#Already the standard in a lot of ports

[vylad243]

Hazbin hotel Soulmate AU, where if your soulmate is already dead and in hell/Heaven their form influences your own! Heavenborn,Hellborn have names on their wrists, Earthlings have a timer.

Since Alastor dies first, he notices really nothing big in his form? And most if the older demons tell him his form is original. Alastor also notices his soulmate timer is still working. (Alastor still looks like his canon self)

Vox dies next, and when he drops into hell he scares ALOT of sinners. For one thing--he's not going to wear shoes when he has hooves now. He's even debating pants, especially since his fur is a lovely color! And he has a tail! Like what the hell?? Neon blue/cyan claws, ANTLERS? SOFT AS FUCK EARS?!? what?? He has a human face, but he has cpu ports in the back of his neck, just below the skin, and he knows he has ports along his spine, arms and legs as well. He reaches up and touches the circular screen that has melded with the soft blue fur of his cheeks and now incase his eyes. He can feel all of Hell's electricity, all of their networks...ready and waiting. He stops, ears lifting up as he hears--and smells the scent of another--and stronger!-stag. Fear fills his gut, and electricity sparks from his small antlers as he attempts to hide. Only to be jerked back by his jacket, and raised up to look into the other stag's ruby eyed gaze. Before he could stop himself, Vox murmured "Oh, you're beautiful."

Alastor: An eyebrow raises as he stares at the smaller, new arrival amusement fluttering in his chest. He knows by hell's soulmate standards this one is supposed his, and to be fair....the young man isn't so bad at the moment. He'll take him to meet Rosie so he can check his timer, and if that's stopped...well then. This sinner would be Alastor's.

This is really adorable! I actually don't know a whole lot of the lore around soulmates; but this is so cute. Vox would 1000% compliment Alastor without thinking and then realize what he said.

I love the design you have for Vox! He sounds gorgeous!

#hazbin hotel #anonymous #vox hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel alastor #radiostatic #soulmate au

[anitalianfrie]

Hi hi I’m relatively new to MotoGP so I don’t know if you maybe made a post about this before already but! What’s the accent variety like in the Italian lads? Bc I learnt Italian for a year and I loooveee love picking apart accents and silly lil language things but I’m just not used enough to spoken Italian to identify any variation from the standard. I’ve been told tho that Bez has a notable accent but do any of the others as well?🤔

accents ask accents ask stay calm! (sorry i am. very passionate about accents) also disclaimer: i am very much not an expert! i'm just having fun here

okay so, all the italian riders (that are important to me) come from one of these three places: Emilia-Romagna, more specifically Romagna, even more specifically near Rimini*; Lazio, more specifically from Rome; Piemonte, more specifically from around Turin.

*only exception is dovi who was born a leedle more in the inland. but only a leedle.

Here's a map where I have circled the zones of interest

(yes the circle around Turin is enormous it's because I'm not searching on google maps the minuscule ass place cele lived in)

You can hear the Romagnolo accent in Bez, Vale, Enea, Luca, Dovi, Mig, with various degree of intensity. Luca is probably the one with the less strong accent, but it's still very identifiable. There are of course still some differences in the way they speak (i noticed that for some reason Vale tends to open his e more than bez, sometimes making a ⟨ɛ⟩ sound rather than a ⟨e̞⟩ sound). Their accent is caractherized mainly by the way they say the s, the z and the c, that they tend to almost hiss. Here's an example of Bez saying his surname, and somebody from another region saying it. (first the person with the other accent, then bez)

In the audio you can also hear the e thing i was talking about: in Romagna they tend to close it more then they do in some other places in the north (for example the other guy is from Lombardia)

Between all of them, Bez's accent is probably the strongest. I once said that hearing him talk feels like being slapped in the face by a piadina, and I will repeat it.

Both Franco and Diggia are from Rome, but to be honest, Franky's accent is almost unperceptible. Really difficult to clock. Diggia has a stardard Rome accent, but not that strong. People from Rome have a very distinct accent (and also probably one of the easiest to do) characterized by the frequent use of dialectal terms. You can hear it for example in the c and g, that tend to be a bit more guttural, and the l tends to become a r. Also, due to the dialect thing, they tend to cut the verbs: for example fare becomes fa', andare becomes anda'.

For the Piemontese accent, we encounter a slight problem: I am also from Piemonte, and therefore it's harder for me to clock how strong the accent is. The main thing that you can hear about this accent is the o, that tends to become more of a ou. Prime example in this baby cele clip, when he says 'porte'. Adorable. Also, around Turin they tend to close the e (while we, from the secret location i'm blogging from, tend to open them). People from Piemonte also tend to say 'neh' a lot, but I don't have clips of Cele saying it because it's quite informal. I might try do to a deep dive later. And I can't say much more about this accent because as I said, I can't really hear it.

You might have noticed that pecco is nowhere to be found in the list up until now. That's because his accent INFURIATES me. He's from Piemonte but doesn't have the accent, and instead has a slight Romagnolo accent. Here's a clip from this year's Sanremo that made me cry in pain.

Another thing you might have noticed is that the guys from the northen regions (Emilia-Romagna and Piemonte) will frequently put an article in front of people's names, even if grammatically incorrect. Il Cele. Il Bez. Il Pecco. L'Enea. Il Vale. We just do that. You will not catch Diggia ever saying it, because people from the centre and south of italy just don't. do it.

I hope this was somewhat idk. interesting? useful? if you have some more questions do ask i love to talk about these things

#true reason why i need to put them into the big brother: get a more complete grasp on their informal way of speaking #has cele lost the piemontese swag of saying fuma c'anduma? i probably will never know #c'è posta per me #henritoivonen #Italian motogp

[accio-victuuri]

BXGs + IQIYI night ( and other fandom issues ) 🍵

11/25 is upon us and i’m personally excited to see WYB at a public event but my expectations are in check. He is obviously there because of his work with Chang Feng Po Lang and he has some obligation to promote it this way. He has no drama that aired with them this year and he has virtually no ties with them like he would Youku or Tencent even if the latter was in the past.

So i’m not expecting him to be fighting it out with other celebrities present for the spotlight. He doesn’t need it, the attention will naturally fall on him anyway. He also doesn’t have to try so hard to be relevant because he is already WYB. As much as I would love for him to perform, I don’t think it’s gonna happen but I hope i’m wrong.

Anyway, since the event will have lots of celebrities, the fandom activities are on. As expected. Online, it will be making sure your bias will be on top comments about IQIYI night related posts. Or when the individual photos come out, most likely 11/24, WYB should have the highest likes or shares.

Sohu’s weibo account shared what offline activities fandoms are doing and the first one is WYB. ✌🏼

( caption: Fans of male artists on iQiyi’s Scream Night support offline. There are large-screen displays on various transportation and landmark buildings in Macau, exclusive customized banners, etc. the fans are so attentive. )

What I love about the post is the project they shared there is by BXGs. ☕️

It’s a ad screen to be played in two ports close to Macau. IQIYI night is gonna take place on the same venue where YH concert took place this year. So that’s a memorable place for BXGs too. This is not something new. If you’ve been into fandoms like this before, then it makes sense. It’s actually standard and pretty simple, nothing extravagant. There are even companies that will do voting polls and the winning fandom will have their faves on LED Ads.

Video below is how it actually looks like in Gong Bei port. So many foot traffic omg!!!! They even used an edit by Stardustkii who is everyone’s fave. && The video is focused on his Movie Era 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

If you look at the main post of Sohu, all the top comments are BXGS. Passion Fruit supports WYB! 💪🏼

The drama ( sort of ) comes from one of the “fanclubs” of WYB sharing and commenting on that Sohu post.

Wang Yibo Cool Leopard Club and all fans responded to the Cyberspace Administration of China's "Qinglang" series of special action calls to guide the positive development of the fandom and have always put an end to any irrational support behavior.

Reject any consumption and gathering behaviors in the name of artists; reject any irrational support and other illegal fandom behaviors; put an end to any extravagant and wasteful support habits!

Let’s all work together to do more things that are of positive significance to society and jointly maintain a harmonious online environment.

My first reaction to this, aside from heavy eye rolling for sure 🙄🙄🙄, is utter confusion. This is because as soon as WYB was announced, even before that, another WYB fan group was telling fans what time WYB will be announced so everyone comment. They were also doing test posts and preparation to make sure WYB has good KPI numbers online and offline for the event. Even WYB’s FC Guangdong Group was calling on people to meet in Macau.

