#i overexplained i think

[friendlyengie]

I think you can tell when someone’s favorite is scout but they don’t really understand him as a character very well when they draw him like an 18 year old boy. And not even a gangly 18 year old boy but like. A smooth faced little valedictorian boy. Like I know he’s the youngest merc but please for the love of god spare him one (1) singular wrinkle on his face. You’re ironing him out and he can’t survive in those conditions

#“Understand him as a character” sounds very pretentious of me but I’m too tired to overexplain what I mean by that #Help girl I can’t sleep there’s a brick wall in my brain so now I’m thinking about characterization #Tf2 scout #tf2 #The clown speaks

[oceanwithouthermoon]

i still cant believe that theres NO explanation for why saiki wears those stupid glasses😭we have PROOF that his stoning power can be stopped by ANY glasses, he could just wear clear glasses, WHY ARE THEY GREEN

#'character design' YEA YEA WHATEVER #the author makes a point to overexplain literally everything in the manga its kind of one of the bits #even if he makes it upbon the fly #but he never does with this and thats really funny #i remember saiki saying he just found them when he was younger and has worn them ever since i think #but jeez u didnt think to change them when u turned like. twelve? idk #hes so silly he just likes them thats it #guy with silly fashion sense #guy who apparently likes neon green even though he particularly enjoys dressing in pastels #saiki k #tdlosk #the disastrous life of saiki k. #saiki kusuo #meows post

[quixtrix]

god save our women; a ramble of an analysis

or, captain laserhawk REALLY shot jade in the face and im still upset about it because oh my GOD they really made her be thrown into a role that is not HER and in death she's still a Figure. yknow, i personally don't have a problem with sarah x jade, but over the past few months occasionally i'd think about it. yeah, it's funny to call sarah gay as hell for putting jade in a femme fatale outfit, but. should that truly be our basis for the ship? or should we think a bit deeper on why exactly sarah would put the sole woman in her lil tool set into such a position? i wonder why it wouldn't hurt to think about why jade would be forced into a role where one has to be sexual.

sarah is an extent of eden and eden is society and society will occasionally harp an odd sort of something masquerading as feminism to you that being sexual gives you power! but really it only serves to loop back into being for the man's enjoyment.

now i have to say that being sexual can be empowering! it really is! we just also have to acknowledge that in the eyes of society, sex is an exchange where it serves the man more than it does the woman. it still feels good to be sexual though, and being sexual can be used right for what you want.

but when it comes to jade, jade is forced to fall into this femme fatale role, this role that demands one to be a maneater, when she usually sticks to a more impersonal way of work. in this role, she dresses in clothes that she's not comfortable with wearing, when told to change from her usual outfit she is visibly uncomfortable, and overall it doesn't fit her.

she is not a sexual person. she does not typically utilise sexuality as a tool in her arsenal, she doesn't even seem to really touch it (or she's just insanely bad at flirting). either way, she's not used to being in this position because she does not choose to be in this position often.

anyways, why does sarah think to put the woman in a position where she would have to step out of her comfort zone? because obviously, she uses things and positions as tools, and sexuality is a tool.

now i want yall to bear with me as i compare sarah to another woman in media; makima. no im not calling sarah some god awful dommy mommy or some shit, i'm bringing in makima to highlight how sexuality is used. she uses her sexuality as a woman to entice this young boy into doing things for her, ranging from a kiss to assaulting him and telling him that she'll give him more as a reward. while not inherently sexual, she offers up a date with her to encourage the devil hybrids under her control. she even offers up a kiss at one point to encourage competition. makima, someone raised by the government and given tools that she uses to manipulate others, has sexuality in her arsenal. it is not a stretch to say that sarah, someone who has intimate understanding of the government, the ladder she climbs, has seen others use sexuality as a tool. hell, it might even be encouraged to use it as a tool. i'm absolutely not saying that sarah fucked her way to the top, im saying that sarah is aware that sexuality is a tool that one can use.

now we all know how sarah got to the top, which can be reasonably assumed to be through military rank and impersonal ways. ways that don't require one to lower your guard and take you in before they strike, like a femme fatale way would. sarah most likely got through to the top by using people and throwing just enough weight around. so why does she not allow jade to flourish in a way that honestly would benefit the team way better yeah no its because she sees her as a fucking tool in order to recognise jade's real talents she must first let go of the notion that she is a simple tool and accept that as a human she has legitimate strengths in unique areas and not just one where you can remind them who is in charge and how you are a tool and FUCK EDEN AND THEIR FUCKING TOOL MINDSET FUCKING CAPITALIST MINDSET IN A SO CALLED POST CAPITALISTIC SOCIETY!!!!! okay im getting a lil heated but yknow what let's continue FUCK PEY'J LOOK AT THIS SHIT

