#cannot edit this right now so i’ll just post them like this lmao

[pedro-pascal]

LEE PACE for GQ Hype (2022)

#i’m gonna k*ll myself goodbye #cannot edit this right now so i’ll just post them like this lmao #lee pace

[cyncerity]

hi everyone! little bit of an update!!

to those of you waiting for the next part in the store shifter au: it’s almost done, i swear.

the rest of this is a lengthy explanation cause y’all know me, i can’t write something short. tldr will be bolded at the bottom if you don’t wanna read all this.

i wanna explain something real quick: in my early years of middle school, i was into creepypasta, which pipelined into Marble Hornets, which pipelined into a ton of other slenderverse series. If you don’t know what that is, it’s an ARG with an emphasis on characters being stalked or hunted by Slenderman. All of them are really really good in their own way and do interesting things with not only Slendy, but adding their own new big bad’s and lore and i’d highly recommend watching one if you haven’t yet. (i may make a separate post about which you should watch based on what kind of content you most enjoy cause i really want to indoctrinate more people into this)

My favorite slenderverse at the time had a very big emphasis on early November, specifically November 11th. So i started to have a little tradition of watching those videos every November 11th even after the hyperfixation had faded just for a bit of nostalgia.

Fast forward to now- it has snowballed to the point where every year for over half a decade now, November 11th rolls around and I am thrown violently headfirst back into my slenderverse phase. I cannot control it. I’ll be like “ok this year i’ll be normal about it, after this long, surely watching one video won’t spiral me again” and it always fucking does. No other hyperfixation i’ve ever had has functioned on a calendar cycle so idk wtf this is. This is the 6th year of this. I cannot escape.

So yeah, per how it’s been since middle school, November-January my main hyperfixation will be slenderverse. It could be shorter, it could be longer, but that’s the general pattern i’ve noticed over the years. After that i’ll pretty much be back to normal.

Don’t get me wrong, i’m not taking a 3 month hiatus or anything. I promise i will do my best to get the store shifter au part out before fucking 2024. But if you’ve sent me an ask recently and i’ve ignored it, i’m genuinely so sorry, but i can’t force myself to work on new stuff right now when mcyt g/t isn’t my main interest. I’ll do my best to get to it eventually when the hyperfixation comes back a bit more, i do read and process and think about every single ask i receive and it always makes my day when i get a new ask, but yeah. For the next few months i’m probably only gonna be working on and posting stuff that’s been in the works, are from asks that we’re given to me like a year ago and already have wips in progress to answer them, or art that i just haven’t given you yet.

on the other hand, if you’re reading this and you like creepypasta or slenderverse stuff, i’ve created what i think is literally my 5th fucking blog! @cynningly <-i’ve been spamming this for like 4 days cause i refuse to be normal about slenderverse stuff, but follow there if you want horror stuff and so far just a bunch of really shitty edits of internet arg sexyman villains. Also yes all of my blogs have to have “cyn” in the name somewhere, that’s how you can tell it’s me lmao

tldr:

my hyperfixations switched up again, im really into slenderverse (slenderman-centric args) at the moment and likely will be till January. This is a cycle that’s been going on for years now. made an alt for it -> @cynningly

I will still be working to post mcyt g/t stuff, but only stuff that’s a wip or has been in the works for a while. to anyone who has sent an ask recently: sorry, but i can’t take on making new stuff when my focus isn’t purely on mcyt rn. I will do my best to get to it eventually and if you’re one of the people who’s sent a story request or ask recently i truly, truly appreciate it. y’all make my day. but, yeah, that’s what’s going on with me lol

#cyncerity #cynpsa #mcyt gt #mcyt g/t #<- using this tag so my mcyt g/t followers and moots see this #not g/t

[viscountessevie]

Uhhh my OG anon about the poll,,,,you came to the right person: ya non-binary pal is a Greek nerd and honestly wtf is that comparison. Actually you know what Imma just show yall the INSANE ask I just got. Not cos of the anon but the insanity that is the Polio fandom.

I am LEGIT seething at this comparison. First the show wants to do My Fair Lady aka Pygmalion and now this bullshit. RMB (while an okay book) IS NOT THAT DEEP! 

More Under The Cut [Cos it got long and this is the TDLR Sanji is Pissed Version]

Also the book couple had chemistry, the show version does not!! All this education and they can’t fucking read our full arguments. The Greek shit aside, I knew adding the education qn would be a slippery slope this whole fucking convo is SO condescending. It’s giving the assholes who put down Simone for being a college dropout in comparison to CC’s Oxford degree. 

Anyways that’s my knee-jerk reaction to getting these asks - thank you anon for them!! If any of you who has seen this thread, would you by any chance be cool sharing screenshots of this convo? They don’t deserve anonymity for such brain dead takes. I’ll be making a full well thought out thesis about this - you bet your ass you’re getting a spin off to My Fair Lady thesis but now its Why RMB Will Never Be The Odyssey. 

Also anyone else wanna send asks about this post or add comments/reblogs to this post pls do so! Imma compile everything together in one master post and add in everyone’s thoughts on this too. 

Before I forget, I initially made this post to tell the anon to give me time cos this is gonna have a MONSTER of an answer and also I’m working on another long ask atm! So I wanna clear that as well before diving into this. I was gonna tackle S3 asks but this is tooo insane to let it wait 

EDIT: I’m adding in the newer asks because holy shit the extended convo is horrifying: 

The quotes of this full ask between these two screenies were all quotes that are compiled above so it seemed redundant to put those quotes in again but it looks like more people have found that insane public thread yikes. 

I CANNOT STOP LAUGHING AT THIS TAKE “I’m from SEA so I enjoy something more light hearted” LMAO WHAT girlie did you not have strict Asian parents who parentified you?? But I also get it if that person was traumatised by her life that she finds comfort in light hearted romances which is valid but Jesus this is not it. 

You’re SO right babes I’m gonna cover this in my masterpost. I think they’re trying to overcompensate because we always call them dumb for liking a ship with no chemistry and one of them is a racist in their show version. Anyways can’t wait to see what else yall have to tell me on this topic! Also it doesn’t have to be just the Education question, since we’re talking about the poll we might as well pick it apart! 

#Bridgerton #Bridgerton Fandom #Bridgerton Discourse #anti penelope featherington #Penalty (Bridgerton) #Anti-Polin #Pelican (Bridgerton) #Block these tags if you don't wanna see this shit #God I wish I could be this delusional as those users #I'd be happier in life for real #Bridgerton Poll #Bridgerton Asks

[hey-sherry]

Sherlock Holmes The Awakened Demo Thinky Thoughts

A bit late, but I wanted to share my first reaction to the Awakened demo! This is essentially an expanded version of what I wrote on the FW discord, with screenshots edited to look nicer for tumblr. I will do a separate post on the extra stuff that is normally inaccessible without Ansel. [Extra stuff post here]

So: spoilers ahead + keep in mind that the game is darker and moodier, I edited some of the screenshots so that they are clearer on tumblr/mobile view.

Sweet sweet concept art, gorgeous intro music, yay! The main theme is atmospheric and dark, giving me very slight vibes of the Sarif HQ track from DX:HR... I mean this in a good way, not in a “they copied it” way. It’s that sort of nostalgic ambience, but deeper and darker. One day I’ll stop drawing parallels to Deus Ex, but today is not that day.

The intro cinematic is pre-rendered and really good; I liked Sherlock's narration and the implication it's all in Watson's/players' hands now... He sounds more authoritative and distant than in CO.

I really liked the visual with the fly caught in the cobweb.

I did not expect this! It's a really fun title sequence and wow, we’re being thrown straight into chapter 3. I too thought it would be London but this is great 😄

WATSON!!! At this point I’m thinking, “Oooh we're gonna play as Watson, they probably don’t want to show Sherlock just yet, I know someone who's gonna be very happy about this o,o” (ahem hem, @lucere-aeresta​) I like long dialogues/cinematics so this intro was a treat. I'll have to replay of course but it felt very satisfying to see a chunk of the story here and be introduced to the new characters. There’s a lot going on!

The receptionist

Dr. Gygax!

You can walk around a little and talk to a couple of NPCs. There’s this easter egg - it’s a Lovecraft easter egg (thanks for figuring that one out, Lucere!) The paper itself is straight from Cordona. :D

You cannot pick this letter up, but the message is very clear. May be a clue in the final game.

Who’s there...? BTW this is the exact face Sherlock gives Jon when he plays the guitar too loudly in the CO seance scene :D

OH NO. LMAO! This had me in stitches, and of course I lied. Nice American accent, you dork. The subsequent journal entry essentially saying "Watson tried to act, I guess" gave me a chuckle. I tried!  So hard! And in the en-- moving on...

Here’s how the journal looks like now. The clues have updated icons and you can toggle to sort them by type (document, conversation, item, etc.) or the order in which you found them.

So yeah, Sherlock shows up in disguise and a terrible American accent, says the iconic “Guten day,” and then he gets sedated because Watson cannot lie to save his life.

Of course. OF COURSE. Now I know someone who's going to be a bit disappointed we don’t spend much time as Watson, but that's not me. 😂 My first thought -> they heard us cry and wail about the stubble and said "We're gonna make you beg to have the stubble back" Ok, ok, you win. I'm sorry. 😭

(insert half an hour of zooming around with Ansel instead of playing the damn game) This is how the game levels look when you go out of bounds!

Found some of you in the back! And in the cells! :3 (There’s a wall with photographs of the Kickstarter backers, and a row of cells with names and custom faces - although you cannot see the characters very well at this point.)

Right, I should play. The lockpicking puzzles were fun, but I'll admit I found both of them extremely easy. But I am a seasoned adventure game fan and it's a nice little thing to do for that feeling of escaping the cells. The “Mycroft” (custom) difficulty setting does let you change the puzzle difficulty, so we are probably going to face a bigger challenge in the finished game. The settings don’t make a difference in the demo, though.

SHERLOCK. NO. PUT IT DOWN.

PUT THOSE DOWN OH MY GOD

So yeah, I think it’s safe to say he’s a full blown addict by now. Vogel, what have you done?

Ran into the guard three times, got a game over 😎 Confirmation that yeah Sherlock is still afraid of water! I bet he's gonna love the trip to America and boating around the swamps. What could go wrong.

FYI, there's a guard that you need to figure out how to get past. It's not a sneaking sequence, but you need some items. If he notices you 3 times he rings the alarm, and the game reloads

At this point I'm having fun just investigating stuff and admiring the new journal etc., it's all very nicely designed. It's awesome that we can sort evidence by type now! The mind palace facelift is so good and feels more involved than before.

Back to the game... I SQUEALED!!! 😄 duhhh

And again! Two back to back CO references, yay ♥

Well I am a smart detective and deal with the guard with my brain and not my fists. Time to yoink all of his clothes. Where did his body go? We don't ask such questions around here...

HEEEEEEEEELLLLLLL YEAAAAAAAH

ANSEL PHYSICS RESET MY BELOVED ♥♥ never fix this please never ever

(cue another photoshoot) 

The biggest tease in all of the demo: THAT EXCLAMATION MARK. Let... me... see... outfits! 😂 Lovingggg the updated outfit screen, so happy there's some gorgeous lighting in there. It looked kinda bad in CO.

Okay, back to playing the game! I LIED, more photoshoots as the inmates scream, cry, and wail all around me. Sucks to be them, I guess.

Okay, Gerda! I LOVE her new design, and her voice actress too! She was so great.

Gerda is the second inmate that we meet. She wants her friend Heidi back and until then she will not talk. The first inmate that we meet is Mauricio Napoleon, it is just a short but entertaining conversation/cinematic. We don’t talk to him any more in the demo.

He does that lil smile as she spits the worst threats at him, it's glorious

Something something Silent Hill 3 (Gorgeous!)

