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cherryredstars · 6 months

Note

hi! how u doin? could u pls do some angst hcs for Simon?? like how difficult the relationship is for him and his partner, what they would argue about, how the arguments are and whatnot yk i just luv the way u write him it's perfect♥️💋

Pairing: Simon “Ghost” Riley x gn!reader

Warnings: Angst with little comfort

Summary: Struggles with dating Simon

A/N: All the Simon requests in my inbox rn (there are only three) <3

Word Count: 1.5K (Not Edited)

The biggest struggle for you and Simon will always be the time he spends away on deployment. Especially in the beginning of your relationship where insecurity is at an all time high. You always hate when he’s away, the house feeling desolate and cold with his absence. You’re constantly anxious, scared and impatient for the next time he comes through that front door just to leave again. It was even worse when he was gone when something important happened, let it be a wedding or a funeral. It broke your heart that he ended up being away when these special moments occurred.

You hated how often you showed up to family and friend events, at least one friend asking where Simon was and joking about how you must have scared him off. An extended family member whispering in your ear about how “men like that” only stayed away because something, someone, better made them want to stay. It only served to make your unstable, fragile relationship strain more.

On bad days where you needed comfort or someone to lean on, you grew the slightest bit resentful. It felt one-sided when it came to comfort. You had to always wait around for Simon: Wait until he comes back, wait until he’s ready to talk, wait for him to ask or he’ll feel ambushed, wait until he initiates the physical comfort that he never offers. But it seemed like you were always there for him. You were the one ready to give him kind words when he felt down, you were the one ready with a cup of his favorite tea and a good movie to distract him, you were the one that always had a hand or a shoulder or a hug prepared at a moment’s notice. So, why couldn’t he do the same for you?

Relationships are extremely stressful for Simon. It’s something he was to learn and he can’t seem to pick it up correctly. He always seems to do something wrong. He always forgets an important date even though he has it written down in his notes app, he gets your favorite things mixed up with the things you hate, he’s so unavailable all the time that he doesn’t know what to do when he isn’t. As time goes on, it’s easier to remember these things. He learns mistakes need to be made in order to learn.

It doesn’t help that his horrible coping mechanisms seemed to find a spot in his relationship. It’s like an ugly stain on a carpet. So, when things get too hard or they become too overwhelming he does what he does best, hides from it. He puts up a barrier. He throws a rug or a piece of furniture over the stain to hide it away. That’s also the exact thing he does in the beginning of the relationship when something goes wrong. You guys fight? He has no idea what you’re talking about because he wasn’t present. Must have been between you and a friend while he was on deployment. Something he did makes you feel insecure about the relationship? All you’re getting in response is, “Maybe you just aren’t mature enough to date a military man.”

With Simon you are very familiar with the concept that words (or lack of words) hurt. He makes you feel stupid without even trying. You hate arguing with Simon because the two of you don’t argue, you argue. In the beginning of the relationship, Simon doesn’t say anything when you confront him. Well,nothing but, “It’s just the way I am”. You argue with him about how distant he is when he comes home? It’s just the way I am. You get angry because all you wanted was at least a bit of comfort after a shitty day that ended up with you crying on the way home and Simon didn’t even ask you what was wrong? It’s just the way I am. After arguments like that, arguments that always end with Maybe you just aren’t mature enough to date a military man, you think maybe he’s right.

Simon hates himself for the way he treats you. He really does. You deserve better, he should be better. But no matter how hard he tries he can’t. He can’t bring himself to comfort you, or touch you, or love you correctly. It makes him want to find one of his military knives and stab himself where his heart is to see if it’s working correctly. As the relationship progresses, he gets better and better at being your dream man. But sometimes he has moments where he feels like he’s back at square one. Maybe, he thinks, I need a new heart.

Feelings are slightly taboo in your relationship in the beginning. Simon never wants to talk about his and you feel like you can’t talk about yours. But in the late nights, sometime after Simon has had a glass of liquor to sip on during a movie, the two of you will talk in slow whispers. One of those nights Simon asks you how to love you correctly. He asks you why you haven’t left him yet. You shrug and joke, “I guess I’m more mature now.” He will thank every star he sees that you are so understanding when he gives you no real reason to. He thanks every spec of dust that he’s learned how to do the same for you.

He’s protective of you. He feels like he needs to be. He’s lost so many people dear to him, that he’s terrified he’ll lose you too. So he’s a little overbearing in the beginning. You weren’t initially allowed to pick him up at the airport when he got back, paranoid some spy would see the two of you together and you’d become a target. Wouldn't let you meet anyone on his squad, your name never once spoken around base. Refused to bring anything of yours with him when he went away, scared a stray hair or partial fingerprint would endanger your existence if it ended up in the wrong hands. You didn’t even get one of his dog tags until a few months into the relationship because he didn’t want any physical evidence tying you to him. He only let up after you had told him how insecure it made you feel. How, even though you knew that it wasn’t his intention, he made you feel like he was ashamed to be dating you. Like he wanted to keep you a secret because he didn’t want to be seen with you. God knows how many past relationships did the exact same thing. But, he’s trying to be your dream man. He relents and stuffs one of your favorite pens in his pocket the next time he leaves. When he gets to base, Soap’s first question is about how you’re doing.

One of the largest struggles is getting Simon used to family life and civilian life again. He hasn’t had a real family in so long, he doesn’t remember how it feels like. He’s a brooding mess the first few times you bring him to a family gathering for the holidays. He’s off to the side, keeping conversation curt. One of your aunts whispered in your ear maybe it was better off when you came alone and he was on deployment. That causes a big fight, full of yelling and defending his honor. On the ride home you are fuming, getting even angrier when Simon apologizes for the way he was behaving. He didn’t want to embarrass you in front of your family. You tell him that’s ridiculous, that he was nothing to be sorry for. Your smile returns slightly when the image of him playing with your nieces and nephews flashes in your head.

One night, when Simon and you lay in bed before he leaves in the morning, he holds you close to his chest and plays with your hair. He mumbles soft words in your ear, rubbing the skin of your lower back softly. “Thank you for staying with me. I’m sorry for all the times I said you weren’t mature enough to date a military man. I was just scared.” You only hum, kissing his shoulder lovingly in response. He goes on a tangent, apologizing for all the things he did in the past that hurt you. He brings up some things you remember vividly, and things you don’t remember at all. At the end of it, he pulls away slightly and turns to his bedside drawer. He pulls it open, a silver band catching the moon’s light before he holds it between the two of you. He doesn’t ask, and you don’t answer. You hold your hand out, and he slips it onto your finger. In the morning, you hand him his thermos of tea and give him a quick kiss before he walks out and door. Even though his heart feels like it’s about to burst, Simon’s sure his heart is working just fine.

Do these suck lol??

#cherry's requests🍒#simon riley #simon ghost riley x reader #simon riley headcanons #simon ghost riley #ghost simon riley #simon riley x reader #simon riley x you #simon ghost x reader #cod ghost #ghost call of duty #ghost mw2 #ghost cod #call of duty #cod x reader #cod mwii #cod simon riley #cod mw2 #mw2

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tu-sugar-mami · 11 months

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Hi! I'm wondering if you can write how Alcina would react if she found her dobbelgänger? Someone who looks Identical to her and it would probably be one of her maidens. People probably gossip about it too. I want to see Y/N's reaction to it too so like maybe they are together and they see a maiden pass by who looks exactly like Alcina. Lipstick and everything.

(I didn't see any other requests like this so I said why not request this one cause the idea is so interesting)

-Milkie

Hii!! Thank you so much for sending this 🥰 This sounds interesting, yes! I don't think I've read anything like it before and it's an honour you thought of me for this ✨✨✨ sorry it took me so long, I got carried away and then didn't know how to finish it 😅 although, I don't really know of this is what you had in mind but I went a bit angsty there. Hope you like it! 💖💖

Words: 1800

Tags: angst, a bit of humour, implied feelings, sad stuff, kinds good ending?

_________________________________________

Being Lady Dimitrescu's personal maid is no easy job, especially since the responsibility of bringing her every wish and/or demand could become slightly complicated. There's only so much you can do with your short legs scurrying around in such a grand castle.

Despite being almost always busy, you do find some time to enjoy a cup or two of that sweet tea you love so much, and love it even more when you share it with your Lady.

Climbing up the stairs you somehow manage to balance a tray with the needed assortment of ceramics with a teapot full of very hot water on one hand and a quite heavy stack of important documents on the other. Your focus is split between not dropping the platter and reading the stack of papers in your hands trying to find the listing error in the first page (a job usually reserved for one of the daughters) and you find yourself so enthralled by the task that it's only when you reach the hallway that your focus is interrupted by an approaching figure.

Without raising your gaze from the documents, the corner of your eye catches a glimpse of a familiar face. A smile blossoms in your lips at the passing woman, but confusion settles in you. You're sure the Lady is in her study at this time of the day, but you pay it no mind, surely she has a reason to leave her sacred workspace.

Turning to the left, you ask for a miracle to help you open the door while your hands are occupied. Luckily, being crafty and resourceful was a requirement in the job description, and with a push of your elbow onto the doorknob you enter the Lady's office.

"Oh, there you are. I need those papers transcribed here."

The voice brings you to a halt as your brain catches on. Wait, didn't the Lady just pass by you at the hall? No, surely you're mistaken…

Quickly turning towards the hall, half of your body peeking out of the still open door, your eyes inspect the now empty hallway in search of an explanation.

Now that you recall it, the woman in the hallway was strangely at eye level, unlike your Lady, so perhaps she was only a maid you just didn't see correctly.

Well, it's been some stressful days lately, and you suppose your mind is tired.

Deciding to think nothing of it, you pour the Lady some tea and prepare yourself for the upcoming ache in your hands (the typewriter makes the job easier, but doesn't mean it's less tedious).

It's around late afternoon when you and The Lady find yourselves strolling through the halls in an attempt to dissipate the headache that the stress has caused on the Matriarch. It's also around that late afternoon that you stumble upon her…

A few moments pass by before you do a double take and your hand shoots towards your Lady's skirt in order to stop her from walking away.

Alcina isn't thrilled, and if it was any other maid she would have already have them paid for their transgression, but as it's almost a custom now, she only rolls her eyes and turns to see what has you so busy that you can't even speak to properly ask her to sto–

As soon as Alcina turns she sees the reason. She sees her.

An exact copy of the great Lady Dimitrescu is busy dusting one of the giant flower pots in the hall.

She is identical, in every way but the height and skin. How did you not notice her before? You're pretty sure you would have seen the close resemblance right away, unless… The daughters are always the ones in charge of 'welcoming' the new batches of maids that come in every month or so, and knowing them, they don't dwell in appearances unless they find one of the morsels to be especially interesting. Perhaps that's why such a sight slipped right by you.

You wouldn't believe it if the maid wasn't standing right in front of you.