IM SO SORRY BEYOND GOOD AND EVIL FANS THEY DID YOU SO WRONG BECAUSE THEY WANTED TO FUCKING HAMMER IN THE IDEA OF JADE BEING A FIGURE AND NOT A PERSON EVEN IN DEATH SHE IS BOILED DOWN TO SOME FUCKASS WHO KNEW HER AS A BABY'S LOVE INTEREST AND I KNOW FOR A FACT THEY DID YALL WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! they did yall so wrong my god. my god !! imagine! someone who knew you as a BABY openly admitted to you when you were a young adult in your 20s that he has feelings for you! what the hell! what purpose does this serve than to cement the idea that jade is a tool, a motive? jade, a goddamn REPORTER tryna spread light on a legitimate issue on society and then gets thrown into the Ghosts because of it, is boiled down to a tool. a fucking tool by both sarah and pey'j, TWO PEOPLE WHO ARE SEEN by both show and fandom AS POSSIBLE LOVE INTERESTS FOR JADE.

SHE LITERALLY COULD HAVE BEEN SO MUCH MORE IF SARAH DID SEE HER AS HUMAN AND DID UTILISE HER ACTUAL TALENTS INSTEAD OF SEEING HER AS A TOOL AND FOR THAT JADE IS UNFORTUNATELY NOT SEEN AS A PERSON, BUT AS A FIGURE.

but yknow what. yknow who also has been seen as a figure and not a person.

dolph laserhawk. eden's child soldier that they raised as a paragon of hope fallen into disgrace.

yknow what also happens with dolph and jade? they treat each other as human. jade includes dolph in her lil vlogs as she does with the rest of the team, because she is a good person. dolph recognises that she is indeed a person, someone worth remembering as themselves. not as who she was to someone, but as someone who went out of her way to offer kindness. she gets a goddamn speaking role in his vr dream alongside alex, who yes groomed him, but he also made dolph feel human.

i didnt even realise it before that they put the only two people (that are. dead. bullfrog is not here for obvious reasons) that have made dolph feel human and not an extension of eden in one frame BUT THYE FUCKING DID. these mfs and dolph are basically real recognises real

this isn't about dolph though, this is about jade. jade, who didn't get to be shown to the world as a person, who posthumously became a figure for a man's revenge, who was put into a position she is not suited for because she was not recognised as human. jade, who is the most human out of the ghosts, who gave voice to those that couldn't through her work, who went into exposing pagan min because of her uncle, her family that she loved. for being the most grounded member, they had to kill you because you mattered so much. kept the team together through kindness. god they did you so wrong jade.

#jade captain laserhawk #i could have saved her #i feel like with this one i was overexplaining myself #sorry when i get rambly i overexplain myself a lot #anyways i hope yall imagine me holding jade like ivan the terrible and his son #she makes me so sad #genuinely deserved so much better #god #analysis #character analysis #captain laserhawk #happy woman's history month #ramble #dolph laserhawk #pey'j captain laserhawk #sarah fisher #by the way! idc if you ship sarajade #i jus. im ngl i think i dont fw it anymore LMOA #like making this made me realise i dont LMAAOAOAO

[quinn-pop]

feeling normal

#this is something i haven’t written yet uh um uh #kirbyposting #my art or something #to be apart #<- i won’t elaborate #today is a Wednesday but i’m posting this before it gets to be too far from Christmas lol #meta knight #kirby #king dedede #magolor #quinn does comics #tagging because i think the way this works warrants it #trying so hard to not overexplain my thoughts rn

[thebramblewood]

Meanwhile, at Vatore Manor... Part I

Previous / Next

Transcript under the cut.

Lilith: Caleb! CALEB!

[squelch] [squelch] [splat]

Lilith: Caleb.

Caleb: Early night for you.

Lilith: Mm. Be a dear for me, won’t you? Crawl out of your dreary little man cave and run me a bath.

Caleb: Come on, Lil. I just got to the good part. Can’t you do it your-

Lilith: [hisses] Now.