So everyone was like ?????

and how some so/os were supporting that repost. I mean come on. this has nothing to do with qinglang. they are rejecting that post cause it’s a BXG project and once again, it’s a shame for so/os. it’s giving them flashbacks to what happened in YH concert in Macau where they utterly failed to show up for WYB. Tho I have to give it to them, pulling Qinglang and acting all high and mighty compared to other fandoms is an infuriatingly genius route to go. I’m in a different fandom, I don’t know what happens in the inner circle of WYB’s so/o fandom in CHN but this incident gives me the clue that they are once again uncoordinated. He has a couple of “fan clubs” and groups per city and that has always been the reason for lack of unity. I mean, hate the 🍤🍤🍤 all you want, but those bitches are coordinated as fuck. They listen to one account only. There are no scattered fan clubs. It is cult-ish in some ways but it works when it comes to making sure everyone is doing the same thing and working on the same goal.

WYB so/o fans in CHN should get their act together. I know they work so hard ( that green banner for GRA was so sweet ) and I see it, but the lack of planning and coordination in times like this is hard to watch.

Now I don’t know what SOHU’s motive is only that they wanted to cover fandom projects for IQIYI Scream night. Maybe whoever it is just saw Yibo and Green and thought that’s it? They didn’t know BJYXSZD? Who knows. 🤷🏻‍♀️

I’m seeing BXGs who are going to Macau and are organizing together. I would think it’s harder to get tickets for this cause you are competing with other fandoms too. I just hope they have fun! I’m so excited for fansite photos too!

I was actually not supposed to share this cause it contains fandom “issue” which is sensitive. but the purpose of my tumblr have always been to write my thoughts… As much as cpfs are supposed to hate so/os and vice versa, I have never wished or hoped for their respective so/o fandoms to fail and be humiliated. Because they represent the boys and we support the same person.

Let’s just see what happens on 11/25 ✌🏼

#yizhan #fandom thoughts #bxgs are really something else

[luffyvace]

Chuuya x male reader !!

just like i said i’d do :)

took a bit of time tho 😅 (i almost forgot. almost.)

if he didn’t already realize he liked guys he’d be extra flustered once he does

not ashamed

he just doesn’t know how to act around you

like he knows not to treat you terrible like dazai

but you may not be into feminine things

wait this is low key so much easier

bc he knows how guys THINK

because HES ONE

okay nvm no need to panic afterall

honestly he’s still just as romantic doesn’t matter the gender

will pummel anyone who has something negative to say about you two

if your a big scary guy he feels proud he bagged you 😭

he’s thinking “yeahh me and my s/o are so bad we so cool😎”

yup u sure are chuuya

if your a more nonchalant person or just don’t care for romance

it may seem more like bromance 🤪

if your into cars he’ll buy you the coolest, most lavish brands

if your a feminine dude he can buy you makeup or whatever it is you want

he doesn’t know you gotta tell em

just as willing to cuddle you as he would a woman

wants to be the big spoon tho

he wants dominance over everyone disregarding gender so of course he does

he thinks he’s chad

def practices how to act around you

wants you to think he’s cool so bad

he’s more likely to be more ‘tsundere’ (for lack of better words😭) in public

you know it’s just a farce

ngl he low key gets angry if someone asks who’s the dom tho

like he wants it to be visible that he is

but don’t ask

he finds it somewhat disrespectful

since its pretty much comparing you to a hetero couple

like does it matter?

why do they get to be the standard 😐

i hope you like wine as well

its easier to gift each other wines more than anything

trying each other’s wines and criticizing or complimenting them

chuuya enjoys late quiet nights with you

watching the stars

maybe some deep conversation here and there

gets angry if your taller and he has to get on your level to kiss you 😗

if your short as well he gets a confidence boost

his kisses are sensual and long if you have enough time

holds your neck and waist

loves to pepper kisses on your neck if your doing paperwork

if you work at the port mafia too it would likely be if your doing overtime

btw the port mafia is highly likely where you met

what better place to meet a cool guy??

if your not as strong don’t even worry about it he’ll always protect you

pretty cocky about it too

loves if his smirk can make you melt

if you give him a genuine compliment his eyes widen, he starts blushing and he gets butterflies in his stomach

‘tch’ *blushes and turns away*

loves to team up with you in fights

especially against dazai

appreciates if your physically strong bc then you can beat him up

since it seems to be his weakness

will subtly compliment you if your a good cook

thinks it’s better than restaurant food

“no need to eat out anymore i guess”

“you’d put 5 star restaurants out of business”

lowkey admires if you have a lot of skills/talents or hobbies bc he doesn’t have many himself seeing as though his jobs takes up a lot of his time

even if he learned some before he joined he can’t practice often

thinks it’s cool if you can find a balance

likes to watch you do things you enjoy

doesnt mean in it a creepy way of course

he just likes to see you content and happy

enjoy masculine readers! :)

♥︎

#anime #anime and manga #anime headcanons #luffyvace #fluff headcanons #bsd headcanons #bsd #bsd chuuya #bsd x reader #male y/n #bsd x male reader #x male reader #male reader #amab reader #bsd x you #bungou stray dogs #bungo stray dogs headcanons #chuuya bsd #chuuya x reader #bungou stray dogs chuuya #chuuya nakahara #chuuya bungou stray dogs

[aerkame]

Hi this is the person who had a lot of finfolk Howdy feelings. This turned into a wall of text so i completely understand if you decide not to post it

So this might be a bit of a ramble, and I don’t know much about finfolk lore. So I apologize if something doesn’t line up with the original lore, or I accidentally say something that conflicts with something you’ve previously mentioned.

Im imagining that Reader is a puppet from the port town on the mainland—the one that the neighbors commonly visit.

The mortal most likely meets Howdy for the first time during one of his trips to his restaurant. They had taken to going there on their lunch break and soon become a regular. Howdy is probably going by an alias and has shifted into another, smaller form (by his standards. he still towers over Reader) Still, he's outgoing by nature, and strikes up a conversation with the mortal.

They both find that they enjoy each other's company. Sometimes they can't talk for too long (the restaurant is busy. the mortal's work keeps them late. Howdy leaves for Home) but when they do meet, they find that time flies by.

Reader does take note of how he (very stylishly) keeps his arms and hands covered and how he's averse to touch. They assume it's a sensory thing.

Eventually, Reader opens up about their plans for their future. Specifically about their wanderlust. They talk about all the places they want to travel to-- major coastal cities, island nations-- places that, if they went, he could follow.

But, during another visit, Reader expands their list - backpacking through the country, hiking in the mountains, riding camels in the desert. And Howdy finds himself feeling very... possessive.

The more Howdy speaks to Reader, the more Reader opens up, and with that they begin to vent. They start to talk about an annoying thing their friend did, workplace drama, family gossip...

(this can be interpreted in two ways.

Either Howdy hears these minor annoyances and gossip, and builds them up into signs of a dangerous situation. Further justifying his possessiveness over Reader.

OR Reader really isn't in a good place on the mainland, but they just brush off any abuse like it's nbd. Meaning they're also not likely to catch onto any red flags Someone Else might be raising)

Whenever Howdy returns Home he gives updates on news from the mainland. That news can span from anything from major world events, any possible treats to them and Home, to simple gossip.

The neighbors start to notice Reader coming up often in these little updates. He mentions them more and more with each visit. And eventually the neighbors' eyes start to drift towards Wally.

Howdy was starting to sound like Eddie after he met Frank.

Maybe it was time to have a chat with Home...

Wonderlust is my new favorite word, next to sublime. Also I wanted to write only the aftermath of the neighbors asking Home for permission because I am already writing an x Howdy and I don't want to ruin that sweet sweet angst/romance. >.>

TW: Mentions plans of kidnapping and drugging, anything in Finfolk nature is a TW really.

It was no secret to everyone at this point that Howdy had eyes for you. The only problem was that you lived on the mainland and you were making plans to leave soon. Sure, it would be easy to just track you down again, but it would be better to have things done more quickly to attract less attention on things. It's hard having to keep track of witnesses and making mind-altering potions. Plus, they hate having to go through all the effort of pretending to be police or other government officials.

The rest of the neighbors seemed fine with you in all honestly. Having met you in person themselves in one form or another, they think you'd be a fine addition to their little island. All they needed was the approval of Home.

But of course, it wasn't difficult at all to get Home's approval. He already knew this entire time having watched you from his crystal baptismal font as the water kept rippling from place to place looking for your location. He's sure your adventurous nature would love what the peninsula and it's waters had to offer. They had surrounding reefs, caverns filled with crystals, and many more smaller islands nearby, all full of colorful creatures that don't exist on the mainland or anywhere else.

Now it was just a matter of getting you back home that needed to be taken care of. One of the neighbors could simply kidnap you in the dead of night, but you having a late-night job made things complicated. Either Howdy would need to invite you somewhere isolated where no one would be to do this or they would have to play things out slowly and wait for an opportunity.

