with it a few hints of intimidation while not revealing his anger.

Victor: Before acting self-righteously, how about contemplating clearly?

Victor: Why did I ask Nox to conceal her identity and arrange for you all to witness the prophecy.

A quietude hangs in the air of the spacious and empty rooftop. It seems that the calls and songs of a few tiny birds can be heard from the distance.

A few moments later, Hades takes the lead to part the crowd and stand out.

Hades: BOSS, you’re going around in a big circle. What exactly do you want to do?

Victor stands in front of me, calmly overlooking the crowd.

Victor: BS has already gone so far down the road of pursuing power that some people forget it’s merely a path to achieve a goal.

Victor: Or is it that as the main gods, all you want is this tawdry thing called “control of the world?”

Some people’s faces become visibly unsightly, but Victor turns a blind eye to them.

Victor: Being led by wrong notions has already caused unnecessary problems for the organization.

Victor: I don’t want to see the power of BS used only to carry out a pointless chase for evolution anymore.

After a brief moment of silence, Poseidon steps forward from the middle of the crowd.

Poseidon: I believe that everyone will remember your words wholeheartedly~ But even for the sake of the brand new future of BS that you spoke of, we still need to have CORE in our hands.

The color of Victor’s eyes seems to be churning, overwhelmed with heavy emotions. Shortly after, a strong hand spins me around and supports my shoulder.

Victor: Indeed so.

Victor: But what if, I don’t need CORE?

The words I hadn’t anticipated at all fall into my ears, and my eyes widen slightly. The next second, the icy muzzle of a gun is pressed against my temple.

Victor wraps his arm around me from behind, firmly imprisoning my body and seemingly cutting off any possibility of my escape.

MC: Victor, you––

My unfinished words are drowned out by the slight exertion of the force of his hand. The skin of my temple is throbbing, and I can almost clearly hear the sound of the trigger being stroked by a finger pad.

Victor never mentioned that there was also this part in the plan.

Numerous cacophonies of obstructions drift from before me. It seems that the gods are agitatedly talking about something, but I have no time to part my attention by listening to their words.

The icy temperature of the muzzle is magnified infinitely through my skin, stirring my shuddering breath bit by bit.

Cold sweat soaks my back, my dampened clothes clinging clammily to my body. I forget to breathe for a moment, opening my mouth in helplessness and fluster.

“BANG.”

A bird suddenly swoops up from a tree, screeching as it flies toward the blood-like setting sun.

•─────⋅◍♡◍⋅─────•

—

❤️ [Calls and Moments]: In Progress...

—

#the explosion of info in this chapter literally had my brain spiraling for two days straight LOL ⊙⁠﹏⁠⊙ #Eos’s “peptalk” is basically what Zero has been telling Victor for two seasons straight—“you CANNOT save her. It’s doomed.” #and he be like “I DID IT BEFORE. I CAN DO IT AGAIN.” Except for the fact that— Eos is “not” Zero in any way haha :> #it’s confirmed this man is not human LMAO. even if he’s “supposed to be” 2D – there’s NO 2D WAY in which he could possibly be human aksbkv— #— while also being THE MOST humanely human one could possibly imagine. I love him so much ಥ⁠_⁠ಥ Head empty. just THEM❤️ #also–– someone gib me a time machine i shall travel to next December. how the heck on earth i’m supposed wait THAT LONG PG💀🔪 #mlqc victor #mlqc li zeyan #mr love victor #mlqc #mr love queen's choice #恋与制作人 #李泽言 #love and producer #mlqc cn #mlqc spoilers #mlqc translations

[lvlyhao]

『when he's on tour / MARK LEE』

A/N: thoughts on how mark would be as bf when he's away on tour :(

gifs used in this are not mine and they will be removed if requested!!

𝓖𝓮𝓷𝓻𝓮𝓼: fluff (♡), comedy (☼)

𝓦𝓪𝓻𝓷𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓼: i swear a bit maybe???

disclaimer: the characters in the story below do not reflect real people or present real facts. this is purely fictional, and you may not copy, change, translate or repost my work in any way. all rights reserved © lvlyhao 2023.

--------

mark is usually pretty clingy with you already, but he turns it up to the max before a tour

being away from you like that is one of the parts about his job he hates the most, and yeah, he knew what he was signing up for since the beginning

but he can’t help but be heartbroken about it every. single. time

the other members know him well enough to give like a 2 weeks notice for him to get his shit together and spend as much time with you as humanly possible??

cus otherwise, he’ll get caught up in rehearsals, schedules and whatever else and then the day before they leave be like

“oh shit”

and if that’s the case we all know mark is gonna be miserable during the whole thing right lmao

yeah mom taeyong isn’t letting that happen

(again)

mark normally sees the time before a tour as an opportunity to check off a LOT of things from your couples bucket list

like, do you have any tv shows you’ve been meaning to watch together? you’re binging it today

you wanted to visit that coffee shop right? get your coat, you’re going rn

you wanted to buy matching bracelets yeah? he’s already got them

and it’s just a very fun, loving time for the both of you

it keeps you busy enough not to spiral about what it’s gonna be like not seeing each other for months

:)

of course, it doesn’t work 100% of the time

especially at night, when mark’s about to fall asleep, the loneliness of not having you around starts to seep in

and it’s like he says goodbye to you in his head before it happens irl

which is 1. sad as heck??? and 2. kinda suffering through it twice, cus he always thinks he’s gonna be more “well prepared” for it this time, and that’s never true

by now it’s probably pretty obvious touring is a very dramatic experience for him right lmao

johnny’s always like “bro it’s just a couple months you’re gonna be f i n e” but for mark it’s,,, not that simple

he’d rather say bye when it’s just the two of you, maybe at your place or somewhere nice

it feels a lot calmer when it’s like that, cus then it’s tight hugs, some kisses and mark saying he promises he’ll text you every day and call you as much as he can

and yeah maybe one of you lets a tear or two fall down but it’s fine

now

if you go with them to the airport

it’s gonna be so much more chaotic like holy crap, trust me, not going is the better option

if for some unknown reason you’re like “no i’ll go with you to catch the plane and we’ll say bye there”

there’s gonna be a lot more crying involved

cus it’s one thing hugging you bye when his flight’s in 6 hours or so, but it’s a whole other thing when everyone’s already boarding and some other member is trying very hard to be gentle but he has to go NOW

it’s all so rushed he can barely even tell you he loves you :(

mainly bc he wanted to keep hugging you until he absolutely had to let you go

oh well

mark is 10000% the type to ask you to put together a playlist for him to listen to during the trip

he can be a bit of an airhead at times but he does his best to keep you updated on how he’s doing, where he is right now, things of the sort

so he tries to text you the moment the plane lands, when they get to the hotel, when he’s eaten

and it’s not even just texts

it’s a cute candid selfie AND a text

now

mark is definitely not the best photographer in nct

but he will try so hard to take good pictures for you

cus all he wants is for you to feel like you’re there with him, seeing all those cool places

having said that, most pictures do turn out to be crappy

but he’s willing to ask for help from another member so it’s all good lmao

(i’m looking at johnny, jaemin or tyong tbh)

sends you a picture of every single dog or cat he sees

absolutely every single one

keeps a clock in your timezone in his phone so he knows the best times to text/call

speaking of calling

i’m sorry to tell you you’re not getting a one on one facetime session with him

it’s just not happening

like it may last 5 minutes tops, but that’s the time it takes for someone to hear your voice/barge into his room and immediately ask to talk to you

haechan, johnny, yukhei and baek do that a lot

but normally the other members follow lmao

it’s 50% to annoy him but 50% bc they genuinely wanna see you

it doesn’t bother you too much cus you know

they’re cute or whatever

he’s not really the type to get small trinkets from every place he goes to bc that’s just ??so much??

instead, he’ll probably get you one really nice gift

like this huge plushie he had to carry around himself on their way back home bc no one had enough space in their bags for it

or a new perfume he thinks you’ll like

i love him your honour

one last thing bc this is already way too long

mark is the KING of backstage pictures and TMI's about the other members

like at this point you have enough blackmail material to torture them for 6 months minimum

and tbh it’s mainly haechan when he’s with dream/127 and jongin with superm lol

but he keeps it varied

you end up with even some derpy jaehyun pics, best case scenario

he’s already making plans on how you are gonna celebrate him being back home

…and it most likely includes building a pillow fort and watching marvel movies but i didn’t tell you that

#nct 127 #nct dream #mark lee #nct mark #nct scenarios #nct reactions #nct angst #nct fluff #mark lee x reader #mark x reader #mark lee fluff #nct fanfic

[somethinginworl]

He would not fucking say that - Kirby franchise edition (Results)

Well! Seems like a lot of people had a lot to say about mischaracterized Kirby characters, as a matter of fact, there were a whooping 57 entries! Well, let’s get going with them, shall we? Just,,, beware that this is a LOOONG post.