She had the same high cheekbones and soft jaw as your Lady, that much is evident, but what catches your attention the most is her eyes. That unique and familiar gaze that brings you comfort and reassurance is present in the maid. She looks younger than the Lady for quite a few years, although you wouldn't be able to pinpoint exactly how many apart. Still, the resemblance is unique, more like a copy rather than an offspring. It seems impossible and yet…

You look to your left in a quick movement, ready to go back and forward only wanting to compare and see for yourself that your mind isn't playing tricks on you, but you stop as soon as you notice your Lady's face.

Alcina's expression is a shocked one, more than you've ever seen her bear before, but you notice something else within that stare. Her eyes become slightly teary, but despite your efforts you can't decipher what the meaning of the unshed tears is.

And of course, you can't possibly know the turmoil that brews inside her.

Right in front of Alcina stands the woman she once was, or more like the one she could have been. A version of her without her humanity stripped away, without the marks of betrayal and hurt, without the lines of experimentations and pain. In front of Alcina stands the woman she once saw in the mirror, like a cruel joke, in all her human fragility and ignorance. Almost as if the universe had one last way to mess with her and mock her.

Within Alcina aches the desire to touch, to feel, to have a close glimpse of what she was before, and yet the unspoken fear of the mirage before her disappearing keeps her hand grounded, and with it her body stays unmoving.

The Lady hears, among other drowning sounds, the judging whispers surrounding you three in the hall. Words from the maids that have huddled up at the corner, watching with harpy eyes the scene unfolding in their unwelcome presence.

For the first time in years, perhaps decades, Alcina Dimitrescu is at a loss of words. She would have never thought that an image of herself would make her feel so vulnerable, so threatened. And perhaps also for the first time, the powerful Matriarch feels…powerless.

Until your touch on her gloved hand brings her back from her stupor, that is, effectively stopping her from spiraling any further. Your hand, tiny in comparison to hers, is the anchor she needs right now.

Alcina turns to you, and what she finds in your eyes as you look up at her is nothing but pure adoration, as if you have already decided that she is perfect just as she is right now. Almost as if you've just chosen her out of the other more humane and better versions of herself in front of you and the ones to ever exist. The love and affection that had been so obvious to her before but you always put effort in keeping hidden is now shining through, unstopped and undimmed, and Alcina's unbeating heart for a moment feels full of life again.

With your hand now in her gentle grasp, she feels like she can breathe again, and with the newfound strength she dares to invite the maid for a chat over tea.

When the moon is already starting to show her presence above in the skies, after some surprisingly nice talk, something across the coffee table catches Alcina's attention.

Alcina only needs to see the mischievous grin on your lips once to feel another incoming headache. You've been her maid for five years already for goodness' sake, she already knows exactly what you're thinking…

…

…..

The Lady doesn't know how you managed to convince her to do this, but she's waiting with you hidden behind a stone pillar just after summoning her daughters 'urgently'.

It's not long before three buzzing swarms approach, but instead of her mother waiting they find a woman facing away from them sitting on their mother's usual chair.

Daniela confusedly sniffs the air, and she finds that her mom's perfume comes from the same direction as the woman, but she can also smell the blood pumping and a heart beating.

"Who are you?" The youngest asks with her hand already reaching for her sickle.

"Ah, my daughters! I didn't see you there, lovelies." The maid greets with a higher pitch voice, before turning to the girls. You have to give her some credit, it would be impossible for you to not laugh if you were in her place. "Come here my girls, mama has missed you."

"Mother!?" Bela and Cassandra ask in unison. Her eyes are wide and they're switching their gaze from the woman to each other.

Behind the pillar you watch the scene unfold, and your Lady's hand soon covers your mouth to prevent you from letting out a chuckle, although when you look up you can see an amused smile on her lips.

"What happened?" Daniela asks, gesturing wildly at the woman's body. "You look, good? Less tired maybe, a little tiny bit uh…less um… like this?" She raises her hand above her head and shakes her hand slightly.

"Holy Mother Miranda, is that really you Mama?" Cassandra asks, slowly approaching the maid.

Alcina lets out a silent chuckle and with a stealth you didn't know her capable of, sneaks behind Daniela, the closest daughter.

"She is most certainly not, darling."

Not unlike a cat, Daniela screams and jumps almost two meters before dissipating in a cloud of flies, before reforming next to Cassandra, her hand pleases over her chest, and if her heart could still beat it would be frantically hammering against her ribcage.

"Holy sh-"

"Daniela, language!" Bela nudges her sister with her shoulder.

Your laugh resonates in the room, and Alcina briefly looks at you, her eyes as soft as her smile, before returning to the girls.

"I can't believe they really fell for it." You walk towards the maid and put a relaxed hand on her shoulder. "Sorry we made you do this, let's go get some lemonade girl, you look a bit pale."

After you leave with the maid in tow, Alcina takes her rightful seat and pours herself a cup of wine.

"How come no one bothered to let me know of this guest? I should hope next time you do take time to greet every new maid properly, girls."

"We will, Mother." Bela says, taking a step forward from her sisters.

"I know you will." Alcina says gesturing away with her hand, and after her beloved daughters leave, she's left again to ponder about how just much she fucked up by accepting Miranda's gift…

_________________________________________

You can find the rest of my stories in AO3 as Lenchisus

You're welcome to leave your request!! 💖✨

If you love my work you can support me on Kofi

https://ko-fi.com/lenchisus

#request #ask #my fic #re8 #alcina dimitrescu angst #alcina dimitrescu #alcina dimitrescu x female reader #alcina dimitrescu x reader #lady dimitrescu x female reader #lady dimitrescu x reader #lady dimitrescu #resident evil village

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tiajk · 6 months

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Black coded!Karasuno manager headcannons

Warnings: cursing, reader flirting with every fine man because she can, chaotic karasuno, karasuno being readers found family, fem reader, miss reader is poly and ain’t afraid to show it, some sappy feelings, probably spelled people names wrong

It’s chaotic with the mfs all they do it scream, shout eat and play volleyball

You did those things to but they’re more annoying

Tanaka and nishi always finds new ways to make you know your the goddess you are

The first years are intimidated by you even tuskki (it depends on the day)

the third years love you ur probably there favorite underclassmen

kiyoko and you are close like knit tight she loves all that you do for the team and it makes her job a little easier she know that when she leaves the boys will be in good hands

Okay anyways you’ve always known you were that girl like your a pretty black girl in japan who wouldn’t want you

While everyone in karasuno agreed with you so do other schools

which is why tanaka and nishinoya are on guard duty half the time

so guy tries to come ask you for your number *cough* Terushima *cough* they will and i repeat they will start barking at bitches screaming at the top of there lungs “NO WAY IN HELL YOU CAN HAVE OUR MANAGER SHES OURS” it pisses you off to every end especially if there fine (which is all because all hainaut boys are gorgeous)

they hate when you are flirting with the other teams at camps *cough* Bokuto and Akaashi* “Bokuto your spikes are so good you have to teach me” while giving him heart eyes which the boy is eating up because a pretty girl flirting with him and complementing his skill SOLD

you couldn’t forget about the pretty boy setter for Fukurōdani you would always tell him “Akaashi its great that you look out for bokuto like that” he would get the hints but didn’t act on them and you were a patient women you could wait “you and i should hang out i wanna get to know you more” you weren’t lying at all…

Now the boys were fumming you would give them water instead of your own team YOUR THE CLUB YOU SIGNED UP FOR they were but hurt except for suga he knew you had to claim them because you had told him that older men just hit different

anyways when yachi had joined you had welcomed her with open arms as always our girl yachi was scared out of her pants your were intimidating you had a resting bitch face and it scared her to be honest but when she saw you smile she got scared about how pretty you were (i cannon yachi is Bi you can’t change my mind)

You loved enoshita he may have been on the quieter side but he was a good friend when you really needed him you had majority of classes with him so of course you guys had a tight knit he’s the reason why you joined the club

hinata and kageyama you loved them but they were actually kinda stupid all they would do it scream ans yell at each other they were like your children when ever you would confront them about there behavior they would come up with so many excuses “Y/n BUT KAGEYAMA WHAT BEING ANNOYING” “I WAS NOT YOU SHITHEAD” rubbing your temples as they continued to argue “if you don’t shut up i will never bury you food again” They shut there asses right up after that (rich y/n?!?)

your third years were your favorites asahi, dachi, suga, and kiyoko we’re like your parents they always made sure that you were eating correctly, had enough money, and that your mental/physical health was good you are their favorite and nothing can change there mind they do get upset when you go after people there age they know it’s not a big difference but they just wanna make sure your safe

Dacahi almost had an heart attack when you told him when Shiratorizawa match was about to start that you wanted him to put you on with ushijima and tendou (he did only because they asked about you)

yams was a angel sent from heaven he was so kind you loved playing with his hair it was so soft and fluffy and it was like a stress reliever you were trying to set him up with tsukki he’s not slick i know damn well he has a crush on him and vise versa tsukki was a piece of work you always had a response for his snarky ass mouth

tanaka, *sigh* tanaka hairs dog number 1 has never and never disrespected you once he knows if he did that you would twist his ass inside out but in all seriousness he loves you it can be romantic or platonic but he would die for you defend you against any creep or someone that makes you feel not worthy he’s your hype man he’s one of your best friends you love this hot sister too he hates when you bring it up tho

Nishinoya guard dog number 2 he’s short ass hell and clings to you like a dog he has been on thin ice when he’s trying to flirt with you but he knows his boundaries he always wants to show you new tricks he comes up with but mostly rolling thunder

COACH UKAI not gonna lie you thought this man was one of the hottest men alive and you weren’t wrong he was honestly surprised when there was 3 manager but he didn’t care more help he secretly liked you the most he lets you have free meat buns and sometimes stuff from the shop but he makes you swear not to tell anyone

Takeda he made you so happy he was like your sweet older brother he always grateful that you love it with the club you always try to bring kk spare money because you know how hard he believes in the the boy and would do anything for them

in conclusion you love your “job” and the boys love you you wouldn’t know what to do without them

#haikyuu x reader #karasuno #karasuno x reader #haikyuu manager reader #tiajk #black coded reader

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comicaurora · 1 year

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If this is rude to ask please please ignore, this is from the perspective of someone in pre-planning stages of my own comic:

How long did it take you to shrink from the 30(?) page buffer I think you said you started with to 10 pages? I assume starting with that big buffer meant that this is less impactful to the comic and thus less stressful, but do you have breaks planned for yourself so you can re-up that backlog or do you intend to try to do it in-time with the comic? You're a powerhouse who I only ascribe to half the output of, but I'd love to know a little more about your backlog ethos. (When you have time of course!)

Heh, oh boy. The biggest bite got taken out of the buffer during Falst's intro arc. I had boarded something like a dozen pages when I decided I didn't like the direction they'd taken and I scrapped them back to blanks. I don't do this as a rule, but I could tell this one was a problem - I can't even remember why now, but there was something there that just wasn't working. I thus had a time-loss redoing those pages that made up the better part of a chapter, and my storyboard buffer shrank pretty significantly, though it's since recovered in a big way.