No one wanted to wait however, from what things sounded like, things weren't exactly safe back at your own home and it seemed to be getting worse over time.

So, Howdy returned back onto the mainland with Sally and Frank.

Frank did his usual routine of shifting into a new person and taking on the persona of a police officer (Who would of thought he made for a pretty good cop huh?) and Sally went in with the disguise of a sweet florist that worked just down the street from where you lived. No one would even bat an eye at what took place here.

Howdy or Sally may or may not have had involvement in the death of the person that hurt you…oh well, it's not like anyone would remember that guy anyways! Literally. Not even you would remember.

Howdy was the only one to go in without a disguise, or at least staying in the form you knew him as. He had invited you to his restaurant as a treat, as a date really. You happily accepted.

It was so nice, so peaceful, and you were so easily tricked.

All it took was just a single touch to your hand and everything started to feel numb as your body gave out under you. With bare hands, Howdy carried you to the back of the restaurant to make a B-line for the back door. Not a single customer batted an eye, and not one employee or waitress gave the scene a second thought.

You awoke to bright rays of sunlight on your face. Sitting up, you found yourself in what had to be the softest and largest bed you've ever been in. Everything still felt so...tingly? Numb? What happened?

"Ah, I'm so glad you're awake minnow!"

I wanted to mention that the waitresses and employees at Howdy's seafood restaurant are cute remora dogs and shark dogs. Most of the customers tend to be sea-dwelling creatures like sirens, mermaids, etc.

#welcome home #welcome home finfolk au #welcome home howdy pillar #howdy pillar #welcome home howdy pillar x reader #howdy pillar x reader #x reader #finfolk #au

[divinekangaroo]

Thanks @palmviolet for tagging me!

How many works do you have on AO3? 154

2. What’s your total AO3 word count? 900k

3. What fandoms do you write for? Peaky Blinders, Final Fantasy XII, Final Fantasy VII, Dragon Age II, The Professionals.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos? Interesting and not straightforward question: I've been writing since 2007 and only rebooted my fics to AO3 in 2023. I backdated them to time of writing rather than posting live into the current update stream. I was vaguely curious to see what *actually* attracts readers through the AO3 search engine. So, my current top five are all Peaky Blinders Tommy/Lizzie fics, and given my small followers list, everyone following me will probably already have read them!

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not? I do, and it’s my vain (both senses of the term) struggle with how to do it appropriately. I am conscious of how comments, particularly on an AO3 "archival" fic, can weight a reader's further interpretation/engagement of or with fic by that author, and that I'll never put so much time into comments as I do into fic.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? 7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? The fics I thought of picking for these two pretty much overlapped. Perhaps this shows just how I approach happiness – it’s moments, it’s never an ending.

8. Do you get hate on fics? Only old Dragon Age fics. Interesting period of time where any fic author that didn't unequivocally support the moral rightness of one particular character's opinions was targeted. Like: ok to write torture/rape fics of this character, but only if it was clear the author thought this character was morally right. Such a destructive troll.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? I'll write sex, mostly as part of a larger arc rather than standalone smut; often it is a partial scenario rather than linear start-to-end event written in a rhythm to support a coherent wanking rise-to-climax read. I'm pleased if people find it pushes their buttons, but I'm also not bothered if it doesn't. I do approach smut as one of many possible lenses or frames for a character, however, so smut that detaches from character confuses me.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? Sometimes but they have to feel really right. I think I tend more to fusion or pastiche (I think those are the terms?) rather than crossover: I take a particular character concept/theme and port them into a particular environmental context which is not possible in the canon to see what happens. The only one I still have up is a FFXII/Dragonriders of Pern fic (incomplete) which was going to be all about the horrible knowledge of socially accepted and endorsed ritualised rape and forced feminisation of a character.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? I'm not that popular to notice.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? I have a memory of one in FFXII but can't recall.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? Yes! Taught me a lot, including the kind of writer I am - difficult to collaborate as my push to complete within a motivational urge period will always be greater than a long-haul effort, and I struggle to be available for other people. I’m either good at the front end ideas-generation, or a micro detail ‘write this particular thing/scene and fill it with goodness’, and not very good at the middle bit – the long slot of planning and plotting and aiming for consistency etc. I am so grateful fandom exists to support non-traditional prose formats which let me play with writing and thinking and engagement without needing to produce to book-style production standards.

14. What’s your all time favourite ship? I usually fixate on a character, and pairings allow means to explore that character rather than being an end game.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? Oh they all carry this potential. *cries* The issue for me is loss of motivational drive/thinking; because I rarely have good structural notes etc if I lose my immediate thread of 'thinking of everything all at once' I find it hard to pick up again later. I also stop some fics because I realise how ambitious the scope really is, and I feel like I can’t do them justice.

16. What are your writing strengths? Speed-sketcher? Completionist? Tests multiple ideas rapidly and freely and never worries about something 'being wrong' because there's always another fic to try? Intuitive gut level hits on characterisation here and there?

17. What are your writing weaknesses? Editing, pacing, I can't sustain long fic, I frequently move characters around like paper dolls for the sake of the cool and forget they need their own internal motivation.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I prefer the kind of cant-based/dialect-based approach which splices non-English terms fluidly into English dialogue, mostly because as a child of many migrants this has been my world experience. I do suck at writing this, hence my frequent use of cop-outs to say 'language shift here, meanwhile still writing in English'. But when it’s done well it hits so many of my sweet spots.

19. First fandom you wrote for? FFVII.

20. Favourite fic you’ve written? Anything in my Personal Favourites list: https://archiveofourown.org/series/3728710. (I'm still too close to Peaky Blinders to pick a fav, it'll take about five years of distance!)

#my writing

[mixelation]

oh no i wrote another reborn au snippet instead of the thing i wanted to be writing. no. why

this one minato's POV because why not. mild body horror

“...and that’s why I’m nominating Tori for Team Medic,” Kushina concluded, hands triumphantly on her hips. 

Minato stared at her, and then stared down at the photographs carefully lined up across his desk. They were… graphic. He was so glad he hadn’t let Naruto play hookey from the Academy to hang around his office today. 

Usually brand new genin wouldn’t have a team medic. They simply aren’t qualified for it yet, and they rarely go on missions where one might be necessary. Then again, brand new genin usually don’t have a mission go so weird they need an extra special follow-up debriefing after the fact. 

This had happened to Team Four three times already. Twice for Deidara’s… art… and one time because Itachi had thought using genjutsu on another Konoha team would expedite their mission. It had not perturbed Kushina in the least. Her indomitable spirit was, of course, why Minato had assigned her this… difficult… of a team. But Tori too? Sure, she’d been in the process of fleeing Orochimaru when they’d picked her up, but… she’d seemed so sweet. So normal. 

Kushina’s eyes were hard and determined as she stared back at him, chin out, daring him to question her. It was a look he’d seen her level at countless Academy teachers. It was a look she’d given her commanding officers right before running off and doing something that got her all the demerits on her record. It was a look that reminded Minato that even if they agreed not to let their marriage enter their working relationship, she was never going to just defer to him if she thought he was making a bad call. 

“I think it’s a good idea,” Itachi said when Minato failed to comment. Itachi, in Minato’s opinion, was having a lot of problems adjusting to no longer being team captain. He gave a lot of commentary any other genin would be reprimanded for. “Tori is more suited to it than Deidara or I.”

“Oh yeah,” Deidara cut in, turning to Tori. “Didn’t you say you used to want to be a doctor?”

“Well,” Tori deadpanned. 

Well, Minato thought, staring down at the photos. A medical nightmare, the medic-nin had said. Only Kushina would come away from watching her student semi-accidentally rip someone’s skin off and then regrow it with a seal she made up on the spot and think: yep, make that girl a medic. 

In her written report, Tori had called the move “a desperate attempt to evade capture via a gross misapplication of the leaf technique (emphasis on gross).” She’d stuck her foot to an enemy ninja’s back with chakra, kicked, and ripped the entirety of his back’s skin clean off. Then it occurred to her they were supposed to port him back to Konoha for questioning and attempted to regrow his missing skin. She’d applied the world’s weirdest shaped seal along the edges of the wound and attempted to goad the living skin to grow over the now gaping hole. This had worked. The problem was that the skin had simply not stopped growing. It was still growing, according to the frazzled T&I-associated medic who’d come in only an hour before, even after they’d removed the seal. They were having to cut the skin back every hour to prevent it from overgrowing parts of the ninja that weren’t his back, and it was rapidly draining the man’s chakra. He required so much ongoing medical attention they couldn’t even stabilize him long enough to interrogate him. 

Kushina was still staring him down with her chin jutting out. Clearly she was defensive of even the nice girl on her team turning out to be a horrible monster. 