Caleb: [groans internally, clicks off TV]

Lilith: Jesus, you still haven’t gotten rid of this witchy junk? [pauses deliberately] It’s not like they’re ever coming back for it.

Caleb: [clenches fist] Do you want your bath or not?

#ts4 #sims 4 #sims 4 story #ts4 story #simblr #story: hzid #here we goooooo #ok you know what??? #i had a bunch of tags down here overexplaining the context of those last lines of dialogue but i think it's more fun to let you speculate #but i will reblog something from this blog's early days that might help make it clearer in a bit #blood tw #lilith vatore #caleb vatore

[moomeecore]

ppl reviewing anti lawn books on goodreads and going "this is preachy" yeah its about a political movement what do you want. are they supposed to NOT advocate for their beliefs

#im getring nervous bc im writing the longest ever video essay that is a persuasive essay for the anti lawn movement #and i already overexplain shit sm #and in real life ppl r ususlaly receptive to my evangelicalizing of these beleifs #but on the internet ppl are mean. i dont want ppl to be mean to me. i just have strong opinions #also ok. american green is a great book and i find it annoying how its a Centrist Take That Acknowledges Both Perspectives on the basis that #sometimes it is jusy sooooo Obnoxiously Centrist #but it IS good to have both perspectives #but then at the end hes like ' and the ppl who wrote the landscaping revolution are CRAZY bc they think this is a moral issue ' #and its like YOU DONT???? YOU RECOUNTED ALL THAT INFO AND YOU DONT. THINK THIS IS A MORAL ISSUE #HWAT??? #the qhole book makes it Very Clear that anti lawn is the way to go just from Objective Facts #and then hes like 'and both sides suck!!! im better than them because im Neutral' and its like. did you read your own book man?

[skunkes]

unsure how to word this but there is something about having ocs with unsavory events happening in their past where it's like. talking about it, even when asked, seems almost gratuitous and inappropriate. and i'd much rather describe it through the oc themself and/or draw Them saying it. which is like. fitting for the subject matter? like of course its weird to talk about somebody else's business...!

and falls back into humanizing em/exploratory writing and development where u consider the impact of words said/words unsaid/HOW those words are said etc etc

#because not all real persons would give u every detail of their trauma obviously #which makes sense but im an overexplainer but also it feels inappropriate to overexplain when it comes to dis #i hope that makes sense #talkys #i once described what went down with al as just directly as possible and it still felt weird. ykwim?? idk why. #well i do know why! i dont want it to seem gratuitous or like That Cheap Writing Element. fine line #same with talon so he'll just keep implying it thru text + dialogue which is how it should be ! #the only difference is i think with al i wrote it like he would've said it bc he has more access to that side of himself #and is aware of how it affected him #whereas characterwise talon absolutely would just speak in riddles about and around it #i don't even think he's conscious about the direct effects of it #(but i wouldnt know bc he hasn't made that known to me in my brain) #people respond differently to different things and all that #also im so sorry if half the shit ive said recently is so like. Well Duh. i havent made a new oc in a decade gimme a break LOL #also i realize the. irony? of me even vaguely talking about it in the way i did but 1. i think that's also realistic when you #dont want to do a whole deep dive on someone else's business and 2. people are becoming #curious about my oc(s) and im just thinking about well; significant events and how to handle not speaking about em #FOR them. <- weirdly #idk. they're real to me. #its just so much more interesting to leave it up to them! people can lie people can downplay

[kindan-no-kanojo]

Types Bingo💓

Found this fun bingo here, feel free to snatch it! I'll tag @mino-diabolik @bluebird-dolly-bride @fruit-of-infidelity @viper-brothers @lucidesunderstander @hanakohanabe and anyone interested 👀✨

No pressure of course! But ngl I'm very curious KSKDK Took me so long to gather 25 things Scarlett likes on other people (some resemble her, some complement her) so I'm pretty sure the full completion of this bingo might result on instant marriage LOL tho we don't need to aim that high (?) Adding a few notes in the tags if you do hers!