More of the buffer got worn down during the back half of the Zuurith arc and the Tynan fight, since every page was so complicated. Alongside the environmental fog and rain effects and the eight different kinds of glow, it was also a lot of characters on every page, and that increased the lineart and coloring time significantly. If I recall correctly, the buffer shrank to the low single digits a few times during that arc.

At some point I might take a break, but I kind of don't want to. I've kept up a solid pace this long and I don't wanna break my streak. I've been able to build the buffer back up to 20 pages before, but the problem is I tend to then take the following week or two off on the comic progress front because in my head I've made a good chunk of progress and thus should take a break. I'm getting better at incremental scene-by-scene progress, and I think chapter 20 is going to be good for rebuilding the buffer, because - spoiler alert - a lot of these scenes are one or two characters only, and most of them have fairly dark featureless backgrounds. I suspect I'll be able to get a healthy headstart just working through this chapter. This was my reward to myself for constantly making the Tynan fight increasingly complicated and ridiculous, and it's honestly a breath of fresh air to make these pages so much simpler.

My rule for comic-making is set a pace you can keep up. If you need to take a break, that's fine - my own unwillingness to do so is a me thing I'm working through. not a policy to emulate. I've been able to keep this up for three years with minimal buffer-loss, and as the story progresses my own art gets better and faster, making it easier for me to maintain this pace. That's why I made sure to start with such a hefty buffer - to give myself time to pick up speed and get better, time to have the occasional crash-and-burn week or even month where nothing gets done, and time to rewrite things that were being problems. Basically, the buffer is 100% working as intended so far, because all of those things have happened at least once.

The math is pretty favorable. With a three-page-a-week upload schedule, if I can finish three pages in under a week I'm guaranteed to keep the buffer going. At peak performance I can do five or six pages in one day, though that's dependent on complexity and that pace isn't sustainable for long - but of course it doesn't have to be, because that buys me two weeks to recover and do all the other stuff I couldn't do during the hellride. The block of pages I'm going to color tonight is five pages, which will buy me nearly two weeks. I lined and shaded those five pages on Friday, and I'd blocked out the backgrounds for this whole scene and the following one in one afternoon the previous week. It's not hellride-pace because it doesn't have to be, but if I needed to push it I could buy myself a week in under a day. Because of this, rebuilding the buffer back up to 20+ is a lower priority than keeping a steady pace that won't hurt my drawing hand or my writing brain.

But if I take too big of a hit I'll announce a two-week break or something. I have things arranged so hopefully I never have to, but ya never know, and it's important to be okay with taking the occasional unexpected hit!

#asks #behind the curtain

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yourneighborhoodneighbor · 10 months

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and you're always free to begin again ch4

(masterpost to my fics while ao3 is down) AO3

fic under the cut

previous chapter

Dany had thought, he really really thought, that nothing in the life he had lead now would ever even come close to being as horrible as losing killing his brother and his general upbringing by the League, but he wasn't really done unpacking all of that now that he had the luxury of time and distance so he was not gonna think about it had been.

Like what Sam and Tucker had named as “DFL” (for Dany Fenton Luck, which was his special and personalized brand of the better known Fenton Luck) dictated, no, demanded, he had been wrong. Because of course, that was just how things went for him.

At this point, Dany had been Phantom for three years. He had been the crown prince of the Infinite Realms for two years (and would become king and actually rule when he fully died), and he liked to think that he had actually been really good at dealing with ghosts and ghost hunters now. It had been difficult at first, not because he didn't know how to fight (that was actually what he knew how to do best and was therefore the easiest part of the whole situation), but because getting like a bajillion new powers and no instruction manual for any of them had been a whole mess. Was a whole mess, because for some reason he just kept on getting power, it was frankly almost ridiculous. He had learned though, and even eventually gotten on good terms with most of the people he had fought with, after learning that apparently he now needed to get used to an entirely new social structure and customs again, when he already had a hard time with that as it was.

Besides, ghost stuff was way easier than alive human stuff, since dying had at least granted Dany with some instinctual in innate things, like and understanding of any language, including ghost speak, as well as built in sensors for things like when he was nearing someone else's haunt and such, once he was actually taught how to interpret those internal signals correctly.

The point being, Dany had had things Under Control. He'd had Protocols, and Scripts, and Rules to deal with the way his life was now. And he had liked it, even if the GIW and Jackson and Madeline made things stressful and sometimes overwhelming to the point of meltdowns or shutdowns (He knew what those were called now! Thanks, Jazz!).

But he had been Fine! Kinda! Really! He promised!

That is, he had been fine, until…

Until a while ago, when things had decidedly become incredibly less fine, and way more unfine.

He wasn't sure how long, exactly, it had been since his DFL had struck again. And this time, in the worst possible way. In a way so bad it almost surpassed Dany's worst moments, including his own death and everything that came with it, something he had not thought possible.

It had all simultaneously become a blur and was seared in his mind in uncomfortable detail and focus.

He had been in his room, alone, holding a chocolate milkshake in one hand, and singing softly with the other, a song he had learned with his brother on one of their last missions together, when they were 6 years old. It had appeared in a princess movie, the first they had ever seen, which they had managed to catch through the window of the house right next to the one where their target for the mission had resided. It had been the only movie they ahd ever watched, before Dany had come into his new life, that is. He only ever rewatched that movie on his own, feeling it too special to share with anybody else, especially since his brother would never be able to watch another movie.

Regardless, he had been sitting alone and singing softly in between sips of the chocolate milkshake, too caught up to pay proper attention to his surroundings, foolishly thinking he was safe enough to let his guard down. It had not been.

Jackson and Madeline had come in with guns blazing and traps already firing, Fenton Thermos activated and sucking him in faster than he had been able to react, save for dropping the shake in his hand.

He had woken up strapped to a metal slab, the cold and crazed looks of the fenton parents leaning over him, scalpels and other equipment in hand. He had known what was going to happen immediately. He had fought as much as he could, but in the end, nothing, not his assassin training (that he still kept up with, as a connection to his brother, even if he hated the League), his ghost powers and prince training, his Scripts and Rules and protocols, nothing, had been able to save him. No one had been able to either.

He had had no other option than to watch and hope it was over quickly as he was cut open, his innards taken out and weighed, cut, observed macro- and microscopically, tested, as he was sewn shut and cut back open over and over to test his healing, how he had been bled dry and injected with a myriad of substances he did not even want to think about, as he had been experimented on over and over and over again.

At some point he had grown almost numb to it, only detachedly noticing all that was happening, as new things were taken out or put in, as people in white suits came in and started helping the two mad scientists, and as the time passed in uneven lapses, until that condemned moment when he had felt the most awful he had ever felt, the moment they had finally managed to find his hidden core, when they had touched it and held it and experimented on it as well and no, stop, it hurts, he hated that, please, Jazz, Dami, he couldn't, he couldn't he couldn't-

After that, Dany thought about his siblings a lot, in the spare moments he was left alone, numb and unfeeling in the face of that last violation he had been subjected to.

About Damian, who had always had his back, had always taken care of him and accommodated him the best he could when he did not even know what was wrong and why, when it had not been his job because he, too, had been a child. A child he had killed.

About Jazz, who had taken him in and taken his aggressive demeanour in stride and had done her best to help him and make him feel loved and wanted and safe. Who had taken even his status as an experienced assassin in with a calm face and open arms, and had simply asked him how he felt about that, what he wanted to do about that. She too had been a child, if an older one.

He thought about Sam and Tucker, who had taken one look at him and decided that even if he could break them in half without so much as blinking, he needed some Friends and care, as Tucker had said. Who had always tried their best to be by his side, and had stayed there even after he died, after he confessed about his true past.

Looking over his life, it had never been adults who had taken his side, who had looked and him and decided, made the choice, that he was someone they wanted to care about and for, that he was worth more than what he could give to them or do for them, who decided that him being Dany, however that was, was enough.

His thoughts were interrupted by the heavy lab door being opened again. Great.

He did not even bother with trying to turn his head, not that he had the energy to move much. It was just more pain coming. He closed his eyes, too tired to stay awake, much less try to fight uselessly again.

A soft clink and the feeling of his straps and cuffs loosening had him snapping his eyes open again. This had not happened before.

A few blinks helped to focus his gaze, falling on the familiar red head of one of the most important people in his life, one of the strongest and best people he had ever met, including anyone at the League: Jazz.

What was Jazz doing here? Was she not in college? She should go away, she could get hurt, they would hurt her, they would strap he to a table, Dany had to get her out of there, he had to-

Through his spiraling thoughts, fueled greatly by his starving obsession and bruised core, he heard a far-away sounding voice.

Oh. That was Jazz. Jazz had been talking since she had come in, he just hadn't realized.

“-e okay, it's gonna be okay no, I promise. Shit, Dany, I'm so sorry, I had no idea you had been taken until Sam called me telling me you had missed school twice and weren't at home, and then mo- no, Jack and Maddy were talking about Phantom and I thought you were in the lab but you weren't and I'm so sorry it took us two months to find the GIW facility you were, I'm so sorry, Dany, I'm sorry-” he could hear her rambling. He wasn't sure she knew he could actually hear her now. He was still pretty out of it.

He tried to say something to let her know he knew she was there, but all that came out was a broken whimper. It was enough.

Without stopping her movements of setting him free, she turned to look at him directly in the eyes, worry and fear and certainty and fire and rage in her gaze.

“Dany,” was all she said. Dany thought he understood, she had said his name enough times for him to know what she meant. Words she had never really said but had instead made, from the moment she had first seen him, hiding and angry and afraid, huddling in the corner of the visiting room at the orphanage.

I will care for you. I will care about you. As long as I'm here you will not be alone, will not be made to fight on your own. I'm here. I'm here. I'm here.

Jazz meant that and so much more. Dany knew just how to respond.

“Jazz,” he croaked out, voice more air than any real sound. Dany knew that to Jazz, that was enough. She also understood.

The storm that was his sister finished with the last of the cuffs, before gently and slowly bringing her hands up to his face, holding it gently.

“Dany,” her voice turned harder, sharp and deadly like it had never needed to be before. “They are dead. Jack and Maddie are dead now Dany, and will never hurt you again. I made sure of it,” she said with finality.

Dany's head reeled. Jazz had killed her parents? For him? Jazz, who he had promised not to kill for, because she cared about people and that sort of stuff, had gone and done something she did not approve of much, for him? To make sure he not only was safe, but stayed safe?

The stars and the storms and the erupting volcanoes and powerful ocean waves had never come even close to describing how Dany saw Jazz. Supernovas and black holes and nascent and dying stars had never been as magnificent as Jazz. And then here she was now, going over the very borders of the universe with her growing greatness, standing over Dany with hands capable of such destruction, yet holding onto his face with more gentleness than would be needed to hold a spiderweb without it breaking.

Dany suddenly felt too full and too much, cries that grew into sobs breaking free of him at such love and care being exerted on himself, some of the cracks in his core starting to mend.

Jazz just helped him up, carrying him in her arms and letting him cry.

She walked past unconscious people in white suits, past an orange and a teal body, past ghosts flying around wreaking havoc, past all the destruction and the rage around her. She walked calmly past it all, like the moving eye in the middle of a storm, cradling Dany like she had never held something more precious in her life.