Haltmann

The dude 100% did fucked up shit and needs to be held accountable but people seem to so easily forget the degree he was influenced/corrupted by Star Dream. I don't understand why people hate Haltmann and love Star Dream who is arguably the actual reason HWC started colonizing and draining planets. Also the fact that Haltmann isn't conventionally attractive to the majority of the fandom makes him less sympathetic ig?? But the dude is a grieving father who made mistakes that sent him down a spiral into being corrupted and then deleted by a heartless machine. I can't help but pity him

Prince Fluff

Go on ao3. Look in his tag on tumblr. He exists only to be Kirby or Shadow Kirby's love interest most of the time, with no personality of his own.

He barely gets recognized anymore, and if he does, it's usually as a ship Prince Fluff was a big part of my childhood, with Epic Yarn being my first game. To me, he was Kirby's fellow main character, and they had a cool sibling/best friend relationship. But now, a lot of what I see of him is just . . . Kirfluff. Which is cool and all, but man's a prince! He can do more than be a boyfriend! Heck, he runs an entire kingdom by himself! One thing that I want to see more of is Fluff as a stressed but caring ruler, not just a sidekick/boyfriend to the pink puff. Give yarn boy his deserved appreciation!.

Dark Meta Knight

Hello! I am here to spread the good word of a character with no personality. It's the mirror thing. Of course.  Dark Meta Knight has No Personality. Zero. Nada. Zilch. He's Meta Knight but Dark. What does that mean? Your guess. He fights Meta Knight. And wins lmao skill issue blueboy. And fights Kirby. And loses a few times, which isn't surprising. He was dumb enough to split Kirby in four, though. Four times the Kirby is four times the amount your ass is grass. You're practically a forest at that point because you're so grass. So he's violent and has no personality outside of being violent. Woo! Triple Deluxe has him attack Dedede in Dededetour inside the Mirror. This has led people to think he fucked over Sectonia. This makes my heart bleed as much as Taranza probably did when he was punted off of Royal Road via Fuck You Lightning Ball. My man just has no sense of timing,,,, They just wanted to include a Meta Knight battle because Knight Battles are a Kirby standard at this point,,, You think a man that stupid can figure out how to take advantage of a woman's insecurity? I don't even know if he knows women exist. How many female Amazing Mirror characters are there??? Boxy??? Moley mentions having a wife once and Dameta doesn't know what he means. But other than being driven to immense violence and being scapegoated for the stuff his boss probably did, Dameta has other hobbies! Like whatever his motivation in Star Allies is. Something dastardly, I'm sure. People really like to pretend he's not part of the Star Ally club when my man is doodling with toddlers and posing with his less cool less edgy self. Would a villain have a silly little we heart kirby statue? No, didn't think so. Also I cannot imagine him as a dad to Shadkirby either. Do they even interact? I've seen both "Amazing dad" and "Outright abusive" as interpretations and I can't go with either. But I think that's because I don't enjoy Metadad that much. They're like awkward coworkers. He thinks they're student and mentor. They're not even that. Dameta barely knows Shadow exists.

Dark Meta Knight is very popularly characterized as like an abusive parent, usually physically abusive. Mainly to Shadow Kirby, of course. He's an asshole, yeah, but not THAT bad, christ. I've seen multiple fics where Shadow Kirby is some poor little hey what t the fuck hes fighting himself. um. Back to being a hater.

Shadow Kirby

Some folks still think he's shy/cowardly like from the Amazing Mirror Days. Not really true anymore. From what fans have seen from the ending of the game, he does protect the Mirror World. As for the spin off games that include him, he's pretty tough and even creates mischief sometimes.

Shadow Kirby is constantly treated as an "evil" Kirby. Especially bad after Fighters and fighters two. Not to mention "Parallel Kirby". There's also a strangely common trend of making them more sapient than pink Kirby, who tends to be infantilised to hell and back. Shadow Kirby also is often treated as a complete coward who can't do anything right, when they aren't called evil.

He's shown as completely different in several different occasions, not only in personality but in design I like shadow kirby he's purple and then he's not

Dark Taranza

Dark Taranza, gonna be honest what little characterization people give him are actually okay compared to the rest. But I'm still a hater and hang on im watching jerma clips. okay. He's like Sectonia if Sectonia was Taranza if that makes sense.

Shadow Dedede

Shadow Dedede barely gets shit but I'm going to be a little hater anyways. I don't like most characterizations. I see people make him like a dictator like bro he's literally just some guy.

Sectonia

have you seen how often people say that  sectonia and taranza were boyfriend and girlfriend in canon?????? they were never!!! shes the gosh dang final boss but shes only ever used to give taranza angst. she is her own person with a personality!!!! yes their backstories are interconnected but gosh!!!!

This not too prominent but I can't stand it when people portray her as an uwu shy girl pre-corruption. While she gave in her worst aspects, she was probably always a kind of vain, girlboss! I mean she knows how to fight with rapiers c'mon!!!

idk it just feels like lots of people just see her as Taranza's tragic dead wife and like nothing else you know? like she is more than that and I feel like what little content we have of her proves that (like the soul boss descriptions (especially the original japanese text of the 2nd phase!!) and the eternal dream song) - or maybe im reading too much into those because im hyperfixating on my blorbo whoops

Kine

I'm not sure how true this opinion is considering how little people talk about Kine, I feel this is partially the anime's fault, or maybe its because of how he just looks, but Kine is cool and is not some stupid loser fish. Before the days of Crystal Shards, Him, Kirby, Rick & Coo were the dream team at the time, always hanging out going, with various activities long before the days of Meta Knight or even Dedede. Kine is an awesome aquatic rep for the Kirby series not to mention drinking and being a pirate and Kine even has a Wife! Kine has got it! I guess this is a partial compliant of Ship of Theseus which can be applied with Rick & Coo too, but I feel Kine gets the most hate if any because of people who are unfamiliar just see a dopey fish and are unaware of his origins and his past with Kirby. I'm not upset with the current representation of the Kirby cast (I love the RTDL team being the main crew) but I do hope the animal buddies get some more love, Especially Kine.

Dedede

reduced to his significantly less in-depth and compelling characterization from the anime

Anime Dedede.

Magolor

one time i read a series of fanfictions where he called every female character in the story a bitch and was portrayed as the good guy in the story

Is it possible to both be flanderized and woobified at the same time? There is a lot of "removing his responsibility for his actions" but can we get better jokes than "hehe Microtransgolor hehe scammer egg”

Always an uwu soft boy. Like no that is a criminal not a catboy.

Bro would never be intimidated by Magolor

Marx

People either portray him as a edgy sociopath or constantly bored and annoyed. Portraying him as an adult or a teen kinda annoys me as well. I'm very picky about portrayals of Marx so don't get upset if you portray him as one of these I've listed.