I try to play the mountain goat in every game and the absence of the jump button will not stop me

So I didn't take screenshots of the quite meaty gameplay surrounding getting Heidi back and figuring out what's going on, so here's some thoughts: - The updated crime scene investigation looks fantastic! The smokey green aesthetics are fitting and everything is much clearer than it was in CO. I like that we can see how many variations there are for each 'node'. The only thing I'm not sure about is the first person perspective - Sherlock's close focus mode - because I had trouble seeing what's different in the variations, and sometimes the models would push me back a little bit when they loaded. I'd move away from the node just by trying to see things and had trouble re-positioning... not a great deal of trouble, of course, but it is a downgrade from SHCO. I think the 3rd person mode like with Jon in CO works much better. This is my biggest criticism of the demo. - There was a tad too much running back and forth just to seemingly fetch a few items... this may be polished further, I don't know. It gave me old adventure game vibes where you kinda run back and forth for a few small things lol. - I wished we could use the items more directly and/or assemble things, not just have them as text in the inventory... but I understand that making a new puzzle feature may be too much work at this point - The "three clues" dialogue confused me for a moment, but so it did in CO as well so this may be a ‘me’ problem 😂 I keep forgetting that there are 3 different questions to answer, not that I need to present 3 accurate clues... hahah. - The darker overtones are soooo up my alley! When I figured out what had happened to one of the people in the casket... ooof anyway, time to find and assemble Heidi!

Him <3

Awww, isn't it cute?

BUT IT'S WRONG

Oh so wrong 😂 I did NOTTTT expect this ahahahahhhh Hands down the best part of the demo The mental health aspect of the remake was what had me a little worried, but you know what, I think it's gonna be fine 😂 Heidi is one bad bench, and Sherlock just ACCEPTING he's now talking to a demonic doll and making the most of it is just chef's kiss Love, love, love. We're all mad here.

I unlocked a reward, and what a sweet one it is! Sadly, you cannot change your clothes in the demo. The updated physics make his chain and bag go bouncing like crazy, haha.

And thank

you

for reading! Feel free to send me an ask if you have any questions.

#sherlock holmes the awakened #sherlock holmes #john watson #frogwares holmes #SHTA demo #thinky thoughts #my screenshots

[ingo-ingoing-ingone]

Submas Song Sunday

on TrainGuy Tuesday kinda vibe

Yup lmao I’m Back At It, this time @fourphoenixfeathers Fusion AU edition! :D

Submas Song Sunday, aka where I take a  song from my playlist and kinda just talk about how I think it fits the  subway bros (or just one of em!)

I might include references to fanfic, or explain an animatic I can think up to the song, or just talk about it!

DISCLAIMER: Nothing on this  playlist is intended to portray anything aside from familial  relationships. I am NOT looking at backstories of songs, who they were  written for, or songwriter’s intent. I go STRICTLY off lyrics and how I  interpret them!

You may find a link to the playlist in my pinned post! If you have a song you want me to talk about, send it in :)

Song: Home by Cavetown

So it’s no great secret that I’ve been writing a lot about Ei, the fusion of Ingo and Emmet. In that AU he gets pretty badly hurt, go read both my fic Two-Headed and Phoenix’s series Cobwebs if you want more Ei lore!

Mainly writing this out for her bc I can’t get ideas out my brain right now.

Often, I am upset that I cannot fall in love, but I guess This avoids the stress of falling out of it

We begin after Ei gets injured, when he sees that his four armed, four eyed form that he’s stuck in due to distortion nonsense is seeding some distrust among certain elders in the Pearl Clan. They had never even liked him to begin with; he finds this somewhat distressing, especially now when he’s so vulnerable.

But he can’t help but wonder if perhaps their reaction would’ve been worse if they had liked him. Would it be seen as a betrayal?

Are you tired of me yet? I'm a little sick right now, but I swear When I'm ready, I will fly us out of here

And then he is alone. E is alone and he’s worried about I... Is he getting sick of E controlling everything but unable to do anything about it because I is so injured...?

I also see this a bit as injured Ei with Akari; he tried to downplay how serious things are at first, but he still needs to get her home.

I'll cut my hair to make you stare I'll hide my chest And I'll figure out a way to get us out of here

I don’t take these lines too literally, but Ei tried to hide his extra eyes and arms for as long as he could to remain safe. There are definitely some who would attack him on sight for looking like that.

He meets the banished Akari in that form as well, and swears he’ll get them both home and keep her safe.

But then, post stab, now he hides his scar.

Turn off your porcelain face I can't really think right now and this place Has too many colors, enough to drive all of us insane

The lack of his second heart makes Ei pale, much paler than normal, and things overwhelm him easier. At some moments, more often than before, it’s all just too much and the brain fog closes in. Remembering is hard. Existing is hard.

Are you dead?

E often tries to speak to I. As time passes, the responses get less and less frequent until they stop. E wonders, then, if I is well and truly gone from within him.

Sometimes I think I'm dead 'Cause I can feel ghosts and ghouls wrapping my head

And Ei slowly begins to realize that he... Is more or less a dead man walking. It’s only a matter of time.

But I don't wanna fall asleep just yet

He doesn’t want to die, but especially not yet. Not when he’s not home. Not when Akari needs him.

My eyes went dark I don't know where My pupils are

Ei’s eyes glow, whether that is two or four. But then... The eyes that belong to I no longer glow after a while. They just remain, half open, unresponsive. He can’t really see out of them any more.

But I'll figure out a way to get us out of here.

E promises I they will BOTH make it home.

Get a load of this monster He doesn't know how to communicate His mind is in a different place

When Ei first showed up, he still was remarkably different from everyone around him. The man is 8 feet tall. He came from nowhere, speaks a strange language, and did not immediately find friends in the Pearl Clan or Hisui in general.

Will everybody please give him a little bit of space?

Irida vouched for him, though.

Get a load of this train wreck His hair's a mess and he doesn't know who he is yet

He’s got amnesia. He doesn’t know who he was, or who he will be.

But little do we know, the stars Welcome him with open–

But, despite the hardships, Ei is living in the moment. To the delight of E, the stars are brighter and the sky more beautiful than he had ever seen before.

Get a load of this monster He doesn't know how to communicate

But now. Ei is hurt. Ei looks monstrous, wanting nothing more than to hide and not show or acknowledge his extra parts. He is not good with words any more; that was I’s specialty. Explanations do not come easy.

His mind is in a different place

Well, half of it is.

Will everybody please give him a little bit of space?

Even now, Irida sticks up for him when suspicious and curious clan members make him uncomfortable.

Get a load of this train wreck His hair's a mess and he doesn't know who he is yet

He now knows he’s probably two people. Will he remain two people if one fades away? Will he still be Ei?

But little do we know, the stars Welcome him with open arms

While stargazing was more E’s thing than I’s, Ei still does it. He hopes that his wonder will filter its way down to his subdued half and bring him some comfort.

Time is Slowly Tracing his face

As the days and weeks go on, he gets weaker. His existence cannot be sustained like this.

But strangely he feels at home in this place.

But with everyone he has caring about him and rooting for him and on his side, at the very least. E and I are not alone.

#submas song sunday #pla era #submas angst #submas #submas fusion au #ei #ingo #emmet #there we go lol #this will only make sense to a select few but screw it i want to post it anyways #some spoilers for my fic in here but only a couple :D

[cowsaresushi-coral]

“Dialtown” Reaction

(Post will continuously be edited until I finish playing the game. This is to avoid clogging because as much as I joke about doing it, I personally don’t like a messy blog.)

This game is making me dumber (affectionate).

SPOILERS, or rather start of the reaction below: warning that this game is so incredibly cursed.

[Character Select]

i like it. (it lets you choose a different head which is not dependent on gender, which i read someone else refer that it is binary. it’s not! and then the next screen lets you choose how you’d like to be referred to without affecting who you can and cannot date. which is nice :) (i chose kaiju for the they/them)

[Tent]

god i hate it, lmao. please continue.

[Ticket Booth]

It’s goblin time :). (I like Jerry.)

HE

based.

with these dialogue options, there is no god.

YES. ASK JERRY OUT. I WANT TO ASK THE TIRED MAN. HIS PHONE HEAD IS COOL.

ROUTE LOST? YOU MEAN I COULD HAVE ACTUALLY ASKED HIM OUT AT SOME POINT. FUCK.

[Dialtown Downtown]

I summoned the local hobo, and this music bops like shit.

[Nature]

Time to go absolutely hog. Every time I see the avatar, I want to cry laugh.

Oh god I’m finally out of bigfoot. (No hate on bigfoot, but I want to do a different route before this one.)

[Mayor Office]

I like Tango.

I’M LEARNING A LOT OF THINGS RIGHT NOW WITH TANGO. Such as the difference between a hearing AID and hearing AIDE. I do want to hire someone to just yell the same thing to me.

I’m coming back for you, Tango. I like your vibes.

LET’S FUCKING GOOOOOOOO

I do not want to do this bigfoot plotline anymore (I will do it later), but this is mad funny.

[Started new playthrough and saved at the other point in case I want to get back. This is my first playthrough, I want to start this with the route that I want. Where is the pathetic man I’ve heard of.]

Anyways more funny dialogue.

I love Roger and Peter

[1-800-Phone Booth Me]

also

R A N D Y (he’s the guy, right? love to meet him.)

priorities are fantastic with this guy, let’s fking go. if you see tango or jerry, i’ll take them too. (yes i’m selecting terrible options, let me be)

RANDY

YOU GOT A LITTLE SOMETHING ON YOUR FACE.

these are all terrible, i’m going to save.

[Gap]

amazing

fantastic line, i shall use it.

Randy is great.

[Gap]

I finished Randy route. I will try Oliver next. I have several favorite characters, and it’s one of the few times I actually genuinely like a protagonist. Bc they’re feral. I’m here for that. Stopped live blogging because it was making my computer pant. I will enjoy. Maybe I’ll draw fanart, though I have to find out how to draw Phonegigi because I am not drawing a naked individual. I also don’t feel like drawing 6 nipples, but that’s just me.

#coral yaps #2022 #i will leave the tag free of my mutterings because i'm a little out of it

[madametrashbin]

Cosmos Crown

This took me forever, since I initially wanted to post this in my main acc until I realized it had about 8.5k posts in there and... yeah, this story was the reason I made a sideblog for my self-indulgent bullshit writing since they’ll get lost in the sea of memes and things I find interesting skjskjskjsksjksjskjskjs-

This piece is heavily inspired by a lot of other SAGAU writers who I’m rather lazy to name, if anything... it’s been weeks, and I nearly pulled an all-nighter for this (because my brain was dead set on finishing it and it’s 12am right now), lmao. I’m so dead on my feet but I’ll be damned if I don’t finish this after lord knows how long I’ve been working on this. 

Warning ahead that there is a huge divergent to the actual plot... which I think you’ll notice soon enough, haha.

(This fic is... long, surprisingly so but... it’s just my pet peeve of having super big paragraphs in a story that just-- askdjasldj I don’t know how many words are there, but I’ve re-edited this entire story like a thousand times until it felt just right... I lost count of how many words each of them had lmao.)

Now off you guys go, enjoy yourselves and be sure that you’re fed, hydrated and well rested... don’t be stupid like me, okay? Okay. 

I’msofuckinganxiousaboutthisgoodgodIneverfeelconfidentaboutpostinganythingbecausetheytendtobeshitinmyhead.

They say their eyes are the stars above, always watching even behind the daylight skies that hide them from sight.

They say their body is made of stardust, the speckles of light that sometimes descend down like curious little fireflies and occasionally play along with the children who find them before they fade away.

They say their hearts are made of diamonds and gold, brilliant and forever dazzling the world below with its warm, gentle nature full of so much love.

That is what the Gods say when they speak of the Exalted existence that lies beyond all of their reaches... 

The God who stands above all, who is the reason for the world’s life and the reason they are all alive with what they have... they are all given a purpose because of them, and they are so very thankful for that purpose.

The divine all give their prayers in form of monuments of worship and formed traditions to celebrate their name.

The mortals give their prayers in form of little offerings, in their earnest desires to live their lives to the fullest... a blessing that was gifted to them before they were even born.

They are the God of Creation and Destruction. 

The God of Life and Death. 

The God of Peace and War. 

The God of Transience and Eternity.

They are everything to this world.

They mean everything to its inhabitants and the land itself... for all things begins and ends with them.

