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odaclan · 2 years

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This hairstyle is not chasenmage, and Sengoku samurai rarely wear this

I’m talking about this hair:

(screenshot from Kirin ga Kuru)

This is not specifically about Nobunaga or anything, but 90% of the Nobunaga I see in Taiga drama and movies usually has this hair style, and I want to talk about it. There were some drawing guides I’ve seen online that mistakenly label this hair as “chasenmage”, and it’s somewhat misleading.

Chasenmage 茶筅髷, literally meaning “tea whisk hair”, is one of the hairstyles commonly worn in the Muromachi and Azuchi-Momoyama period aside from the folded topknot (orimage/chonmage). The hair is tied tightly with strings, leaving a small tuft at the end, making it resemble a tea whisk. However, even a high-angled chasenmage doesn’t go as far as stick straight up like seen above.

That being said, I say they “rarely” wear the sticking-up style, not “never”, because this hairstyle is actually "real”. It’s not a made-up style invented by Kabuki or movies, it’s just... incorrectly applied. This hairstyle is called kanmuri-shita no motodori 冠下髻 or hitotsu motodori 一髻. It’s the hairstyle worn under the kanmuri (court cap):

(image from Kotobank dictionary)

So if you want to be "accurate”, it’s fine Nobunaga or some other daimyou wears this hairstyle sometimes, but only if you’re showing they’re in the process of getting dressed or undressed from courtly attires (for meeting with the shogun or other courtly business).

It’s one thing if the character is the emperor or court nobles, as the caps are often part of the daily attire. It would make sense that they might keep their hair in kanmuri-shita style even in leisure. However, Sengoku daimyou wear their hair mostly in the folded topknot style, and there is no reason for them to constantly wear kanmuri-shita hair. And, once more, the kanmuri-shita is not the chasenmage that Sengoku samurai did frequently wear.

(Emperor Seiwa, shown with his hair in the kanmuri-shita style. From the Ban Dainagon Ekotoba 伴大納言絵詞 picture scroll)

Picture from Teijou Zakki 貞丈雑記, written by Ise Sadatake around 1763-1784, also describing that this hairstyle is meant to be worn under a hat (either an eboshi or a kanmuri, as mentioned above)

I can’t trace where/how it began, but at some point it seems that Kabuki actors starts wearing that hairstyle in their performances:

Ukiyo-e of Kabuki actors then influence ukiyo-e depictions of “historical events” of the Sengoku. Then, when people start making movies about Sengoku samurai maybe in the 50s and 60s, ukiyo-e and Kabuki costumes are probably the easiest source of reference, resulting in this long-standing “trend” to give Sengoku samurai this hairdo.

(Nobunaga wearing that now-“iconic” hairstyle in an ukiyo-e by Yōsai Nobukazu 楊斎延一)

Meta-wise speaking, it’s likely that studios maintain this “wrong” hairstyle to save on budget. It’s better to just reuse old wigs rather than spend more money to make a new batch of historically-accurate wigs. However, I don’t really see any reason for illustrated media maintaining this, other than “maybe the artist just didn’t know”. Unlike the image of Nobunaga wearing European armour, there is no real branding attached to this hairstyle, so there is no specific need to keep drawing this style. Far as I can tell, Sengoku enthusiasts are equally fine with seeing samurai wearing just a “normal ponytail”.

Or, if not, something like this:

The hairdo Koei likes to use for their Nobunaga’s Ambition portraits may not necessarily be an accurate chasenmage either, but it’s “less wrong” than the kanmuri-shita.

We end with what a “correct” chasenmage looks like, as depicted by paintings from the 16th century:

Some attendants from Nanban Byoubu by Kanō Naizen 狩野内膳 were shown wearing chasenmage.

Falconers from the Rakuchuu Rakugai screen, by Kanō Eitoku. *) The third person behind them that I did not mark is angled oddly, so I wasn’t able to identify if that was a chasenmage (more stiff, secured with more strings) or just a “floppy ponytail”.

Modern illustration for clarity, provided by Kotobank online dictionary.

#long post #sengoku era #sengoku jidai #sengoku period #japanese history #japanese culture

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corvusalbus93 · 7 months

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Khadgar: Tea Time

During a stormy night in Zangarra, Cordana voices some of her concerns to Khadgar, troubled by the path the Archmage is going down and the powers he studies.

It was night in Zangarra, and the cove was lit only by the bioluminescent mushrooms growing in the cove. No star or moonlight was visible, instead heavy rain was pouring from the dark clouds above, cold and unrelenting.

Cordana took a deep breath, her night elven eyes able to pierce through the darkness. She was ever vigilant, searching for anything that didn’t belong here, but only saw sporebats looking for shelter, their multi-coloured wings shimmering like stained-glass windows.

From afar they reminded the Warden a little of faerie dragons, if not quite as pretty, and the thought made her think of home. She missed the forests of Ashenvale and coast of Azsuna. And at this particular moment she even missed the vault, nice and dry.

Cordana attention was drawn away from her memories, when she heard footsteps behind her, coming from within the tower, and judging by the sound, they were Khadgar’s.

“Cordana, the rain hitting your armour can be heard for miles around and I wager that cloak of yours is soaked by now,” the Archmage said softly, standing in the doorway, a kind smile on his lips. “Would you please just come inside, and spare us both the argument?”

The Warden hesitated, but she knew Khadgar would be insisting all through the eve, until she relented or he went to bed. This wasn’t their first dance. Admittedly, her cloak was quite heavy and would be slowing her down in a case of emergency, so he had a point. And she really wasn’t in the mood to argue with him again. Thunder rumbled in the distance, as if the weather itself had decided to chime in.

Cordana sighed beneath her helmet. “Very well.” From the corner of her eyes, she saw his smile turn into a triumphant grin, but Cordana went on to ignore it, checking the perimeter one last time before stepping inside.

Her eyes needed a moment to adjust to the light, and she headed straight for the fire bowl at the side of the room, while the door closed behind her. She removed her cloak and spread it out across a chair, close to the flames, though it would take hours to dry. A moment later Khadgar appeared beside the Warden, handing her a steaming mug. It almost seemed like a peace offering.

“Thought it might help you warm up.”

“Thank you, Khadgar.”

“It’s a new type, by the way. Hope you like it; the SI:7 agent I got it from swore by it.”

Cordana didn’t try it immediately, instead putting the mug aside for a moment to remove her helmet. It was nice to feel a breeze against her skin after spending most of the day in uniform, and she wiped a few raindrops that had gotten through her visor from her forehead. She checked her hair, which she kept fixed against the back of her head with a hairclip, so it fit under the helmet. It was a little uncomfortable at times, and sometimes she could hear the helmet scrape against the clasp. Maybe she should have taken the other armour variant instead; it’s helmet was partially open in the back and would have allowed her to keep her hair in a ponytail. Lesson learned for the next assignment.

Meanwhile, the Archmage was also making himself comfortable, taking a seat by the fire, a mug of his own in hand and a book floating beside him, patiently waiting to be read.

Cordana glanced to the door and window, checking the room carefully. Most of the other Kirin Tor, who were living here in Zangarra, had already retired for the night, so the two were alone for the moment. Only after she had reassured herself that nothing was lying in ambush, did the Warden finally sit down and pick up her tea again.

Her gloves protected her fingers from the heat, but the steam was soon enveloping her, and she sniffed. Herbal tea? It certainly wasn’t one of the greens and whites they usually had.

She took a sip and found the tea to be quite pleasant, warmth spreading through her every fibre. Still, she couldn’t place it. “It’s an interesting flavour. Did the agent tell you what type it is?”

“Thistle tea. Do you like it?”

“It’s good. Actually somewhat invigorating,” Cordana admitted. After a long day in the rain, she frankly welcomed the beverage.

He gave her another smile. “I’m glad to hear it. I was never certain if you ever liked the other teas, or if you were drinking just to be polite.”

“Maybe both,” she replied, feeling a little sassy. Then her eyes landed on the pile of books near his seat. “Do you plan on reading all night again?”

“Well, right now we are talking and enjoying some tea.”

Cordana only just managed not to roll her eyes at that. “You’re evading my question, Khadgar.” He liked doing that.

“I still got time for some ‘light’ reading,” he told her, before looking at her with a frown. “And you? Do you plan on getting any sleep?”

She shrugged. “Eventually. Once you’re in the upper levels, you should be safe enough.”

Khadgar sighed, but didn’t protest. He knew by now she wouldn’t relent. For a while they just sat in silence and enjoyed their tea, before the Archmage let his book float closer and returned to his reading. Cordana continued to watch the flames, letting the warmth seep into her, happy to feel the tips of her long ears again. Of course she remained attentive, but with all doors and windows locked, relied on senses other than her sight. Though she was no mage, even she would be able to sense magic to a degree, a sensation she likened to the moments before a thunderstorm, when one could feel the electricity in the air.

When she had almost finished her tea, Cordana’s eyes wandered through the room, only to pause upon seeing what the Archmage was reading.

It was a tome she would have expected in the hands of a warlock or other practitioners of dark magic, and the sight made her skin crawl. “This is what you consider ‘light reading’?” Her tone was cold and by the looks of it caught Khadgar a little off guard.

“Does it trouble you that much I consult these books?”

It surprised her he even needed to ask. “Of course. They only hold corruptive knowledge and foul spells.” Every instinct told her to either lock them away or better yet destroy them, so their content could never influence anyone ever again.

For the first time this eve he was utterly serious and Khadgar closed the tome, placing a hand on the cover. “Knowledge is power, but the key is using it wisely. I intent on using what insights I gain against Gul’dan and his masters.”

Cordana put her mug aside. “Corruption can be subtle, it can take years, but it can take hold of anyone no matter how noble their initial intentions.” And she knew he meant well, she’d seen enough to know that, only his methods troubled her, his search for power to use against the warlock.

“I am well aware of the dangers, and I am not taking this lightly. But without such knowledge, we’re fighting them blindly or do the Watchers not believe in studying their enemy?”

“There are lines we do not cross. Like using the powers of our enemy.” His brows twitched at her last statement. She tried to remain objective, but couldn’t quite manage to hide the apprehension. She feared how his search for knowledge would affect him. “I know you believe you have everything under control, but each step, no matter how small or insignificant it seems at the time...in the end they sum up all same, they still lead down the road to damnation.” Cordana leaned forward in her chair, her tone softening. “Dire times have a tendency to drive people to the extremes, and I worry what they will bring out in you.”

For a moment he remained silent, holding her gaze. “I... appreciate you worrying about me,” Khadgar began, choosing his words carefully. “However, we came to this world, knowing there might be no return. And it’s not even the first time for me,” he reminded her and his eyes turned to the book in his hands. “If Gul’dan is allowed to pursue his plans and those of his master, there is no limit to the damage he could do. No telling how many would suffer. So, I fear not taking these risks more than I fear the danger they represent. And I know I put others into danger as well, but I don’t do so lightly, however it may seem. We are fighting a war, a war that will not only determine the fate of this world, but ours as well. This is not the time for half measures.”

He had a point.

As much as the Warden wanted to contest, he wasn’t wrong, not entirely. But this meant he would continue to study all manners of dark magic, perhaps even use it, if he deemed it necessary. Nothing she said, no warning would change that. No, arguing wouldn’t get her anywhere, never had; best she could do was stay close and intervene when possible. The Archmage was stubborn once he’d set his mind on something, not unlike some others Cordana had served under. Maiev Shadowsong came to mind, and the Warden shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

“Please, don’t lose yourself in this hunt. A mage of your power...”

“You fear I will succumb to the Legion’s influence, like so many before me.”

“Am I wrong to be concerned?”

The Archmage shook his head. “No. There is always that temptation, that chance at more power, enough to set things right, to save everyone.” Suddenly his eyes lit up with steely determination. “But I assure you, I am well aware of the pitfalls such shortcuts hold. I know their tricks and false promises. As long as I live and breathe, I will never be their puppet.”

“I hope you are right, for all our sakes.” And Cordana meant it. The Archmage feared the harm and destruction Gul’dan could cause, yet his own power in service of the Burning Legion would be at least as dangerous, if not more so, considering everything he knew. Yes, Khadgar could become the greater threat in the end. “And what if you do fall?”

“Then I must trust in people like you, to do what is right.” He gave her a smile, but the Warden saw no joy in it, only a note of sorrow. He knew what would be necessary; he’d done it himself.

As she went over the scenario in her head, it frightened Cordana that she wasn’t sure she would be able to do it, if it came to that. But she was a Warden, her duty was clear. It was one of the reasons she was here. “I would,” she assured him after a second of hesitation. “Just promise me never to put me in that position.”

Khadgar’s smile became a little more genuine. “I promise,” he said and placed a hand on his heart. “On my life.”

Cordana prayed to Elune he would keep his word.

Second in a short series about Khadgar and Cordana on Draenor. We only had tiny bits and pieces in game, and I really wanted to expand on both them and her eventual corruption through the orb of dominion.

I also try to write it in a way that it works whether you ship them or not.

First part

Short about Khadgar, while we go into Vault of the Wardens in Legion

Entire series on AO3

#archmage khadgar #khadgar #cordana #cordana felsong #wow #world of warcraft

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cinlat · 2 years

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Who’s Your Daddy?

Word Count: 1,396 Thanks to @tishinada for letting me borrow Zas for this harrowing moment! And to @dimigex and @kunoichi-ume for encouraging my nonsense!

Isashi sipped her tea, reveling in the peace of a world where no one needed her to fix anything. The company house’s proprietor was a talented craftsman and could always be found in the lower levels tinkering with something new. His wife had recently gotten the itch to redecorate again, making it the third time in as many moons that Isashi had walked into the building and wondered if she had the right place. Add that with the myriad of other talents within the company, and Isashi had a haven where her laziness wouldn’t be noticed.

“How does it feel being back in Ul’dah?” Zas asked the young miqo male who’d accompanied her as of late.

Isashi took another sip and surveyed the boy over the rim of her cup. He couldn’t be long into manhood, with full cheeks and not a scrap of hair on his chin. There was a wide-eyed innocence to him that had likely tugged at the older adventurer’s heart. From what little Isashi had heard, Zas had rescued the boy from a band of Ixali somewhere in the Shroud, and the two had become inseparable.

Salix, as Isashi had been introduced when she joined the duo in front of the hearth, nodded with enough enthusiasm to bobble his ears. “It feels…right.” His dark eyes sparkled as his chest expanded in a deep inhale. “It smells right.”

“Will you tell us of your family?” Isashi asked, settling into the plush cushions of the common room. Their company house wasn’t large, but well furnished and inviting.

Salix’s midnight skin darkened around his ears in what Isashi assumed was a blush. The youth didn’t appear to be fond of any sort of attention, looking to Zas for rescue that the older adventurer refused to give. Likely, the elezen archer had been working on teaching her young ward to stand on his own. Though, if Isashi had to put gil on it, she’d guess Zas had done her fair share of interventions for him too. The woman was as hard a fighter as Isashi had ever met, but with the soft center that she herself lacked.