“We can discuss that later,” Minato settled on as his answer. “Tori, it is never acceptable to use an untested seal on a mission.”

“It was that or let him die,” Kushina immediately contested. “That’s why she should be team medic, you know. If she’d had something like Mystical Palm, she could have stabilized him in a more standardized way.” Kushina cocked her head at him, the hair framing her face shifting in a way Minato would consider a bit sexy if she weren’t currently arguing with him. “Besides, how many times have you used untested fuinjutsu on a mission?”

He didn’t have a counterargument to that. But he’d done those things as an adult and a jounin filled with experience. Also, he’d never made a horrifying skin-growing jutsu. 

Also also, you weren’t allowed to just bring up things like that to the Hokage.

“I can probably undo it,” Tori volunteered. 

Minato usually took care of fuinjutsu-gone-wrong incidents himself. If the problem had been the seal itself, he would have already gone down to T&I and looked at it himself, putting reprimanding and debriefing Team 4 off for later. But the problem had been something the seal had written into the very biology of the enemy ninja, and so Minato had relegated the problem to a medic-nin team to figure out. 

Minato leaned back in his chair, drumming his fingers on the desk as he contemplated Tori. She did a very bad job of looking like someone even the slightest bit exceptional. She looked like a completely ordinary twelve year old girl, and normally he’d dismiss her offer to help as the delusions of a child overestimating their talents. 

But looks were deceptive, especially among ninja. He’d seen her original seal. 

“Alright,” he decided. “We’ll walk down together.”

He dismissed the rest of the team, leaving them behind in the hallway as Tori scurried after him. She somehow managed to do this with the exact gait of a civilian child. T&I was going to be so upset.  

(“So are you still treating us to lunch?” Deidara loudly asked Kushina.)

The ninja was being kept in a low-security cell in T&I, on one of the upper levels for their underground facility. Tori did not seem the least bit disturbed by the whimpering man’s appearance of hundreds of globes of fleshy, slowly expanding, bloody nodules across his body. Minato found himself surprised he’d expected her to be upset for some reason– she was perfectly aware of what she’d done to him. She’d written about having to pause transport to cut away excess skin when it started to grow over his face in her report. 

Tori asked about if they’d run any tests and which ones, and Minato nodded at the on-staff medic-nin to answer her. The problem with making up fuinjustu on the spot– especially ones that affected the body– was that it wasn’t always clear how they were inducing changes. 

There hadn’t been time or resources for any tests. 

“This isn’t really undoing it,” Tori admitted to Minato, “but it wouldn’t be hard to temporarily stop it. I’ve even tested this one before.”

She doesn’t talk to me like I have more authority than the local librarian, Minato thought with mild chagrin as he sent someone off for fuinjutsu supplies. That had to be Kushina’s influence, or else Orochimaru’s interactions with his lackeys were a lot laxer than he’d have guessed. 

“If we wanted to get really funky,” Tori told him, her face brightening, as a chunin ran off for paper and ink, “we could carve it into his skin, and it’d last longer.”

Minato raised an eyebrow. “He’s already getting chakra infusions. I don’t think he’d be able to sustain it.” Tori frowned. Then because he couldn’t help himself, he asked, “Is that what you did the first time? I noticed you didn’t have any targeting elements to prevent getting yourself caught in it.”

That was on his list of things to tell her never to do again, actually. But he wasn’t used to thinking about this type of fuinjutsu. Maybe it didn’t matter and she’d hadn’t actually been one brushstroke away from growing her own skin all over the place. 

“No,” Tori answered, “I didn’t have a fine enough tool and his blood was going to mess everything up, so I…”

They ended up painting a targeted stasis seal on his back, just enough to keep the skin growth in check while still letting him talk to an interrogator. The medic-nin on standby looked incredibly on-edge the entire time. Minato rarely did surgical seals, and apparently if they screwed it up they could stop his heart, but Tori sounded like she knew exactly what she was doing and could easily describe to him her vision so they could both paint and make it go faster. She even incorporated Minato’s suggestions for containing the seal’s effects to a defined area without him having to diagram it out for her. Maybe he should approve her for team medic…

#i do want to write more about non-tori akatsuki members but i'm still rotating what everyone's About in this au #i think itachi is just having some sort of ongoing existential crisis which would be fun #idk what deidara is doing besides vibing #kushina is going to make this team happen no matter what. yes even if all her cute students are unhinged maniacs #reborn au #my writing

[chuthulhu-reads]

[ID: Two panels from Trigun Maximum. The first shows Livio looking haggard, his left eye blank as Razlo, in a thoughts/mental voice burst, shouts, "Answer me, asshole! Am I the strongest?!" Livio responds, "y-yes!" In the second panel, we're closer up on Livio's face, enough to see that there's blood smeared around his mouth and a frantic look in his eye. In another thoughtburst that obscures Livio's left eye, Razlo shouts, "Louder!" Livio shouts back, "Okay! Yer the strongest!" End ID.]

This is the most fascinating Livio-Razlo moment for me because it's doing something that very rarely happens when the Superpowered Evil Side trope crops up. Usually, it's an enemy to be fought, vanquished, flushed out of the mind, but here Razlo is once again arising in response to Livio being threatened, even afraid, because he's a defense mechanism. But it isn't just that Livio hands over the reins and hides, as he did as a child; something much, much more interesting happens

[ID: a panel from Trigun Maximum. In it, a younger Livio with longer hair, confirmed to be Livio by the focus on his right eye, is looking exhilarated. The present Razlo is thinking, "...we're the strongest." End ID.]

There's an actual exploration of Razlo having sprung from Livio, that Razlo's capabilities are Livio's. He developed Razlo as a protective persona for himself, but Razlo is an aspect of him, and this sequence, Livio and Razlo are starting to re-integrate.

[ID: Three panels from Trigun Maximum. The first shows Livio panting from exertion as Razlo thinks, "Which means..." The second panel shows Livio from behind, shirtless, showing the port on his back for a third arm, holding a bottle, as Razlo thinks, "that you..." Between these two panels and the third, Razlo concludes, "...are the strongest." The final panel shows Livio wielding three Punishers in the heat of battle. End ID]

It kinda amuses me that, in your bog standard Superpowered Evil Side trope, a big struggle for the character experiencing an SES grappling with any terrible things their SES has done and wondering, "does this mean... I... am capable of such evil???" and that's just... not even slightly an issue for Livio, because nobody on Gunsmoke worries about their killcount except Vash. He's already pivoted to using his strength and skills to protect innocents and seems pretty excited to do it, but the barrier to him accessing his full abilities is that he still hasn't fully accepted them as his. At one time, Razlo was a separate entity that protected him, but he's no longer a frightened child; he's an adult seeking to fully realize himself and what he can do, his heart is stronger, and he can accept that, if he and Razlo are one and the same, all that strength he's always ascribed to Razlo is his. All that Razlo is capable of, he, too, is capable of. And I think that's a really cool thing to see.

I would also be interested to see what actual DID experiencers think of Livio and Razlo--he's a lot more nuanced than most media depictions of the condition, but that's a very low bar to set, so the question about whether he's good rep is very much not mine to answer. What do you think?

#Trigun #Trimax #Livio #Razlo

[starlightshadowsworld]

Atsushi joins the Sheep

You know how abilities can live on after death.

Chuuya who thinks Atsushi was killed 7 years ago, because of him.

Because Chuuya betrayed the Sheep by dealing with and later joining the Port Mafia.

And when they tried to kill him he found out they'd already killed Atsushi, because of his unwavering loyalty to him.

Chuuya freezing in place at a Port Mafia meeting when a report comes in about a rampaging tiger in Yokohama.

And seeing yellow and purple eyes look back at him from the photos.

He knows this tiger.

It's the same one that Chuuya would play with during the full moon.

A tiger he never thought he'd see again.

He takes the mission despite it seeming beneath him, no one comments though they are intrigued.

Chuuya wonders why now, why after so long. He needs to know, he needs to apologise... he needs to get to them before anyone else does.

The tiger stares at him coldly but before Chuuya can say a word, it glows blue and standing before him is Atsushi.

It's possible for an ability to take the face of its former self but... But this wasn't that...

Atsushi looks at him and Chuuya knows its him.

It's really him.

... Had he been here the whole time just out of reach?

"Atsu-"

He wasn't prepared for the fist that knocked him to the ground.

"I thought the Port Mafia would be a lot more intimidating. But I guess their standards have slipped." Says Atsushi, looking down at Chuuya.

His words were cold in a way Chuuya couldn't recall they'd ever have been.

"I suppose I'll have to wait for someone worth my time." he began to leave and Chuuya's heart seized.

"Wait! Atsushi! What are you... How are you here?!"