There is no one who grants more privileges than them, after all... and they are the ones who decide whether the worshippers are worthy or not. They are the judge to the sinners, the punisher to those who dare overstep their bounds from the place they stand.

The Gods have witnessed it.

The Gods have felt it.

The Gods have experienced it.

The divine of Teyvat have come to learn its lessons one way or another... be it a miracle that bears great gifts or through their deaths within their final moments. Many who are left to fall from grace come to learn that there are things you just cannot selfishly achieve, lest they end up invoking the ire of the Exalted One who will deliver what is deserved...

For the God above all loves everyone who understands their place in the world.

Decabarian loved the existence that lies beyond his reaches... who had earned the love of the people and the world unconditionally and had strived to acheive the same.

He wanted to be like them... to be loved and regarded greatly as one of the highest above all others, thus did he built his towers and walls if only to observe the fragile lives below that he strove to shelter from the ruthless blizzards outside.

The towers were built as a symbol of worship to the Exalted existence above as a way for him to convey his innermost feelings for them... it was his manner to show how much he appreciated them and the way they are viewed by all.

But was it truly his worship? Did he truly do all of this because he loved them and their gifts that gave him a reason to exist? Decabarian, although a powerful God, could not understand that the feelings he held for the Exalted One was not love... but one of envy that is fueled by his desires of vanity.

He envied the Exalted existence for how much everyone loved them even if no one has ever seen their face before... 

He envied the Exalted existence for how everyone looks up to them for guidance- for their acknowledgement and favor so they could strive for a wonderful future ahead.

Decabarian did not love the Exalted One as he would have believe... blinded by his own foolishness in his dreams that only benefitted himself.

The God of Storms did not understand what he did was the greatest of follies... for what he dreamt of was no more than to be the Exalted One.

...such a folly came with the price of his life, as he is felled by the swords and arrows of the rebellion, their forms graced with the shine of the stars. He comes to see his mistakes too late, his conceit and envy had overstepped the forbidden and unspoken line that all dare not to walk beyond of.

He realized in his death, looking to the silhouette of stardust that stands behind the rebellion of mortals, that the Exalted existence has always been watching and will always be watching no matter the weather that hides the stars from the eyes of the world.

For every life, mortal and divine, have the smallest glimmer of stardust in their veins, and therefore the God shall always witness even if the stars never shine.

Barbatos lived to grant the wish of the Bard’s desires to see the clear skies and for the birds to fly.. he lived to give the people the freedom they deserved, to make sure that history does not repeat itself. 

He also lived for the precious existence above, who blessed him and his comrades the power to overthrow the God of Storms, and gave him his power to let people experience freedom beyond the cage of storms and unforgiving blizzards.

He remains in the world until the day the nameless bard passes on, having lived out his life to the fullest and gifting him his lyre in the end... a special lyre that was made from the Exalted existence to give him power to inspire the rebellion with strength.

Barbatos called it the “Holy Lyre Der Himmel”, if only so it represented the one who gave it to them in the first place.

In the time before he went into a long sleep, he sang songs with his dear friend and helped create festivals that were formed to give thanks to the great Deity above who gave them strength to liberate themselves from the tyrant. He made sure that everything would remind everyone why Mondstadt was able to become what it was...

Because if the Exalted One had not stepped in, Decabarian’s reign would have been eternal, and Andrius would have continued to ruthlessly blanket the world outside the storm barrier in snow and ice... therefore, they would never have had the luxury of living freely like they do now.

So when Barbatos woke up again, and learnt of the tyranny by the hands of the nobles that had survived the harsh world outside that not only sullied the festivals made in their name, but also changed them to fit their own greediness... 

Naturally, what kind of worshipper would he be if he were to let that continue on?

So when his eyes catch the sight of stardust that hovers over the Muratan’s shoulders, he knew what he must do to ensure that history does not repeat for the third time.

Guizhong devoted herself to her studies, both in the name of the Exalted One who gave her life meaning, but also to help the humans thrive when they sought to expand their civilization.

When the Archon War broke out, Guizhong knew that she would not survive... for unlike Morax, who was gifted with incredible strength, she was gifted with intelligence... and while her wisdom far surpassed many, she knew that it will not be enough to keep her alive.

And when she is felled during a particularly rainy day, she had believed her time was up...

Yet the stars had shined brightly through the crowns, and the warring world had swiftly silenced itself... All who fought for the Seven seats do not move out of anticipation and fear as the form of stardust had appeared.

No one does anything but watch, and as Guizhong breathes for what she thought were her last breaths... an undeniable warmth spreads across her body, and the pain that she once felt with the chill of the cold rain is washed away like the summer breeze.

Her eyes open, and she stares into the stars.

She could not see the eyes nor the face, but she could tell from the close proximity that they were smiling... that they were seemingly proud of something... but for what?

As of this moment, she is only aware of the fact that the Exalted One has given her a second chance to live, and she’ll be damned if she throws it away too soon.

So, when they departed, disappearing in shimmering fireflies, she quickly returns to her friend’s side as he gifts her a sword of jade to fight... and the sword was imbued with stardust- with their power as she feels warmth flow into her veins once more...

She will not die, for if the God she loved and worshipped wholly had given her another chance... she would be a fool to toss it away so recklessly.

Morax counts himself fortunate.

Though he had lost many friends throughout the entire journey of his life, from the rise and fall of the Guili Assembly, to the growing change of the Liyue Harbor as humanity strives to be independent from the divine... He counts himself lucky, blessed to still have familiar faces of his best friends who were also just as fortunate as he was.

All thanks to the Exalted One that exists above, who allowed him to be a victor in the war while still have his friends by his side. 

Azhdaha, who could have been lost to his erosion, was gifted with special beads that helped keep himself together as damages to the ley lines continue. Such a bead as blue as the cloudy sky was so small yet held so much power... to keep such an erosion at bay, Morax had to wonder where such a thing came to be.

Guizhong, who could have been left to die at the Guili Plains, was given a second chance at life... not only was he allowed to finally gift her a sword he forged so she could protect herself better, but to continue experiencing life beside her as humans continue to grow and evolve with time...

Morax wondered, every now and again as he anticipates the miracles formed by the hands of stardust time and time again, of the limits the Exalted One’s power... It is admirable yet terrifying to know what they were able to do, yet he is all the more thankful for their kindness that he is able to keep what he has now.

(Although he somewhat wishes he could be just a little more knowledgeable so he could finally solve Guizhong’s puzzle... would their beloved God grant him something like that?)

Makoto looks over from where she stood in the Tenshukaku, looking over Inazuma as yet another quiet year has passed...

The incident of 500 years ago changed everything, for the Heavenly Principles had acted out to a budding nation where only humans thrived in their evolution with technology that was said to have surpassed that of the Gods... it is something that Makoto wants to avoid, for she does not wish for Inazuma to face the same fate as that human kingdom.

The day when that nation fell and when the darkness of the Abyss was finally quelled down to the point the sky could be seen once more, it had been the last day anyone had seen the Exalted One.

They did much, not only saving her life along with those of her friends, but also prevented a war to break out between the people of Watatsumi and her people... Orobashi currently residing in Watatsumi Island, is still rather on edge after the events of the Cataclysm... not that Makoto blames him.

Even so, with the fact that the Exalted existence has not appeared since the end of those events, she felt as though things will take a turn for the worst.

Her concerns were correct about it when the Cryo Archon had changed, yet she had not expected to be another cause of the change when someone unknown struck her from the darkness... Though death did not reach her, she could not find it in herself to reawaken for a very long time.

She worries for Inazuma... for her friends, and for Ei. 

Makoto sends her prayers to the stars beyond the heavens, hoping that her beloved God would hear her pleas for aide in these tense times.

Ei sits quietly within the top of Tenshukaku.

Another day the war continues between her people and that of Orobashi’s... another day without Makoto as her friends fight. She worries that she would finally lose them this time... with no God above to help them, what is to say that she won’t lose them now?

It’s not that she doubts the Exalted One’s strength, or the fact they might have died or abandoned them... but it’s been years since the Kingdom fell, and the world has been struggling with its monsters made from both man and the world itself.

She doesn’t know when Makoto would ever recover either, and with the war going on, she had no time to truly make prayers while she led the country without her sister’s aide. While she is safe with her Gnosis in the Narukami Shrine, protected by her dear friends who the Exalted One had saved, there was still the Cryo Archon’s meddlesome Fatui.

Without Makoto to deal with the governing affairs so foreign to her, Ei was at a loss for a long time.

When she was finally relieved from her duties, even for a short while, she finally took the time to make at least a prayer... a small hope for the Exalted existence to return to them and end the mess that became of this world since their disappearance 500 years ago.

She admits that she didn’t have expectations for it to be answered... that it would remain unheard like every other prayer she’s made since that day.

Whether it was by coincidence or not, all Ei could think of was her gratitude when the world was washed over and bathed in the familiar light of stardust... except the presence was more solid, and like a beacon amidst the darkness, called out to the world that sang along with that hum of warmth.

I am here.

I have returned.

And so Ei witness the world kneeling, all conflicts go silent as the stardust that painted the world in gentle light continues to bathe it until it disappears... but the presence that called to her like a beacon remains, and she comes to realize the meaning of those words thereafter.

You only remember how sudden it was.

You didn’t dwell too much on what had happened... but it was difficult to ever take in what had truly happened.

Death is a concept that you don’t ever think much about... being as young as you were, you didn’t even think about it. Education and work had taken most of the time in your head, and when did you did have time for yourself outside of that, you would play games until you were tired.

It just so happens that you enjoyed a certain game, very much that you felt a lot for its stories and the creatures created inside of it.

A shame that you never really got to spend at least one more day before your life had literally fell apart and changed...

For the best or worse, you don’t know.

But if there was a God out there, looking at you right now... you have a lot of questions to ask them. Honestly, dying was unexpected... but reincarnation in a familiar world, practically naked if you didn’t have that big white sheet of cloth covering your body like a big blanket...

Yeah, you have a lot of questions to ask.

Especially when you’re surrounded by familiar faces, both men and monster, kneeling right before you as though you were some sort of divine figure.

“Welcome back, Our Master.”

Your thoughts have all but vanquished by these words, with the singular sentence popping into your mind as great confusion washes over you while you awkwardly stood there with only a giant sheet of cloth covering your body as you stand in front of a crowd that seems to be numerous enough to match that of an empire.

What is this?

#self aware genshin #genshin cult stuff #yandere genshin x reader #genshin impact x reader #I worked hard on this one #insecuritystronktho #but anyways- #this is that somebody lives/not everyone dies kind of fic #because this blog was made to be self-indulgent as hell #alskdjkalsdalkjsd #This is probably one of the few works I've ever taken seriously #although #the raiden twins got me stumped #not enough lore on Makoto #and also other gods and people in there #*wheezing noises* #thisissobadahahaha

[idontknow-callmeamyrhing]

hi bestie i would like to request peepaw headcanons— his s/o being younger & popular online? (YouTube or something idk) his reaction is going to be juicy and im ready for it.

OMG YES ANYTHING FOR YOU I LOVE U TY FOR THE REQUEST😭😭 i hope it’s ok that i use gaming as an example, like recording yourself gaming, and uploading to youtube, lmk if you’d rather something else and i’ll redo it!!

michael with a content creator s/o

first of all, it needs to be said, michael does understand technology. he understands that you press buttons and things happen, but he cannot use a computer to save his life. if you taught him, he would pick it up fast, however michael decides he is far too good for even trying.

so, when you come to gaining a larger following online, he doesn’t really know what you mean. you come to him and start telling him about a few million people who had started following you, and he thought it was irl and probably wondered how he was gonna fight them all off💀

he hated the idea of that many people looking at you, he wanted you all for him and now you have fanpages being ran for you? yeah he’s pissed off. but he sees how much you enjoy doing it, and how much you appreciate your viewers, so he decides that he won’t do anything.

however, he does get more possessive over you. he walks in while you’re recording and you have to remind him that he has to stay out of sight, despite the fact he may want to prove you’re taken. you love him, but this irritates you, as you have to edit it out.

the worst moment though, was when he walked in while you were streaming, and it couldn’t be edited. you’d quickly shoot up from your game, leaving behind anything you were working on, or fighting for. you rapidly blurted out that he could not be in there right now, because you couldn’t edit it. he’d just stand there, and appreciate the feeling of your hands pushing against his chest.

after he’d finally leave, you came back to your chat blowing up. ‘who is that?’ ‘is that your boyfriend????’ and ‘bf reveal’ clogging it up.