Sometimes I see people only joking about the "hungry so he came along" thing with Marx and it's pretty overdone

They took one look at him and said “to the insane asylum bitch”. I don’t think he’s some crazy murder hobo rather a dude with questionable morals and puts his own mischief and fun before others it seems. Though Marx is indeed one of the least “character” characters when I mean he doesn’t have much depth in comparison to other characters. But you could do anything else than have him follow the Jevil path of him being crazy. Make him evil? Sure. Make him a cringefail idiot? Sure. Make him a crybaby bitch? Go ahead. But making him the definition of what a 14 year old white girl in New Jersey that probably is addicted to Instagram and thinks Webtoon comics are the highest level of art and storytelling’s definition of insane doesn’t cut it cuz. Slapping the spaz label without a thought of what’s being done on a character who fits the mark makes the Schizoid peeved who coulda known. As this is all coming from the one person who has likely ruined Marx’s character the most for Kirblur by making him a somewhat empathetic manchild who clings to both pipe dreams of normality and being a monster btw. (Also this doesn’t mean jokes, you can joke about him being a psycho like Jerma it’s when it’s taken 100% seriously is when it’s bad).    Also to add on, Woobification of Marx or any Kirby character period CAN be annoying if taken too far. I take full responsibility in the fact my variant is also woobifed to an extent but that train full of ticking bombs doesn’t bother me as much. Make him sadcry and be gay he deserves both those things. Send him to sad hell with the rest of them.

To the anon above... What?

Making him stupid or reducing him to just Silly Clown. Or just having him act in purely impulsive or spontaneous ways (which sometimes happens when juxtaposed with a more "collected" character like Magolor).

Daroach

this is something i’ve noticed specifically in chatfics, but when daroach is in the ensemble some of them tend to designate him as the Goofy Meme Dumbass for… idk, fandom quota? i really don’t know why it happens because he has a bunch of canon dialogue (and alternate continuity stuff like the novels) that show him to be cool and clever. i’m not saying he can’t have a sense of humor or anything (he’s definitely the type to have a bunch of quips), but it sucks when he’s mischaracterized because the fandom doesn’t give him that much attention as is. if you NEED a silly haha guy, marx is right there!”

Morpho Knight

"Morpho Knight is a creature of mercy. It's a benevolent entity putting tired souls to rest." NO?! I'm going to copy-paste some stuff I put in a post of my own. A while back, SYZekrom on Reddit translated Morpho Knight's entry, and it contains some... interesting information. Allow me to provide some excerpts. "He’s a red knight with butterfly wings, continuing from a pair of white wings like an angel’s, and a pair of azure wings with a bit of an evil feel." This is the first of two instances where Morpho Knight is outright stated to be evil. There's also stuff in the art book that supports my theory that Galacta and Morpho are permanently fused and the former is not dead, but I don't want to get carried away. These are its gacha figure descriptions in Forgotten Land: "The fluttering fiend that casts judgment upon final battles is drawn toward the isolated isles of Forgo Dreams. There, it feasts on the most powerful soul it finds and takes the fearsome form of a scarlet-clad knight… Let the most challenging battle of this new world begin!" –English "One of the dreaming birds, which are said to pass judgement upon decisive battles, drifts towards a forgotten, isolated isle as if summoned. There, it sips upon the strongest Soul and descends as a red knight. Finally, welcome the dusk… of the deadliest battle in this New World!"  –Japanese While at first glance there doesn't seem to be any information of note, the "fluttering fiend" bit in the English version is outright stating Morpho Knight is evil, and the phrase "he deadliest battle in this New World" doesn't sound particularly heroic. But I digress... Morpho is NOT a good person! This is clearly leading up to a villain vs hero confrontation! Which, may I add, implies that reaping Galacta Knight wasn't necessarily a good thing for it to do?!

Elfilis

elfilis is NOT entirely malicious. they would gladly accept hugs and kisses. being in a fucking capsule ALONE and AWARE for likely CENTURIES will DO SOMETHING TO YOU YOU KNOW?? god fucking DAMN dude... and after the ending of the true arena in the game, WILLINGLY GAVE THEMSELF UP TO ELFILIN. also they're not fucking DEAD you PSYCHOPAYHS elfilis is STILL VERY MUCH ALIVE!!!!!!! RUUAAAGGGH!!!!!!!!!!

Susie

Being Evil or being a Sad uwu girl who has had bad things happen to her seems to be the only way most people can portray this character.

Susie isn't a friend. She's selfish and wanted to take over the company. Her "redemption" is pointing Kirby at the world-ending machine, gives him armor, and then stands around. She doesn't even know his name. The closest she does for good is tell Kirby to do something he would've done on his own.

My girl really became the subject of hate thanks to a mistranslation. I mean yeah she likes robots and shit but the fact that people think she is a terrible person and that she's still colonizing planets makes me upset. i blame the translation team for everything.

When people say she has fully redeemed herself and is reduced to cishet, pretty girl??? Like no, star allies mistranslation my ass you fell for her corporate propaganda. The female characters in this franchise, while lovable, is not nearly as popular as a lot of the male ones. HAL literally gave us a morally grey girlboss who we can still sympathise with. She actually feels like a very real character in this fictional world.

You Know How People Are About Her

she's not even my blorbo!!!!!! everyone thinks she's a huge evil bitch who has done terrible genuinely unspeakable things. i read a fic that went on and on abt the horrible things she "did" to meta knight when he was mechanized (things so bad i cant even say) and i was pulling my hair out she did not fucking do any of that!!!! yes the universe can have pretty dark moments but good lord people only use her to woobify meta knight and give fuel to ship him with others and it pisses me off lol. or people go too far the other way and woobify HER to ship with him and aughhhh no one has a shred of media literacy. she's not purely good or purely evil she's such a complex character who did bad things because she was in a bad situation and the best example of a morally grey character who's on no one's side but herself and that will always be more interesting that 100% good or 100% evil. once again she's not even my blorbo but i've never seen a character butchered this badly by a fandom

Because of mistranslation (from what I've heard) Susie's whole mechanizing planets has been the number one thing when it came to susie hate and the only reason as to why people hate this girl so much. Honestly Susie's character has been fucked up immensely and no one has such a divided spread of opinions like she does. Some people brush away her backstory and make her a soulless being with no love whatsoever.

Oh my god. Oh my god. Susie Haltmann. I cannot with the fandom interpretations anymore. It's ridiculous how bad they've gotten. Susie is a two dimensional character. I absolutely despise seeing people portray her as some sort of greedy capitalist bastard and "the one with the braincell". In canon, she's consistently been portrayed as a sweet person (with a knack for violence, but EVERYONE in this series is like that). Everything bad she did in Planet Robobot was FOR WORK and the will of HER FATHER, and even if she did want to do the things she did, she's clearly not doing them any more. The "mechanizing planets and peoples" line in Star Allies is a mistranslation. And the "punishing savages" doesn't have to mean anything bad. It could mean she's punishing evildoers with her money and resources. In fact, I've seen some translations put it like that And Meta Knight... is just the straw that broke the camel's back. Oh lord. Why does everyone insist that he hates her? There's the little scene in Star Allies... but god, that isn't canon, it's clearly a joke. If anything, Susie might have been trying to talk to him and he was just trying to avoid her in a misinterpretation of the situation. It's supposed to be funny. Why are you imposing this onto people like this automatically makes Susie a devil incarnate and anything involving those two characters in problematic? Just shut up.

Meta Knight

Everyone thinks he’s just the ‘edgy character’ or ‘the uncaring mentor figure’ while in actuality he really does care for Kirby (and Bandana Dee) more than anyone gives him credit for!

Everyone either makes him all broody and lonesome, like shadow the hedgehog or batman; or they make him a goofy dad, like Dedede or Hugh Neutron. In reality, he's a weird uncle with unknown motivations, simultaneously selfish and practical. Also, he doesn't hide the fact that he likes sweets, he eats them away from everyone so no one steals them (Dedede and Squeak Squad).