Atsushi paused but didn't look back. "I don't have anything to say to you." He whispered something before walking off.

What Chuuya didn't see were the tears streaming down Atsushi's face.

He wanted nothing more to embrace his once older brother. Seeing Chuuya again felt like a knife in his heart.

But he couldn't.

Because his big brother was gone.

He'd abandoned him, he'd made his choice and left Atsushi to deal with the consequences.

Chuuya stayed frozen in place, unable to catch him. Atsushi's last words ringing his ears.

"Just leave me alone Chuuya, you're good at that."

... Just what had happened all that time ago? He'd been sure, so sure Atsushi was dead and yet here was...

Whatever, Chuuya was going to get to the bottom of it.

He felt where he'd been punched and found no mark, even now Atsushi didn't want to hurt him.

Chuuya had failed him once, he wouldn't make that mistake again.

(@calicocoffee101 @dinomeow I think this counts as a reunion)

#Atsushi joins the Sheep #chuuya nakahara #atsushi nakajima #bsd chuuya #bsd atsushi #Bsd #bungou stray dogs

[earthstellar]

gaining some weight on Propranolol for tachycardia, as one tends to do (I'm not upset about it, More Mass = More Power lmao hell yeah)

and I just imagine on the alternate Lost Light, First Aid probably prescribes Ratchet some medication for his degenerative condition to help manage his spark energy output a little better (after Drift manages to successfully get Ratchet to actually make an appointment about all the symptoms he's been experiencing)

and as a side effect, Ratchet gains a little more protoform mass

Ratchet doesn't really give a shit because he's well aware that ultimately the medication is beneficial for him even with the additional mass taken into account for his frame type etc.

but Drift LOVES it because he sees it as a sign that his conjunx is finally getting the medical care that he needs, and he makes sure that Ratchet is aware that no matter how his frame might change, Drift absolutely loves it

Ratchet might be heavier and a little slower but overall his spark is managing at a much more stable rate than it had been previously; even if it won't stop the spark damage that's already happened, it does seem to be working to help slow down further progression a bit (and First Aid is monitoring Ratchet with regular appointments like a fucking hawk, which helps)

eventually Ratchet needs a little bit of an armour re-fit to make sure his plating is adjusted to his greater protomass, and he's noticeably wider and rounder even with minimal changes to his actual armour design

but he takes it in stride; he's always been a bigger build than standard for most medics, owing to his wartime work in the field, and he doesn't want to lose his thicker armour "just in case" so he just gets a little chonkier overall

yeah it's a little harder on his joints, but he gets some custom framework done by First Aid and Velocity to help mitigate that, so he's happy with where he's at

and Drift is so happy, he loves that Ratchet is at a good place in his ongoing disease management and he loves the changes to his conjunx's frame

big, round Ratty is warmer and softer in between all his plating, and after a long shift on the bridge, Drift is often spotted curled up next to Ratchet in partial recharge in their favourite booth seat in Swerve's, with Drift resting his helm on his conjunx's chest, arms wrapped around Ratchet's wider middle, warm and cozy and happy together

IDK it's just a very cute image to me, Ratchet finally getting some actual medical care to help manage his condition and Drift loving how fat his Ratty gets because he sees it as a direct physical indicator that First Aid's treatment is helping to at least some degree ;__; <3

Ratchet is fine with it because 1) the benefits outweigh any side effects thus far and it gives him more time operating at a slightly more functional level with his conjunx and 2) Drift is happy about it

(and it also makes it harder for Velocity to try physically moving him out of the medbay whenever he wants to help with paperwork in there, lmao)

and if anyone on board ever has any sparklings, they climb all over Ratchet like a playground because he's big and soft and also can't outrun a group of toddlers who desperately want to see if they can get up on his shoulders and touch his chevron, this is the ultimate goal of Climb Ratchet

(Drift looks for him after a shift and finds him seated in a window port covered in sleeping sparklings and it Does Things To His Spark)

anyway I gotta go to work now, just thought I'd share Fatty Ratty because I fucking love this idea a lot <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

#dratchet #lost light #mtmte #idw ratchet #idw drift #maccadams #maccadam #long post

[bluest-planet]

Reminder that the hd remaster(?) Rerelease of both Baten Kaitos games is coming out on the Switch in like, 4 days.

Listen, the advertising wasn't that great, and even if the original voice acting of the first game was awful (but so funny and charming imo, the 'so bad it's good'), the second game honestly has some of THE best voice acting in any game I've played. Such as the main character being voiced by Crawford Wilson (guy who voiced Jet in ATLA,) or another important character being voiced by Shanelle Workman Grey (voiced Larxenne in KH.) And so much more.

The gameplay itself is a card based rpg that's very fun and fast paced! It's easy to get a hold of and influences the story itself and the world, and I've never seen anything else come remotely close to it (which is honestly why chain of memories disappointed me so much lol, like, Baten Kaitos is such a gold standard for card games.) The first game is a bit slower, while the 2nd game (the prequel) is a lot faster and has some small differences but overall it's the same principles. Combos, downward or upward counting, paring the right elements, multiples and so on. Also deck organization! As well as maintaining stuff in the real world/real time since things can spoil or change over time.

The ART direction is absolutely gorgeous, using 2d backgrounds with moving 3d models, think chrono trigger. With I believe are Arabic and Mediterranean (?) Influences, and cartography. As well as a buncha weird mixed media stuff! Honestly you can find a lot to gnaw on art wise since Baten Kaitos isn't afraid to get weird and funky! With some places looking like standard fantasy land, gorgeous cloudscape, playdough world, multiple mirror worlds, a land made of sweets and the list just keeps going. One of the most beautiful games ever, really. It's up their with TWEWY, KH, Ni No Kuni, Skyward Sword, Wind Waker, BioShock, just a whole lotta games known for their aesthetic choices.

The characters are also super solid! Solid jrpg ragtag band/trio! I love them all so much, they're all so weird and vary from age and backgrounds so again if you're into any final fantasy game or other jrpgs you'll be right at home. The story in the first game, Wings is very solid with a neat twist, and then it's made richer after when you play the 2nd game, Origins (the prequel) which gives more insight and a crazier twist... Kinda gives u a bittersweetness at the end too. Please play Eternal Wings before Origins.

And lastly; The MUSIC. My god.

It's just... Chef's kiss. Honestly one of my favourite soundtracks of ALL DAMN TIME I think I'd die happy listening to Castle in the Sand before I go. Again, like the art direction, it's a grab bag of different genres, with it mostly being rock/speedrock, orchestral-esk grand pieces with organs and harpsichord, the occasional weird synths and keyboards, to funkier grooves. Evidential Material, Chaotic Dance, both of the battle themes for each game, Castle in the Sand, Valley of the Wind- literally has no skips!! It's all honestly imo, the best of Motoi Sakuraba's work, so if your into any of his, be it the Tales games or Dark Souls you'll get it all.

Unfortunately, the game doesn't seem to be getting a physical release in the US, potential a limited run in Europe, and mostly in Asia is getting copies which is a damn shame since they already took out the voice acting, and probably didn't even do much to really remaster it. I believe it'll mostly be a basic, if a little lacking, port, but even then! I encourage people to get it! Developed by the same people who worked on the xenosaga, then onto botw in some ways and more. It's like, an origin point so so many iconic creators and developers in jrpgs as a whole. I'm honestly just happy enough to see it survive past the GameCube. Which, while STILL the best way to enjoy and experience it, isn't as viable for it to survive. So yes, I'm glad it's being preserved and hope to see many new fans prop up!! Please come join in the like, 5 people still here lol. We're few but passionate! It's like, a cornerstone of my entire life unironically. Kinda like how KH or Zelda is for anyone else.

So... Please give the Baten Kaitos 1&2 HD remasters a shot! Or at least just listen to the music damn.

#baten kaitos #baten kaitos origins #blue speaks #listen now that i have more people following me im trying to spread this hidden gem!! #honestly wanted to do a cross over w this someday... but yeah please try it out! honestly if u liked the vibe of ps2 era jrps just get it #you'll thank me i promise #me not so sublty trying to get more people into bk so i can made cute bk and kh crossover art im sorry for being cringe #if my sibling seese this post (bc its the only tag they check and its so so and small i will be found) no u didn't #stop looking at my posts brother this is fer yer damn cause!

[clericofshadows]

a beginning

Description: In the aftermath of a one night stand with an older soldier named Nyx, Kaidan starts to fall for the man and his obvious mysteries...

Pairing: Kaidan Alenko/Nyx Shepard

Rating: M

Note: Felt inspired to finish this after making some gifs of Nyx and Kaidan.