‘i’m sorry, that was my.. roommate,’ but after hearing michael bang on the door, you corrected yourself ‘yes, that was my boyfriend… no, you can’t see him.’ you told your fans, who were upset that they couldn’t make shipping posts.

when the cameras are off though, i feel like michael would be far more sensitive. when you finished recording, you’d shout out to him. almost immediately, he’d enter the room and walk to hug you from behind where you sat, and nuzzle his face into your neck. he feels left out💔

to calm him down, i get the feeling that you just have to make him feel included, hand him an extra controller and teach him to play, he won’t mind what. he’d kick ass in a shooter game, he’d win every match of a survival game. he would blow your house up in minecraft, then give you his diamonds when you got upset.

overall, a fucking nightmare to deal with, but peepaw is soft and you can and should use it to your advantage :)

i’m sorry it’s so short, i can do a longer version all you have to do is ask if you’d like it, i’m just pressed for time rn lmao, ty again for the request i literally love you😭😭 just let me know if this wasn’t what you wanted, and i can do it again no problem :))

#micheal myers #no that’s spelled wrong #michael myers x reader fluff #michael myers #michael myers x reader #slashers #slashers x reader fluff #slashers x reader #dbd #dbd x reader

[mysterystarz]

hi! first and foremost, i love your layout! 💕 (i swear, whenever i see blog layouts that i think are cute, i’m like “damn, mine could never compare to theirs” LMAO 😂) anyways, so i read your nekoma manager headcanons and i love them! i was wondering if it’s alright if i can have some nekoma x manager!reader in which the reader is either a second or third year (i’ll let you pick) and is a foreigner (no need to specify their nationality). let’s say that in the country the reader is from, they don’t have honorifics for upperclassman like they do in japan, so whenever the reader’s underclassmen calls them “senpai”, they get a bit flustered (they don’t even know why they’re flustered, it just happens) idk, i think it’d be cute 🥰 i think it’d also be cute if the underclassmen decide to mess with the reader to see who can fluster them first by calling them “(f/n)-senpai” in every single sentence whenever they’re talking to them and eventually yaku’s like “knock it off!” 😂 tysm! 💖

the manager game (nekoma deluxe edition) <3

g!n manager!reader + the shenanigans of nekoma!  ☆ a/n ☆ AWWW thank you!!! this request was super fun to write and being from a country that doesn’t have a concept of upperclassmen, i can proudly say that i’d be flustered if someone called me “nova”-senpai too <3 hopefully, i did your request some justice hahaha

when you moved from your home country [insert country] to japan, you were not prepared for the cultural differences 

before you moved, you had practiced some Japanese so you could interact with the people around you, but the idea of people using honorifics on you was something you never imagined 

cue you walking into nekoma high for your third year! 

you already were familiar with the volleyball club and even managed for them 

tough love style because serves can’t be flubbed and they cannot sacrifice the poor underclassmen

one day you were walking through the halls when you accidentally bumped into lev 

he was all apologetic and started wildly gesturing before he said “sorry (f/n)-senpai! I never meant to bump into you!” 

your composure 

GONE 

(hotel?) trivago (sorryyyy!!)

you were so flustered that you just nodded and ran the hell out of there (you go!!!) 

lev reported this to the VBC at their usual practice and kuroo decided that the underclassmen should mess with their little foreign manager and call them (f/n)-senpai...for everything

and thus started....THE MANAGER GAME™ 

monday morning, all the first years were at the gate, ready to greet you (like they always did since they are sweethearts), except they were going to switch out the honorific 

instead of the (-san) that they usually used they were going to use (-senpai) 

so you were the unsuspecting victim and walked up to meet them and...

“good morning (f/n)-senpai!!” 

you were all red and were gesturing to try to ask them what the hell they were doing when fukunaga walked up to the gates 

and you thought “phew, at least fukunaga will probably be in his senses” 

but instead, he waved at the first years and said “what are you waiting for (f/n)-senpai? class is going to start soon” 

and he freaking WALKED AWAY WHAT

the first years and fukunaga laughed at your shyness as you waddled off to class

you thought practice was going to be better

OH HELL NO, IT WAS NOT BETTER 

anytime the ball went out of bounds, or they needed a specific set of stats, kuroo would always send a first or second year

“hey, (f/n)-senpai, how do I have a stronger receive?”

“(f/n)-senpai, what do you think the correct angle is for a good spike?” 

YOU. WERE. SO. FLUSTERED. 

SO FLUSTERED THAT YOU STARTED SPEAKING IN [insert language of your country]

the VBC was laughing their head off

but you couldn’t help them or give them tips because of the seniority and respect you were being given 

you were always fine with a (-san) or (-chan/-kun) 

it was the final straw when kenma said “hey (f/n)-senpai, can you get kuroo to stop giving weird speeches?” 

YOU EXPLODED (hinata style pftttt) 

yaku had been observing (and kicking lev) for most of practice but he knew he needed to intervene or else they were going to virtually kill their manager 

so in the typical yaku fashion 

“YOU GUYS NEED TO CUT IT OUT! NOW!” 

BONUS: 

once you calmed down you put on your most evil smirk....and sentenced the underclassmen to an eternity of calling you (-senpai) >> the underclassmen were TERRIFIED because now if they called you anything but (-senpai) they’d have to do flying falls 

AHH you really loved those boys <3 

©mysterystarz all rights reserved - please do not plagiarize, modify, or translate this post in any way or form

click here to join my taglist (if you're interested!)

#nova scribbles <3 #nekoma #fukunaga #senpai #kuroo #kenma #lev #anime #hq #haikyuu x reader #hq x reader #foreign reader #foreignmanager #manager hq #nekoma manager #haikyuu heacanons

[makeste]

BnHA Vol. 29 Cover Reaction Post: Emergency Can't-Wait-Till-Tomorrow Edition

so thanks to reddit, which has a spoiler-free post dedicated to the volume 29 cover leak, I was able to check out the cover image without being spoiled for anything in tomorrow’s chapter. now, I knew chapter 285 was going to be in this volume, so I was expecting something Bakugou-centric from the get-go. I was not, however, expecting Horikoshi to launch a fucking grenade of feels at me without warning! but that’s just how the man rolls I guess.

anyway, the cover isn’t a spoiler for anyone who’s read up to chapter 285, but I’ll put the image and the rest of this post under a cut just in case.

rarely have I witnessed such a casually devastating flex of one man’s ability to annihilate an entire fandom with feels. simply brutal. set phasers to ‘curled up in a fetal position’

I cannot believe he chose this scene. this scene, again. I didn’t sign up to have my weaknesses so viciously exploited like this. oh wait but actually I did

imagine taking a dozen years to figure out that your best friend literally just wanted to help you and make sure that you were okay because he loves you, and that in response you were all “IS THIS THE ULTIMATE AFFRONT TO MY HONOR?” and spent the next decade wanting to kick his ass. smdh

and now imagine that the dumbass who did all of that is also your favorite character, like seriously he is your favorite SO MUCH, and his relationship with that other kid is also your favorite ever. so what does that say about you. congratulations, you stan the world’s most emotionally dense person!!

but also imagine how proud you would be of said emotionally dense dumbass for finally figuring it out though. jfkdk I need to hug him, STAND ASIDE

there is just. so much regret in this one image that it’s just insane to me?? look at his face??? just imagine how much he must be berating himself. “why couldn’t you have just accepted it when it really mattered. why did you have to go and ruin everything. he just wanted to help you.” ffff

and that’s ten years they can never get back. ten years of pain he caused. ten years he can never undo. look at him. he’s not four anymore. Deku is still a child in this image, but Katsuki is sixteen going on seventeen here. all grown up. because he can’t turn things back no matter what. he can’t undo it. the child Katsuki never accepted Deku’s hand. and now the almost-grown Katsuki wants to more than anything, but it’s too late. he can still take the almost-grown Deku’s hand! but this child Deku’s hand, it’s forever out of reach to him. this child Deku will grow up lonely and sad and hurting because of the person who should have been his friend. and Katsuki cannot take that back, and I cannot get over this, this is fully destroying me right now. jesus.

but there is also hope there! because there is growth! there is maturity! there is acceptance! he knows what he’s done. he’s trying to change. he’s trying to be a better person. and he’s trying to be a better person for Deku’s sake. flkdslkhl I am really out here letting myself be murdered by some cover artwork because I can’t stop being dramatic about it. wouldn’t choose any other way to go

no amount of words can begin to express the array of feels that I have over the fact that “Bakugou Katsuki: Rising” -- his moment of becoming a true hero, his moment of ascendance where we catch a glimpse of that person he is going to be someday -- is now forever linked to this image of him looking with regret at Deku’s hand. the two of them are just so... intertwined. Horikoshi never gave us that “you’re my image of saving” moment with Kacchan like he did with Deku and his image of victory, but it’s there all the same, isn’t it

basically what I’m trying to say here is that yet again, Deku is at the core of it. just like he’s at the core of every other fucking thing Katsuki ever does. this is my all-time dynamic folks. this here is what it’s all about. STEP ONE: “BAKUGOU KATSUKI: RISING.” STEP TWO: [PUTS DEKU ON THE COVER]. STEP THREE: PROFIT/UGLY CRYING

I’m almost mad that there wasn’t a scene like this in the actual manga now. I need Bones to make sure this makes it into the anime somehow. maybe in one of the opening or ending themes. but they gotta do it. make it happen

notice that for these really dramatic moments, Horikoshi is clearly aware that the grenade gauntlets are too ridiculous, and so he’s gotten rid of the one on Katsuki’s left hand for no reason. yeah that’s right, I see you there. just do it permanently you coward

and he’s not wearing the mask either for that matter. Horikoshi you clearly understand aesthetics then, so why?! such a fucking troll

Deku’s lil four-year-old cheek is so chubby... gotta pinch it. it’s a primal urge. wittle cheeks

he also needs a hug. fuck. it’ll be okay baby Deku. you’ve just gotta wait TEN WHOLE YEARS and then All Might will show up and it’ll all be good. nothing to worry about but all of your bones being broken and the League of Villains trying to murder you and all of your friends. :’) why did I start reading this manga again

anyway so this is ROUGH. I AM SWEPT UP IN IT. I AM DESPAIRING lmao. oh man. but it’s like... it’s a deep sorrow, but it’s also a good, cathartic sorrow as well. powerful, soul-cleansing feels. that’s the good stuff right there

anyway so I’m in ruins, but it’s nice. Crust gives this cover two thumbs up. bless

#bakugou katsuki #midoriya izuku #bakudeku #bnha meta #bakugou meta #bnha vol. 29 #bnha #boku no hero academia #bnha spoilers #mha spoilers #bnha manga spoilers #makeste reads bnha #btw I have not been spoiled for anything about chapter 295 so please keep the notes spoiler free por favor #I might not be able to read it until saturday since I've got an all-day zoom work conference tomorrow #sob #but we'll see

[dying-suffering-french-stalkers]

Finally watching Goodbye Partner!  I’m watching the dub, but I have the subs on so I can read the date/location popups and signs, so I’m getting a bit of dialogue comparison.  I’ll probably go back and watch a few scenes with the original audio as well (Kiyoshi Kobayashi my beloved).

Here begins the liveblog, but all in one post and under a cut so it’s not as insufferable:

Starting strong with a heist escape sequence as per usual!  As far as openings go, it’s hard to go wrong with that.

Oh, hello, literal actual Chopin courtesy of a timeskip/flashback.

What are these RWBY-ass CGI piano hands??  Y’all warned me and you were not kidding.  Traditional rotoscoping would never hurt me in this way.