The last thing Dany remembered before he closed his eyes and was taken again by unconsciousness was his sister, his big sister, setting him gently in the back of her small car, laying a soft kiss to his forehead and telling his to rest, telling him he would be okay, she would take care of things now.

The sheer amount of love he felt is what pushed him the rest of the way down.

next chapter

#dpxdc #batpham #fanfiction #my fics #yourneighborhoodneighbor

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timemachineyeah · 10 months

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Here's how it works:

Either,

A) Human memory is a perfect record of an exact experience, and those experiences are always correctly interpreted OR

B) People can be really wrong about even their own firsthand experiences

Right? Like those are the options. And here's the thing, I don't think anyone who has ever once tried to find a thing they swore they put right there has ever believed A. Like you can pretend to, but you don't. You have written things down before for yourself for later. You take a picture of your parking spot like anyone else.

And B is obvious, because the alternative to the possibility that people can be wrong about their own experiences is that: we are constantly hopping from alternate reality to alternate reality. Dreams are real. Did you find inconsistencies in your reminisces with someone else? You're both right and one or both of you ?dimension hopped? ??somehow?? which is a thing that apparently happens all the time. Every conspiracy is real. Every God is real. Every prophecy and vision is real. Aliens are real and bigfoot is real the chupacabra is real and ghosts are real and fairies are real and chemtrails are real and antisemitic lizard people are real and satanic child-sacrificing cults are real, all of it. Every single thing any person fervently believes, so much so that it is real to them, is objectively real to everyone, in an inherently contradictory universe that can hold no meaning.

But, like, that's why we have to find some other kind of evidence for things, right? That's why we have to compare notes and test our senses against the evidence and against reason. There are, of course, some things that we have to take other people's word for. When measuring people's feelings experiences, about the only thing we can do is ask them. Which is impossible to double check. But it's all we have.

But when someone's experience goes outside the bounds of what is possible according to much more duplicable and predictive sciences, the only thing I have any evidence to believe is that you believe it. And I will respect that you believe it, but I don't have to alter my behavior or worldview to accommodate it. I don't mean that harshly. It's not an insult. It's just a fact. It's not reasonable to expect someone to alter their entire worldview based on a single conviction and no other evidence. That's a wild thing to ask even someone you are incredibly close with to do.

There are maybe one or two people who I know well enough and respect their incredulity enough that if they came to me in confidence and told me a story neither of us would usually believe for whom I would at least entertain the idea that maybe it really was aliens/ghosts/angels/w'ev. But even that. Even that is highly contextual and I wouldn't just believe them. Now, I might play along, again depending on context. Because I'm not an asshole. If your close friend comes to you and says they think they saw an alien vampire ghost Christ then you, like, read their vibe and talk it out and help however you can because like, real or not that sounds stressful.

But if I don't know you? And you lead with that? And are offended I doubt the veracity of your experiences? Like? What were you expecting? What if I told you I don't believe you because I personally saw or experienced something directly contradictory? Are you going to drop your ideas in favor of mine?

And here's the thing, there's nothing wrong with changing your mind in light of evidence. That's actually really recommended. It's good to be willing to be wrong. About anything and everything. Which has to include even your most fundamental ideas about the world. But when you get enough scientific literacy and logic/semantic literacy and media literacy and social literacy (or use your other literacies to help you find reliable sources on the ones you lack), there's some stuff that becomes more and more supported by evidence.

And it also becomes easier to see the traps, and a lot of them take predictable, repeatable shapes. There are only so many potential points of error in a usual argument. Like an experienced veterinarian who can spot a common illness on sight, but who runs the test to check anyway.

That's the only reasonable way to operate in a world where the only direct experience we have is our own, and even that is something we cannot rely on.

Because if you can absolutely rely on your experience, so can everyone else. So if you and them contradict one another, either they are filthy liars for no apparent reason, or you are from different realities. And those are both completely unlivable mental states to take on with no evidence in their favor.

No. The mental state that is both more personally enjoyable and gets better and more accurate results is the one of curiosity and skepticism. One that demands kindness to others, but not deference.

IDK what I'm talking about any more

#timemachine wuz here #posting in the weeds #cleaning out my drafts

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lepurcinus · 1 year

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So, after watching a couple of videos about writing xenofiction.

Really rabbits are underappreciated animals in the aspect of how very exploitable their stories can be.

Yes, the most famous book in this genre has them as main characters and does a very good job of representing them correctly (Though not entirely, there are a couple of scientific flaws sprinkled in there but never mind). But the rest of the other rabbit stories out there are kind of uhhhhhhhh.

Because first we have the attempts to copy the first one, and well, they don't give too much by themselves. It's just reading the same thing but made up to look different and without all that sparkle.

And then we have the stories about rabbits that are already on the more traditional side. They are portrayed as calm, gentle, uwu cute or whatever, sometimes very shy, sometimes silly, they are present in the day, they mate like rabbits (ironic), everything kills them, etc. (well maybe some of them are not so bad). And let's not mention attributing the same behavior to all rabbits, no matter the species, it will be the same.

And well, that's not entirely how they work. They are animals that can be really complex in themselves, they are adaptable, variable, stop putting them in the same idea please.

If we are talking about European rabbits, why the hell do we only have stories that occur in areas where they were introduced? Why is there nothing about rabbits in their natural habitat, the Iberian Peninsula? Although it may not seem like it, there are many things that work differently there.

We have the "prince of a thousand enemies" although well, in reality many of those thousand enemies are not very interested in the predation of the rabbits because they were not used to them. That's why they managed to proliferate and become a long-term problem. (And let's mention when in Australia they introduced foxes to hunt the rabbits, but the foxes passed them by and preferred to go for the native fauna that was easier to catch and equally nutritive for them).

But, in their natural habitat, we even have animals that actively eats rabbits. There's also two species that literally LIVE off hunting rabbits, to the point that if these diminish they will too (The Iberian imperial eagle and the Iberian lynx). Just look at that potential with just that idea of predator-prey relationship. How the rabbits see these rabbit-killers and how they see their prey as their source of life.

(To give an example, and in parallel Canada lynx are almost entirely dependent on the American Hare in their diet, so much so, that if the hares disappear the lynx go with them. Not only that, but the hares are actually declining in population because of fear of the lynx. The lynx hunts them so much that the females reach a point where they even refuse to reproduce due to the stress of being hunted by the lynx. This does not happen with ANY other predator. Now transfer that to Europe and WOW).

And if we go to America, ok there are a couple of things with the common cottontail rabbit. But they ignore that there are over 28 species of rabbits throughout America, and even though they are related, each lives in a different environment and behaves differently.

We have rabbits that inhabit deserts and feed on cactus, others that live in cold mountain areas. And even rabbits that build burrows in the middle of swamps as a means of protection, these rabbits are basically aquatic. Why doesn't anyone notice this? Look at all that potential (and let alone the rest of the rabbits in other parts of the world).

#lepur stupid toughts #lepur talks #rabbit #xenofiction #ideas #bunny #watership down #srry i just need urgently to say this #dumb dumb ideas

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crystalelemental · 1 month

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Did you know there's a tier list maker for Unicorn Overlord classes now? Time to have opinions no one else agrees with!

For context: I am ranking this solely based on combat performance that I achieved. There are classes I have seen people rank far above what I do, and whether that's because they understand something I don't, or they had particular setups I didn't piece together and got better results out of it, it doesn't matter. I am rating this on how I experienced the class playing through twice.

The highest I beat was Tactical. I did try Expert, and beat the maps just fine, but I have this known brain problem where anything timed starts to stress me out if it runs too close, and I was constantly running too close. I never lost a map through the 8 or so hours I played it, but I couldn't stand the time pressure and kicked it down to have a more relaxed time of my life. Make of that what you wish.

S-TIER

Breaker. I feel like the surest indication of an S-tier classification is not having to think about it at all. While some will argue for the best possible performance being the indication of tier, I argue the opposite. I don't think many people are going to dig into the game that hard, and thus many aren't going to see the glory of incredibly fine-tuned tactics that let you beat Arena at level 15 with like three guys. Most are playing normally, and encounter stuff that just naturally works, and that, to me, is the surest sign of potency for a class, because there is nothing hidden that makes it good, you feel it right away. That in mind: Breaker is the most mindless win condition in the game, and my personal assertion for best class. Enrage is dirt cheap at 1PP, stacks, includes accuracy for consistent hit rates, counters armors, and has a row-wide attack that can't even be blocked or guarded. Once armor is removed, Assaulting Blow will recharge 1AP for every KO they land, potentially sweeping the entire enemy team, with no more support than "make sure they don't get hit." Anyone with cover and the tactic of "prioritize Highest Phys Atk" will do the job.

Gryphon Master. Gryphon Master is a bit more dynamic than Breaker, but no less devastating. Row-wide damage for 1AP is exceptionally strong, and they don't suffer the Berserker's accuracy penalty either. Add in cav effectivenss, and they're unspeakably strong. Being flying, they can front row dodge tank. Late in the game, they can pivot to Fatal Dive, dealing true damage to foes and denying guard, which can easily annihilate back-row foes and chip bulkier targets enough for follow-ups to finish. Griyphon Master has so much going for it, and very few legitimate flaws. So long as arrows are covered, they excel.

High Lord. Alain is ridiculous. Not because of anything offensive, but because defensively, he is unparalleled. Blocking is a huge deal to me, I like covering for squishier allies, and Alain's access to specific equipment giving him a much easier time hitting 4/4 means he adds a lot of defensive backbone, without suffering poor Mag Def, and contributing some DPS through anti-cavalry tech and row-wide offense. That anti-cav tech also removes AP and PP both, while inflicting Guard Seal, which is exceptionally potent. His potential to disrupt and defense a team cannot be understated.

Featherbow. At time of writing...this is my favorite class. Consider this bias if you must. Featherbow is S on utility. Row-wide Blindness in response to an attack leaves little room for foes to counter. She is not bound by the Rogues need to hit, and is instant enough that removing this status is impossible prior to them attacking. Photon Arrow hits two targets for -50% Phys Def and Passive Seal, which is devastating if aimed correctly given her high initiative, potentially shutting out a healer completely. Even Saint's Shot can be devastating, just removing 1PP from a target, or 2 if they're non-flying. As a flier themselves, they have evade potential on the front row, and can use their own blind effect to deny archers specifically. Featherbow is a metric ton of fun, and can really disrupt entire teams with good play.

Snow Ranger. Snow White Strike. That alone gets this an S. Follow-up attacks are generally good, accounting for typical shaky accuracy, but Yunifi defies that will solid bow accuracy and a devastating Freeze effect. This is an excellent way to keep an opponent locked down, and the damage doubles if someone else freezes for her. Triple Counter can be devastating as well with enough evasion on her; a full power retaliation that hits three opponents is amazing. Yunifi is interesting in that it really is her passives that make her tick, but Glacial Rain can be used on the back line to really hammer an enemy team with full AoE damage and a freeze effect that shuts down everything. The accuracy is shakier, but to my understanding, only one arrow has to hit for freeze to work. Yunifi is fantastic, and I adore using her.