He's not Kirby's fucking dad! He's an irresponsible uncle that hands out swords! And he is definitely in love with dedede, he is the only other dramatic bitch willing to build a skyscraper to beat up kirby (I am using intense anger for comedic effect) 

HES A FUCKING TWINK ASS FRUITY ASS MOTHERFUCKING CRINGEFAIL MAN. HE NEEDS TO HAVE HIS PERSONALITY INTERPRETED AS BOTH THE MANGA AND THE GAMES. YES HE IS MYSTERIOUS BUT HE ALSO WOULD TRIP AND FALL OVER HIMSELF. I NEED STAR ALLIES KICKING SWORD PISSED. I NEED MANGA ROSES BITCHASS META. I NEED THAT PARTICULAR VERSION OF MY BOY meat knight RIGHT NOW. meta knight is cringefail. half of the fandom agrees the other half does not. im explode.

He wants to look cool so bad but he is actually a huge fucking goofy goober. Any representation of Meta Knight being a badass is propaganda made by Meta Knight himself to convince you he’s cool. I mean have you seen his RTDL Deluxe pause screen description? King Dedede’s and Bandana Dee’s are in first person, but his is in third person? He’s literally talking about himself in the third person like hello????? Meta Knight is such a fucking lame goofy little man who thinks he’s the most badass motherfucker on the planet.

To fair this has been less common lately but back during 2014-2016 MK was usually portrayed in fanart/fanfic as either this wise veteran or cold edgelord. He is just an unhindged!!! Silly!!! Guy!!! He can be cool and cringefail!!! But he is also compassionate in his own aloof, awkward way!!! 

i am not a big fan of the metadede ship. i think people are shipping for the sake of having a ship and nothing else. As someone with a severely underrepresented orientation (aromantic and asexual), when I see a character I like, I will project onto said character. This is the case with my interpretation of Meta Knight. I saw a cool character that I liked who a) doesn’t have any canon love interests and b) didn’t really need a whole ton of friends/significant others to be happy with life. Meta Knight always seemed to be perfectly content with the friends he has on Popstar and his crew and everyone in the anime, so I looked to him for hope that I could live the same way. I was open to the metadede ship at first, but as time passed, I felt less and less comfortable with it. It seemed to me that people were so hungry for gay ships that they just pulled this one out of thin air courtesy of Kirby Fighters 2, which is to my knowledge the only piece of media that somewhat supports this. Why can’t people just be happy with MK and Dedede being friends or frenemies? I’m probably starting drama with this bc I know how popular metadede is on Tumblr so I apologize for upsetting you if that is the case.  But I also feel that I shouldn’t apologize just because I have a different opinion.

I dislike how "pathetic" the fandom has made him out to be. I don't like it when he's portrayed as overpowered but... "pathetic, whiny manlet" could not be further from the truth. How did we get to that?

Kirby

Often people make Kirby more dependent on others than he actually is. He's an extremely independent person that literally cannot be stopped by anyone who tries to get in his way

ik its been covered to death but matpat made that video about how kirby is evil and completely ignored the themes of friendship and kindness that are present throughout the entire series

dude hes not a baby. he drinks in the manga adukt kirbies are a fine interp god. and hes not a godkiller or some shit he just fights for his friends hes not some terrifying monster kirby is literally just some friendly guy. strong yeah but just some guy. he fights strong entities incidentally lol

The anime portrays them as a literal infant, and due to its overprevalence (despite not being in the same stream of canon as the games), this is often their characterization in the fandom.  Canonically, they indeed are a child (at most, they'd probably be a teen in the modern games), but they are old enough to talk, and they demonstrate a high amount of emotional and even technical intelligence.

Admittedly, this is one that usually only happens to people outside the fandom, but it bugs me when people portray Kirby as a sort of immoral monster who only does good things on accident. When it’s quite the opposite! He may not be incredibly bright, but he does his best to help people. Oddly enough, there’s not many cases of “he would not say that” in the fandom for me because of how loose Kirby’s story is. It is lore heavy but the actual characters aren’t super concrete save for a few and I think that’s perfectly fine

People forget that their air bullet!! is an attack!! its literally one of their only ways of dealing damage in DL1!!! I’m looking at you Smash Bros!!! Why isn’t it their nair?????????

making them a toddler who cant speak for themself

I swear everyone outside of the fandom sees Kirby as either a braincell infant or  a merciless force of mass destruction

Taranza

WHAT DIDN'T THEY DO!?!?!? Taranza, as we see him in Triple Deluxe, is such a fun villain. He's dramatic, arrogant, a total suck-up to Sectonia, and it's so. Fucking. Good. He's a devious bastard, he monologues!!! His animations in the Clash games are so fucking campy and dramatic it's chefs kiss!!!! Fanon Taranza is as plain as white bread. Sometimes as pale as it, looking at some of the gijinkas. No shade though! As little shade as there is melanin in him lmAO- He is flanderised to hell and back. There are so. Many. Fucking. Taranzas who happen to be nothing but sad and weepy about his evil dead wife. Where's the bite!!! The pizzazz!!! Even in canon, when he is a bit of a wet sack later on, he still hunts for an altar he can bring her back on. My boy's a wannabe necromancer!!! Write that shit in your lost lenore Sectonia fic you fucking cowards Queen's Phantom ain't just for show. The above is also evidence for woobification! The fucker is obviously sad his crush is dead! But can we pleeease focus on anything else. This is definitely not targeted at Hal Labs. Imagine being woobied so hard your creators backtrack your personality I would just die. "Ehehe he's the responsible mage!!" No the fuck he isn't he can't be trusted with anything he tries take control it WILL blow up in his face. He knows magic he's good at magic but is he responsible??? Fuck no my man's strongest attack is "Blow myself the fuck up via a giant burst of magic" and it shreds. Even worse is the "Taranza got mind-controlled by Sectonia" theory in tandem with this. That wasn't confirmed right. Right. God I hope not that would be embarrassing. He can't even have a moment to realise his devotion has gone too far and she doesn't love him or even care for him, and he has to finally make that decision to free himself from her like ain't that cool!!! And then making him all sad over her afterwards it's just a Little Fucked if you're tryna put it all together eh. Eh. And he's not suuuper objectified (That usually goes to Seccy rest in piss girlie) but the way he's treated in some ships is. Eugh. Fucking Magoranza amirite he's basically there to look responsible and cute (I've already explained my issue with this) and to fix the tortured soul who is Magolor (I do not like Magolor. Nor Magoranza.) Tbh Sectaranza does the same he's there to be tragic because his girlie's dead. When you give him less personality than the dead cardboard cutout you know you fucked up. Anyways these ramblings are here to remind you what Hal Labs stole from us: Taranza but not a TOTAL saddo. Theatre kid Taranza. Arrogant prick. He's even British.

For the anon above me, I just wanted to say that this entry is probably my favorite and lives rent free in my mind.

I'm definitely guilty of it and it's all we have to go off of but PLEASE he needs more than to be Sad. Give him hobbies and interests that aren't just gardening, at least. Make stuff up about him, please!

So, SO many people make him an absolute crybaby over Sectonia. Even though, yes, he has grief problems, it's not his whole freaking personality. Pretty sure they're forgetting the fact that he LITERALLY HELPED KILL HER.

Taranza is not just a little pathetic guy!! He’s a bitch— a little schemer if you will !!! He’s smug—he’s formal—he’s a little fucker!!! Taranza needs a new partner and that partner is me

Oddly enough I do think people make him out to be a bit too much of a goody two shoes. Like he has done some mean things in the past and it wasn’t all Sectonia’s fault, he literally *stole* the Dimensional Mirror after all. Don’t get me wrong I think he’s a good person in the end, but cmon. He has committed crimes

Taranza in some corners of the fandom has kinda been turned into this forever crying baby who can never recover from losing Joronia and like, I never see people who do that write about the recovery and being able to move on to the final stage of grief.

HE IS NOT A SIMP, MY GOD

Everyone needs to stop reducing him to pathetic simp. He is allowed to grieve but he's probably one of the more mature characters within the series???