Kaidan wasn’t quite sure what to think about the man lying in the bed a couple of feet away from the bathroom, watching him with those deep purple eyes that said a lot about him.  Gene modded, clearly, with a deep hue that contrasted his rough exterior.  He had to have been at least in his fifties, if not more, the skin marked by both war and natural aging.

But one thing’s for sure, Nyx knew how to charm a man, even one that wasn’t normally for one night stands.

“Doing okay in there?” he asked, making no move to cover himself up, turning towards him with a grin.

“Just thinking,” Kaidan replied, dampening a wash cloth with warm water, testing it with his hand before wringing it out. 

“Dangerous,” he teased, running his hand down his chest, toying with those pierced nipples–and what a fucking surprise that was.  “Penny for your thoughts?”

He was thinking about a lot, actually.  About how he thought he saw a flash of light blue rimmed around his eyes while he fucked deep into Nyx, pressing his weight into him, keeping a steady gaze on him, watching for any reaction that wasn't complete pleasure.  Biotics from a man far too old to be part of the first gen, much less any other stable gen.  Far too pure to be a trick of the light.  But maybe it was.

He didn’t ‘feel’ like a biotic, nor did he notice or feel a port in the back of his neck.  Could be underneath the skin like Kaidan’s, but there was no tell-tale scar either.  A mystery to be solved later.

Because not only did Kaidan find himself taking the man back to his damn apartment on Arcturus, they also negotiated something beyond just a quick fuck between two soldiers.  Nyx wanted to be used, and he said he saw a man he could trust at the bar. 

And Kaidan didn't want to disappoint. 

"Thinking about what we should order for takeout," he replied, walking back over to the bed.

"Bullshit," Nyx snorted, pulling his hair out of his undercut bun, already well-mussed after their fuck, the silver strands flowing down around his shoulders. "You fucked me within an inch of my life.  I think we've earned a little honesty?" A southern accent started to leech into his words. Something he hides? He's known some Alliance to hide their local accents and stick to a "galactic standard" but he didn't expect that from Nyx.

Kaidan started to gently run the washcloth around his thighs, careful to not be too rough, ignoring him for now.  Nyx took it from him with a roll of his eyes and cleaned himself up. "You're such a gentleman."

"You almost say it like an insult." Kaidan stretched himself back out on the bed. 

He chuckled, tossing the washcloth on the nightstand next to him. "No. Just an observation. Anyway, come on… whatever you are thinking about can't be too bad?"

"Why me?" Kaidan asked, because he was genuinely wondering.  Some had tried to approach Nyx, but he sent them all away, instead heading towards Kaidan.

Nyx smiled, seemingly happy with his response. Good. Maybe that will get him to back off for a moment. "I'm good at reading people.  And I got a good vibe from you.  Looked like you wanted something more, and you seemed like the kind of guy that cares about everyone.  You were talking to the bartender like an old friend, and yet I saw no recognition between the two of you when you walked in.  Thought I would test the waters, see where things go."

Kaidan knew the man was an N7, seeing it emblazoned on his jacket clear as day.  Hearing their observational skills in action was a bit unnerving, but perhaps it wasn't too bad hearing how highly Nyx rated him before he even talked to him. 

"Did I prove your observations correct?" Kaidan asked. 

"You did and more," he replied softly, full of sweet honey.  "How long are you on the station?"

Kaidan raised an eyebrow. "Depends.  You told me to be honest, so I will.  I'm not the kind of guy who's just here for benefits. This was great, but–"

"No, no, that wasn't why I was asking.  Not really.  Maybe not the best way to enter into something, but you never know..." he interrupted, trailing off with an expectant look. 

Kaidan couldn't deny that Nyx was attractive in a rough sort of way.  Scars framed the sides of his face that told a story, one that made Kaidan want to get to know the man more.  A grey beard that matched his hair, kept longer at the chin, but braided nearly in a small plait. Hell, there was something familiar about the man during their whole encounter, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what. 

He probably should get his name. And contact info, too.

Kaidan did want something more these days.  Never really getting close to much of anyone during his service so far, his biotics almost setting him apart from most.  Too many seemed to treat him like an outsider, nothing overt but it was clear to him that he was different. 

Even more so after seeing him out on the field, unleashing his biotics amongst soldiers who have probably never seen them outside of vids and sims.  

Hell, Nyx wanted him to flare out, encouraging him and his biotics to let loose. Maybe it was just a kink for him, but something lingered behind his gaze.  

And it's been too damn long since Kaidan had someone he wanted something more with, had someone who saw his biotics and grinned. 

"A few months," he replied. "Working on some new potential training for new biotic recruits. Nothing concrete for now.  But word says I might be back in the black soon, so no promises."

"Then we have similar schedules.  There's a couple of little Ns that need to be taught how to use their damn omnitools properly," he chuckled. "And unfortunately I'm one of the few tech-inclined Ns who was free enough to do it."

"Not much of a teacher?" He asked, curious. 

Nyx nodded, motioning for Kaidan to come closer.  He shook his head but moved closer all the same, cuddling up against his chest.  Sure, why not.  He was warm and his embrace was nice.  "Yes and no.  To my fellow nerds?  Of course.  To the ones that think an overload and a sabotage are the same fucking thing?  I would rather be in the most backwater UNC in the galaxy.”

Kaidan made an exaggerated shudder.  “They do completely different things!”

“Exactly my point.  Say, what was your designation?” 

“Sentinel.”

“Ah, that’s what I figured.  My favorite specialty to work with, as your type tends to know a bit of everything,” he replied with a wink.  “As you demonstrated this evening.”

Kaidan rolled his eyes. “So, you said we have similar schedules.  Does that also mean you have a posting in the future?”

“I do,” he nodded, resting his chin on Kaidan’s head.  “A long-term mission, likely out in the black for a while with a command of my own on a frigate.  Still new and they haven’t fully put together the roster, but it’s something different.”

“Sounds interesting,” Kaidan said, biting back a yawn.  “I wouldn’t mind having something like that, too.  Smaller ship, smaller crew.”

“Maybe you will. Come on, let’s order that take out you were supposedly thinking of,” Nyx said, untangling himself from him.  Kaidan gave him a once over, the scarred, hairy chest and arms, the coarse trail that led to the man’s impressive cock.  Gleaming, gold rings on his nipples, hidden underneath his fatigues.  Scars lined his body, faint and hidden and long since healed, silvery in the light.  Black whispy ink on his arms that reminded him of magic, of biotics even and a styled design on his neck–a phoenix.  A play on his name, perhaps?  A call sign?  Or did he just think it was pretty?

Nyx was an enigma, and Kaidan wanted more.

He smirked at the attention and reached down to grab his uniform.  

“You know, we are fairly close to the same size… you can borrow something of mine,” Kaidan suggested, motioning to the set of drawers against the wall.  

Nyx nodded.  “Thanks.  Have a place I can throw these in for a quick refresh?”

“Just down the hall.  I’m lucky, I get all the accommodations in my room.”

“Fancy.  What rank?”

“Staff Lieutenant.”

“Not too far ahead of you.  Staff Commander.”

Not as high ranking as he expected, given his age. Joined the Alliance later? It was odd. A rarity.

Was he a veteran of the First Contact War? Could explain the gap, if he left the service after the war.

“Guess it’s a good thing I’m not serving under you,” Kaidan purred, getting up from the bed and pulling open a drawer.  He grabbed a clean set of joggers and a tank top and tossed it over to him.  

Nyx smirked once he caught the clothes.  “Agreed.” 

“Anything in particular you like to eat?”

“Nothing on this station is great.  But I do have a fondness for that wing place nearby.”

“Since you paid for my drinks, I’ll pay for our order.”

“I like your offer.  Keep this up and I’ll never leave.”

“Maybe that’s what I want.”

Nyx shot another heated glance at him before heading out of the room, pulling on his discarded briefs as he headed towards the mini laundry room.

Kaidan wasn’t sure what the hell he was doing, but honestly?  It’s been a long time since he’s been with someone and hell, maybe Nyx will be the one.

He’ll start by judging by his taste in wings and sides.  Something easy, something benign. 

Something to distract him from a quick, growing attraction within his heart to a man that seemed to be one hell of a puzzle. 

"I never did get your info!" Kaidan yelled, getting his attention.

He poked his head out of the doorway, holding up his omnitool with a smirk. "I'll transfer it to you. Lest we forget..."

Kaidan prepped his omnitool for a transfer, waiting for the contact profile to pop up.

NYX SHEPARD.

Now that's why he seemed so familiar.

Butcher of Torfan. Well known veteran of the First Contact War.

And today was the anniversary of Torfan.

#mass effect #kaidan alenko #male shepard #commander shepard #mshenko #cleric's writing #nyx shepard #i've had this wip for ages but hey i got it done

[adobe-outdesign]

Could you review Loudred? Did you ever play MD:E?