Digging in his jacket, Salix produced a small, wooden figure that looked like it might be a gladiator once there was more than a head and torso carved from the block. “It’s big,” the boy said, talking more to the figure than Isashi. A small knife followed, then a cloth draped across his lap much like his mentor usually did. “I’m the youngest of ten, the first nine were girls, and—”

“Bloody hells, that sounds like a right nightmare. Heya, Sashi.” Kirin trumped up the stairs, shaking sawdust from his pants with each step. The former pirate went straight to the bar and made himself comfortable next to the ingredients for his favorite mixed drink.

Isashi watched Kirin in silence, waiting to see if the miqo’te had any other pearls of wisdom to share, then motioned for Salix to continue. The boy swallowed, keeping his eyes on the older male while he spoke. “It, uh, it wasn’t bad, most of the time.” He shrugged and went back to his whittling. “It was family.”

Kirin leaned over the bar, banging around with his back to the rest while he searched for a mixing flask. He wasn’t a member of their free company, but he and Isashi had been friends since close to Salix’s age. So long as he helped when the owner requested it, Kirin was allowed to stop by to shelter from whatever storm plagued him.

“Did you have a favorite sister?” Zas asked as she worked on the strings of her bow.

There was a marked difference in Salix’s responses to the elezen than to anyone else. He straightened in his chair, ears flicking forward. “Osi was only four months older than me. We played together until she was old enough to hunt, but she was always kind.”

“What of your mother?” Isashi was curious about the sole woman in the tribe bearing a boy. Did she protect him from the pecking of older sisters, or did she train him to leave the village from an early age?

Isashi knew of traditional Miqo’te tribes. Matriarchal societies allowed a single male to sire children until they were done with him. Then, he moved on, and the women resumed their normal routine while raising the next generation.

A note of sadness entered Salix’s tone, and he cradled the figure closer to his chest. “Her name is C'seife. I look like her, not a hint of my dad in me, according to her.” Salix looked up, mouth open to add more, when Kirin opted to rejoin the conversation that he hadn’t been invited to.

“I once knew a lass by the name of C'seife.” Kirin turned around and propped his elbows on the bar, sipping contentedly from his glass. “Ain’t thought o’her in years. Met her in Ul’dah shortly after leaving me crew.”

Kirin’s head tipped to one side as he studied the boy. “Come t’ think of it, she looked a might like you, boy. Dark on dark, with eyes as big as the moon.” He sighed dreamily and took another sip. “That was a night to remember. Ain’t met another like her since, this would’a been, well shit, twenty years back?”

Isashi saw Zas’s brows raise a hair before hers followed. Salix’s mouth snapped shut with the click of his fangs. The only one among them to not grasp the implications of Kirin’s boast was the man himself. That struck midway through his next drink and sent the prized mixture sputtering in a fan before him. Thankfully, Isashi was out of range.

Wiping the back of his hand across his mouth, Kirin’s eyes narrowed at Salix, who appeared to be rooted to his seat. “Nah,” Kirin half growled, then his ears dipped. “Unless…but that—” He shook his head and glared at the poor boy frozen in place

“How old are you, Salix?” Isashi asked, softening her tone for fear that the lad might bolt if anything moved too quickly. His answer was muttered, but there was no denying that the dates matched. Isashi turned a scrutinizing gaze upon her long-time friend. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

Kirin, whose ruddy complexion had darkened substantially, rubbed the back of his neck. “I mean, can we all just admit that we’re more surprised this hasn’t come up sooner?”

“You can’t be—” Salix blurted in an uncharacteristic shout. His jaw hung open, eyes wide with either horror or hope. “My father was killed in the Shroud. He—he was pale with red hair. A renowned warrior. He—” Salix ran out of steam, then sank back into his seat.

Isashi let the boy process in his own way while she continued to stare at Kirin. She’d always loved the pale blue streaks distinguishing Kirin’s green hair, though she’d never give the man more to preen over than he already did. That same blue dominated most of Salix’s close-cropped style. It was the only resemblance that Isashi could find until the boy looked up at the man who might have truly fathered him. “Do you think?”

Kirin shrugged and swirled his drink. “I’ve known a lot o’ women, me boy. Yer mother very well could’a been one of 'em. Now that I see ye better, there’s no doubting that ye’ve got her eyes. She was a hell’ov’a hunter. We met in the Saphire Market.” Kirin looked into his drink, then sighed and set it on the bar. “What say I buy ye a proper brew, lad?”

And then Isashi saw it. The smile that exploded into existence brightened Salix's features in an almost mischievous way. The crinkle around his eyes turned him from gangly youth into dashing rogue. “Bloody hells,” she breathed, catching Zas’s startled expression. The bard had seen it too, having known Kirin long enough to rebuff his flirtations. While Kirin’s smile was sly and seductive, Salix’s was joyous and pure, but their shape was the same.

Isashi needed no other proof. Her bastard of a friend, the man who’d slept with her husband years before they’d met, who irritated her to madness, the same man who’d cared for her through Haurchefant’s death, then gotten himself abducted by his own pirate crew, that man was now a father. “May the gods help us.”

#ffxiv drabble #kirin mir'sheb #salix tia #none of this was planned #but it fit together so perfectly #bless salix #kirin it the absolute worst role model #tish ffxiv oc: zas #bless her too having to protect salix from kirin's terrible influence #isashi tosho #she will NEVER let kirin live this latest development down #honestly i think he'd be a good father #with questionable morals #au ra #miqo'te #miqo boy #x2 #elezen #I have no one to blame but myself

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couree · 2 years

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KIRIN STRAIGHT TEA 250ML

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belgianbaby · 7 years

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I found kat-tun cd's here in Belgium!!! I was at this local comic con thing and usually they have one or two stands with Korean pop music but this time there was one who had a few bins with Japanese music and these were in there!!! I'm so excited I could cry!

#kat-tun #kattun #also bought some other stuff they usually don't have #like the korean beauty stuff #sorry about the crappy photo quality #but i really wanted to share my happiness #jpop #baby faced lip tint #innisfree #Pocky #kirin straight tea #innisfree jeju volcanic pore cleansing foam

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queerderpyturtle · 3 years

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some old rambles about discord and starswirl that I dug up

I been thinkin. Bout Discord and Starswirl. And how they probably knew each other. And what their relationship could've been. And what that means for the rest of their arcs in the show.

From what we know (and what I remember) Discord came into power after Starswirl and the pillars were sent to Limbo, but Celestia and Luna started ruling Equestria sometime between those two events, because they were too young to remember or care about the other pillars, but they banished Discord.

We don't know a lot about Discord's past, but I imagine that when he first came to Equestria (at which point I assume he was fairly young by draconequus standards), he wasn't exactly given a warm welcome. Ponies were probably absolutely terrified of this horse-headed, bat-winged, lion-pawed, snake-tailed freak of nature, and there's a good chance they would've driven him out of town full force. His first taste of ponykind was rejection.

So, later, he tries again. He makes himself a pony disguise-- a handsome unicorn stallion named Atlas-- and sets off to learn more about Equestria. And it works! He's able to make friends, live amongst ponies, and study Equestria magic. He actually gets pretty good at doing through his unicorn horn, so much so that he manages to get into a prestigious magic school for gifted unicorns. "Atlas" is of course still a troublemaker, though. He pulls pranks, annoys his teachers, breaks the rules, and just generally has no respect for authority. And why should he? The entire society that Equestria is built on is corrupt beyond all belief, stuck in its ways, and downright hostile towards any creature outside of it. They didn't deserve his damn respect. Equestria itself was fairly new as well, and the ponies themselves were still getting used to each other. It was all one giant powderkeg, and Atlas was honestly excited to see what would happen when it went off. So he stuck around, if only to cause more chaos in this personal playpen country of his. If he wasn't the best student in all of his classes, his teachers probably would've strangled him after a day.

And then one day, he found himself in a class with the famous Odin Starswirl, a magically gifted unicorn with a penchant for proving others wrong and keeping a clear head while doing it. He was proper, eloquent, studious, respectable-- a perfect pony for Atlas to torment. Except it turns out that Odin is ridiculously, insufferably hard to annoy. When Atlas knocked over his books, or spilled water on his cloak, or made fun of his sloppy hornwriting, Odin simply responded with a sigh and a quick cantrip to fix whatever the stallion had ruined with his antics. This did not please Atlas at all. He spent more time hanging around Odin than he did hanging out with his more troublesome buddies, just to try and get a rise out of him. But he never could. If anything, they were becoming... friends. Atlas's biting remarks turned into light-hearted jabs and playful scoldings.

"Odin, for heaven's sake, if you don't take a break from studying to shave for once in your damn life, I'm going to have to start calling you Starswirl the Bearded!"

His destruction of property turned into casual acts of kindness.

"Yes, I brought your saddlebag. I knew you'd forget it, you scatterbrain. We're lucky you even remember to eat."

His contempt for Odin's huffy nature turned into giving the unicorn an easy out for boring social events hosted by his equally uppity parents.

"C'mon, Stars, let's get out of here. I know a place nearby that sells elderberry tea."

"You know I can't leave. This is an important party."

"Important to whom, exactly, my dear?"

"To my parents!"

"Your parents. Well, last time I checked, they weren't you."

"...Fine. Thirty minutes, and then you're bringing me back."

Before long, Odin was regularly sneaking off to join Atlas and his friends on their escapades. He found himself strangely drawn to the unicorn, in spite of-- or maybe because of his rebellious and carefree nature. He was so different from the ponies Odin was used to, so sure of himself, so headstrong. Odin would be a fool to say he wasn't slowly getting attached to the scoundrel.

Atlas noticed this, of course. He was honestly surprised! Who knew a straight-edged young scholar like Odin would be so willing to stray from the path of monotony? And that was all Atlas wanted. To cause a little chaos in Odin's life. It wasn't as if there were moments in which he looked at the unicorn and considered giving up his whole scheme to enjoy a happy life alongside his... friend? Companion? Fellow associate? Lord, what even where they? Atlas had never really had a friend that was interested in any part of him other than the chaotic part, and Discord hadn't had any friends at all. He took a leap of faith one day to ask Odin if they were, in fact, friends, and Odin responded with an aloof "Yes, I do believe so." And that was that, wasn't it? He had a friend. A real friend.

Over the next few years, Odin and Atlas became inseparable. It was a thing to see, the two of them trotting down the streets of Canterlot together. They couldn't have been more different, from the way they walked to the way they spoke, but they were as close as ponies could get. Odin gave Atlas a safe place to practice magic, study Equestrian history, and discuss the library's old scrolls and texts from ancient unicorns. Atlas gave Odin an out from his mundane life as a trophy child of the wealthy Starswirl family. When Odin started tutoring two unicorn fillies with promising skills in arcane magics, Atlas was the first of Odin's friends he introduced them to (the fillies lovingly started referring to the stallions as their honorary uncles). When Atlas accidentally used too much sticking potion in a prank and stuck one of his teachers to the side of the school for three days, Odin helped him sneak into the Starswirl mansion to hide, scolding him between laughs the whole way. They each saw more in each other than the average pony could ever see; Odin was more than a prodigy, and Atlas was more than an annoyance.

And if there were, perhaps, by some miracle, some hint of... romance beneath their friendship that neither side would admit to, well. That was their own business. If they enjoyed cuddling up on the couch to read from the same book, nopony needed to know. If they relished each "accidental" brush of hooves or tails when they walked together, nopony would be any the wiser. If Odin longed for the day when Atlas would use those strong forearms of his to pin the stallion against the nearest wall and just kiss him already, and felt more alive than he'd ever felt in his life when Atlas finally did...

Then maybe that was just fine. And for a while, it was. But there was always that itch at the back of Atlas's mind, that knowledge that their relationship was fleeting, because it was all, in truth, based on a lie. If Odin found out who Atlas really was, what Atlas really was, it would all crumble to pieces like a biscuit that had been left out in the sun. Atlas... no, Discord hated that the thought of losing Odin-- a simple pony whose life was a speck of dust in his immortal existence, who would be a pile of ashes in the ground before Discord had even had his second molt-- made him so unreasonably upset. He'd known going into this that becoming invested in the lives of the ponies in Equestria was foolish. He'd never meant for it to get this far. He'd come here to futz with the government a bit, maybe start a few riots or terrorize a few queens. He never wanted to find Odin. So why wasn't he willing to let him go?

Shit, he really was in too deep.

And yet, Atlas and Odin found themselves ever-so-slowly, but ever-so-surely falling in love.

But nothing gold can stay.

Odin had always known Atlas was a bit of an anarchist. It was one of the things he admired about the stallion-- his ability to let go of the norms that Equestria had built for itself and be his own pony. The problem was that Atlas seemed to have a problem with how Equestria treated creatures who weren't ponies. Griffons, yaks, kirin, and the like. Equestria had never been a big trading country, or a big socializing-with-other-nations country. They kept to themselves. Of course, this meant that xenophobia was rampant, and that the fear of the outside world was instilled into the hearts of almost every pony there. But why should Atlas care so much?

Odin asked him as much when the two stallions were studying together in Odin's room, and Atlas became noticeably more tense. He gave Odin a simple "I just think it's wrong," hoping to avoid the subject, but Odin pressed him for more details. Sure, Equestria was problematic, but all in all, it was a good country. Was there really anything so bad about wanting to keep it the way it was? Atlas tried to keep himself from snapping, tried to keep himself from saying something he'd regret, but hearing these things from a pony he loved hurt him deeply.

"It's not about tradition or preservation, Odin. It's about the fact that Equstria has never been willing to change. Before the unifications of the species, it was conflict between the pony species. After, it was conflict between the classes. Now, it's conflict between countries. Just because the problems are external doesn't mean they aren't there," Atlas told him.

"But it isn't exactly a pressing matter. It hardly effects us at all. I guess I just don't understand," Odin replied.

"Of course you don't."

It was said so quietly that Odin couldn't quite tell if he'd been meant to hear it, yet with such venom that he couldn't ignore it. He chanced a confused look and a "What?"

Atlas stood. "Of course you don't," he repeated. "You're the perfect example of a high-class, magically advanced, want-for-nothing unicorn pony. You're perfectly content to live in your little bubble of mediocrity, never trying to do anything to change the world around you. You think there's nothing you can do to help others, so you don't even try. You think they'll sort themselves out. You're complacent, Odin. You've always been."

"Complacent! And just what is wrong with that? I'm doing my best in my own life and I have no responsibility to try and fix the lives of others! Is it so wrong to focus on myself?"

"Of course not! But you can't just pretend that you're the only one with problems! I see it every day, Odin. You act like you're on top of the world, like you're above feeling sorry for others. You don't even care about them. About me!"

Odin looked hurt. "Atlas, I-- of course I care about you! You mean everything to me!"

"And just how much would it take to change that? Telling you my real name isn't Atlas? Telling you I'm not from Equestria? Telling you I look like this?!"

In a flash, Atlas removed all the disguise spells he had on himself, leaving him-- Discord-- in his true form. A long, sleek body covered in brown fur. The misshapen head of a goat, framed by a shaggy black mane and two short horns. Wings, legs, and a tail that had all been taken from different animals, stuck together like a gruesome collage. Odin's eyes trailed up the creature's body slowly, trying and failing to comprehend what he was seeing. He began to back up.

Discord could feel each step he took like knives driving into his heart. Odin was afraid.