#diabolik lovers oc #scarlett wakahisa #Reblog or repost is fine 💕 #added peeps who've been eyeing the red fury and she's been eyeing back 👀 djsk but anyone feel free to do it! i'll do some if i see them #'Secret keeper' just means that they are safe to confide in #'Passionate' can be in an emotional way or in a certain interest. Or both ✨ #I noticed that she likes to compliment and touch people's hair a lot so ? Can be eye-catching or just soft #it's like the first thing that catches her attention uwu #'emotional enough' bc she cant keep up with many Feelings™ and struggles to correspond verbally (initially at least) without panicking so💀 #'Challenging' as in non-conformist or not a blind pleaser. Being challenged raises her interest a solid 200% (?)+ #but it can also apply to raising a debate (respectfully) instead of agreeing right away. Like mmm big braining 2gether (lip biting emoji) #i think the rest is self explanatory? keeping my thoughts in those tiny boxes was hard i need to overexplain ghjgj 😭 #💄. red fury | scarlett #bingolett #ADDING that i dont just mean masochism in the 'ok with aggressive love' 😭its implied for funsies but #generally she likes to bite and leave marks and all that endearingly painful stuff(?) dw she wont tear you apart if you're not into that 🗿

[girl-of-ink]

what is it about finny aseparatepeace that makes people so convinced that he's blond. he literally has a canon description but people are desperate to write him with blond hair and green eyes. people would rather write him as ginger than give him his actual brown hair and "blue-green eyes"

#it doesn't piss me off per se #but i am honestly just confused #like knowles just explicitly describes him. bc gene is homoerotically overexplaining why he thinks all the girls are admiring finny #it is in fact gene who has no canon appearance #morgan rambles #my ramblings #a separate peace #john knowles #finny asp #asp #gene forrester #ginny

[irlwakko]

also alberto and giulia IMMEDIATELY start giving each other the full sibling treatment, much to only child luca’s horror

“knock knock ‘beto!” “who’s there giulie?” “not your dad” *uproarious laughter from the marcovaldo siblings and absolute shock from luca*

#luca #luca pixar #luca 2021 #alberto scorfano #giulia marcovaldo #while we're on the topic of the trio making dark jokes about the events of the movie #also again if the jokes genuinely upset each other they wouldn't make them #and yes giulia and alberto both know massimo's his dad now but for the purpose of this ONE JOKE-- #<- overexplains all my jokes bc i think this is hilarious but also need to emphasize how healthy the trio's relationship is

[shimmershy]

Do you see the player as canon to Undertale's story?

Yeah! I think it has less in-world implications than it does in Deltarune, though, depending on how you look at it. Typically I completely ignore the existence of the player in my art/writing, or just assume Frisk and Chara have zero awareness of them, but I really like portrayals where the player plays a bigger role too. I think it can go both ways.

Like, I think taking into account the player's role in the story can add a whole nother layer to it, but it's not completely necessary to understanding the themes. I like focusing on the story and characters specifically in-universe, and acknowledging the player kind of complicates that (it's not really something that can be explained in-universe easily and implies that Frisk doesn't have free will, etc).

#sorry i think i overexplained myself but i just really like all the different ways you can look at it #on one hand i totally get that undertale's kind of about your actions having consequences #but also i think it's interesting to explore what Frisk's motivations might be without input from the player #which is probably one of the reasons why i tend to prefer focusing on the pacifist route #Frisk isn't prefect and has the potential to cause harm but. #i like to assume best case scenario that the ability to reset doesn't mess with their head. they don't get overcome by anger/frustration etc #but yeah. i feel like the player is canonically a part of the story. because you're called out a bunch of times. #BUT you can also assume that's not the case. like they're actually talking to Chara or Frisk or something. and still technically be correct. #ask #anonymous #anon

[scribefindegil]

Thinking about narrative pacing (my nemesis) again. It's one of the most crucial aspects of any kind of narrative art, but also one of the most difficult (for me at least) to conceptualize as you're working.

For one thing, you have to remember that pacing is somewhat a matter of personal preference; a slow build that I think is perfectly constructed might bore someone else to tears, while a really fast-paced story that they love might feel frenetic and overwhelming to me. "Good pacing" isn't an absolute, and is very dependent on your style and your audience and the mood of your story. You have to learn to tell the difference between "Bad Pacing (doesn't serve the story)" and "Bad Pacing (doesn't serve *me*)."

And pacing isn't really one distinct thing; it's the effect produced by an amalgamation of a bunch of different choices. It's about where you start and end your scenes, the length of them, the level of detail in your descriptions, how long and how focused your conversations are, the tone, the tension . . . There are some general rules that are useful: you need to vary the tension or your readers will stop feeling it; don't feel like you need to narrate every single thing that happens when you can just cut to the next important thing instead; know what each scene is accomplishing within the narrative so you don't lose focus. But all of these things need to work in tandem or they don't work at all, and that can be *really* tricky to navigate.