People disregard everything else about his character to make his tragic relationship with sectonia his only character trait. Not sure if this quite counts as woobifying since he does canonically still mourn her (and obviously seeing a close friend/crush go down the path of self destruction and ultimately die from it WOULD NOT be something you'd get over quickly). But I'm so tired of taranza in fanart and the like being an uwu softboy with Crying as his main character trait. Like he's canonically more than that! He goes full cocky villain mode when you confront him near the end of triple deluxe and he can pack a punch in star allies with his magic! If you're going to write about him prove that you don't just know about the guy from twitter artwork!

And here’s a graph!

Anyways, thanks everyone for your submissions! What I’ve learned here is important: We’re all fucking delusional.

#I'm going to fist fight the Tumblr editor #Kine anon Ily #Kirby #Rambles #Long post

[shepscapades]

Just have to say your music taste is immaculate and your Spotify playlists have been getting me through my commutes ( and the Doc DBHC one get me through my workouts)

When picking the songs, are you just adding ones you already like that go with the vibe or do you find new ones when making the playlists?

WAU THANK YOUUU!! <3 Honestly, I found myself putting one of the dbhc playlists on out of nowhere and what a huge freaking mistake let me tell you, its like all at once the full force of brainrot hits me. like what, did i think i wasn't gonna be affected by all of the emotions that go with these songs? the heck did I think was gonna happen what a FOOL LDKFJDFG

But seriously, thank you!! I feel like i can be kinda picky with my music and don't often branch out to music reqs unless i'm like ~feeling~ it so i'm rly happy you like the music i pick!! :>

When it comes to picking songs specifically for dbhc characters, (i think i may have mentioned this somewhere else? i dont know what i have or havent said tbh my memory is so bad) -- and honestly, i do this with pretty much all of my character playlists i think-- i usually only pick songs that coincide directly with a moment, emotion, or event from that character's timeline! Which can be hard if i'm looking for songs to represent specific events, especially if I want to represent that event specifically from the character's perspective (meaning the vibes or lyrics need to be pretty spot on) but it's also cool bc it helps me sort the playlists chronologically while also inspiring how certain details of each event may go down... idk!! I had no plans to make dbhc etho go Wacko Crazy until I actually listened to the song Destruction and was like 'oooh this song sounds like one of the androids going crazy, almost like they didn't get booted up right-- oh... oh. oh. oh no.'

LMAO so its kinda weird! Not so much a vibe, and moreso like putting a puzzle together of songs that represent the entire narrative of each character! Sometimes there are songs i haven't put anywhere that i know will slot in, but most of the time its me listening to new music and a lyric or vibe will remind me of one character or moment and then i just start spiraling /silly

this is a bit of a ramble, but hopefully that makes sense! Idk man my mind is an enigma and before I know it i'm like listening to a character's entire narrative in musical-form in my head driving to and from work everyday

#yeah very foolish of me to think i could put on any of those playlists and pretend it wasn't gonna make me crazy idk #i can be brave. i can finish my exhibition #ask #anon #dbhc ask #dbhc music #dbhc #ALSO THE DBHC DOC ONE GETTING YOU THROUGH WORKOUTS IS SO REAL #THAT PLAYLIST IS SO FULL OF BOPS #dbhc doc is so hot for that /who said that. who said that

[solar-nightengale]

Hi, I’m new in this tag kinda and new to meta-writing overall, but not only is the August brain rot really strong but one particular part of his entire character has been on my mind for a whole weekend. Please take this as mostly an offering of very spilled thoughts cause I couldn't keep them to myself anymore, LMAO. Particularly the thing that's on my brain is his guilt

I would also like to make note of and thank @ lizardthelizard And her glorious set of tags here for setting off my spiral tonight and also when she first sent them because my goodness this is truly an eye-opener. Thank you, buddy 💖

Gosh though, August’s guilt and self-criticism of himself and his actions is something that really fascinates me personally, and just thinking of it being the cause of what turns him back to wood is both mind-blowing but it just makes so much sense. He may be real because of magic but who’s to say it’s just the magical conditions that are holding him back and not the high as heck expectations that he feels were set for him and he set up for himself.

When it feels like you can't mess up sometimes it can feel like you're stuck in place Or that your screw ups means you can't change, that you're not good, that maybe you don't deserve to be considered good and that your various flaws are all that others would see you FOR!!

Maybe it's different to anxiety but idk it’s what caught my attention about him even more than what his character already offered up in s1!

He was given this like 

Idea that he needs to be "Brave" and "Truthful" and "Selfless" all the time or else he cannot be human 

Does it work like that? no, there's no human on EARTH that's all three of those things all the time, we've all had moments of weakness and gave in 

But what does he know? Most of his life he spent on his own and as a puppet, he was expected to understand the ways of being a human and GOODNESS knows how short a time he was with his dad before he was THRUST into a world and forced once again to stand on his own two feet and expected to just, you know, know how to act once again 

He's followed by expectations that he finds himself struggling to meet because he doesn't know what the limit is or how to meet them, and sometimes if not all of the times the temptations are just better and easier 

And it's expected!!!

He stepped into TLWM as a child with no idea of what he’s getting into with no prior knowledge, no adult, no nothing.

But omg, he drags himself down so much about it because he can’t meet those expectations the way he would want to and because of that because literally who did he have to tell him that it's all okay? That you can make mistakes and move on from them? That you can make up for your mistakes and forgive yourself for them?

Did he have anyone at all? Cause The show sure didn't show him having anyone

We see one woman in Thailand but even after he discovers he's turning into wood she's no longer around, so like she's probably about as fleeting of a relationship as anything else

Imagine going 28 years at first ignoring all your problems and then the horror and thoughts that you’re not good enough catch up to you one morning and the more you see yourself a failure, the more you sink into that spiral the harder it feels to breathe.

#ouat #august booth #august meta #SORRY LIBBY I DIDN'T WANT TO BOTHER YOU WITH A TAG SO IT'S EMPTY LIKE THAT FOR NOW #BUT KNOW I'M SCREAMING MY APPRECIATION AT YOUUUU RN!! <33333 #Anyway terribly sorry for all this guys JBFKTHLRJCTRLK I've fallen deep into this hole #and I don't plan on getting out anytime soon #August is a fascinating character to me #and I'm in a constant state of rotating him in my head always and forever #He's so messy he's so pathetic but he also tries no matter how great or little #He wants to be human but god it's hard to be that when you don't even know what it means to be one #I don't anything like this ever so ahahhaaha I hope this stuff makes sense!! #See you around #Maybe LOL #sol talks

[los-ninos-tortugas]

I get what you are saying about the 2003 Turtles being too serious for the Scooby Doo crossover... HOWEVER! What if they are the straight men?

The Gang accept everything going on as PERFECTLY NORMAL, because to them, it is. But then you have the 2003 guys just completely perplexed and out of their league because WHAT THE HECK?? The dog talks, and everyone is fine with that. What the heck is going on with those doors? Why do Shaggy and Scooby's terrible disguises trick the bad guy every time? Heck, if you get the right version of the Gang, they would be fine with 5 foot talking turtles immediately with the weakest of explanations!

Raph hates all of it. Mikey immediately makes friends with Scooby and Shaggy and joins them in being terrified. Donny is spiralling. Those clues make no sense - how the heck did Velma figure it out?? That trap should not have worked - it didn't even obey the laws of physics!! WHY IS EVERY BAD GUYS' PLAN TO DRESS UP AS A MYTHICAL CREATURE??? Leo is flummoxed; he has no idea what is going on and no idea what to do about it. Also Fred keeps trying to get him to wear a matching ascot because they are both leaders and leaders wear ascots!!

WAIT OMG YOU’RE RIGHT 🤣🤣🤣🤣

It’s got mild Turtles Forever vibes where the 2003 turtles are utterly bemused by these stranger’s abilities to bend the laws of the physics. But I’m just imagining it now, Mikey being buds with shaggy and scooby, being scared and also making impossibly tall sandwiches together. (Maybe shaggy is low key convincing Mikey to become a vegetarian)

Donnie both admiring Velma’s intelligence and also wondering how she comes to half the conclusions she does and is correct nearly every time?? How does she do it???