The draconequus scoffed. "You're all the same."

"A-Atlas, I..."

"Discord. My name is Discord. I am a draconequus from the tribe of the western Badlands, sent to Equestria to study its magic. When I first came here, I was avoided like the plague. Ponies wanted nothing to do with me. They saw what they were told to see in me-- a monster. A hideous, murderous, blood-thirsty monster. They threw me out because I was different."

Odin was silent for a long moment. When he finally spoke, his voice trembled. "I think I n-need some time to... to process all of this. Alone."

Discord couldn't have stopped the pain he felt from showing on his face if he'd somehow managed to summon all the magic on the planet. He gritted his teeth, blinked back tears, and disappeared in a shower of sparks.

It was the last conversation he would have with Odin for a millennium.

That night, Odin lay in bed, his mind racing, working overtime to try and figure out what in Tartarus had just happened. Firstly, he and Atlas had just had their first real lovers' spat. Except that those typically didn't lead to one of the ponies involved revealing that he was a creature from a faraway land, but whatever. Secondly, "Atlas" was a draconequus named Discord. That would take some getting used to, of course, but it was nothing he couldn't handle. Thirdly, Atlas-- who was actually Discord-- had stormed out in a huff without saying goodbye. Well, that's just how things were sometimes. Nothing to lose sleep over.

When he awoke the next morning, the first though this mind supplied him with was, "Oh sweet merciful heavens I've ruined everything." He rushed to school early, hoping to find his friend (Boyfriend? Lover? Shit, I love him and I just cast him out like an old dish towel), but the stallion was nowhere in sight. Odin asked around, tried everything to get into contact with Atlas/Discord, but nothing came up. He had disappeared off the face of the planet.

Instead of dealing with all the emotional turmoil that came with that situation, Odin threw himself into his studies. His magic grew stronger and stronger, fueled by rage and pain and sadness. He pushed Celestia and Luna to become powerful sorcerers like himself, pouring every hour that he didn't spend practicing magic himself into teaching them. He tried to forget about Discord entirely, and move on. He didn't need some handsome bad-boy keeping him sane to be successful. He only needed himself. That was all he would ever need. Odin was gone. There was only the great and honorable Starswirl the Bearded.

When the sirens invaded Equestria, he agreed to help defeat them. When Stygian came to him looking for friendship that Starswirl hadn't even offered to the other "pillars," he turned him away coldly. When he realized the only way to defeat the Pony of Shadows was by sending the seven of them into limbo, he refused, at least at first. But the citizens of Equestria persisted. He was the great Starswirl, he had a duty to protect them and keep Equestria safe. He tried to tell them that the consequences of the spell were too drastic, but they would not listen. Starswirl had no choice but to go through with it.

Discord, meanwhile, had been staying on the outskirts of Equestria, brooding and cursing Odin's name. When he found out that Odin had vanished, however, and the circumstances of his disappearance... well, he wasn't happy. Despite everything, he still loved the idiot, and he had never wanted something so terrible to happen to him. Odin would have never agreed to something like that without being pushed by the Equestrian citizens. What right did they have to decide who lived and who died? Why did they get to sacrifice their most beloved sorcerer for their own safety when there were other options? Was this the price they paid for harmony?

That wouldn't do. That simply wouldn't do at all. If these pitiful excuses for equines thought the pony of shadows was a threat to their delicate balance, he would show them true chaos. He dethroned the country's leader, took over, and made the ponies of Equestria suffer like he did.

And then Celestia and Luna came along. When had they gotten so big? So powerful? How had they grown wings? Were they seriously going to try and take him down? Lulu and Celly, the sweet little fillies who had once made him flower crowns and taught him songs and invited him to tea parties. They were going to try and make him surrender. How adorable. He wasn't going to fight them, of course-- he still held a great affection for them, no matter how long he'd been gone. He would let them do their little song and dance, and them send them on their way.

Of course it was hard for the sisters, too. They had looked up to Discord back in the day, he and Starswirl both. Now they were using the magic that Starswirl had taught them to defeat someone he had once loved. Someone he probably still loved. But freedom is never free, and the sisters were resigned to their fate. They harnessed the power of the elements of harmony, turned Discord to stone, and hoped silently that someday, somehow, he would return to them, and he and Starswirl would find each other again.

#Mlp #mlp discord #mlp starswirl #Starswirl the bearded #mlp Fanfic #fanfic #felt like throwing this in here too

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celesterunewhisper · 3 years

Text

Day 11 - Watch

Tik. Tik. Tik. The slow sounds of an unseen grandfather clock audibly marked the choking silence that engulfed the elaborate living room. On any other day, the room might have felt comforting, perhaps even welcoming; however, the tension that wove itself with that damn ticking almost made sitting in the room unbearable. In the center of the den, two large couches—red and gold in hue, as was the rest of the decor—were set facing each other with an elegant coffee table between them. Next to the couches, an oversized chair sat to meet the entire room, sitting there like a throne; the fireplace flickering behind the high-back chair only served to cast a menacing shadow over any who sat in it. Compared to the rest of the furniture, it was clear the chair was moved deliberately into the room for whatever purpose the mysterious gathering served. The rest of the decorations of artwork and statues were purely there to display the wealth of the Crimsonburn family. Sitting in the throne chair, a middle-aged Quel'dorei man gazed out at the crowd of three with his beady, contemplating blue eyes. His complexion was lined with not only age but experience in the thralls of stressful politics. He wore elaborate robes of red and maroon and had his white-blond hair slicked back for the occasion. Lord Norath Crimsonburn glanced to the two men on the couch to his left. The elder of the two—looking not too much older than Norath—had long straight black hair, partially braided to keep his bangs from his face sporting robes of violet and slate-gray. A younger man sported the same hues in attire and hair; however, he had his short and slicked back similar to the Lord of the house. “You have met my wife, Lady Larae Crimsonburn, Lord Velvetlight?” Norath then glanced to the woman on the opposite couch who was meek in appearance with short, curly red hair and gorgeous robes of crimson. He smirked when her matching blue eyes locked with his, only for her to look to the table with discomfort seconds later. It thrilled him to see her so obediently in her place. The raven-haired gentleman raised a dark brow at the Lord of the house. “Indeed. A fetching catch. However, it is your daughter, my son, and I wish to meet.”

“Her tardiness is unorthodox, I assure you. Perhaps, she is nervous about being among such distinguished companies.” Norath replied, his voice icy and uncomfortably calm. Lord Velvetlight simply sighed before reaching forward towards the coffee table. An array of refreshments rested upon the wooden surface, including snacks, tea, coffee, and wine. The guest Lord helped himself to a glass of the latter. A superb Dalarn red; year 450K.C, much before the wondrous city made its floating charge to Northrend. An expensive taste with the delicate bite of a lingering arcanic crisp. Not enough to quell Lord Velvetlight's patience, unfortunately. As if the swelling distaste was the perfect queue, a young elven woman was politely escorted into the room by a servant of the manor. Her short hair matched both the curliness of her mother's and the pale blonde hues of her father's, and just like her parents, the Crimsonburn colours painted her corsetted, victorian gown. The servant didn't stay long and left the young woman to linger awkwardly at the door; her blue eyes glanced to her father's with an apologetic expression. Norath smiled, yet no humour or kindness touched his eyes. “My daughter; Lady Celeste Crimsonburn. What a pleasure for you to have finally indulged us with your presence.” Celeste winced, immediately curtseying before Norath, with her head low, “My apologies, father,” she spoke carefully, turning her attention to the two guests in their home. “I thank you for your patience, my Lords.” Her politeness was useless at this point; she had already disappointed Norath to irreparable levels that night. But, she still had a role in maintaining, lest she made it worse for herself. “Take a seat, Celeste,” Norath instructed cooly. “You remember Lord Velvetlight, don't you?” Truthfully, Celeste did not. However, she forced herself to dig through her memories in an effort not to embarrass herself further. She took a shot in the dark. “You...were a guest speaker at Sunstrider University. You taught a lecture for my Introduction to Political Theory class.” As she spoke, attempting to sound confident in her answer, she sat beside her silent mother. “Ah, so you do remember. Excellent.” Lord Velvetlight looked pleased. “I also met you in your adolescent years, but I do not expect you to remember something eighty years ago.” There was a momentary pause as the Lord took a sip of his wine. “I would like to introduce to you my son, Lord Zan Velvetlight. A proud Magister of Quel'thalas and Scryer under the ranks of Astalor Bloodsworn's trusted Arcanists.” Zan stood to his feet to bow towards Celeste, “A pleasure, my Lady.” Instinctively, Celeste held her hand towards the expecting man, to which he took and placed a gentlemanly kiss upon it. She was used to such gestures with her family's position in the noble hierarchy; however, she could never bring herself to enjoy that flavour of attention. It took everything in her power not to grimace as Zan retook his seat. “The pleasure is mine, Lord Zan.” “Celeste, why don't you elaborate for Lord Velvetlight more about your education,” Norath commented in a thinly veiled order. “Yes, indeed,” Lord Velvetlight began, “I am very interested in hearing more about the daughter Lord Crimsonburn has been raving about.” Celeste rose a brow at the strangeness of the conversation, and she couldn't help but glance at her mother for answers. However, when Larae met her daughter's gaze, her bright eyes glazed over with sadness. For some reason, the woman could not bring herself to speak out of turn and left her daughter to the thralls of confusion. “Right,” Celeste breathed, now looking to Lord Velvetlight—vividly aware of her father's icy gaze boring down on her while she spoke. “I have been studying the economics of the country primarily. Provincial stabilization, governance, representation through the monarchy, and the delicate balance of power and influence.” She took a deep breath, “I hope to follow in my father's footsteps of becoming a member of King Sunstrider's advocates.” This, of course, was an utter lie. “Ah, such high expectations. So much in common with my son.” Lord Velvetlight hummed with satisfaction. Zan spoke to provide context to his father's statement. “I hope to enlist within the Kirin Tor eventually. Put more experience under my belt to either rise further with the Magisters of Quel'thalas or, perhaps, a cozy seat on the council of the Magus Senate.” Arrogance coated his tongue as he spoke a matter of factly. Celeste forced an interested smile to her face and spoke with perfunctory attentiveness. “How do you not burn yourself out from such strenuous tasks?” Zan's ego predictably inflated as he smirked with bottomless pride towards Celeste. “Because I am superior. Other low-lives let opportunities pass them by, while intellectual men must rise to guide this wayward Kingdom. I intend to learn all I can to do so.” Celeste felt her blood run cold as her smile faltered. “Ah—your...father is right about...sharing high ambitions, then. I suppose.” Another lie. She wanted nothing more than to leave both the conversation and company. Norath spoke up once more, “It is as I said, Lord Velvetlight. It would be a flawless arrangement that will benefit both sides of the political spectrum. We must act upon the traditions of the monarchy's system before the ambitious Prince threatens to change the whole thing. What with that Theron whispering in his ear.” “Father, what are you talking about—” Celeste began. “You will speak when you are spoken to.” Norath snapped. Then turning back to Lord Velvetlight, he continued as if the outburst never happened. “What say you?” “Zan?” Lord Velvetlight glanced to his son, asking a vague question Celeste still did not understand the context of. The younger lord gave Celeste a once-over before smirking. “I find it both an excellent strategy and a rather lovely match. I agree to Lord Crimsonburn's proposition if you are inclined to act upon it, father.” Lord Velvetlight smiled. “Then our deal has been settled. The ceremony will be scheduled for the end of the month as planned.” “Perfect.” Norath grinned. “I have already arranged for their housing, as well. A gift for the new family, hm?” Lord Velvetlight chuckled, “So generous, my Lord.” Zan bowed his head, “I generously accept, Lord Crimsonburn.” Norath stood to his feet, and the other two lords followed suit. “A rather short meeting, but I understand you and your son are rather busy this evening.” “It has been a pleasure, Lord Crimsonburn. Till the ceremony, then.” And soon, Celeste was alone in the den with her father. Her mother couldn't bear to be in the room any longer, and she still didn't understand why. Norath gestured his hand silently towards Celeste, allowing her to speak freely. “What was that all about, father?” “We plan on uniting our causes together, Lord Velvetlight and I. The details are none of your concern, but we came up with an ideal way to permanently seal our partnership. A bargaining chip, if you must.” Norath responded as if Celeste's question was foolish. “What was the bargaining chip?” she asked hesitantly. “You, my dear,” Norath said. “You are.” The silence was almost deafening if it wasn't for that rhythmic ticking. “I beg your pardon?” Her voice was almost inaudible. Norath sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Ignorant girl. You are to wed Lord Zan. What did you think I meant when I said 'ceremony'?” His blue eyes narrowed at his daughter. Celeste's jaw nearly dropped to the floor; however, she closed it quickly before her father sneered. “Wait,” she breathed, “I just met him. I don't even know him!” “Frankly, my dear, I couldn't care less if you loved him or hated him. This is out of your control.” “You can't make me marry a stranger!” she shouted, standing to her feet. Norath was swifter than Celeste anticipated, and as he stood to his feet as well, the back of his ringed hand made contact with his daughter's cheek with an audible slap. Her face jerked to the side from the force, and her hands immediately went to cup the welt with a shaking whimper. “I can.” Norath towered over his trembling daughter. “Just watch.”

@daily-writing-challenge @howlingowl-wra

#celeste runewhisper #before sin'dorei AND ren'dorei transformation #arranged marriage time #the past

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box-bunny-grey · 3 years

Text

Who wants to hear a random jackass ramble about Shadowlands and not edit what he wrote? No one? Too bad.

I’ll start this by saying that this is from the perspective of a Mistweaver monk, Necrolord Covenant, who only does content through pugs who cleared Normal Nathria and as of now has never cleared past a seven keystone.

So when I wrote out an outline for this one late night for the hell of it, I was thinking I’d be positive. That I’d say I had problems with the game but the main meat of the game, the group content, was still good.

This opinion has shifted.

So I’m just going to ramble through what I put in my outline and then see if it looks good.

The Good (Sometimes)

So as I said group content feels good… When it’s good.

Mythic 0 was a lot of fun early in expansion because groups were generally patient. Like I’d have a plaguefall group that was just really positive even as we wiped a few times getting a feel for the second boss, and was super receptive to advice. Even with the Sanguine Depths being pretty aggravating at zero plenty of groups were kind, and hell being able to heal tanks through it as they rushed through felt rad. Even played with a friend tanking a few times and it felt awesome to just be around and do well.

Nathria is also great at feeling like a logical progression of things. A lot of raids can feel like there’s a bunch of quarters that just exist, but Nathria did feel like a real siege. Starting off dealing with the first line of defense, dealing with the animal tamers before they could unleash the hounds, dealing with an infestation that could come back to bite you if left alone, culminating in that portion in the defeat of a boss established earlier in the leveling experience and technically dealing with the first major threat: the anima leaking into the maw. From there you deal with an attempted thief in the armory that should not be left to their own devices, keep Kael’thas from becoming a weapon to remove that option from Denathrius, and deal with his most powerful sycophants. I actually really like Sludgefist as an obstacle to the finale bosses and the reuse of Shriekwing’s room: Shriekwing might have bloodied the floor but kept everything intact, Sludgefist if there to say “Denathrius doesn’t care if he has to take down the whole castle, at this point you’re too dangerous.” And the end of the Stone Legion Generals and Denathrius was a nice was to finish up the instance.