#personally i have a tendency to ramble and over-explain #so i've been thinking a lot lately about focus #how do i keep my scenes tight and show only what i need to? #how do i keep things understated and trust my readers to figure it out instead of overexplaining? #even with longer pieces i've been trying to view them a little like poetry. #it helps me pay more attention to my sentences and let the imagery stand on its own #writing #ramblings

[vacantgodling]

chameleon

for years i assumed chameleons changed their color for survival

only recently, i learned a different story

chameleons are able to change color from a complex matrix of crystals in their skin

that are triggered by stressors

too hot

too cold

afraid

i always called myself a chameleon because my personality is malleable;

easily molded and sculpted to fit people’s needs

i thought i was camouflaging myself.

i thought i was camouflaging myself.

#idk releasing some poems from the vault #ren poems #and ugh basically to overexplain myself #what i learned was that chameleons don’t necessarily choose to change color of their own voilition #they don’t think yes i should be green right now or blue etc #their environment dictates how they present colors based on all those factors the poem mentions #so basically when i say i thought i was a chameleon: #i thought i was actively choosing to act in different ways around different people becuase i was a strong survivalist type #and while that can be true #what struck me is that i changed how i acted because of my fear #i was afraid of how people would perceive me so i changed how i presented myself #that’s the point #ren analysis

[tricksterlatte]

Akeshu Holiday Heist Special WIP

This was going to be a oneshot sequel to my completed Persona 5 Akechi/Joker fanfic, Chase the Joker, set nearly one year after the ending. While I still have a few oneshots set in their future planned, this one's entire concept was changed, and the fic was scrapped. Since I had fun writing their banter, I'm going to post the WIP here anyways. You can read underneath the cut! As it's incomplete, there is no concrete ending to this segment at this time.

Sometimes, life could feel just like a Christmas movie. One could find the true meaning of holiday cheer amidst the chaos, no matter who they are or where they came from. It was a special time of year, and whether people celebrated or not, sometimes beautiful magic happened. 

Joyful moments could be shared underneath the tree as families discover the true meaning of the holiday season, whether related to Santa Clause, the meaning of life, or Kentucky Fried Chicken. True love could be discovered underneath the mistletoe, all while some coworker’s annoying as hell kids at the office Christmas party went ooh or help me or perhaps ew, gross much? On occasion, the stars aligned just right each December, and picturesque moments captured in the mind’s eye forever would feel just like the more diverse Hallmark movies. All three of them, if you were being generous.

It was at these times one must remember Die Hard was also a Christmas movie…which was the evidence Akira needed to utilize for their current situation, no matter how Goro denied it, all while they drove towards some rich bastard’s Christmas bash on a hellbent mission.

Car rides anywhere were enjoyable as long as they were with each other, and in the end that was all Akira could ask for. As Goro rambled on and on about cultural variations of the holiday, and how supposedly none of them involved homicide, Akira just held back laughter while applying the reddest lipstick known to man. He hadn’t ever worn a cocktail dress before today, but no one could deny he looked incredible. He was dressed to the nines in luscious red, a silky wig, and enough makeup that not even his own parents would recognize him, and yet it wasn’t technically for a date. What a homophobic shame dealt to him by the gods themselves.

…Okay, his parents hadn’t seen him in years, and the last time had been Goro punching his father in the face. It was better stated that not even his cat would recognize him, but Akira didn’t want to think about that either. So instead he just bickered with the man he loved.

“Honey, listen,” Akira countered, after Goro ranted for the entire length of some bubbly kpop song about being merry and happy. “I know you pride yourself on being right about everything, and I support you unconditionally, but have you ever considered you’re totally wrong about literally everything? We are living out a Christmas movie right now. I’m right.”

“Stating I’m wrong without providing actual evidence as to why again, Akira?” Goro said with an eye roll, though his rolling eyes struggled to stay focused on the road when Akira’s dress kinda showed his upper thigh. “You would not have lasted one week in a university setting’s debate team, and it shows.”

“Hey, neither of us went to college, on account of me being a sexy criminal superstar and you being sexy and also super dead. At least I read dozens of books on mythology and cultural figures when we still had the Nav,” Akira said right back. “I’m a master debater–”

“I swear if you say ‘and also a masturbator,’ I’m hitting the brakes at mach speed.”