Lmao even Raph deciding that this is above their pay grade but he keeps getting dragged along cuz they’re in too deep now. He keeps spotting trapdoors before Daphne does and keeps pulling her out of the way just in the knick of time and is like “how do you almost keep getting captured every few minutes!?”

Leo must just be wondering “why does Fred constantly suggest splitting up? Why does it work??” And also the image of Leo with his own little ascot… too cute.

Love the idea that maybe this is one of those versions of the mystery gang where they’re just kind of an amalgamation of all their previous iterations so they’ve seen both sides of the spectrum of mysteries having real human causes or having genuine supernatural causes, so mutant turtles in the sewers? Yeah, nothing compared to those soul stealing cat demon ladies.

#answered asks #anon ask #tmnt 03 #2003 teenage mutant ninja turtles #03 leonardo #03 raph #03 donnie #03 mikey #the mystery gang #scooby doo #scooby doo crossover #tmnt crossover #katnip talks

[quinloki]

oh yeah no I've def read him & him & him and I kind of thought of it but I wasn't sure if you would have read it

I think that dynamic would work without having to figure out how to broach the like, pseudo-incest with what is essentially step/adopted siblings of them doing anything with eachother lmao they just share the girly they like bc they're both mature (and maybe recreate the shower scene I meannnnnnn… >>) and they're both SOOOO busy with their jobs and stuff and this way you're always taken care of

they def would be sly towards eachother sometimes tho it'd be hilarous

AND YES TWO AGAINST ONE YOURE PROLLY NEVER WINNING EVER BC THOSE FUCKERS ARE SO SMART

I also think pops would really like reader bc reader 'loves' ace (obvi platonic, brotherly love) and ace realizes and FEELS loved and that's something he doesn't get a lot of course pops is gonna favor someone who makes his boy feel loved (smol creature HAHAHAHA ITS LIKE A PET)

god I can just imagine a like competition in both boys heads about who can fluster you the most and you're like obvi so so so spoiled bc I think of them both as very attentive and buy you all the stuffs even tho you're like omg STOP

you're also spoiled by the fucking other brothers cause they think you're cute as a button and if there was any flirting from other brothers I think it'd be funny cause ace would be like….. dude I don't see the appeal and meanwhile you're oblivious to it

I saw you replied to this and I had to make sure I was fully awake before reading bc I knew it was gonna make my brain go brrr and it did if you write this I'll die in the best way you might even get me squealing at work seeing a chapter update (I am very subtle but it happens with birds of a feather sometimes xD)

my brain is all over the place rn but AHHHH fuck Sabo just snuck up on me goddamn this is very much like what happened with marco I just casually was like oh okay I like him and then it spiraled and then you started posting about him and I was like !!!! okay in my brain hardcore then thanks

Sorry to throw more in your brain <3 (I'm not HAHAH even your replies are killing me with the thoughts)

Yeah, I feel like I could dip my toes in a little. Marco and Ace are adopted brothers, and Sabo is Ace's honorary brother with Luffy, and Sabo and Luffy live with the other boys, and they're not like, outsiders, but the vibes/connection between Sabo and Marco isn't really brotherly.

Sabo's a little too independent and I feel like he has weird feelings about Siblings because of Stuffy, or Sterry or whatever the heck that guy's name is.

Sabo and Marco are both pretty open minded on top of it, so they're not likely to get physical with one another without the reader there, but they're not against adding to whatever pleasure is happening, even if it means interacting with one another. Not that it happens often, but I imagine the first time those two share a kiss the reader nearly dies from how hot it is. >.> ("awww, our little bird is all flustered about for being left out." and then you're just drown in kisses against your neck and lips and such.)

I feel like Sabo calls you his little dove, or songbird, and Marco calls you pretty bird, and they'll refer to you as their little bird or sweet dove when it's relating you to both of them.

There's gonna be at LEAST one time where the Reader gets a leg up on Marco and Sabo - and probably only because Thatch, Izou and Ace help her set everything up. XD Some kind of surprise or something and they both come home at the same time and are just agog by it and it's her victory until they pick their jaws up off the floor and turn the tables XD

Similar as they are, Sabo's a little meaner behind closed doors, enjoying teasing and overstimming and edging and please do cry oh so sweetly for him, but just for him, no one else is allowed to make you cry.

Marco's a little sweeter, he loves to hear you sing for him, struggling in whatever binds or sensory deprivations he's got going.

The two of them together are overwhelming, which is a reason why most of your forays with either are 1:1 and not 2:1.

One of the first real issues between the three of them is Shanks, who is just as sweet on you as he is on Marco, and that first little pang of jealously when he starts wooing Marco that the reader feels is the first "oh, I'm jealous." A little self-doubt like maybe you shouldn't try to get near Marco cause Shanks is closer to his age, and gorgeous (and maybe you shouldn't get near Sabo cause Koala is closer in age, and gorgeous)

>.>

#quin answers #kazieai

[cookinguptales]

Tarot reading please! ❣️

Sure thing!

(Two of Cups, Nine of Swords, Seven of Cups (reversed) (Shiitake, Bleeding Fairy Helmet, Green Elf Cup)

PLEASE indulge me because when I read these mushroom descriptions I immediately had to google a couple of them because?? What the heck???

booklet: "bleeding fairy helmet mushrooms 'bleed' when cut" me: WHAT

bro, you are not wrong!!!

And the green elf cup apparently infects the wood around it and stains it a blue-green that is prized in woodworking?

I want something... made out of this wood... That's so fucking cool...

Sorry, sorry, I'll get back to my part of this, which is the nerd-ass tarot stuff. I'm learning a lot about mushrooms tonight, though. lmao

Hmm, okay, okay, okay. Kind of an interesting combination here.

To start with, the Two of Cups is generally about a new partnership of some kind. Maybe a new lover, maybe a new friend, maybe a new creative and/or business partner. The key here is that things are good, and this is a person you can connect with. The two of you are very much on the same wavelength and work together well.

Then we have the Nine of Swords, which is a sword of despair, anxiety, and nightmares. This is not necessarily a card that says that things will go wrong. Instead, this is a card about the things that are plaguing your mind. They can be realistic fears. They can be unrealistic ones. They're both stacking up beside your bed just like these swords, though, ready to crash down at any time and hurt you.

The point of the Nine of Swords is really that it's easy to spiral about these anxieties, and it might be good to reach out and ask for help.

I think this is really just underlined by getting a reversed Seven of Cups after this. The Seven of Cups is about fantasies and occasionally getting lost in a fantasy world; when reversed, it's about coming back down to earth, looking at your options frankly, and making difficult choices based in reality.

It can be a harsh card, but I think this time it's actually being gentle with you. Seeing a card about escaping from sometimes harmful fantasies right next to a card about being consumed with those anxieties and having nightmares as a result seems to indicate to me that this spread is advising you not to get too in your own head about your fears, well-founded or otherwise. The best thing you can do is assess risks as realistically as possible and make your choices based on that, not on the fear you feel consuming you.

You aren't alone. The Two of Cups tells me that. I just don't know if this relationship will give you an outlet to talk about these fears, or if it's anxieties over the relationship itself that are upsetting you. Either way, I advise you to reach out to someone who loves you before it gets too bad.

#tarot shenanigans #replies

[dungeons-are-too-cold]

sometimes its hard for me to reconcile the dissonance between season 3 steve and like literally any other steve

Like i guess you can see hints of season 3 steve in the boobies scene or in the "is he some kinda clock maker?" scene, but like, idk theres this weird, goofy, star wars hand shaking, cherry chapstick wearing idiot in season 3 wearing his stupid little sailor boy outfit and striking out before he even gets the first date and part of me is like ":0 where the heck did that guy go?" ya know? its just such a wild fucking time in that mans life its like for a summer he's so sugar high on milkshakes and flailing after high school that he is the weirdest version of himself

part of that is actually kinda sad to me. like when i think about it, it could be seen as just "hes out of high school and he's free" but like in reality this man is fucking spiraling. His best friend is 14, he is beholden to a bunch of fucking kids letting them use him for free movies, he parents have cut him off and hes wearing a fucking sailor outfit and striking out with every girl that walks up to the counter. in his words he "couldn't even get into tech" Like !!!!! This dude is fucking spiraling out of control and the goofiness, while not entirely out of his nature, is him losing his god damn mind, like actively resigning himself to the nature of his life post s2.