Then everything goes not so good.

Mythic+ woes

Mythic+ is fun… When your group is competent. I’m not even talking going full meta here. I’ve had awful DH tanks as well as DH tanks that react amazingly. The bad runs where the DH tries to act like running at the speed of sound far above his ilevel, and the good runs where when I die because there’s so much to keep track of the DH IMMEDIATELY starts gliding back to where I’d spawn to make sure we don’t lose the progress we’ve gotten on the mobs. I’ve had amazing WARRIOR tanks in runs, and that’s a class I’ve been told right now is at the bottom of the meta in so many ways.

But then you have groups that disperse as soon as they see there’s no bloodlust, or call for it repeatedly when no one can (look I pug I have to take what I can get, I’m lucky I don’t get full melee groups honestly). Or more recently a group that could not get past blightbone in Necrotic Wake because someone kept getting eaten by their mob and getting it to explode, causing AOE damage I could not heal through in a Mythic 9 at my gear. Or a group in Plaguefall that, when I died because I had to focus on healing because the tank wasn’t tanking the second boss right and the DH and the tank accuse me of not paying attention when that disease he does because the tank wasn’t doing their job is pretty hard to keep off and would make my life much easier of the tank remembered that but no it was my fault.

I am still mad.

Speaking of Plaguefall, that comes back to my favorite experience of assholes in Mythic+. Had two warlocks in party, so two soulstones for battle rez. I die. No soulstone. Alright, it’s trash, guess I gotta walk back. Do so. Get to boss. Die again, don’t even remember what. No soulstone. Okay, maybe they’re mad because I died to something easy. Someone asks about battle rez. “Sorry it’s on CD think the healer used it.” I say I got no battle rez. They get uppity. Other warlock used their soulstone on themselves. People keep talking about it. Other warlock gets angry because he thinks they’re talking about them. Leaves. We manage to 4 man it.

I was not happy and now I do not like Plaguefall.

Raid time

When I completed my first Castle Nathria is was about 3 AM. It was a pretty painless run, mostly one shots with a couple of hiccups. It started at 9 PM. This was a mostly good run. That’s a good run. Now imagine what happens when you have a bad run. But I figured hey, late night lost on a Saturday is fine, it seems like even pugs with no voice chat can finish raids on normal easy, so pugging, and I got 10/10 so I could always do earlier runs, especially guild runs. Should be fine right?

I’ve learned how many melee do not know what an interrupt is.

I’ve learned how bad some guides are when giving kill orders for heroic over normal.

I’ve learned how easily people can kill a raid not realizing very obvious tactics will leave death pools behind.

I’ve learned Council of Blood is the big obstacle for any pug to find out whether or not you should be here, even more than Sludgefist.

Which brings us to the final point.

Oh Boy! 35 Anima!

Cold to the point of sub-zero take: loot drops in Shadowlands suck. This is coming from someone who got lucky in one of his Castle Nathria full clears and got multiple pieces in a single week. But overall the frustration of groups, Myhic+ or Raid, gets exacerbated when you see that 35 anima drop, and then notice the asshole who kept dying got an upgrade.

Mythic 0 works out well enough, the dungeons are easy enough and with every boss in them dropping something, even with the weekly lockout, feels a lot better than putting your all into a raid only to get nothing. I’d say the deluge of loot from 0 helped keep me going since there was always the chance of something coming from them.

And honestly, the Great Vault doesn’t fix it. I’ve had a week where, out of a full clear Nathria and 2 slots of mythic+, four out of five of my options were rings. And that one was alright because if it didn’t drop a trinket I could have used that. But I’ve had weeks where every possible upgrade was a slot that was already covered, while other slots wound up being stuck. I’d say even the catch-up mechanism of covenant gear doesn’t work due to both the anima cost of upgrading (which is FAR above 35 anima) and the extra put on your repair costs since the gear is worth 250 gold to vendors. Not exactly enticing.

And remember, I said group content was the GOOD part of the expansion.

Solo Content: Boring, Aggravating

It’s all downhill from here.

The New, Painful World Quests

When World Quests were introduced in Legion, they were usually pretty simple. Either quests you did to level, rares that you might have missed, and occasional puzzles from the Kirin Tor. BFA seemed to follow that in general, with the Tortollan replacing the Kirin Tor and occasional more involved battlefront world quests. But these were generally so plentiful that more often than not, if you wanted emissary but didn’t like an activity it was easy enough to find the simple ones.

Shadowlands World Quests attempt to be all the more involved type, and of small enough number that you’re going to hate some of them by the end of it. Some are fun, I will admit. Playing with Draka’s dog, the Maldraxxus running of the olympic torch, Theotar’s parasol, (most of) the tea time ones, and even one where you fly through the air to collect pupas. But then you have others.

And I’d say my biggest headaches have a common covenant: the Kyrian. Poorly programmed flappy bird. Dumb ‘training’ simon says. One that should be simple, just kill mobs… Except you have a stationary zone you have to pull them to and god help you if someone else is killing in the zone, doesn’t notice you, and now you have to wait out the cooldown to drop another one.

The gear rewards suck, the anima amount varies how much it’s worth it, and every other reward straight up aren’t worth it.

Also a lot of treasures are obnoxious. Like I can’t even think of how to elaborate on it it’s just so many are not worth the effort to find out how to open them because so many rewards are, you guessed it! 35 Anima.

Stagnant Sanctums

When I first saw sanctums I thought I’d have the patience to keep a few going. Having leveled 2 alts I can confirm I haven’t had the energy to even attempt to start their anima/soul grind.

First, we have the Mmission board. Because I chose the Necrolords first I didn’t realize just how bad some people’s were. Then I started night fae I soon fond out how blessed I’d been. Maldraxxus’ unit types are frontline and backline splash damage, and your first follower is entire board splash damage. I forgot what the follower for night fae did, but the night fae units are a healer and a dot applying unit.

Guess how man missions are massive amounts of enemies and how many are single objective focuses.

But then we have the anima conductor, and at first I thought it was a neat idea. Get rewards for putting anima back into the Shadowlands, and when I saw the second tier daily quests had a chance to give 500 anima . That seemed amazing and considering some of the quests were obnoxiously long and boring I assumed it was encouragement if you didn’t have the patience for other 35 anima rewards.

Then they hotfixed it the day after I found out it was only Necrolords. Now the quests are just boring and obnoxious world quests with the extra step of picking them up.

So now not only did the anima grind lose something to make it less obnoxious, and the time gating of souls for sanctum features, in addition to a lot of features just being underwhelming. I decided to waste resources on my travel network’s second level for a slow moving necropolis around my zone. There has NEVER been a point where the necropolis was a faster way to get to my destination over just mounting up and running. But hey, at least the shitty necropolis did what it promised and didn’t have people upgrade to find out their transport network didn’t do what it promised.

And hell, I’m liking making abominations, but the fact that so many options to customize them are behind a really obnoxious RNG (no Chordy, it’s not around here) it gets all the more aggravating to have fun with it. And I like stuff like Roseboil asking me if I have a boo-boo and telling me I’m tough.

Though with all these problems I have with anima, I guess at least it not being tied to progression like artifact power and azerite. Yet so many things fun things tied behind it with such slow, time-gated progression is aggravating. So clearly the solution would be infinitely grindable things, right?

Well…

Why are the Avowed a Thing?

I assume the Avowed were originally what the Venthyr had instead of the Ember Court and then realized it was terrible but then left it in to annoy alchemists and Venthyr that want certain tints.

I am no Venthyr. But I am an alchemist.

Least the Shadestones make me plenty of money.

I do not know why this faction still exists other than annoyance, or why they’re infinitely grindable like they are. In the sense that WHY DOES IT TAKE SO LONG?

Covenant Woes

I do like the Necrolords. Didn’t even choose them because they were (somewhat) meta for MW monk. I did it because I liked the aesthetic and the concept of my covenant ability being just tossing dust at someone is hilarious to me.

But I only like the wings part of my mog. I do not like the look of the leather set on my troll. And every other mog looks like actual armor. I mean I get it: cloth is house of rituals, mail is intended to be house of eyes (since Draka wears it), and plate is house of the chosen. So house of constructs is what is left for leather. I still don’t like it.

And the issue I have with a ‘right covenant’ is that that has changed already for some classes. Remember how I said Necrolord was somewhat meta above? Well that’s because the meta changed, they found out Kyrian is generally best overall. Or people who played warrior, heard their DPS was universally Venthyr, and found out later people did the math and found out that the night fae was best to do Mythic+. Not the worst thing since changing is easy. But I get the feeling more and more frustration is going to come as the expansion goes on.

Speaking of things that will definitely get worse.

The Maw Fucking Sucks

“Well it’s intended to be a hostile land that you want to get in quickly and out of quickly!”

Yeah. Still sucks. Transport options suck. The place tries to act like it’s bigger than it is by removing mounting except for a select few mounts. The dailies do not give enough ve’nari reputation to be worth it, in addition to the fact that, outside of the one use purchases ve’nari’s items are rarely worth it (wow a skeleton key for the incredibly simple puzzle chests that’s single use!). I feel bad for people who can’t do twisting corridors and have to rely on the shadehound hunt to make time in there feel less hellish.

Apparently Worgen can use running wild to circumvent it and you know what? Good for them. I hope that never gets/got patched.

Well Torghast is fun right?

Torghast is Terrible

The entire thing’s a timesink. Not enough fun builds to actually make it feel worth it past what you do to get your legendary. One of the deathroach pets seems to sell for a bit so I guess that’s a positive. It really feels like they did exactly what they did with World Quests: took something other mmos generally use for levelling, in this case the deep dungeon, and assumed people wanted to do it at max level. And I’d say it’s a good way to know they’re out of touch with their playerbase considering they had to nerf the last layers when they went live.

I think I was able to get through Twisting Corridors solely because I was a monk and our anima powers are good, but without a large amount of stamina or the right powers early on it goes to shit quick. But I got my mount so never have to see it again.

Also reminder that when Twisting Corridors went live there were still placeholder powers.

Future Worries

While mostly Torghast related figured I’d make this its own section.

What’s going to happen when new content comes out and legendaries have to be higher ilevel? Will they simply up the soul ash cost or put in another aggravating currency. What about legendary memories? Will more be added or will they have to be upgraded? Will we be wearing multiple? And how will anima be handled as things go on.

Really the big issue I have with all of this is from what I can gather, the mindless grind of wow continues to get more and more aggravating as expansions go on, with rarely a reprieve in sight.

Nitpicks

This is shit even I understand is probably not a big deal or might be personal preference.

LET MY TROLL WEAR SHOES THE VENTHYR MAIL AND NECROLORD PLATE DOES IT FOR THE LOVE OF GOD I’M PRETTY SURE SOME SHOES AT LEAST HAVE OPTIONS FOR HOOVED CHARACTERS.

Soulbinds vary in importance in covenant stories. Using Necrolord as an example, by the time you start the campaign Marileth is already done with his arc, Heirmir only exists to say they’re the Primus’ apprentice in smithing, and Emeni only shows up if you choose necrolord and is the only one with any prominence in the story. Necrolord is mostly the Azeroth trio each dealing with things, and it does have neat moments (always enjoyed the story of the Ashbringer, and Alexandros going “this is a large locked chest” crushing the lock, and then saying “it is now a large chest” was good) but I’d assume soulbinds would have more to do.

To compare, the Kyrian campaign seems to spend the most time with soulbinds, with Venthyr being second place, and Night Fae I think being a third. Further, odd things like a little under 2/3 of the Necrolord campaign being shared with other covenants, while Night Fae doesn’t interact with any in theirs. This is despite the fact that the Kyrian campaign interacts with all other factions, the Necrolord part being the same for that faction; and the Venthyr campaign interacts with Kyrian and Necrolords, once more the Necrolord version is shared. I guess I’d say I’d prefer they either commit to separate stories or overlapping uinversally, but maybe that’ll come with the next part.

Conclusion

Running out of steam for this random smattering of thoughts so conclusion.

Shadowlands I think is like most expansions. Launch is fun because everything is new, then the grind wears everyone down.

Make more loot drop for more difficulties or fix the great vault.

Really that’s all I got here’s a picture of my monk.

#Box's descent into madness #haven't used that in a while #THIS IS HOW I DECIDE TO USE MY SUNDAY I GUESS

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crimsonblackrose · 5 years

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Sometimes going one place leads me somewhere else. Like I went to a tea party and then ended up with a ticket to the Seoul International Handmade Fair. The Seoul International Handmade Fair was held at the DDP (Dongdaemun Design Plaza) and hosted a variety of small vendors selling the things they made.

With something like a handmade fair you never really know what exactly you’ll find. Since I was given the invite by a tea shop owner I was thinking it might be more food related but it really was a handmade fair. Almost anything that people had made themselves was set up in booths broken up into two parts. A Korean section that was huge and a much smaller international section.

I went with two friends, tickets were about 10,000won and my assumption that my invite was a ticket was correct. Our first stop was to get wrist bands. We were also given forms to fill out. Out of all the festivals and events I’ve been to I’ve never had so many forms to fill out. It wasn’t anything scary, it was just time consuming. We filled out the questionnaire when we got there, basic stuff: How did you hear about it? How many times have you been to this one specifically? What are your goals? Where are you from? Ect. Basic questionnaires. Then on the way out they stopped us again for another one: How much did you buy? What can we improve? Do you think you’ll come back? Will you tell your friends? How’d we do?

Things that can be improved: Oh boy was it crowded. It was difficult to stay in one spot and look at things when the crowd was also trying to push past and do their own things. More than once I had to walk past a vendor I was interested in looking at, wait for the mob of people behind me to pass and then go back. Or I gave up and kept going. It was only worse in the “food lounge” which was the only area in the giant place with anywhere to sit. And we went to this right after the Vegan festival so I was exhausted. (I wanted to finish some of my DIY’s to review before posting this, thus it being out of order.) There was tons of cool things to look at but all I wanted to do was take a seat somewhere and have a snack. But that was impossible in the small food vendor section where all the tables were packed. I didn’t want to wait in any more lines so we didn’t stay there very long.

giant paper flowers by Sinna paper art that everyone was taking pictures with

I loved this business card that was see through

My friend bought a couple of these cups for a friend as their wedding gift

cute handmade dog house

There was plenty to look at from stationary, ceramics, art, fashion, tools and probably my favorite: DIY kits.

I decided to pick up an embroidery kit from Yvonnemorgun. I’d never seen embroidery before that added a 3D element to it with flowers and thought they were a gorgeous way to dip my toes in. Plus all the instructions are on youtube. They are 100% in Korean but pretty easy to follow along.

Almost everything I needed was included in the kit. There was plenty of yarn, two different size needles, 4 pink flowers, 4 pearl beads, twine, fishing wire and of course the hoop with a clear cloth through it so that I could immediately get to work and follow the pre-drawn pattern.

At first I couldn’t find the pearls but wasn’t too disappointed. However when I was finishing up I found them taped in a folded corner of the plastic which I thought was very smart since there’s a good chance when I dumped everything out I would’ve lost them. The only things not included that you need is glue and scissors.