“I mean no, I don’t need to do that when we’re in the same room twenty-four hours a day. Wow, you have such a dirty mind, did you know that?”

Goro finally stared not at the road nor Akira’s legs, but a secret third thing–his smug, stupid face, so he could shoot Akira the nastiest of glares. “Quite the talk from someone who made a kidnapping roleplay joke months after literally being kidnapped.”

Okay, that had been one time. And they were not talking about it. Not if Akira could help it. He finished applying the last of his makeup and examined himself in the mirror. If looks could kill, Akira wouldn’t need a knife tonight. Tragically, he still needed a knife, but at least he was pretty. 

“I never joked about that again, give me and my coping mechanisms some credit. Anyways, enough talk about my abduction. Ever heard of Krampus? He’s like the Mementos Grim Reaper used to be, except real, and festive, and I’m pretty sure he murdered children. How’s that for Christmas cheer?”

“I appreciate the sentiment behind a morally dubious Christmas special, but…Krampus aside, the holiday genre as a whole is ill-suited for activities such as murder, once we put aside frequently debated titles. There is a reason films such as Die Hard and American Psycho are commonly dismissed from a place among happy-go-lucky Christmas movies, and that’s due to them only portraying the holiday as background noise in favor of an action plot. It’s only a timestamp when all is considered, nothing more.”

God, Goro was so pretentious. No wonder Akira was in love with him. Here they were, driving towards some multimillionaire’s holiday party with a heist in mind and also assassination if push came to shove, and yet Goro was blasting some American artist’s holiday music on the Jokermobile speakers and discussing American fucking Psycho versus the concept of Christmas cheer. If he wasn’t wearing nondescript black clothing and gun holsters, Akira would blame the irritated snarl gracing Goro’s face on this Michael Buble person singing some no homo anthem about his buddy Santa.

Akira just giggled in his best falsetto, preparing himself for whatever crossdressing shenanigans he had to pull for their mission tonight, and flipped his wig over his shoulder. Brief little moments of domestic bliss were nice after everything, even if most people wouldn’t get it. 

“Okay, ignore the murder then. We’re still living in a real life romcom whether you think my jokes are funny or not, since my entire life is a joke.” Another unimpressed squint as Goro kept his eyes on the road. The self-deprecation didn’t hit like it used to for either of them. Damn their efforts to rebuild Akira’s self-esteem. Those efforts were getting in the way of dark humor! “It’s December 24th, we’re on our way to crash a Christmas party, and we are romantic and comedic. We even took that don we now our gay apparel song to heart, come on!”

Goro snorted, ever the long-suffering, disgruntled man in the face of whatever the fuck Akira was doing. “That can be said for your outfit tonight, but I don’t recall a black turtleneck ever winning one of those ridiculous ugly Christmas sweater contests.”

“No, see, you’re just dressed like the gay goth cousin who sits at the kids’ table during family gatherings because he hates his homophobic relatives.” Akira knew this because he had once been the gay goth cousin who sat at kids’ tables during their rare family gatherings because he hated his homophobic relatives.

Goro looked from Akira, to the road, to their GPS. His brow furrowed and he bit his lip once he saw how little time was left until their arrival. The plan had been for Goro to park the car and follow behind closely, and Akira would do the actual infiltration with a fake identity and a fake adoration for being surrounded by the rich and pompous. The flashy getup was excessive, in Goro’s opinion, but plenty of Shido’s affiliates, and therefore Goro’s whether he liked them or not, were occupying this little gala. Of the two of them, Akira was less likely to be recognized, especially when dressed like this.

That didn’t mean Goro was fond of the idea whatsoever, but that was only one stressor among the many weighing them down tonight. As Goro parked the car, Akira finalized his appearances one more time, double-checking his heels were just short and thick enough that he could still run in them, and that not a hair looked out of place.

He only became aware of his nervous expression when Goro turned off the radio. Turning to face his partner in crime, he saw anxiety reflected back at him, and Akira gulped down a lump in his throat. “Hey,” Akira said, reaching over to grab Goro’s hand as it held the steering wheel in a vice grip. “I know this time of year is stressful for everyone, but I’m going to be okay–”

“Are you okay, though?” Goro cut him off, flexing his fingers before letting go of the wheel. He squeezed his eyelids shut and visibly fought to unclench his jaw. “You’ve spent the entire car ride cracking ridiculous jokes and making up your own lyrics to every damn orchestra cover that played on the radio, but if you’re trying to hide how nervous you are, you’re not doing a great job. I thought we talked about this.”