(I have not, but these reviews mostly cover design so it wouldn't affect my opinion much anyway.)

Whismur is probably the least interesting out of this line, but it's still a a pretty neat creature. This line is themed around sound, so naturally Whismur is timid and based off of quiet sounds, getting upset by the loudness of its own crying.

It also breathes through its ear canals, which is an interesting detail.

Visually, I love its eyes. They capture its timid and freaked-out personality perfectly, and are just such an interesting and distinct design. Otherwise, it's fairly standard fair, though the ears covering its ear holes is a nice touch. The base color is pleasant, and the yellow accents help to break up the body a bit.

I do wish that it retained the purple color of its evos, however; it's a bit strange that it and only it is a different color from the rest of the line, and we have a lot of pink-ish round Pokemon already. I also kind of wish there was something more sound-related in the design beyond just the ears, which are an easy detail to miss.

I feel like they were going for something with the volume marking and hole on its back, but it also just looks pretty awkward. I would've given it a longer "tail" and maybe bent it to a degree, or just left it off (though I do like the continuity it creates with the rest of the line).

Loudred is where the line really gets interesting. While I personally like Exploud a bit more, Loudred here does a great job at both making sense as a middle evo and having a unique design that's not just a transition between point A and B.

Visually, the most obvious addition here is the loudspeaker ears. They're weird, they're fun, they tie into the theme, and they're distinct to it. I do think I would've gone for yellow instead of black, but I can also see the argument that the black helps draw attention to them, as they are the most important part of the design.

Beyond the ears, Loudred also has a gaping mouth with four teeth and yellow lips that kind of reminds me of a hippo, which also helps convey the idea that this thing is Really Loud. The yellow around the mouth is accented by yellow pads under the feet, while the rectangular teeth are matched by the shape of its hind claws. It's a great design all around—reads easily, showcases its theme, and looks unique.

My only nitpick would be that I do wish Whismur's eyes were portrayed in some fashion, given that they were so distinct. I can see dropping them to an extent due to them looking very timid, but even just having Loudred's eyes still be closed at this stage might've helped retain a bit of that element. That's obviously not a big deal though, given how strong the rest of the design is.

It also has the same "tail" issue that Whismur does, though the volume symbol going up is a nice touch.

One thing I really like about this line is that they're not really based off a singular animal, possessing hippo-like mouths on bipedal bodies with claws and all sorts of interesting other anatomical quirks. While there's nothing wrong with Pokemon based on a specific pre-existing thing, I do love a good monster, and Exploud here in particular is really good at that.

Instead of retaining the boombox look of Loudred, it exchanges the loudspeakers for a lot of organ-like pipes—which both allow Loudred to have a unique element and make Exploud feel like a suitable enhancement to it. It does, however, retain a few elements of Loudred's, such as the color scheme, gaping mouth, and teeth/claws, which ensure that the two look like they belong together.

I really like the overall shape of this thing—how the formally awkward hole in the back has been extended out into these really cool exhaust port-esq twin tails, how the pipes around the head form a crest that somewhat reminds me of a dinosaur, the angular jaw shape and arm, etc. It all comes together perfectly and gives it an incredibly distinct shape and design that I love.

The closest thing I have to an issue is that it's a shame the volume marking was lost on the back, and it's a bit odd that the eye suddenly turns red for no reason. Those are super minor, however, and this is still a great design overall.

Side note: I like that it only raises its voice in battle and instead makes whistling noises for communication reasons, presumably to avoid deafening others of their kind. That's a nice bit of attention to detail.

So as a whole: this is a very strong line. Each stage ties back to their main theme but has some element in their designs that's different in each evo, maintaining continuity while also making each stage enjoyable in their own right. The actual creature designs are top-notch and memorable. 10/10, would yell again.

#whismur #loudred #exploud #pokemon #pokemon reviews

[rlyehtaxidermist]

nintendo’s port forwarding nightmare, or: how i learned to start worrying and fear the network

So I was alerted to Nintendo’s official guide on port forwarding and it contains so much bad advice that there was sort of a moral imperative to write a response to it. If you’re setting up a Switch for multiplayer games and network services, or just have a perverse interest in bad IT device configuration, you should probably read this.

this is like beginning an article about dioxygen difluoride synthesis with “in this article, you’ll learn how to start fires”

this guide having a disclaimer that “it is up to each consumer to determine what security needs they have for their own networks” is like an article promoting asbestos saying that it’s up to the consumer to determine what health needs their lungs have

part the first: questionable advice that will usually work

So first off, they tell you to go to your PC and copy down all the information on your IP, subnet mask, and gateway. For usual home networks, this is probably fine (though it’s already a red flag - normally devices on a modern home network get this information automatically, through something called the Dynamic Host Control Protocol or DHCP, avoiding the need for a lot of cumbersome manual administration).

There are some cases that might be an issue just for this; in particular, if your computer is connected via a cable while your Switch is operating wirelessly. (There’s also questions about subnetting but if you know subnetting you already know why this guide is a trash fire.)

So here the guide tells us why it wanted us to copy down configuration from our PC - because they want you to disable DHCP, and have the Switch use a static IP address.

A fixed IP in of itself isn’t bad, and there’s plenty of use cases where it’s done - but usually in an enterprise environment, for things like file servers, printers, or network infrastructure like switches and wireless access points. It’s just a very odd thing to set for a consumer device - especially a mobile, wireless one like the Switch.

part the second: oversimplified advice that might work

Aside from the rare case where your PC could have an IP address ending in 236 or more, where this advice just wouldn’t work at all, the advice boils down to “put in random numbers until you get one that works”. There’s no guarantee that a working IP address wouldn’t e.g. already be allocated to a computer that is presently turned off.

This brings us to the major issue of device-side static IP addressing: if the device disconnects from the network, there’s nothing to stop the DHCP server in your router from giving that static address to something else that connects. This can cause a lot of weird connectivity errors seemingly at random. There are ways to make a static IP compatible with a DHCP service, but they involve specific configuration of the router or DHCP server that the guide doesn’t touch on.

While this on its own is an issue, it’s not quite the security dumpster fire that it could be. But put “the router might assign the Switch’s IP address to another device in the network” into your foreshadowing pockets because it’s going to be important later.

Finally, there’s subnet mask and gateway settings, and this is where the highly technical stuff comes in. Thankfully the details are irrelevant because there’s one problem with all of this advice: sometimes the Switch should be different from your PC, especially if you have multiple access points or a mixture of wired and wireless connections. DHCP would normally handle this, but if we’re just firing randomly into the darkness, it might not. Again, this is something that will usually work with the default configuration of most home networks, but has no guarantees for anything more complex.

But this is all basically “misguided and incomplete, but mostly harmless”. Where’s the garbage fire?

part the third: terrible advice that will work all too well

The first few things are standard practice for port forwarding. The first problem is step four: specifically, the phrase “port 1 through 65535″.

If you played old video games, the number 65535 might be familiar to you. It’s the maximum value of a 16-bit unsigned integer, meaning it would irregularly crop up as the seemingly arbitrary maximum for numbers in games of the SNES era.

The significance for this in networking is that port ID is a 16-bit unsigned integer; in other words, "port 1 through 65535″ is equivalent to “every single port”. (Technically, every port but port 0, but 0 is a special case that officially doesn’t exist and is used for various types of magic that are beyond the scope of Nintendo customer support.)

Having a single port forwarded from the open internet tends to make a system a target for attacks, as if the application on that port is compromised, there’s nothing separating it from actors on the open Internet. “Check if you have any open ports” is standard basic cybersecurity advice - any accessible open port is something of a cybersecurity fire hazard.

Having every single port forwarded is the equivalent of running naked into a burning building while covered in naphtha and thermite.

On one hand, it will definitely guarantee that people can connect to your Switch from the internet! On the other... well.

A compromised Switch can then access the rest of your internal network, bypassing a lot of security and default firewall setups, since it is now on the same subnet and network, which most machines will treat as being trusted. For instance, it could access things like router configuration that are often blocked from the outside but accessible - with good reason - from internal machines. This is the same kind of hazard posed by a lot of Internet of Things devices, amplified by the Switch’s greater computing power.

But would you believe me if I said it got worse? look into your foreshadowing pocket, if you will, and recall that the router might assign the Switch’s IP address to another device in the network. So if your Switch is offline, and a new machine comes online and requests a DHCP address, suddenly it’s not forwarding every single port to your Switch, but to whatever that device is! If you have every port forwarded to the Switch’s IP, but the Switch leaves the network for some time, there is a low but very real chance the IP gets reused for a newly-connecting device, and suddenly it’s not the Switch with every port open, but a computer or phone.