The glue is to seal the back of the leaves and to hide the ends. The scissors is necessary to cut the string and the thread and to cut off the leftover fabric. After I watched the video doing the leaves wasn’t too difficult to figure out how to do. It was kinda fun. My biggest difficulty was making sure I had the correct amount of thread and not accidentally getting extra fabric caught in my needle. (Of course beyond trying to get thread through the eye of a needle.)

My finished project!

I’m pretty proud of myself. I didn’t have any glue to hide the end threads but despite that for my first completed embroidery project I’m quite happy.

My second DIY I got that I was pretty excited about was from i.art.the.world which makes a combination of two of my favorite things: paper art and travel. These kits do require a bit more work but you end up with a beautiful unique travel card to send people. I bought two: Seoul and Kyoto.

The process to make them is on the back of the kit but all in Korean. However there is an instruction video with English subtitles which can be found here. (She also gave me a paper in English with all the instructions.) It’s pretty easy to follow but you do need a couple things not included in the kit: an Xacto knife (utility knife), glue and something to flatten paper like a bone folder.

Once it’s put together it’s really beautiful and gives off so much more than a traditional postcard does. It reminded me of my bookmaking classes in college and I loved it.

However you have to be very careful while cutting since there are small parts that you may accidentally cut off. It’s not easy. Hours after cutting everything with my Xacto knife my index finger is still a bit sore. But it’s another project I’m happy with the result.

I have only completed one of them at the moment, but they’re so pretty. Other things I bought weren’t DIY kits. I bought two pins from Ongo. These two pins are based off of Korean folklore. First is Haetae is a folklore creature of protection (against natural disaster and fire). This creature is a lion with a horn. Because it’s a creature of protection it can be found around a lot of buildings and you’ll see plenty of statues of them in Korea.

The other was a Kirin which has the body of a deer, an ox tail and horse hooves. It is considered one of the divine creatures and can be found among royal and Buddhist art.

I also bought a candle from candlehaeyum which were quite beautiful with flowers or leaves stuck throughout the edges. I picked out a lavender candle which smells quite nice and thankfully burns straight down the center so I’m not as concerned as I first was when I lit it that I’d accidentally burn the leaves sticking out.

Overall I had a really good time at the International Handmade Fair. The international section was quite small but it was fun to see all the things people are creating and passionate about. Another interesting thing, was on the way out there was a recreation of a Pyongyang Supermarket. Pyongyang is the capital of North Korea, so it was very interesting to see.

Big thanks to my friends for taking pictures for me again. My camera is okay at the moment (thus the DIY project photos) but it refused to work that day.

Seoul International Handmade Fair 2019 서울국제핸드메이드페어 Sometimes going one place leads me somewhere else. Like I went to a tea party and then ended up with a ticket to the Seoul International Handmade Fair.

#art festivals #craft festivals #crafts #dongdaemun #서울국제핸드메이드페어 #seoul #seoul international handmade fair #seoul international handmade fair 2019 #south korea #travel

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knightheartd · 5 years

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☕, ⌚, ⚠, ツ ( kirin and nishiki )

▌█ Headcanons for Kirin & Nishiki ~ ! ♡

☕ : Does your muse prefer coffee or tea?

Nishiki: He would prefer tea in both modern and fire emblem ! He don’t like the buzz that coffee can get you and he doesn’t like feeling jittery from the caffine

Kirin: Neither ! He thinks most tea is gross and coffee is way to bitter, he prefers juices ! If he had to pick one though he’d pick tea

⌚ : Is your muse good with keeping on schedule for meetings, appointments, or events, or are they always late? Or, are they always a bit early?

Nishiki: Nishiki is NEVER early, he’s never on time either, he has a horrible sense of time !!! He loses track of time so easily, never trust him with dates at all

Kirin: He is all over the place with such things, because of his ADHD he forgets things so easily but if he does remember he almost is always early because he’s scared of being late wwww

⚠ : How does your muse react to possibly dangerous situations? Do they face them head-on, or do they plan out their actions first?

Nishiki: Nishiki is VERY aggresive !! he’s impulsive and goes straight head on into them ! He has no prior planning at all and usually just goes for someones throat, it’s very extreme.

Kirin: A mix of both, he tries to plan but he is very bad at it, so a lot of the time he just wings things and says that it went as planned, as if he had a plan in the first place !

ツ : Does your muse prefer lots of friends, or just a few close ones?

I can answer both in the same answer, a few close ones. Both of them have differing reasons but they both prefer to have 1-3 people close to them then a lot of friends !

#miracleheart #❥┊ ❝ Heart sealed love letters ♡ ❞ ⁃ Askbox #❥┊ ❝ You have dreams of a bright future ♡ ❞ ⁃ Headcanon: Kirin #❥┊ ❝ To be tricked and toyed with is the way Kitsunes play ♡ ❞ ⁃ Headcanon: Nishiki

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elderkirin-blog · 5 years

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{ HC - Kirin’s Canteen

// I will preface this by saying my new tag for food things is { Kirin’s Canteen, so blacklist that to avoid food things. As well, a lot of these headcanons from from “applying MH logic to the real world”, in which case, it gets pretty ridiculous but very convenient.

And super fucking delicious! Mmm, so tasty!

Kirin’s cooking ability is about as divine as she is, that is to say, very. Being as ancient as she is, she has taken notes from many times and nations, and is probably one of the only reliable sources for actual ancient cuisine in the modern world. From China to Native America, from modern Japan to modern North America, Kirin has done, tasted, and made it all, and will happily do so for anyone who asks, usually at a time where it is appropriate of course.

Now that said, Kirin’s stomach is basically a black hole. Being of divine origin, she doesn’t actually need food to survive, she can live off moisture in the air by itself and never lose her power or stamina. However when she does eat properly, she can eat forever and never gain a single pound. Many human hunters in her world can eat this same way, though they tend to limit themselves for the sake of safety, but they have limits. Kirin has none.

The foods and drinks Kirin prepares can actually contain many special properties, such as enhancing one’s physical strength, or allowing them to maintain laser precision focus, or even increasing the durability of one’s body. Akin to “Buffs” one gets in Monster Hunter, various ingredients she uses can legitimately temporarily make one super human, though on average her meals simply fill the belly for very long periods of time. Even a single Onigiri can fill someone like Nora or Goku for a full 24 hours. Though this property is usually only used for pre-battle filling, or field rations.

Kirin also has a very notable reputation for creating teas and drinks that can literally do just about anything, including, yes, straight up curing “incurable” illnesses. From keeping one’s body warm for literally days on end in a -50 °C environment, or keeping one’s body cool for the same time whilst in the very bowls of an active volcano, Kirin’s got it all. She typically has about four to five different flasks on her person at any given moment for such things, as well, as she is always prepared for common scenarios. Hot Drinks, Cool Drinks, Healing solutions, and Stamina Recovery mixtures are common things she carries at all times.

Lastly, Kirin’s mentor nature will have her happily teach anyone how to cook in advanced capacity. Even if it takes months to do this, she will do everything possible so long as the will of the student(s) is strong. After all, even she didn’t learn this in a day or two. Having nothing but time, if nothing else, Kirin has made good use of it learning many things to ensure that she can do her job to the best of her ability in every possible angle, and when it comes to food and drink, you may as well be in the presence of a god bestowing their ambrosia upon mortals. Which isn’t an inaccurate description.

#{ Headcanon #{ Kirin's Canteen

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sakurauchiha2018 · 6 years

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A Little Faith

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Sorry that this is a little late, work has been crazy. So I decided to cut this chapter into two because if I left it the original length it felt like too much at once. The second half is almost finished and will be up soon.

Words: 3362

Mama tucks me even further into my covers with a scowl on her lips. This is the worst part of having a doctor as a mother, she hovers too much and tries to take constant care of me. Whenever I’m sick she tends to worry too much as well. I remember when I was a child I was sick for two weeks straight and my eyesight was affected by it. Mama blamed herself but Papa told her it was out of their control, although Great Grandfather Madara never let them live it down. Uchiha’s were supposed to be perfect in his eyes.

“Stay in bed Sarada. You shouldn’t be trying to work.” Huffing I stick my tongue out childishly at her and I watch as my mother returns the gesture. Even though she puts on this tough, polished front my mother is a silly and playful woman. There were times when my father would go away on business and we’d stay up late watching cartoons while eating snack food. It was our way of bonding without feeling pressured. Before a laugh can pass my lips, a cough tears through my throat and I can’t help but wince in pain. Doing as I’m told I roll onto my side and watch my mother leave the room but I’m not alone. Boruto is snoring softly on the couch and I can’t help but stare.

We’ve known each other since we were born and from the start you could consider us rivals. In grade school we were constantly arguing over who would have the highest grades or who could do a project faster. Simple kid stuff but once we entered high school it’s like everything changed between us. Thanks to our friends they knocked some sense into us, we both knew our friendship was always something more. Dating Boruto at first was a nightmare, Mama and Aunt Hinata were over the moon about it and Uncle Naruto couldn’t be happier for us. But Papa was a whole other story. To him I’m his little girl that could hide with him in the study, the little girl who would come crying to him if I scraped my knee. He didn’t want to lose his only child but he could never lose me.

His blonde hair is sticking out in all different angles and he’s holding a company folder tightly against his chest. Boruto may not be the brightest around but he works hard when he’s passionate about it. My eyes feel heavy and just as they close slightly, a pair of crystal blue orbs start to observe me. A blush creeps on my face, I can blame my fever for that, and he starts to move from his relaxed spot.

“I see Aunt Sakura found you. Hopefully you’ll stay in bed now.” His voice is hoarse and I can’t help bit blush even more. Snuggling into the pillow further, I watch him stretch before he makes his way from the couch over to my bed. Jumping over me to plop down on my left side, an arm wraps around my waist and his face hides in the hollow of my shoulder. If my father was to walk in right now Boruto wouldn’t stand a chance.

“Papa’s going to murder you.” I joke before turning over so I can look him in the eye. A wave of fear washes through his eyes and his arm retracts for just a moment. It’s nice to have quality time with him after this past week. A smile spreads on my face as a hand moves up to brush my dark locks from my face.

“I’ll manage. Why don’t you sleep for a little bit and if you feel up to it I’ll take you to dinner?” Rolling my eyes, I smack him slightly before I let my eyes shut. I just might have to take him up on that offer.

I’m not sure what wakes me from my sleep but one thing is for sure, Boruto isn’t beside me anymore. The room is pitch black and I roll over to check my phone, it’s almost seven. I slept for seven hours! There’s no way I’ll be able to sleep tonight, sighing I roll out of bed and stretch. Sleeping did help, my head doesn’t hurt anymore and my face isn’t hot either. Maybe Mama was right.

Shuffling from my room, I notice that the house is quieter than usual. Even if there are only three people that live in the large house, we are still a lively family. Most Saturdays both Uncle Itachi and Cousin Obito come over to the house to force my father to relax. Mama always laughs and pushes Papa out the door to enjoy a night with the guys. My feet move quickly down the stairs and I hear a loud bang echo from the kitchen, for some reason I find myself running only to stop at the threshold and let out a loud laugh.

Mama and Boruto are both covered in flour from head to toe, a deep crimson blush spreads on their cheeks when they notice me standing in the doorway. Why in the world where they cooking together? Shaking my head I take a seat on a stool at the island. Mama instantly starts to clean the mess and my boyfriend threatens to dump flour on me. I narrow my eyes at him before his blue eyes roll at my non-playfulness.

“What are you two doing?” My voice sounds stronger as it hits my ears. Taking in a deep breath I smell something sweet and I notice that there is black tea leaves in a large bowl on the counter. So it wasn’t flour all over them, it’s powdered sugar.

“Well we were trying to make your favorite candy but it didn’t turn out the right way.” Boruto mutters as he brushes the powdered sugar into the trash can. Giggling, Mama takes off her apron and returns it into the pantry. My mother moves over to the tea kettle and begins to pour three glasses of tea, I barely notice her handing me a glass as I watch Boruto’s face redden. He must’ve thought I’d stay asleep longer.

“You didn’t have to.” The words are meant for him alone and he realizes that as his cheeks turn dark crimson. Hm I thought the boyfriend was supposed to embarrass the girlfriend. Chuckling I look over to my pink haired mother who’s leaning against the sink drinking her unnecessarily sweet drink. Whenever she makes tea Papa won’t even bother pouring himself a cup. He pouts and says that he’ll get something else.

“Where’s Papa? I’m surprised you two aren’t going out.” Their wedding anniversary is coming up in a few days and with their schedule the way it is, they never have time to celebrate. My parents deserve a night with just each other. A blush creeps on her face and then a shrug comes from her shoulders.

“He’s busy in the study. There’s so much work he needs to finish, I’d rather stay at home with you two anyways.” With her words an idea pops into my head and I take off running from the kitchen. My head feels dizzy but a smile is spread on my face. Their voices call for me but I’m set on my current mission, I don’t even bother knocking on the door before I barge into the large room. My father is bent over reading through spreadsheets and his eyes widen at my sudden entry but they never move up to look at me. Shutting the door behind me I lock the heavy wood doors that way my mother can’t interrupt us.

“You should be laying down.” Now his eyes move up slightly to look at me, a smirk faintly showing on his lips. Honestly this is the best I’ve felt all week and hopefully by tomorrow all that I’ll have is a cough. I plop down on the chair across from him and a sigh escapes his lips. It’s been a while since I’ve acted my age in front of him, a sigh escapes my lips and I look at him with a fire in my eyes.

“You should be taking Mama out for dinner. Have you forgotten that your anniversary is on Tuesday?” The paper he is holding slips from his fingers and his expression is priceless. My father is dumbfounded at my question. Laughter erupts from me and tears well in my eyes. Papa seriously forgot about their anniversary. A scowl washes over his face as I wipe the fallen tears from my eyes, I might as well help my parents out.

“I’ll make the reservation and tell Mama to get ready. Go and get cleaned up.” I pull out my cell phone and start to dial the number, as my father passes by me a firm tap is places in the center of my forehead. Heat rises to my face as I hold back the grin. That gesture is something meaningful to us Uchiha’s, it’s how we express our love and thanks.

“Thank you for calling Kirin. How may I help you this evening?”

“Yes I would like to make a reservation for 8:30 this evening. Please put it under Uchiha.”

“Absolutely. We look forward to seeing Mr. and Mrs. Uchiha. I’ll make sure to have their table ready Ms. Sarada.”

“Thank you.” The line goes dead and I can’t help but shake my head. My parents rarely go out together but whenever they do, there’s only one place they go. I will never know why they choose that restaurant and I really don’t want to know either. Now I have to go force my mother to get cleaned up and ready for her date with Papa. Smirking as I exit the empty room and bounce down the stairs will a little more energy than earlier.

The kitchen has been cleaned of all traces of a failed candy attempt, the blonde and pinkette are talking about Himawari. It’s been so long since I’ve seen her, my heart aches for a moment before another great idea starts to form. Green eyes glance up to me and a single brow raises at the smirk on my face.