Dark Marquess. I admit, my first run, I did not really respect Berengeria. I get it now, though. On-entry passive that cuts the initiative and attack of all foes is excellent. So long as foes are afflicted, she recharges PP on multiple attacks, including a 1PP follow up move for infinite regain that also heals her. When she's attacked, she boosts Atk/Initiative and gets 1AP back. She has row-wide offense that inflicts Stun. While it requires afflictions to be present, which can be slightly restrictive, she still has strong options even without that condition met. Dark Marquess is just very persistent and incredibly strong, with a powerful opening move, and it's hard to go wrong with her presence.

Elven Augur. The elf girls are very, very strong, but Augur is definitely stronger. Offensively, an on-entry row-wide attack that inflicts stun if it doesn't kill is great. Much like Sibyl, Augur has a good synergy between skills. Primus Edge restores 1PP if at 100% HP, even if it misses. Elemental Impetus will use 2PP to recharge 1AP, making this a good, steady source of recharge. The main draw, however, is Elemental Roar, a 3AP move that hits all foes and gets stronger with more active fairies. Her opening skill is strong by default, but adding a fairy into an AoE burst is outstanding. Very little investment needs to go into Augur for their magic to devastate, and they even pack a little recovery that can specifically heal up a Cleric-type if they get hit with status, keeping your team rolling without a care.

A-TIER

Shieldshooter. Again, I like blocking. Shieldshooters can block while recovering HP to allies. Shieldshooters also have competent offense in Heavy Bolt, making them a good two-skill focus unit. Their follow-up is fairly weak, but can be nice as I believe it cannot be interrupted, finishing off units that get Holy Cradle or otherwise barely survived. As a bow user in the front, she can aim specifically for back row as well, taking out core supports or big threats with hilarious precision. If anything holds Shieldshooter back, I'd say it's that they don't quite excel at what they aim to do. Heavy Bolt is good damage, but she lacks the same kind of hilarious disruption as Alain does against cavalry, or the row-wide offense he can pack, leading to her being more about sniping a particular target in a match and otherwise existing for defense. Still one of my favorites, though.

Swordmaster. One of my favorites. Swordmasters are about precision removal of specific enemies. By default, this is Scout. In some situations, it can be the fliers. With Runic Sword and some backup with Inspiration, it can include Armor, which legitimately feels like their best utility. But Swordmasters rarely carry. Their damage can be good with proper support, but maintaining that is difficult. And without it, their damage drops precipitously. I do compliment their anti-meta properties, like Meteor Strike being the easiest way to just blow through Galerius' Dark Armor, but they have trouble answering as much as they counter. Outside of Runic Sword, which is a one-time item, they have no means of getting around armor or guards. They're evade tanks whose Parry doesn't work on range, so arrows can break them, and truestrike remains a problem. Their PP generation is a bit challenging as well. Two swords means less flexibility on accessories. But for the sheer depth of what they can do for a team, and how well they can be crafted to serve any comp, A feels right.

Wyvern Master. Look, I don't know why I like Gryphon Master better. I think better early tools, but Fire Breath doesn't take long to unlock and is arguably stronger. Column-piercing is really good too, easily slapping someone out of commission on the back row. I think Wyvern Master is fantastic, but for some reason it just never felt like it worked as well as Gryphon Master, despite having comparable tools. Maybe I'm just biased. Maybe I just really liked Fatal Dive. I cannot give a satisfying answer, because they do rule.

Druid. Druid's great. Probably the strongest on-entry skill in the game, coupled with immediate debuffing of a target's offense as they attack. Defense Curse wildly improves damage and prevents Guard entirely, which is exceptional for offensive cores. I think the only reason I don't respect Druid more is that I didn't use Druid more. Their kit is truly excellent, if hard countered by Clerics.

Prince. Buffing alternative to Druid. Seriously, it's the same thing but reversed. Buffs initiative on entry instead of debuffing, buffs attack instead of debuffing defense, grants truestrike instead of inflicting Guard Seal. Prince does fantastic back-row work. I think I value Druid just a little more, solely because I think the entry skill is stronger, and Guard Seal slightly more valuable than a truestrike.

Elven Sibyl. She's a healing version of the Augur, whose on-entry skill is a heal that provides a nullification to one debuff for a row. She also has Primus Edge/Elemental Impetus, allowing for fantastic generation. However. My problem lies in her AP skills. Elemental Roar remains the boom it is on Augur, but her 2AP skill goes entirely to waste using it, and it's a row-wide heal that provides nullification of one attack to a whole row. To put it bluntly, this is insanely good. Evade tanks have a backup that can now prevent certain death, solely because Eltolinde was present to provide it. And yet...this comes at the cost of Elemental Roar. I talked about this positively in other classes, having strong variability, and I think that's Sibyl's strength too. You can use her as either Elemental Roar AoE damage for a wipe, or you can use her as a healer with built-in blocks to damage for an entire row. But you cannot do both. And that's why she's down here in A. Because the S class options? They can do everything they want in one set. Eltolinde cannot. She makes much harder concessions.

Valkyria. I wish I could put this higher, but I do think it's fairly limited at times. Boosting team defenses and guard rate on entry makes the entire team a lot stronger, and 50% guard rate is percentage points, meaning even your frail back row has better than average odds to guard and reduce a lot of damage. This is not what sells her. What sells her is Maiden's Hammer, a Truestrike move that deals better damage the lower her HP, and is a counterattacking move. This is an excellent utility move. Combined with her natural ability to hit Flying with Vertical Edge, she's like a heavily defensive variation on Swordmaster. But. Swordmaster has that magic attack to blast armor apart, being much more offensively competent. Valkyria relies on Brandish, which is expensive and never deals as much as you want. She can eventually break through, but definitely needs support to see it happen.

Dreadnought. I feel like Dreadnought is a boring, overly straight-forward damage class with exactly one interesting tool. Unfortunately for me, that one interesting tool is hilarious and extremely powerful. When a foe guards an attack, Dreadnought kicks them in the face, inflicting Stun and Guard Seal. That is. EXTREMELY good. It turns a lot of offensive focus options from middling and in need of support, to potentially just blowing right through armors. With her self-buff to get truestrike and sure crit, she's able to obliterate pretty much any individual enemy she sets her sights on. And with greatshields, even in the back row, she tends to be excellent on defense. Initiative can be a problem, but just kicking open a guard for allies is a massive boon.

High Priestess. This may seem a bit mean, but I don't consider Scarlett as potent as other unique classes. Her healing leaves a bit to be desired, and while her main attacks remove buffs, the fact they can miss creates issues. It's not like her damage is exceptional either. What keeps Scarlett in A is really just how rare buff removal is, and how nice having a shield to halve incoming damage while denying status can be in good hands. But the later you get, the more allies can find items that make them immune to status anyway, and thus her shield goes largely to waste. This is especially true for evade tanks, who just...move out of the way of the attack, rendering that shield moot. Scarlett has good tools mired by problems that kept haunting me, but I fully acknowledge what she brings.

B-TIER

Bishop. Standard healer. What gets Bishop in my good graces is Refresh being row-wide, and access to some good AP skills from staves, most notably Lyrical Wand. Most of their AP skills are pretty whatever, so the wand skill is free, and recharges AP of a target. I do think Bishop can be a little finicky, though. Specifically targeting what you want and when can be a challenge on the tactics, with their default sets healing every single hit no matter how minor resulting in consumption of 1PP. It's a necessary class, but not an exceptional one.

Featherstaff. Featherstaff has some solid traits, but I feel like initiative is their worst enemy. Unless they get Overheal or Holy Cradle up right away, it's easy for opponents to just slap something and ruin your plan. Holy Cradle in particular feels like shit outside of PvP/Arena contexts. It's 2AP that could go into just keeping you from dying, and very little in main game can threaten to one-shot you. They're overly specific for single matches, which is why I put them below Bishop.

Wereowl. Very fun but very finicky. Wereowl has basically one truly good trait, and that is granting 1PP to an ally after they use one. This combos into some hilarious shit, especially when you look at things like Featherbow's row-wide blind response, or sustaining healing or guarding, or counterattacks, etc. That said, getting that PP where you want it to go and not having them burn through all of it is very, very challenging. I will give credit for having pretty whatever AP skills. I think they're another that really likes the staff effect to be their primary, though Night Vision for huge accuracy buffs is nice.

Feathershield. What if your tank could dodge? Feathershield is fun because they are flying armor, which means they both take hits well and can evade, making them excellent at sticking around. That said...is it just me, or are there like no greatshields that have passive abilities to shield allies? Is no one else bothered by this? It's like the one fatal flaw. If I could get this guy to both reflect spells and jump in on attacks against the healer, I think we'd be set. I do want to specifically complement synergy with Valkyria. Iron Will with his buff to Mag Def for the entire party makes for some outrageously tanky units.

Great Knight. Cavalry Call. That's basically the class in a nutshell. They have a great buff that applies to all cavs, and are able to rush a column both with their base move and with a follow-up. In addition, they pack the usual AP recovering stuff, but with two different forms of attack, including a 2AP multi-hit move. Great Knights have a lot in their favor. I don't really respect them. I feel like a lot of their utility relies entirely on a full cav team that makes them hysterically easy to counterpick. I think they put so much in offense that every comp tends to lack wildly for defense, and their results in a map are either a clean sweep of massive damage, or getting half the team killed. I think without someone to proc boosted initiative or debuff foe's initiative, they tend to move too slowly and eat a lot of damage. They live attached to Selvie. Outside of cav comps, while they have decent tools, their offenses are significantly less pronounced, and I feel like they falter. They're really fun and have one of the more mindless overall setups, but it's such a hit and miss tactic that's so, so easy to counter.

Doom Knight. I don't really favor sacrificing HP for power. I admit they have a good system going, as well as good bulk and potential to recover damage they do take. I recognize their fire-base AoE move is tremendous damage with a lot of benefits. I just can't put them higher than this. Similar deal to the Great Knights, I think they tend to be easily bowled over at times. Tactics matter a lot, and if their conditions aren't in place, they falter wildly. Without a Cleric, or at least some means of active healing, they're very easily KOd. I like them well enough, but not all that much.

Sergeant. Granting Sure-crit can be specifically tailed for Maximum Funny. Granting 1AP to any ally at the cost of 2PP is also really nice. Sergeant doesn't have the best offensive profile, but column-piercing and cav effectiveness isn't bad, and they add some response to fliers as well. They're a decent all-arounder with no particularly outstanding traits, but some really fun concepts to play with.

Elven Archer. Ice Arrow is one of my favorites, I love freeze and they have the initiative to back it up. I've also seen talk of their on-entry skill resulting in Scarlett granting a PP back with some healing, kicking off their party-wide heal and instantly recovering the team to full not matter how battered from the last encounter. It's something! But I feel like Elven Archer often fails to dazzle. Damage isn't great, they don't have the same truestrike as base archers, their on-entry skill is nice but not one of the better options out there, etc. I do like them a lot, though.