CUSTODY_OF_CHILD.JPG

Lupin playing in those see-through inflatable “hamster” balls skdfjskjdflsl

Intricate Rituals.  Jiglup gunplay confirmed

Epcar’s delivery here was so much more aggressive than Kobayashi’s.

“Area 61, Colorado” just say Cheyenne Mountain

EDWARD ZNOWDEN

Fujiko really is terrible with kids

Listen, I love a good Dutch angle, but I’m starting to feel like I should set up a CinemaSins counter at this point.  I’m glad to have some shot variety but there are other compositions, you know.

Motorcycle Jigen returns!!

Loving this little Morricone shoutout, which I unfortunately cannot seem to find on YouTube.

[strangled Goemon voice] “MISTAKE.”

God. GOD. Tony Oliver’s delivery in the betrayal scene is so good.  Lupin is clearly not buying it at all and is quite willing to play along with whatever the hell this is - until Jigen shoots him right in the heart.  That’s going to hurt a lot more than literally when he wakes up, though 1) given that the movie’s barely begun, I’m guessing he’s still not completely buying it (rightfully so) and is gonna look into this and 2) unfortunately this franchise isn’t known for actually digging into all the delicious angst and implications it likes to sling around.  Cowards.

Also, I like that Lupin seems to be wearing a navy shirt and pink tie like he had in early Part 2 instead of the blue shirt/yellow tie he has in the other Red Jacket movies.  Not sure why that’s what they went with but I’m down.

Okay, I went back and watched the betrayal scene in Japanese and OOF, it hits DIFFERENT to hear Kiyoshi Kobayashi deliver those lines.  He’s so utterly casual about it and it’s all the more angsty since he’s, y’know, a million years old, so here his Jigen sounds much more tired/resigned compared to Epcar’s brasher gunman.

The way that the shots focus on not only Jigen, but also Fujiko when the boss asks about the betrayal...nice.  Fujiko doesn’t know for sure if Jigen killed Lupin, but I imagine such a possibility would shake her at least a little - not just because she cares for that silly monkey man, but because that partnership has been a surprising constant in her life.  If even that could finally crumble, her natural cynicism is about to get a whole lot deeper.  Morbidly, she wants to know if Jigen had the balls to do it.  It’d be a hell of a lot more kindred spirit between them than she ever expected if so.  It’s a shame this plot wasn’t used in a Koike movie; it would’ve been great to see the deliberate parallel/foil from TWCFM continue.

“Why don’t we talk about your future?” the boss says as Jigen’s whole demeanor screams What future?  Even though Lupin isn’t dead and Jigen has his reasons for why he did this, Jigen hardly expects forgiveness after all this.  Lupin may be alive but Jigen has just killed the best thing he ever had and he can never get that back (except he can, because movie and long-running franchise, but y’know, Watsonian vs. Doylist).

The Dark Crystal (1982)

HATSUNE MIKU???  ACTUAL HATSUNE MIKU????? (just her voice but aksdjfkajsdkfjaklsjdfljasjdflajsdf)

Ohhhh, the Lupin & Clarisse / Jigen & the kid’s mom (still haven’t heard her name lmao) parallel was just uncalled for, my heart

Let Jigen wear burgundy more often

...Mr. Epcar, I love and respect you, but is it too much to ask that you vary your inflection a little more?  Where’s the PATHOS?

Slightly cried instantly, “The Wendy lady lives.”  Then Peter knelt beside her and found his button.  You remember she had put it on a chain that she wore round her neck.  “See,” he said, “the arrow struck against this. It is the kiss I gave her.  It has saved her life.”

BLACK JACKET

Burgundy suit + round glasses Goemon!!!

There’s no way Pops is getting his job back after this one

Goemon: [turns his usual hot girl swordsmanship up to 11]

Lupin: Well mark me down as scared AND horny! dot jpeg

Again with the CGI hand crimes.

Wow he straight-up said Jigen was cheating on him

Ah, see, that “waste of oxygen”/“huge mistake” bit of dialogue is the kind of inflection I like to hear.

WarGames (1983)

It took me entirely too long to realize the president was supposed to look like H.illary.

Goemon: [slices open a door for Fujiko]

Fujiko: “Oh, you.” <3

This is all very action-heavy and surprisingly decent for a Lupin film so far, but uh. why is Jigen once again a side character in his own movie?

Ayyyy, nice reference to Zantetsuken’s composition from Part 1.  Still insane that they melted down three awesome swords to make a different sword though.

Goemon snarks back to robots confirmed.  Not that Lupin would ever be stupid enough to buy an Al3xa/etc. but can you IMAGINE

JAZZ PIANIST FUJIKO!  Fujiko having actual interests and hobbies!!!

Comrade Emilka

TRIPLE PARALLEL WITH JIGEN & ALISA NOW

They just?? left Jigen in the middle of the desert after the absolute minimum discussion of All That????  That’s...on-brand actually but give me the angst this plot device deserved >:(

Michelle Ruff I would die for you

This variation on the main theme is my favorite.  I’ve probably listened to it about a thousand times at this point but I finally got to hear it in context.

Welp, that was one of the better Lupin movies I’ve seen, but I do wish they’d done more with the whole Jigen betrayal thing that ended up being more of a subplot.  Thank goodness for fics that do the work.

Edit: “There are about four different plots going on at once in this movie, and they forgot to focus on the one that’s in the actual title.” - @theimpossiblescheme

#lupin iii #goodbye partner #jigen #long post

[barbarianprncess]

percabeth as songs bc they own me

in no particular order along with era i associate it with and three lyrics that made me choose it.

waves by dean lewis : so i picture this in the post-btol/pre-tlo yearning™ era. this would definetly be more percy centric but theres still some angsty percabeth content.

A feeling I thought was set in stone; It slips through my fingers: percy's reckoning with the fact that one of the only steady thing in his demigod life is changing, and for the first time he doesnt know how to act around his best friend. (and annabeth reckoning with the only steady thing in her life in general changing) its! about! the! yearning!

Down to the place we used to lay when we were kids: best friends percabeth stargazing. thats it.

I watched my wild youth; Disappear in front of my eyes; Moments of magic and wonder; It seems so hard to find; Is it ever coming back again? Take me back to the feeling when; Everything was left to find: ok whew. i think this is when percy really starts to realize how powerful he is and it frightens him. its no longer just oooh i can breathe underwater and oh cool i can will myself dry. he claimed the prophecy at the end of ttc, but the weight of it is heavier now. he misses when being a demigod was bright and shiny and new. he misses being a kid. and he misses being a kid with annabeth. he misses her calling him seaweed brain and ruffling his hair and explaining this world of gods and demigods and monsters to him.

bedroom ceiling by sody: also post-btol/pre-tlo era BUT annabeths perspective.

How am I supposed to know you're not the one? : ok so this may just be me but i have this hc that annabeth is terrified that loosing a love worse than death wasn't luke turning into kronos, but her and percy never going back to how they were. its worse than death because hes right there and can't look her in the eye. i think the not knowing whether it was him or luke kills her far after the quest is over.

I wonder if you're moving on; If you are, what's your secret? 'Cause I can't work out where to start: annabeth was definetley hit hardest by lukes betrayal/giving himself over to kronos, and i think one of the things that unsettles her so much about percy and rachel isnt just plain jealousy. she cant comprehend how percy can think about anything else but saving luke stopping kronos. but she wants to. she wants so desperately to hate luke and to stop caring about him like percy does so they can go back to what they were. but she cant.

Is your bedroom ceiling bored like mine? Of you staring at it all the time; 'Cause it's seen so many nights where I cry and I yell at the sky for not telling you how I feel : i mean. self explanatory.

i'll keep you safe by sleeping at last. i picture this as percy's silent vow to keep annabeth alive during tlo. he never expressly makes the promise but the sheer number of 'don't touch her'- especially after the incident on the bridge- says it all. (now you could most certainly place this in tartarus and it would fit just as well)

Hold out your hand, can you feel the weight of it? The whole world at your fingertips: THIS IS THE ACHILLES SPOT TERRACE SCENE YOU CANNOT CONVINCE ME OTHERWISE. (side note that scene makes me go absolutely FERAL) also i just think that hands>>. on a more serious not the “can you feel the weight of the world at your fingertips” how percy holds the weight of the world on his shoulders and in sharing his weak spot he is sharing the burden.

You'll be an architect, so pull up your sleeves; and build a new silhouette in the skylines up ahead: c’mon man. yk what this means.

Our mistakes, they were bound to be made. But i promise you i'll keep you safe: when it comes down to it the angst, the fights, the jealousy, the confusing feelings dont matter. and as soon as they start fighting (and as soon as annabeth gets hurt and the prospect of losing her gets real, all that matters is seeing his best friend alive.  

fine line by harry styles: this song encompasses percy and annabeths growth over the pjo series. im probably gonna do a percabeth edit once all five seasons come out bc of how perfectly it fits. so era is pjo in general but pre-hoo

You’ve got my devotion, but man I can hate you sometimes: this is tlt - som annabeth to percy. need i say more?

we’ll be the fine line: fine line is a great phrase for there entire relationship. until tlo they're always toeing against a line between something. the lines between reluctant allies to actual friends. pretty good friends to best friends. best friends to something more.

we’ll be alright: this is repeated in the song like a mantra growing louder and desperate. i like to think this is both a wish and a promise. even if they're life never slows down they’ll have each other and they'll make it alright. 

if youre still here thanks for listening to me rant and attempt analysis. im a mess about them lmao. i have a ton more so if yall like it ill do a part two :) 

#yeah<3 #they invented love dont @ me #percy jackson #annabeth chase #pjo series #the lightning thief #sea of monsters #the titans curse #the battle of the labyrinth #the last olympian #percabeth #character analysis #(sort of) #the house of hades #hoo series #rachel elizabeth dare #grover underwood #hoo

[sukirichi]

heeeey do you have any advice for newbie writers?

writing advice for newbies!

disclaimer: the advice i’m going to give (funnily enough) is not something that i always personally do. i’ve been writing both fiction and non-fiction for years, i only came to tumblr because i wasn’t satisfied with how i kept pressuring myself to write “high literature” after gaining awards and recognition for my stories. my fanfiction here in this blog...it’s unrefined, definitely not what i used to write before because i’m a lot less serious about it and i’m just writing freely. but the advice i’ll list below is personally some stuff that has helped me a lot in my entire writing journey! Some are technical, some are personal! down below will also list some tumblr related writing advice! 

1. Keep writing! No one is born a great writer. Before I actually started publishing/posting my stories, I remember I spent at least five years writing the most random crap just so I can get a feel for what my style is. Plus, the more you do things repeatedly, it’ll come eventually like second nature to you and you’ll find the words are flowing. Keep writing, keep writing, keep writing! Even if you’re not satisfied with your first work, that’s okay, just keep going on!

2. Be mindful of what tense you’re using. NOW I KNOW I DON’T REALLY FOLLOW THIS BUT THAT’S BECAUSE I DON’T EDIT MY FICS LMAO, but you could totally do this! So in writing, we have “voices.” The narration will always use tenses of whether the entire story will be past tense or present tense and it’s important this remains consistent in your entire story. This one is TECHNICAL, this just help improves the flow and formality of your story. As for me though, I don’t really care about the tenses anymore because like I said, I just write freely with no regards for “creative writing techniques.” an example of past tense is: Suki jumped to Naoya’s arms. “My love!” she called, wrapping her arms around him. (RIP EXAMPLES) and present tense is: Suki jumps to Naoya’s arms. “My love!” she calls and wraps her arms around him. (this could be real flexible tho, this is just an example ehehehe)

3. Be mindful of dialogue tags! There’s a huge difference between putting periods and commas after dialogues. Like for example, “Suki loves Naoya,” she declared. If it’s followed by an action, the comma is best. Or example, Suki said, “I really love Naoya.” If the statement can stand alone, then it can be “Suki really loves Naoya./I really love Naoya.” There’s better explanations here! And one more thing, you should put the commas/periods inside the quotation marks. There’s more variations/explanations here but generally, this way of writing,,,example: “Suki really loves Naoya”, LIKE??? if it’s a dialogue, put the commas/periods inside the quotation marks.