“Mama I suggest you go get ready, Papa is taking you out for the evening. And before you say anything, there’s more than enough time for you to get ready.” My hip pops out and my arms cross against my chest. The smile that spreads on my mother’s face instantly fills my heart with so much warmth that I can’t help but smile as well. It takes her no time to run up and place a kiss on my forehead before she runs upstairs to prepare for her date with Papa. Closing my eyes, I shake my head before a chuckle passes my lips.

As I open my eyes I see Boruto standing in front of me with a smirk on his lips. His arms are crossed over his chest and our eyes are locked onto each other. There are days when I miss being taller than him, but now he towers over my small frame. Stretching on the tips of my toes I places a quick kiss on his cheek before turning to walk away as well.

“Hey!” Boruto quickly comes up behind me and wraps his arms around me to stop my movement. I try to wiggle from his grasp afraid that Papa is going catch us. A scream comes from me as his fingers start to press against my most ticklish spot on my sides, laughter erupts and the sounds echoes through the halls.

“Stop…Boruto…” I can’t help but laugh between each word and it’s getting harder to breath with each laugh. Tears are forming in my eyes again as I finally wiggle free from his tight hold. I gasp in breath before a few coughs come out. A guilty look washes over his face and my heart tightens a little bit.

“Call Himawari and the others. Mama and Papa will be out really late. I figured we could have a movie night in the game room.” A pout forms on his face and I narrow my eyes at him in confusion. Oh…I forgot that Boruto wanted to go eat dinner. My hand moves up to tap his forehead just like my Papa did to me earlier.

“We can go to the burger place right down the street before they come over.” Instantly his mood changes and I’m thrown over his shoulder.

“You need to change those. I mean your cute and all but sweatpants shouldn’t be worn on a date.” As we go towards my room I hear another door open and my father sets his eyes on us. A glint of anger rushes through but then it disappears as my mother joins him in the hallway. Embarrassment washes over me and I try to hide my face in my hands but there’s no point now.

“It’s like looking in the past Sasuke-kun. Have fun you two.” They start to walk past and before Boruto is able to shut the door I yell out to my parents.

“Can I invite people over?”

“Of course Sarada! Just be careful.” The door slams shut and he tosses me back on the bed. I bounce for a moment before I take off running to my closet. My face still feels hot from blushing. I really can’t believe my parents caught us like that, of course they’ve seen the two of together for years now but we try to keep our private moments from them. That’s something I learned from my parents. Even Uncle Naruto tries to keep his affection private but not as strictly as my parents. It’s funny to see Aunt Hinata turn bright red after a simple kiss.

Peeling off my sweats and t-shirt, I decide to wear a pair pf denim shorts and a simple red t-shirt with the Uchiha fan printed on the back. Grandma Mikoto bought this for me last Christmas and it’s one of my favorites. She told me that back in the feudal days every family would wear their symbol on their clothes. Uchiha’s have been around for hundreds of years and the fan hasn’t been lost. Fluffing out my dark locks I look over my outfit and chose a pair of sneakers to finish everything off.

Boruto silently approves and we race out of the house to the sidewalk. The diner is just a few blocks down the road so walking is just the safest option. My hand reaches for his and our fingers intertwine together.

“I called everyone while you were changing. They will be there in an hour or so. Himawari is excited to see you.”

“It’s been so long since I’ve seen Hima. She’s about to start her Junior year right?” Himawari is a perfect mixture of her parents. Since Hima has always been such a kind, loving person it’s no wonder she chose to take a different career path than us. Her decision to be a school teacher didn’t faze us one bit, I remember her being nervous about telling her parents. In the end we reassured her that we wanted her to be happy.

“Yeah, she’s trying to take the maximum classes this semester to possibly graduate early.” That’s not surprising. She’s always been a hard worker and takes studying just as serious as I do. Smirking, I pull him with more force as the diner comes into view.

The owner recognizes us instantly as we make our way to the counter top chairs. Looking back on it now, this is where we had our first “date”. During one of our final weeks in college Boruto brought me here at two in the morning because we were both starving. We’d kept our relationship private for the most part at that point, still testing the waters, so I never really thought of it as anything special. Ever since then this has been our go to place whenever we want quality time away from reality.

Boruto spins in his chair knocking his knees against mine almost painfully. Wincing and rubbing at the sore spot he stops moving and gives me an apologetic look. He’s just like Uncle Naruto when it comes to their favorite food. There was one night when Mama made homemade ramen and Uncle Naruto had almost twenty bowls of it. I’ll never understand his fascination with it, just like I’ll never understand why Boruto almost always orders a burger wherever we go.

“So what’s the plan again? Movies and games?” Shaking my head, the waitress places our food in front of us and he immediately starts to dig in.

“I figured that we deserve to act our age for a little bit. Honestly with everything happening so quickly at work I want to feel normal.” My family’s standards are higher than most, not so much from my parents but from my grandparents and Madara. Ever since high school I’ve devoted all of my spare time into studying to be the best. During my senior year Mama had to threaten me to leave the house and spend time with my friends. I thought it was pointless then but now that’s all I want.

“You know if Inojin and Shikadai come they will bring adult drinks with them.” Taking a bite of my burger I just shrug my shoulders. The only person underage is Hima, so as long as she doesn’t get intoxicated my parents won’t be upset. Although I’ve heard stories about my parents, aunts and uncles back in their college days. If those are true then they have no room to talk.

“Hm…maybe if you drink enough you can win against Inojin on that stupid game.” The perks of my house, Mama and Papa let me convert the space above the garage into a huge game room. Movie screen, arcade games, pool table. It’s one of the main reasons why everyone comes to my house. But the main attraction is the old school Dance Dance Revolution game that my parents found on the internet. Boruto is so clumsy he can’t make it past the first dance, it’s so entertaining to watch him trip.

“Tonight will be the night I beat every single one of you.” He practically shoves the rest of his burger into his mouth and looks at me with a fire in his eyes. So we’re going to have a competition tonight. Seems I know what buttons to push on my dear boyfriend. A smirk forms on my lips as I try to finish my food so he doesn’t get too anxious waiting for me. As soon as I take my last bite Boruto slaps money down on the table top and I’m pulled out of the diner.

Our walk home is speedy, I have to run to keep up with him. It seems I really did push a few buttons back there. As we pass through the gates of the driveway, I double over and try to catch my breath. In the matter of an hour Boruto’s forgotten that I’ve been sick all week and that my body isn’t back to a hundred percent yet. There are two cars in the driveway, the owners are sitting on the step patiently waiting on us to arrive. Cho-Cho and Inojin are looking at something playing on one of their phones.

“About time you two love birds showed up. We thought we were going to wait forever out here.” Cho-Cho huffs as I walk past them to open the front door. I hear the others pull in as we walk through the entryway towards the stairs.

“Oh Sarada! Where can we put this stuff?” Turning my head slowly I see that both of them have bags full of everyone’s personal poison. It seems they were more prepared for this than I was, a finger points towards the kitchen and I take off running up the stairs. At least I got my rest in earlier because it seems that I won’t be getting any tonight.

@kairi-chan I’m sorry for keeping you waiting, I promise the next one will be fluff galore!!! Oh and a SasuSaku chapter is coming up soon too!! Like I mentioned this one is a slow burn but it’s about to pick up.

#sarada uchiha #boruto uzumaki #Sasuke Uchiha #sakura uchiha #borusara #sasusaku #au

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asterinjapan · 6 years

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KOKIA in Nagoya Blue Note [2018.08.11], first stage review

Hi everyone!

I got back from Nagoya, and there's something I want to get wordy about. You see, KOKIA held a performance at Nagoya Blue Note today, and I was lucky enough to get to attend the first stage. Naturally, I want to tell you all about it, so my review follows below the cut!

Without further ado, first the set list (from memory, but I’m fairly confident about it):

Bye bye blackbird Tenki ga ii, biiru o nomou (’the weather’s nice, let’s drink a beer’) Power of smile/the girl from Ipanema Kangaroo pocket Kirin (’Giraffe’) Waraenai hanashi (’a story not for laughing’) Obake ga kowai nante (’ghosts aren’t really scary’) What a wonderful world Moment ~ima o ikiru~ (’live in the now’) kono chikyuu ga marui okage de (’thanks to this planet being round’) Summertime

The setting was really intimate, like a jazz bar. I was on the left of the stage in the front, close to the pianist, and close enough to touch the stage if I were to lie on the ground here, haha. Pianist, bassist, guitarist and drummer all entered the stage before KOKIA went up herself. I think this is the first time I've seen her wearing pants, with a glittery top this time. It fit the casual atmosphere.

I was right with my jazz reference as she started with bye bye blackbird, a cover song I haven't heard live from her yet and in fact, I'm fairly sure she hasn't performed it in a while to begin with? The sounds were light and upbeat, getting us in the mood for a comfortable afternoon.

I think it was after this song that she started referring to the hot summer weather, as the next song was very aptly titled: tenk ga ii, biiru o nomou: the weather's good, let's drink a beer, haha. (You needed to get at least one drink here along with your ticket.) It's from the new album, Tokyo mermaid, and fit right in the jazzy and light hearted flow that blackbird had started. She got her band members to join in on the occasional cheer halfway through the song, haha. After that, she mentioned the drink she had as a specialty for today, since we should be in the mood for drinks on this hot, hot summer day, obviously! (I definitely agree. In the mean while, I had barely touched my iced tea yet because I was so enthralled already, haha. ) She then asked for us to enjoy the next song, after which the pianist started a song I didn't immediately recognize at first. Then she started singing and it clicked: blast from the past, Power of Smile! It was, again, a more jazz inspired version of the song, pretty similar to the version she rearranged for her best of album pearl, subtitled a gentle breeze. I loved KOKIA's own smile as she delivered this song, light and sweet. Halfway through, we were in for a surprise: the song morphed to English, and then KOKIA covered girl from Ipanema. That was a very fun surprise! Next up, she talked about how much fun she's had with her upcoming album, ikimono no ongakkai (concert of living beings), part 2 of her animal series. She already teased about a preview and indeed, she mentioned the kangaroo and its pocket, which she identified with because you can just swing your child around in a pocket in front of you like that, haha. So next up, the kangaroo song, Kangaroo pocket! It was still kind of jazzy and the lyrics went a catchy "kangaroo-roo-roo pocket", and she did the whole swinging thing too, haha. So cute! The first animal album was quite a change from her previous works as it's explicitly intended to also be enjoyed by little children, so there are also a lot of animal noises in there which was apparently a lot of fun in rehearsals. We weren't yet done with the animals! I actually felt the song sounded a bit like the giraffe song from her first animal album in terms of general atmosphere, and in keeping with that atmosphere, we got - the giraffe song! (Actually, considering giraffe is Kirin in Japanese which is also a beer brand, I'm wondering as I type this whether she was still trying to get us to drink, hmmm.)

Of course, she also came back to her most recently released album, Tokyo Mermaid, which she's really proud of and she hopes that those who haven't gotten it yet would give it a listen. For now the appetizer: two songs from the album! I must confess I am not super familiar to all songs yet, so I had to rely on the lyrics to identify Waraenai hanashi (’not a story to laugh about’). The sound of it brings me back to earlier albums, and although it is a song that didn’t stick out to me right away, it got stuck with me now. And then, she started a song I immediately did recognize because it's the first one from the album and also one that I latched on almost instantly: obake ga kowai nante (ghosts aren't really scary). From what I heard from the DVD preview, she slowed it down considerably for the 20th anniversary concert, but this was the normal rhythm. I think it could be a pretty sad song, but she kept her smile and the song felt light instead. I really love this song and i was so glad she'd put it on today's set list!

Next up was a song with mostly just KOKIA and piano, which is a combination that always makes me happy. This was a song all of you know: What a wonderful world. She sings it a bit slower than the original, but so kind and sweet. I feel like her English has improved a lot over the years, and she definitely knows what she's singing, as she gestured and smiled knowingly when the lyrics about children growing up came up.

With the intro of the next song however, I immediately perked up because I knew this one very, very well. I think she's performed it every time I've seen her live, which is a blessing, because this was moment ~ima o ikiru~ (live in the now), which is an impressive song on its own but even more amazing live. Gone was the light tone of the previous songs: suddenly, the small venue seemed much, much too small to hold her powerful voice as she didn't hold back. I really tried not to cry, because this song hits me hard, but KOKIA looked almost straight at me when she was looking at her pianist for cues and I didn't want to cry on her, haha. This was marvelous. The lights swelled with the song, she effortlessly held her ridiculously long tone (last time I remembered to record it, I clocked it at 22 seconds!), and just - wow. That's not the most insightful review ever, but I'm just so blown away every time, especially contrasting the previous songs. Although KOKIA is without a doubt a professional and at ease on stage, it was like she just let loose all of the reins to deliver on moment, and delivering she did. I barely remembered to sip my drink as she took the microphone again for a talk.

She mentioned her upcoming concerts, of which there are a LOT (trust me, I run a fan blog and I've been having trouble keeping it up to date this year, haha), but the first ones up will be in China. Not entirely coincidentally I suspect, her next song was kono chikyuu ga marui okage de (thanks to this planet being round). This is a song that swells, although not quite as much as moment, haha. I really like it though.

It definitely was a little earlier, but KOKIA also mentioned the last time she performed here in Nagoya, which was last year’s birthday live show, when the audience apparently started singing Happy Birthday to her. The pianist tried to sing it now too, but shied away once he was offered the microphone, haha.

I think it was during this time that KOKIA started to thank the musicians, but we weren't done just yet: suddenly, she picked up the tempo and the volume, as the final song felt too big to be contained in such a small space, wow. KOKIA really is an amazing singer: she sounds like it's effortless live, and this was no exception. The song was English and very appropriately Summertime, though definitely a more powerful and slightly more up-tempo than the versions I can find online (I don’t know a lot of jazz, okay, sorry about that, haha) .

And suddenly, it was over, just like that. I mean, it makes sense since she has two performances today, but I was still overwhelmed by her performance and kind of meekly sipped on my iced tea while people around me were getting up. As it turned out, there was a shop with merchandise, and it was still open! When I went over to check, we noticed KOKIA sitting in the next room over - she was having an signature session. Ohhh boy! I mean, with how small the venue was I was hoping for it, but being able to see KOKIA this close and getting to talk to her twice within a year was a bit much for my heart, haha.

I'm a spoiled brat who already had all the albums for sale, but I did spot the normal version of her 20th anniversary best of album, which has a lovely but completely different cover and packaging from the special edition (which I had pre-ordered, because come on, have we met). So I ended up buying an album I already have (technically twice even, since it's a collection), but it did mean I could queue up! Keeping with the atmosphere, this session was much more up close and laid back than the Christmas concert back in December (but honestly, I was already amazed she held an autograph session at all back then, given how huge that venue was). KOKIA was seated at a high table putting her at eye level, and the queue was so short I was getting fidgety trying to remove the packaging as quickly as possible, haha. And suddenly I was at the front, and she seemed pleasantly surprised to see me (I'm fairly sure I was one of the very few obviously foreigners here today, at least from what I saw). I thanked her profusely for today (I never quite know what to express but gratitude when it comes to KOKIA), and we actually got to talk a bit. I mentioned I was from the Netherlands, and she was impressed with my language skills since, as my blog demonstrates (and she knows it's there!), I speak at least 3 languages, haha. I'm not quite as fluent as I wish in Japanese, but this talk went pretty alright with some help here and there. I explained that moment as a song meant a lot to me and asked her to sign the booklet at that page, and she wrote it out to my name with a smiley face, hee. There were still people waiting for their turn, so I thanked her again and got to shake hands before leaving.