Elven Fencer. Similar deal but worse. They rely heavily on evasion, and can sure-dodge, but only when conditions occur that grant the effect. Otherwise, they have sub-par evasion for a frontline tank, and are always hoping to recharge AP on successful dodges. They rely heavily on allies to set conditions for dodging, and are as easily bopped by truestrike as other evade tanks. At least they have really good and fun offense that has a magical edge, allowing them to hurt armor types.

C-TIER

Sainted Knight. This one would get me killed on Reddit. I don't think Sainted Knight is all that good. I think the blocking of magic can be divine, and the combo with Legionnaire is obviously decent. But I think their problem is often passivity, and being too cluttered with AP. Yes, they can deal hilarious magical damage. If they aren't using Row Heal. But then you need someone else dedicated to healing. Which causes its own problems. But keeping healing means they don't do much in the way of attacks, and that magic potential goes to waste. But also there's only two magical swords in the game and Swordmaster is way more proficient about removing armor, while their attacks seem to fail to KO anything with reasonable Mag Def. Even in just general runs, I use Sainted Knight often for mobility and reduction of magical assist attacks used against us, but their teams are extremely hit and miss by effectiveness. I struggle to see a situation in which they feel as good as many claim.

Legionnaire. I like blocking, so here they are. I do think they're highly passive, lacking for damage or healing or literally anything but guard. But it's nice to have someone to just block attacks and take like no damage, you know?

Feathersword. Kinda middling. Yes, ranged attack, decent self-buffing, but their kit is kinda whatever. No particularly great attacks, buffs literally everything but stats you really want like straight Atk, Discharge is their only means of offense but it removes literally every other form of buff. They have a Truestrike but its 2AP, and their lack of sheer crit rate means Gambler's Coin isn't even salvaging them. I have yet to feel like Feathersword truly does all that much.

Landsknecht. What if you were a follow-up class, but your follow-up missed? What if Berengeria were kinda bad? Bastard's Cross is huge damage, but easily guarded and then rendered unimportant. Landsknecht does have good damage potential, and the AP regeneration of Breaker and Great Knight, but it tends to fall way behind on every other metric I care about.

Warlock. On the one hand, row-wide move that can stun, and great follow-up and counter attacks with generalized magic. I do think the shaky 90 accuracy is a problem, as is general initiative woes and frailty. Pure magic classes tend to heavy invest in just their magical offense and everything else is kinda whatever. As a result, Warlock can do some nice stuff, but I rarely consider them exceptional.

Sniper. I barely used them. I kinda dislike them, to be honest. I got one to work in the Virginia/Feathershield team comp I used, but I feel like the biggest issue they have is that damage output feels limited. They're kind of another precision removal tool, in that they can aim wherever they want and are specifically good against fliers, but only okay when it's a wyvern without crits. Taking out back row stuff also relies heavily on what the enemy team's composition is. They can work, but they're not a favorite, for reasons that are slightly difficult to parse. I don't think they're that bad, but I've never had good success with them.

Sorceress. This has to be my most contentious opinion. I think Sorceress kinda blows. Stupid frail, horrendous initiative, magic can get completely hard countered by two class types, getting conferrals to land where you want when you want is an exercise in pure frustration, status conferrals take 2PP and a whole accessory slot which is demanding, and while their freeze is an excellent status, I pretty much never see it because the rest of the team does its job first or the witch dies immediately. They can be good. Devastating, even. But I feel like they're very often a liability. Also now that both are on here: I don't respect Trinity Rain. Way, way too much investment of a team's resources for something that can (1) miss, (2) be blocked, and (3) be entirely shut down by Feathershields and Sainted Knights.

D-TIER

Vanguard. They're just not too useful. I give some credit for Arrow Cover blocking flying attacks as well, and being useful alongside Swordmasters and fliers for the specifics of what it does. But that's about all I can really praise it for. Neat concept, very lacking outcomes. There's a reason they're a 25 Honor promotion.

Werelion/Berserker. They are the same goddamn class and I don't like them. Row wide and then full party AoE damage should be great, but their offense is surprisingly low by raw stats, and all of their attacks are base 80% accuracy. Which is, as it turns out, bad. The only good stat they have is HP, and fun fact: no situation in any game I've ever played has allowed high HP but bad defenses and evasion to work out. Ever. I feel like this could be a way better class if their other stats were a little stronger in some places, but as it stands, very underwhelming.

Werebear. I tried, but never found much interest in them. A greatshield class that can't block anything, and instead specs into attempts at offense that are inaccurate, or completely miss anything not on the ground. Wholly unimpressed.

Viking. Their on-entry skill should be a favorite. There's so much that should be fun with this. I have never, even once, found a situation where I think it's worth it. Other on-entry skills just offer a lot more bang for your buck, and letting everyone bypass guard, while nice, often isn't necessary to taking down armor. There are other approaches. Like magic. Even half-magic like the Elven classes will do a better job than bringing a Viking's low initiative and inaccurate shenanigans. I want to respect them, I really do, but I've never found a significant use.

Werefox. Let the broad opinion being: I do not respect units whose life is evasion. "But you like Swordmaster." For the offense. For its ability to remove, with incredible precision, several different types of opponents as you see fit. Werefox does not do that. It has some offensive utility I'm willing to acknowledge, but I didn't have a great time using them ever.

F-TIER

Werewolf. Werewolf is one I wanted to like. A row-wide 15% Phys Atk buff with no other conditions is fairly unique, and they have means of restoring AP for further moves. Unfortunately...I just never encountered success. This feels unfair, I feel like something could've happened if I just found something I liked. But the one (1) time I made a team with one that actually started to work out? It was the Virginia/Fodoquia team. And it turned out the best results for that team? Was dropping the Werewolf for a Cleric. I dunno man! Results don't lie! Maybe I'm using it wrong, but I've yet to see this class accomplish literally anything.

Rogue. _Lucille_ on Reddit has some excellent takes on classes, and some fantastic strategy. They're the kind of person who can beat Arena before breaking level 20 on the highest difficulty, something I legitimately could never piece together. So when they say that dodge tanks are better than physical tanks, and that Rogue is very good, I'm inclined to believe this is true. Evasion likely is more successful overall if outfitted correctly. But personally? I consider tier based on ease of access as much as anything. If something is stupid broken busted, but only once you've been playing for a while and have a working meta knowledge of tactics and how to specifically counteract all the things that otherwise beat you? That to me isn't success. That requires niche knowledge for success. And on that note: Rogue sucks. Getting it to work is an unending nightmare. So many enemies have Truestrike, and the only means of not dying horribly is knowing AI patters and how to avoid being the target of attacks that threaten, and nothing else. Even outside of this, just letting one (1) attack land the low percentage to hit is instant death, and in general maps, you're encountering so many swings that eventually that 10% will land. It requires a level of precision and calculation that I feel is way beyond what is reasonable as a more casual fan of the game. While their skills feel exciting, I never once found them significant. Row blindness is done infinitely better by Featherbow, and even Druid if you want to use the staff for it. Stealing AP is only ever 1AP despite the translation, and fails entirely if guarded. PP steal can also be guarded against, ruining the attempt. Someone mentioned using them with Viking's War Horn to ensure hits, stealing PP and using that on accessories to buff allies constantly. Great plan! That also cuts into their evade rate because less equipment goes to it, so you get hit more often. Evade stops working the instant archers are introduced, because they just hit you through it. Their bulk is so bad, anything that touches them kills. Their passive skills are bad, with an on-entry that just inflicts Guard/Passive seal on one (1) target, which sucks, but is likely to go first given their high initiative, ruining much better options because only one goes off. I have active contempt for Rogue. I would love to get it to work, just to see what others are seeing, but I feel like their utility ran out before I even finished the demo. I get that no damage is better than chip damage, but you know what's even better than that? Not dying immediately because you failed a roll.

Paladin. I think the basic fact that nothing seems to outline the skills on a Paladin should tell you what you need to know. The class itself is good enough, but Josef is so gimped in the stats department that once you leave Cornia, and start fighting things closer to his level? He's easily overwhelmed on the frontline and contributes very little to a backline. There's no reason to use Josef past the opening. At least the Rogues can be outfitted with something going on, Josef just feels like a burden.

#unicorn overlord #unicorn overlord tier list #i don't expect anyone to care about this #but if I'm going to get yelled at it'll be Radiant Knight Sorceress or Rogue

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0daytrick0 · 1 year

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Back home...

So, I'm officially back home in the Isa. Compared to Townsville the place is definitely an eyesore 😅. Just one big industrial town.

Anyway, it's definitely felt easier since I got back. Me and my partner have had to move back in with his parents due to the lease ending at our flat. But we can finally save money at least.

We were on the lookout for a house and came across this place with potential. Three bedrooms plus a study, a two bay shed with a little garden shed. The front and back yard are fenced off from each other. There is plenty of room for my partners cars. There is a nice front deck followed by a nice shaded, concrete area out back. The loungeroom is seperated from the dining room. And the dinning room is massive and leads into the kitchen. There is an inside laundry and a decent sized kitchen. The toilet is sperated from the bathroom. And finally lots of windows and wooden floors.

The place is really nice. Especially when you compare it to the flat we were living in prior. We didn't even have room for an inside laundry or dining room. And the kitchen was so small we could only cook basic meals. One of the rooms didn't have aircon and when we first moved in the loungeroom didn't even have a working aircon. The flat was more than enough for us when we first moved out. But when me and my partner started to grow and do our own things, we found it would be nice if we had seperate rooms to do so. He has a study for his YouTube and I have a study for my university studies. Then we have a guest bedroom for when mates stay over. And this is what this new place has!

Long story short, we got approved yesterday for the house. After a year of applying for countless houses, we finally have one to call our home.

I am so pumped to move in. I have a few weeks before we can as it needs a deeeeeeep clean. The person who lived there previously clearly didn't get his bond back...

The only sucky thing about the house thus far is the location. I mean it works in our favour to have cheap rent. But it's smack bang in what we would call the "bronks" of Mount Isa. But, in saying that, my partners parents already live in the bronks and as long as you have a good fence and a big dog, they won't touch you. The neighbourhood is too busy fighting each other than to break into a house next door. Plus you don't shit where you sleep as the saying goes.

The house is fairly private too. So I'm not too worried as we have fencing and lots of greenery to give us our privacy from the street.

I'm just super excited. For once something is correctly falling into place. And after all the drama in Townsville, it feels real nice to know I made the right decision and finally getting something we have wanted for ages.

The house itself needs a bit of fixing and maintenance. But my partner is all over that. And if we do it right, they will probably compensate us for what we do fix. Then we get to make the place how we want it.

I still have some things to do. So there is no rush to move in anyway. So it works in nicely.

To catch you up on the drama in Townsville. It was just not realistic to stay there anymore. Census sad was coming up. And that meant I had to make a decision to stay or drop out soon. As if I pull out before census date, I'm not in debt and owe the campus nothing. But if I stayed, I would be stuck there for at least the rest of the year. And I could not financially afford that.