Or he's just in a silly goofy mood, who knows lmao

#rambles from the dungeon #georgia's not so critical analysis #steve harrington #stranger things #stranger things watch through

[gooboogy]

alrighty i don't rly know what to say so here's a bunch of random questions

1) what is your fave song of yours at the moment

2) have you watched walten files? orrr mandela catalogue? idk both have a kinda horror podcast vibe iykyk

3) mandatory question vampires vs werewolves, feel free to elaborate :3

4) im not sure if it was stated before but whats your favourite/most relatable Fear?

also taking the opportunity to say your art (talking about both pictures and music) is super cool and you're a very inspiring person in general!! hope you have good time tonight and get many interesting asks

(sorry for the colourful text lmao l just found out you could do that and it seems fun to me)

Giggles this is a delightful ask (full of delightful colors!! That really is fun)

1. Fav song at the moment idk if this counts but the wellness session music from Severence is crazy good and I've been listening to it on repeat. The other one at the moment is Movies by Weyes Blood (that I am actually about to make a music Monday post for!)

2. I haven't seen the Walten Files but I have seen a bit of the Mandela Catalogue which what I saw was very good and also very scary lol the eyes thing freaks me out a bit, gives me kind of a palinopsia where I can't get it out of my head so I haven't seen much of it

3. Both good for their own reasons, both I especially enjoy the "sire" aspect and I do really appreciate the predatory nature of both, among other things. Though I always pick werewolves at the end bc 1 nothing can beat the knot and 2 Big Doggies!! They are big silly doggey guys who can eviscerate you to shreds and I looovvee that. Get you a woofer who can hunt you down and is also a big cuddly doofus

4. For TMA this is a toughie bc Eye is really appealing I mean heck I get real curious by stuff to my own detriment (see: my curiosity for what TMA was about and ending up terribly disappointed when I finished it) and just the inherent Eye nature of the audience. Meanwhile Slaughter really speaks to me, along with Flesh (see: my meat posting tag) and also Spiral. I was scared for the longest time of being crazy but I'm now a lot more at peace with my crazy lol (however when it comes to trusting myself or even knowing myself... haha .. lol even) but okay back to Slaughter and Flesh. Slaughter bc I get that fun "very often triggered by very normal and mundane things" disease so I find myself wanting to go ape shit all the time. A little "can I kill your dad and also that loud noise" in these trying times. And Flesh? Partially bc I can be a bit of a masochist and I also just heavily subscribe to the idea of how our Meat Suits are what makes us "present." Like for a while I struggled with my identity and who am I when I'm present and what does that even mean to begin with. In the end I think it's what's going on with your meat and in your meat space, and I find a lot of grounding and meaning in that. (Heh, ground meat) You are who's experiencing the Meat

And thank you!! That makes me happy to hear that I'm inspiring in any way. I am always trying to inspire myself to do the things I wanna do so I'm glad I can spread that around to others too. Thank you for the kick ass ask!

#asks #hehe yay! #maybe went a little too into the fears thing tbh tho thats something i could talk a lot about #im terrified all the time always so theres a lot of fear in me to dwell on lmao

[not-so-rosyyy]

OMG, a group of us was just talking about the fact that soaking is something our LDS friends encountered at college. I had never heard of it before a couple years ago, and it seems so crazy to me the lengths people will go to protect “virginity” I have friends that got in trouble for pre-marital sex, and the elders met with their families and had him moved to a college 300 miles away until the wedding a few months later. They had been together for 5 years at this point and he went into a horrible depression spiral. They were not allowed a temple wedding. They were always going to be together, and it was horrible to watch them go through all of it, for a loving act between consenting adults.

They weren’t allowed a temple wedding because they had pre-marital sex? Oh, wow. I haven't encountered something like that even here in my mostly-Catholic nation.

Around here, the practice of families forcing couples (especially young ones) to marry because they've been discovered to have pre-marital intercourse has long been left in the past. Catholics can marry even while pregnant, afaik.

There are still a few "shotgun weddings" happening, but that's mostly when the girl gets preggo and the family doesn't want to deal with the shame it would bring them. Or when they think of the economic implications of the woman raising the child on her own (co-parenting and child support laws are shit here). That's why growing up, I've had more of the "don't get pregnant before marriage" lectures even if they were wrapped in a religious context rather than the simple "don't have sex outside of marriage because god just doesn't want that" type of stuff. It's more of the social stigma than the actual biblical teaching, lol.

I feel for your friends, tho. Forcing marriage on people is always horrible no matter the reason for it. Heck, even marriages which initially comes from a place of love may turn sour and make both individuals involved in it suffer in the long run. So, to be forced to do that? Yeah, that's just appaling.

[Sidenote but I learned what "soaking" is from tiktok last year and...and I'm still baffled till now lmao]

[thetragicallynerdy]

Got tagged for this by @yerbamansa, thanks pal! I'm tagging @yourlocal-charlatan, @alfalfairy, @swallowtailed, @nevershootamockingbird, @lovewithagirl, @eldritchjackalope, and @dragonmuse (but only if you want to)! Writing pals who I didn't tag but want to do it, consider yourself tagged!

Do you write in order?

LMAO NO. Very occasionally I'll sit down and bang out a story from start to finish in order, but it's a very, very rare occurrence. Most often I write completely out of order, by means of "thought of a scene, wrote it down, yeeted it somewhere in a loose approximation of where it might go in the non-existent outline." Actual proper outlining only happens once something gets over like, 20K. Small fics will sometimes get a very loose outline but it's usually just 3-5 bullet points.

Heck, even single scenes that get too long (looking at you smut scenes) get written out of order sometimes. My brain does not like doing things linearly so I just let it do as it pleases lol.

How fully formed does your writing come out the first try?

Ehh, it really depends on what I'm writing? I'd say decently fully formed, especially for prompts and single scenes, but every now and then I'll write something that's just chock-full of "come back to this" or "edit this" notes. I'm a very big believer in "write anything down to get over the block" and usually it works.

How many drafts do you go through?

For most things, two-three, although I don't really think of them in terms of drafts. I write a thing, then I edit. Usually read through and edit a second time as well, especially because my editing process usually adds a lot (anywhere from 1-10K to a fic, depending on how long it is and how many scenes I've forgotten to write lmao).

With much longer fics (like my two 90K WIPs), it's not really set in stone 'first draft second draft' etc, but things change and get shifted around a whole lot before it's done. I'm not a concrete plotter, which tends to mean things shift a lot.

Tell me about your process.

I get a stupid idea, I write a scene for it, and then it spirals out of control XD

But actually, that's pretty accurate. I have many many fics that came out of a single prompt scene and then grew to anywhere from 10 to 90 thousand words. I adore prompts, and they give me so many ideas and I want to write all of them. I am also Full of Feelings, so I tend to get a lot of emotions and ideas about sad plot points and then I want to write them.

I write a lot of scenes around people doing mundane things, and if I'm stuck, I always start with dialogue. Dialogue is my fav and comes easily most of the time.

In terms of technical settings (stole this because it's fun): Microsoft Word for me in terms of actual writing programs! I use Google Docs for collaboration, but it's not my fav. Also I'm a gremlin and VERY FREQUENTLY write directly into a discord channel (on my phone or laptop) so that I can inflict the WIP snippet onto my pals. Thank u pals who let me do this, I love u

And that's it! I welcome questions though, I can't think of anything more specific to write.

#writing #rambling #me #tag game #writing tag game

[viridian-bones]

gourds above, I’ve spent so much time ruminating on the idea of the watchers (Martyn variety) that they now have a system of clothing denoting proficiency and accessories being a sign of status, and they have a leader now.