4. PARAGRAPH BREAKS. I cannot stress this enough. There should be a variety in the sizes of your paragraphs. Long paragraphs should be followed by smaller ones, varied with medium paragraphs and then so and so forth. There’s no formal sequence that it should be LONG – MEDIUM – SHORT – MEDIUM – LONG, writing is flexible, just make sure you’re varying the lengths because reading long, chunky paragraphs with no end is equally annoying as reading paragraphs that are always 1-2 sentences and then a paragraph break.

5. Outline, outline, outline! Whether it’s long fics or short ones (excluding drabbles, I don’t think you need them that much) outlines will help you have a more solid feel of your story, and you can easily track your story flow when you have your ideas plotted out. or me, my outlines is in the form of Dialogue Outline, where I write out all the dialogues first so my pages will be just conversations then I’ll add the monologues/actions later. That’s personally what works for me, you can discover your own writing style <3

6. Research! Now this is pretty funny for me to say this because I don’t really do research, at least not the “how to effectively write this type of role” or whatever. Of course it’s better if you try to learn more about the concept you’re going to write about (like if you wanna do a vampire AU then read Twiligh – JK THAT’S A BAD REFERENCE, SORRY NOT SORRY, love the memes tho!) or you can do my own way of researching, which is reading other people’s fanfics! Not only do you get a vibe of how this character is like, but you also get to support other content creators!

7. You don’t need verbs all the time. Sometimes I see stories wherein ALL dialogues have “said” “screamed” “explained” on EACH line and here’s the key: as long as the readers can understand which character is speaking, you don’t need dialogue cues all the time. 

8. PUT THE KEEP READING TAB. I cannot stress this enough, but please put the keep reading tab. Drabbles are fine without them, but if it exceeds maybe 400 words then you’re going to need that. Sure, it’s easy to scroll past a long text, but some fics are super long and without the keep reading tab that it can be quite a hassle to whoever sees it.

9. Have your own writing safe space. Now this could be more personal than technical, but I absolutely cannot write or focus when I’m in a public space or when I’m being bothered. So if you want to write, SHUT THE WORLD OUT and dive deep into your imaginations, let the noise of your fantasies be louder than distractions.

10. Take your time! I guess that would be my best advice. You don’t have to rush anything at all, and one more thing, DO NOT OVERTHINK! Maybe this is just me but I honestly don’t really try to dive too deep in the technicalities anymore :// I’ve been in Creative Writing class for years and it stressed me out that my writing teachers always told me “not to use big words because no one will understand that” or “don’t try to paint the picture too clearly because not everyone has that big of an imagination” and I was like ISN’T THAT THE POINT THOUGH, TO MAKE PEOPLE IMAGINE THINGS? but yeah anyways, maybe this is just me again, but I find that I write better when I’m not overthinking too much on how to write a “perfect” story. I don’t always have the prettiest words to use. I don’t always have the most intricate plot. I don’t always have the most poetic content that is “inspiring” or “moving.” Sometimes I write stupid shit that has no plot at all, and that’s okay. Just write whatever you want tbh, I’d say my biggest advice is to not worry too much about having the “perfect” story. It’s still great to do research and want to improve your writing skills, but hmm...I guess I’d say the most important thing is that you enjoy what you do!

11. “There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.” – Ernest Hemingway. This is one of my favourite quotes because it’s true, writing is both complicated and simple, but as for me, writing is something that I don’t want to stress too much about. There isn’t really an actual right or wrong, there isn’t a law, just some techniques that could help you improve, but at the end of the day, it should be about the steady state of progress or the “creation flow” that matters the most. Just write, that’s it. You’ll get there eventually and you’ll start creating magic before you know it. Just let the words flow and build, worry about quality later when you edit it. Or you know, if you’re lazy like me, just post it when you’re done LMAO. really though the BEST advice is to enjoy the process and not stress too much about it!

here is a previous ask i answered that may be of help too! 

#asks with naoya's trophy wife #suki: writing advice

[not-poignant]

hello! *peruses unasked flower asks* ummm, if you could give me a Canna, Cock’s Comb ehheeh, Common Boneset, Norwegian Angelica and Rosemallows please! :)

(Okay I love that little eheh at cock's comb tho)

Canna: Do you have any tattoos?

*

I do! A giant 'RESIST' in capital letters down the inside of my right wrist, that I actually got long before any actual 'resist' movements over the past few years. I got it around my 21st birthday (actually like a year later) mostly to mark all the things that I'd already survived at that point, and how much of my life philosophy is based off a position of resistance - resisting wanting to kill myself, resisting the darkest paths, resisting my own body when it grows tumours, and so on.

As it's aged, its lost some of it's sharp corners and stuff, but I still like it, though I mostly forget its there now. I'd like to get more tattoos at some point, but money is a big barrier, they're not cheap! (Which is good, because hopefully it means tattoo artists are being paid well).

*

Cock’s Comb: Favorite font?

*

I don't really know. I use Times New Roman the most while writing (I know, I know), so I guess that's my favourite because I'm voluntarily staring at it for hours and hours every single day. I hate Calibri and often have to force-change documents to another font to be able to edit them, if they come to me in that font. But I also used to write in Calibri, until I had the revelation that I hated writing in Calibri, lmao.

When I was a teenager, and had far less fonts to choose from, I was a passionate fan of Courier New and that's still my favourite font to set poetry in, which I think is an 'old habits die rather hard' thing, lmao.

*

Common Boneset: What are you looking forward to?

*

I'm looking forward to thunderstorms, whenever they next come.

I'm looking forward to going down south with my mother, though I'm apprehensive about it too, and hope it goes well. I expect it will be exhausting, and an experience, and worthwhile. That's the end of July.

I'm looking forward to a week to myself and I'm not sure when I'll get one.

I'm looking forward to tomorrow (at least right now).

I'm looking forward to the next time we go to Kumo and have more of those Japanese souffle pancakes because souffle pancakes.

I'm looking forward to going to bed tonight.

*

Norwegian Angelica: Tell us about your mom.

*

I've always had...an interesting relationship with my mother. Though it's very good now. But there are lots of long stories I'm going to cut short here and say that around 11 or 12 years ago I was fed up, and sent Mum a lengthy email (because I couldn't trust I'd be able to speak clearly in person without breaking down and crying) saying that if she didn't get on board with acknowledging the PTSD and where it came from, and didn't confront her own demons in that, I was going to walk away from her and our relationship for good, and I already had my estranged relationship with my father to prove that I wasn't bluffing.

In retrospect, this probably sounds like an incredibly cruel thing to do, but I can't describe to you the years before that, my childhood, the things that led to me making this decision. Only that when I made it, I didn't know what else to do.

But then the most amazing thing happened, and unlike about anyone else in my family at the time, Mum got therapy, and she got help, and she faced her demons, and she decided that she was going to learn about her child instead of doing what she'd been doing in the past. And from there we grew a real relationship. And quite a few years ago now, we started catching up once a week, every (usually) Friday morning.

She's one of my best friends now, I love her to pieces, her bravery and courage in being willing to face up to some hard truths (including - among others - that my father and her husband was abusive), as well as her sheer strength recently going through breast cancer with such humour and grace only a short period after I went through my own cancer journey, like, she's such a role model to me.

I could never have expected that. I loved my Mum growing up, but I never felt like she knew or saw me as a person, which I don't actually blame her for, she sure was Going Through It herself, in a way that I could not appreciate fully as a child, because she protected us from those realities that she experienced and suffered through as best as she could. And now I think she really does try, as I try to meet her where she is in turn. And we see each other as people, not as family roles, and that to me...has an ineffable, lovely quality. Which is, incidentally, why I'm taking her down south for her birthday, so we can spend even more time together.

*

Rosemallows: What’s your favorite memory?

*

I don't know that I have one. Oh wait, I think...I do, so let's just preface this first though.

The problem I have here is that I've had a life full of depression and PTSD (no literally, my post-trauma started showing in early childhood), and both things can actually cause memory loss or poor memory coherence (unless the memories are traumatic! Do not recommend).

However, I have a glimpse of a memory between me, Glen and Putu, shortly before Putu was bound to leave for Melbourne (for good, he hasn't come back except to visit), where we spent the whole day together, except a break in the afternoon for me to sleep, because true facts - I cannot get through a day without sleeping for several hours in the afternoon.

There was something so golden and perfect about that day. I remember startlingly for me, sitting on the couch and tired and sore (we'd spent the day going to dim sum and then later walking around Kings Park) basking in a feeling I couldn't recall having felt before, and then I think I turned to Putu and Glen and said with some amazement, 'I think I feel content.' And Putu and Glen were like '...yeah...and?' and later I had to admit to Glen I'd never felt the feeling before. Golden and soft, like a cloud.

I think I've felt it once more since then, but I don't remember when. And I don't think I'd felt it before then, either. I would not wish my brain chemistry on anyone. But I'm very glad I got to share that moment with Putu, who is a very close member of my chosen family, for all that I don't get to see him very often anymore.

I can't strongly recall the feeling of the emotion itself. I remember describing it to myself in my head, in complete sentences, and those are the sentences I'm sharing to you now, because my verbal memory is much better than my emotional memory (I have quite serious alexithymia, which would surprise no one, but it's better than it used to be).

And I am relieved that my brain did actually hang onto the moment, mostly because I chanted to myself like a prayer: please don't forget this please don't forget this please don't forget this remember your position on the couch remember where Putu is sitting remember where Glen is sitting remember what you said and remember the time of day and remember what came before.

And, now, I do.

*

From the flower asks meme!

#asks and answers #memey goodness #personal #incidentally telling myself to snapshot a memory like that doesn't work #i remember words far better than feelings #and my memory formation is like #REALLY good in medical settings #and really not great if i'm just having a good time #though that being said i believe i've only felt contentment a handful of times #amazingly it's enough to mostly keep me going until the next time #it's just that 'the next time' has been a few years now #and i'm starting to think it won't happen again #but here's hoping it does #five lights on a very long string #are sometimes all it takes to keep you looking for the next one

[ace-oreos]

You must be so sick of alpha and Fordo asks but you’re latest fic has given me angst potential- maybe a one-shot with alpha working with the bad batch to find Fordo post order 66 an him just breaking at the seams when he finds his Vod because he thought he lost Frodo like he lost Sev. Tears and man hugs ensue

Oh I am NEVER sick of Alpha and Fordo asks - they’re such a fun chaotic duo to write for. :D Also, Alpha working with the Bad Batch is something I never knew I needed until I saw your ask and I would absolutely write something with all of them again. I cannot express how difficult it was to not go off on a tangent about Hunter.

In true Sev style, I chose Kashyyyk as the main location for this one. It’s just so useful for these kinds of things.

Also. Y’all. I did not realize until I was four pages into this that I forgot Echo. So uh... whoops?  😅 😂 With that in mind, let me warn you that this is WAY longer than the other fics. I have no idea what happened. I have no idea what I’m doing.

Also also, thank goodness for Wookiepedia lmao

Edit with tags: @dudewhynotthis @merspots @the-mandalorian-clone-lover @delta-the-mando (taglist is open!) 

“Captain.” The sergeant keeps his distance even now, face inscrutable as he surveys Alpha. 

“Alpha,” he corrects half-heartedly, more for the sergeant’s sake than his own. 

“Alpha,” Hunter amends. “We’ll be entering the Mid Rim soon - maybe an hour, hour and a half tops.”

“Good to know.” Alpha knows he sounds despondent at best, but he’s hit enough dead ends by now to know all too well this will likely be a fruitless endeavor. There’s nowhere in the galaxy safe from him - not when his brother’s life is hanging in balance.

But it’s a big galaxy, with little regard for individual yearning or emotion. Alpha can vow to upend the galaxy as much as he likes, but the fact is they’ve only so much time, and only so many resources, and...

And maybe Hunter picks up on that, in that way of his as he observes Alpha without further comment. The sergeant is as much his vod as anyone else Alpha has encountered. Still beyond him sometimes, a little too other for Alpha to ever fully mesh with him or his brothers, but he’s a good soldier. A good man. 

“We’ve always got room for another,” are Hunter’s parting words as he makes his way back to the cockpit. 