Akira winced. Keeping secrets hadn’t been his goal at all, but he couldn’t blame Goro for that train of thought. Old habits die hard, whether trauma was involved or otherwise. He flopped back against the headrest, shifting their hands so their fingers intertwined. Even with gloved hands, the grip grounded both of them. “I wasn’t doing it on purpose. I just know if I think too much about the worst case scenarios, I won’t be able to focus on anything else. I’m worried about you too, though. What’s wrong? Is it about splitting up?”

The telltale twitch of Goro’s hand was all the answer Akira needed. He stayed silent and gave Goro a moment to find his words, taking in his harrowed expression as Goro’s thumb brushed across the various scars all over Akira’s hand. Goro had always wielded words masterfully on television and even in battle, whether they were honeyed vinegar or vulgar curses, but words conveying his innermost feelings still didn’t come easily. Akira wasn’t good at sharing his burdens purposefully either just yet, but they were trying. 

They were both getting better about trust and honesty, but sometimes Akira worried parts of them would always be trapped in the past, terrified of losing one another, or maybe in some long-lost Palace there was Goro, kneeling on some bloody floor or panicking in a hotel room, or there was Akira, trapped in a diner or tied to a chair in that hellish basement or crawling across frozen earth in a desperate rush because he couldn’t let him die, not here, not again–

“You know you don’t have to do this, right?” Akechi’s voice broke Akira out of the spiral before it could properly start. Suddenly Akechi’s head gently bumped into the side of Akira’s, and his thumb rubbed circles against Akira’s knuckles. Right. It was December, in the present day, almost a full year after three no good, very bad days. They were alive. They were okay. “I’ll admit I’m not fond of splitting up. I…I can’t lose you again.” Okay, so maybe Akira wasn’t the only one spiraling over that possibility. “If you no longer wanted to mingle with Shido’s trash, I would gladly take our little getaway car and drive wherever you wish–”

“Nope, I’m still going,” Akira butted in. He wasn’t offended by Akechi’s offer, but he didn’t want to back down now, and he knew Akechi didn’t either. He could do this. It wasn’t like he had to kill a million people, all he had to do was break into some big wig’s computer with a flash drive and then get the hell out of there. Hopefully no one paid attention to him, once they got over the dress and heels. “I have a dagger and I’m not afraid to use it, and I have my earpiece just in case. You have a sword and multiple guns and an actual sniper rifle. Give the both of us some credit! I killed a god three Christmases ago. A little breaking and entering is what the kids call small potatoes.”

Akechi said nothing, but at the rate he was stressing, he would fracture every bone in Akira’s hand, induce heart murmurs faster than you could say four Five Hour Energy shots, and go bald by age twenty-three. Refusing to let the man who was essentially his husband lose all his hair, Akira indulged in their old favorite vice: deflecting and changing the subject. “Also, this isn’t the getaway car. Stop besmirching the good name of our dearly beloved Jokermobile–”

“It’s not a good name at all, Akira,” said Akechi as he forced himself to relax. He didn’t buy the facade, but Akira wasn’t trying to fool him. They both just needed to calm down before they did anything reckless…even if a heist was also reckless. “Your habit of naming inanimate objects is getting out of hand. This isn’t the Jokermobile, it’s a black 2016 Toyota Highlander, and you only named it that because you wanted to make rear-ending jokes.”

Well, it was a good thing they had only been rear-ended by an actual car once, then. Akira took full responsibility for that one, it was his fault for trying to drive with a broken leg. Pour one out for the fire hydrant, the greatest victim of that hit-and-run besides Akira’s psyche. “And yet you never thought of a better name. Checkmate.”

“You’re insufferable,” Akechi sighed. 

“I think you meant irresistible, honey,” said Akira.

“Oh, pardon me. I meant to say you’re irritating and irresponsible. My mistake.” 

Goro didn’t give Akira time to reply before he unbuckled his seatbelt and inspected his holsters. “Do you have the flashdrive ready to go?” Akira reached into a side pocket of his dress and showed Goro the flash drive, shoving it back inside once Goro nodded. “And your dagger?” He flipped his skirt completely to the side, exposing lacy black underwear on top of the dagger strapped to the thigh lacking a dress slit. Goro forcibly ignored that and interrogated him again like the bastard cop he once pretended to be. “And your earpiece?”