I haven’t quite decided on the name of the position and the person occupying it but essentially a group of the original concept of watchers (them being the audience) gets themselves trapped in the universe of Minecraft, unable to Watch as they usually would, isolated from the source of their powers, they find alternative solutions. Consuming negative emotions for power, looking glasses/pools (haven’t decided yet), dominion of the deep end where they left unbothered as they would have in their original plane of existence.

centuries pass and the watchers are bored, things are changing at a snails pace and they are unable to watch anything but Minecraft, confined as they are. They are testy. Volatile. Dangerous. In a fit of rage one of them kills one of their companions, beginning a downward spiral of death and bloodshed. They destroy each other until only one is left, a ruthless being, determined to live, to watch and enjoy watching! By any means necessary.

at first they watch through existing windows, but that becomes monotonous very quickly, but they don’t get enough energy from the existing worlds to make a new glass. So they start directly interfering, causing pain to fuel their projects. Pretty soon it becomes a game, mess the worlds, make them more interesting, badabing badaboom, not bored anymore.

But they’re alone and under staffed. The looking glasses require time and energy to create, they simply don’t have enough people to observe any interesting number of worlds. So they steal players. Players that interest them, have an affinity to power, or have a large well of negative feelings. The players-turned-Watchers don’t live forever though, just a very, very long time. They’re not made to hold the powers of a watcher and they eventually reach a personal heat death of sorts.

In the present the “first” watcher is old as heck and there are a couple hundred watchers, none older than a few hundred thousand years.

way too long lmao.

#the watchers #evo watchers #martyn inthelittlewood #in the little wood #itlwlore #lore #i have a class A dirt brain

[beetljugo]

Hello! I know it’s been a while but you are literally the only person I talk to about this character and I have another Keegan x my OC Isaac idea.

Idk if you remember but I sent a snippet a while ago talking about how Isaac and Hesh bonded over being big brothers who lost their younger brothers, and then afterwards Keegan and Isaac kinda make up and admit that they care about each other. Keegan tells Isaac that he sees him as a member of their little ragtag family and Isaac comes clean about his past

So after the events of the Ghosts campaign and my little snippet, everyone goes into “Find Logan Mode”. Isaac being a data analyst/encryption whatever the heck guy spend a lot of time doing digital work to find Logan. He hacks into Fed data systems, tracks suspicious finances and shipping routes that could have ANY possible connection to Logan or Rourke. But he also accompanied the team on missions still too, especially if it’s to facilities that he thinks have valuable intel.

However he starts to spiral and take on too much of a work load. Isaac always starts his day early at the gym they have on base, so it’s no surprise for the Ghosts to see him there in the morning and then at his computer for the rest of the day if there are no missions. The others start to wonder though when he starts skipping meal times of something is up with him. Keegan visits Isaac at his desk sometimes to check on him and always see wrappers for protein bars and empty water bottles and such.

It gets bad enough that Merrick AND Hesh both ask Keegan if he knows what is wrong with Isaac two separate times. Isaac keeps brushing everyone off saying he is fine, even when Keegan asks.

Keegan decides one evening to confront Isaac about it, waiting up until he hears Isaac come back from his desk to the barracks for the night. He waits one hour, then two, then three, next thing Keegan knows is he’s jolting awake only too lol at the clock that reads 5 am and Isaac still hadn’t returned, but suspiciously, his gym bag is gone.

Keegan goes to check the offices to find Isaacs desk empty. With a sour twist of his gut, Keegan goes to to check the gym.

Once he enters, Keegan can hear the sound of sneakers hitting rubber amd the whirring him of a treadmill. What concerns him though is the labored breathing that doesn’t come from a warm up run, but from utter exhaustion. Keegan zeroes in on Isaac just as the other man looses balance and falls forward, launching backwards as the treadmill sends him tumbling off.

Keegan rushes over and starts fussing over Isaac. He tries to help him up but Isaac is disoriented and can’t seem to stand up, barely registering that Keegan is there. Keegan worries that Isaac has a concussion but he didn’t see him hit his head on the fall. He tries to get Isaac to tell him what’s wrong but all that comes out are mumbled words that Keegan can’t make out.

Keegan decided he’s done waiting around and watching as Isaac deteriorates. He scoops Isaac up bridal style, concerningly without any protest or snide remarks from the other, and carries him down to medical.

Keegan WILL get answers from Isaac eventually, but right now he just wants him to be okay

(Kinda losing steam but let me know your thoughts if you have any lol)

OMG hey!! its good to hear from you again :) maybe i shouldnt be answering this when the ashwagandha i took is kickin me into sleepy time mode but i got excited after reading this LMAO

anyways, i love a good "please, just let me take care of you" scenario but like im so concerned for isaac becoming all consumed into his work :(

KEEGAN GET THAT BOY PATCHED UP AND INTO A BED HE NEEDS MIMIS AND A HOT MEAL

i just know when he gets that rest he needs theres gonna be a long conversation

"i know youre frustrated, we all are. but we need you alive. i-" hard emphasis on i "need you alive". typa deal

also that part when keegs jolts awake, i just imagine like the old man ass wake up. mid snore, and jolts like the world is ending for a split second LMAOOO

sorry i have like no actual thoughts to contribute but thanks for sharing your thoughts with me again! this is so fun :)

#oc talk w/ skidspace #cod fanfic #cod keegan #skidspace oc #cod x oc #mars's askbox! ☆彡

[theharrowing]

I FINISHED THE REVISIT OMGOMGOMGOMG honestly, it was not very long since I read chapter 20 the first (and second) time(s), but after the revisit, it felt so much heavier. Like, everything built and built so much over the course of a binge that the weight of mc's anxiety and also love feels so much bigger than I remember.

Masterful. And scary as heck! What is going to happen to our mc!? You keep saying it's a sad downward spiral and to trust the process and it has me feeling genuinely scared.

ALSO THE COLLATERAL POLL HAHAHAHA. I wasn't around when you ran that, and I am baffled by how many people voted for mc to marry Yoongi, holy shit. In their defense, it is the ending that I think many of us want, but it is definitely not the ending that I think would make her happy. She is going THROUGH it by chapter 20. I actually got really emotional when she was spiraling on Jungkook. What the frick was he thinking!?

I am very excited for 21. Have you made any progress? (No pressure!) Maybe I will send in some character asks because I have more questions but I don't want to post too many spoilers in these big messages. I wish I could add a read more! Talk soon! - 🗡️

YOU DID IT DAGGER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!AHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!

i agree that everything felt a lot heavier when reading it all at once. there were a lot of small things that i had forgotten about over the last year and a half (lord save me from myself lmao) and seeing it all culminate really added the weight to it, just as you said.

what IS going to happen to our mc, indeeeeddddd?!?!?! we will find out very soon (but also not bc there is a sequel and a LOT is going to happen to our mc over the course of that mess.)

I JUST -- LITERALLY RIGHT BEFORE YOU SENT THIS MESSAGE -- REDID THE POLL. YOU HAVE TO TALL ME HOW YOU VOTE (if you want to!!!) (here is the link!!!) i agree that i think people voted based on their wants and not based on what i intended, and i am curious to see how different the results are this time. (so far they are quite different!!!)

Jungkook is such a silly goose. he really was NOT thinking in that moment lmaooooo. like.........................dude, come on.

i have made baby progress on chapter 21! last night i got it up to 1069 words, and today it is at 2972. (there is 195 words of outline and loose ideas tho so it's not that impressive, but it is slowly coming along.) soon, i hope! usually i struggle to get started and then hit a streak of cranking it all out in one day. let's hope that either today or Sunday is that day lolololol.

DEFINITELY SEND ME CHARACTER ASKS!!! ALL THE TIME!!! i love answering those so much, and i wish people did them more but i hate to ask too much bc i don't wanna sound desperate lmaooo.

THANK YOU AGAIN! YOU'RE THE BESSSTTTTT!!!!!!! any message makes my day but Collateral messages are always my fav!

#🗡️ anon #reader reviews #fic: collateral #you've got mail 💌