And with that, I think I summoned up today's main event pretty well! I'm currently in the train back to my hotel, so I'm typing this on my phone.

Aaand now I’m back at the hotel and have just finished tidying up this review a bit, haha. I hope I didn’t forget to mention anything, but I’ll stalk twitter a bit for the other fan reviews there.

Thanks for reading my rambling thus far and if you’re reading this, KOKIA, thank you again for a wonderful afternoon! It was very different and a sharp contrast from the last live show (when she did a huge hall concert backed up by a full orchestra), but I can’t help but fall in love with your music all over again every time.

See you soon again!

#report #japan 2018 #report: japan 2018 #report: KOKIA concert

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livironheart · 6 years

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all of them do all of them

i have perished for my hubris. it’s too late. one day I will have to atone for my crimes as will you. fool? judgment day is coming.

🍕 = What is your muse’s usual pizza order? Do they order any drinks, sides, or desserts to go with it?

Liv likes pepperoni pizza with olives. She would definitely appreciate dessert with it, as well as cheese sticks.🍾 = What is the last thing your muse celebrated? How long was the celebration?

She hasn’t done any WILD celebrations in a while. She participates in holiday events sometimes, though. The last thing she celebrated was probably her engagement.

🎉 = When is your muse’s birthday? Is there a special meaning behind the date for you (the mun)?

June 21st. There’s no special meaning other than I wanted to be cool and symbolic and put her birthday on the summer solstice.

📚 = What is your muse’s favorite genre of books? What are some of their favorite authors and/or books?

Liv loves to read adventure novels, but doesn’t have a lot of them. Mostly, she reads tomes by a variety of authors to study magic. Most of them are written by elite Kirin Tor mages.

💌 = How does your muse choose to confess to the person they’re interested in? Do they usually get rejected or accepted?

Generally, Liv isn’t the one confessing. She’s prone to suffer in silence out of the fear of rejection, but if she starts getting hints that whoever she likes feels the same about her, she’ll probably reach out. She’s also a fucking idiot and will likely run in circles for a little bit even so and be like ‘do they like me? what if they don’t like me?’🍵 = Does your muse prefer coffee, tea, or cocoa? Do they add any sweeteners? Iced or hot?

Olivier hasn’t had a lot of tea so she can’t make a call on that. She loves coffee and cocoa.

💙 = Who does your muse have a deep and loyal love for?

Finnigan Wyman. She would genuinely kill and die for him.

💸 = Has your muse written their will yet? If yes, what have they decided to give to people? If no, why not?

Olivier hasn’t written her will because she doesn’t seem to realize that’s actually a thing that everyone should do. She also doesn’t have a lot to her name. If she wrote one, she would leave everything to Finnigan. Every last bit.

🔮 = Is your muse superstitious? What superstitions do they have? Where did they pick them up from?

In a fantasy world where nearly anything is possible, it’s tough not to be superstitious. She’s been getting worse, though. She’s wondering if she suffers from divine intervention and genuinely thinks that she tempts fate sometimes.

🔒 = What is a secret that your muse will take to the grave? Why have they decided not to tell anyone?

The true name of a certain someone, the depths of her ambition, and the fact that she likes waffles more than pancakes. She will never tell Finn this.

🍭 = Does your muse have a sweet-tooth? What’s their favorite candy?

Liv ABSOLUTELY has a sweet tooth. She has a bit of a sugar addiction. She likes any and all candy unless it’s super hard and crunchy.

🍦 = What is your muse’s favorite ice cream flavor? Do they prefer eating it in a cone, cup/bowl, or straight from the carton? Do they use any toppings?

Plain chocolate in whatever form is most convenient. Sometimes she’ll add whipped cream if it’s available.

💚 = Who or what makes your muse feel envious? Why do they feel that way? Do they act out or keep their envy hidden?

Liv gets envious whenever Finn mentions Caroline, although she tries to convince herself she had no reason to feel that way. She also gets jealous when she hears people talk about their happy families or how great their parents were or the fun childhoods they had growing up. She’s also envious of success stories, as she feels that hers is out of reach.

📘 = Describe an AU verse/story that you have written out for your muse that you’d love to roleplay. Why did you choose to make them that way?

None written. Avatar AU would be kinda cool though.

📕 = Describe a crossover verse/story that you have written out for your muse that you’d love to roleplay. Why did you choose to make them that way?

None written.

🍔 = What is your muse’s usual burger made of? You can pick any bread, meat (or non-meat), cheese, condiments, and toppings. What side and drink do they prefer with it?

Hamburger, half pound, with mushrooms, swiss cheese, ketchup, salt, and sauteed mushrooms. She would definitely love fresh fries and strawberry lemonade with it.

🖍️ = What was your muse’s favorite childhood toy? Do they still have it? What special memories are attached to the toy?

She had a little gryphon that her mother carved from cedar wood. It’s still at Otu’s house in the Hinterlands, so sort of. She doesn’t have any particularly strong memories, just little times she would bring it outside with her and imagine what it would be like to fly.

🎵 = What is your muse’s favorite genre of music? What are some of their favorite artists? How important is music to them?

She would definitely like Indie/acoustic music. Finnigan is her favorite artist. She absolutely loves music and feels it in her heart and soul. She wishes she could hear it more often.

🌶️ = Can your muse handle spicy food? What is the spiciest food that they can handle?

Olivier LOVES spicy food. She says it makes eating a little more exciting. She wouldn’t be able to handle the super crazy stuff like whatever the WoW equivalent of ghost peppers is, but she enjoys jalapenos and hot sauce and stuff like that.

🍰 = Does your muse prefer cake or cupcakes? What’s their favorite cake flavor and icing/frosting flavor?

She loves chocolate cake with whipped frosting from the bottom of her heart. Make it chocolate ice cream cake with fudge and you will win her heart forever.

🍼 = Does your muse have children or do they ever want to have children? Do they think they will/would be a good parent?

She has no children and doesn’t want children because she thinks she would be a bad parent. She remembers how she grew up and is afraid she would accidentally force the same neglect on someone else. Also, she vehemently despises the thought of pregnancy. If she ever got kids, she would adopt, and it would be MANY years from now.

☠️ = How would your muse prefer to die? What do they want done with their body after they die?

Quickly, in the line of battle, doing something cool and glorious in defense of the Alliance or the ones she loves. She would want to be cremated and have her ashes scattered in the Hinterlands.

👻 = Does your muse believe in ghosts? What is your muse’s scariest experience with spirits/the unknown?

She definitely believes in ghosts. Her scariest experience was practically becoming one during the final battle against Krath’ul.

🛀 = Does your muse prefer baths or showers? What’s their favorite body wash scent? What kind of shampoo/conditioner do they use?

She loves both, but probably prefers baths. She likes pine, vanilla, and roses. She would use shampoo/conditioner with any of those scents.

📱 = What type of cell phone does your muse have? What apps do they frequently use? Who do they text or call most often?

Liv doesn’t have a phone because they don’t exist in WoW, but if she did she would absolutely own a Samsung.

⛎ = What is your muse’s zodiac sign? Does it fit their personality?

Cancer; yes.

🔋 = Who or what drains your muse the most? Who or what helps to revitalize that energy?

People. She loves conversation, but extended amounts of time with people (especially the ones that piss her off) can be intensely draining for her emotions. Taking time to herself to sleep or cuddle with her s/o is what generally helps. Also, being out in nature.

💊 = Does your muse have any physical or mental disabilities/illnesses? Do they take medication for it?

She has anxiety and PTSD, and takes no medication.

🗳️ = Is your muse liberal, conservative, or somewhere in-between? What political party do they align themselves with most?

No political parties in WoW, but she would probably lean toward the liberal side.

📺 = What TV shows does your muse like to watch the most? Do they prefer watching them as they air on network or do they stream them later?

No TV in WoW.

🎞️ = What is your muse’s favorite movie genre? What are their top five favorite movies? Do they prefer watching movies at home or in the theater?

Liv has never seen a movie in her entire life and probably never will.

🐾 = What is your muse’s favorite animal? Do they have or do they want any pets?

Olivier loves foxes and gryphons. She has a pet cockatiel that she loves and cherishes.

🌈 = Is your muse LGBT+? What do they identify themselves as?

It’s a little-known fact, but Liv is bisexual. She’s never been in a serious relationship with a woman, though, so the only people that know this are the ones she has shared it with.

⛈️ = What type of weather is your muse’s favorite? What do they usually like to do when they have a day off when it’s their favorite weather?

Olivier loves warm summer nights, when it’s not so hot that things are unbearable. The world is warm but the sun is down. The stars are out, a cool breeze rustles the grass and trees, and nothing feels more perfect. She likes to spend these nights at the fire festival when it’s going on, or simply somewhere out in nature. She also likes thunderstorms when she doesn’t have to be outside in them.

💐 = How would your muse respond to receiving a bouquet from an admirer? What kind of flowers would they prefer in the bouquet?

Liv fucking loves flowers, dude. She loves receiving bouquets and will get incredibly affectionate when she gets one (unless it’s from someone that’s not her s/o).

💔 = When is a time your muse was heart-broken? Was it someone else’s fault or your muse’s? What did they do to get over it?

When she left Rook. It was her fault. She ate some ice cream and moved on. It still bothers her a little bit, but she’s beginning to see him in a different light, so it’s not a huge issue. It was hard for her to so easily discard all the memories they had, though. Another time was when Finnigan died, and she was led to believe he was permanently dead. And the monks of Northshire didn’t allow her to see his body to pay respects.

💤 = What position does your muse sleep in? What side of the bed do they prefer? How many blankets and pillows do they usually use? Do they snore or sleep with stuffed animals?

Olivier sleeps on her back with her hand on her stomach or on her side. When she sleeps with Finn, she definitely prefers to be the little spoon. She sleeps with a lot of pillows and a lot of blankets for maximum comfort. She doesn’t snore or sleep with stuffed animals.

🛑 = What is one of your muse’s pet-peeves?

Ironically, arrogant people. A lot of people call Liv arrogant, which is sometimes true, but she doesn’t see it. She hates narcissists and people who are rude and unkind to others without reason.

▶️ = Make a playlist of five songs that your muse would enjoy.

King and Lionheart - Of Monsters and Men

Ignite - Zedd

Better Days - Hedley

Reluctant Heroes - AmaLee

I See Fire - Celtic Woman

🔆 = Out of your muse’s group of friends, who do they find the most attractive? Would they ever ask them out?

Aside from Finnigan, she finds Tiara pretty attractive. She would never ask her out because she only sees her as a friend, Tia is married, and Liv is engaged. Still, she appreciates beauty when she sees it.

🏖️ = What would your muse be doing on a day out to the beach? Are they the type to get in the water or just sit on the shore?

She would definitely be in the water splashing around. She would take turns doing that and lying out to laze in the sun, though.

🏥 = Has your muse ever been to the hospital for an injury or illness? How long did they have to stay?

She’s been in the infirmary multiple times for injuries, sometimes for days or weeks at a time. She’s never been out for more than a month, though.

🎠 = What is your muse’s favorite carnival ride, game, and food? What do they like to do first when they go to a carnival?

Funnel cakes are her absolute favorite, but she’ll eat just about any carnival food. She doesn’t ever really play the games or go on rides. She just likes to walk around, dance, listen to the music, watch the people, and spend quality time with her loved ones.

🚨 = Has your muse ever been in trouble with the police? What crime did they commit? Did they have to stay in jail?

Liv got censured because she inflicted cruel and unusual punishment upon someone impeding an investigation by singing his face.

🥇 = Has your muse ever won a contest or competition? What was the contest/competition? What did they receive as a prize, if anything?

No.

🎸 = Can your muse play an instrument? If yes, which one(s)? If no, do they want to learn how to play? Can they write lyrics or sing?

She can play a little bit of guitar, but she’s desperately out of practice. She can sing, but she’s bad at writing lyrics.

🎮 = What is your muse’s favorite genre of video games? What system do they prefer? What are some of their favorite games? Do they like to play online with other people?

Ain’t no video games in WoW. Modern AU Liv is definitely an elitist in Overwatch, though.

🍳 = Does your muse know how to cook? What dish of theirs is the most popular among their friends/family? What would they consider their specialty?

She used to be a terrible cook, but she’s always been a quick learner. As soon as she started to watch other people cook, she was able to pick up their techniques. She tends to stick strictly to recipes, but she’s just starting to experiment with cooking different combinations of things.

👽 = Does your muse believe in aliens? Have they ever seen a UFO? Do they believe they’ve been abducted before, or do they know anyone who claims to have been abducted?

O_O

#i kill #i know what you mean when you said you felt like you had run a marathon #my hands are so fuckin tired #evil? evil #one day you will answer for your crimes!!!#this was fun actually #op #answered #f-wyman

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kirin-jindosh · 6 years

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A Decade Gone Ch. 7

Kirin Jindosh x Reader

Note: I’m sorry this took so long! And I’m sorry for all the typos recently! Y_Y

TW: Blood, injuries, sleep deprivation, starvation, sexual activity, naked Kirin what up

You sat upright in bed, your eyes flittering about the room. A damp sweat pools on the small of your back; the window to your apartment has been left open, yet despite the cold air you feel as though your entire body is on fire. It’s not a fever, no, it’s the dream again. The one you’ve been having all week.

Growing up, you had never had reoccurring dreams. But recently, your life has been so reclusive that there was not much else to dream about other than Kirin Jindosh.

And these dreams, they weren’t very appropriate.

The longer you sit, the colder your body gets so you slide out of your blankets and close the window. Just outside, you can see the sun begin to set. Your sleep schedule has adjusted to fit your new shifts. You would be going into work in about an hour or so, judging by the clock on your nightstand. You let out a sigh and begin to get dressed.

If only your job was as enticing as you dreamt it to be.

You ready a kettle in the kitchen, making yourself a cup of tea before you have to go in. The apartment was starting to feel like a home, but it really couldn’t compare to the comfort you felt from the mansion. The servants always used to talk about how the moving walls and shifting floors made them uneasy, but you had grown to love the ingenuity behind them and admire the thought process.

You’d prefer to live there if it weren’t for your new line of work being dreadfully uneventful. Cleaning hadn’t ever been pleasurable or easy, but it had allowed you intimate moments with Kirin that you didn’t get enough of nowadays. Mostly, he stayed in his office and worked but occasionally he might walk you to the front door, ushering paperwork into your arms and giving you new assignments. The only real interaction you had had with him in a couple of weeks was when you’d entered his office in need of his signature and found him slumped over his desk, snoring contently.

It bothered you that you couldn’t see more of him, yes, but it really worried you that he was pushing himself too hard. Handling his incoming and outgoing letters, you knew that Duke Luca Abele would be coming to dinner in just a week. The Duke had written the letter and had stated that he was expecting a clockwork presentation before dinner, but at the rate he was going, Kirin wouldn’t be able to keep his eyes open, let alone hold a proper conversation over supper.