If you find out your brother was dead all along. 

Alpha doubts it was anything less than a genuine offer, but it isn’t the only route. Not until I’ve exhausted every other option. And even then....

It doesn’t do, to let himself become so intertwined with a brother until he isn’t entirely sure he knows who he is without the other. He’d tried, both for his brothers and for his own peace of mind, to put a stop to it before it went too far. And maybe that was Jango getting in his head more than Alpha ever should have allowed, but he’d thought it was the right thing to do.

Sometimes I can’t help but wonder...

________________________

“ - you know as well as I do we’ve been going in circles for weeks now - ”

“Yeah, you might’ve mentioned that once or twice…”

“You said it yourself - we’ll get ourselves killed if we aren’t careful.”

“So we’ll be careful.” Hunter’s voice holds a note of finality. “We can keep rehashing this conversation, or we can help a vod.”

Alpha doesn’t catch the muttered reply, but it’s hardly amenable, if Hunter’s sigh is anything to go by. He can’t blame them, really - Fordo isn’t their brother, and outside of combat they’ve little common ground. And it’s only natural for Crosshair to raise the questions none of them are yet ready to face. Alpha thinks he could learn to like the man, given time. 

He reigns in his thoughts before entering the cockpit. The least he can do is put on a rational front. This whole thing isn’t at all rational, but the Bad Batch seem to understand better than others. It runs deeper than brotherhood here, whatever it is, and Alpha is irrepressibly reminded of Fordo, somehow - 

(And osik, does that thought burn, dig under his skin to remind him once again that he failed, that should he redeem himself it will be not on his terms but likely an inconsequential whim of a galaxy that cares nothing for them or everything they’ve fought so hard to hold on to - )

“Y’know, I’m not sure we’ve ever been to Kashyyyk,” Wrecker muses. “That’s a first.”  If he’s trying to divert Alpha’s attention from Crosshair, it’s a skillful effort that almost takes Alpha aback. “‘Course, I only remember the fun parts,” he adds as an impish afterthought.

“Anything with explosives, you mean?” Alpha asks drily. 

Wrecker grins. “Something like that.”

You and Fordo would get along fine.

What leaves his mouth is, “I don’t suppose anyone has any relevant information about this place?”

Right on cue, Tech pipes up from his position alongside Crosshair. “Actually…”

Tech is just as much of an efficient distraction in his own right. It’s not exactly the height of strategy on Alpha’s part, but once again it redirects attention. He has no doubt Hunter sees right through it; still, the man has enough tact to refrain from commenting.

You understand, I think, Alpha decides, watching exasperation and amusement play across Hunter’s face in turns as his brothers’ bickering fills the cockpit. You would go to hell and back for them, wouldn’t you, Sergeant? 

Hunter casts him a wary glance. Alpha holds his gaze.

There’s too much we can’t say. It’s okay, vod - I think I’m starting to understand too.

________________________

Kashyyyk is dishearteningly vast, all sprawling jungles and endless island chains set on a swath of ocean that dissects the planet’s hemispheres. Getting in was no easy task, what with the Imperial blockade cutting off the planet from others in its sector. But Tech’s adroit piloting had come through, and they’d slipped past the blockade with little disturbance.

“You really think your buddy is here?” Crosshair asks dubiously, surveying the area with a distinct air of displeasure.

“I’ve seen the records,” Alpha says, as much to reassure himself as the other man. “The Empire’s tighter with the book-keeping, I’ll give them that. Fordo’s unit lost contact not long before Order Sixty-six went down. If they made it out, it would be on record somewhere.”

“And if they didn’t?”

Alpha battles his temper into submission before replying. “Then they would be confirmed KIA. But they’re still listed as missing as of two weeks ago.”

“Sounds like you’re leaving an awful lot to chance,” Crosshair opines. There isn’t malice in his voice so much as an unmistakable note of disapproval. “What’s your plan if it turns out they were just waiting for reinforcements and pulled out days ago? That leaves us here in the heart of Imperial occupation.”

“I haven’t forgotten,” Alpha says grimly. “But if they lost comms before the order came through, then there’s a chance they aren’t with the Empire. Their main focus would be survival, not falling in line nice and neat like Palpatine expects.”

It’s clear there are a number of objections rising to the forefront of Crosshair’s mind, but the man keeps them to himself. There’s a conflict brewing there, Alpha knows, but that’s a matter to address at another time. 

“There’s an area south of here where all comm signals go dead,” Tech announces, tapping furiously at the device mounted on his vambrace. “According to intel, the Wookies call it the Black Forest.”

“Sounds inviting,” Hunter says. “What’s the deal with it?”

“A prison ship crashed there centuries ago,” Tech relays. “The Wookies believe it’s cursed, so they avoid it whenever possible. It’s possible Fordo and whoever was left were driven back by the Seps - or it was a desperate bid and he was banking on the droids not following somewhere they can’t maneuver well. But why cut himself off from allies…?”

“The forward operating base was set up in Kachirho,” Alpha muses aloud “There was another commando squad deployed here, but they were retasked shortly after Order Sixty-six. If Fordo’s here, I doubt he would hang around anywhere with high Imperial activity.”

If he were operating alone, the decision would be simple. But he has the welfare of four other men to consider now; one wrong move, and they’ll all end up on the business end of a blaster.

With that in mind, Alpha looks to Hunter. “Sergeant. What do you think?”

“It’s your call,” Hunter answers. “If you have reason to think your brother is hiding out here, then I think it’s worth taking a look. So long as we go careful, I don’t see why the Imperials should notice us.”

Wrecker’s chuckle fills the comms. “Famous last words.”

_________________________

For all that they have a reputation for being unorthodox - a reputation that is doubtless justly earned - the Bad Batch can pull off stealth pretty well, too. It comes as a bit of a surprise, if Alpha is being honest, but if nothing else the overarching threat of Hunter’s wrath is enough to keep them in line. 

“Keep an eye out for slavers,” Tech warns. “The whole planet has been a hotspot for them ever since the CIS first let them in.”

It’d be just our luck to run into slavers, Alpha thinks wryly. Individually they’re not much of a threat, but a group of Trandoshans spells trouble for anyone. Even without the training to back it up, their brutality can overpower even an ARC trooper. ‘Course, it’d be just like you to get into a mess like that, Fordo…

“We’ll be a bigger target if we travel as a group,” Hunter says. 

“If we split up we might as well ask for a death sentence,” Alpha cautions. Typically his first choice would be to operate alone, but between the slavers, the Imperials, and the remnants of the Separatist forces, he’s starting to think their strength might lie in numbers this time. 

Alpha mulls it over. Greater numbers means slower going. If we split up, we’ll be able to cover more ground. It’ll be risky, but - payoff is worth it. 

“We’ll move faster this way,” Hunter says, echoing Alpha’s thoughts. “Wrecker, Tech, you’re with me. Cross…” He fixes his brother with a stern stare. “Don���t do anything stupid. Alpha has my full permission to stop you by any means necessary.”

Alpha rewards the sergeant with a wolfish grin. “I’ll hold you to that.”

He can’t read Crosshair half as well as the others, but the sniper doesn’t appear altogether displeased. He merely shrugs when Alpha jerks his head towards the route they’ll be following, and trails after him without argument.

Silence lays thick over the jungle. There’s an odd rustle here and there, interspersed with faint growls from time to time, but progress is relatively smooth. Alpha takes pains to remain on guard; just because he can’t see a threat doesn’t mean they’re in the clear. 

Before long the silence is disconcerting. Given the planet’s Wookie population, there should be regular movement around them, or some sign of existence. But this stretch of the jungle is oddly lacking. 

“This doesn’t feel right,” Crosshair mutters. 

“Guess no one’s home,” Alpha answers absently, scrutizining the terrain. “Look - there’s no sign of a fight. Maybe no one was here to begin with.”

“Kachirho isn’t too far from here,” Crosshair points out. “You don’t think it’s a little odd that this path hasn’t been used at all?”

“It is,” Alpha allows, “but look at it this way. We’re traveling the way we’ve been trained to in this kind of setting. The Wookies probably have their own methods for getting around.”

“It’s still weird,” Crosshair decides. “And if your brother really was here, we’d have found evidence of that, too.”

He isn’t wrong, but it nonetheless stings to hear the man voice the doubtful thoughts that have been creeping up on Alpha. Still, we’ve come this far. What have we got to lose?

(More than he’s willing to surrender. But Crosshair doesn’t need to know that.)

“Let’s keep moving,” Alpha says, sharper than he intends. 

“Hang on,” Crosshair says suddenly. “Contact - ”

Alpha pivots in time to see a Trandoshan emerge from the surrounding foliage. The lizard is taller and more solid than he previously anticipated; instead of hitting it head-on like he initially planned, Alpha redirects in order to avoid being gutted on the lizard’s knife. 

He hears the shot and the telltale thump of the lizard falling to the ground. As Alpha picks himself up, Crosshair scans the area through the scope of his rifle. 

“Oh, shab,” the sniper hisses. 

It doesn’t take long for Alpha to locate the cause of Crosshair’s disgruntlement. A group of Trandoshans lurches towards them. Alpha does a rapid assessment: each lizard is packing some sort of ranged weapon - including slugthrowers, he notes unenthusiastically - and most are carrying an assortment of knives.

“Ideas?” Crosshair asks tersely. 

“They’ll just follow us if we run,” Alpha says. “It’ll save us trouble in the long run if we take them now.” 

“I can see why Hunter likes you,” Crosshair says, oddly nonchalant considering the circumstances, and fires. 

With Crosshair covering ranged attacks, Alpha elects the more up-close-and-personal option. The slavers have the advantage of size, but Trandoshans aren’t renowned for their intelligence. As long as he stays in motion the risk of having his throat slit is greatly reduced. 

Alpha targets a straggler first. He hits low, knocking the lizard off balance and sending it staggering into another. The other makes a grab for him, but Alpha is already ramming his vibroblade into the first slaver’s exposed neck. Using the limp body as a buffer, Alpha pushes against the other lizard, trying to force it onto its back foot. 

Just as he feels his opponent’s defense start to give, another three descend on him. Cursing, Alpha throws himself aside before they can hem him in. One of the slavers has enough presence of mind to bring his knife down on Alpha’s unprotected back; the force of the blow has him crashing to the ground. 

Alpha scrambles for a foothold, but one of the lizards seizes his leg in a vicelike grip. He writhes instinctively, kicking out with his other foot. He feels the impact more than sees it and wrenches himself free. 

Just as a third lizard fills the other’s place, there’s a crack from Crosshair’s rifle, and the lizard topples. Alpha springs to his feet to avoid being crushed by several hundred kilos of Trandoshan. The others are wary now, trying to divide their attention between him and Crosshair. 

Alpha doesn’t give them time to choose. This time he uses his blaster to put a round through the closest target. It’s not quite enough to put the lizard out of commission entirely, so he follows up with a quick succession of bolts. 

It’s not exactly an even match, but things aren’t going as badly as he first feared, Alpha thinks. No sooner does the thought cross his mind than his helmet flashes a warning. He turns to deflect the attack coming from behind, but he moves too late and steps directly into the strike. 

The slaver’s curved knife skids off Alpha’s breastplate and sinks into his bodysuit in the gap between the cuirass and the shoulder bell. Alpha manages to pull away, but not before the knife catches the underside of his arm and slices a gash halfway down his bicep.

A line of pain sears through his arm. There’s no doubt the Trandoshan cut deep into the muscle. That arm is effectively useless now; Alpha grimly switches his knife to the other hand. 

He doesn’t have eyes on Crosshair from his current position, but the rasping breaths and occasional curses over the comms suggest the sniper isn’t having an easy time of it either. Time to fall back and reassess.

“Let’s pull back. We might be able to lose them.” Alpha bites the inside of his cheek to suppress a hiss of pain when his wounded arm is jostled. “We can’t take them now, at any rate.”

“You might want to rethink that, alor’ad…”

Crosshair jerks his head to indicate the slavers pouring into the area. There’s a slim chance they’ll be able to slip by, but not without risking serious injury. Slowing down to accommodate a bad hit would mean certain death or capture.