Job hunting sucked. And I only managed to get two jobs out of the 30 resumes I handed out. Both jobs were corrupt and mean. I can deal with stress and pressure. But when menagement doesn't care about their own staff, that's when I draw the line.

I couldn't get youth alowence due to my parents income. As untill I'm officially 22, I'm considered a 'dependent' and it relies off my parents combined income. Which is alot...

I tried going to a youth centre for financial assistance but all they could really do is offer me a shelter to stay if I did become homeless.

Then the accident that occured with my partners sister and how she lost her leg. Then to have him trying to move out of the flat on his own with barely any assistance.

All of this background noise was just too much to focus on uni. I couldn't even afford to put food on the table as all of my friends and partners money was going straight to fuel and rent. As I couldn't go to job interviews without fuel. And I couldn't be presentable and study without a roof over my head. Food really was not a priority. Which is crazy to think about looking back at it now.

The university itself couldn't really help me. And all they could really do is offer me 10 free counseling sessions. Which doesn't fix my problems.

Sure I could of stayed. Could of worked at a shitty job. Could of starved and made do where I could. But honestly, it was realistic in the end. And that's how I had to look at it. In black and white.

The best thing to do was to drop out, and even as I am writing this a few weeks later, I do not regret my decision. I can still do university online. Still do a bachelor of psychological science online. But this time... There is no rush. No need for loads of savings. No pressure. I do it when I'm ready. And I don't have to worry about changing my whole lifestyle to suit it. As it's online and flexible.

While in Townsville, as short lived as it was, I got to do everything I wanted to. I finally got to experience the atmosphere of a university. Meet new people. Attend a lecture in real time. I got to bludge around in the campus and purchase food and a coffee and be 'that girl'. I got to experience what it would be like to live on my own away from my partner and just focus on me, myself and I. I got to move to a whole new city and live there by myself. I learnt my way around and got lost a few times but always managed to find my way back home. I got to experience a whole different lifestyle and live near an ocean. Eat fish and chips on the beach with a friend. As expensive and stressful as townsville was, I got to do everything I wanted to do in the first place and more. And in top of it all, now when I do online, I know that it's the better option and it will keep me focused. There will be no "oh, i wonder if it would be easier just to be in Townsville to do university?" As I know now, that it would not.

As of right now, all I have to do is relax. I have the textbooks from my psych classes to study this year. So I can get ahead for next. I can look for a job related to mental health while I'm here and work at bambinos while I wait. I can save money with my partner and purchase some nice things for our new home. All the while being with my partner. And I can stay with my friends and not have to ditch them to focus on me.

Overall I see this as a win and I'm am greatful I had the opportunity to have a supportive boyfriend to get me to Townsville and an amazing friend to help me pay to stay in Townsville. It's been tough. It's been tough. But I'm glad it's over and I can take it a little more easy. While still working towards my dreams.

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technodromes · 7 months

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[⚙️] Character Info Sheet

name: Grum name meaning: Their name means wrench, if pronounced correctly. Imagine a very deep-voiced heavy metal singer singing 'gum'. It's about like that. Grum stems from a generation of Utrom that have been known as great engineers and machine scientists and all their names refer to tools. alias/es: Kraang 811986 (while being mind-controlled), Bubblegum (by Rick, they just roll with it at that point tbh) and pretty much whatever other nickname people give them at some point. They are different from many other Utrom in the way that they use no exosuit and rely on their flyer, so they have no exosuit/human alias. ethnicity: Utrom, or Xephalopod Utrom (a wide-spread subspecies of the Utrom that '87 Krang stems from, but no Utrom ever really talk about it) one two picture(s) you like best of your chara My art muse has been so fickle lately and I didn't really draw much of meaning aside from just editing icons for them. I definitely wanna draw my little grape more in the future tho. You know, whenever inspiration hits me.

three h/cs you've never told anyone:

1) Grum pronounces their own name wrong when introducing themself to a human (saying the 'r' in it out loud while actually you don't). It is widespread knowledge among Utrom that most humans can't pronounce Utrom names correctly, so they don't bother and usually use different names altogether (like the Council for example). Which seems rather pretentious despite the lack of hard feelings, but it has just stuck with them. 2) Like many other Utrom, Grum is gluten-intolerant. They are also allergic to strawberries. Other than that though, they can digest many things that Earth has to offer. They are not really picky either, but due to their strawberry allergy, they don't like fruits that are similar to it (like raspberries). 3) They always carry a towel in their tiny backpack to clean themself up after work or eating. It's not obsessive, but Grum cares a great deal about hygienics and makes sure to keep themself and their equipment clean. You know they are stressed when they overlook a speck on themself after finishing work.

three things your character likes doing in their free time:

1) You know Grum is going to fix or improve some devices in their supposed 'free time'. Just being idle and doing nothing is not really relaxing for them. Keeping their tentacles busy is what keeps them the happiest. 2) They study a lot when they're not actually working. They have a tablet/pad in their backpack where they can also connect to Earth's Internet. Not unlike Bishop, their research can result in wild assumptions, depending on the topic and results. It is easier to feed Grum with wrong knowledge though. They can be a little gullible at times. 3) Trying out new things. Like cooking or crafting. Just as mentioned above, they are the happiest when their tentacles stay busy with something.

eight a few people your character likes / loves: That's a tricky one. While I have Grum intertwined in the Canon as having been a part of Kraang's hive and therefore harboring hard feelings towards Krang and Subprime, I haven't spent awfully much time thinking about their relationship with the other characters to be quite honest. The Salamandrian scout K'Arakga was their first friend after being on their own, even though they parted ways again. They are also on good terms with Bishop, since the latter offered to help them reconcile with the Utrom numerous times. And, considering Grum is a good fellow who tries to redeem themself, they do get along with Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, Donatello, and April. Grum is likely to stay in contact with Donatello the most though. two things your character regrets: Even though Grum never really had any control over it in the first place, their biggest regret is having been a part of the Kraang Hive. There are also moments where they regret numerous decisions they made, like some of their awkward socializing attempts that resulted in uncomfortable situations... two phobias your character has: Ever since having their own identity mixed up with Kraangs, they experience a great fear of memory loss (Athazagoraphobia). The thought of potentially forgetting someone or something important causes them huge distress, even though it is very untypical for Utrom to forget something entirely. Their dislike for being touched borders to a mild fear of hugging (Haphephobia). While they don't necessarily feel pain, the sense of guilt they harbor causes them great emotional discomfort when they're touched. It is a phobia they can and certainly will overcome over time, tho.

Tagged: @dynamoprotocol (thank you <3) Tagging: @countlessrealities (SR), @tatorupawa (Donnie, canon/verse of your choice), @nightwatchr (canon/verse of your choice), @chaosmicjelly , @championofdarkland and whoever else wants to do this ^^

#Headcanons: Grum #Dash Games

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deeisace · 9 months

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I should be working on the bible covers instead of making new jobs for myself, and I will get back to it another day, but I'm going to distract myself from stressing about the guy downstairs by doing a bit of my stepmum's family tree

I said I would last time I saw her, and I did a bit but not the rest

Her estranged awful dad's side, not on purpose just cs it's easier to do the paternal line/s first tbh, and my brother said he'd be interested anyway cs he knows nothing at all about that family.

It's easier because you can follow Carter family, eg, their name, back and back, and then afterwards go and fill in the blanks of maiden names and those families and such, tho I do tend to get distracted by interesting branches occasionally, instead of doing one line and then another, I'll do a piece of a line and then a piece of a different line, and then go back to do more in-depth work on the first one, and then find a funny first or last name or event, and go into that instead of finishing the first line entirely in one go

All the work will get done, it's just that I jump around, and my notebooks are generally a mess

That I can read, fortunately, enough to make clear copies for whoever it's for - or, as clear as family trees can sometimes be, cs they do take some looking at, especially if I've managed to get back to the 1700s on more than one line, which is often possible

I was lucky once, to chance on the research someone else had done into the same tree I was looking at - you can only do so much yourself without trekking out to the actual churches, or wherever what archives exist, and bugger going right across the country honestly - and got back to the 1500s! Incredible! Tudor times!

It seems so far away from now, and it is in a lot of ways, but I'm reminded always of that thing that goes, if you think about it, an average person might have a child in their mid-20s, say, which makes a century four generations. Four women, or four couples, however you'd like to think about it. Not at all a crowd, you were to imagine that many people in a shop queue or whathaveyou

My own tree I can trace if I remember correctly to the late 1600s or early 1700s - if one generation is 25 years, that makes me now only 17 people away from the Stuart period. Like, that's still not so many people, only a couple of good tables worth, and I know the guy sitting right at the end's name (which is George Whoad/Hood, and now I'm looking at my notes he was around in the 1610s, so it's more like 20 or so people back. Still two tables!)

Of course that's going back only into one direct branch - the number goes up exponentially when you include both parents of a child, and both their sets of parents, etc etc, which is why the family trees I do are so sprawling - I don't believe, as some people seem to, that only the family name matters - your maternal 6-times great-grandmother is just as important to you existing as your paternal 8-times grandfather who shares your name, I think, and even if literally the only thing I find out about her is that her name was Margaret, no other details at all, I would still prefer to include her than not

If someone prefers to not find out about a side of their family, then I will ignore it, I've reached a dead end, and I understand even if I am a little sad at seeing a blank space

Anyway, it's interesting tho, to think about it, once the information peters out to just names and dates on paper, and sometimes not even that (ala Margaret, above) - to imagine a dinner party, or a theatre, full of living breathing people, with their living breathing lives, once upon a time, and that they did exist, and that one has your nose, or this one laughs the same as you, or someone walked down the same street, or or has opinions about Pride and Prejudice, just like you do now, or likes the colour orange, or is scared of bees, or is fascinated by new technology, just like you, tho theirs is jacquard looms and yours is, idk, super computers

#cries in genealogist

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quillsmora · 1 year

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Hopefully it's okay to ask you a question because I'm wondering do you know why Gamora hasn't been included in the vol 3 merch? I ran across some stuff a while ago and when she wasn't included I assumed it was just a one off incident. But I just ran across some other merch and she's still absent. So I'm not sure if they are waiting for the movie to create merch for her or what

Firstly, it's always okay to ask me questions about this stuff! I love talking about film marketing (I did study this stuff for 2 years after all). Always feel free to send me asks about anything!

As for your question here's my honest answer: I'm not entirely sure. There are a few logical conclusions though.

Spoilers. Historically the first wave of MCU merch is very clean when it comes to the events of the movie, only featuring characters we know will be in it and vague aesthetics that align with the plot. So far the main advertisements and merch for Vol 3 have featured the Guardians in their comic-accurate group suits, which we haven't seen Gamora in. She might end up getting that suit in the movie, but we have no idea and that would be a major spoiler, so it's easier to leave her out of cereal box promotions and toy box art to keep that unified aesthetic.