When you had informed him of the Duke’s visit, he had scolded you in his sleep-deprived bad attitude that you were not to read letters from any of his close associates—namely Breanna Ashworth, Alexandria Hypatia, Luca Abele, or Delilah Copperspoon. He expressly forbade you from even handling them and instructed you to take them to him immediately upon their arrival. He was too agitated at the time to argue or even tease, so you had agreed to his demands and decided to leave it be.

Today, before you begin your work, you planned on speaking with him.

Whether or not the clockworks could be made perfect, Jindosh was working himself into an early grave—something his enemies might celebrate, but you certainly couldn’t. He meant too much to you now.

The wind that sliced you on the carriage ride to the mansion was so cold it brought tears to your eyes. The white stone steps leading to the front door were covered in a thin layer of ice. Karnaca’s seasons were always warmer than Gristol’s and Tyvia’s, with the Months of Ice and Hearths being the only periods of frigid weather. You would have to dress heavier for the next dozen weeks or so.

Kirin’s home smelled of baked goods today. You usually couldn’t smell the kitchen from this floor in the house, but whenever the chef made a specific type of pastry, the scent wafted. It was calming to your senses as you entered the foyer, your gloved hand pulling the lever to bring down the staircase and open the panel blocking the door. As the gears and belts came to a gradual stop and you took your first two steps toward the door, you heard the telltale sound of the intercoms whirring to life.

“Is that my secretary I hear? It is isn’t, I can tell by the width and weight of your strides and steps. My dear, I need your assistance with something. The wall of light has been deactivated. Please come to my bedroom at once.”

He didn’t leave time for a reply, the intercoms powering off with a high-pitched ring.

You stood there, your paperwork in your arms, staring blankly into space. Well, perhaps today would be as exciting as you had dreamt it to be.

The speed with which you made your way up the stairs was probably embarrassing, given that you were almost certain he could notice the bounce in your step as you scurried along. What were you expecting, exactly, from this encounter? You dared not to let your mind wander.

Just as he had said, the wall of light was lifeless as you stepped through it, bustling down the hallway. When the hall forked right, it overlooked the glass room below where you saw the blurry, red silhouettes of guardsmen on duty. You wasted no time observing and instead rested your hands on the closed wooden doors, heaving them open with difficulty. The warmth of steam should have alerted you of what was to follow, but you were preoccupied in your thoughts.

You rounded the corner and found yourself in front of your employer, a bloodied cloth pressed to his temple and a towel wrapped around his thin waist. He was sitting by the bathtub, propped up against it. Your face fell, “What happened to you?”

He rolls his eyes, mostly at himself. “Come here, will you? I need your help to stand up.”

You were hesitant to approach him in his current state, but he had given you an order and he was injured, so you managed to bite down your conditioned proper instincts. “You’re bleeding.”

“You’re observant.”

Sending him a sharp glare, you kneel beside him, careful to not get too close. “Move your hand.”

He grimaces, but doesn’t argue. “This is fine, I’ll deal with it in a moment. I only need your help to stand up.”

“Why can’t you stand?” you ask, blanching at the deep gash against his skin. Blood was still freely flowing out of the wound.

He’s quiet for a second, as if he’s conflicted on whether or not he wanted to share the information. After you made no move to help him or move past the question, he retorted, “I’ve been dealing with … fatigue for the past few hours. I must have briefly lost consciousness and fallen. It’s not of your concern—,”

“Are you serious?” You snap, snatching the bloody rag away from him. His jaw fell open and he stared at you with agitated confusion as you rose and marched to the towel-cabinet, producing a clean rag. “How long is ‘a few hours’? When was the last time you slept? The last time you ate?”

Again, he dodges, “You do know I’m a grown man? I can close up a wound like this, I assure you. I’ve done it on plenty of cadavers.”

“You know that’s not what I’m upset about,” returning to him, you had him hold the rag against the wound before gesturing for him to throw an arm over your shoulder. “You haven’t eaten or slept in days, have you? You know I’m not a fool; you can’t even stand on your own.”

He is in no condition to get angry with you, but that doesn’t stop him. “If I had known you’d come here with a pointless lecture, I’d have just bled out on the spot to save you the breath. Next time, I assure you, I won’t make the mistake of asking for your help again.”

You have to bite your tongue to keep from saying something back, instead focusing that anger into strength as you lift the inventor off the floor. One of his arms is wrapped over your shoulder, his hand clasped in your own as you support him. The other is holding up the towel, his grasp shaking with hunger. Even if he was being an ass, you were about to go down to the kitchen and demand an early lunch for him.

You pull him to his feet and walk him over to the lever, letting go of his bare waist to pull the handle down. As the floors rotate, Kirin adds, “I will, however, need you to get the repair kit from the room next door; the one where I keep all the silvergraph mixtures. It should be under the desk in the bottom right cabinet.”

“I’m going to stitch it for you.”

“That won’t be necessary.”

“Outsider’s crooked— look at your hands, Kirin! You’re shaking. You couldn’t even thread the needle. Now stop fighting me, I’m going to do this for you whether you want me to or not.”

He’s uncharacteristically quiet after that. The floors lock into place and you carefully help him sit down on his bed. “Tell me where your wardrobe is and I’ll get you some clean clothes before we start,” you say, reaching behind him to pull the blanket over his bare shoulders. He sends you a strange look before giving up and telling you where to find them. You leave him on the edge of the bed and retreat into the hallway to your left through the newly opened archway. Taking a right, you stroll straight ahead into the silvergraph room, finding the medical kit he had told you about. After picking out an armful of clothes, you returned to the bedroom to find him exactly where you left him, his hair dripping onto the hardwood floors.

He gestures for you to give him the medical kit, but you instead shove the clothes into his arms, turning to the circle table in the center of the room to begin unpacking the materials. “I won’t look, just get dressed while I get this stuff ready,” you instruct, an embarrassed ripple in your voice. “Can’t have you catching the plague, too.”

You hear him chuckle. “What if I need help?”

“You won’t.”

You hear him exclaim, “These are evening clothes!”

“Yes, and?”

“I’m not planning on sleeping any time soon, I’ve still got work to do.”

You fight the urge to whirl around and instead resort to angrily slamming the medical kit closed. “Kirin Jindosh, you are going to get some rest if I have to make you.”

He finally manages to clothe himself without standing. “You don’t have that authority, keep that in mind. Don’t start getting big ideas just because of a promotion. I can still make you a maid again, you know.”

A sigh of frustration escapes you and you turn to face him, your face stern. “Mr. Jindosh, I’m not trying to be insubordinate. You’re not taking care of yourself and I’m just … what if you had seriously hurt yourself and I wasn’t around to help you? What about that legacy you care so much about? If you meet your demise on a bathroom floor, what are they going to say about you?”

He watches you carefully for a moment, in silence. Instead of waiting for a response, you shake your head and continue with what you were doing. “This is going to sting a bit,” you say to him, dabbing alcohol onto a clean cloth. He pulls the bloody one away from his forehead and allows you to disinfect the area. This was your extent of knowledge in the medical field; you were just happy the wound wasn’t worse.

You watch as his dark eyes flinch with pain as the damp rag comes in contact with his open gash. He doesn’t make a sound or lean away from you, which reminds you that he’s had much greater injuries than this—the prosthetic, that is. After the area was cleaned up, you returned to the table and picked up the needle that you had left soaking in a jar of the disinfectant. “I’ll have to warn you, though, I’m horrible at sewing.”

“Oh, brilliant. Fortunately for you I don’t pay much attention to my own reflection, so I’ll never know.”

“I don’t think this will leave a visible scar. It’s deep, but it’s not wide. But, you know, some women like scars.”

He doesn’t say a word, but you practically hear him smirk.

After the needle had been threaded, you made your way back to the bedside and stood in front of him. “I’ll be careful, I promise. You can trust me” you vowed, brushing a strand of his hair out of the way. He looked different with his hair down around his sharp features.

“I don’t have a choice, now do I?”

Closing the gash took a little over fifteen minutes. You had to stand in front of him, his legs open to allow you to get closer. He watched you closely as you worked, making you incredibly self-aware the entire time. Though, he didn’t seem to want to make you uneasy; by all accounts, he just enjoyed studying your face while you were concentrated on something.

“There, that wasn’t so bad, hm?” you finish wiping away the last of the blood with the disinfected rag, picking up roll of bandages to close the area.

Kirin looks half-asleep by this point, his eyes half-lidded and his comments only half as witty as normal. He’s so clearly exhausted that it’s saddening.

You slow to a halt after finishing the bandages, your hands falling slowly from their spot near his temples to gently take his face into their grasp. His eyes flutter opened, just barely able to keep themselves from closing. “Will you please do something for me?” you say quietly, leaning in just a little further so that your stomach pressed against his chest. If he wanted, he could rest his head against your chest at this angle. But he keeps himself upright.

“If I can. What is it?”

You stare at him for a minute, pity rising up fast. Before he can protest, you press your lips against the newly wrapped bandages, pulling him into you so that you could hold him close for just a second. He goes rigid for an instant until your kiss ends and you move to nuzzle your face against the crown of his head. Then, his arms hesitantly raise to wrap around you, weakly holding you there against him. “Take better care of yourself. Please. Just let me help you this one time, then you can do whatever you want and I’ll never bother you again. Kirin, please.”

Your heart must have been very audible from where he was positioned, but he didn’t comment on it. In fact, he was very polite as he pulled away from you, leaning back to look you in the eyes. “Alright. Just this once.”

Your shoulders fall with a relieved sigh, “Thank you.”

He doesn’t make a move to let you go, large hands still on your waist. You feel his thumb rub small circles, something he usually only did when he was being very affectionate. There’s a second between the two of you were you have his face in your hands and his eyes locked on you, then in the next, you’re kissing him delicately, your hands threading into his wet hair. You’re trying to be careful and not hurt him, but at the same time, you’re feeling overwhelmed with emotion and are struggling to stop yourself.

And he’s not stopping either. His hands move from your waist to your ribcage, pulling you forward until you’re forced to put both knees on either side of him, straddling him while not putting weight on anything but the mattress. His lips move, but they don’t leave for very long before he readjusts and continues again, his breath warm against your face. His skin is so smooth under the collar of his evening shirt, your fingers trailing a little too far just to feel more of him. In return, his hands move closer to your chest, attempting to touch—

He flinches as the two of you accidently bump into one another, causing pain to shoot through his new wound. You become acutely aware of your position and the mysterious presence of something pressing against your thigh. “I—I’m so sorry. You should be resting. I don’t know what came over me,” for the first time since he had found out your attraction to him, the tables had turned. You were able to easily collect yourself while he stared with glossy, heated eyes and parted lips, looking equal amounts aroused and confused.

Your face was warm, but not with embarrassment. You were just very pleased.

“Alright, I’m going to go down to the kitchen and fetch you something to eat before you—how did you used to put it? Wither away.”

He visibly shakes his head in order to clear it, his voice lower than normal, “Then you’re coming back, yes?”

“To … to your room?”

His hands slide down your frame so that they’re back at your hips. “Where else, my dear?”

“I have work to do, you know,” you give him a wry smile, smoothing his hair back with one hand while the other rests fondly against his cheek. “Work that you hired me to do.”

“I’m giving you the day off.”

“You can’t just—,” you can’t stop yourself from laughing, “You need rest.”

“I can assure you, madam, that I would sleep just as comfortably with you there if not more so.”

You were starting to grow quiet fond of this side of him; when he’s not being a pretentious bastard and expresses himself truthfully. The corners of your mouth tug upward and you sigh. “You know I have appointments to keep. And you should be resting, not … anything else. That wasn’t part of the deal, remember?”

He narrowed his eyes at you, his head clearing up a little better. “Oh, yes. We made an agreement not to proceed here until the business with the Duke was done … who’s confounded idea was that, I wonder?”

“Who’s to say?” you hate to untangle yourself from his arms; you had missed his touch more than you cared to admit. But you needed to get him something to eat before he starved to death. “I’ll be back in just a moment.”

He nodded to you, watching silently as you left toward the elevator, headed for the kitchen.

Six hours had passed and Kirin was still sleeping. This was the longest he had rested in years, to your knowledge. Every so often, you would go up and check on him to make sure he hadn’t wondered back off to his office only to find him peacefully asleep.

It relieved you greatly.

In your office you prepared for your next appointment, running your fingers along your lips while you thought. You would have been more than happy to let things continue the way they were going earlier, but he was tired and injured; it would have been wrong.

Besides, you had several receipts and guests coming tonight to purchase Jindosh’s clockworks. The first half had already come and gone, only two or three could actually afford one. You’d gotten a couple of threats, but oddly enough, none of them attempted to harm you when a clockwork was present. The next visitor had been on the waiting list for a while now, since before Jindosh had given you the job. He had repeatedly put this person farther and farther back with little comments by the name such as, ‘Keeps threatening to kill me. Amusing, but annoying’ and ‘Has attempted to haggle with me on five different occasions. Offers me half as much as required. Move next appointment back a month.’

While part of you thought it was amusing how petty the grand inventor could be at times, the other part of you dreaded meeting this individual who he had spurned so many times.

Collecting your clipboard, receipt, and coin purse, you hastily made you way to the waiting room to greet the soon-to-arrive guests. One improvement you had made to Jindosh’s system was your punctuality. No guest had to wait more than two minutes to meet with you and you were fairly quick to get them to purchase a clockwork. The only people who wanted Jindosh specifically were nobles, and these individuals were shadier than that. They were content with getting the deal done quickly and effectively.

In truth, it felt a little criminal to sell to these people. You legally couldn’t ask what they needed a clockwork for or how they acquired the coin to pay for one or two at a time. So most nights, you looked the other way and simply did your job.

After stepping out of your office, you pulled the lever and watched it rise upward. While you waited for the guest room to lock into place, you sifted through the paperwork on the clip board in search of the customer’s name.

Before you could find it, you heard the sound of glass shattering, your head snapping up. The guestroom was full of men and women, six or seven, who were all standing except for one. This many guests were usually not to be expected. They had, seemingly, already made it through their rationed amount of alcohol and were getting a little rowdy by the time you got there, even though you were fairly on time.

Their eyes turned to you, narrow slits as their body language turned menacing.

You took a deep breath, trying not to think about how Kirin was in no physical shape to come to your aid in case of an emergency. “I apologize if you were kept waiting. I didn’t get the time on the schedule confused, did I, Mister … ?”

The man seated slowly stands, his back still to you. He adjusts his jacket; you can safely assume he’s buttoning it and adjusting the cuffs. He’s tall and gangly, but his posture makes him intimidating.

“Paolo,” he says. “Most just call me Paolo.”

Do you know how hard it is to refrain from writing the most intense sex scene for these two because??

It is very difficult.

#kirin jindosh #kirin jindosh x reader #kirin jindosh imagine #kirin #jindosh #dishonored #dishonored 2 #dh #dh2 #jindosh x reader #kirin x reader #a decade gone #a decade gone ch 7 #paolo #mention #he's gonna be a bigger character soon what uppp

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