All the security risks are the same for open ports on these machines, but the potential of a breach is much, much worse.

part the fourth: okay how do i fix this

Nintendo’s actual customer support has a separate article with a similar security disclaimer talking about a little-known feature many routers have called the DMZ. (Yes, that still stands for “demilitarised zone”, as in Korea or Cyprus or most borders of Israel at one point or another.) The DMZ is essentially an area designated in your router settings as separated - mostly - from your main network, intended to house machines that are more open to the public internet while protecting others from incursion.

Router DMZs are not “proper” DMZs, and do not offer the proper protection of the enterprise-level concept for which they are named. The router DMZ option, more properly called a “DMZ host”, is simply a computer on the same network as the others which receives all traffic that isn’t marked for another machine. It’s essentially the same as opening every port on the Switch, but has the benefit of at least avoiding the IP address reassignment issue that would more directly expose your other machines, since the router needs to know the Switch is in the DMZ.

I haven’t found any good advice on Nintendo’s official pages but I’ll go into what I’d do here.

Shout at Nintendo to establish an in-house standard for which ports their multiplayer games use. It’s not like a Switch is going to be running multiple services at once and they have literally tens of thousands of ports to choose from; just pick one (or at least a narrow range) and stick to it! Ideally, this would fix it but it would require a major game developer to care about cybersecurity issues other than homebrew, which I’m pretty sure requires a Lutheran Pope flying on pigback all the way to the bluest possible moon.

There are lots of networking solutions available to people willing to dip their toes in. The one I would properly suggest looking up is a so-called screened subnet, where you can use subnet masks to separate the Switch from every other machine on your network. Most routers should be able to be configured to support one but the details of it are a bit much for an already long post.

Buy a second router and put it between your first router and the network connection. Set the Switch up through this router, and all your other computers stay connected to the old router; this will make them see the Switch as an external host and keep it separated in case it’s compromised. (This is a simplified version of a true DMZ, and should work basically out of the box other than setting up port forwarding.)

If you absolutely need to expose every port on your Switch to the internet, don’t configure your Switch’s network settings. Instead, use a DHCP reservation from your router to ensure that the specific IP is only ever given to your Switch. Again, this only offers the same “won’t directly expose my other computers” protection that using a Switch as a DMZ host does, and still leaves your network open from the back - but DHCP reservations are probably the easiest thing to set up technically, often being directly documented in your router’s manual.

I am not a cybersecurity specialist, and have only learned what I do know about networking from running my own private networks. This is not a comprehensive listing of the solutions, just the ones that occur to me. They may not work perfectly, but they’ll work a hell of a lot better than opening every port and shouting “come get my ass” to the entire Internet.

#nintendo #cybersecurity #nintendo switch #splatoon #splatoon 3

[tomorrowusa]

In addition to bombing maternity hospitals, playgrounds, and apartment buildings, Putin's war criminals are now bombing cathedrals.

This was the second time that the vast, sand-yellow Transfiguration Cathedral, which sits in the heart of Odesa’s Unesco-listed historic centre, had been attacked: in the 1930s, it was torn down during Joseph Stalin’s atheism drive. On Sunday morning, the rebuilt version was hit during a Russian airstrike on the city. A missile blew a large hole in the roof, collapsed the altar and left several walls charred by fire. It was one of several strikes on the southern port city in the early hours. Schools, residential buildings and a revered 19th-century mansion also suffered damage. One person was killed and 14 were hospitalised, the regional governor said.

Central Odesa is a designated World Heritage Site.

Putin is having another major hissy fit. His three-day "special operation" to wipe out Ukraine as a country began on 24 February 2022 and marks its 17th month today. He is currently attacking the port city of Odesa because that is where most of Ukraine's grain is exported. If Putin can't have Ukraine, developing countries can't have grain.

Russia has been hitting Odesa relentlessly since Moscow last week pulled out of a deal allowing Ukrainian grain to be exported from the city’s Black Sea ports. The Russian defence ministry has also threatened to treat commercial ships attempting to dock in Odesa as military targets in order to ensure that no grain can leave the city. “Russia’s current strategy is to destroy Odesa. They would never really attack foreign-flagged ships coming to Odesa, so they are attacking Odesa to make it clear that it’s too dangerous here,” said Oleksiy Honcharenko, a Ukrainian MP from the city. He said Ukraine urgently needed more air defence systems. Even by the standards of Russia’s ruthless war strategy, a missile strike on a historic cathedral – one that was consecrated by the patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church, no less – was a shocking development. The priests at the scene were dumbfounded. “This is barbarism, it’s terrorism. The people who did this are not people at all,” said Myroslav Vdodovych, the cathedral’s chief priest, as he walked through the ruins in a fluorescent orange helmet, taking calls on his mobile phone and directing emergency workers to spots where there was still rubble to clear.

Of course it's terrorism. Russia has become a terrorist state under Putin. Putin runs the country like the head of a fascist mafia.

We need to send ATACMS and F-16s to Ukraine. Fortunately Ukrainian pilots are already in the process of being trained to fly F-16s.

A lot of the terrorist missiles used against Ukraine are fired from planes flying over the international waters of the Black Sea. Ukraine needs the ability to shoot down Putin's flying terrorists. Let them sleep with the fishes along with the Moskva.

#invasion of ukraine #odesa #grain exports #transfiguration cathedral in odesa #russians bombing churches #world heritage site #russia is a terrorist state #vladimir putin #putin is a war criminal #give atacms to ukraine #give f-16s to ukraine #stand with ukraine #россия - террористическая страна #владимир путин #военные преступления #путин хуйло #долой путина #бей путина #путлер #путин – это лжедмитрий iv а не пётр великий #объект всемирного наследия #руки прочь от украины! #геть з україни #вторгнення оркостану в україну #одеса #спасо-преображенський собор #україна переможе #слава україні! #героям слава! #будь сміливим як україна

[tswwwit]

(NSFW)

What was it like the first time Bill got turned on in his human body?? I mean even though he’s had demon sex (?) in his geometric form, and witnessed human sex dreams, it must’ve been weird the first time it happened to his, like. Real real body.

It sure was!

While Bill's possessed human bodies before, it was generally for mischief and mayhem, with the mind of the mortal screaming in impotent terror and/or rage. Which is hilarious, but not horny.

Even besides that, wearing one to get down with the human-style flesh-slapping didn't particularly appeal either; it just looked so.... meaty. With fluids going in places, I mean, c'mon! From the outside the whole ordeal looks completely ridiculous! You'd probably be all sticky at the end and pushing lots of air in and out. What a bunch of weirdos meatsacks are.

Of course, as we all know, Bill ended up in a meatsack at the beginning of Faking It - which came with a myriad of annoyances, but some extra benefits!

For one, having his own custom model suited Bill much better! It was quite literally made for him, tailored to his very essence. All the nerves and wires plugged into the right metaphorical ports and full driver installation. He's much more in that body than the other ones he's driven around, it's rigged out with all the luxuries and hooked right up to his own mind.

So it was with mild surprise that Bill noticed when he was, ahem, interested, there was an involuntary reaction. All the tubes pushing liquids into places and a slight rise in temperature; and some other things. One of which was quite evident. Bill was well aware of this one in the past he'd made considerable fun of it - but being in this body so much, and having it tuned to respond to his mental state, lent the absurd situation a bit of, uh. Urgency? Importance? Anyway, it was... much more distracting than he thought it'd be.

But hey! Weirdness is like, Bill's whole jam, you can't deny he's curious enough to poke around in places a being probably shouldn't, and he was already stuck in the thing anyway. Why not give it a little test drive and see what that's all about?

Important note: It's canon in the Bill POV sex scene that human flesh has hundred of thousands more nerve endings than his standard form. Considerably more sensitive. Touch is the difference between an armored gauntlet and your bare hand; temperature and texture are all very, very enhanced -

The results: Positive. Excellent. A+++, Bill was Enlightened and Delighted.

A convert was made that day. Bill Cipher is big into hedonism, and now the doors to the pleasures of the literal flesh were open.

Bill had to hand it to humanity; okay, like, he gets it now. It's an acquired taste to be sure, but once you get it it's fan-friggin-tastic! He cast all those old aspersions aside and prepared set sail onto new seas of sensation.

#answers #semi-NSFW #This answer got longer than I thought but I had Thoughts about it #Due to the fact that it jives with the current project I'm working on if indirectly #And what was Bill thinking about may you ask #I think the answer should be obvious #He was only being unintentionally flirted with by an argumentative stubborn little temptation #Meanwhile we all know what Dipper was up to when they were apart #Just two idiots sniping at each other for hours then retreating to go shake hands with the devil alone as it were #Bless these two goddamn idiots