Wow, not even a verbal reaction to his underwear of choice? Bummer. Akira rolled his eyes and gently swept the wig away. Barely visible inside his ear was the earpiece, but it was in place just as planned. Smiling and hoping the red lipstick wouldn’t smudge onto his teeth, he flashed Goro a thumbs up. “Yes, Goro, I’ll hear your illustrious voice loud and clear. What about yours?”

“I put mine on before we left. I came prepared, unlike you.”

“It’s not a competition, Goro.”

“Akira, we turn everything into a competition whether we like it or not.”

God, could Goro stop making good points tonight? He was beating Akira in the argument category of the Rivalry Olympics. Fucker. Conceding for now, Akira pouted as Goro let go of his hand to climb into the back. “Do we have any of those canned coffees left?” he asked while Goro inspected his ammunition.

“I grabbed extra at the 777 earlier, along with some other beverages,” Goro replied, briefly ignoring his mission prep in favor of caffeinating the idiotic love of his life. As Goro reached into their cooler, he continued, “Some are black, some have cream or sugar. How do you want your coffee tonight, my dear Joker?”

“Black like my soul, Crow,” Akira replied, fondly recalling his dear pal Satanael on the anniversary of a god’s death. Goro gave him a long, hard look, then hurled a bottle of milk at Akira’s face. Naturally, Akira caught it with all the proficiency in the universe. Then he hurled it right back at Goro, who snatched it from the air without even looking. Well, if Satanael wasn’t allowed, then Arsene better be. “Fine. Something with French roast, also like my soul.”

#persona 5 #akeshu #shuake #p5 #goro akechi #akira kurusu #tricksterlatte writes #chase the joker #my stuff #I have two other oneshots planned regarding this heist and then this holiday for them. but. #Akechi overexplaining American Psycho to Akira who just thinks he's ridiculous while also being head over heels. it had to be shared #i had to. #this will not make much sense without the original fic btw so if you like this. go read it! look in my pinned

[genericpuff]

twice in one day now i've replied to a discussion thread and used quotations to imply sarcasm or to emphasize general sentiments just for people to get mad with "where did i say that" "i never said that" "why are you assuming that's what i'm saying" when i'm LITERALLY just-

#and people wonder why i overexplain in all my essays and responses #i'm tired of leading horses to water #no one is saying you're saying that and i don't think we need to do this whole gymnastics routine every time to affirm that #curse my sarcastic nature #lore olympus critical #lo critical #antiloreolympus #anti lore olympus

[pa-pa-plasma]

okay i just marathoned the entirety of ATLA live action & i might do an actual review of it explaining my thoughts more in depth, but the TLDR version basically boils down to this:

if you want to watch Avatar: The Last Airbender, just go watch the 2005 cartoon

#i was trying to keep an open mind & all that cuz of OPLA (my beloved) but. holy shit it was actually worse than i expected :/ #like what were they thinking. did they use AI to write this or are the writers just like. really shitty #notes: they linger too much on random bullshit & refuse to move character development along #they tell when they should be showing & when they DO show it's for stuff that benefited from brief environmental storytelling in the OG #the plot drags so hard it was basically stagnant #there were some fun things but like. those things could've been funner if they'd been given the time other useless stuff was taking up #they changed so many minor details that really don't matter in order to make them more important #but this failed spectacularly because now there's just. stupid bullshit clogging up the plot?? #instead of having 10 minute monologues 3 times an episode about plot irrelevant things #they should have taken a page out of the original's book & kept minor details to a minimum & focused on ACTUAL PLOT #SO MUCH CGI. LIKE I KNOW THEY NEED IT BUT COME ON. EVEN THE CHARACTERS?????? WHO ARE JUST STANDING THERE???????? #they were given 8 hours & almost all of it was Aang angsting (lol) over being the avatar & not practicing actual bending #& then they ended the plot too early so they had to fill in the last like 20 minutes with something else #so they made up random lore that literally makes no sense. & overexplained all of it to the point i was blanking out from boredom #i think this is why i didn't enjoy Korra. they over explain the spirit world stuff & avatar powers & bending #that plus i just don't vibe with the aesthetic #being a writer is a curse because when i dislike something it's because i know exactly what went wrong & why #it's always with the analyzing & the judging & the internal note taking #even when i really try i can't just enjoy shit for fun