Along the same lines as spoilers but deserving of their own point is the LEGO sets. LEGO sets are 50/50 when it comes to being accurate to the events of the movie because again, spoilers. The Endgame sets they released to go along with the movie had absolutely nothing to do with the actual plot because sets get leaked so often and Disney didn't want the plot of their biggest superhero movie ever to be ruined. The Wakanda Forever and Multiverse of Madness sets were also pretty vague if I remember correctly. It's easiest to leave Gamora out of sets like the Guardians HQ or the Bowie because while she might actually be in those scenes, we won't know until the movie comes out (we can assume she'll be on the Bowie at one point based on that shot of her pulling out a knife but it's not official). Since the LEGO sets and toy lines release weeks before the movies, it's again easier to exclude Gamora from these first waves of merch.

The historically bad representation of Gamora on merch already. Outside of figures like Funko Pops and Marvel Legends, it's always been nearly impossible to find officially licensed merch of just Gamora, especially cute good looking merch. This has also been an issue with most of the MCU's female heroes but it's definitely gotten better these past few years. Unfortunately due to Gamora's role in Vol 3 being pretty secretive, that positive change doesn't get to apply to her this first wave.

So basically TL;DR, don't stress about this too much. We're still 2 months out from the movie's release and a month away from promo and press starting. Yes, it sucks that so far Gamora isn't being featured in anything outside of posters and trailers, and yes it's valid to be upset and frustrated with that. But remember that there's still a whole other wave of merch to come after the movie's release, and Zoe Saldaña is still second-billed. She and Chris Pratt were the last two (humans) to wrap the movie. James Gunn wouldn't have brought Gamora back if he didn't want to. If you're still feeling uneasy or worried (which I totally get!) @enigma731 has some great posts about why Gamora will be fine.

Sorry this is so damn long, I kinda got carried away lol. But yeah I do wish there was at least like a Funko Pop or something and find it ridiculous that Kraglin of all people is getting more merch than the female lead, but I'm personally not getting too worried right now because we still have two months until the movie. It's not looking completely terrible right now. (Trust me, I was a Star Wars sequels stan during 2019 TROS press. That movie's plot was leaked via an official German Burger King ad. If it ever gets that bad for Vol 3 you will definitely hear about it from me lol).

#ask #anon #gamora #gotg vol 3 #vol 3 press

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bellatrixobsessed1 · 7 months

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Vicarious (Part 18)

He should have expected it. That she would stop talking to him again. Sokka thinks that he should have done more. He should have done anything at all to keep her from feeling awkward about the kissing ordeal. As it is, she has been avoiding him. It stings and he is worried that his friends are going to get the wrong idea and start avoiding him again. But they don’t shoo him away when he tries to join them for meals. And Katara doesn’t ask him to leave when he sits down with them by the turtleduck pond. But he can still sense her unease when she looks about the garden and finds that it is just the two of them alone.

“Where is Sokka, I was hoping to talk to him?” He asks Katara.

“With our dad.” Katara says. “There are only a few days left until they have to present their work before the nations’ leaders so they’ve been pretty busy. I’m kind of worried about…” She falters.

“About what?” Sokka prompts.

She seems to consider for a moment whether or not she wants to share this with Azula, by extension, him. Finally she finishes. “I’m worried about Sokka. He says that he can handle all of this stuff but, it’s a lot. Dad thinks really highly of him and he doesn’t want to let him down.”

Sokka nods. “I wouldn’t want that either.”

Katara grimaces. “Yeah, your father is…” She doesn’t have to finish for him to nod along.

“I’m sure that he’ll be fine.” He certainly hopes so. Just as much as he hopes that her lack of conversation has more to do with being busy and stressed than it does truly wanting to avoid him. “Do you know when he’ll be back?”

Katara shrugs. “He and dad have been getting back late. I’ve been trying to get him to relax a little and go to bed. But when he’s got a job to do, he does it and he won’t take a break until he sees it through.”

“Well, jobs should be seen though!” He declares. “You can’t just drop a project when it becomes difficult or nothing would get done.”

“But it doesn’t pay off to overwork yourself. I think that you and Sokka could stand to learn that.”

They do have that in common; spirits they would be either unstoppable or exhausted wrecks if they ever worked on a project together. “Yeah, maybe. But some things have time constraints.”

Katara nods and clears her throat. “So what about you? Are you doing better?”

Smiling comes easier now and he hopes that it does for Azula too. “A little, yes. I like talking to people but it’s…” he hesitates, wondering if Azula wants him speaking so much on her behalf and when he isn’t sure if he has read her correctly. “Difficult for me. I’ve really only talked to Mai and TyLee. My father didn’t really leave me with much room for idle time.”

“Well there’s not a whole lot going on lately so now would be a good time to, I don’t know, figure out what you want to do with your life.” Katara replies. “You still have goals, right?”

“I’m not sure.” It is a good question really. He imagines that Azula does have some type of goal. Or maybe she still needs to find what she enjoys.

.oOo.

It is one thing after another.

Not only does she have to come up with a compelling pitch for the Republic City Project as well as a speech that details how they are going to execute the project and a detailed explanation of all of the cities blueprints both for the architecture of at least three different types of buildings and for how they play to layout and name the streets.

But she also has to have a working prototype of the new machines that they will be using to construct those buildings and prove, using model buildings, that the real ones will be structurally sound against earthquakes, strong winds, water damage, and fire damage–things that Hakoda has already assured her that they are.

But she has her doubt; each nation has tailored their buildings to meet their needs. Caldera City was built with fire hazards in mind just as Ba Sing Se has accounted for earthquakes. During the course of the war, Caldera City has made some touches to earthquake proof their buildings in the instance of an invasion but she they haven’t flood proofed the city nor accounted for high winds. None of the nations have managed all four.

How is she supposed to sell something that she isn’t confident in. Something that she herself isn’t fond of. She has not grown fond of those boxy, ugly high rise buildings. She is among those mentioned by Hakoda who strongly oppose the construction of these things.

And maybe it is because she values tradition and isn’t particularly fond of chance. Not when change has been so unkind to her.

She spends most nights these days pacing and digging at her hairline. There is so much to do and she hasn’t had nearly as much time as Sokka had to get acquitted with the tasks at hand. She can only do so much at once. Can only handle so many tasks.

She rubs her hands over her face.

Why do people always expect so much from her?

Why does she always expect so much from herself?

Why, when she has already proved that no matter how much work she throws in, it simply won’t be good enough?

On top of it all is the added pressure of knowing that she is going to drag Sokka under with her this time around. She needs to get it together, she needs to, she needs to, she needs to…

She brings her pacing to a halt at the sound of the door.

“How’s it going there, Sokka. Teo’s father is here and he was hoping that you could show him the blueprints that we…”

The blueprints, the blueprints, the blueprints. She is getting tired of the color blue. Tired of the color she used to adore. He is always asking about the blueprints; has she looked them over yet, has she revised them, has she made a copy of them, has she gotten really familiar with them…

He never asks her if she is handling everything okay, if she’d like something to eat or drink, or if she’d like a break.

He says that he is proud and he couldn’t have raised a better son. He says that he knows that she will exceed his expectations. And so she has too. He expects her to exceed his expectations and, surely, after that she will have to exceed his exceeded expectations.

If she doesn’t, he won’t look at her the same way. He will give her patronizingly simpler tasks ones that she can ‘actually handle’. Tasks that he knows are beneath her and she knows have been assigned to her to remind her that she has let him down…

When she looks up, she is no longer looking at Hakoda. He is going on and on about his high hopes. About how excited he is, about how this project is going to change the lives of so many people for the better.

“It’ll change mine for the worse!” She snaps. With every success he is going to pile more and more work onto her. It won’t stop, it never does. And she can’t ask for a break unless she wants him to snub her entirely.

She just wants him to care about her, to love her. She just wants him to do it for no other reason than that she is his daughter. “How am I supposed to get all of this…!” She slaps her hand down onto the blueprints. They flutter to the floor. Ozai flinches “Done in three days? You’re just using me.

“Sokka.”

She swipes the rest of the sheets and watches them scatter. She has just enough of her senses left to know that she is going to have to pick those up and put them back in order. She leaves the second stack alone.

She has no fire to throw. But she has a boomerang and she has two fists.

Agni, what is wrong with her? She isn’t like this? She is more collected than this…

“Sokka!”

She jolts. He is going to burn her. He is going to…

“It’s alright.” He says softly. He holds his hand out and she flinches back but no fire splays across her face. And finally it comes back to her that it isn’t her face and that it isn’t Ozai’s hand that has been extended to her. “Can I?”

When she doesn’t protest, Hakoda takes her into his arms. He has strong arms. Fatherly arms. The kind that are definitely well versed in embracing children. The kind that have definitely rocked them to sleep and carried them to bed. The kind of hands that have tucked children in. That have taken very good care of a son and a daughter.

“Raava’s tendrils, Sokka. We’ve talked about this; you have to tell me when I’m putting too much pressure on you. You’re such a strong man, you have take on so much. Sometimes I can’t tell when you’re enjoying a challenge or working too hard.”

“Neither can I.” She practically whispers. That line has long since blurred and distorted. She doesn’t even know if she really enjoys the things that she enjoys or if it is just a comfortable habit. Some type of compulsion that she has in place of all of the things that she never got to try or explore.

The only thing keeping her upright are Hakoda’s fatherly arms.

She wonders what her father’s arms would have felt like. Would have have a tighter hold or a looser one? She imagines that a hug from him would be much firmer. Firmer and warmer. Somehow, she imagines that Ozai would be the type to ruffle her hair at the end of it.

She swallows hard and the tears come forth. Uncontrollably and impossible to stop. If Sokka can embarrass her by sobbing in front of everyone, then he can deal with her doing it.

Hakoda sighs. “What am I going to do with you, Sokka? I know that you don’t like telling me no, but you have to.” He pats her back. “I can ask Teo and Bato to give me a hand now and again. I promise that I’m not going to be upset or disappointed.”

She tries to imagine how those words would sound coming from Ozai’s mouth. She does so with enough success to make herself cry harder still.

Hakoda pulls her in closer and holds her head against his chest. “Take the night off, Sokka. Three days was just the goal. I’ve already warned everyone that a project of this scale could come with several delays.”

“But…”

“No buts, Sokka. I’ll take care of things. You go back to the palace. I’m sure that your friends would like to spend some time with you.”

She can’t tell him why that hurts so much to hear.

They aren’t even her friends.

She doesn’t have friends; she has already chosen father and his impossible standards over them. She isn’t even confident that there had been any other option.

Expectations and conditional love have already broken her, but at least Sokka will be okay. Maybe now he’ll have more time to spend working on his love life. Maybe his next partner won’t feel like she is being chosen second to his work life.

“Do you want a moment alone?” Hakoda asks.

She nods.

“I’ll keep this between us.” He smiles. “Just let me know when you decided to head back to the palace.”

She nods again.

She will have to compose herself first.

Father would have never given her the chance to. Not without berating her until she had more things that required regain composure from. She had sacrificed all of the things she hadn’t realized she was sacrificing to make father proud. To make her nation proud. She has disappointed them all and now she has nothing left.

Nothing but this little chance that Sokka created on her behalf.

It will be a long night indeed.

#avatar the last airbender #azula #sokka #sokkla #fanfiction

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