Pinned down. Shabla brilliant. 

Alpha makes an effort to keep his rapidly rising alarm in check. “We’ll have to hold them off, then.”

“There’s no way,” Crosshair objects. “We’re outnumbered eight to one.”

Alpha sends a slaver sprawling rather than answer. He can see it as plainly as Crosshair, but he’s not going to lay down and die, not when his brother is still out there somewhere, not when there’s still a chance they could pull this off -

He hasn’t been this close in weeks and it isn’t his place to gamble anyone else’s life but his own, but even now he can’t bring himself to give in and he understands in a sudden flash of clarity that this is where he will always fail - because he has a foothold, now, and even though all logic points to turning back for once he can’t give in - 

An arm clamps around his neck. Alpha thrashes, trying to throw his attacker off, but now that he’s been caught off guard the lizard has an advantage. His vision begins to blur at the edges and he redoubles his efforts, fueled in no small part by panic at being unable to draw breath. 

He doesn’t know where Crosshair is anymore. He can hardly see beyond his own hands, scrabbling desperately at the arm locked around his neck. 

No sooner does his vision begin to fade than the crushing pressure on his neck abruptly loosens. Alpha hits the ground gracelessly, coughing violently as he tries to inhale. His breath rattles in his throat, but his vision gradually returns. 

He lurches to his feet and assumes a defensive stance as best he can. He’s lost track of how many slavers are still standing - too many is his best estimate.

But the man standing before him isn’t an enemy. He’s -

“Vod,” Fordo says softly. 

Alpha can only stare at his brother in stunned silence, momentarily deaf to the ongoing struggle around them. Fordo....

“Later,” his brother promises. 

______________________

“So how’d you end up running with them?” Fordo asks with a nod towards the Bad Batch. 

“It’s complicated,” Alpha says lightly. “Too much to unpack now, at any rate.”

Fordo laughs. He’s battered and weary, with something lurking in his gaze Alpha can’t quite decipher yet, but it’s Fordo, and that’s more than enough. 

“It’s quiet here,” Fordo remarks. “I like that.”

“‘S nice,” Alpha agrees. 

They’re still hovering just above the surface. Tentative. It’s not exactly what Alpha is accustomed to, but for Fordo’s sake he lets his brother take the lead. 

“Everything’s gone sideways, hasn’t it,” Fordo says suddenly. 

“It has,” Alpha admits. There’s no use pretending otherwise. “But we’ll find a way through.”

Fordo flashes a small smile. “You’re good at that.”

Alpha merely shrugs. There’s a thousand other things he wants to say, but he hasn’t the faintest clue where to begin. Finally he ventures carefully, “Y’know, for a while now I thought this mission did you in.”

Fordo lets out a long sigh. “I was starting to think it might, myself.”

“I…” Alpha breaks off, startled by the sudden pressure behind his eyes. It worsens when he tries to continue. “I don’t know what I would’ve - ”

He falters again. I care more than I should. I never should’ve let that happen, but even now I don’t know if I regret it.

“Alpha,” Fordo says softly, and pulls him into an embrace.

Alpha doesn’t know how much time passes before he finally disentangles himself from Fordo as gently as he can and scrubs at the hot trails on his face. He can’t quite bring himself to feel any shame over it. He’s never been given to such displays, but… Fordo is his vod. 

“So what’s the plan, alor’ad?” Fordo asks with a familiar note of mischief in his voice.

Alpha smiles despite himself. “It’s a big galaxy.”

“We’ve got time.”

“Yeah,” Alpha laughs. “We have time.”

#alpha-17 #alpha 17 #captain fordo #the bad batch #bad batch #clone force 99 #the clone wars #star wars #fic prompt #thanks for the prompt! #this was really fun #and i would absolutely write for them again #hunter specifically but shhh #if you make it through this post good on you lmao #my askbox is open!

[tsuu-mikii]

glued

chapter one

masterlist

　　　　　*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:*･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

People were always shocked when they found out that Eren Jaeger was your best friend. You were polar opposites, like fire and water. You were level headed and responsible, while he was rash and had a tendency to mouth off.

You’d met when he transferred into your third grade class. His almost permanent scowl and extreme competitive spirit had kept most of the class away from him, but your stubborn empathy wouldn’t let you leave the boy friendless and alone, and you found yourself sitting down next to him at lunch a few weeks after his arrival.

After offering him a juice box as a peace offering, you managed to get him to talk to you. And the rest was history. The two of you just worked. You balanced each other out.

“Eren, how many times do I have to tell you that you cannot use a comma right there?” you huffed, dragging your hands down your face as you attempted to tutor the teal eyed boy you called your best friend.

Eren groaned, scrunching his face and leaning back against the wall behind your bed, “Not all of us can be English majors with genius writing skills.”

“I am the best.” you teased, sticking out your tongue at him. He rolled his eyes.

Suddenly, his phone pinged. Judging by the childlike smile he grew, you could tell it was his mom.

“Tell Mama Jaeger I said hi!” you said, flitting your eyes across what he’d completed on his paper so far and inserting edits he needed to make.

He rolled his eyes but continued typing, “Y’know, sometimes I think you like my mom more than you like me.”

You brought your hand to your chin faux pensively, “Well, she does give me snacks whenever I come over…”

He shoved you playfully before pushing his phone back into his pocket, “You’re evil.”

He turned his eyes back onto his laptop screen, taking in the slew of markups you’d added to it. His face soured, his expression of happiness immediately turning into one of confusion.

You laughed before shutting his laptop, “Why don’t we call it quits for today’s session, yeah? Don’t you have a party to get to? It’s a Saturday night.”

He gave you a pointed look, “You’re being judgy right now, y/n, I can feel it. Don’t be judgy.”

“I am not being judgy! You already know I don’t care about how many girls you hook up with.” you replied with a gentle shove of his arm.

He frowned but didn’t say anything further, opting to stand up from your bed and straighten out his clothes.

As he stood there before you, you couldn’t help but take in his appearance. You’d known Eren since elementary school, and it would be a lie to say he hadn’t changed. His brown locks had grown long enough to tie into a small bun, his jawline had become more defined, his previously scrawny arms had become defined with lean muscles and his ears were riddled with piercings.

Your best friend was attractive, and everyone knew it. Despite the tiny remnant of feelings for him that lingered from your childhood, you’d never truly judge him for living his life the way he wanted to. It wasn’t your place. That didn’t stop you from poking fun at him, though.

The silence of the room was comfortable as he packed his things, and after collecting all his belongings and securing them in his bag he turned to face you.

“Are you sure you don’t wanna come with?” he asked with a small smile.

You snorted, “And watch you and your little frat friends get shitfaced? I’ll pass.”

You pulled him into a brief hug, the gesture natural to the both of you, “You have fun, though. And stay safe! I mean it.”

He chuckled and gave you a two finger salute, “I promise to be on my best behavior, Captain.”

You rolled your eyes before ushering him out the door. “And don’t forget to finish your paper!” you shouted to him as he retreated down the hall. You knew him too well, and could already tell that come tomorrow morning he’d be calling you to bring him a detox and food because of his hangover. 

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:*･

It was around 1 am when your cell phone rang, ripping your attention away from the random Netflix original that played on your TV. You quickly grabbed it to see Eren’s contact photo occupying the screen. Without hesitation, you slid the call button to answer.

“Hello?”

“Uh, y/n?” a voice that definitely wasn’t Eren’s replied.

“Jean?” you asked, realizing that the mysterious caller was a fellow member of Eren’s fraternity.

“You remembered! Anyway, your idiot’s way more drunk than usual. Like about to pass out drunk. Can you come get him before he pukes on someone?”

You heard a retching sound in the background, followed by a shriek.

“Too late,” you could practically hear his cringe through the speaker, “So will you come get him?”

You sighed, “I’m on my way.”

Disconnecting the call, you made quick work of replacing the pajama shorts you were wearing with leggings and shrugging on an oversized hoodie you’d stolen from Eren in high school. You slipped out of the door quietly, careful not to wake your roommate.

Despite your anger at having to leave your dorm so late at night, you couldn’t help but feel a pit of worry settle at the bottom of your stomach. He was by no means a lightweight, so him getting drunk enough to hurl meant that he went way overboard. Something he only did when he had something big bothering him. It honestly stung a bit that he hadn’t shared anything with you, despite him having been in your dorm for hours before he left for the party.

You shook the negative thoughts from your head as you approached the frat house. Before you could even knock on the door it swung open, revealing an absolutely trashed Eren being held up by a very pissed off Jean.

Jean tapped Eren’s cheek with an annoying grunt, “Oi Jaeger, your friend is here.”

You winced as he transferred his weight onto your shoulders, “Sorry about him.”

“Don’t be. He was in here whining all night about how some lady friend doesn’t like him back, feel sorry for her.”

You frowned, having been unaware that he was interested in someone. Even though you swore your feelings for him had fizzled out in the tenth grade, you couldn’t shake the heavy feeling in your chest.

You plastered on a small smile regardless, “Later, Jean. Enjoy the rest of your night.”

He returned the smile and nodded before returning to the party.

After several unsuccessful attempts at walking, you nudged Eren with a scowl, “Eren, I need you to use your legs too.”

He mumbled incoherently and let out what sounded like a whine before ultimately complying with your request.

Halfway through your trek back to the dorms, he began to speak.

“Why doesn’t she like me back?” he mumbled drunkenly into your shoulder.

Your heart rate quickened and you sped up your stride, desperate to reach his dorm.

“What?”

“I like her so much. But she just thinks of me as a friend. She doesn’t even care when I hang out with other girls.”

“Eren what are you talking about?” you asked, heart practically in your throat at this point.

He looked at you, eyes piercing, “I’m in love with her.”

You were outside his dorm by now and you weren’t sure if you wanted to dump him on his bed and run or grill him for questions while he was still in his drunken stupor.

You chose the former.

You made quick work of removing his shoes, laying him down and covering him with a blanket. As you turned to exit he caught your wrist, holding you back.

“Stay?” he asked, eyes closed and speech still a bit slurred.

You shook your head, “Absolutely not. You’re drunk.”

He frowned and shook his head, pulling your hand up to his face, “Not like that. I just want you to stay.”

You sighed, it was always hard to say no to him, “Fine, but only until you fall asleep.”

He hummed contently in response as you sat on the little empty space left on his dorm bed. As you ran your fingers through his silky brown hair you couldn’t help but think about what he’d told you. Who was he in love with? Did you know her? When did he meet her? Why did it hurt so bad?

Despite your best efforts, you found yourself dozing off, mind still swimming with unanswered questions.

Four hours later you awoke, still in Eren’s bed. You quickly shot up to leave, only to be stopped by the weight of his muscular arm pinning you in place. He had always been grabby in his sleep, and when coupled with the fact that he worked out five times a week, it was almost impossible to get out of his grip.

Luckily for you, years of being his friend had made you relatively good at escaping him, and with a little effort you carefully removed his arm from you and slid a pillow into your place.

You quickly slid your shoes back on and dashed out the door, not even breathing until you were in the hall. Your heart was pounding as you exited his building and made your way to your own. Luckily it was early, so the only people around were a spattering of students trekking back from parties.

You reached your dorm with little fanfare and quietly slid in, kicking your shoes off and sliding down the door. You massaged your temples and screwed your eyes shut, why did it bother you so much that he liked someone else. You’d long passed the point of being a lovesick puppy over him.

“Y/n, is that you?” your roommate grumbled sleepily, not moving from her spot on her bed, “It’s like, 5 am, go back to bed.”

Her ears had always been sharp, but you were still surprised the little noise you’d made had woken her up. “Sorry, Sasha.”

She simply mumbled in response before going right back to snoring.

You climbed into your bed after stripping from the hoodie and leggings you’d put on and settling back into your pajamas from earlier. Despite your efforts, you couldn’t sleep a wink, your thoughts consumed by Eren’s words.

Who was he in love with?

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:*･

a/n: hey besties! just wanted to get the cross posting out of the way first lmao. hope y’all enjoyed !

#aot fics #eren x reader #eren yaeger x reader #eren jaeger x reader #glued